Digital Education
The Digital Education blog covered personalized learning, artificial intelligence, adaptive testing, digital curricula, data privacy, future of work, and all things technology. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: classroom technology, personalized learning, future of work, and digital learning.
Classroom Technology
Socialization in Virtual Education
Socialization is a huge issue in online education. It comes up from both supporters and critics of virtual education in almost every interview I do. It's one of the main reasons that the National Education Association does not recommend full-time online education for younger students—the teachers union feels that elementary school students need the classroom experience with lots of face-to-face interaction with their teachers and peers that they just won't get from an online program. And it's something that came up over and over again while I was researching a story about what makes an online teacher effective. Almost everyone I talked with cited creating a community where both teachers and students could socialize and build connections with each other, even through the Internet, was essential.
Classroom Technology
Florida Virtual School Makes History Learning a Game
The Florida Virtual School has just launched a new game-based online American History course. The game, called Conspiracy Code, is an espionage-themed course-long game that will count for a full credit of American History. Designed by 360Ed, the game is available to students starting this month.
Curriculum
Online Lessons About World Hunger
A couple times a week I remind my kids that "there are starving children in the world, now eat your green beans." In most American homes the message has become cliche. When I was a child in the 1970s my mother referred to the children in famine-plagued Cambodia to make her point. There have been plenty of other examples—from Ethiopia in the 80s to the more recent food shortages in North Korea or Sudan—for subsequent generations of moms to use in the hope of getting their children to clean their plate.
Education
Must-See Ed-Tech Video Resources
A colleague of mine forwarded me a good resource for ed-tech folks looking for some online videos to check out. This blog post, off of the open thinking blog, has a list of 80+ videos for educators, administrators, parents, and students about the way that technology is affecting the way we teach and learn. And it's probably worth poking around the rest of the blog, too. Lots of good information and resources.
Education
Cyber Summit to Address 21st-Century Skills
Sean Cavanagh, my colleague over at Curriculum Matters, has this post about an online summit from the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Check it out.
Education
Blackboard's Acquisition of ANGEL Learning Under Review?
Blackboard Inc.'s purchase of ANGEL Learning last month has drawn the attention of the U.S. Department of Justice, according to this story in Campus Technology.
Education
Too Many Texts?
This article about texting from The New York Times points to some of the frustrations of allowing cell phones in the classroom. According to the article, teenagers are spending more and more time texting each other, including during class, with their cell phones hidden underneath their desks or jackets. It's to the point where teachers find it more productive to ignore the behavior than stop class to reprimand those who engage in covert in-class texting.
Reading & Literacy
NECC Inspires PR Poetry
With the National Educational Computing Conference, or NECC, about a month and a half away, my inbox is currently being flooded with invitations from various ed. tech. public relations firms, hoping to garner some time to meet with their clients. And perhaps it is because of this sudden influx of requests that at least one PR group has decided to do something to stand out from the crowd. Instead of PR pitches, they're writing rhyming couplets, inspired by NECC. I should say up front that this is in no way an endorsement, just something I'd like to share.
States
La. Bill Would Limit Educators' Use of Personal Tech Devices
I've heard many educators and school reform advocates talk about the importance of increased communication between teachers and parents. The more information teachers share with parents about their child's progress, the better, right?
Education
Getting Acquainted with WolframAlpha
While catching up with my blog roll this morning after the weekend, I discovered a lot of buzz about WolframAlpha, a new Web tool that you can use to type in equations and get the answers. If you're at all interested in data, statistics, or little bits of information, it's worth spending a few minutes checking out. I highly recommend the screencast of WolframAlpha to get an idea of how it works and what kinds of information is available from it.
Privacy & Security
"'Sexting' is Stupid"
Within the past year or so, a new trend has cropped up called "sexting"—where teens send naked pictures of themselves through text messages, which has implications for educators, administrators, parents, and students.
Education
E-Learning Industry Update: Blackboard Acquires ANGEL
Blackboard Inc., a dominant company in the U.S. for e-learning tools, announced this week that it had acquired education software developer ANGEL Learning Inc.
Education
Sarcasm for Tech-Hating Teachers
This blog item I found via @berkshirecat, a New England teacher who I follow on Twitter, is a letter to teachers who are loathe to use technology.
Education
Taking Stock of Digital Textbooks
Digital textbooks are back in the news, with the release of a new, larger-screened Kindle by Amazon.com, which could be suitable for digital textbooks, but there are still obstacles that stand in the way of e-textbooks taking off—such as a lack of awareness about them.