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= What's New in Educational Technolgy =

By. Jeanna Toninato

Instructor: Dr. McCarthy
11/22/10

1. TPaCK
TPaCK stands for Technology Pedagogy and Content Knowledge. It is known as the framework for how to integrate technology into teaching. It looks at knowledge integrated with other knowledge and not just by itself. It is composed of three main components: technological knowledge, knowledge of a variety of technologies, content knowledge, knowledge of facts and concepts of a specific topic, and pedagogical knowledge, general knowledge related to teaching.The technological knowledge and the pedagogical knowledge makes up the technological pedagogical knowledge which is the knowledge of how technology is used for teaching. The pedagogical knowledge and content knowledge make up the pedagogical content knowledge which is the knowledge that teachers know about teaching specific topic content which is unique to teachers.  The content knowledge and the technological knowledge makes up the technological content knowledge which is the knowledge of technologies that pertain to a specific topic content. All three components together make up the technological pedagogical content knowledge which is the knowledge of how to use technology for specific pedagogical content areas.



Website: [] Useful Website: [] TPaCK is the use the three components of knowledge together to be a better teacher. An example would be an English teacher teaching her students a specific topic in English like the characterization of a story with the use of technology. The teacher could use her knowledge of the concept map technology like Inspiration to use for a smart board to organize the information of the specific material so kids can get a hands on way to learn the information. The teacher uses her pedagogical knowledge of teaching the material with the specific content knowledge of characteristics of a story and the technological knowledge of how to use Inspiration to teach in a new way. It is a way of using every aspect of knowledge to be the best teacher they can be.

2. Digital Divide
A Digital Divide is a gap between people with access to digital information and technology and people who have limited or no access to technology. This divide shows differences in social economic issues, infrastructure issues, technology skills, gender, and race. It is based on four different categories. There is a difference in who: individuals vs. communities vs countries. There is a difference in income, education, age, gender and, geography. There is a difference in people who have access and usage. There is a difference in what kind of technology you use also. There is a global digital divide and a huge educational divide. Organizations everywhere are trying to close the digital divide by trying to give access to people without access to technology and information with things like low cost computers.

Website: [] Useful Website: [] Technology is important to student learning. Access to the information available from technology is important to further education. The digital divide prevents people from getting an education because they don't have access to the right technology. By closing the digital divide, people would be given equal opportunity to communicate and accelerate everyone’s ability to learn. Technology has the potential to greatly contribute to the prosperity of developing areas. By bridging the digital divide, it is possible for poverty-stricken regions to enhance communication with other countries and can offer economic, social, and political opportunities by learning how to use the technology.

3. X-01 Laptop
The X0-1 laptop, also known as the $100 laptop, which was created by MIT to be an inexpensive sub notebook computer to be sent to kids in developing countries around the world. It's goal is to provide kids with a new way of gaining knowledge and opportunities to new information. The laptop is developed by the One Laptop Per Child non-profit, organization. They are sale for government-education systems which then give each child their own laptop.The XO-1 has a video camera, a microphone,Wi-Fi, and a weather proof touch pad. It was designed to withstand extreme environmental conditions like high heat and sunlight. It also comes with local language support. It comes with a standard plug-in power supply and takes minimal power to run. It also has a flash memory instead of a hard drive. Free software comes with the laptop. It is very durable, functional and energy- efficient. The target cost for the laptop is $100 to make millions of them. If you spend $200 you can buy two laptops, one laptop for yourself and one laptop to send to a developing country for a child.



Website: [] Useful Website: [] These computers will help children get the education they deserve. Many children don't have access to adequate education so the X0-1 is a huge step forward. Their mission statement is to create educational opportunities for the poorest children. The X0-1 laptop is a globally shared resource for learning. Kids are engaged in a learning process by being actively involved in what they learn. They learn, share, create, and collaborate. They get connected to each other and to the world and its knowledge with these computers.Everywhere the laptop is sent, school attendance increase. It is bringing education to every child in many countries and giving children the knowledge they deserve. Teachers are also learning new things. The teachers have to have training on how to use them and how to teach the children with the new computers. It is a learning opportunity not only for the students but also for the teachers.

