November, 2012

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Want to succeed in STEM? Listen to the experts!

The Innovative Educator

'President Obama believes “The quality of math and science teachers is the most important single factor influencing whether students will succeed or fail in science, technology, engineering and math.” The problem is that our “quality” teachers and their administrators are not given the freedom to support children in ways that will produce the scientists and innovators our country needs.

STEM 106
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Retirement Announcements – Desktop Courses Decide to Retire – Finally

CTE Learning

Retirement Announcements November 2012 – Desktop Versions of ISL Courses are proud to announce their retirement date. ISL Courses listed below are due to retire as of November 2012. In 2011 ISL began releasing the new 4.x online versions of their courses. These new award winning versions are not only more engaging and interactive than the earlier 1.0 – 3.x version, but easier for the educator to deploy.

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5 benefits of learning to play musical instruments

The Innovative Educator

'Music lessons offer children many benefits including aiding mental, physical, emotional and social development. Does your child’s school support this? If not, you may want to share the following benefits of learning to play music. Boosting Brain Power - Taking lessons to learn to play an instrument significantly improves brain power. Research from the University of Kansas suggests that learning at a young age will have an impact on a child’s cognitive skills as they grow older.

Learning 100
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Group work doesn't have to suck

The Innovative Educator

'Guest post from diana laufenberg | Cross posted at Living the Dream Editor's note: Group work can suck because teachers sometimes do a poor job of giving credit where credit is due. Innovative educator Diana Laufenberg has some thoughts on how to make group work better. I will be working with a group of roughly 65 professors at West Chester University.

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Can Brain Science Actually Help Make Your Training & Teaching Stick?

Speaker: Andrew Cohen, Founder & CEO of Brainscape

The instructor’s PPT slides are brilliant. You’ve splurged on the expensive interactive courseware. Student engagement is stellar. So… why are half of your students still forgetting everything they learned in just a matter of weeks? It's likely a matter of cognitive science! With so much material to "teach" these days, we often forget to incorporate key proven principles into our curricula — namely active recall, metacognition, spaced repetition, and interleaving practice.

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5 Reasons to “Gamify” Your Class

The Innovative Educator

'Imagine if students were as motivated to do their schoolwork as they are to beat Halo 4. “Gamification” is a fancy word to describe how to achieve exactly that - bringing game-like engagement to non-game settings - and it’s beginning to pervade all aspects of life, including education. For example, Sam Webster, a 4th grade teacher, gamified her class using a teacher-created project called SuperFunner.

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The Plight of the Parent Education Advocate

The Innovative Educator

'Guest post by David Bernstein I’m relatively new to the battle for wholesale educational change, but have fast learned that fighting for a different school model while parenting kids who go to fairly traditional schools requires a tortuous mental balancing act. On the one hand, I’m agitating for change to a badly broken education system, and on the other, I’ve got to make sure that my own alternative-learning-style kids come out of the school system in one piece.

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What’s hot for innovative educators around the globe

The Innovative Educator

'When it comes to education, it seems no matter where in the world you are from, the same innovative practices bring us together. This week at Microsoft’s Partners in Learning Global Forum hundreds of educators from more than 80 countries came together to showcase, learn, discuss and think about innovative teaching, learning, and leading practices. Take a look below to see what was hot around the globe and think about how you might tackle one or some of these where you work in the New Year.

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Technology: Tool of Engagement or Distraction?

The Innovative Educator

'Editor’s note: I believe technology can be used as a tool of engagement, empowerment, and creation but there are also educators who believe that technology can get in the way of learning. In this post, guest blogger Rod Baird shares some cautions to consider when using technology. Take a look and if you are so inspired, comment with your thoughts. Guest Post by Rod Baird At New Canaan High School students are not banned from using tech or blocked from sites.

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If you think a personal learning network is an echo chamber you’ve missed the point.

The Innovative Educator

'High school math teacher Crystal Kirch used her blog to ask for help with her biggest struggle this year: "My students don't know how to learn. They don't know how to succeed. And, it doesn't seem like they care to change any of that. " After reading about her struggle, some innovative educators and parents disagreed with her view toward students and took the time to respectfully disagree with Ms.

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Harnessing The Power Of Math Manipulatives

Mathematics, a subject steeped in abstract concepts, often poses challenges to students, especially those in grades 5-10. But imagine a bridge that transformed this intricate maze into an interactive adventure.

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From banning to embracing - 5 steps to meet the challenge

The Innovative Educator

'By Lisa Nielsen and Willyn Webb | Cross posted at the Teaching Generation Text blog Talk about progress. Just a year ago Teaching Generation Text: Using Cell Phones to Enhance Learning , hit the market during a time when most schools still viewed cell phones as the enemy. For many they were simply a device that caused discipline issues and were viewed as a distraction and a cheating tool.

