How Do I Do That - April 2011
We will have two sessions of the Burlington Public Schools How Do I Do Thattechnology series in April.
On April 12, we will feature the new iPad 2. We will discuss new features and ways to use iPads in a 1:1 classroom environment. Burlington High School teachers are encouraged to attend with questions and to receive some help in preparation for the 1:1 initiative next year.
On April 26, we will feature Twitter and Skype. New users can learn about these tools and set up accounts. Twitter is a great resource for collaboration and personal professional development. Skype has many features that are perfect for education. Both tools enable students and teachers to communicate with the world, learn from others, share and connect to authentic audiences everywhere.
Please contact me with any questions:
So you are using iPads in your classroom and you want to get away from your old, expensive, out of date, and often poorly developed textbooks…what do you do?
Too often teachers and administrators are stumped by that question. Although many educators agree that textbooks are not always the best teaching tools, most don’t know where to start when it comes to teaching without them. The good news is that some educators are trying to live without textbooks. They are developing their own curriculums based on digital resources and materials available for free.
Don’t repeat that last part too loudly… Textbook companies don’t like free.
Burlington Public Schools is currently making an exciting move to a digital infrastructure for curriculum. We are looking at ways to introduce web-based applications and cloud based storage. We are trying to cut down on text costs and the use of paper. We also want to build relevant, engaging, curriculum infused with current technologies.
At Burlington High School, teachers and administrators are only a few months away from introducing a 1:1 iPad environment. The iPad, as I have written before, is what I believe to be the best educational technology tool available. The iPad, however, doesn’t come preloaded with curriculum materials. Educators still need to develop curriculums just like they always have, but at BHS they will be using a new device to help deploy the material.
The idea of creating educational content in a digital world can be overwhelming to many teachers. It is important to me that we help our teachers with simple ways to find, save, develop, or create digital materials.
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