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The Weekend Roundup - June 30th, 2013

6/30/2013

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Welcome back!  I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!  If you haven't heard, the International Society for Technology in Educaiton (ISTE) just wrapped up their annual conference, so to start today, here are some of the latest reports, reflections,  and articles from the conference:

News From ISTE 2013

  • STEM in the 21st Century Classroom
  • A 5-Step Plan for Improving E-Rate
  • Twitter Reactions from ISTE
  • Is Vine the New Instagram?
  • The Latest Trends in Online Learning
  • Leading the Way with Soial Media
  • New Ways to Individualize Instruction
  • Sparks Created at ISTE
  • ISTE's Top Ten Conversations
  • Cybersecurity is Top of Mind for Educators

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And now to continue with your regularly scheduled Roundup...  We'll start with Jamie Forshey over at EduTech for Teachers who has a new post about how we can"Morph into a 21st Century Teacher."  She discusses how there is more to becoming a 21st century teacher than just apps and technology, like focusing on critical thinking and core competencies.  Forshey makes some great points that I think are sometimes overlooked in our hurry to adopt the latest technology.


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Next, Dr. Jackie Gerstein at User Generated Education continues on a similar note with a piece on "Resilience: The Other 21st Century Skills."  It's the second part in her series (the first covered Grit) and she discusses characteristics of resiliency, skills that promote resiliency, and much more.  Like her first article on the topic, this post is definitely worth your time.  


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Edudemic has a few new posts from the weekend, first up is "A Free Tool Designed to Connect All Schools in the U.S."  The article is about the group Connect All Schools which is a collection of organizations who are coming together with the goal of helping students, teachers, and schools build a more common understanding of education within our global society.

Edudemic also has a post discussing "5 Ways to Use Online Surveys in the Classroom."  The article discusses how teachers can use online survey tools (such as Survey Monkey) to help prepare curriculum, evaluate learning, receive end of the year feedback, learn about student life outside the classroom, and just for some good old-fashioned fun!


Finally, Edudemic writes about "3 Social Networks Teachers Should Try Out."  The post discusses the educational and professional advantages teachers can gain from joining networks like LinkedIn, Google+ and Twitter.  If you haven't checked out these social networks before, they're worth the effort!


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If you're looking to create a classroom newspaper, a good place to start would be Educational Technology's new post on "2 Classroom Newspaper Templates using Google Docs."  Speaking of Google, if you're a Google Reader user, today is the last day the service will be active, but Ed Tech has you covered with "5 Great Alternatives to Google Reader."


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Emerging Ed Tech has a new collection of "8 Great Videos About the Flipped Classroom."  Flipped classes (where students learn content outside of the classroom via online instruction and put the material to practice inside the classroom) are becoming more popular every day.  If you're considering flipping (or already have) this collection of videos is a great resource.  


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Speaking of Flipped Classrooms, Teach Thought has a new post on "3 Common Barriers to Success in a Flipped Classroom Model."  The article discusses how a flipped classroom can quickly be derailed if the material is too easy or too hard, if the students are not motivated, and if the students cannot become deeply engaged with the material.  

Teach Thought also has a brief article on "A Visual LIbrary of Apps for Teachers,"  which is mainly a reflection over this collection (click for full-size):

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The Ed Tech Review has two solid new articles up from the weekend, the first of which discusses the "Power of Social Media in Education."  The post covers a ton of examples of social media being used productively in education; everything from podcasts to Pinterest.  And to follow that up, the ETR writes about "Why Teachers Who Use Technology Will Replace Teachers Who Don't."  The article discusses the huge difference that using technology effectively in the classroom can make.  


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Kelly Tenkely at iLearn Technology has a new review of "Camp Virtual by Common Sense Media."  Tenkely suggests using using Camp Virtual as a summer educational activity to help kids stay engaged in learning while they're out of school.  Camp Virtual contains tons of apps, games, and websites that are designed to help students have fun while learning online.  


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Tom Vander Ark at Getting Smart has two new posts up from the weekend, the first is an outstanding guide on "How to Create a Blended High School."  If your district is in the process of becoming blended or if you want to start making the push for blended learning, this is an awesome place to start.  Vander Ark's 10 tips are simple to follow but chock-full of great examples from schools around the country.

