This article talks about how today's teaching is going to change the business world. Sadly, I think that much of the teaching they CLAIM happens (such as mobile learning and differentiation) may not be as widespread as they think. Either way, this generation is different and I do think they expect to be a truly mobile workforce. Of course it will be interesting to see how the kids who are lucky enough to have personalized learning feel about the workforce.
Two studies were released in an attempt to "quantify the benefits of mobile technology in education and the infrastructure needed..."
In these students students had tablets and Internet access at home and at school. Of course, I'm not sure that it is tablet computers that give benefits, Internet access, cloud computing, or a combination, but I'm sure these studies will be touted by many far and wide. Of course, remember if they had strapped the tablets to the kid''s back and hadn't used them - they would have had lower scores. All improvement is all in how technology is being USED to teach.
"The studies put Android tablets in the hands of students and their teachers in two schools — eighth-graders at Stone Middle School in Fairfax County Public Schools and fifth-graders at Falconer Elementary School in Chicago Public Schools — and provided wireless access to the students both in school and away from school. (The devices were HTC Evo tablets.) Researchers then followed the students' activities over the course of a year, with the aim of evaluating "how access to these devices for communication with teachers and classmates increases comfort with technology, extends the learning day, and allows students to develop digital citizenship skills within a safe and secure learning environment.""
My students love the Dragon Dictation app. It is free. Learn to talk into the app and you can dictate papers and more. They were so excited when I taught them how to use this app. It is a must share because students who are more verbal often prefer to dictate papers rather than type them. When I demo this app, first I open it and dictate things - saying funny things about the class and they see the words. Then, I dictate again but start saying "period" "comma" and "new paragraph" so they see how it can add those things to the text. I always end by saying "And ____ ran out of the room today screaming quote I'm afraid of zombies exclamation point end quote." Then I stop and they see how all of the punctuation works. This is a great app and an important one for all tablet and smartphone users.
Scholastic Book Fairs now have a mobile app that lets you scan the covers and get reading levels and other interesting information about the book. What a useful, cool way to introduce the concept of "augmented reality" to kids. You can put the app on their ipads if you're 1:1 and let them use it to pick out books.
It is time to connect your classroom. Celly has a unique way of creating mobile social networks. Students and parents can sign up without giving out or anyone seeing their mobile number and can unsubscribe at any time. On this page, celly has a getting started guide for schools. This is a tool I'm looking to use this year in my classroom. I've got several friends who've used it and highly recommend it.
This infographic is an impactful one helping school boards and IT departments understand the important of BYOD environments. In 2011 70% of the workforce between 22-34 used tablets and globally 46% of the mobile workforce has a smartphone. Using, managing, and maximizing these tools is an important part of modern life. Perhaps today's issues are helping students learn to focus, but keeping them out of school is shortsighted decision that will be looked back upon as a lack of vision... that is if you can help kids focus and help teachers encourage the use of them effectively.
"Smartphones and Tablet sales will soon take over laptop and desktop computer sales: Don’t stick just to books – why not let students use the technology they’ll need in the future?"
My friend Toni Olivieri-Barton mentioned this in a FLAT Session yesterday where we were talking about global collaboration. It is a Video mail sharing site where you flip and send video back and forth. Toni said she'd like to try it with students. This would be interesting to try. This is better than text email for families separated by time - you can do a video message. Interesting. There are also apps for it.
Cell phones can be used in very powerful ways in the classroom. Our fifth grade teachers have moved ahead with BYOD because they are promoting the habitude of curiosity from our workshop this week with Angela Maiers. They have a one strike policy - if you're caught off task, you may not bring the device back to school. They are loving it and enjoying it. This is a great article to share about some ways to use smart phones in the classroom.
A device can help children read in the real world -- this is augmented reality as it can be for kids and why handheld devices will be helpful. I think this won't replace parents but will augment their work, in a great play on words.
"Qualcomm text recognition technology called Vuforia. It works like a game, challenges kids to find words in the real world scenarios, like grocery shopping
Billed as a mobile search engine - this allows for quick searching from a mobile device...
"This new search app, which works universally on both iPhone and iPad, is built upon the independent search engine DuckDuckGo, which we also use to provide search through the MacStories archives. DuckDuckGo is a pretty innovative and ambitious search engine, which distinguishes itself from big competitors with accurate, plainly listed and pre-sorted search results, diversified search suggestions, and an extensive amount of useful shortcuts to quicken the search process. Bang On focuses on one specific of those syntax shortcuts: !bang. With this exclamation mark syntax, you can search specific sites like Google, Wikipedia or YouTube by entering for instance “!google” with you search.
How to make custom ringtones for any type of phone.This helpful how-to will get you started. My VIP's have unique ringtones so I know who it is when it rings. I also set up custom vibrations (I use their characteristic knock on a door as I've heard My Mom's special knock all my life.)
HOW TO: make a Pinterest Pin Using iPod/iPad/iPhone http://t.co/34jiOrhz #mlearning #edtech #ipadchat
Looks like it is all clear for Google to buy Motorola.
Do you know how to protect your smart phone from hacking? Do you know most people don't have a password on their smartphone? Realize that the new goldmine for identity thieves and hackers is in your pocket and you may not even have to take it out to be hacked. Be aware and educate yourself but don't panic.
10 Proven Strategies to Break the Ban and Build Opportunities for Student Learning with Cell Phones http://t.co/XhhszJNT #mlearning #edchat
Scott Newcomb (@snewco on twitter) works with the St. Mary's city schools (Ohio). I was blown away by his school's mobile learning technology page. Tons of resources here for mobile learning.
The 4 C's with Mobile Learning Devices- Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration & Creativity http://t.co/q5NM0vFu #mlearning #edchat
RT @larmats: How To Record Skype Calls On Apple iPad or iPhone | @scoopit http://t.co/I21afRG7 #edtech #mlearning
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