Blended Learning Training Resources for Teachers

Originally Posted by Michael Horn, Heather Staker on THE Journal

Teachers are increasingly driving blended learning in their classrooms. Many are becoming more engaged in how they can transform their entire schools to personalize learning for each student and redefine their own roles in exciting ways.

As teachers drive this transformation, there are many places to which they can turn for various blended-learning resources.

What is blended learning? How do I do it?
Some of these resources outline what blended learning is, describe what it looks like in practice, and identify the different models emerging across the country. We recommend our own research on defining blended learning and the different emerging models, as well as our new searchable profiles of blended-learning programs, most of which will be user-generated in the future.

Education Elements, a leading developer of blended-learning solutions, also has developed several informational resources about blended learning including a video on the fundamentals of blended learning, as well as resources on how to design certain blended-learning models, how to select content providers, and the role of teachers.

In addition, two teachers who flipped their classroom in rural Colorado back in 2007 by recording their own live lectures have written a book on the topic titled, “Flip Your Classroom: Reach Every Student in Every Class Every Day.” The book is written specifically for teachers and was just published this July.

Where are some resources to get started?
Teachers do not have to create their own lessons and videos to do blended learning, as the authors, Jonathan Bergmann and Aaron Sams, of “Flip Your Classroom” did. There has been an explosion of digital educational resources lately, which can help a teacher dive into blending learning.

Read the full post on THE Journal

View the original article here

Why Are So Many Educators Flipping for TED-Ed?

“A free and remarkable library of lessons worth sharing.” That’s the promise of the TED-Ed. And, like the site itself, the promise is an interactive, cooperative one that enables teachers worldwide to “use engaging videos to create customized lessons.”

You may have watched TED talks online. A non-profit organization dedicated to “Ideas Worth Spreading,” TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. Until now, though, TED has been more of a static resource of virtual lectures by intelligent, creative, and remarkable people who most of us would wait in line to see in person.

TED-Ed isgeared toward teachers and gives educators the opportunity to interact with the content—to use and customize beautifully designed video lessons, TED talks and any other online video as springboards for classroom discussion. Oh, and it’s all for free.

TED-Ed offers nearly 100 free lessons. Created by educators and designed by renowned animators, they cover everything from string theory to music as language.

Each lesson is much more than just a great, short video. A “Quick Quiz” feature offers a multiple-choice test with real-time responses; a “Think” section provides open-ended questions, and a “Dig Deeper” section provides additional resources. And student engagement can be tracked online.

TED-Ed doesn’t stop there. Teachers can also use the online world to create new video lessons with any online video. Teachers can take advantage of the more than 900 TED talks online. They can riff on a YouTube video: one teacher used a parody of Gotye’s music video for Some Study That I Used to Know—a lesson encouraging students to get more out of school. Educators can even make their own videos and use TED-Ed’s platform to create an interactive lesson.

Flipped Lessons

It gets better: Teachers can “flip” existing lessons, customizing them to suit their needs. Each lesson comes with optional supplementary materials and the opportunity for educators to add their own information. Titles, introductions, and instructions can all be changed. Questions can be deleted from the Quick Quiz or added to the Think section. Educators can add their own resources to Dig Deeper. And once teachers have “flipped” a lesson, they can publish it to a unique URL, where they can measure the progress of individual students—and even inspire other educators. They can even nominate their creation to appear in TED-Ed’s online gallery of Best Flips.

Flipping is an important concept in this free online library. As the site explains, flipping refers not only to the fact that teachers can contextualize the lessons for their students, but also that they can “propel/catapult/slingshot the video lesson to a wider audience.”

Flipping also refers to a new idea in teaching. The Flip Teaching method is simply changing out the typical order of classroom work. Students watch video lectures at home (and remember, teachers can use TED-Ed to make sure students actually did watch), and then complete “homework” during school hours, when the teacher is there to assist. Salman Kahn, who’s pioneering this type of teaching, explains the concept and the power of interactive video in this fascinating TED talk:

The folks at TED-Ed are careful to say that flip teaching may not be a panacea for all of the problems facing today’s educators. But because it shows exciting potential, they’re making it easy for teachers to try it out for themselves. Let us know if you flip for TED-Ed.

