In the ninth installment of their monthly column, blended learning experts Michael B. Horn and Heather Staker predict how blended learning programs will evolve in 2013.
- By Michael Horn, Heather Staker
- 12/18/12
It’s necessary in this era of accountability for teachers to have a classroom site, and to post their pages among those of the school or district site. The name of the school or district and its logo should appear on all pages to provide evidence of an official connection and a unifying element among all teachers’ sites at the school. Unfortunately, I don’t always see this.
A bumper sticker I often saw in the 1960s proclaimed, “It will be a great day when our schools get all the money they need and the Air Force has to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber.” I always thought the sentiment was naive and unrealistic. Yet recently...
- By Geoffrey H. Fletcher
- 03/01/10
The start of any school year can be very stressful for a building- or district-level technology director. To deal with the pressure, here are a few tips to help you get through the first few weeks. Some of these suggestions are too late to implement this year; however, it’s never too early to start planning ahead for next year.
"Try it! You might like it!" is not a sufficient reason for initiating flipped instruction. What are the questions educators should be asking in order to ensure the best outcomes for students?
- By Patricia Deubel
- 01/16/13
There's a bumpy road ahead on the way to a successful Common Core State Standards movement. Already states and districts are examining the match between current standards, what they currently teach at various grade levels, and the CCSS. Of particular significance is that online tests will become the norm in the years ahead for many states. But are schools and teachers ready for this? Should you be concerned?
- By Patricia Deubel
- 09/15/10
News flash! Young children like technology! Early childhood programs can reinforce safe and appropriate usage by being intentional with their policies and instructional practices.
- By Gail Lovely, Deb Moberly
- 11/07/12
Being "ready-to-hand," a mouse (the computer kind) is a means to end: While using a mouse you don’t think about it, per se, but rather you think about menus dropping down when mouse-clicked, the cursor being positioned, etc. The "kids these days" use smartphones, as they are "ready-to-hand," as a means to an end--with the end being 24/7, all the time, everywhere learning.
- By Cathie Norris, Elliot Soloway
- 01/28/13
The implications for HTML5 technologies on learning are profound. As technologies become more "intelligent" and requirements shift away from the manual skills needed to use them, teaching and learning can focus more clearly on the processes of thinking and application.
It's not unusual for school district staff members to emulate Lewis Carroll's Mad Hatter, wearing six or eight hats simultaneously in their everyday efforts. Sometimes, the hat hardest to wear is IT management, which is important and challenging at the same time.