A flipped classroom is one in which the background learning of a particular topic or skill occurs outside of class time – utilizing technological tools like videos and podcasts to teach the essential skills. This leaves class time free to work collaboratively on the higher-order thinking needed to utilize these skills.

In other words, class time is now free to spend working with the students because everyone has already received the background instruction that takes up so much time in the traditional classroom.

BYOD fits students’ lifestyles – The appeal of using iPads and other connected devices in school is obvious and students find them easier to use than traditional computers.  This novelty leads to learning and when schools don’t implement what has now become “everyday technology”, we’re doing students a disservice. Besides, who wants to carry a backpack full of books? Plus digital textbooks, homework and tests offers numerous ways to eliminate paper, saving dollars and the environment.

Obama’s goal: an e-textbook in every student’s hand by 2017.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski and Education Secretary Arne Duncan will recommend today at a summit of industry and education officials that states modify the textbook adoption process, allowing K-12 schools to use taxpayer funding once reserved for printed books on iPads, Kindles and the like — as well as software.

They’ll begin pushing publishers, computer tablet makers and Internet service providers to work together and lower costs if they want to sell their products to the nation’s 50 million schoolkids.

Administration officials say Web-connected instructional materials help students learn more efficiently and give teachers real-time information on how well kids understand material. “We spend $7 billion a year on textbooks, and for many students around the country, they’re out of date,” Genachowski says. In five years, he predicts, “we could be spending less as a society on textbooks and getting more for it.”

While up-front costs for tablet computers are high — new iPads start at $499 — he says moving from paper to digital “saves a ton of money” in the long run. “We absolutely want to push the process.”

Matt MacInnis, founder and CEO of the e-textbook company Inkling, says the transition is essential. “There is no future for American education unless we figure this out. There’s no segment of any industry anywhere in the world anymore that doesn’t rely on technology to get its job done.”

Karen Cator, the U.S. Department of Education’s technology director, says moving classwork onto devices such as tablets gives students the ability to do research, check their work and get feedback from teachers, among other uses. “One of the opportunities to extend the school day is by providing students with interactive and engaging environments outside of school,” she says.

-USA Today

Ahead of the Tech Curve
The report, “How Teachers Are Using Technology at Home and in Their Classrooms,” polled 2,462 middle school and high school teachers in the United States, including 1,750 high school AP teachers and 712 teachers from the National writing project. It found that these teachers tend to be more tech-proficient than the average American adult and tend to integrate technology into their classrooms. (Read More Here)

Participants unable to travel to Wayne for the summit were able to participate virtually from designated sites at Peru State and Chadron State Colleges.

Open education and open educational resources (OER) focus on providing courses and course material without cost to users, who are able to reuse, revise, remix and redistribute those materials.

Chadron State College is a partner in the Kaleidoscope Project which promotes, at a minimum, designing and updating general studies courses that utilize open educational resources.

Participants at the OER Summit engaged in discussions, course demonstration projects and plenary sessions on the history of open education, challenges facing providers and users and the possibilities for the future. They examined free and low cost materials available through projects such as the Carnegie Mellon Open Learning Initiative, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Open Courseware, the Washington State Open Course Library, and the Creative Commons copyright.

Internationally recognized speakers for the OER Summit included Dr. Vijay Kumar, Director of the Office of Educational Innovation and Technology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cable Green, Director of Global Learning for the Creative Commons, Dr. David Wiley, Director of the Open Education Group at the Center for the Improvement of Teacher Education and Schooling at Brigham Young University, Kim Thanos, Program Manager for the Kaleidoscope Project and CEO of Lumen Learning, and Dr. Norman Bier, Associate Director of the Open Learning Initiative at Carnegie Mellon University.

While the game’s graphics left much to be desired, the concept itself was (and is) extremely innovative: leverage the latest technology to make intimidating educational content engaging and fun. Fast forward 15 years and the marketplace for educational games and technology is booming. According to the National Venture Capital Association, U.S. investments in education-technology companies tripled in the last decade, skyrocketing to $429-million in 2011 from $146-million in 2002. Digital learning has been transformed by the proliferation of broadband Internet and the availability of cutting-edge technology inside and outside the classroom – from interactive whiteboards to tablets. Further, powerful networks now connect schools in America to some of fastest Internet speeds in the world and more consumers have access to broadband in their homes than ever before. According to Broadband for America, adoption in the U.S. jumped from 3 percent in 2000 to 65 percent in 2010. Thanks to these network investments and technology innovations, students are no longer limited by floppy disks or dialup Internet speeds; now entire learning ecosystems are available at the touch of an icon on a tablet or smartphone.

