Engaging Students Before They Drop Out Written by Mark Brumley According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 8 percent of students drop out of high school each year. The number is higher for African-American, Hispanic and American Indian students. While there are many reasons students drop out of school, the majority of them cite disinterest and a lack of real-life learning as one of the reasons for dropping out. Incorporating technology in your teaching can help combat the dropout rate by helping material become more interesting and relevant. Incorporating Technology by Subject Area When you incorporate technology in your classroom, you take the material beyond the textbook. Building Relevant Skills Bring technology into the classroom to help students build relevant skills. Connecting to Generation Z Your students are part of a connected generation. Mark Brumley (112 Posts)
10 Awesome Online Classes You Can Take For Free Cool, but you need iTunes for nearly everything, and that gets an 'F.' Are there really no other places to get these lessons? I was sure there are some on Academic Earth. Flagged 1. 7 of them are available via YouTube. 2. iTunes is free. 1. 2. Don't worry, we're looking out for you! While I have no personal beef with iTunes, I know that many people share your sentiments — so I actually made a concerted effort to include relevant youtube links when possible.
A Day in the Life of a Connected Educator – Using social media in 21st century classrooms One of our main goals at Powerful Learning Practice is to turn educators into 21st Century educators. That is, teach them how to use social media and other powerful Web 2.0 tools to transform their classrooms into learning environments that are ready for today’s iGeneration students. One of the most common questions we get is, “But where do we find the time to use all this new technology?” To answer that question, we developed this infographic – A Day in the Life of a Connected Educator to show that using social media in your classroom and in your life can be integrated, easy, and fun. Scroll down and take a look or click for a larger version. Get connected Would you like to become a connected educator? Explore more about the life of a Connected Educator and 21st Century teacher & learner in The Connected Educator: Learning and Leading in a Digital Age by Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach and Lani Ritter Hall. Tweet all about it What does a typical day in a 21st century classroom look like?
150 Free Textbooks: A Meta Collection Free textbooks (aka open textbooks) written by knowledgable scholars are a relatively new phenomenon. Below, find a meta list of 200 Free Textbooks, and check back often for new additions. Also see our online collection, 1,700 Free Online Courses from Top Universities. Art History A Textbook of the History of Painting by John Charles Van Dyke, Rutgers Biology Anatomy and Physiology – Edited by various profs at OpenStaxBiology – Edited by various profs at OpenStaxBiology Pages, John W. Business and Management Business Ethics by Jose A. Chemistry Chemistry, Grades 10-12, Created by the FHSST Project (Free High School Science Texts)Chemistry Virtual Textbooks by Stephen Lower, Simon Fraser UniversityCK-12 Chemistry (Grades 9-12) by multiple authors. Classics Computer Science & Information Systems Earth Science CK-12 Earth Science for Middle School by multiple authors.Earth Systems, an Earth Science Course (Grades 9-10). Economics & Finance Education Electrical Engineering Engineering History Languages
ToonDoo - World's fastest way to create cartoons! 50 Best Blogs for Online Educators | Online Colleges As students flock to online courses in greater numbers than ever, and even elementary schools add online components, more and more educators are needed for online colleges and online educational programs. Teachers working online must not only know their subject matter through and through, but also how to use the latest technology to communicate with and engage students. On top of all that, they also have to keep abreast of new ideas and products that will make their jobs easier and improve their ability to work with students. Fortunately, many who work in educational technology fields are more than willing to share their expertise with others online through videos, podcasts, and more commonly, blogs. News and Views Give these blogs a read to make sure you stay in-the-know when it comes to all things edutech. Educational Technology Professionals Here you’ll find blogs from professionals working in educational technology, a great resource for those new to online teaching and old pros alike.
Home - A Primary Teacher Planning Website - All Aboard for New Ideas Top 20 Websites No Teacher Should Start the 2010-2011 Year Without I have to tell you that it was a tough call to make these decisions, especially when we’re talking every teacher no matter what grade level or subject, but I hope that you find a couple of gems to put away in your virtual treasure box. You may have others you’d like to add to the list. Please post them in the comments for all of us to explore. A great photo editing tool is a must for teachers and I recommend Aviary, LunaPic, Picnik, or BeFunky with some being simpler than others, but all having unique features. Explore all the tools and choose the best option for your skill level. Creaza and Jaycut are answers to the Windows XP Movie Maker and Flipcam problem. Delicious or Diigo are online bookmarking networks teachers need. Doodle is a groovy scheduling tool teachers can use when setting up a collaborative work meeting or building social committee event. Dropbox is one of my absolute favorite tools shared with me by Intel Teach buddies Glen Westbrook and Jill Summers.