Vander Ark's second weekend post discusses, "What Will Elementary Look Like" in a few years.  In the article, Vander Ark argues that personalized learning will increase, information will be more easily accessible, and grouping will become more by ability and less by age.  It's a great read and worth thinking about, especially for educators on the elementary side.

Finally, Adam Renfro has a new post on "Kodable: The First Step in Coding."  Being a computer science teacher, I'm a huge proponent of requiring at least some coding be taught in all schools and I'm also a big fan of Kodable, which Renfro reviews in this piece.  The iPad app ($2.99) is geared towards K-2 students and teaches the basics of logic, sequencing, looping, conditional statements, and critical thinking.  


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Finally, James Steyer at Edutopia (and founder of Common Sense Media) has a new post on "Connecting Teachers and Students to the Best Digital Tools."  The article discusses the new CSM tool Graphite which is a "free online resource that combines independent reviews of edtech products with rigorous ratings that have relevance to educators."  In short, it's a great way for teachers to quickly and effectively find new tech tools for their classrooms.


The Lightning Round...

  • Lisa Nielsen has a new Infographic on Digital Footprints
  • Edudemic shares their Student's Guide to Proper Social mEdia Etiquette
  • Plus, Edudemic covers 80 Time-Saving Social Media Shortucts
  • And Educational Technology has a guide on Creating Posters on the iPad with Pic Collage


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And that's the Roundup!  Long one today!  If you missed yesterday's review of Brickflow, the hashtag-based presentation app, it's a pretty enjoyable new tech tool and has some series educational possibility.  That's it for today, we'll end with a new infographic on the Positive Impact of Technology on Education.  And remember, if you're enjoying the Roundup you can always subscribe to receive daily updates or follow us on Facebook and Twitter.  Thanks for reading!


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Courtesy of: The Ed Tech Review
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The Daily Roundup - June 26th, 2013

6/26/2013

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Welcome back!  Today, the Roundup begins at Getting Smart with a great collection of news from ISTE.  Their post, "ISTE's Top Ten Conversation" discusses everything new from ISTE.  They cover Microsoft's surface, Google Glass, Gamification and game-based learning, Augmented Reality, Ignite Talks, Virtual Schools and Online Classes, and the closing keynote from EduClipper founder, Adam Bellow.  If you weren't able to attend ISTE, this post is a great way to get caught up on the action.

Tom Vander Ark at Getting Smart also has an excellent article up from today entitled, "What is the Most Promising EdTech for Emerging Economies?"  the post discusses the growing connection between the US, India, emerging EdTech companies, and charitable organizations like Acumen, a global nonprofit organization.  It's a great read about the direction educational technology is heading in countries like India


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EdTech Magazine has a new post on Abode Certifications entitled, "One Way to Fast-Track Students' College and Career Readiness."  If you're not familiar, certifications are basically validations that students can earn once they master specific skills like Flash or Photoshop.  The article discusses the benefits of these certifications in preparing students for college.  EdTech magazine also has a new video up from ISTE on "Leading the Way with Social Media" that's worth watching as well.


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If you've got 5th - 8th grade students who are hungering for some STEM action this summer, you should probably check out Edudemic's write-up on "Discovery's Free STEM Summer Camp."  It's entirely online and could also be used for after-school programs are ad-ons to science class.  This is an awesome resource for parents and middle school science teachers and definitely worth checking out.

Also, if you've ever wondered what all this "Apple Distinguished Educator" business is all about, Edudemic has a write-up explaining the program, the process, and the requirements.  If you're a big fan of apple in the classroom, this is definitely up your alley.  

Finally, Edudemic ends with a discussion of "How Students Are Using the Internet for Studying."  The post is basically a short reflection of this infographic:

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If you've never used Twitter, it can actually be a pretty wonderful resource in education.  If you want to give it some thought this summer, Educational Technology has a really nice guide - Twitter for Educators.  Today, they also posted a nice graphic which breaks down the "Anatomy of a Tweet" for those new to the Twitter streets:

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The Ed Tech Review has two new posts up from today.  The first, "Using Technology in Elementary Education" discusses an idea that's been on a lot of educator's minds lately - how young is too young for tech integration?  Following that up, ETR also has a post entitled, "Are Educators Using the Best Technology" which, as the title suggests, covers the best ways for teachers to choose and use technology within their classrooms.


