Earlier this year, some 40 digital tablets (the Motorola version of iPads) were packaged into two taped-up boxes with no instructions and dropped into two Ethiopian villages, each about 50 miles from Addis Ababa and each with about 20 "1st-grade-aged" children, MIT Technology Review reported. The goal in this experiment, which OLPC chair Nicholas Negroponte says has another 18-24 months to go, is … [Read more...] about 6-year-old self-taught pre-readers & tablet users in Ethiopia
School & Tech
Courageous 13-year-old change agent
Social change agents used to go to "the press" (remember that?) to expose social ills and make things better. Now they go to social media. Stop and think about what a huge difference that is, in terms of the actors, the actions, the issues, and the medium. The social activists can now be anyone. They don't have to persuade an editor that something's important. No matter how small the issue, if the … [Read more...] about Courageous 13-year-old change agent
Hacking to get students to college
They were hacking education over at Facebook yesterday. Well, more like helping to open up the college entrance and completion process for high school students who want to go to college but face hurdles – e.g., low-quality schools, socio-economic struggles, or families not familiar with the college experience. It was a hackathon at Facebook for app developers who – with the support of the Bill and … [Read more...] about Hacking to get students to college
Unboxing learning
Last spring I had the privilege and fun of spending a whole class period with middle school students talking about their favorite uses of technology. Of course there were about as many preferences as there were students, so I'll just zoom in on one student whose interest I felt best illustrated how very individual and diverse digital tech use is. He loves shoes. I can't remember the brands, but … [Read more...] about Unboxing learning
Some mobile learning myth-busting
As I read "5 myths about mobile learning," I realized how literal we are in our assumptions – and how much we base them on a technology's physical properties. When you really think about it – or compare the assumptions to the reality – it can make you smile (if you don't let yourself get discouraged by the resistance these assumptions symbolize). The first few myths educator Nicky Blockly shares … [Read more...] about Some mobile learning myth-busting