10 Google Things to Try for Digital Learning Day

Digital Learning Day is March 13th. Here are ten things to try. All compliments of Google.

1-Use Google Timer to time activities in the classroom

2-Unsend an email

3-Create and Use the built in Task Feature (Google’s To-Do List)

4-Add new fonts to Google Docs.

5-Do Smarter Google Searches Tailored to your exact needs.

6-Find Lesson Plans  sorted by App, Subject and Grade Level.

7-Explore Museums  and curate your own gallery with the Google Art Project or explore the Google Cultural Institute

With Google Cultural Institute you can find landmarks and world heritage sites, as well as digital exhibitions that tell stories behind the archives of cultural institutions across the globe.

8-Create playlists in You Tube for use in class.

You Tube is owned by Google and you already have You Tube account.  If you regularly use You Tube videos in class, you may want to create a playlist with different topics to help organize them.

9-Manage your classes with Google Classroom

Google Classroom helps teachers create, assign, and collect student classwork and homework paperlessly. More Google Classroom resources here

10-Finally understand what Google+ is. Join/follow communities related to your interests and/or communicate with fellow colleagues.

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Get better and learn more about any Google App using the Apps Learning Center

Creativity in Progress

Creator amidst his Creative "Mess"

The drive to create is natural. Creating things can get messy.

At last count there were over 45 instances of original creations in this scattering of legos in the picture to the left. To many, this room is "a mess".

Creativity isn't interested in neat. Creativity isn't interested in being organized. It is focused on bringing into existence something new.  Something original. It is novel.

Being creative and creating things is empowering. Cleaning up is not. Cleaning up a creative "mess" requires a different part of the brain and is the opposite process (but it can bring a certain sense of satisfaction.) Of course, cleaning up is necessary. However,  it can wait.  I'd rather encourage creativity in the moment than limit it by insisting on neat and tidy (and quiet) right now.

What a magical time to be alive- with so many apps and tools at our disposal to Create and Learn. For Kids and Adults . And, of course, there's This.

Admittedly, the number of tools and apps to engage creativity, assist and empower students to learn better has become overwhelming.  How to encourage and implement creativity and scale technology integration for learning in classrooms, consistently, remains a challenge. The current climate in Education doesn't make it easy but it is high time for all schools and districts to identify and promote their technology 'pioneers' to help sort through the 'mess' of options and assist new, willing technology integrators one classroom at a time so that students can begin to enjoy school as a place where they can follow their interests, engage in what matters and make sense of the world by creating their own artifacts of learning.  Our young creators are depending on it.

Technology In Education: Software is the New Hardware

The paradigm in education has shifted.  Web-based technology, apps and the devices that run them are the driving force behind the shift. Early adopters recognized this shift and "got on board" in spirit and then, in fact, more than 6 years ago when 'Web 2.0' became a reality. Many educators have embraced learning networks, blogging, wikis, i-Pads and have used these to learn, create, collaborate and teach.  And yet, so many more educators have not taken steps to embrace the new realities and opportunities that emerging technologies represent.

REDEFINING 'TECHNOLOGY'
Administrators and teachers who have a fixed definition of technology have also been slow to adopt anything new and may even be skeptical of all of the tablets, iPads, cloud-based apps and their potential drain on school bandwidth.  Those in this camp have 'seen it all before'.  Technology to them is stuff.  Technology to them is the Device-the tablet, the computer, the iPad, the Smart Board, the smartphone, etc.. And, to them, the devices will all go the way of dinosaurs soon enough.  Fair enough.   However!  Current technology that is useful in education-for learning and for teaching- is not about the device.  Technology that is useful in education is about the applications that assist teachers in discovering, collating or curating resources. Technology that is useful in education is about the applications that assist students in learning material in multi-dimensional, differentiated and media-rich ways.  Technology that is useful in education is about the networks that allow administrators, teachers and students to learn from and in collaboration with each other.  Technology that is useful in education is cloud-based allowing data and information to be accessed from anywhere, anytime, regardless of what device is used to access that data/information.

NEW POSSIBILITIES
Current technologies change how things have always been done in education.  True differentiation is now possible using learning applications that have programmed in multiple levels of concept mastery. Current technologies by their nature allow for student-centered approaches in the classroom. Global collaboration is a possibility cheaply. Relevant Professional Development for Educators is a click away. And the ability to create and publish projects and products that demonstrate learning are exploding.

Some leaders of schools/districts have recognized that the paradigm has shifted permanently in favor of learning/education as other leaders lag behind thinking technology is about stuff that will become obsolete soon enough.  I am willing to bet that those that have embraced this new app-driven, networked learning paradigm have more engaged students.  I am certain that students in those schools/districts are being better prepared for an even more app-driven, cloud-based, networked future regardless of the devices that may be invented to connect to them in the future.

Unblocking Blocked Websites: Framing the Argument

Much to the frustration of many teachers, websites that could be used to engage learners are blocked at school. Many school districts, with good intentions of protecting students (and teachers) have taken a very heavy handed approach with regard to online access to websites-especially (social) networking sites. It is the rare school district that allows access to Facebook. Many others do not allow access to You Tube, Gmail accounts, Ning Networks or Twitter.

But as many teachers know, all of the sites mentioned in the previous sentence can and do have educational value if used properly. It is also known that technology can be used to effectively engage learners and to differentiate learning. Knowing this, however, doesn't help convince those with the authority to unblock sites that have potential educational value. The argument for doing so has to include HOW these websites have educational value. And HOW other districts, schools, teachers and administrators are using these online sites/tools.

Here are some resources that can help begin the conversation. If you use sites and tools in your classes, please share your blog/site and what you do. Did you have to convince anyone to unblock sites that you use regularly? If so, how did you do it? Your story is immensely valuable to others.

• EDUCATIONAL USES of TWITTER
• A PRINCIPAL'S USE OF FACEBOOK
  
• EDUCATIONAL USES of GOOGLE
• EDUCATIONAL USES of YOU TUBE
• 47 ALTERNATIVES TO YOU TUBE

Using Technology for the sole purpose of using technology is pointless. As we frame the argument about it's use, it is important to consider the words of Principal Jonathan Martin:

What are we doing as educators to meaningfully engage our students, to give them the autonomy, purpose, and opportunity for mastery which they crave and to which they respond with focus, energy, enthusiasm, and diligence?

How can technology help? Framing the argument with these credible, educational goals in mind helps to move us forward in the right direction-to a future of unrestricted access.