There is plenty of discussion about preparing our students to become innovative, digital, and global citizens, so how are we helping teachers teach those students? A Pew Internet and American Life Project report found that digital technology has become central to classroom work, but that it also offers challenges. Leadership in technology use is crucial. A priority for the district is to have sustainable technology use throughout the classrooms. The…
The Latest
-
-
March 19, 2013Embracing technology is critically important, as 21st-century jobs will increasingly require an educated and highly skilled workforce. Over the next 10 years, 5 out of 8 new jobs and 8 out of 10 of the highest paying positions in the United States will be in careers related to science, technology, education, and math (STEM) subjects. But in a decade the United States could face a shortage of one million STEM…
-
February 22, 2013James Sanders is the co-founder of ClassBadges.com, a free website where teachers can custom badges to their students. It would be difficult to find a part of our society more in need of change than the education system. Most classrooms today are mirror images of those from the 19th and 20th centuries; students are walking into the same school buildings and taking the same classes as their ancestors did more…
-
February 21, 2013I’m a 90s baby — as in I did not exist when Vanilla Ice was rocking the world with “Ice, Ice, Baby” or when the first episode of Beverly Hills 90210 debuted on television — and I feel so lucky to be part of a generation that really has unparalleled opportunities. Our world has never had more globally connections or access to knowledge than it does in this very moment. While…
-
February 18, 2013I studied French in junior high and high school, then, I continued on to get a degree in French Language and French Literature. When I graduated from college, I felt very confident that I was, at least, relatively fluent in my second language. Then I moved to France. Yikes! Within my first day in my new home, I realized that the time I had spent with my nose in a…
-
February 15, 2013Online learning isn’t going anywhere. According to the Sloan Consortium/Chronicle of Higher Education Survey, 70% of college presidents say online learning is a critical piece to their university’s long term strategy – this summer, Coursera hit the 1 million student mark, with people participating from 196 countries. Current online learning opportunities offer access to education for a wide demographic, promote lifetime learning, and allow educators to reach students around the…
-
February 13, 2013“Anda sombong.” (You are arrogant, in Bahasa Indonesia) Two very simple yet seemingly harsh words addressed at me by an Indonesian orphanage teacher, little did I know about their true relevance, proved in time to come. In August of this year, we travelled to Kinderhut village, Banda Aceh, Indonesia – an orphanage that brings together orphans and young women who lost their families to the Tsunami. The said task was…
-
February 11, 2013It’s a simple question with seemingly endless answers. However, I believe students come for one reason and one reason only… to chase his or her dreams. Somewhere deep inside every person is the desire to be great, a desire to follow his or her passions. These students are acting upon those desires. Opportunities, wealth, adventures… these are all affects, not causes. Every year there are 750,000 foreign students entering the…
