The EDGE: Coaxing hesitant teachers to adopt classroom technology

How teachers can integrate gaming in the classroom | Teachers take textbook creation into their own hands | China seeks to provide greater access to classroom technology

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March 29, 2013

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How teachers can integrate gaming in the classroom

A growing number of educators are seeking to engage students in learning by integrating video games in lessons, asserts middle-school English teacher Andrew R. Proto. In this blog post he writes about Gamestar Mechanic, a website that uses "immersive teaching" to help students learn the basics -- eventually preparing them to create their own video games and share them with other Gamestar users. Edutopia.org/Andrew R. Proto's blog (3/27)

Teachers take textbook creation into their own hands
Anthony DiLaura and Steve Dickie, a high-school science teacher, will this summer launch "iBooks Author Hackathon," in which they will work to create and curate "quality, interactive modules to remix, update, compile, and distribute to your students." The work is part of what DiLaura describes in this blog post as textbook hacking -- finding and merging quality, interactive content that will help to engage students in lessons. Edudemic (3/28)

Students need vocabulary instruction every day to build lasting word knowledge. Word Nerds shows you how to fit it into an already-packed literacy schedule with a classroom-tested 5-part plan that improves achievement while building confidence and enthusiasm. Includes reproducible planners, organizers, and rubrics. Preview the entire book!

Systems Management

China seeks to provide greater access to classroom technology
Officials in China have announced a plan to invest new funding in classroom technology, including electronic books and tablet computers. Already some schools have taken the plunge, handing out devices and providing broadband Internet access for pupils. Some, however, have questioned the drive to introduce more classroom technology, saying that students' eyesight may be harmed from looking at the screens. Xinhuanet.com (China) (3/29)

Managing Budgets

Miss. district eyes affordability of laptop rollout
A Mississippi school district is considering whether to provide every high-school student with an Apple laptop computer. The current proposal calls for leasing 2,600 laptops -- at a cost of $500,000 -- to replace traditional textbooks. "But we won't be buying textbooks, so a lot of our budget dollars would be diverted," said superintendent Ben Burnett. "We have to see what the (state) legislature appropriates in the budget to see if we can afford it." The Hattiesburg American (Miss.) (3/26)

Other News

Pa. schools are expecting $1 billion investment in education
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (3/29)
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Schools and Social Media

Va. social studies teacher becomes blog superstar
Ken Halla, a social studies teacher at Hayfield Secondary School in Fairfax County, Va., started blogging a few years ago to offer advice to his local peers but teachers across the nation are reading Halla's blogs, which include U.S. history and government blogs, and using the resources. Halla, who says his blogs get about 50,000 hits a month, said he hopes to encourage others to take greater advantage of the technology at their disposal and flip their classrooms so they can spend less time lecturing and more time helping students learn at a higher level. Fairfax County Times (Reston, Va.) (3/27)

Last Byte

Using movement, social interaction to energize students

Every teacher has "those days" when students arrive at class out of energy and with little interest in the day's lessons, writes middle-school teacher Hadley Ferguson. In this blog post, she offers potential remedies -- a combination of movement and social interaction. She suggests small group work, designating spaces for students to work on large paper and taking a brisk walk inside or outside of school. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Education (3/29)