4. Grolier's Online Encyclopedia
The Grolier Online Encyclopedia is one of the largest U.S. publishers of general encyclopedias. It has seven modules: Encyclopedia Americana, Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia, The New Book of Knowledge, La Nueva Enciclopedia Cumbre, The New Book of Popular Science, Lands and Peoples, and America the Beautiful. It also has a kid version, Grolier Online Kids for elementary education. The home page has a feature showcase with different random topics. There is also a Today is where you can see important events that happen on the day or you can look up a date and see the important events listed. There is a News Now section with daily news from the associated press. It also has a For Educators link which has lesson plans and other resources for the classroom, library, media center and home.



Website: [] Useful Website: [] The Grolier Online Encyclopedia has many educational purposes. Teachers can use this website to use to teach their students. For example, an High School English teacher who wants to teach about Romeo and Juliet can go to the For Educators section and look up grade 9-12. Under the grades, it gives subjects and under Fine Arts, the teacher can click Romeo and Juliet. Under that section there are things like objectives, preparation, resources, vocabulary, an activity, discussion, extension and assessment. You can print out the resources for your class so they have background information on the subject. They also give extra articles to use. It gives lots of information so teachers are well prepared. It is not just a great educational site for students to use but also for the teachers to use to teach in their classrooms.

5. Cloud Computing
Cloud Computing is using computers and the world wide web to get software for free.Cloud computing is a way to increase capacity or add capabilities anywhere you are without investing in new infrastructure or getting new software. Cloud computing has any subscription-based or pay-per-use service that over the Internet, extends IT's existing capabilities. It is an updated version of utility computing with virtual servers available over the Internet. It is anything you consume outside the firewall, including conventional outsourcing. It has seven uses: Saas, utility computing, web services, platform as a service, managed service providers, service commerce platforms, and internet integration.

 Website: []  Useful Website: []  Technologies that were previously expensive are now free to anyone with a web browser. Teachers can use this for web sites, blogs, video sharing, music sharing, social sharing, collaboration software, editing/presentation and publishing. Students are already using many of these technologies in their personal lives. teachers are now taking advantage cloud computing. For example, a teacher can make a presentation and let students edit it and add to it from anywhere. It lets many kids work together on the same project from anywhere. It is an easier and cheaper way of working on a class projects with lots of people at different times and places. It will both enrich student’s technology-enabled education and reduce the budget impact.

6. Web 2.0
Web 2.0 tools are second generation tools. A Web 2.0 site lets its users interact or collaborate with each other as creators of user made content in a virtual community. Older websites had users limited to only viewing the content that was created for them. Examples of Web 2.0 include social networking sites like facebook, myspace and twitter, wikipedia, blogs, wikis, video- sharing sites, hosted services, web applications, and mashups. You can write to the page and create your own content and other people can write on it or edit it. They usually come with features like links, search, authoring, tags, extensions, and signals. Website: http://ilearnyoulearnwelearn.wikispaces.com/Web+2.0 Useful Website: [] Web 2.0 tools is very helpful for teachers and students. An example would be wikis in education. A Teacher for The Computer in Education gives us an assignment where we have to research a list of what's new in educational technology. There are twelve things so he splits us up in groups to work on it together. Some kids can't get together so that's where wikis comes into play. The teacher can set up a new account and add us to the page. It gives you blank pages and we can edit the page and add out own information to the page. Our teacher can see the whole page when it's done and see who added what information to the page. This way anyone can work on it and they don't have to be in a certain place to do it. It is the new way to do class projects at school and will be the new way of learning and teaching in education.