Image source: TED-Ed

What are schools that have implemented 1-to-1 learning initiatives now experiencing? Evidence suggests they are outperforming peers, and even saving money. Consider the results these schools have achieved after prioritizing expanded student access to computers.

View the original article here

When Will All Student Desktops Be Virtual?

There are occasions in the world of technology where customer needs and technology capabilities are incredibly well suited for each other.  This is the case for Desktop Virtualization and the K-12 environment.  Using the right virtualization solution can help K-12 technology managers meet the rigorous demands of today’s IT infrastructure for schools.

The demands start with a focus on reducing the daily costs of IT.  As the recovery slowly moves forward, most districts are finding that the tax receipts to fund the schools are lower, and as a result, the best case for many is a flat budget, making actual cost reductions critical as this frees up money for the new solutions that are needed.  Desktop virtualization helps achieve this by cutting software costs with better control over the system image; you only buy what you actually use. 

Sharing licenses is easier also.  It also lowers the amount of time IT needs to spend fixing corrupted clients or local software problems.  By deploying “fresh desktops” to each student as they sign on, problems created in one class don’t impact the next one.  This also simplifies the IT environment saving cost in IT resources.  With fewer variables it lowers the amount of IT resources needed.  Another key point is that by using a single standard “desktop” with just the needed applications and tools, security can be substantially increased as rogue programs, malware, and other security threats are not allowed to run on the standard system image.

Yet, not all virtualization solutions are the same.  There are actually multiple ways to implement desktop virtualization, and rather than go into all of the technical detail here, the focus should be on the most appropriate solution.

In my opinion, the best offering is to provide a fresh virtual desktop for each class or user to a local PC or thin PC that will then run the applications provided by the virtualization server, but locally.  This new class of PCs has reduced power consumption and also is physically much smaller for cramped classrooms.

The need to run applications locally is very important due to the demands by the curriculum for multi-media applications and activities.  New standard curriculum rules such as the Common Core State Standards for Language Arts and Literacy is a good example of this curriculum change that drives demand for “rich media” applications.

Running these applications in a virtual solution that treats the client device as a “dumb terminal” is asking for trouble with network performance and capability.  Most schools don’t have high speed local networks that can support this kind of multimedia network traffic, and implementing desktop virtualization to save money, and then having to spend more money on a network upgrade is non-sensical.  So moving to virtualization with local execution makes the best sense.

So when do all K-12 desktops become virtual?  The answer is sooner than you think!

As K-12 IT leaders seek ways to support computer-based learning within constrained budgets, desktop virtualization has emerged as a compelling solution. This white paper demonstrates how virtualization helps schools reduce their total cost of ownership and improve computer access, which ultimately produces greater satisfaction among administrators, teachers, students and parents.

View the original article here

Inside Community High School District 99’s Untethering

Originally Posted by EdTech Magazine

A network upgrade, wireless implementation and tablet rollout give Illinois teachers and students the mobility they craved.

Highlights:

A strategic planning initiative among stakeholders about technology improvements led Community High School District 99 officials to begin a network upgrade and wireless implementation in 2011.IT staff relied on CDW•G’s Advanced Technology Services team for help planning and implementing an infrastructure that would make a tablet rollout to teachers possible.The district deployed an all-Cisco infrastructure in summer 2011 and rolled out Lenovo ThinkPad X220 tablets to the teachers for classroom use this fall.

Participants: Rod Russeau and Greg Belina, of Community High School District 99; South High School’s Ed Schwartz; North High School’s Gwen Henderson and Lisa Lichtman

View the original article here

Windows 8 Tablets for Students: Does the new Lenovo ThinkPad 2 have it Right?