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Cell Phones in the Classroom: Distraction or Undervalued Teaching Tool?

The Innovative Educator

'While some educators see cell phones and digital devices as distractions and sources of attention deficit, others say these are wonderful, undervalued teaching tools. Do we need to suppress the use of cell phones in classrooms or bring today''s teachers up to speed on how to teach with this new tool? Listen as Rae Pica hosts a conversation on BAM Radio’s Educator’s Channel where " Cell Phones in the Classroom " author Liz Kolb and I take on Greg Graham author of Cell Phones in Classrooms?

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Translate Informal Learning Into PD Credit with Knowit

The Innovative Educator

'When it comes to innovative educators it’s not unusual to spend a lot of time on social media—reading, watching, sharing, learning, connecting, and creating. The articles you read, comments you make, and ideas you share on social platforms like Twitter tell a compelling story of your knowledge and interests. However, right now all of that work is undocumented.

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Verizon Innovative App Challenge for Secondary Students

The Innovative Educator

'Created to ignite interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), The Verizon Innovative App Challenge opens student''s eyes to exciting new possibilities for their futures, opening doors they may never have known were there. The Challenge is a collaborative competition that offers $10,000 grants and Samsung Galaxy Tabs for winning secondary schools and students.

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7 ways innovative educators use Twitter during a disaster #Sandy

The Innovative Educator

'Innovative educators who experienced Hurricane Sandy this past week turned to Twitter to communicate, connect, and share information. Here are some ways Twitter was used as a resource. Teacher Account - A teacher can have an account to stay in touch with students. If the teacher has a webpage or blog she can embed her Tweets there. “ ?@franasaur : Power is back on at the iSchool!

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7 ways cell phones become a lifeline to staff, students & parents during a disaster #Sandy

The Innovative Educator

'During the recent Hurricane Sandy Disaster, many people lost their homes, their power, phone service and internet, but one thing most didn''t lose was their cell phones. Cell phones became a lifeline to those affected by the disaster. In fact in New York City, cell phones were delivered to relocation host school sites as well as schools that reported no phone service.

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Family Learns Together Through App Creation

The Innovative Educator

'Guest post by Kevin Scritchfield My family’s dream of creating apps for the App Store began over 3 years ago when our kids were involved in the National Bible Bee when it first began. The Bible Bee organization would send you all of the materials - mainly specific verses on different sized cards - for you to study and memorize in preparation for the local competition in order to work your way up to the National stage.

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The hottest posts that everyone's reading

The Innovative Educator

'Here’s the roundup of what''s been popular on The Innovative Educator blog this week. Below you’ll see the top weekly posts along with the number of pageviews. I hope there''s something that looks of interest to you. If it does, check it out. If you’re inspired, share it with others and/or leave a comment. Entry Pageviews 4 things to help your students manage their online rep.

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Superstorm Sandy Blows innovation through NYC schools

The Innovative Educator

'Hurricane Katrina brought rise to charter schools in New Orleans and it looks like Superstorm Sandy is bringing rise to online learning in New York City. Celine Azoulay, Executive Director of iLearnNYC is thrilled to be able to support New York City’s secondary school children who have been displaced from their homes or reassigned with 21 st century learning opportunities.

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Using Cell Phone Friendly Social Networks for Global Benefits! - Wednesday Morning

The Innovative Educator

'Start your Wednesday morning with the Global Education Conference 8:00 a.m. EST, 6:00 a.m. MT Here is the link to the session: https://sas.ell uminate.com/d.j nlp?sid=2008350 &password=GECPa rt116 Learn how to set the building blocks for success with cell phones. Empower students to connect globally through the integration of social networks. See how twitter, textnovel, and celly support students with global education networks.

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The hottest posts that everyone's reading

The Innovative Educator

'Here’s the roundup of what''s been popular on The Innovative Educator blog this week. Below you’ll see the top weekly posts along with the number of pageviews. I hope there''s something that looks of interest to you. If it does, check it out. If you’re inspired, share it with others and/or leave a comment. Article Views Want to succeed in STEM? Listen to the experts!

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The hottest posts that everyone's reading

The Innovative Educator

'Here’s the roundup of what''s been popular on The Innovative Educator blog this week. Below you’ll see the top weekly posts along with the number of pageviews. I hope there''s something that looks of interest to you. If it does, check it out. If you’re inspired, share it with others and/or leave a comment. 5 benefits of learning to play musical instruments.

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The hottest posts that everyone's reading!

The Innovative Educator

'Here’s the roundup of what''s been popular on The Innovative Educator blog this week. Below you’ll see the top weekly posts along with the number of pageviews. I hope there''s something that looks of interest to you. If it does, check it out. If you’re inspired, share it with others and/or leave a comment. Entry Pageviews 4 things to help students maintain their online reputation.