As the ease-of-use and culture of Web 2.0 social media merge with the 3-D virtual environments we’ve come to associate with computer gaming, exciting new opportunities exist for using collaborative virtual worlds in education. In this episode, PARC research scientist Michael Roberts offers some examples and suggests these environments might be particularly useful for triggering student interest in science and technology.
Jack Jarvis, principal at Hidalgo Elementary School in Fresno Unfied shares an efficient and effective way to push out notifications to his staff via Really Simple Syndication (RSS). This automatic push out of messages allows teachers to receive notifications without ever having to check their email. Now, informal information can quickly be sent out!
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Fort Smith Public Schools successfully implemented a one laptop per child program in 18 classrooms from 2nd grade through high school in late 2008. Arkansas cadre members Harry Dickens, John Calaway, and Jim Yeager speak to George Lieux, an Arkansas cadre member and technology integration specialist at Forth Smith Public Schools about the program including how it was funded, how the district provided professional development, how teachers have changed the way they teach, and how the program will be expanded in the future.
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You may also want to watch Developing a Learning Community For One Laptop Per Child Implementation, a TICALevision episode with George introducing this program a month after its inception.