Originally Posted by  Mark Taormino, Examiner.com

We all know that the iPad has established a dominant market position in terms of units sold and the percentage of market share. However, the market is still very young and comparatively small compared to all other types of computer devices; laptops and desktops. The primary competition for the iPad are Android tablets mostly from Samsung, Asus, Acer, Motorola, and Lenovo. The adoption of tablets by individual students is limited because of functionality issues. This could all change with the introduction of Windows 8, scheduled for release on October 25, 2012.

Students have been reticent to adopt tablets mainly because they are essentially consumption devices. Students need computers to create content as well. Tablets, both Android and iPad, have not been effectively designed to support the creation of content. The adoption of tablets by students in higher education is miniscule, except when the institution provides the devices. One might ask why that is, and what could change this? One possible answer is the introduction of Windows 8 and improved hardware.

Windows 8 has been designed to operate on a tablet, and leverage existing Microsoft applications such as Word and Excel. Student complaints abound that the current tablets do not support Word or Excel, so are of limited value in education settings. This is primarily true in higher education where students write many papers, and use spreadsheet software. The standard, like it or not, is Word and Excel. The introduction of a Microsoft operating system that can run on tablets and can support Microsoft applications will have widespread appeal to students. However, that is only part of the story about why students have not embraced tablets.

Another side of the story is something called Active Reading. Active Reading is how many students learn. Active Reading involves immersion with text through physical actions of the user. The most common strategies used in active reading are writing; underlining, highlighting, writing in margins (aka marginalia), and other coding schema’s. It is well researched that students use active reading strategies while reading to learn. Active Reading is very different than reading for pleasure, and this issue has been missed by e-readers and tablets, at least to date. The inability to efficiently support functionality for active reading strategies has turned off students to electronic reading, particularly with tablets.

While Windows 8 now potentially solves an important student need with a tablet operating system that will offer Office applications, the question remains about Active Reading. Immersion with text requires writing. Writing on a tablet is cumbersome at best. There are reading applications that support highlighting, underlining, and marginalia, but they offer a mediocre user experience. Any electronic solution must beat least equivalent to the experience of reading and writing on paper. The use of one’s finger, or a capacitive stylus pen, is much less efficient when compared to reading and writing on paper. Quite simply, any innovation must offer a better experience than what it hopes to supersede. If anyone has ever written on a tablet screen (capacitive touch screen), a finger is too fat, and a stylus is about the same size as a finger. A capacitive stylus is not only fat-tipped, but is rubberized and spongy to mimic a finger. A capacitive touch screen responds to heat transfer and not pressure. That is why a capacitive touch stylus pen is an unnatural writing implement compared to a pen or pencil. Therefore, writing with a stylus is rather uncomfortable and awkward. Think about writing with the eraser end of a pencil rather than the sharpened point.

The truth is that students cannot efficiently use Active Reading strategies with a tablet computer, and this results in a continued preference for the printed text. Surely schools can shoehorn in digital solutions to students as a forced measure, but it is very telling that individual student adoption is very limited.

There is some hope on the horizon, and is indeed very encouraging. Lenovo is set to release a new 10 inch tablet with Windows 8 (http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/tablet/thinkpad/thinkpad-tablet-2/). The reported release date is to coincide with the release of the Windows 8 software at the end of January. The Lenovo ThinkPad 2 comes with a new feature that might be compelling to students. It breaks the mold of the capacitive stylus pen as a fat-tipped pen. The ThinkPad 2 will include a stylus with a new fine tipped point, much like a pencil. The tablet and stylus is designed for free-form writing. This is a significant step for tablets, and could potentially spur widespread student adoption. Writing efficiently on a tablet screen in a way that mimics the paper experience should not be underestimated. This is a key function for students.

Microsoft applications plus a more efficient writing experience on screen will surely push other device makers to respond in kind. There are many unknowns about the ThinkPad 2 and Windows 8, but it does seem these two important developments might make the tablet device more suited to student use. Like many other things in life, time will tell if Lenovo and Windows 8 might make some inroads. Stay tuned.