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= What's New in Educational Technology Part 2 =

By: Andrew Ley Educ 3412-2 Instructor: Dr. McCarthy

7. Rubistar
Rubistar is an online website which allows for the easy creation of project/test grading rubrics. Instead of taking many hours out of an already busy day to create a rubric, Rubistar gives the user an unlimited amount of customization in many different school subject areas. For example, if students must complete a history project on World War Two, the teacher grading the projects needs some sort of grading tool. Creating a customized rubric using Microsoft Word or other word processing system would take a very long time. By utilizing Rubistar, all you have to do is find the type of project you are grading and customize the rubric according to your personal preferences. If you want the a part of a project to weigh heavier into the grade then you are able to adjust the scoring accordingly. Rubistar can be used by teachers of almost any grade level. It may be too hard to read for elementary school students, but anywhere above grade five it will be more than understandable. Website: []  Helpful Website//:// [|www.classbrain.com/artteach/publish/article_80.shtml]     Rubistar undoubtedly saves time for both the teacher and the students. The easy interface and large amount of customization allows for unlimited possibilities. It does greatly benefit students as well. They easy readability and detailed explanations for the scoring categories gives the student a better idea of why they received the score they did. With Rubistar allowing the creation of a rubric within minutes, teachers will be able to spend their time doing other, more important tasks. Rubistar is a time and life saver for teachers.

8. Google Docs - Word Processing
Google Docs is a recent application on the world wide web which allows for the mutual collaboration and editing of word documents. Instead of having to constantly edit and email documents back and forth between collaborators, Google Docs word processor gives the user the option of creating a document and allowing others to edit it accordingly. For example, a student at college writes a paper for a class, but wants other people to proofread and make changes to it. Without Google Docs word processor, every time a person makes a change to the student's paper, they would have to email the student a revised copy...EVERY single person! With Google Docs, the student could post the paper online, email invitations to friends and family, and allow them to edit it in real time online. Once a person makes a change to the document, it can then be saved and updated all in the same place. Google Docs word processor is essentially a document sharing service offered by Google. It makes collaborating with documents much easier and even safer. The creator of a document can also lock the document to prevent unwanted editing, and determine whether or not editors can either edit, read or do both to the document. Website: [|www.docs.google.com] Helpful Website: []   With regards to education, Google Docs word processing will open up a frontier of possibilities. Teachers will be able to conduct activities with the whole class, outside of class. For example, if an English teacher wants her class to proofread other classmates papers, they could do it online and/or outside of class. Google Docs word processor will assist in saving paper. Instead of printing off papers and editing/reading them on an actual sheet of paper, you will be able to do it all online virtually. I believe Google Docs word processor will most of all help businesses though. The professional collaboration between them will be enhanced by this application and only benefit them.

9. Google Docs - Spreadsheet
Google Docs spreadsheet is an application which allows for the editing of a spreadsheet between collaborators online. Instead of sending countless emails to people reviewing your project, Google Docs spreadsheet allows for multiple users to edit spreadsheets in real time, even at the same time. For example, last week me and some friends got together for a potluck. We avoided the chaos of communicating with each other via phones and emails by using Google Docs spreadsheet. Someone made a list of what to bring and all we had to do was sign up for the food we were going to bring. As soon as we entered our names into the food spot, the whole spreadsheet was instantly updated and saved so that others could see what everyone else was bringing. Website: [|www.docs.google.com] Helpful Website: [] Again, Google Docs spreadsheets will be very beneficial to educators and students alike. Students will be able to fill out spreadsheets online, not even having to remember to save their work because it is done automatically. Students will also be able to peer edit other students' accounting class payrolls and various other projects. It will be the most useful though for group projects. Instead of trying to figure out a time to work on a group project (which is often very conflicting), Google Docs spreadsheets allows groups to collaborate online and edit in real time, all at the same time. Google Docs spreadsheets will allow for the easy transfer and communication of business paperwork between companies. It will also greatly benefit companies with inventory lists. The inventories can be updated in real time and not suffer from the lag involved with sending mail.

