The NEW Smithsonian Learning Lab - a great new resource for educators.

Today’s museums are making millions of images and recordings freely available, going far beyond yesterday’s traditional field trip. The Smithsonian Learning Lab (http://learninglab.si.edu) is brand new and will officially released later this month!

The Smithsonian Learning Lab is about discovery, creation, and sharing.

The Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access created the Smithsonian Learning Lab to inspire the discovery and creative use of its rich digital materials—more than a million images, recordings, and texts. It is easy to find something of interest because search results display pictures rather than lists. Whether you've found what you were looking for or just discovered something new, it's easy to personalize it. Add your own notes and tags, incorporate discussion questions, and save and share. The Learning Lab makes it simple.

**above description taken from the Learning Lab - About Section. 

Check out the Learning lab here:  http://learninglab.si.edu  <---Be the first to check it out! 

The online portal for educational resources at the Institution can be found here: http://SmithsonianEducation.org,

There is even a live show about this new resource tomorrow on the classroom 2.0 site: http://live.classroom20.com 

Add a Chrome web store for your Domain!

Google recently allowed domains (In our case nsdtitans.org) to have recommended apps in the Chrome store.  This is a great feature that schools should utilize to promote their supported and recommended apps to their teachers.


Accessing the Chrome Store and our recommended apps and extensions.

When you visit the Chrome Store, we have selected Chrome apps and extensions that we recommend and provide limited support for.  These are apps and extensions that have been recommended by staff and other educational professionals.

(Note: This feature and list of apps has to be added via the Google Apps Administrator Panel by your Google Apps Administrator.)

AMAZING NEW APP - just added to our collection.  Do you want to add voice comments to a Google Doc?   (Wow... what a great feature for English teachers!)  This is one of our recommended apps. Here is a short 3 minute video on how to do this: http://goo.gl/y8j5W 

How do I get to the Chrome Store?

Note, once you have added an app or extension from the nsdtitans.org collection, it will disappear from the list.

Also note that some extensions added to Chrome use up memory and resources, so when it comes to extensions add only the ones that you will use and benefit from.

Here is a Google Doc that we use with our staff to summarize what is this blog article.

Make our students (and teachers) holiday wishes come true. We need your help!

Google recently opened up a grant program making Chromebooks available to teachers for the reduced price of $99. (These Samsung Chromebooks originally sold for $449.) Teachers were required to select their devices and prepare a grant proposal for funding.  Once selected, the proposal becomes available for public donation/funding.  Google selected the organization donorschoose.org to administer the grant selection and funding process. As an added incentive, donations within the first seven days are doubled, so these projects become very affordable and make a huge impact within the classrooms. So early donations are actually purchasing a Chromebook for $50 for our students to use. In order to get matching funds you need to use the code INSPIRE.

Norris School District teachers were successful in having seven projects selected.  These projects are now available for pubic donations.  Once enough donations are received for a project, that project is then funded and becomes a reality for the teacher and students.  These donations are drastically subsidized by corporations as well as the donorschoose.org foundation.  Donations are tax deducible and can be placed by a variety of means including credit card.

As the technology coordinator an Norris Schools, I am very proud of our staff taking the time and interest to submit these proposals for funding.  Our teachers responded swiftly to be fortunate enough to get their requests approved.  The grants were announced one day,

About Chromebooks:

• More about Chromebooks devices
• Nice video about Chromebooks

Below is a listing of the Norris projects.  We would appreciate any support you can give to make these dreams for staff and students come true!

 We need your help, please donate! 

Cloud Learning with Chromebooks in Social Studies Project home (30 Chromebooks)Mr. Murtaugh's technology project at Norris Middle School in Firth, NE 

Connecting with Chrome Project home  (30 Chromebooks)

Mrs. Coady's technology project at Norris High School in Firth, NE  UPDATED 12-17-12 - No more donors needed- Project has been funded! 

Making Plants Come to Life Project home ( 20 Chromebooks) Donation matches up to Dec 20th! (Using the Inspire code.)
Ms. Harms's technology project at Norris High School in Firth, NE  UPDATED 2-11-13 - No more donors needed- Project has been funded! 

Chrome Book Request Project home (30 Chromebooks)Donation matches up to Dec 20th! (Using the Inspire code.)

Mrs. Spilker's technology project at Norris Middle School in Firth, NE  UPDATED 2-1-13 - Project expired without funding.

Modernizing Music Makes Musicians Merry (with Chromebooks) Project home (12 Chromebooks) Donation matches up to Dec 20th! (Using the Inspire code.)

