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The future of ICT

Stephen Downes comments on "A report on the outcomes of the ICT cluster that the (European) Commission has set up under the Education and Training 2010 programme as part of the Lisbon objectives set for 2010"

Recommendations include "A need for envisioning future learning that is more efficient, equitable, innovative and meaningful than it ever was in the past" and "Adapt teacher education and training as to embrace more open and flexible learning environments."

You can read the report here => http://bit.ly/bNWbP0

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New iPrep Academy gives students technology-rich environment

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he school will provide students with a technology-rich environment by giving each student a laptop computer to use at the fully Wi-Fi enabled campus and at home. In addition, the curriculum will consist of both online and face-to-face classes of the Honors and Advanced Placement level. According to Pimienta, the combination of computer and traditional classes will give learning a more individualistic twist. “It will make the learning experience more personal,” said Pimienta. “It’s not the standard curriculum you see in normal high schools — it will be adapted for the environment.”

http://bit.ly/bRGjFU

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K-12 online conference: Bridging the divide, 30 November

http://k12onlineconference.org/
The K-12 online conference invites participation from educators around the world interested in innovative ways Web 2.0 tools and technologies can be used to improve learning. This free conference is run by volunteers and open to everyone.

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Video – Microsoft's Learning Essentials

Free templates and tutorials for teachers and students in the classroom environment
Microsoft Learning Essentials video

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Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning. A Meta-Analysis and Review of Online Learning Studies

" The meta-analysis found that, on average, students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction."
>>> more

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DOE Sees Increased Role for E-Learning


Online classes coupled with classroom instruction may be more effective than traditional face-to-face teaching alone, according to an analysis of 46 studies of student performance recently released by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE).
The results were most stark at the college level, but DOE officials are looking at how to apply the findings in K-12 classrooms, potentially emphasizing e-learning over teacher-led classes.
“A computer can do as well as a professor and [is] a heck of a lot cheaper and a heck of a lot more reliable,” says Marshall Smith, senior counselor to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. “At the post-secondary level this is a pretty powerful thing.” more » » »

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Visual Learning: Using Images to Focus Attention, Evoke Emotions, and Enrich Learning

Say it with words and you're lucky if they hear it or bother to read it. Tell your story with imagery, and it grabs attention, evokes emotion, and is more instantly processed. Sixty thousand times faster, say some researchers. At Hong Kong International School (HKIS), we have concerns quite similar to those of teachers in the U.S.: We want to engage student interest, we want to efficiently scaffold for students to construct meaning, and we want to motivate and empower them to communicate. Like all educators, we have students who deserve to learn 21st-century media skills and literacy to communicate in ways that are relevant in a new century. Article continues

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Web 2.0, a wiki and teaching English

From the Bight Ideas Blog ...

Whitefriars College teacher librarian Tania Sheko has been busy! She has also created a wiki for the English class she has been working with.

Tania explains how the wiki came about:

The English wiki was created to support a particular English class but with a view to sharing resources with all English teachers. It’s in its very early stages, and will continue to evolve with time, according to the needs of the English class.   >>>

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Make a Digital Wish

Digital Wish, a nonprofit group dedicated to modernizing classrooms, hands out a constant stream of small grants to schools and helps teachers acquire funding for technology. Digital Wish not only offers school site licenses on Adobe and Microsoft products, but also automatically matches each purchase by giving 2 to 10 percent back to teachers every time an order is placed. more » » »