new learning

Today I attended a NHSTE workshop where David Warlick, an ed tech consultant and blogger/podcaster from North Carolina, spoke about new literacies and new mediums for engaging our students in authentic tasks involving online communication. He talked about student bloggers writing for real-world audiences and about kids studying areas that interest them, then becoming experts on topics and podcasting their information for a world-wide audience. He talked about "Web2.0," where our students (us, too!) will have opportunites to publish and add to the growing amount of digital information available to the world. I have David's book, Raw Materials for the Mind. If you want to borrow it, just ask. Here's a link to his website, The Landmark Project, where you can read more and find links to his blog, My 2¢ Worth, or his podcast, Connect Learning. Great stuff from a truly inspiring person.

T.H.E. Journal is a print magazine that deals with technology use in schools. 20 Technology Skills Every Educator Should Have is a great resource that not only lists skills that teachers should have but also points them to online tutorials for assistance in acquiring those skills if need be. Thanks to Dr. Cornish at PSU for this link.

Last, this article that I heard about today: it's about this phenomonon called The Flynn Effect. The Wired Magazine article outlines the findings of American philosophy professor James Flynn, who collected data to show how IQ scores have been on the rise since the late 40s. Flynn theorizes that all the problem-solving that goes along with learning and using new technologies may have something to do with this increase in IQ scores. Think about that next time you see one of your kids with a Game Boy.