How can gaming affect your brain and biological acuteness? It is an on-going argument about the effects of gaming. Dr. Bavelier share a laboratory analysis of how gaming can improve your sight, awareness and other biological skills.
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Sunday, December 22, 2013
Your Brain on Video Games
How can gaming affect your brain and biological acuteness? It is an on-going argument about the effects of gaming. Dr. Bavelier share a laboratory analysis of how gaming can improve your sight, awareness and other biological skills.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Looking for an AWESOME Instructional Technology Masters Program?
UNI Instructional Technology Masters Program from Leigh Zeitz
If you are looking for a 21st Century Instructional Technology Masters program, Look no further!!!
Review the slideshow above and see how our program provides opportunities to engage in 21st Century Learning, Instructional Design and Research.
For further information, visit our website at http://uni.edu/itech
Learn about our 2-year Online Masters Program that begins in June, 2014
If you are looking for a 21st Century Instructional Technology Masters program, Look no further!!!
Review the slideshow above and see how our program provides opportunities to engage in 21st Century Learning, Instructional Design and Research.
For further information, visit our website at http://uni.edu/itech
Learn about our 2-year Online Masters Program that begins in June, 2014
Thursday, November 07, 2013
Horton Hears a Tweet? ABSOLUTELY!!!
What a WONDERFUL title: Horton Hears a Tweet!!! This is the title of an EduCause article by Joanna Dunlap and Patrick Lowenthal is a comprehensive and insightful article about how Twitter can fulfill the "Challenge of Student Engagement". What I really like about this article is that they compare the process of using Twitter for communication with the process of using an LMS. They talk about how clunky using the LMS for communication can be. It follows the process of:
Log In>Access Shell>Locate Forum>Post Message>Wait for Response
When compared to Twitter's "natural free-flowing, just-in-time" connection, this is a system for documenting communication rather than fostering it.
Dunlap and Lowenthal discuss the interactivity of using Twitter with both students and professionals. They talk about the positive results and benefits for using Twitter for back-channeling and on-going relevant discussions. They even share events where students answered their own questions using Twitter as an entre to their PLN. They posted questions about projects and received responses in 10 minutes. The only thing that is missing is a discussion of the negatives of using Twitter - - - - I must admit that I can't think of any either, but I thought that they might have some ideas. =-)
This article is MUST-READ material for educators and students alike. They even include a robust list of Additional Readings and Resources.
What do you think? Have you found Twitter to be as advantageous as they say?
Z
Related articles
Monday, November 04, 2013
Infants going Mobile
Are YOUR kids using technology?
Of course they are. My 2-year old grandson is continually grabbing my iPhone from me and then using it to identify animals, play songs, shake rattles, play drums, take photos and even make the occasional phone call.
While some educators argue that infants are too young to use these tools, the fact of the matter is that our kids are learning through using technology. A recent study by Common Sense Media found that 8% of children under 2 years old use mobile devices at least weekly. The numbers jump from there. One of the reasons for this huge use is that in the past 2 years, smartphone ownership has increased from 41% to 62%. Tablet use has jumped from 8% to 40% in the past 2 years as well. Time spent on non-mobile computers has dropped sharply.
Read the rest of the facts on usage at the Buzzfeed article about this phenomenon, The Babies are Going Mobile. Thanks for telling me about this posting, Zach Benton-Slocum.
Acknowledgement of these stats is not saying that technology should replace using crayons or playing on the playground or climbing trees. It is just that these mobile devices can expand their learning experiences.
What are your experiences in your students/children using mobile devices?
Z
Of course they are. My 2-year old grandson is continually grabbing my iPhone from me and then using it to identify animals, play songs, shake rattles, play drums, take photos and even make the occasional phone call.
While some educators argue that infants are too young to use these tools, the fact of the matter is that our kids are learning through using technology. A recent study by Common Sense Media found that 8% of children under 2 years old use mobile devices at least weekly. The numbers jump from there. One of the reasons for this huge use is that in the past 2 years, smartphone ownership has increased from 41% to 62%. Tablet use has jumped from 8% to 40% in the past 2 years as well. Time spent on non-mobile computers has dropped sharply.
Read the rest of the facts on usage at the Buzzfeed article about this phenomenon, The Babies are Going Mobile. Thanks for telling me about this posting, Zach Benton-Slocum.
Acknowledgement of these stats is not saying that technology should replace using crayons or playing on the playground or climbing trees. It is just that these mobile devices can expand their learning experiences.
What are your experiences in your students/children using mobile devices?
Z
Thursday, October 31, 2013
21st Century Learning is ALL ABOUT Moving Beyond Uncomfortable Beginnings
I was just reading through my email when I found a link to a PBL article about Moving Beyond Uncomfortable Beginnings by Theresa Chimenti
This article rang a bell for me because the author talked about a student who "was really frustrated because I was making her think." I know that this is true because I have experienced this myself. I teach courses in an unconventional manner where I want to see the students explore the world and then make decisions on their own. I have had students in tears saying "Why can't you just tell me what I need to know and then ask me on a test on Friday?"
The key to creating successful 21st Century Learning Environments is to pose difficult questions that require learners to make decisions and explore the world. Read the article to see if anything rings true. Do you have additional resources or ideas you want to share?
Z
Related articles
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Guest Blog: Why Do Schools Begin 1:1 Computing Initiatives in Iowa? - Part 2
Dr. Jerry Schnabel |
In my last post, we looked at factors that did not influence
superintendents to implement a 1:1 initiative in their district. These included
“keeping up with the Jones,” attracting students from
neighboring districts, increased student achievement and budget. So . .