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Swinging back to ISTE for a minute, Wesley Fryer at the Speed of Creativity has just posted a collection of his notes from a presentation on "Social Media in the Classroom: Amplifying our Students."  The post, while not polished, has some excellent resources and ideas on using social media to increase interaction, engagement, and creativity in the classroom.


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Also on the ISTE front, Ed Surge has a post on "ISTE 2013 Notable PitchFest Ideas."  The post covers PitchFest where "20 companies went head to head to compete for the chance to be picked as one of the final six teams to pitch for a pot of start up gold worth $10,000"  The article covers highlights from the event as well as some companies worth checking out!


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Finally, Ed Reach has a new post on the company Ed Map entitled, "The End of Textbooks."  Ed Map is a "course materials management company, whose services and tech simplifies the discovery, adoption, management, and delivery of quality educational content."  In addition, Ed Reach has two new podcasts, one on EdCamp and one on Learning RedesignED.


And there you have it!  Long one today!  We'll end with a post from Getting Smart on College Readiness.  The post covers a new infographic from Pearson which examines student readiness for college.  Thanks for reading and we'll be back on Sunday with the weekend edition!  
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The Daily Roundup - June 25th, 2013

6/25/2013

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Today the Roundup begins again at EdTech Magazine with some more from ISTE.  Their new post, "ISTE 2013: A Common Roadmap for Districts Readying for Online Testing" is all about helping districts prepare for common core assessments in response to CDW-G's recent Common Core Tech Report.  The article goes on to discuss the benefits of Common Core, the challenges, and more from their presentation at ISTE yesterday.


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David Warlick at 2¢ Worth has an excellent new post entitled, "Is School 2.0 the Wrong Conversation?"  The article discusses the possibility that we, as educators, are spending too much time focused on the idea of what the school/classroom of the future should look like, when instead we should be more focused on the students of the future and how to best meet their learning needs.


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Free Technology for Teachers has two new resources up from today.  The first, "Math Chimp Presents Freddy's Fractions - A Fractions Game for Kids" is a free site full of math games and videos for elementary and middle school students.  The second, "Free Tiiu Pix - Hundreds of Free Pictures for Students" offers hundreds of free, high-quality pictures that students can use in presentations and projects.


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Educational Technology has a new post covering "Four Presentations Every Teacher Should See."  The article is a collection of four Prezi presentations on creating e-portfolios, cyberbullying, the basics of social media, and the destruction of non-linear learning.


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Finally, Wesley Fryer at the Speed of Creativity has just released his new eBook, "Mapping Media to the Common Core."  It's only $4.99 and if your school is one of the hundreds that are aligning to the Common Core Standards, it's worth checking out.  The book is meant to "serve as a menu, handbook, and map for teacher-leaders and learners in the 21st century."


And there you have it!  Pretty short Roundup today, but we'll have a full report on all the ISTE news and reviews at the end of the week as well, so get ready for that!  We'll end today with a visual guide from Edudemic over "What to Know About the Risks of Social Media."  Have a great night and see you tomorrow!  (you can click the image for full-size)
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The Daily Roundup - June 24th

6/24/2013

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Welcome back!  The big news today is coming out of the ISTE conference in San Antonio which is in the middle of its second day.  Last night, Jane McGonigal gave her opening keynote on Gamification and game-based learning and EdTech Magazine has an excellent summary/reflection of the speech, "5 Takeaways from Jane McGonigal's Opening Keynote."  We'll have more on ISTE in the next few days, but if you're on twitter you can get live updates here (#iste13).


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Edudemic has several new posts for today, the first of which discusses "How To Address Negative Student Behavior in 1:1 Classrooms."  As the article says, "Let's be honest: using technology in the classroom can be harder than teaching the 'old way.'"  Technology can be a huge management problem especially when every student has access to a device.  This article addresses the 6 major issues that teachers will face in a 1:1 class and offers advice on how best to tackle these problems.

Edudemic also has a post explaining "How Competency-Based Learning Actually Works."  For those not familiar, Competency-Based Learning (CBL) is "designed to provide students with a personalized online education that they can compete at their own pace and that takes advantage of competence learned through experience."  For more info, check out the article (it's primarily directed towards higher ed.)

Finally, Edudemic writes about "3 Student Tech Trends Teachers Should Know About."  The article covers the "uncoolness" of Facebook, the importance of Apps over hardware, and the desire to share everything through sites like Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram.  If you're new to the tech/social media game, this is a great post to start getting your feet wet.


