Wikis+&+Blogs

==﻿Here are a couple of very good and informational BLOGs that focus on Educational Technolgy. Check them out and find the one that you like. Keep going back to that BLOG for new and more current information. Better yet sign up to be a member and where possible sign up to receive the RSS Feed.==

My current favorite!!!
Technology is revolutionizing the world of education – replacing familiar classroom tools and changing the way we learn. MindShift explores the future of learning in all its dimensions – covering cultural and technology trends, groundbreaking research, education policy and more. The site is curated by Tina Barseghian, a journalist and parent

=[| MindShift]= August 26, 2011 | 11:27 AM | By [|Tina Barseghian]

http://mindshift.kqed.org/

How we will learn
[|Addressing Parent Fears About the Changing Classroom]

[|Back to School with Google Chromebooks]
[|Class, Turn On Your Cell Phones: It’s Time to Text]

[|Addressing Parent Fears About the Changing Classroom]
Parents are unfamiliar with new school scenarios like this fifth-grade class in Los Altos, Calif., which integrates online lessons into class time. It’s Back to School Night at our middle school, and as I finish my five-minute overview for parents about what their kids will learn in in my math and science classes this year, I can see the questions start bubbling up. Their faces say it all. Since their kids were in kindergarten, they’ve been through half a dozen rounds of homework assignments, projects, and solving the logistics of getting things to and from school. But these parents haven’t had much experience with teaching practices that weren’t in use when they went to school. They’re concerned. Parents’ concerns revolve around safety and privacy when using Web sites in the class — issues that seldom come up when we’re just working on paper or reading out of textbooks. If I don’t handle the questions properly, the fear factor will take over and those concerns will turn into objections. My job is to paint a picture of what goes on in my classroom. I need to be both clear and reassuring about how I’ll use my teacher expertise to teach the content and meet the particular learning needs of their kids. I’ve dealt with this kind of trepidation before, when we introduced a new math curriculum that emphasized word problems and conceptual learning, which replaced the teach-drill-test approach that most adults with school-aged kids remembered. When I began to change my teaching to capitalize on the Internet and address important skills like collaborating online, I realized that I would once again need to engage parents, provide a sound rationale, and work through the fear factor. [|Continue reading] [|→]
 * by Marsha Ratzel**
 * PREPARING PARENTS FOR THE INTERNET**

[|Quick Look: How to Fix Our Math Education]
Interesting take on how real-life problems would make more sense in teaching math. > Imagine replacing the sequence of algebra, geometry and calculus with a sequence of finance, data and basic engineering. In the finance course, students would learn the exponential function, use formulas in spreadsheets and study the budgets of people, companies and governments. In the data course, students would gather their own data sets and learn how, in fields as diverse as sports and medicine, larger samples give better estimates of averages. In the basic engineering course, students would learn the workings of engines, sound waves, TV signals and computers. Science and math were originally discovered together, and they are best learned together now. — [|www.nytimes.com]
 * [[image:http://s2.googleusercontent.com/s2/favicons?domain=www.nytimes.com width="16" height="16" caption="jiffy-icon"]]
 * Source: [|Nytimes]

=[|iPad in Schools]= Highlighting Unique and Innovative Educational Uses of Apple's iPad []

=
The process of integrating technology into the classroom can be challenging; education, more than almost any other field, is notoriously slow to change. As a result, it’s easy to get caught up in what’s //not// happening with educational technology, rather than what is.===== But there’s a lot of positive energy in the world of educational technology, too — much of which is coming from our fellow ed-tech bloggers (many of whom are also teachers!). Today we’re highlighting some ed-tech blogs that are helping to push the field forward. Without further ado, some blogs we’re loving lately:

**[|iLearn Technology]**
iLearn Technology is an awesome educational technology and support blog written by Kelly Tenkely, an elementary school teacher turned technology integration specialist. As Kelly writes, “My goal is to help teachers fall in love with technology the way that their students have. I believe that technology reaches students in a way that few other mediums can.” Kelly writes about fun, easy ways teachers can integrate technology into their classrooms. If you’re a teacher looking to give your curriculum a little 21st century flair, the how-to’s on her site are definitely worth a look! Check out these posts for more:
 * ‘[|Facebook’ Profile Pages for Literary Characters]
 * [|Science/Math Edutainment Magazines and Videos]
 * [|Google Art Projects: Virtual Art Museums]

[[image:http://www.knewton.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/hack-education-logo.jpg width="481" height="171" caption="external image hack-education-logo.jpg" link="http://www.hackeducation.com/"]]
Hack Education is a thought-provoking blog about the latest educational technology and the ways it is — and is not — serving students. Audrey Watters — a technology journalist, ed-tech advocate, and self-described “rabble rouser” — provides incisive and timely commentary on the latest ed-tech boons and busts. As Audrey writes, “I chose this blog’s name because of the many meanings of “Hack Education,” the most obvious being to wield technology in the service of improving education — to pull systems apart, to recode, rebuild. But I’d also like to see students and teachers have more of a voice in shaping technology.” Want to read more? Check out some of Audrey’s recent posts: ===**[|Free Technology for Teachers]**===
 * [|5 Apps that Encourage Kids to Become Citizen Scientists]
 * [|2011: My Predictions for Ed-Tech]
 * [|Texting 4 Teaching & Learning. Srsly.]

Richard Byrne, a history teacher in Maine, provides lesson plans and other resources to help teachers use technology in the classroom. The best part? Yep, you guessed it: all of them are free. If you’re a teacher looking for easy ways to add technology to your classroom, start by looking at the blog’s [|15 Most Popular Posts], where you’ll find info on alternatives to YouTube, grammar games, and easy ways to publish slideshows and videos online. Once you’ve made your way through those posts, check out other recent how-to’s like:
 * [|Digital Storytelling with iPads]
 * [|Create Your Own Interactive Map Quizzes]
 * [|Drag-and-Drop Diagram Creation]

__﻿__ __**Great Wiki sites to wander through**__