Tech Direction

What do Parents Think about Using Technology In School?

techdirections — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:33:37 +0000

While at the T+L Conference, I had the opportunity to sit in on the Blackboard Inc.sponsored presentation that released a survey report by Project Tomorrow®, which indicates that while parents, K-12 students and educators agree that using technology is essential to learning and student success, parents are dissatisfied with the technology skills their children are learning in schools.

According to the survey, only one-third of parents and 40 percent of students in grades 6 through 12 believe that schools are doing a good job of preparing students for the 21st century. In contrast, more than half of principals surveyed believe they are doing a good job of preparing students.

“The disconnect between educators and parents reveals the need for schools to improve the integration of technology into the learning environment and students’ learning experiences,” said Julie Evans, CEO of Project Tomorrow. “Parents do not feel that schools are effectively preparing students for the jobs of the 21st century, and view technology implementation as essential to student success.”

Parents believe that teachers need more training and more access to up-to-date technology and support school adoption of 21st century technology-infused approaches to teaching and learning, ranging from online textbooks to tools such as interactive white boards, laptops for students, computer projection devices and technology based organizational tools.

“As a parent, I want my son’s school to provide a world-class education and prepare him with the skills he needs for the jobs of the future,” said Pam Young, a parent from Mission Viejo, Calif. “Using technology in school is key to achieving both of these objectives. I think it is essential that our schools provide opportunities for students to use a wide range of new technologies in the classroom, and that the teachers are well trained in how to use technology to increase student achievement.”

The findings are included in the report Learning in the 21st Century: Parents’ Perspectives, Parents’ Priorities, which examines parent responses to the aspirations of students for technology enhanced learning environments. The data is from Project Tomorrow’s Speak Up project, an annual survey which has collected and reported on the views of more than 335,000 U.S. K-12 students, parents and educators about online education and 21st century learning.

To view the report, visit http://www.blackboard.com/k12/education21c

Net Cetera: Chatting with Kids About Being Online

techdirections — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:01:59 +0000

Chatting with Kids About Being Online is the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) newest online safety publication: it’s a guide for parents with practical tips to help kids navigate the online world. The guide encourages parents to reduce the risks by talking to kids about how they communicate – online and off – and helping kids engage in conduct they can be proud of. Net Cetera covers what parents need to know, where to go for more information, and issues to raise with kids about living their lives online.

Net Cetera is available in Spanish, and schools can order the publication in bulk at http://www.onguardonline.gov/topics/net-cetera.aspx

Kinder Kids draw

techdirections — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 15:10:47 +0000

Check out this new Wiki site where kids are drawing pictures about what we learn in class, and then recording their thinking and reflections. All of the global partners have the chance to watch and listen to their work and then use VoiceThread to comment. This is a great way to share our learning around the world!

visit http://kinderkidsdraw.wikispaces.com/ for more information on the Kinder Kids Draw program.

H1N1 Prevention

techdirections — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 23:03:01 +0000

Dan Gillette and Lynne Meadows have created an informative video to educate staff, students, and families about H1N1 prevention.

This resource will begin airing on FCSTV this week and is located on the District website under the H1N1 information on the following website:

http://tinyurl.com/nwf5gs

Please encourage principals to post the video link on their school websites. The more we share it with families, the better. Please contact Allison Toller at 404-763-6831 or toller@fultonschools.org if you have questions or need additional information

Supt. Cox Launches New Teacher Tools

techdirections — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 23:00:08 +0000

The following two online teacher tools have been launched by State Superintendent Kathy Cox. These opportunities expand the state partnerships with Georgia Public Broadcasting/PBS, TeacherLine, and Verizon’s Thinkfinity.

PBS TeacherLine PBS TeacherLine is an online tool that offers low-cost, high-quality professional development classes to teachers so they can improve their abilities and earns the Professional Learning Units (PLUs) they need to maintain their certification. The Georgia Department of Education has reviewed and approved PBS TeacherLine’s English, Language Arts, and Mathematics classes. The classes are aligned with our state standards and the high expectations for teachers in Georgia. A list of GaDOE endorsed classes is attached to this email. To learn more about PBS TeacherLine, visit www.gpb.org/education and click on “PBS TeacherLine” or go to http://www.teacherlinesoutheast.org/
Verizon Thinkfinity Verizon Thinkfinity is a free, online tool that provides more than 55,000 lesson plans, activities, and other resources for classroom teachers. The content has been developed in coordination with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Council for Economic Education, the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, and many other highly-regarded groups. Many of the resources directly linked to the Georgia Performance Standards and can help teachers develop rigorous and relevant lessons for their students quickly and easily. Teachers can access www.thinkfinity.org to learn more about Verizon’s Thinkfinity. Teachers can also access Thinkfinity resources directly tied to the Georgia Performance Standards at www.georgiastandards.org

College Board and Siemens Foundation Competition

techdirections — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:35:31 +0000

In partnership with the College Board, the Siemens Foundation established the Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology and the Siemens Awards for Advanced Placement. The Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to providing scholarships and increasing access to higher education for talented mathematics, science, engineering, and technology students in the United States.

The Siemens Competition seeks to promote excellence by encouraging students to undertake individual or team research projects. It fosters intensive research that improves students’ understanding of the value of scientific study and informs their consideration of future careers in these disciplines.

You can compete as an individual or as a member of a team. Individual projects promote independent research. Team projects foster collaborative research efforts, as well as individual contributions to the cooperative endeavor.

