December 2009 Blog Posts (102)

Learn Japanese the fun way! - NihongoUp

I recently finished my new Adobe AIR-based Japanese educational game and reviewing tool NihongoUp. It can improve one’s kana typing speed as well as help one review the kanji, vocab and particles.

Feel free to try it out and learn Japanese the fun way!

If you have any ideas on how to improve it, please post them here or drop me a mail ^^

As it's made with Adobe AIR, the… Continue

Added by Philip Seyfi on December 22, 2009 at 2:58am — No Comments

Launching an Edtech company, Part 3: OER

My highest priority in life? To have a lasting impact on educational opportunities for students everywhere. Lofty, sure. But it's a realistic goal this day and age. Unfortunately, educational technology today often hides content behind registrations, passwords and other digital "walls" that prevent students and other teachers from engaging the content and benefiting from the good work of a great teacher.

I think that's inefficiency in education (because perfect knowledge, for all of… Continue

Added by Joseph Thibault on December 21, 2009 at 5:13pm — No Comments

Off to my "other" job -- Writer

With school on break for a couple of weeks I get a chance to wear but one hat and be a writer for a wee bit. I love it!

And with three books coming out for me in the next 18 months (2 of them already written, one due by the end of next summer to be released a year later) this is really the time to "get ahead while the gettin's good".

However, part of being an author is understanding that so much of the work you do will not see the light of day til well over a… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on December 21, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

Integrating Technology for Active Life-long Learning (IT4ALL) Talks

Greetings,

I would like to introduce you to Integrating Technology for Active Life-long Learning (IT4ALL). IT4ALL provides free online workshops on Moodle for Teachers (M4T), Web 2.0 Tools for Educators, TESOL-O, ESOL, and other exciting e-learning workshops and courses on how to improve instruction and learning. You are invited to enroll in the courses available,… Continue

Added by Dr. Nellie Deutsch on December 21, 2009 at 3:41am — No Comments

cosecant arguments; not like you think the other argument.

for csc(2n+1) ; the "2n + 1" is considered the argument. The argument I am referring to in the title is the age old battle between what should you know and what should you be able to get, look up, or derive when needed.

The battle rages on. Here is my update to the JS Maths Wiki that was inspired by one such argument (very civil) that I participated in at a holiday party for the staff at our school. Here is… Continue

Added by Geoff St. Pierre on December 20, 2009 at 5:37pm — No Comments

A Journey in TEFL

LETTERS, THE TEACHER'S ELVES

I’m sure we sometimes finish the lesson before the planned time or we see that our students are lost and aren’t following us then we tend to find something to motivate them.

It’s always a good idea to have something ready for these moments. Fillers are great. They are short, energising and motivating.

Whenever I feel we are stuck in the middle of the lesson and have nothing to continue, I use one of the simplest tools that I have,… Continue

Added by Eva Büyüksimkeşyan on December 20, 2009 at 6:39am — No Comments

The #1 ..... (documentary about education)

** Not your ordinary endless list - just what's number 1. Just the BEST.

Jane Elliot's Daring Blue Eyes / Brown Eyes Experiment

This is a timeless classic. Always ready to give us pause and get us thinking about the "ghost inside our machine". Jane has continued to do this experiment over many years and even… Continue

Added by ddeubel on December 19, 2009 at 5:21pm — No Comments

How to Create a Classroom Website

Some members on here may remember the recent webinar from Weebly on how to create a classroom website and student blogs. The webinar is in the archives, but if you don't want to replay the full 1hr session, take a look at this guide I created on how to create a site with Weebly websites.

http://www.brighthub.com/education/k-12/articles/59509.aspx

Added by Jonathan Wylie on December 19, 2009 at 1:30pm — No Comments

Sharpening the Saw

I took a weeklong cruise once -- LOVED IT -- and clearly remember talking to one of the "boat hosts" about how people change over the course of the trip.

On Day 1 of the cruise, people are itchy to check their emails, their blackberries, their "messages"... and the "news" from the world back home as well. They think about their jobs, their problems, and all sorts of day-in and day-out stuff like that.

By Day 3 they are doing the… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on December 19, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

It's really hard to give a damn about a kid's grades when a kid doesn't give a damn themself.

Let's be honest... it's really hard to give a damn about a kid's grades when a kid doesn't give a damn themself.

