What's the best device for interactive learning?

Hi everyone!

I feel that I've neglected my 'techy' passion for ages now. My thesis has clearly taken attention away researching new developments in educational technology. Luckily, my research brought me back full circle! I discovered a great article which helped delineate the laptop vs. tablet debate rather nicely. 

Here's the link: What's the best device for interactive learning?

This has been a question of mine for ages now: How do schools choose, amid the plethora of choices, the best device(s) to use in their classrooms? 

I liked David Mahaley's answer (Franklin Academy, North Carolina) in this article: "First you have to ask: What do you want the device to do for your children?" I see lots of teachers blindly adopting technology into the classroom, without asking this question. Sometimes it may not be appropriate to use technology at all...it depends on the requirements of the task - what you, as teacher, would like for your learners to experience.

Enjoy the read! I'd love to hear your thoughts :)

Casey 

More student blogs!

Hi everyone!

I haven't blogged for a while, but my new crop of student teachers have started to create their own blogs,so I thought it was high time that I looked at my blog again! Things have been so busy, but I realised that one must simply make time for those things that you enjoy! Hence, here I am!

I have designed a short course for Stellenbosch University called Digital Literacy Short Course, specifically targeting new teachers who are in the BEd faculty of Stellenbosch University. The course consists of 5 modules; Going Digital (which introduces new teachers to digital literacy and educational technology, as well as to consider how teaching and learning differs in the 21st century), Presentations (an introduction into various interactive, visual and audio presentation formats that teachers could use in their classrooms), Information Surfing (for both teachers' and learners' academic information pursuits, as well as for teachers to access the plethora of teaching resources available on the net), Going Google (a taster of what Google in Education can offer to teachers), as well as Application and Reflection (how one can use the tools learnt in the classroom, and for various levels of resource availability).

The course is scheduled to run twice this year. We have just run the first component of the June opportunity - a 20 hour workshop, to be followed by 40 hours of self-study and assessment submission to be completed by the students. The October opportunity will run slightly differently -     5 x Thursday morning contact sessions in the month of October, with 40 hours of self-study and assessments to complete in the time between the contact sessions. Both of these opportunities are pilot studies - should they be well-received, we hope to incorporate them into the BEd and PGCE courses.

Below are the June opportunity student blogs:

• Colour Me Wise
• Roeping as Onnie 
• ToolboxEd
• Mind to Mine
• Juffrou ABC
• Onderrig Keuses
• Not Just Another Brick in the Wall
• EdukidZ
• Might Makes Write

We even had a Marketing student join us - her blog can be found at Marketing Mania. 

I really applaud my students' efforts to venture into a completely new (and often scary!) adventure of blogging! So much of blogging is playing around and learning the various features and opportunities that the various blogging platforms afford. All of the best, ladies! I look forward to reading of your exciting discoveries!

Education 3.0

I love the concept of Education 3.0!

Education 1.0 - Substitution-Augmentation: Knowledge is passed form teacher to learners.Technology may be used to merely capture the information or present it for the teacher to mark *Receiving, Responding, Regurgitating*

Education 2.0 - Modification: Teacher- learners-peers interactivity begins *Communication, Contribution, Collaboration*

Education 3.0 - Redefinition: Content is freely available and shareable *Connectors, Creators, Constructivists*

Excellent ideas for getting learners to engage in using different technology and learning.

Thank you, eLearning Infographics!


Find more education infographics on e-Learning Infographics

The Innovation of Education

I love this Infographic - a history lesson and guideline to becoming more technologically savvy all in one go!




Find more education infographics on e-Learning Infographics

Teacher Agency

It would seem that it is not only learners who feel the effects of learned helplessness and growth fixed mindsets - teachers, under the pressure of contemporary teaching, succumb to such phenomena too. Jackie Gerstein explores this phenomenon in her blog User Generated Education. 

More tech-savvy then their teachers?

What happens when your learners know more than you as teacher about the technology that you use to teach them? Terry Heick has some interesting ideas about the digital learner in his post What happens when students use technology better than teachers? featured in TeachThought.

The Obituary of the Student Desk

Photo credit: toonslips.com

Carl Hooker, educational technologist extraordinaire, wrote a wonderfully tongue-in-cheek article about the death of the student desk that we know today - The Obituary of the Student Desk - 1887 -2013. 

Carl's blog, Hooked on Innovation, has been part of my staple blog diet for a while now. I really like his writing style and innovative ideas. You can follow him on his blog Hooked on Innovation. 

Mobile Technology

Hi everyone,

Some of you may already know, but I am researching for my Masters thesis on the motivating effects of technology in the classroom, and so I jump at any research I can get my hands on with regards to technology used in education. One of my students posted this fabulous link on her blog, UmzanziEduPad, that details much information on technology in Africa - research that is sorely lacking. Rudi de Waele is founder and CEO at Nyota Media, and the website is a host of wonderful information regarding techno-trends.
Have a look. Once again, thank you, Marina!

How Mobile Technology is Transforming Africa from Rudy De Waele

I found another great slideshow on mobile technology from Tony Vincent's website Learning in Hand. 35 educational specialists addressed the question: "What are the most effective uses of technology in mobile and online education?" and each of their answers were included in the slide show below. How awesome?!

Mobile Education - Lessons from 35 Education Experts on Improving Learning with Mobile Technology from Studio B Productions, Inc.

ePortfolios

What are your views regarding ePortfolios? I found an interesting infographic on Stephen Downes' blog 

Half an Hour that made quite a bit of sense to me. Thoughts?

Dyslexia

I found a really great article on teaching children with Dyslexia, from Reading Horizons. It describes various accommodations that can be made for the child within the classroom. A good read!