Archive of ‘instructional technology’ category

edtech implementation failures

5 All-Too-Common Ways Edtech Implementations Fail

Chris Liang-Vergara and Kerry Gallagher (Columnist)     Apr 6, 2017

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2017-04-06-5-all-too-common-ways-edtech-implementations-fail

End users are too often removed from the decision-making process during procurement. Educators argue that too many products don’t actually meet the needs of teachers or students. Still others worry that it is too easy to implement new and popular technology without considering whether it is research-based and effective.

Only 33 percent of parents surveyed by the Learning Assembly said their child’s school did an excellent job using technology to tailor instruction.

Insufficient Modeling of Best Practices

A survey from Samsung found that 37 percent of teachers say they would love to use technology but don’t know how, and 76 percent say they would like a professional development day dedicated to technology.

implementations should start with the “why” and then address the “how.” Trainings should first model the best pedagogical approach, and how technology fits into this approach to support a learning objective. How to effectively use and troubleshoot the tool itself is also important, but it’s not the only factor.

How teachers integrate technology into their own teaching practices can have a dramatic impact on the results, even when they’re all using the same edtech tool. Videos that focus on scaling and modeling best practices (produced by places like the Teaching Channel and The Learning Accelerator) can help teachers and schools do this.

Teachers face initiative fatigue: They are constantly being asked to implement new programs, integrate new technologies, and add on layers of responsibility.

take the time to learn from the challenges of other schools, and recruit a coalition of the willing.

Real-World Usability Challenges

Relying on multiple devices (remote, clicker, iPad, computer mouse) to launch or navigate technology can be difficult. Additionally, teachers may start to use a tool, only to realize it is not flexible enough to meet their original needs, fit into the constraints of their particular school or classroom, or allow them to integrate their own content or supplemental resources.

The Right Data to Track Progress

Sometimes tech implementations fail because the products themselves don’t have the right depth of data for teachers or a workable interface. And sometimes they fail when eager IT directors lock down hardware and networks for security purposes in a way that makes the tool far less valuable for instructors.

Culturally Responsive Education in Design and the Arts

Culturally Responsive Education in Design and the Arts

March 1, 2019, 8:30 am- 5:00 pm
Minneapolis College, 1501 Hennepin Avenue in Minneapolis
AND online via Adobe Connect and Zoom

Closed-Captioning Videos and Creating Syllabi and Classroom Materials That Are Accessible to All  1:15-2:30PM
Brittany Mammenga, Captioning Coordinator
Manee Yang, Digital Access and Assistive Tech Specialist
K3350
Adobe Connect https://webmeeting.minnstate.edu/session2accessibility

Podcasts as an Instructional Tool

Teachers Are Turning to Podcasts as an Instructional Tool

Students practice reading, writing, interviewing

By Sasha Jones February 11, 2019

 https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2019/02/13/teachers-are-turning-to-podcasts-as-an.html
 Anchor allows users to record and edit podcast episodes, all through an app on their cellphones. The service distributes and uploads episodes to streaming services, such as Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and provides analytics following publication.

“Traditionally, it’s write, write, write, write, write, and if you’re not a strong writer, you may start to think you’re not good at an English class in general.”

Podcasts that require scripts similarly encourage students to explore writing formats that stray from the traditional essay.

“When it’s just my eyes seeing it, it’s one-on-one and I’m the safety net,” Stevens said. “Even when you open it up to their classmates, they realize ‘OK, I’m going to be judged by them,’ and then you open it up to the internet. It’s a big deal.”

Last spring, cinematic arts and broadcast journalism teacher Michael Hernandez introduced his 11th and 12th graders to podcasting to teach them speaking skills that could be necessary for upcoming college or job interview.

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more on podcasts in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=podcast

zSpace and Labster

https://zspace.com

zSpace is a technology firm based in Sunnyvale, California that combine elements of virtual and augmented reality in a computer. zSpace allows people to interact with simulated objects in virtual environments as if they are real.[1][2][3]

zSpace is known for its progressive developments in human-computer interaction.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZSpace_(company)

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https://www.labster.com/

Give your students the chance to learn science in an engaging and effective way with Labster’s virtual labs.

