Writing for Getting Smart, Tom Vander Ark outlines 15 opportunities to improve learning through invention. Excerpts of the piece appear below: The education and development systems that help people grow and contribute are facing 15 great challenges that block global progress in learning. These big invention opportunities are outlined below. Community Agreement Challenges Shared reality: Read more about 15 Invention Opportunities in Learning[…]
Writing for Future Ed, Karen Hawley Miles envisions a future for public schooling that makes the most of current flexibilities. Excerpts from the piece appear below: Let’s not repeat the mistakes the education sector made in responding to the last major disruption of the education system. In the wake of the 2008 recession, many school Read more about What Post-Covid Schools Could Look Like-Starting This Fall[…]
Excel in Ed and Code.org have teamed up to bring a new report focusing on the demand of the U.S. workforce for graduates skilled in information technology and computer science. Companies are struggling to find workers with information technology (IT) and computer science (CS) skills to fill hundreds of thousands of jobs. While the demand Read more about America’s Growing Demand for Information Technology and Computer Science[…]
Writing for The 74, author Tim Newcomb reviews a new iPad app that tracks student discussions to facilitate student growth of dialogue skills, including conversation flow and inclusion. Excerpts of the piece appear below: Educators can think of the iPad app Equity Maps as a digital ball of yarn, one that tracks data on in-class Read more about Equity Maps App Tracks Student Discussions for Better Understanding of Dialogue Skills[…]
Common Sense Education has compiled a Top Picks list containing their 50 favorite learning tools ever. This megalist has tools that span all subjects, grades, and purposes. Since 2013, Common Sense Education has been teachers’ trusted source for in-depth, independent, and unbiased ratings and reviews of edtech tools. They have rated over 3,000 products for Read more about 50 Best Educational Technology Tools, Ever![…]
Recently in Forbes, John Merrow wrote an interesting piece on the purpose of public schooling. Excerpts appear below: Why do we have public schools? Prior to the pervasive growth and ubiquity of the internet, it was easy to answer that question because a school’s objectives were clear and rarely questioned: 1) teach, 2) socialize, and Read more about Why do we have public schools?[…]
Every student deserves access to powerful learning experiences – experiences that help them develop agency, grow their skills and expand their curiosities. Many schools are shifting their practices to be more student-centered in hopes of ultimately developing these qualities in students. We know in transformative environments that the learning and facilitation looks very different. This Read more about Learn Next: A Toolbox for Educators to Transform Practice[…]
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) has announced its new ISTE Standards for Educators: Computational Thinking Competencies (CT Competencies). CT Competencies focus on the knowledge, skills and mindset needed to bring computational thinking to all K-12 content areas and are designed for all educators, including those who are new to computer science. The Read more about ISTE Announces New Computational Thinking Standards for All Educators[…]
Developments in artificial intelligence (AI) technology have already begun to revolutionize countless fields. Education is no exception. Tom Vander Ark recently authored a report, “Ask About AI: The Future of Work and Learning“ and released it via Getting Smart, the digital consulting firm he started. The following mark five important takeaways on how AI will Read more about Artificial Intelligence: The Future of Work and Learning[…]
As state education agencies acknowledge, promote, and support the importance of professional development, they continue to search for effective professional learning opportunities for teachers. Micro-credentials—among the newer professional development methods—allow teachers to learn and demonstrate competency in bite-sized elements of instruction. Each micro-credential addresses a discrete set of educational practices. Educators can then weave these Read more about Three States Tried Micro-Credentials for Teachers: What they Learned[…]
eSchool News recently published articles by Amanda Stedke and Gene Kerns, discussing the definitions and differences among personalization, individualization, and differentiation. The pieces cut right to the heart of the issue by noting that most of us struggle to clearly delineate differentiation, individualization, and personalization. This struggle for a definition poses a larger question: If Read more about Personalization, Individualization and Differentiation[…]
For the last 18 months, the Office of Educational Technology at the U.S. Department of Education, in partnership with the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) at the Department, has been working with Mathematica Policy Research and SRI International to build the Rapid Cycle Evaluation Coach (the RCE Coach). The RCE Coach is a free, open-source, Read more about Eight Lessons Learned From Piloting the Rapid Cycle Evaluation Coach[…]
Since technology in classrooms looks very different from almost a decade ago when ISTE last released its standards for teachers, the organization has released newly updated ISTE Standards for Educators. The Standards are designed to support educators with a framework for learning, teaching and leading amplified by technology. There are seven standards, each supported by Read more about New ISTE Technology Standards[…]
Getting Smart’s Catherine Wedgwood reviewed the new products and ideas introduced at the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) 2017 conference. From virtual reality to boosting reading engagement, the Getting Smart team has compiled a list of the ten most innovative products, listed below in no particular order: VR Learn by Veative Labs Soundtrap Read more about 10 New & Innovative EdTech Products Announced at ISTE 2017[…]
In the first of a series of reports from Digital Promise Global, Making Learning Personal For All – The Growing Diversity in Today’s Classroom explores learner diversity and learning variability across a variety of factors impacting student performance. A growing body of evidence stresses the need for the research community, educators, and education technology developers Read more about Making Learning Personal for All: The Growing Diversity in Today’s Classroom[…]
There is a new movement in education called the Agile Schools Movement. The approach models classroom instruction and school reform itself on the principles of Agile software development and related methods like Lean, Kanban, and Scrum. Agile in Education is not about the use of technology products and services. Instead, the focus is on the Read more about Agile in Education[…]