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After a wonderful experience at the ISTE11 Conference in Philadelphia, I finally made the decision to get away from any computer and get myself to the beach for a week to decompress. Of course, I have my Droid, so I am still somewhat connected, but frustratingly so. A mobile device doesn’t yet fully replace the speed and convenience of a loaded laptop or desktop. Yet, it is that very inconvenience with only a mobile phone at the beach that enables me to say to my family that I am, for the…

"The law has created dozens of ways for schools to fail and very few ways to help them succeed. We should get out of the business of labeling schools as failures and create a new law that is fair and flexible and focused on the schools and students most at risk."

U.S. Department of Education Secretary – Arne Duncan

It’s all about the test scores. …

My marathon is over....

I have been privileged of late to have time to read;  to read, to watch, to listen – and to think. Much of this precious time has been has been spent devouring material relating to school reform and exploring one simple question -  how do we respond to the challenges and opportunities provided by the digital revolution to improve our schools?  The concept of “school” as we know it is well over a century old – and was obviously developed before the digital…

A growing number of schools have launched programs to provide iPads to students. What returns is this investment yielding?

There’s no doubt the iPad is a hot topic in education technology today. Just about every week, my preconfigured Google Alerts deliver stories about schools that have decided to provide…

Location! Location! Location!

What Does Location, Location, Location Mean?

It means identical homes can increase or decrease in value due to location. It's repeated three times for emphasis, and so you will remember the phrase. It's the number one rule in real estate, and it's often the most overlooked rule. The best locations are those in…

The Alabama School Library Association (ASLA), a leader among school library associations, ventured forward into the realm of Twitter chats with it's inaugural debut using the hashtag ---> #aslachat on July 5, 2011 at 7CT/8ET.  





ASLA kicked off the chat with a quote from Springfield Township High School…

While assessment and grading are two distinct topics, they often intertwine.  Occasionally something comes along to remind us that poor grading practices can end up negating effective assessment practices.  That's why Allen Iverson is on this site - to remind us that we need to give…

This “Classroom Management” app provides teachers the ability to instruct, monitor, and interact with students on classroom computers individually, in groups, or as an entire class.

Instructors at my school have often asked if there was an easy way they could turn off Internet access on the computers in our computer lab classrooms.…

Each year I become more and more excited about teaching students to research. Here is my evolution in teaching research skills:



1993-2001: Teach students to read nonfiction and take notes so that they can report learning without plagiarizing. Yawn.



2001-2006: Teach students to read nonfiction online and in print. Scour the internet to identify the best websites for kids to use. Develop webquests.…

Psychologist Carol Dweck has given the educational community one of the most positive educational concepts yet to be developed – mindset.  Like many good ideas it is deceptively simple – but the implications for schools are profound.  Quite simply, mindset is the belief that ability is not fixed – that people can acquire new…