. onto factors that did influence their decision:
School Visitations:
When I had finished the interviews with the superintendents, my first
observation was that the decision to implement a 1:1 initiative was not made in
isolation. Without exception, a factor
that influenced the superintendent’s decision was visits to others schools that
had implemented a 1:1 initiative. All the superintendents I interviewed told me that they had sent
teams to schools that had already implemented a 1:1 initiative to see for
themselves, firsthand, a program that was already in place. These teams consisted of teachers,
administrators and in some cases school board members and students. The number of visits each team made to other
schools ranged from 3-20.
Political
Considerations: The superintendents also talked about the multiple efforts
they undertook to work with staff, school board, parents and the broader
community to engage and keep them informed of the progress of the
consideration. Most superintendents
assumed the students would be receptive to the idea, but in one instance,
students got the notion that once the computers arrived, all the teachers would
be fired and students would receive their education strictly via the
computer. So, a lesson learned was not
to overlook the students and to enlist them in the exploration process.
Equity: Equity was another factor that influenced the
superintendents in the study in their decision to implement a 1:1 initiative. The superintendents talked about equity in
terms of equal access to learning opportunities for all students. These
opportunities included access to technology and online resources.
Staff Readiness: The superintendents in the study indicated staff
readiness was an additional factor that influenced their decision. Staff
readiness fell into two categories. The first was characterized by the staff
being open to or supporting the idea of implementing a 1:1 initiative. The
other category of staff readiness was their comfort using the technology. There was a consensus among the
superintendents that staff would need to gain further technology skills, but
none of the superintendents were held back because of the technology skill
level of the staff. Districts were also
on a continuum of teacher possessing the pedagogical skills required to teach
in a one-to-one classroom. But all superintendents
felt their staff could gain this understanding through training and experience
in the one-to-one classroom.
Student Engagement: This was an important factor in the decision. One superintendent remarked that “when we
observed and went to other schools and we saw student involvement in the
classroom, that became our number one thought.
What a wonderful thing—you have 27 kids in class, everybody is involved,
everybody is interested.” Even once
implemented, when the students told the administration in one district that
they were not using the computers enough, the district’s response was to send
the students to another district that was using the technology successfully.
Students wanted to be engaged and after the visit to another district, they
returned to their district and helped design changes in the classroom that
increased student engagement.
Best for Students: The most important factor that influenced
superintendents to implement a 1:1 initiative was they felt it was what was
best for students. This was an
unexpected finding and the conclusion was based on examination of the
transcripts in response to the question: “As you reflect on the various factors
that influenced your decision to become a one-to-one school, what was the most
important?” One Superintendent articulated
acting in the best interest of children in terms of increased opportunities for
students being the most important factor in her decision. “To be able to create things for their
classes and projects. To have an endless
amount of resources to do that. I see
some of the projects that our kids are doing and I feel that it has been a
smashing success with seeing the kids create stuff even more amazing than we
thought they would when you give them these tools.”
This was also cross-referenced
using Wordle, an online tool found at http://www.wordle.net/.
When the transcripts of the
interviewee’s answers were displayed in Wordle, “important” and “kids” are used
most often and thus, appear as the largest words. The words that were used most frequently
after that included “students,” “involvement,” “education,” “everybody” and
“projects.” In contrast, when asked, “as
you reflect on the various factors that influenced your decision to become a
one-to-one school, what was the least important?” the word “kids” does not
appear.
Figure 1: Wordle Display for the Most Important Influence on the
1:1 Decision
As the map of 1:1
districts in Iowa continues to add more schools, there is a likelihood that
many of the factors discussed in this piece influenced the decisions to
implement the 1:1 initiative. And it’s
good to know that these decisions are not being made to “keep up with the
Jones” but rather to do what is best for students.
Jerry Schnabel is the
Director of Information and Technology Services at AEA 267
in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He may be reached via email at: jschnabel@aea267.k12.ia.us
Thursday, October 03, 2013
21st Century Classes are Teacher-Led but Student-Driven - Vlog
Here it is . . . I have been wanting to use the Vlog (Video Blog) format for my blog for a LONG time so I decided to do it today to tell you about an AWESOME experience I had in class last Tuesday night.
I teach two 1.5 hour online courses on Tuesday night through Adobe Connect. These are video conferencing sessions that allow the students and me to keep a connection that we wouldn't have otherwise.
This past Tuesday, I was meeting with my Emerging Instructional Technology class. This is a class of 15 students who are a mixture of Masters students and Undergraduate students. Good group of people. I had decided to spend some time getting feedback about how the class had been running. I received the typical feedback about too much work, but as we probed their comments we found that there was a difference between the perceptions of the undergraduates and the graduates . . .
I am not going say anymore or you won't need to watch this 7-minute video.
Tell me what you think and whether or not I should continue with periodic vlogs like this.
I teach two 1.5 hour online courses on Tuesday night through Adobe Connect. These are video conferencing sessions that allow the students and me to keep a connection that we wouldn't have otherwise.
This past Tuesday, I was meeting with my Emerging Instructional Technology class. This is a class of 15 students who are a mixture of Masters students and Undergraduate students. Good group of people. I had decided to spend some time getting feedback about how the class had been running. I received the typical feedback about too much work, but as we probed their comments we found that there was a difference between the perceptions of the undergraduates and the graduates . . .
I am not going say anymore or you won't need to watch this 7-minute video.
Tell me what you think and whether or not I should continue with periodic vlogs like this.
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