Rabu, 27 Juli 2016

Educators Guide to Pinterest

Before we know it, the school year will be starting again, and teachers will begin planning for the academic year. One topic that may be on their mind is how to integrate social media into the classroom, especially since the trend is that educators are using online tools to enhance learning.

With social media integrating into every aspect of our personal lives, it’s no wonder it’s entering the classroom. We’ve seen teachers and students land in hot water for not knowing how to navigate the cross-section of personal and professional use. We’ve also seen them use social media in unique ways to enhance learning, crowdsource ideas and impact lives.



Because of this, it’s extremely important for current and future teachers to be trained in social media and digital literacy. Social media allows students to be part of a global network of knowledge, but most students and teachers don't know how to use social media effectively to support learning.

Also, with more than 500,000 education-related pins and the Teachers on Pinterest space, USC Rossier Online has created The Guide to Pinterest for Educators. This helpful guide provides teachers and administrators with the tools needed to not only navigate Pinterest, but use the social platform as a powerful learning tool for both teachers and students.

More Developments in Blockchain Technology and the Law


Blockchain technology or as it is also known as, “distributed ledger”, is the subject of a great deal of thinking and development this year.  We wrote about it earlier in the year and now we share some recent work being done at MIT Media Lab’s lawchain.org project.


Read more »

Selasa, 26 Juli 2016

Here Is A Wonderful Music and Podcast Creation Tool for Teachers and Students

July 26, 2016
Soundtrap is an excellent collaborative platform for creating music and podcasts online. Several schools have already been implementing this tool ‘in their projects to foster deep learning and develop student's creative, collaborative and communication skills.’ Students can use it to collaborate on music making. They can use loops, software instruments, record vocals , guitars and many more. The tool is web-based and does not require any software installation.


Soundtrap is also ideal for creating educational podcasts. Students can record audio directly with their computers’ microphone or use the tools integrated software instruments and loops. Everything students create is automatically saved to the cloud so it is accessible anywhere with Internet connection. Additionally, ‘’Students and teachers collaborate via video calls from remote locations. Teachers can create group assignments and coach and help their students from where ever they are. Teachers can also give personal lessons using the built-in video feature and have all practice material ready to be sent out to the students who can add their own parts on top of the backing music.’ Saundra is not not free but it does offer a 30 day free trial to test it out. Watch the video below to learn more about this platform.



The iPad Model Classroom for Autistic Students

July 26, 2016
The iPad Model Classroom is an iTunes U course which contains a plethora of interesting resources to help teachers leverage the educational potential of iPad to enhance autistic students’ learning. These resources include specially curated lists of apps for students with special needs, Interactive books, videos and many other materials related to the integration of iPad in the classroom for kids with autism.While some of these resources are free the majority are not. The collection contains over a hundred items. You may want to go through them and see what you want to use in your class.


If you haven’t already seen it, below is a chart we have created and shared a few weeks ago comprising some of the best apps for students with special needs. Check them out and share with us your feedback.

Categories
Apps
Apps for Dyslexic Learners
Apps for Autistic Learners
Apps for The Visually Impaired
Apps for Learners with Writing Difficulties

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Senin, 25 Juli 2016

Educational Alternatives to Pokémon Go

July 25, 2016
If you haven't heard of it yet, you may soon. Pokémon GO is a new mobile app (iOS and Android) that uses augmented reality and GPS to persuade players to physically walk around so they can collect virtual creatures called Pokémon. There are lots of pros and cons to this game, but did you know that educational alternatives already exist? Yup! Here are some to consider.


Pokémon GO 
The infamous app that has been surging in popularity lately.
 Created by the same company that made Pokémon GO, this app notifies and gives you info about historical sights as you walk by them.
Allows teachers to create GPS-powered treasure hunts with location-based notes and instructions.
 Another kind of GPS-powered treasure hunt, except this one requires you to match photos for clues.
Or, go lo-fi and print out a series of clue-revealing QR codes, then place them all around your school.

Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by educators on edshelf.

Enhancing Instruction with Augmented Reality 
This is curated by instructional designer Christi Collins.
This one iscCurated by tech trainer Mitzi Vincent.

Enjoy these great tools for educators! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.

By: Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf

Some Very Good Chrome Apps Used By Fellow Teachers

July 25, 2016
One of the most fascinating things about running a service like edshelf is seeing trends in search behaviors. Searches for iPad and iPhone apps continue to dominate, though searches for Google Chromebook apps are rising faster than any other platform. Here are some notable Google Chrome apps used by fellow educators.


Socrative Teacher 
 A classroom tool for visualizing and measuring student understanding in real time.
Highlight multiple words and color-code similar words all on the same page.
 Enable, disable, and launch Google Chrome apps right from your browser's toolbar.
 Control another computer through the Google Chrome browser by using your computer or mobile device.
Save any web content or screenshot to your Google Drive account instantly.

Want more? Check out these shelves of tools created by educators on edshelf.

Chromebook Tools for Teachers 
This is curated by high school principal Dale Cole.
This one is curated by educational technology coach Samuel Plambeck.


Enjoy these great tools for educators! Looking for previous issues of the edshelf Weekly? All are available online.

By: Mike Lee, Co-founder of edshelf

Minggu, 24 Juli 2016

Excellent Resources to Help You Integrate Android Tablets in Your Teaching

July 24, 2016
 If you are planning to integrate Android tablets in your instruction, the resource we have for you today will absolutely provide you with a solid starting ground. This is a collection of free lessons designed and provided by Google Training Centre to help teachers and educators make the best of Android tablets in classroom. ‘In these lessons you will explore how Android tablets can be used to individualize learning, best practices for using the devices in the classroom, and inspirational ideas for using tablets with Google Apps for Education.’


Some of the things you will get to learn from these lessons include: The features of tablets that can transform student learning experiences; How to access and customize settings on tablets to better support students; classroom management strategies for both shared and 1:1 tablet environments; ways that tablets can support skill development for students; how Google Apps for Education integrates with tablets; and basic troubleshooting techniques for Android tablets.

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