Read full post on the ThinkPad Tablet 2

Image Source

View the original article here

When Will All Student Desktops Be Virtual?

There are occasions in the world of technology where customer needs and technology capabilities are incredibly well suited for each other.  This is the case for Desktop Virtualization and the K-12 environment.  Using the right virtualization solution can help K-12 technology managers meet the rigorous demands of today’s IT infrastructure for schools.

The demands start with a focus on reducing the daily costs of IT.  As the recovery slowly moves forward, most districts are finding that the tax receipts to fund the schools are lower, and as a result, the best case for many is a flat budget, making actual cost reductions critical as this frees up money for the new solutions that are needed.  Desktop virtualization helps achieve this by cutting software costs with better control over the system image; you only buy what you actually use. 

Sharing licenses is easier also.  It also lowers the amount of time IT needs to spend fixing corrupted clients or local software problems.  By deploying “fresh desktops” to each student as they sign on, problems created in one class don’t impact the next one.  This also simplifies the IT environment saving cost in IT resources.  With fewer variables it lowers the amount of IT resources needed.  Another key point is that by using a single standard “desktop” with just the needed applications and tools, security can be substantially increased as rogue programs, malware, and other security threats are not allowed to run on the standard system image.

Yet, not all virtualization solutions are the same.  There are actually multiple ways to implement desktop virtualization, and rather than go into all of the technical detail here, the focus should be on the most appropriate solution.

In my opinion, the best offering is to provide a fresh virtual desktop for each class or user to a local PC or thin PC that will then run the applications provided by the virtualization server, but locally.  This new class of PCs has reduced power consumption and also is physically much smaller for cramped classrooms.

The need to run applications locally is very important due to the demands by the curriculum for multi-media applications and activities.  New standard curriculum rules such as the Common Core State Standards for Language Arts and Literacy is a good example of this curriculum change that drives demand for “rich media” applications.

Running these applications in a virtual solution that treats the client device as a “dumb terminal” is asking for trouble with network performance and capability.  Most schools don’t have high speed local networks that can support this kind of multimedia network traffic, and implementing desktop virtualization to save money, and then having to spend more money on a network upgrade is non-sensical.  So moving to virtualization with local execution makes the best sense.

So when do all K-12 desktops become virtual?  The answer is sooner than you think!

As K-12 IT leaders seek ways to support computer-based learning within constrained budgets, desktop virtualization has emerged as a compelling solution. This white paper demonstrates how virtualization helps schools reduce their total cost of ownership and improve computer access, which ultimately produces greater satisfaction among administrators, teachers, students and parents.

View the original article here

Blended Learning Training Resources for Teachers

Originally Posted by Michael Horn, Heather Staker on THE Journal

Teachers are increasingly driving blended learning in their classrooms. Many are becoming more engaged in how they can transform their entire schools to personalize learning for each student and redefine their own roles in exciting ways.

As teachers drive this transformation, there are many places to which they can turn for various blended-learning resources.

What is blended learning? How do I do it?
Some of these resources outline what blended learning is, describe what it looks like in practice, and identify the different models emerging across the country. We recommend our own research on defining blended learning and the different emerging models, as well as our new searchable profiles of blended-learning programs, most of which will be user-generated in the future.

Education Elements, a leading developer of blended-learning solutions, also has developed several informational resources about blended learning including a video on the fundamentals of blended learning, as well as resources on how to design certain blended-learning models, how to select content providers, and the role of teachers.

In addition, two teachers who flipped their classroom in rural Colorado back in 2007 by recording their own live lectures have written a book on the topic titled, “Flip Your Classroom: Reach Every Student in Every Class Every Day.” The book is written specifically for teachers and was just published this July.

Where are some resources to get started?
Teachers do not have to create their own lessons and videos to do blended learning, as the authors, Jonathan Bergmann and Aaron Sams, of “Flip Your Classroom” did. There has been an explosion of digital educational resources lately, which can help a teacher dive into blending learning.

Read the full post on THE Journal

View the original article here