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T.H.E. Journal has a new article analyzing the results of a recent education report,"Creativity Hindered in the Classroom by Testing, Mandates, Lack of Resources."  The study surveyed 4,000 K-12 and higher ed teachers and parents in the US, Germany, Australia, and the UK.  The report goes on to discuss the major barriers that teachers and parents believe stand in the way of creativity in US schools.


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Adam Renfro at Getting Smart has an excellent new article up entitled, "Where Are We on the Whole Cheating Thing?"  The article discusses the mixed messages that today's youth receives about content ownership, plagiarism and cheating (mash-ups, remixes, etc.)  The post goes on to cover plagiarism prevention, the effects of cheating on learning, and a whole lot more.  It's a great read and worth checking out.


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Finally, Marina Gorbis at Co.Exist has a wonderful post that I've been wanting to get to for a few days entitled, "The Future of Education Eliminates the Classroom, Because the World is Your Class."  The article discusses the idea of Socialstructured Learning - "an aggregation of microlearning experiences driven not by grades but by social rewards."  It's an incredibly thought-provoking article and enjoyable read.


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And that's it for the Roundup today!  We'll have more on ISTE as it rolls in, and for those educators at the conference, enjoy a keynote for me!

We'll end today with an infographic from Edudemic on 27 Simple Ways to Get Students Excited About Innovation.  And remember, if you're enjoying the Roundup you can always subscribe to receive the daily report by email (subscribe box is on the right) or connect via Facebook and Twitter.  Thanks for reading and see you tomorrow!

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Courtesy of: Edudemic
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The Roundup Returns!  June 19th - 23rd

6/23/2013

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And we're back!  I hope everyone is in the middle of an excellent weekend!  Sorry for the delay in posts, I've been in the process of moving back to the states for the summer and the transition took a few days.  But, the Roundup is back, and here to stay for the rest of the summer!  Today's post won't cover everything from the past 5 days, instead it will be more like a highlight real of the best edtech news.  So, welcome back and I hope you enjoy!


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Up first, Emerging Ed Tech has an excellent analysis of a recent Gallup poll over 21st century skills.  The article, entitled "Study Shows 21st Century Skill Development Clearly Linked to Career Success" discusses the huge gap between what skills our students need to be successful in the modern workforce, and what skills they actually possess.  The article also offers some tangible ideas to improve learning in these areas.


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iLearn Technology has a new post discussing how "Math Class Needs a Makeover: videos, inquiry, math stories and more." The article has a host of excellent resources and tools for the middle and high school math classroom.  The article starts with a Ted Talk from Dan Meyer, and excellent math educator, and goes on to discuss integration ideas and strategies.  


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Mind/Shift has a new article entitled, "Is It Worthy? How to Judge the Value of a Tech Product."  The post raises some incredibly important questions  about the implementation of new tech in schools and how many times, there is little or no vetting of new technology.  Schools often lack a set of criteria for adopting new technology and instead go with recommendations from "experts" rather than evaluating the tech themselves.  The article goes on to provide a guide for schools on analyzing new technology.


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As many of you probably know, today is first day of the ISTE (International Society for Tech in Education) summer conference in San Antonio.  While the conference has many benefits (networking, exchange of ideas, discovering new tech tools, etc. ) Audrey Watters at Hack Education also raises some thought-provoking and valid concerns about the downsides of the conference and the "rampant tech consumerism and solutionism."  Her new post, "On (Not) Missing ISTE 2013" is a great read and absolutely worth your time.


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Edudemic has a few great posts from the break, and to start, they cover "5 Online Discussion Tips for Students."  This is a solid guide for students and would be beneficial even at the elementary level.  It could be used in a computers class or as a guide to help teachers in other subjects introduce online discussions into their curriculum.  

Next up, Edudemic discusses "5 Subjects Not Taught in School (But They Should Be)."  The article recommends subjects like film making, job searching, money management, social skills, and pratical mechanics be taught in schools, and I would be inclined to agree.  One step that teachers could take if they are passionate about these areas is to start up after school clubs.

Finally, Edudemic has as a write-up on "Global SchoolNet's Free Directory of Innovative Projects."  This is a great collection of engaging, collaborative projects that students at all levels and subjects could work on within their school and with peers across the world.


