Thinking Out Loud...

Today, given the lower cost and greater ubiquity of digital media and personal devices, the opportunity to create new tech-enabled experiences that improve learning is greater than ever.

And, so is the responsibility. When 30% of high school students drop out in America (as high as 50% in some urban centers) but 93% of them are online, the need to reach these kids wherever they are, whenever they need it, with whatever tools they use is more important than ever.

Great stuff, from Diana Rhoten.

LONDON (AP) - It weighs in at more than 130 pounds, but the authoritative guide to the English language, the Oxford English Dictionary, may eventually slim down to nothing. Oxford University Press, the publisher, said Sunday so many people prefer to look up words using its online product that it's uncertain whether the 126-year-old dictionary's next edition will be printed on paper at all.

The digital version of the Oxford English Dictionary now gets 2 million hits a month from subscribers, who pay $295 a year for the service in the U.S. In contrast, the current printed edition _ a 20-volume, 750-pound ($1,165) set published in 1989 _ has sold about 30,000 sets in total.

This is the first time I remember seeing a major player like this admit that online resources are bringing in more revenue than traditional media.

The competition for attention is focused on social networks as brands vie for awareness and consideration. Establishing a presence in Facebook and Twitter is as necessary as it is trivial. In the great social land grab, many organizations are missing true opportunities to connect with the fifth P of the marketing mix, people. It’s less about communicating with those individuals who are already following you online and more about those who aren’t.

To excel in social media, engagement has its rewards but it is through the acts of recognition, empowerment and reward that advocacy extends a brand’s reach across social graphs and social networks, online and in the real world.

What does this look like in schools; and can this help me become a better educator?

Wondering what leaders in the field of education are currently thinking? This year's list is larger than ever and full of a wide range of excellent posts, written be leaders in the field that have learned that one of the simplest ways to extend kne's sphere of influence is to simply link to others while posting to a blog.

If you're a "leader" in education, then what are you waiting for? (And it sure beats watching TV!)

Does this graphic illustrate that North America is lacking in innovation or spending more on research and development?

The Enhancing_Teacher_Takeup_of_Digital_Content_Report commissioned by Education Services Australia (a merger between Curriculum Corporation and Education.au) and written by Professor Michael Gaffney has recently been published.

The Executive Summary explains:

• Although digital uptake in schools is increasing, many teachers do not use technology in their classroom.

While at ISTE this year, I met an IT Director from Australia that was in a school that had been using laptops with their students for the last 14 years. He mentioned that in spite of his students having such open access to computers, his number one problem was getting his school's teachers to use the technology.

This document alone illustrates that there are multiple factors at play - multiple barriers to technology integration - and sometimes bridging the digital divide requires more than just money and equipment. At times, the largest barriers are those caused by deep philosophical convictions maintained by teachers and school administrators alike.

I'm interested to see how well the recommendations made in the "Enhancing Teacher Takeup" document serve to improve the pedagogical use of technology in Australian schools.

If I'm reading this right, then it looks like you get what you pay for.

What if, instead of casting a wide net over the classroom and hoping to reach as many children as possible, we tailored our teaching towards student's individual learning style?

That’s the idea behind the 'School of One,' an after-school math pilot program at I.S. 339, a middle school in the South Bronx. The focus of an article in the July/August issue of The Atlantic, School of One uses an algorithm that weighs each student’s learning preferences and academic needs and creates a lesson plan that’s updated daily. The classroom is divided into stations designed to target the same skill set using different modalities, from teacher demonstrations to virtual tutoring and online learning programs. Each child is allowed to use the station that most appeals to his learning style and maximizes understanding and engagement.

Launched as a summer program in 2009, the experiment posted a 28 percent improvement between the beginning and end of the program before moving to I.S. 339, where a tech-savvy principal set on boosting student scores went wireless and gave every student access to a laptop. The program is set to expand into the regular math curriculum of three pilot schools next year.

Mix this with additional curriculum that emphasizes face to face social interaction and I'm sold.

Otherwise I think the 'School of One' concept will only succeed at creating a citizenry incapable of looking each other square in the eye.

To send a student off to college without having had an AP, IB, or Cambridge course and test is like insisting that a child learn to ride a bike without ever taking off the training wheels. It is dumb, and in my view a form of educational malpractice. But most American high schools still do it. I don't think such schools should be rewarded because they have artificially high AP or IB passing rates achieved by making certain just their best students take the tests.  

I agree with this statement and with minimal effort could be persuaded that even students that aren't college-bound should be required to take an AP course/test to expose them to some of the rigors of college. Especially if we're serious about preparing students to be college/career ready.