Tech2Go

The tagline “Really Realtime” implies that we need a solution for collaboration with text that doesn’t require accounts, or prearranged access to shared docs. I agree, and EtherPad.com seems to be a great solution. Dr. Kristen Kozloski, a colleague, found the site to meet a need for a professional learning session we’re getting ready to [...]

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I’ve been using this clip of Sir Ken Robinson from the TED Annual Conference for years, and there’s no good reason why I haven’t posted it here – so tonight I’m changing that omission! This clip has been a great idea-sparker for teachers, graduate students, and non-educators alike.
Robinson is a masterful presenter, and his content [...]

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I was reminded today of just how broadly and freely digital data flows through our social networks. No, this is not some horror story about a Facebook post gone bad, or identity theft from a nefarious web scheme. Today, while I was working, I was questioned by a colleague about a tweet she read. Tweets [...]

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I read about Pangea Day (5/10/08) in a posting by Karl Fisch, but the concept seems outstanding. Bring together global perspectives for a day of storytelling through film. I don’t know how many films were submitted but the site is going to narrow it down to their top 24. See the Pangea Day site at [...]

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This post is really a collection of resources that we’ll be using with a group of teachers during a professional learning experience. Maybe I’ll collect some of the stories and add them to a future post?
The guy that started it all, Dana Atchley, had an untimely death. Others have kept his work alive and these [...]

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I’ve been convinced for quite some time that it’s our underlying beliefs that drive our classroom practices. Dennis Sparks, National Staff Development Council, spent the last few years of his tenure promoting just how important reflection on our beliefs is. In addition to many other researchers I know this is true from my own experiences, [...]

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It’s been a while between posts (at least here on Tech2Go) for me, but I reached a point today when I just had to write down some of what’s been running through my mind.
Although Willard Daggett advises “evolution, not revolution” I want change to come quickly! I know this will not be the case, so [...]

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It’s been a little quiet on the blog lately! As a new academic year begins the amount of reflection time (ironically) often diminishes. I am very excited, however, to be part of a move in my own district to examine integration of technology in a way that steps outside the notion of “direct instruction” for [...]

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I really like some of the tools Google has been developing, and I appreciate their recognition that educators have special considerations to take into account as they work with students. Visit the Google For Educators page to get some great ideas.
A new Google tool I recently discovered (and can’t wait to share with our staff) [...]

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If you’re like me the two words quick and muse are not often thought of in the same sentence. Incubation of an idea can take a long time. The resource I have to show you today might change your mind about the creative process.
I found about this site from the Head Of Class section in [...]

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I suspect You Tube, My Space and other Web 2.0 tools will be blocked by most K-12 school systems for the foreseeable future. That statement is worthy of a discussion by itself, but for now I mention it only as a backdrop for the site I recently discovered. I found out about TeacherTube through a [...]

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I found out about a great site from Joyce Valenza today! Although I’ve used some nice applications to convert video, or capture video from web pages, each has been a commercial package or shareware.
Zamzar does the conversion for free and emails the resulting file directly to you as an attachment. The 100MB file limit is [...]

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Apparently the last post has been rolling around in my thoughts more than I anticipated. What struck me as a good idea has moved into a much more conceptual dialog (in my own head of course!). I know the physical structures of a school need to be redesigned and aligned to current practices, but the [...]

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Here’s a chance for you and your students to rethink the way we do school. What would you design differently if you could build a school from scratch? How will you beliefs about teaching and learning in the 21st century influence your design? What will your students think of that you haven’t even considered?
Check out [...]

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A picture is worth a thousand words, but how much is a motion video clip worth? Since my last posting was somewhat theoretical I’m feeling a need to balance it with a practical resource! So today I want to highlight a service that you may not be familiar with.
United Streaming/Discovery Education has been assembling quite an [...]

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The title does not refer to the Whitney Houston hit – instead I want to ask you a question that has been in my thoughts lately. How will we know when technology is being used well in our classrooms?
What criteria pops in your mind? What data are most useful for answering the question. What kind [...]

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In these times of shrinking budgets I know I should be more active to track down alternate funding sources. One recent search of possibilities led me to the Hewlett-Packard site. Here’s an excerpt from their description of the Technology for Teaching grant:
The HP Technology for Teaching Grant Initiative is designed to support the innovative use [...]

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Why didn’t I think of this?! What a great convergence! Next fall the kindergarten students entering our schools will be the class of 2020. Karl Fisch from Arapahoe High School has created a simple, and powerful video to highlight our need to look ahead.
You can see the 2020 blog post that started the discussion on [...]

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I showed the previous post to a colleague and they were distracted from the assessment discussion because they were so interested in Google Scholar. I suspect that might be indicative of others – so here’s a quick plug for this great search tool.
Here’s an excerpt from Google’s own answer to, “What is Google Scholar?”

Google Scholar [...]

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Just read a good article in the Journal of Staff Development by Rick Stiggins & Jan Chappus. What A Difference A Word Makes is a discussion about the design of formative assessment in the high-stakes testing world of K-12 education. The little word that makes a big difference is “for”. Assessment FOR learning instead of [...]

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