The other day, two school librarians posted an insightful article about two students – Jessica, just starting her junior of high school, and Michael, who just graduated – who stand on opposite sides of the "participation gap," Prof. Henry Jenkins's term for the digital divide of participatory media and today's networked world. They describe what conditions in schools close the gap and what … [Read more...] about Why we mustn’t have a participation gap: 2 students’ experiences
School & Tech
Prensky’s thoughts for 21st-century teachers
Marc Prensky, who coined the term "digital natives" and a few years ago moved on to write about digital wisdom, called on educators to show the courage to do what "they know is right" and wisely embrace the technology that will increasingly help all of us, including students, solve the world's complex problems. This was in his 10-min. portion of a collective keynote at this summer's International … [Read more...] about Prensky’s thoughts for 21st-century teachers
All kinds of learning all at once with ‘BYOT’
With their bring-your-own-technology (BYOT) program, teachers in the Forsyth County (Ga.) School District are "learning along with our students how their devices work for their learning," Tim Clark, the district's instructional technology coordinator, told me in a phone interview. My excitement about the promise this represents for students grew as we talked. What this school district is doing … [Read more...] about All kinds of learning all at once with ‘BYOT’
What’s wrong with Net-safety ed … and what we can do about it
A look at what does and doesn't work in risk prevention from top researchers in the US By Anne Collier It being "National Internet Safety Month" and this being the last week of the month, let's look at Net safety from a different angle…. "Grumpy researcher has doubts about Internet safety programs." David Finkelhor, director of the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the … [Read more...] about What’s wrong with Net-safety ed … and what we can do about it
Student bullying-prevention activists, leaders, mentors
Probably any number of things could inspire a student to become an activist, but in 16-year-old Ali's case, it was "an English homework assignment about marginalized groups in society," The Gazette, in Lisbon, Iowa, reported. "She realized they needed a voice," apparently thought about how kids can get marginalized in bullying types of situations, and emailed Lisbon Community Schools' dean of … [Read more...] about Student bullying-prevention activists, leaders, mentors