Mr. Lee's technology project at Norris High School in Firth, NE 

Chromebooks for Norris Middle School Band Program Project home (30 Chromebooks) Donation matches up to Dec 20th! (Using the Inspire code.)

Ms. Wilhelm's technology project at Norris Middle School in Firth, NE 

Writing in the Real WorldProject home (30 Chromebooks)  Donation matches up to Dec 22nd! (Using the Inspire code.)

Mr. Cullison's technology project at Norris Middle School in Firth, NE UPDATED 12-27-12 - No more donors needed- Project has been funded! 

Open Educational Resources (OER) may assist the 1to1 initiatives in schools.

As we look to eBooks and digital curriculum we often discuss 1to1 device initiatives. Having a similar and accessible device in every student's hands only makes sense in incorporating eBooks and digital curriculum across a district. As with any technology, costs start entering into the discussion as well.  After reading a recent article in Digital Directions, called "Open Educational Resources Surge", my response was "of course the are!"  With state standards prevalent across the nation and increased Internet availability, most districts see the eBooks and student digital devices coming.

I figured I would put together a quick list of some OER resources from this article as well as a few other sources that can assist districts with developing their own ebooks and digital curriculum.

GooruLearning  is a OER collection that also will tie into your Google Apps domain, for those schools that are Google Apps customers.  (Not sure why all schools are not!)  This is their self description: "Use Gooru to search, study and create. You can search for and study from individual resources, collections (teacher-vetted playlists of multimedia resources), and formative quizzes created by educators in the Gooru community. You can also share your knowledge on a topic you are passionate about by creating a collection. We celebrate and encourage authorship and sharing of Open Education Resources (OER), and are stringent about excluding inappropriate content from Gooru."


Curriki 
Curriki is an online community for creating and sharing curricula and teaching best practices. Curriki:
Provides High Quality Free Resources – Curriki contains over 46,000 free K-12 lessons, units, assessments, and multimedia learning resources across all subject areas.


MYOER http://www.myoer.org/  You do not have to be from Michigan to use this resoure! Join your fellow Michigan educators who are already part of the Michigan Online Resources for Educators (MORE) community. Registration is FREE! As a member, you will have access to over 60,000 high-quality, online resources. You will also have free access to convenient tools and applications to make you more efficient in planning for your classroom while meeting the Michigan Content Expectations. More details about these online tools are included below. Why not join?

OERcommons http://www.oercommons.org  ISKME created OER Commons, publicly launched in February 2007, to provide support for and build a knowledge base around the use and reuse of open educational resources (OER). As a network for teaching and learning materials, the web site offers engagement with resources in the form of social bookmarking, tagging, rating, and reviewing.

Khan http://www.khanacademy.org/ As described on their site: "The Khan Academy is an organization on a mission. We're a not-for-profit with the goal of changing education for the better by providing a free world-class education for anyone anywhere."

Thinkfinity http://www.thinkfinity.org/welcome  (Formally Marco Polo) has been around for a while.  Thinkfinity is the Verizon Foundation’s free online professional learning community, providing access to over 60,000 educators and experts in curriculum enhancement, along with thousands of award-winning digital resources for K-12 — aligned to state standards and the common core.

ck12.org http://www.ck12.org/  Their mission: CK-12 Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing access to high quality educational materials for K-12 students all over the world. We offer free high-quality, standards-aligned, open content in the STEM subjects. By providing these free resources, CK-12 is working toward educational equity for all.


Other resources worth looking at:
Amazon's Wispercast for schools to manage Kindles and Kindle eBooks.

The best thing about the New iPad for education may be the $100 off the iPad 2.

Well, after spending a day with the New iPad,  I am finding some pro's and con's to Apples latest offering.  The step from the original iPad to the iPad 2 was huge in my mind, but the step from the iPad 2 to the "New iPad" (What's up with that name!) is much less...especially for education. There are some nice new features, and depending on your needs may be critical but I don't see it for educational needs.

The better rear camera is great, and for a consumer will be a welcome update, but for education do we really need a better camera with larger files? Is HD video necessary for class projects given the extra problems associated with larger files? My conclusion is no.

The display is nice, but so was the iPad 2's display.  I can see a few differences, but to be honest... they are slight for what I am doing with my iPad.  I even have a few apps updated for the new Retina display, and still no wow factor for me. I really do not see the need for our classroom uses at the current time.  Yes, it will stream video at 1080p, but most of our videos we use in school are not high quality and very few will have the new Apple TV to accommodate the 1080p let alone a big flat screen TV with 1080p.

