IALA » Technology

Whyville, Home to 6 Million Students

Wayne Jennings — Tue, 03 May 2011 21:36:01 +0000

The developer in 1999 of Whyville, Dr. James Bower gives a delightful talk entitled, The Death of Textbooks, Emergence of Games in a little over an hour webinar and describes the fascination young students have with creating an alter ego (avatar) and a whole new world to shape and manipulate. Whyville now attracts 5,000 teachers and some 6.8 million kids as young as age 4 with 78% girls, even some senior citizens. Use of the program develops all sorts of skills and knowledge normally taught in classrooms via teaching and textbooks. This astonishing program doesn’t replace schooling but augments learning through deep engagement. This is a likely future part of education and has considerable support from foundations and businesses.

Take the time with this webinar to consider the impact of this rapidly growing segment of computer use. The implications may blow your paradigms.

School Reformers Missing Crucial Ingredient

Wayne Jennings — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 18:12:53 +0000

Marc Prensky, originator of the terms digital native and digital immigrant, writes that today’s education reformers miss the most important ingredient for education change, namely the curriculum. He states, reformers speak of the importance of teachers and principals, methods of instruction, length of the day and year, teacher preparation and other factors but assume the conventional curriculum. Huge omission! The conventional curriculum has remained unchanged for 100 years and must be transformed to meet 21st century societal needs, personal passions of students and new conceptions about learning.

This powerful article deserves careful study to make significant improvement in schooling. I highly recommend it. Prensky makes the article available for widespread distribution. His website contains much other useful information.

Provocative Conceptions About Learning

Wayne Jennings — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 04:00:16 +0000

TED brings the world’s leaders in various field: Sugata Mitra invented the “hole in the wall” project with astonishing learning results, then continued the experiment around the world with the same impact. It can’t help but cause us to question conventional ideas about the ability of children to learn. His 17 minute talk at TED captured in the video Child-Driven Education will entertain, enlighten and cause one to puzzle about unfettered human learning.

Children of the Code tackles issues of learning to read (breaking the code) with a wealth of the world’s expertise and resources. The difficulties are described in an amazing video 7 minute What’s So Difficult? and the attendant results for many children of ”mind shame,” a crippling long term affliction for school achievement.

A third brief video is from the fresh mind of Ken Robinson who draws engagingly as he talks about the need for change.

Cell Phones in the Classroom?

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:57:54 +0000

In a recent article in Principal Leadership, October 2009, the principal of a large high school discussed the use of cell phones at school. She was using cell phones to text with her students as another way to increase communication. She stated that texting helped student report things like fights and other personal issues that students didn’t necessarily want to talk about in person. Recently there have been other publications including Curtis J. Bonk’s The World is Open, and an article from the New York Times “Industry Makes Pitch That Smartphones Belong In Classroom.” B0th Bonk’s book and the article suggest that cellphones are no longer simply instruments for talking or even texting, they are similar in speed and power to many classroom computers. Plus many schools have extremely limited computer to student ratios. The book and the article argue that it is time for administrators and teachers to join the 21st century and welcome cellphones, especially the new generation smartphones, into the classroom and let students use them for the learning tools that they have the potential to be.

I would like to know what others have to say about the use of personal technologies such as smartphones in the classroom.

New Center for Research on Digital Media and Learning

Wayne Jennings — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:44:06 +0000

There’s little doubt that the Internet will transform schooling (read choices) and how students learn, play, socialize, and participate in civic life. A newly-created Digital Media and Learning Research Hub at the University of California-Irvine will explore the impact of digital media on learning and its potential for transforming education. The Center is funded by a $2.97 million grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

The foundation has invested substantially ($50 million since 2006) researching digital learning and gaming with positive results and continues with a variety of media projects including astonishing findings of the positive impact on youth in the three year research report, Living and Learning with New Media.

Technology’s Impact on Students

admin — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:13:28 +0000

Several recent articles outline the uses of technology in the classroom and give readers lots to think about.

The first article deals with the effects of technology on students throughout their education. Lenovo to Research Tech’s Effect on Learning: Global Education Research project will study how technology affects education in and after school, from kindergarten through higher education.

Another article Google Wave has Great Potential for Education, a new online collaborative tool combines eMail, instant messaging, and file sharing in a dynamic environment and outlines how Google is moving further into communicating and collaborating on the web.

A recent US Dept. of Education report, Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning finds that students learn more with online learning and even more with blended programs (both classroom and online) in elementary, secondary and higher education. The differences are not great but consistent and promising.

Cell phones appear to have considerable potential for learning. Early adopters combine the power of cell phones, social networks, websites and software. Student engagement and motivation increased. This early in the movement approach is generating excitment over the possiblities. Lift the Cell Phone Ban describes dealing with both the distraction factor and the interest.

One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)

Wayne Jennings — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 18:03:39 +0000

Several years ago Nicholas Negroponte of MIT proposed a $100 laptop for children in poor countries. Finally, it is out and I’ve been trying it courtesy of David Alley of Designs for Learning. It now costs about $200 and you have to buy two, one for yourself and one that goes to a developing nation as a charitable deduction. You can order the XO Laptop here.

This amazing little 3 pound rugged computer comes with a huge array of hardwired software including: word processing, browsing, subject matter learning programs, art programs, music programs, memory programs, chat programs, automatic wireless connections, camera (video also), games, calculator, and more. It has no hard drive but does have USB interfaces, Linux operating system, open source software (which means many developers around the world working on additional programs and enhancements) and a rubberized keyboard. It uses 1/10 the power of a normal laptop which yields long battery life.

Several countries have ordered hundreds of thousands of the laptops to revolutionize their technology in education initiatives.