Educational technology isn’t just more advanced; it also has the support of educators and students alike. According to a national survey of K-12 teachers conducted by PBS LearningMedia, 74 percent of teachers reported that educational technology benefits their classroom by reinforcing and expanding classroom content. Teachers also said that digital applications allowed them to customize lessons to meet the varied learning styles of their students. The survey found that technology empowers teachers to “do much more than ever before” for their students. Further, a study by youth research firm TRU found that of students who reported using tablets in the classroom, two in three agreed that the tablet made them want to learn more. Even less cutting-edge technology like laptops can make difference. The same study found that 67 percent of students who used laptops in the classroom felt that the technology helped them to better grasp science and math concepts.

Access

While technology is advancing and becoming a more effective learning tool, access to these technologies remains an issue for some of the nation’s neediest communities. In order to maximize the potential of digital learning tools, students and teachers need better access to technology, high-speed broadband, and digital literacy training. The aforementioned PBS LearningMedia survey found that 68 percent of teachers want more classroom technology, a number even higher for teachers in low-income schools (75 percent). Further, 65 percent of classrooms didn’t have access to tablets or e-readers despite one in two teachers saying tablets and e-readers were beneficial for classroom teaching.

Training is critical

Training poses an even greater challenge. My middle school math teacher didn’t know the first thing about computers and during our trips to the technology lab she sat back and left us to the “troggles”. According to the Verizon Foundation, without support or training only 15 percent of teachers use technology effectively, a number that spikes to 85 percent for those who receive continuous support.

At LNESC, the national education nonprofit I work for, we operate a network of programs for K-2^nd graders called Young Readers that utilize classroom based technology and digital content to make reading fun and engaging for high-need students. We recently remodeled the program to include tablets and digital applications to help teachers more closely monitor student progress. In addition to tablets, we provide teachers with extensive on-site and virtual training throughout the year to ensure they feel supported using the technology. Given that the majority of our partners serve some of the nation’s most disadvantaged communities, it’s not unexpected that flashy tablets, interactive whiteboards, and additional training are not high priorities. However, given the tremendous potential digital learning and classroom technology has for increasing student achievement, it is essential we work to ensure all teachers, students, and parents benefit from the digital transformation happening in well-to-do classrooms across the nation.

Jason Resendez, Director, LULAC National Educational Service Centers, Inc. (LNESC)

• By Leila Meyer
• 11/28/12

As school districts prepare for the implementation of Common Core State Standards or Career and College Readiness standards, as well as online assessments, the Alliance for Excellent Education has released a report, “The Nation’s Schools Are Stepping Up to Higher Standards,” that identifies four interrelated challenges facing school districts and seven interconnected areas of education that the Alliance asserts can benefit from digital learning and technology.

Sara Hall is the director of digital learning for the Alliance. She is one of the people behind the Alliance’s first annual Digital Learning Day, “a national campaign that celebrates teachers and shines a spotlight on successful instructional practice and effective use of technology in classrooms across the country.” Through that event, the Alliance realized that school districts had an urgent need for support in their efforts to advance digital learning in the classroom, and it was the impetus behind the creation of the report.

Following up on this report and its suggestions, the Alliance plans to announce a new initiative called Project 24, “a district-level effort to provide school districts with useful tools that will assist them in reaching college- and career-ready standards through systemic planning for the effective use of technology and digital learning over the next twenty-four months,” according to the Alliance. “The groundwork on Project 24 is currently being done, and the official call to action will begin on Digital Learning Day 2013,” which will take place Feb. 6.

In this interview, Hall discusses the role of digital learning in education and how school districts can effectively plan their digital learning initiatives.

Leila Meyer: How do you define digital learning?

Sara Hall: When people in ed tech read “digital learning,” they morph that into online or virtual learning, and that is one specific piece of what we’re talking about, but we actually define digital learning as any instructional practice that effectively uses technology to strengthen the learning experience.

So it’s a very broad definition of digital learning and it really does encompass data, the use of time, professional learning, all of those pieces. But I always have to remind people that our definition is a very broad definition. It includes that one pillar of online learning but many, many other pillars as well.

Meyer: What is the main benefit of digital learning?

Hall: The biggest benefit is that it allows teachers an opportunity to personalize instruction using real time data, using more robust more engaging content, and really being able to tailor the instructional experience for each kid, whereas five years ago that kind of technology just didn’t exist.

Meyer: How do you think the Common Core State Standards affect the role of digital learning in the classroom?

Hall: What we’re seeing is that the higher standards in Common Core can be a real opportunity for districts to think through digital learning in a way that’s very systemic. So as they’re thinking about how they need to achieve these higher standards … in the curriculum, the data and assessment, the professional learning, and the supports, they can think about how digital learning can connect all of those dots. And that’s what we’re really hoping that people will think about as they’re thinking through Common Core implementation.