Labster offers students a true-to-life lab experience at a fraction of the cost of a real lab.

You can supplement your teaching with virtual labs to prepare your students for the wet lab, to help them understand difficult concepts, to engage them with your science course, and more.

n our virtual lab simulations, students work through real-life case stories, interact with lab equipment, perform experiments and learn with theory and quiz questions.

Thanks to engaging 3D animations, students can explore life science at the molecular level and look inside the machines they are operating.   https://www.labster.com/why-choose-labster/

Integrates with D2L and the major LMS

Mondo Nano Colin Milburn

Colin Milburn, Mondo Nano: Fun and Games in the World of Digital Matter

International Journal of Communication, 2019

<Maxwell Foxman Maxwell Foxman

Book Review of Colin Milburn’s book “Mondo Nano: Fun and Games in the World of Digital Matter”

This book comes as a refreshing response to “gamification” literature, which tends to focus on how games can be extended to solve problems. From
Jane McGonigal’s (2011) Reality is Broken
 to Brian Burke’s(2016) Gamify 
 or Karl M. Kapp’s (2012) The Gamification of Learning and Instruction,
these works rely heavily on game elements, design, and mechanics to explain relationships between play and the larger world.

K-12 And Higher Education Converged?

K-12 And Higher Education Are Considered Separate Systems. What If They Converged?

By Jeffrey R. Young     Sep 8, 2017

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2017-09-08-k-12-and-higher-education-are-considered-separate-systems-what-if-they-converged

In “The Convergence of K-12 and Higher Education: Policies and Programs in a Changing Era,” two education professors point out potential benefits of taking a more holistic view to American education

interview with Christopher Loss, one of the editors.

What role does technology play in some of the convergences that occur or are happening?

There’s a great essay in the collection by June Ahn, which deals with the idea of technology as a key mediating source and mechanism for the creation of various kinds of convergences between and among different sectors (my note: K12 and higher ed).

Cyberlearning Community Report: The State of Cyberlearning and the Future of Learning With Technology http://circlcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/CyberlearningCommunityReport2017.pdf (Oct, 2017)

Americans like to see themselves as among the best in the world in education. But lately, the education leaders have been looking abroad for ideas, I think. What can we learn from countries that do have closer links between K-12 and higher ed?

VR Education Apps

7 Best VR Education Apps

Lauren Barack  June 19 2018 Visit Mars, swim with sea otters and trek to Mt. Everest’s Base Camp

https://www.gearbrain.com/7-best-vr-education-apps-2579317090.html

Victory VR is known for its science curriculum which is aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards.

The BBC Earth: Life in VR app works on Google Daydream devices, like the new Lenovo Mirage Solo

Google Expeditions Android and iOS app is a virtual field trip that uses a Google Cardboard viewer.

Unimersiv is in the business of educational experiences — works on both Samsung Gear VR and the Oculus Rift, and takes viewers underwater to explore the Titanic and to one of our closest planets through the “Mars: Curiosity Rover,” app

Discovery VR app. The app works on nearly every single VR platform: Google Daydream, Samsung Gear VR, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and Google Cardboard viewers using both iOS and Android devices.

Merge Cube is a $15 foam block

The Apollo 11 VR app. work with HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR, and also Oculus Go

 

Android app on Daydream

How To Get Any Android App Running On A Daydream Standalone VR Headset

IAN HAMILTON • MAY 10TH, 2018

https://uploadvr.com/android-daydream-app-standalone-how-to/ 

One of the most intriguing hidden features of the first Daydream standalone headset — the Lenovo Mirage Solo — is its ability to play normal Android apps in a flat 2D window.

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more on Daydream in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=daydream

virtual reality book tours

Virtual Reality Book Tours

SEPTEMBER 6, 2018

https://www.freetech4teachers.com/2018/09/virtual-reality-book-tours.html

Google’s VR Tour Creator

Vocaroo provides an easy way to record and download spoken audio.

This video provides an overview of the basic steps needed to make a VR tour. To add audio to the tour, follow the steps outlined in this video. And watch this video to learn how to layer-in pictures

VR Book Tour With Patches. is a free online tool for creating virtual reality scenes.

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