I wrote it before I read New York Times executive editor and parent Bill Keller's stylish dismissal of social media, but "Hawk drama (& human drama) in the digital age" would've been my response. It was about how we really need to think about "the observer effect" on both the experiment (red-tailed hawks, or youth in social media) and the observer (people at the viewer end of the "hawk cam," … [Read more...] about Social media: Time to end the laments & get on with it, maybe?!
education reform
Why videogames are good for learners
As a gamer – to some extent, not entirely, but enough – you're master of your own fate, and when you're not, you can find help. You're not only in an environment, you're in an experience too – one that changes as you work and conquer problems and keep getting better. So it's progressive but self-paced – but also social, so less boring than purely self-paced. There are rules, but they're like … [Read more...] about Why videogames are good for learners
Student multitasking: Erase or embrace?
First, before I get into multitasking as promised in my last post, a public service announcement: Read From Fear to Facebook: One School's Journey, by middle school administrator Matt Levinson. I wish it could be required reading for every parent, teacher, administrator, district official, school board member, and employee of every state and federal education department in the country! It's not … [Read more...] about Student multitasking: Erase or embrace?
About that NYT piece (‘Growing Up Digital’)…
The headline's same-old-same-old, but the article's really worth reading: "Growing Up digital, Wired for Distraction" in the New York Times. Don't miss it. Here's why: 1. What conclusions are we drawing? Writer Matt Richtel found an amazing student, principal, and school to feature (Vishal Singh, Mr. Reilly, and Woodside High School in northern California). Try reading Vishal's story at the … [Read more...] about About that NYT piece (‘Growing Up Digital’)…
Connecting ‘real world’ tech with school tech
George Lucas the film producer is waiting for school reform too. "Twenty years ago when we started The George Lucas Educational Foundation, we thought it would be 10 years before the general public would understand that the education system was in serious need of fixing," he wrote this week in a commentary in Edutopia.org, the Foundation's Web site. Besides his point about how we need to be … [Read more...] about Connecting ‘real world’ tech with school tech