Meyer: In your opinion, are any particular digital learning technologies that have a bigger impact on student achievement than others?

Hall: Each district has to assess the goals for their student achievement and figure out what pieces they need. There’s not one silver bullet that’s going to solve every district’s issues. Being able to think about it more systemically is really important.

iClassroom / Beyond Textbooks Project
Pilot Program Overview

In the spring of 2011, under the innovative leadership of the Minister of Palau, Palau High School implemented a 21st century digital learning pilot program titled the iClassroom.  The iClassroom is a digital-technology teaching and learning environment that utilizes wireless computing tools (laptop, iPad, iPod Touch, Smartphone, LrServer set-up) combined with Internet-based curriculum supportive resources (eTextbooks, video lessons, interactive simulations, digital assessments) to support classroom teachers to deliver engaging “digital-age” lessons.  The project is in the second year of implementation.

The iClassroom pilot originally began supporting the Palau High School (PHS) business, tourism, Math and Science departments and was expanded in 2012 with an additional learning resource (LrServer) to exclusively support the Math and Science departments with S.T.E.M. resource-base digital learning content.  For the 2012/13 it is anticipated that the iClassroom will expand to five (5) elementary schools in to support 7 and 8 grade teachers and students.  Additionally, the expanded iClassroom will offer CK12 library of Flexbooks, www.ck12.org , as alternative instructional resources to traditional textbooks. Flexbooks are free Open Educational Resources (OER) that will empower the Palau Department of Education to offer high-quality (common core aligned) instructional material to replace future traditional textbook adoptions… by enabling local educators to customize and print textbooks on demand.  This will save Palau schools hundreds of thousands of dollars in future textbook purchases as well as transportation shipping costs… while offering “current” content for ongoing learning.  CK12 Flexbooks will also offer Palau educators the capability to localize content to fit the diversified instructional needs of island students.

Twenty-five (25) PHS teachers participated in multiple iClassroom-training sessions to learn how to effectively integrate digital learning resources and techniques in classroom instruction.  Teacher support and commitment to the program is strong.
The iClassroom pilot has been retitled to “Palau – Beyond Textbooks” to support the Minister of Education transformational vision to support schools by offering a true 21st century dynamic learning environment for students while delivering instructional cost-savings for the people of the Republic of Palau.
For additional information on Palau – Beyond Textbooks project contact Lee Stewart, at 3W Education Consulting Group. CONTACT US

Most school districts have the technical infrastructure to support the basic digital textbooks of today. But as far as supporting the kinds of textbooks tech-savvy educators would like to see—multimedia-rich, interactive, Web-based materials—schools have some serious catching up to do in increasing network speed and connectivity, providing professional development for teachers, and persuading lawmakers to revisit state textbook-adoption policies.

“Right now, as long as all we’re doing is PDF files, the bandwidth and infrastructure in Virginia isn’t going to be a problem,” says Lan W. Neugent, the assistant superintendent of technology, career, and adult education for the Virginia Department of Education.

“But we’re going to see books become multimedia extravaganzas,” he says, “and the minute that happens, then suddenly the bandwidth is going to be pitiful.”

In 2000, the state began a push toward online standardized testing, says Neugent, which laid the groundwork for digital textbooks by beefing up bandwidth and computer access in the classroom.  READ MORE

Download the complete article here.

Thanks to the implementation of the Common Core State Standards, the United States could be approaching a “classroom cliff” characterized by declining test scores, but new technology can help education leaders push forward, said Frankel, executive director of Digital Promise, a Congressionally authorized nonprofit that advocates for the use of digital technology in education.

In a blog posted on CNN’s website, Frankel said the education system could face a crisis in the next few years, as today’s lesson plans are not designed to prepare students for the Common Core standards. And since the first Common Core-aligned exams won’t be administered until 2014-2015, it will take years for schools to get an accurate picture of where their students stand, which Frankel thinks “will be a wake-up call for the country.”

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Schools could harness educational technology to exchange ideas and coordinate what needs to be fixed, Frankel said:

“One place to start is a national public-private Common Core Readiness Initiative to not only help schools and states identify what they need to do, but help them do it. Digital Promise’s League of Innovative Schools, a partnership of 26 school districts in 18 states that collectively serve roughly 2.5 million students, stands ready to lead the way with willing partners.”

There are plenty of ways districts are already using technology to assist with the Common Core transition. Some schools are using a ‘readiness tool’ to map out their ed-tech inventory and figure out what needs to be up to speed by 2014-2015. Others have looked into ‘digital badges’ to track individual student achievement. Private companies, too, are beginning to adjust their content in the hopes that schools will use software to help with common standards and assessments.