July 5, 2006

  • 07/05/06
T.H.E. Newsletter: July 5, 2006
July 5, 2006
WEEKLY SECTIONS

  • Campus K12 Rebrands Itself as Trailblazer Learning

    Campus K12, a provider of online instructional management solutions, is launching its new corporate brand, Trailblazer Learning, at the NECC show in San Diego, CA, this week (booth #2742). As Trailblazer Learning, the company will continue to be fully committed to bringing innovative technologies together with learning content and resources from top providers to help schools, teachers, and students personalize development to enhance teaching and learning. The company is also poised to announce new product enhancements and new content partners in the months ahead. Stay tuned to the company’s new Web site for these new additions to its portfolio. Additionally, Trailblazer Learner will move its headquarters to the west side of Grand Rapids, MI, effective this August, and has a new phone number (866-5-BLAZER) and contact e-mail address for customers.

  • Idaho BOE Extends Statewide Initiative with PLATO Learning

    The Idaho State Board of Education unanimously approved a one-year, $600,000 option to extend its statewide contract with PLATO Learning to provide students with standards-aligned curriculum, as well as formative and benchmark assessments. The statewide initiative is funded under Title VI of the No Child Left Behind Act. For the past two years, the Idaho State Board of Education has used PLATO Instructional Solutions as part of its statewide initiative to create a consistent curriculum support system to its school districts. The program—the Idaho PLATO Learning Network (I-PLN)—reaches K-12 schools, juvenile corrections, and detention facilities, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, adult correctional education facilities, and college of education teacher preparation programs. The partnership between PLATO Learning and the Idaho Board of Education is a statewide effort to remediate missing skills and improve Idaho Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) scores.

    For the full story, click here.

  • 2006 Teachers Talk Tech Survey Reveals What Drives Teacher, Student Performance

    CDW-G has announced the results of the 2006 Teachers Talk Tech survey. The in-depth survey of more than 1,000 K-12 teachers nationwide reveals that deeper integration of technology and the core curriculum enhances both teacher and student performance. The survey also indicates that with improved technology-related professional development, the gap between technology and the core curriculum shrinks, allowing near-seamless integration of the two. Among other data points, the survey indicates that teachers increasingly rely upon technology to teach critical-thinking skills (68 percent in 2006 vs. 59 percent in 2005) and scientific concepts (60 percent in 2006 vs. 51 percent in 2005). Other highlights of the fourth annual Teachers Talk Tech survey include:
    -- 79 percent of teachers believe technology is a key tool for teaching and engaging students
    -- 67 percent of teachers integrate technology into their classroom at least three times a week; 37 percent use technology daily in the classroom
    -- 91 percent of teachers agree that classroom technology is preparing students for the 21st century work world

  • For the full report, click here.

  • Edward Zelich Named Principal of Hatfield Elementary School

    Edward Zelich will replace outgoing Hatfield Elementary School (PA) Principal William Ainsley who retired at the close of this school year. Zelich has served as high school assistant principal for three years. The board set his new salary at $75,348. Laurie DiCenzo, high school attendance officer and school psychologist, was promoted to Zelich’s former position as assistant high school principal. Her starting salary was set at $69,320 for the first year, with increases slated for the second and third years of the contract. The board is unsure if DiCenzo’s position will be filled.

  • Share Your Success
     Whether your district just appointed a new superintendent or your school finally hired that new tech coordinator, we want to know! Please share your staff and faculty successes with us by sending the person's name; title; school, district, and location information; any relevant educational and occupational background; and a high-resolution color image of the person to [email protected]


Xerox Corp. has launched the Xerox WorkCentre 4118 desktop multifunction device to give small offices the advanced copying, printing, scanning, and faxing capabilities typically found in higher-end multifunction systems. The WorkCentre 4118 copies and prints at 18 pages per minute and is available in two configurations: The WorkCentre 4118P copies and prints, while the WorkCentre 4118X adds faxing and color scanning (up to 4,800 dpi). Both systems offer advanced copying features, such as ID Card Copy that enables users to copy both sides of a document. The WorkCentre 4118 also comes with Nuance’s OmniPage SE v4.0 software, which converts paper into editable electronic documents so schools can quickly turn stacks of paper into word processing and spreadsheet documents. Pricing starts at $799.