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For those teachers in schools which are aligned with the Common Core Standards, Getting Smart has a new post on "Free Apps to Capture, Create and Connect to the Common Core."  The article covers an awesome collection of apps that can help teachers inspire student learning while aligning their work to the CCS.  And Getting Smart also has their weekly roundup posted with highlights from the week.  


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Finally, Ed Reach has a ton of new podcasts up from the past few days, but two of my favorites were:
  • Who Are Lesson Plans Really For?
  • Bringing Passion Back to Learning


The Lightning Round...

  • Edudemic shows us The Beginner's Visual Guide to Online Learning
  • The Ed Tech Review has a new infographic on the Stages of Tech Development for Kids
  • Educational Technology covers The 5 Important Elements of the 21st Century Classroom
  • And finally, InformED shares the 18 Myths People Believe About Education

Finally, if you're looking for some great new tech tools this summer, may I recommend this 60in60 Prezi by Brandom Lutz which covers an awesome collection of web apps that are great in the classroom.  That's all for today, enjoy the rest of your weekend and see you tomorrow!
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The Daily Roundup - June 18th

6/18/2013

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The Roundup is going live a little early today!  For those of you who don't know, I teach computer science in Colombia, South America.  But, I'm a Kansan at heart, and I'm heading back home for the next 6 weeks!  So, I've got a plane (or many) to catch over the next two days, and some settling in to do.  Because of all that, the Roundup is going to be on a little break, but just until Sunday!  And then we'll be back with our regular postings!  But don't stop reading just yet, we've got a regular roundup ready for today! 


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Edutopia opens with a post discussing social media and elementary students entitled, "Teaching Toddlers to Tweet? Introducing Social Media to Elementary Students." The article argues that it can be beneficial and necessary to teach elementary students (even as early as first grade) how to properly use social media.  The post also gives some advice on the best ways to start exploring social media with youngsters.  


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Free Technology for Teachers has a new guide on"Creating Multimedia Presentations & Quizzes in Edmodo."  The post discusses using Soo Meta (which I recently reviewed) in conjunction with Edmodo to create flipped lessons and quizzes that students could learn from outside of the class.  Plus, students can use Soo Meta themselves to create their own lessons and show off what they've learned!


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Educational Technology has a new write-up on "The 7 Important Literacies of the 21st Century."  The article discusses what they believe to be the new, key literacies of the 21st century.  The post cover information literacy, I.T. literacy, digital literacy, media literacy, visual literacy, cultural literacy, and critical literacy.  They definitely pose some interesting ideas that are worth considering as we continue to incorporate more and more technology.


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Wesley Fryer over at theSpeed of Creativity has a new write-up/media collection on "Learning about Visual Notetaking from Giulia Forsythe."  The post includes a Slideshare presentation from Forsythe as well as a video of her presentation (which I've embedded below - it's just over an hour long).  In the presentation, Forsythe discusses visual notetaking and how it can be beneficial to learners.  Fryer's post goes on to cover a huge collection of resources on visual notetaking.


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Teach Thought has an excellent new post on "25 Ways to Promote Passion-Based Learning in Your Classroom."  Looking for ideas to help get students inspired and passionate about your subject-area?  Then this is an awesome place to start, and their list provides a ton of great ideas.

  • Teach Thought also has a new collection of 24 Essential iPad Learning Apps from EdShelf.


And that just about does it for the Roundup today!  We'll end with a double whammy:  First, check out this enjoyable guide from Ed Tech, "15 Tips to Spend a Perfect Summer for Teachers."  And next, I've embedded Dr. Jackie Gerstein's new eBook on Education 3.0 below.  It's a collection of 3 of her latest blog posts, all of which are worth reading and considering (click on the book for full-screen mode).  

So, as I said earlier, I'm off to Kansas for the rest of the summer, but the Roundup will be back on Sunday!  I hope everyone's summer is off to an excellent start and I'll see you in a few days!

-Mike
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The Daily Roundup - June 17th

6/17/2013

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Welcome back!  Today we begin at Mind/Shift with a new article which asks, "Can Digital Games Boost Students' Test Scores?"  The article is response to a new SRI study that was released today and which suggests that games actually do help improve test scores, specifically in STEM subjects.  The post goes on to summarize the SRI study and discuss the latest research and interviews on game-based learning.


