Welcome to Ocotillo’s Emerging Learning Technologies (ELT) report for the week of 6 December 2004. This will be the last report I will post until the new year. Look for me again sometime in January 2005.
I got interested in the grants offered by Hewlett Packard and started doing some research on using handhelds in the classroom. I am a confirmed user of a Palm M130 thanks to PVCC’s Rick Sheets who turned me on to the gizmo. Here are some things I found on using handhelds in the classroom.
1) 8 Tips for Administrators Using Handheld Computers (Spring, 2003)
http://www.mguhlin.net/artifacts/writings/2004/8tipspalm.htm
2) 6 Wishes for Palm Handheld-Wielding Campus Administrators (December, 2003)
http://www.mguhlin.net/artifacts/writings/2003/palmtips1.htm
3) Tools for Your Palm to Help You Maximize Student Success (Spring, 2003)
http://www.mguhlin.net/artifacts/writings/2003/palmtips2.htm
4) 4 Steps to TPRI Handheld Implementation: Keeping Success in Hand
http://www.mguhlin.net/artifacts/writings/2003/tprihandheld.htm
In addition to these articles detailing these experiences with handhelds, you can
find more information online about handheld assessments using products from
Wireless Generation, as well as the Data-Driven Administrator Seminar.
http://itls.saisd.net/k12h/
The work regarding handheld reading assessments was featured in a press
release:
The Paradox of Integrating Handheld Technology in Schools: Theory vs. Practice - Autumn Tooms, Michael Acomb & Jason McGlothlin, THE Journal
The annual district leadership luncheon adjourned with administrators agreeing to set another date to meet. Suddenly, you could hear the whir of handheld computers starting up and the flap of leather date books cracking open. Even though the district had earned a federal technology grant three years ago that gave all of the principals handheld computers, it was clear that only some had converted to such technology. Observing this phenomenon, the superintendent even joked, “Jeez, our million-dollar grant brought all of us the latest toys and I still can’t get folks to move away from day planners and pencils.” Go here for more at http://www.thejournal.com/magazine/vault/A5086.cfm
New site highlights ed-tech research - Corey Murray, eSchool News
The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) has unveiled a new web site intended to highlight nine federally funded studies currently under way in eight states--all charged with exploring the effects of educational technology on student learning. An online companion to SETDA's Technical Assistance Partnership Program (TAPP), the web site provides examples of how schools in Arkansas, Iowa, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, and Wisconsin are employing scientifically based research (SBR) to make the best use of technology. A provision of the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), SBR stipulates that all classroom solutions for reading and math instruction boast a proven, research-based track record of success. Read about it at http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStory.cfm?ArticleID=5391
Putting Tablet PCs to the Test - Dr. Susan Amirian, THE Journal
Like many educators, my colleagues (five faculty members and two IT techs) and I in the department of Media Communications and Technology at East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania were interested to find out the status of tablet PCs in education. Microsoft listed 10 manufacturers of tablet PCs following two forms: the slate and the convertible. The tablet PC operating system was the same full Windows XP system found on standard computers with the addition of tablet features such as handwriting recognition and notation. This was common to all tablets. The difference between tablets was their hardware, configurations and accessories. We would consider the hardware and software, but our first interest was to see what applications of tablet computing were taking place in today’s classrooms. Read about it at http://www.thejournal.com/magazine/vault/A5092.cfm
GamerCentric Web Site
Student Vibhu Norby completed a computer program last summer at Penn State Great Valley and has gone on to create his own Web site (http://www.gamercentric.com/), a game review and news site that went online in early November.
C/net has some neat downloads for you at http://www.download.com/ Do take a look. So does ZDNet at http://downloads-zdnet.com.com/
Toy shopping for yourself or another geek? I use www.buy.com and www.tigerdirect.com for the best prices. This is not an endorsement, but I have had very good luck buying from both in the past. Of course, don’t forget Pricewatch at http://www.pricewatch.com
Happy holidays to you all and see you in January!
Jim Patterson
Ocotillo Emerging Learning Technologies Co-Chair