The faster processor may be needed in a few years, but right now each app I used side-by-side with my "old" iPad2" showed no speed difference. By the time any of us need the speed, there will be another new iPad on the market. (Not to mention the extra heat given off by this increase in processor speed.)

The hot spot sharing and  4G LTE could be a killer feature for the consumer or mobile warrior, but for most of our educational needs we are just ordering wifi only models.

It was a welcome surprise that Apple kept it's same pricing structure for the New iPad including it's similar battery life. (That's especially impressive with the 4G LTE models.)

What do I think is the best thing about the New iPad for education?  It's that the price on the iPad 2 16 gig units were rolled back $100 to $399. That's a bargain for what may be the best iPad for schools at the moment. I do wish they would still produce the 32 gig iPad 2 units as well, but it looks like that is not going to be the case.  Don't get me wrong, the New iPad is now the best tablet on the market and continues to push the boundaries, but I think the best news was that the iPad 2 just got more affordable for schools and kids.

Your thoughts...........????

Some new Facebook features that teachers need to be aware of, before it's to late.

I am not putting this out to scare anyone, but you need to be aware of some new features coming to Facebook. (A big thanks to Paul Bade for tuning me into this one!) Facebook is adding a new feature called timeline.  Staff need to be aware of the potential of old pictures, posts, etc... becoming public in this timeline that you may not want to be public. Here are a couple articles that will explain what you may need to know on this. 

Ready or not, you're getting Facebook Timeline - CNN  http://goo.gl/684Ro 

Prep for Facebook's Timeline Layout: 6 Must-Do Privacy Tweaks - PC World  http://goo.gl/HVxYE

Mac vs. PC vs. ??? Who cares, it's probably a mute point.

The operating system will always be a conversation topic and important, but for the most part those conversations will only be important for the IT departments and those involved in the computer industry.  The end user will not really care.  With everything heading to the web and more content being delivered through a web browser, very few will care if it is running on a MAC, PC, Chrome, or Linux based OS.  The writing is on the wall with Adobe dropping a lot of it's flash development and moving to HTML 5, and the industry is seeing that direction as well. Once again, Steve Job's decision to not support Flash, may of been the correct decision. (I am biting my tongue now, since many great educational sites like Spelling City use flash to deliver it's content.)

So the reality is,  as a technology coordinator I will still care about the OS.  I will still promote one platform within my district to reduce overhead costs and maintenance, thus allowing our department to continue to provide a level of service that our district staff has become accustomed to. I will continue to promote purchases that give us the biggest bang for our buck. But concerning the OS...students, staff, and all of our end users will continue to care less and less.  Their major concern (And mine too) will be... Do we have enough bandwidth and do we have a good wireless signal.

Does the future of great schools apps, require leveraging Google Apps for EDU?

I think the answer to this is yes.  Apps are moving to the cloud, and schools are moving to Google.  Apps that leverage the Google Apps account log-in, and integrate within the Google GUI make it easy for schools to deploy, as well as students and staff to utilize.  There are already some great free apps that integrate within the Google Apps GUI.
Easybib, Engrade, ExamGeneral, SlideRocket, and recently the new OpenClass product developed by Pearson. Everyone of these apps are currently free to schools. We recently deployed SlideRocket. This is an awesome presentation program that recently released the product free to schools with Google Apps.  This is a solid product, that brings the power of a top-tier presentation product combined with similar sharing and collaboration features of Google Docs.  Here is a sample, of a recent presentation I presented using this great tool.

Some educators may need to learn from these two 80 year old mothers using technology!

We must use technology to meet students needs in today's classrooms.

I believe that we are blessed with a lot of dedicated teachers in our country that are truly doing their best to educate the youth of today to prepare them for the world of tomorrow.  Many students bring a lot of baggage with them to the classroom that we must deal with in education. Combine that with state testing, student activities, and a variety of challenges we deal with on a daily basis... and it really makes you appreciate the value of a teacher and the impact they have on our students and ultimately our entire countries future. As one of my past Tweets indicated.... a teacher's impact can be amazing and a real bargain.  " The $320,000 Kindergarten Teacher."

I believe that a great teacher, will look to utilize any tool they can get their hands on to reach students in their classroom.  If you too believe that statement, then why would a teacher not be one of the most tech-savvy individuals you know? Yes, sometimes they are... and sometimes that may not be the case.  If you are an educator, I challenge you to improve your technology skills to increase your effectiveness in the classroom.  Yes, you still need discipline, student rapport, organization and empathy within the classroom... but with today's students you need the technology tools to really maximize student learning within your classroom.