Toshiba’s Digital Products Division recently unveiled its first widescreen tablet PC with the launch of the Tecra M7. Toshiba’s sixth-generation convertible tablet PC is less than six pounds and is the world’s first tablet PC to incorporate a 14.1-inch diagonal widescreen WXGA+ display with tablet PC support. This large display provides users with a greater amount of screen real estate to maximize the tablet PC’s digital ink capabilities. In large or individual settings, such as meetings and lectures, the Tecra can be used as a mobile whiteboard because the rotating function of the display makes it easy to collect data and share information with an audience. The Tecra M7 also incorporates Toshiba’s exclusive EasyGuard technology, which is a series of hardware and software enhancements designed to boost mobile security, system and data integrity, network connectivity and overall ease of use. Pricing starts at $1,599.



http://www.sikids.com
This online counterpart to the Sports Illustrated for Kids magazine offers a fun, safe environment for kids with related sports news, games, and interactive features that are constantly being updated.


http://www.wtvl.k12.me.us
Waterville Public Schools has just launched it revamped Web site to include news as it happens in the school system, as well as stories about adult education and happenings at the local vocational school. The Web site will also continue to offer information about the district’s mission, curriculum, events, jobs, resources, and the community.

For a complete listing of up-to-date conference information, visit T.H.E. Conference Calendar, T.H.E. Journal 's comprehensive conference database, at: http://www.theconferencecalendar.com

Call for Papers!!!

THE Journal is currently looking for the following types of articles as we prepare for our 2006 issues:

  • School Perspectives —discuss a specific topic, trend, or concern about education technology.

  • Wishlist/Shortlist —a simple list of the technology (e.g., wireless, laptops, etc.) you're looking at to solve a challenge in your school/district, and an accompanying “shortlist” of vendors you're looking at to solve those challenges.

If you have a potential article, or questions about the above topics, please e-mail [email protected]

THE Institute and AOL @ SCHOOL Offer New Online Course for Educators
“Internet Literacy – Making the Most of the Web,” is a new online course for educators interested in using the World Wide Web in teaching and learning. Designed for elementary and secondary school teachers, the course provides tools for educators to integrate technology into their curricula to improve student achievement and meet NCLB requirements. The cost is $79 per person; course moderation and graduate credit are additional options. “Internet Literacy – Making the Most of the Web," is designed to be useful both for educators new to using technology in teaching and learning and for tech-savvy veterans.
For complete course details and to register, go to http://www.thejournal.com/institute/course510.cfm.

Four Integrating Technology Courses from T.H.E. Institute
 T.H.E. Institute is offering four online professional development courses to help educators comply with NCLB requirements and use technology more successfully in the classroom. The cost is $149 per course, which includes a $10 per person per course administration fee for documentation of clock hours and a certificate of completion. Course moderation and graduate credit are additional options; volume discounts are available. Anyone who enrolls in a course will receive individual access to the netTrekker site, as well as free individual access to United Learning's unitedstreaming site. In addition, special pricing is available for educators in districts that have purchased Glencoe/McGraw-Hill's TechCONNECT.

Integrating Technology in the Classroom Courses: Social Studies — Available Now; Science — Available Now; English/Language Arts— Available Now; Mathematics — Available Now

For more information, log on to http://www.thejournal.com/institute/IntegratingTech.cfm.

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THE Newsletter is a bulletin comprised of recent announcements that affect the education community. Our goal is to keep our readers well informed with the most up to date news. In addition, we hope our audience will share with us their opinions regarding educational technology issues so we may be certain we are covering the topics that are of most interest to them. Please direct any questions or comments about THE Newsletter to [email protected]

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