Scholarships for winning projects range from $1,000 to $100,000.

Visit http://www.collegeboard.com/siemens/ for application information.

techdirections — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:47:20 +0000

Discovery Education Renews Partnership with Georgia Public Broadcasting Providing Educators and Students Statewide High-Quality Digital Content

Discovery Education —Thursday, September 03, 2009

Discovery Education To Continue Providing Georgia Students and Teachers Powerful Digital Resources Through the GPB Education Streaming Service

Silver Spring, Md. (Sept. 3, 2009) – Discovery Education recently renewed its agreement with Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB) continuing the distribution of Discovery Education digital content to classrooms statewide through the GPB Education Streaming service for the next three years. Since the inception of the Discovery Education-GPB partnership in 2001, Georgia educators have viewed more than 11 million videos on-demand.

GPB’s education division provides top-quality media, educational products and services designed to reach all Georgia learners. Discovery Education’s content and GPB’s locally-produced educational videos have been downloaded or streamed more than 3 million times in the last year by more than two thirds of Georgia’s approximately 116,000 educators.

The GPB Education Streaming service offers teachers and students an online library of more than 7,000 videos and 58,000 video clips – including more than 700 local and state productions – aligned to Georgia academic performance standards. Searchable by keyword, content area and grade level, the rich video content and other digital assets delivered to schools by GPB Education Streaming enhance curriculum and engage today’s students in learning.

“Our partnership with Discovery Education helps GPB fulfill its core mission of providing informative and enriching programming and educational resources,” says GPB President and Executive Director Teya Ryan. “We are pleased to continue to work with Discovery Education to provide the highest quality digital content currently available to educators and students.”

“Across Georgia, the letters ‘GPB’ are synonymous with high-quality educational services, and we are pleased to continue our strong relationship with this outstanding partner,” commented Andy Schaefer, Discovery Education Vice President. “The tremendous usage of this service by Georgia teachers speaks well of GPB’s efforts to provide the best educational resources available.”

The Discovery Educator Network (DEN), a global community of more than 100,000 educators passionate about integrating media into classroom curriculum, also will continue to support the educators served by GPB. Through the DEN, educators have unlimited access to a wide range of professional development opportunities, teacher generated projects and tools.

For more information on Georgia Public Broadcasting’s educational services, please visit www.gpb.org.

For more information on Discovery Education content, or any other products and services from Discovery Education, please visit www.discoveryeducation.com or call 800-323-9084.

About Discovery Education
Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) revolutionized television with Discovery Channel and is now transforming classrooms through Discovery Education. Powered by the number one nonfiction media company in the world, Discovery Education combines scientifically proven, standards-based digital media and a dynamic user community in order to empower teachers to improve student achievement. Already, more than half of all U.S. schools access Discovery Education digital services. Explore the future of education at
www.discoveryeducation.com.

Digital Voice Recorders

techdirections — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 19:23:51 +0000

Today’s technology makes it so easy to create a podcast that can be used for teaching or learning. Last spring we found out just how easy creating a podcast could be when we purchased several digital voice recorders in order to record some great teaching and learning practices presented at the “Best Practices Conference.” We opted for a recorder that sold for under $60. All we needed to do was simply click to start, and then click to stop. Operating on a AAA battery, the recorder did a great job capturing high quality sound which was easily posted online by means of the devices USB.

Digital voice recorders can be used by teachers to easily record their lessons and later make them available for student review. Podcasts support our concept of 24/7 learning. Students can listen from any anywhere and at anytime they have access to the internet, or can download a podcast to an iPod or MP3 player for access anywhere.

With a voice recorder, students can act as classroom reporters who ask questions and record responses to anecdotal surveys, community and school information, and they can even collect digital stories that chronicle parents, relatives and neighbors thoughts and recollections about earlier times. Students can even record themselves reading a story in order to analyze their own reading and/or presentation skills.

Being Inspired Storytellers

techdirections — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:15:24 +0000

This morning I spent a few minutes viewing a quick video on work spaces that inspire creativity. Duarte Design is a CA company that creates inspired PowerPoint presentations for business and industry, and while watching their video, I was struck by the similarities that their office spaces held to our classrooms. Duarte offers its employees some of the same tools that we use when we are teaching and learning. Whiteboards, computers, and LCD projectors were placed so that collaborative teamwork could produce world class PowerPoint presentations.

When inspired, our creativity is unleashed, and what might be a dull, even forgetable PowerPoint can become an engaging, powerful story that’s remembered over time. Teaching in a performance based classroom provides many opportunities for students to ‘show what they know’ using PowerPoint. We can help our students become better presenters by helping them understand the power of digital storytelling. If you would like to learn more about the best practices for digital storytelling visit the University of Houston’s digital storytelling website.

GSO to Go – Georgia’s Very Own GPS Newsletter

techdirections — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 16:59:37 +0000

Georgia educators have so many resources at their fingertips. I love GSO to GO. It’s an online, colorful newsletter with current topics covering information that impacts the GPS while promoting today’s technical resources over the web. This month features a Back to School Essentials article that links to a downloadable Back to School Checklist addressing the physical setting of your classroom, student preparation, and important classroom procedures as well as a Welcome Back to School PowerPoint presentation. What new teacher wouldn’t like to have these in hand without having to start from scratch!

View your own copy of GSO to GO, or listen to the GSO to GO Voices podcast to catch highlights from the monthly news.