Yesterday, I had one of our elementary teachers, send me an email about getting an iPad. Her email stated: "My sister just sent me this picture yesterday of my 80 year old mother and her 87 year old sister using their iPads to play bridge and e-mail each other!" She went on to indicate her interest in an iPad and her thought that "If my 80 year old mother can run one of these things, so can I". 

80 year old mother and her 87 year old sister using their iPads 

We need to be able to look at our parents, other educators, and our students and challenge ourselves with that same fervor and decide.... now is time for me to do this, and "Yes, I can use this technology."

After reading Tom Whitby blog article "Generational Divide in Education", October 17, 2011. I agree with his thoughts "This is not a generational problem. It is a learning problem. If I want to affect their lives (Students) in any way I need to do so on their terms with tools for learning that they accept and will use moving forward. I grew up with a slide rule, I don’t think they are even made any more. Why would I use it to teach a kid who has a mobile app that will take him much further than a slide rule ever could."

As educators, we must first learn to use this technology so we can meet students on their terms.  If we are not doing this, then are we challenging ourselves less than these 80 year old mothers that were willing to roll up their sleeves and learn to use a new technology!

Amazing what happens in 60 seconds with technology!!!!!!

It's amazing what we do in 60 seconds!

Click here for the large image.

What's happening on the Internet for sixty seconds here's a sampling:

1500+ blog posts

98,000 new tweets

12,000 new ads on Craigslist

20,000 new posts on Tumblr

600 new videos (25+ hours worth) on YouTube

Why you should store all your files on the cloud!

When I sent my daughters off to college, I installed DropBox on their computers, setup a folder that is backed up to the cloud and told them to make sure they save all of their files to that folder.  What a great way to backup their files without them having to do a daily backup. Lost laptop- No Problem. Hard drive crashes- No Problem.

With Google Docs, Dropbox, Box.net,  SugarSync, Skydrive, and the Amazon Cloud... you can automatically backup your files, share files and even play music on your Android Phone all at my favorite cost... FREE.  In this article I will give you a short synopsis of each service and let you decide what services will fit your needs.  I will also share a great tool I just installed that adds a drive to your computer that shows up as a local drive, but is really storing files online.  (Yes, a drive that is in the cloud.)

DropBox:  I will share my favorite app first. You get 2 gigs of free online storage, software that installs on your computer and auto syncs your files, phone apps, web access, iPad apps, and more. This program is awesome and easy to use.  Install it from here, and you get an extra 250 meg too: http://db.tt/h3jihFm

Google Docs: You can store 1 gig of non-Google docs, and unlimited Google Doc files. If you are not using Google Docs and all of the other Google tools, you are just missing out period.  Sign up for a Google account, right after you setup your DropBox account.

Box.net: They give you more free space (5 gig) but do not offer the free syncing that some of the other service do.  But hey... 5 Gig free and they do offer phone, iPad, and other apps.

SugarSync: Similar to DropBox, with a lot of the same features. You get 5 Gig Fee!  Sign-up here: https://www.sugarsync.com/referral?rf=cn5enxxbm938n

SkyDrive: This is a free 25 gig online storage area by Microsoft.  You do need a Microsoft Live ID to sign up for this free service.  Combine this with the the Glad.net program (described below) and you have a 25 gig on-line flash drive connected to your computer at all times.

Amazon Cloud Drive: Another 5 gig of free space. They have a great Cloud music player for your Android mobile device that allows you to easily play your music you store on this cloud storage. Combine it with the Glad.net program and you can easily drag and drop files to this service.  (Amazon's web site does not have a great interface for managing this. So use Glad.net to do it!)  The Android phone app fro playing music is awesome. https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/learnmore

Gladinet.com Cloud Desktop:  This program adds a drive letter to your computer that really maps that drive letter to your SkyDrive, Amazon Clud Drive and more. Easily drag and drop files just like you would to a flash drive.  The free version will do about anything you need, but the pro version adds some nice bells and whistles if you want to part with a few greenbacks. http://www.gladinet.com/p/moreaboutdesktop.htm

Most of these online storage services offer the ability to share folders to the public along with other great features. Using the above sites and tools, you can easily backup over 40 gig of files and automate many of your backups and tasks using these free services.  The one's listed above are established companies, that should be around for the long haul.

Now is the time to use the cloud for you and your students!

Schools will have to offer WiFi, cellular, and more... if you want to keep up.

Yes, the cloud is coming to education, (The cloud is another whole story!) and we must offer the tools and access for students, teachers and parents to access that cloud in order to do their jobs in the future.  The question "Why can my kid get better WiFi access at a Burger King than at his school?" is a valid one.  Why can they??

