It’s amazing to think about the way a traditional classroom operated only a few years ago. As Renee Patton recently pointed out in her blog post, there were rules, there were barriers, and they were all kept within the confines of an educational institution. As technology has advanced, those rules have been challenged, barriers overcome, and an entirely new era of learning has emerged.
The collaborative nature of education, educators and learners has allowed new technologies to thrive and innovation to accelerate. We’re flipping classrooms, implementing mobile learning programs and developing entirely new ways for students to connect and engage. And we’re looking with excitement toward a future that will continually change the way we teach and learn. Read More »
Tags: Cisco Unified Access, connected learning, edtech, edu13, education, educause, higher education, ICT, IT, learning, lecture capture, UCS, virtual desktop
I’ll never forget my first day as a brand new high school teacher. As a young college graduate (with absolutely no experience teaching and a one-hour course on classroom management), I stood stiffly in front of the room on that hot end-of-summer day, afraid to crack a smile. Thankfully, a more seasoned teacher had taken me to lunch the day before school started, so I at least had a pretty good idea of how to set up my grade book, allocate points to assignments, and fashion a seating chart.
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Tags: collaboration, Connected Educator Month, connected learning, edtech, education, Internet of Everything, TelePresence, video
It’s back-to-school time once again. Whether it is smartphones, tablets or laptops –devices and the classroom are more intertwined than ever before. Thanks to the growing connections in the Internet of Everything (IoE), it is now easier than ever to integrate the device into the classroom. With college costs on the rise, there is no question why many students, professors, and colleges, are turning to technology to increase access to resources.
The days of ‘my roommate ate my homework’ are coming to an end. Read More »
Tags: byod, connected classroom, edtech, education, Flipped Learning, Internet of Everything, IoE, MOOCs, online classes
To say the way students learn today has dramatically changed since I was in school would be an understatement. Not too long ago, technology played a limited role in education. Computers were not an active part of any discussion; it was a lab we went to for an hour a day. Now students are fortunate to have access to a variety of technologies that enrich teaching methods such as interactive smart boards, laptops and tablets, video technology and more. This has transformed the way educators engage with their classes and how students learn.
I think video collaboration technology specifically has had a profound impact on education. Today, teachers and school officials alike are utilizing video collaboration for many diverse uses such as advanced instruction, distance learning, virtual field trips and global student collaboration. Most recently, flipped learning has been receiving a considerable amount of attention and buzz for the powerful benefits it offers students and educators. Read More »
Tags: Cisco, collaboration, DentonISD, edtech, education, Flipped Learning, TelePresence, video
In every school district in America today, educators are faced with a simple, yet critically important, question. How do we obtain, implement, and integrate transformative technology into all of our schools and classrooms?
Some districts have embraced technology and put mobile and collaborative devices in the hands of students. In The Katy School District in Texas, for instance, performance on math tests increased from 70th to 90th percentile following adoption of mobile technologies and devices. Similarly, in the Mooresville Graded School District in North Carolina, the district increased levels of competency in all subject areas from 60 percent to over 85 percent, and graduation rates increased by 22 percent.
But in too many schools and school districts today, the promise of connected classrooms is just that – a promise, and not reality.
That’s why it’s so critical that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) modernize and streamline the E-Rate program. E-Rate is the cornerstone of America’s effort to provide digital education to students. Since the program’s inception 15 years ago, E-Rate has connected more than 100,000 schools and libraries to the internet. It has a proven track record of success.
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Tags: broadband connectivity, E-Rate Program, edtech, education, FCC, school