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Next up, Edudemic writes about "How to Get Your Lessons to 'Go Viral' with Students."  The post explores the characteristics that help videos go viral, and discusses how those traits can be incorporated into lesson-making.  It's a quick, but enjoyable read, and the ideas are worth considering to help increase student engagement and enjoyment.

Edudemic also covers:
  • 10 Little-Known Twitter Tools for Connected Educators
  • 5 Reasons to you use YouTube in the Classroom (There are some great ideas in this post)


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Educational Technology has two posts up today.  The first takes a humorous look at "10 Twitter Mistakes you Should Avoid." which summarizes a new "infocomic" from DashBurst.  And their second post from today discusses the Basics of Creative Commons and provides this nice graphic which would be nice for classroom use:

What is Creative Commons?
What is Creative Commons? infographic by adityadipankar.



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Teach Thought has an excellent article by Dawn Casey-Rowe entitled, "Moving From Connected Schools to Technology-Committed Schools."  In the post, Casey-Rowe uses her own experiences in Rhode Island to illustrate how schools and districts can support technology and create an environment that doesn't just have technology, but is committed to creating a "truly digitized" atmosphere.

Teach Thought goes on to outline "15 Mistakes You're Probably Making with Technology In Learning."  It's a great list and each point is worth considering before implementing new tech into the classroom.  I've embedded their basic image below, but the post goes into more detail.  

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Finally, Teach Thought discusses a chart which covers "Alternatives to Homework."  As they say, "nothing ground-breaking, but food for thought" and I'm inclined to agree, but it's still worth a look:

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And Ed Reach continues to pump out the podcasts, with three new topics posted today:
  • Using iTunes U for Professional Development
  • Teaching with Google Glass
  • Lowering High School Dropout Rates


Well, that's all folk!  Thanks for tuning in and we'll be back tomorrow!  To close today, here's a new infographic from the Ed Tech Review covering "A Must-Have Guide to Gaming in the Classroom."
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Courtesy of: The Ed Tech Review
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The Weekend Roundup - June 15th & 16th

6/16/2013

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Hope everyone is having an excellent Father's Day! Today we begin our rounding up with a new article from Education Week entitled, "Virtual Learning for Little Ones Raises Developmental Questions." The post poses some very important questions about the amount of time young students spend in front of computers/tablets and how that affects their development.  The post is worth considering, especially for K-3 educators.


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Next up, Edudemic has a post on "100+ Students to Hold Forum on Solving Global Challenge."  This September, the Rhodes Youth Forum will "gather together more than 100 young people who are prone towards responsibility and constructive behavior." The goal is to have a series of debates and discussions in an attempt to begin a dialogue on today's most pressing tech-based issues.  You can follow on Twitter at @YouthTime.

And Edudemic also has a nice collection of videos in their post,"5 Ways to Teach Physics Using Household Items."  Learn all about the physics of the kitchen, the living room, the play room, the bathroom, and the basement in this series of videos.


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Emerging Ed Tech has a new review of a recent panel discussion on the flipped classroom model which was organized by McGraw-Hill.  The panel discusses the benefits of the flipped classroom model, what issues using this model can address, what instructors need to know to get started flipping their classes, and more.  Check out the article for a summary or you can  watch the full hangout below:


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Free Technology for Teachers has a lot of great resources up from this weekend.  First, they review "WatchDoc - A Chrome Extension for Monitoring Google Docs Changes." If you use Google Docs in your classroom, especially for collaborating on documents, WatchDoc is an awesome tool. The app displays small pop-up notifications in your browser when someone edits one of your shared Google Docs.  It's incredibly handy.

Free Tech for Teachers also covers:
  • WeTransfer - An easy way to transfer files without the sender or recipient needing an account.
  • My Study Life - An online student planner that helps students organize their homework and tasks.
  • The Spectator - The UK Publication is now offering 180 years of archives of their magazine.
  • Mapping Dinosaurs - The Natural History Museum has a new searchable dinosaur database.



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Educational Technology starts off the weekend with a review of Doodle Cast, a program to "Create Awesome Video Stories on the iPad."  The app lets students draw out their own stories/presentations and record their voice to narrate the story as well.  Once they finish, they can upload their videos to YouTube or just save them to the iPad camera roll.