I know I am supposed to be mature, compassionate, professional and perpetually hopeful and encouraging but wow, sometimes it is just so hard when you are being asked to care about the performance of a student at a level that exceeds their own concern. I mean after having just done grades and participating in a school-wide dialogue about "low performing students",… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on December 18, 2009 at 6:00am — 1 Comment

Growing Tension among Old and New Journalism Education

This post was originally posted on Tech Academy at www.andreagenevieve.com

In 2009 there’s been a common stereotype, in any field, that young people don’t know what they are talking about. Over the past year the debate has grown over the positive and… Continue

Added by Andrea Genevieve Michnik on December 17, 2009 at 10:03am — No Comments

Promo codes for Percentally: a data collection app for the iPhone and iPod touch

Jason M. Rinn and I our pleased to announce that Percentally was released on the App Store: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/percentally/id344775897?mt=8. Percentally is a data collection app for the iPhone and iPod touch. It converts tallies to percentages, and the data can be easily shared via the clipboard, email, or a Google Spreadsheet. To learn… Continue

Added by Eric Sailers on December 16, 2009 at 9:05am — No Comments

5 K-12 Technology Trends for 2010

In a recent piece in THE Journal, Bridget McCrea spoke with a group of technology experts in order to compile a short list of technology trends educators should look for in 2010. Here’s McCrea’s list... MORE

Added by Shawn Roner on December 15, 2009 at 7:30pm — No Comments

Learning and Technology PhD at University of Nevada, Las Vegas

If anyone is interested in advancing their education in educational technology, I highly recommend the Learning and Technology program at UNLV. The L & T program is a joint program of the Curriculum and Instruction Department and the highly regarded Educational Psychology Department. The faculty are wonderful teachers and noted scholars in the field.

As many of you are aware, educational technology is rapidly growing emerging field of research in the field of education. If any of… Continue

Added by Steve Tanksley on December 15, 2009 at 6:33pm — 1 Comment

Launching an Edtech company, Part 2

Building awareness around a brand (especially a new brand) is difficult. Over the past few weeks I've been getting out into the education community (the online community that is) and have connected with bloggers and individuals who I think would be great additions to our Beta testing group.

You see, when we launch http://coursefeeds.com we plan to do so in measured steps (so we can tweak the system to best fit the needs of our… Continue

Added by Joseph Thibault on December 15, 2009 at 2:44pm — 1 Comment

Real Life Algebra Connections

What kinds of online resources has anyone found that presents algebra in real world applications? I would be interested in interactive websites, demonstrations of algebra in the workplace, anything to get students to connect to why algebra is important to learn for life after high school.

Added by Gary Bates on December 15, 2009 at 9:53am — 2 Comments

Jose Cuervo Christmas Cookies

As the holiday approaches, I wanted to pass on a favorite family recipe of mine... Jose Cuervo Christmas Cookies!

Make sure you follow the directions precisely for similar results. (And laughs. This is just too funny!)

Jose Cuervo Christmas Cookies

1 cup of water

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup of sugar

1 tsp salt

1 cup of brown sugar

4 large eggs

1 cup nuts

2 cups of dried fruit

1 bottle Jose Cuervo… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on December 15, 2009 at 6:30am — 1 Comment

LEEF 2010 1/2 price registration through December 31st

http://www.leef2010.net

With its focus on Games, Simulations & Virtual Worlds for Learning LEEF 2010 will explore how educators and trainers are changing their approach to learning and instruction through innovative games and simulations.

LEEF is an event that brings together trainers, multi-media developers, teachers and game designers to explore the innovative uses of technologies in which learning and… Continue

Added by Andy Petroski on December 14, 2009 at 9:50pm — No Comments

15 Online Math Help and Tutoring Options

A variety of free and paid resources to help students struggling with Mathematics.

With the recent completion of the first quarter for many K-12 students, and the pending completion of the first semester for many Higher Ed students, I thought it would be a good time to investigate web based tutoring and help options. I’ll focus first on the fundamentals – Math (this week) and English (next week), and possibly follow up… Continue

Added by Kelly Walsh on December 14, 2009 at 11:30am — No Comments

Internet Consumption: When it becomes an addiction.

Let's face it, the Internet has become a staple in everyday life for many people whether you're a grandmother keeping in touch with your grandchildren or a post-secondary student that is collaborating with peers and professors. The encompassing use of the Internet has made the line between addiction and healthy use blurred. The type of activity youths engage in online whether it be for homework or social networking (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube) isn't the problem. Both their dependency… Continue

Added by Kiwi Commons on December 14, 2009 at 9:05am — No Comments