From the Web I find:

On April 1, 2011 Project Tomorrow released the report “The New 3 E’s of Education: Enabled, Engaged and Empowered – How Today’s Students are Leveraging Emerging Technologies for Learning” at a Congressional Briefing held in Washington, DC.

The project surveyed almost 300,000 students (along with 43,000 parents, 35,000 teachers, 2000 librarians and 3500 administrators) from over 6500 private and public schools last fall about how they're using - and how they want to be using - technology for learning.

Julie Evans, Project Tomorrow CEO, discussed selected student and parent national findings from the Speak Up 2010 report and moderated a panel discussion with students and parents who shared their insights and experiences.

Key findings:

• 67 percent of parents said they would purchase a mobile device for their child to use for schoolwork if the school allowed it, and 61 percent said they liked the idea of students using mobile devices to access online textbooks.

• 53 percent of middle and high school students reported that the inability to use cell phones, smart phones or MP3 players was the largest obstacle when using technology in school. Additionally, 71 percent of high school students and 62 percent of middle school students said that the number one way schools could make it easier to use technology would be to allow greater access to the digital content and resources that Internet firewalls and school filters blocked.

• Parents are increasingly supportive of online textbooks. Two-thirds of parents view online textbooks as a good investment to enhance student achievement compared to 21 percent in 2008. However, E-textbooks are still a relatively novel concept in the classroom. Slightly over one-third of high school students report they are currently using an online textbook or other online curriculum as part of their regular schoolwork.

• Nearly 30 percent of high school students have experienced some type of online learning.

Report:

http://www.tomorrow.org/speakup/pdfs/SU10_3EofEducation_Students.pdf

Parents are willing to purchase technologies, if the service is available: 

What are the implications for schools? 

We must be willing to adapt with the technologies as well as the needs of our students, staff and patrons. At my school district we currently embrace cell phones, and are in the process of deploying a next-generation WiFi deployment that will allow that access for students and staff.  What are your thoughts??? What is your school doing?? 

What will school networks look like in the future?

Quick answer: Wireless...Wireless...Wireless....  As a school networking person, I am still very fond of the fast speed, reliable, and controllable network wiring.  Yes, give me fiber, Cat5, Cat 6, or beyond.  But that is not what I see in the crystal ball for school networks in the next ten years.  We are not ready to totally cut the wires yet, but as wireless matures and wireless access is required, our school networks will evolve.  Students and staff will need Cellular service and wireless access for the many handheld devices that will service education and personal needs of our clients.  Our "wired" network will still support some file and print services, but most services will be supported on the cloud.  With all of our applications moving to the cloud,  we need more wireless and more bandwidth.

What wireless devices?  Well, the answer remains to be seen.  I like the iPad for it's battery life, but I do not see it as a total computer replacement.  The iPad is great as a media delivery device with good battery life, but I do not see it as a full service internet client, especially with it's lack of support for Adobe Flash.   There may be hope for the new Android tablets, but time will tell for their laptop replacement capabilities.

I have had the opportunity to review the Google Chrome Laptop and have been very impressed with it's battery life and possibility for use in a 1 to 1 computer initiative within a school district.  Second party review here: http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/09/google-cr-48-chrome-laptop-preview/ With many applications heading to the cloud, this device holds a lot of promise.  I think the deciding factor for this device will be it's price point.  If they can come in with a price point of $249, it will be a winner for education.

Why use Blogger in your Classroom?

With Google Apps for Education, every student and staff member now has their own personal blog they can use for a variety of reasons and uses.

• Kids love to Blog.
• Students are motivated seeing their words published on the web.
• Students who know they have an audience other than their teacher write more credibly, accurately, and carefully.
• Blogs allow feedback and interaction. (Feature can be turned on or off.)

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According to research published in The Journal (The Prose of Blogging and a Few Cons, Too.), students who blogged felt better about writing overall, and about writing research papers in particular. Combined with many other free resources, blogging has unlimited possibilities.  You may want to check out some of these great resources:  "50 Free Resources That Will Improve Your Writing Skills"

As with many tools, Blogging  is relevant based on the person using the tool. In the hands of a skilled educator blogging can become a great classroom tool motivating students and improving their writing and literary skills. This tool in the hands of a poor educator it can become a great time wasting tool for students to spend hours in the computer lab.

Blogging is one more great tool in the arsenal of web tools available to educators for use in their classrooms.  What are you doing reading this blog???? Get busy and start using this great resource in your classroom. :)