Educational Technology also has a "Must See Graphic History of Classroom Technology."  The post is essentially a picture-based timeline covering classroom technology from 160 A.D. all the way up to the present.  It's a quick-read and an interesting post, and something I think students would enjoy looking through and discussing as well.  

And the site ends with a brief discussion discussion of a new poster from Common Sense Media which covers the basics on "Being A Good Digital Citizen."  This poster would be an excellent resource not just for computer classrooms, but for all teachers to have posted:

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In case you missed anything this week from Getting Smart, they have their weekly collection of articles posted: "EdTech 10 - Dads, Dollars & Digital Learning." And Getting Smart also has a new infographic on The Rise of MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses).  It's pretty amazing to see the exponential growth MOOCs have experience in the past 3 years.  But, let's not forget, MOOCs have a "darkside" as well and there are many arguments against their growing dominance.


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Teach Amazing has their new installment of Web 2.0 advice in "Web 2.0 in the Classroom - Part 8."  In Part 8, blogger Mark Brumley discusses the importance of understanding website requirements, limitations for free accounts, unprotected content, social media properties, and advertisements.  Brumley's whole Web 2.0 series is excellent for any educators who are new to tech, and you can check out part 1 here.

Brumley also covers the Google alternative, Hakia, a search-engine that digs a little deeper than Google by using semantic searches (instead of just using keywords, like Google does.)  Brumley recommends the engine for doing research and for providing students with an alternative to Google.


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Finally Ed Reach has a new podcast up, "EdGamer 103: GLS 2013 Recap."  The Ed Reach team just got back from the Games & Learning Society Conference in Wisconsin and they have a lot to share about the gamification of education and game-based learning in general.  The whole podcast is about 40-minutes long and covers the team's thoughts and reflections on the event.


The Lightning Round...

  • Edudemic discusses 22 Effective Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom
  • Free Tech for Teachers covers 25,000 Images of Art That You Can Re-use for Free
  • The Ed Tech Review has a new infographic on How Blended Learning Can Improve Teaching
  • The ETR also has an infographic covering Social Media Tips for Students and Job Seekers
  • And Educational Technology has a list of 5 Things To Try When Your iPad Acts Up

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And that's all for the Round Up today!  I want to wish all the Dads out there a very special Father's Day (especially Ron & Norm!)  And I want to welcome all the new subscribers and give a big thanks to everyone for reading the Round Up!  The site has been up for just over a month now, and so far it's been going great!  Remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter, or fill out the Subscribe box on the right side to have the Round Up emailed to you every evening!  Thanks again!

We'll end today with an excellent video on Connected Learning and a new infographic that discusses
The Risks of Posting in Social Networks.  



social media
Courtesy of: Educational Technology
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The Daily Round Up - June 14th

6/14/2013

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Happy Friday!  I hope everyone's weekend is off to a wonderful start!  Today, the Round Up begins at iLearn Technology with a review of "Send Anywhere - Share Files between Mobile and Non-mobile Devices."  The review covers the app, Send Anywhere, which is built for iOS and Android devices and used to easily send any file type to any location.


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Next up, Free Tech 4 Teachers discusses the "5 Benefits of Using Backchannels in Your Classroom."  By backchannels, they mean having students send information or questions to the teacher without directly asking in the middle of class.  It's a great post and covers reasons like "Shy studetns are given a place to ask questions and contribute to conversations."  The post also cover specific apps that can help with this idea.


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Educational Technology has a new guide on "20 Ways to Use Augemented Reality in Education."  The guide covers apps like Second Life and New Horizon, but also covers how to use AR on field trips and throughout the day.  Plus, if you're unfamiliar with this whole augmented reality business, they've reposted their "Teachers' Guide to Augmented Reality."


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Getting Smart has a new post entitled, "Saundz Like American English."  The article is a review of the app Saundz that "teaches ESL students American English pronunciation."  Students are given a personal virtual assistant who introduces users to phonemes and also has lessons over the 400 most problematic words.  The program runs on PCs, Macs and iPads, costs $9.99 and is a nice resource for helping ESL students become more comfortable with pronunciation.

Getting Smart also has a write-up on "Summit Denali: Engaging Student-Centered High School Model."  The post covers the work being done at Summit Denali High School to prepare for its opening this August. The school is built around "learning playlists" which allow students to "work at their own pace on a personalized path driven by immediate, actionable feedback."  It's an interesting model to examine and I'm excited to see it in action this Fall.   