10. Google Docs - Presentation
Google Docs presentation application allows the real time editing of presentation slide shows online. Like Google Docs word processor and spreadsheet, multiple users can edit and revise a project at the same time. The most beneficial part of Google Docs presentation is that you are able to open the slide show anywhere with access to the world wide web. Themes on the slide shows are customizable, and a familiar desktop makes editing quite easy. Once the presentation is published to the web, it is there forever. This is such an amazing advantage because if you accidentally format your flashdrive or your computer's memory gets wiped, your presentation will still exist. Website: [|www.docs.google.com] Helpful Website: []  The implications for education are huge for students and teachers. For teachers, the universal accessibility to the presentations will provide them with the option of working on unfinished classroom presentations at home or essentially anywhere. Teachers will also be able to give students the option of reading the presentation online and at home if they wish. If they feel that they did not take very good in class notes, then they could read the teacher's notes online before the test. Again, the mutual collaborative ability of Google Docs will allow groups to assemble presentations all online if they please. The hardest part of group projects is trying to work out a time for everyone to get together; with so many activities and different schedules, it is nearly impossible. Google Docs presentation allows students to work on their group project whenever they please. They will also be able to control who can edit and read it to prevent anyone from sabotaging their work.

11. Google Docs - Forms
The Google Docs forms application allows users to create and customize forms and then share them with others. Printing forms out just simply wastes a lot of paper. With Google Docs forms, questionnaires and other forms can be created using paragraph text, check boxes, multiple choice answer format, a rating scale, and short answer text. A good example of this would be collecting mailing addresses from people. All you would have to do would be to put their name on the form and send them an invitation via e-mail. They would receive the invitation and could, in real time, fill in their address and other contact information. Another use for creating forms in an online environment would be for contacting individuals living a great distance from you. Sending forms in the mail would take too much time, and sending an e-mail could involve delay, depending on how often the receiver checks their e-mail. I could have definitely used Google Docs forms last week. I had to obtain the contact information of somebody in New Mexico so I sent him an e-mail. Instead of taking the time to compose an e-mail, I could have sent him a Google Docs form and it would have taken him seconds to fill it out right then and there.

Website: [|www.docs.google.com] Helpful Website: []

Google Docs forms will change the way education operates in the classroom. Teachers will be able to conduct private surveys online, and create forms easier and with more customization. The real time editing of forms will allow teachers to conduct so many more activities with the whole class. Students will be more actively involved and thus be awake when learning; hearing is not learning. Teachers will also be able to create tests online without going through all the work of printing all the copies off and keeping track of them. Students can utilize Google Docs forms to create surveys for school projects and online polls. Bloggers have especially found Google Docs forms to be useful. They can create voting polls on their blogs to see what others actually think of what they are saying. Businesses will find Google Docs forms to be useful for online job applications and customer surveys.

12. Clipnabber
Clipnabber is an online website which allows the download of videos from other websites such as Youtube. Clipnabber converts videos into .mp4 files and allows you to utilize them wherever. Teachers and students especially will benefit from this as Youtube is blocked in most schools due to CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act). Most teachers will say that videos are great additions to their lecturing and giving notes. It spices learning up and allow students to actually see what they are being taught. Without Clipnabber, many educationally-enhancing videos online could not be used during class.



Website: [|www.clipnabber.com] Helpful Website: [|www.makeuseof.com/dir/**clipnabber**/]

Adding videos into lesson plans benefits both students and teachers. By showing videos, teachers are able to create variety in their teaching style. Teachers who solely lecture or give notes bore students. Videos also take up time in class so the teacher can get a break from talking. Videos seem to teach somewhat abstract concepts better by applying them to real life situations; you can actually see what is going on. For example, I found online biology videos explaining the processes of cell theory incredibly helpful because it is hard to imagine what might be occurring. Most students also love videos in general because they are far more interesting than writing down words on a piece of paper. By utilizing Clipnabber, individuals will be able to add online videos into their presentations as well. Videos enhance learning and provide variety so it is no wonder why Clipnabber is becoming so popular in the classroom.