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Last up, Teach Thought discusses "6 Tips to Integrate Coding in the Classroom."  In my opinion, coding is an incredibly important, and incredibly overlooked tool for teaching creativity, problem solving, and critical thinking skills.  This is guide is a great place for teachers to start finding out more about coding and how they can use it in their classrooms.

Teach Thought also has a video up on "Designing Learning Environment Around a Need to Know."  It's a great video about connected learning that I've embedded below for your viewing pleasure.  But, if you're just looking for a quick summary, head on over to the article.


And that's it for the Round Up today!  Oh, in case you didn't hear, and you're one of the lucky educators heading to ISTE: Microsoft is Giving Away 10,000 Surface Tablets!  Go get signed up!  And we'll end the day with an interesting infographic entitled "Social Media & Social Life: How Teens View their Digital Lives."  Check it out, and we'll be back on Sunday with the weekend edition!
social media
Courtesy of: Edudemic
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The Daily Round Up - June 13th, 2013

6/13/2013

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Today's Round Up begins with a pretty awesome Kickstarter that teachers Walter Duncan and Isaac Van Wesep started for their app Quick Key.  The app would allow teachers to grade papers at lightning speed with their smartphone (provided the answers are bubbled in like a scantron) and have immediate results recorded for each student.  The app has some serious potential - check out the video for more.


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Next up, Getting Smart has an article by Steve Netcoh, the CCO for NuSkool entitled, "A NuSkool Approach to Student Engagement."  The article describes NuSkool's philosophy on designing common core standards-based lessons around popular culture in an effort to engage students.  It's free to create an account on their site, and it's a great resource and easy to navigate, but it would be nice to see a list of which specific standards are covered under each lesson.


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Educational Technology has a new post covering "Two Excellent Apps to Create Digital Magazines on the iPad."  First up is Flipboard (which we've talked a lot about lately here and is my personal favorite).  They also recommend Glossi which is a "new self-publishing platform that enables anyone to create and share digital magazines." 


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Tech & Learning opens with an article on"Taking a Step Back and Thinking Critically About Technology."  The article argues, quite reasonably, that before throwing all our tech-based-learning eggs in the iPad or tablet basket, we've really to take a hard look at tablet technology and decide if schools are just implementing these programs because it's the new thing, or because it actually has educational benefits.  

The site also has a new post on "Gadget Safety" which offers some basic advice for schools and teachers to help keep laptops, mobile phones, and encrypted USB drives safe.  The post also outlines the basics of online safety for students as well.


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Ed Week has a new case study on,"Flipped PD Initiative Boosts Teachers' Tech Skills."  The article discusses how a school district in Minnesota uses "flipped" learning to help boost the tech skills of their staff.  The model works by having the tech specialists meet with classroom teachers in small groups every month.  Rather than the tech coordinators dictating what the staff learns, the PD is "flipped" because the teachers bring ideas of what they want to do and the coordinators help find tech resources the teachers can use.


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We talked about Vine a few weeks back (the twitter-like service that allows users to upload and share 6-second video clips) and now, Teach Thought has a new article on "3 Ways to Use Vine in the Project-Based Learning Classroom."  The article has some great ideas as well as a few examples.


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And finally, Ed Reach has three new podcasts up from today!
  • More Homework DOES NOT Equal More Rigor!
  • Mobile Apps for Reluctant Readers
  • Pinterest, Pinterest, Pinterest! (Special Ed Focus)


The Lightning Round...

  • Free Technology for Teachers shows us 5 Ways Students Can Create Audio Slideshows
  • Education Technology covers the 5 Most Popular eBook Formats for Teachers
  • iLearn tells us about 8 Alternatives to Google Reader
  • Edudemic has a great list of 10 Open Source Tools for Busy Teachers
  • Edudemic also has an infographic on How Technology is Used in Higher Ed
  • And another from Edudemic on 27 Things to Do with Students Who Aren't Paying Attention

And there you have it!  All Rounded Up and ready to roll!  Today we'll end with a new infographic on... Infographics!  How Meta!  This is 13 Reasons Your Brain Craves Infographics.  Hasta Mañana!
infographics
Courtesy of: Edudemic
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