The iGeneration...Better Get Used To It!

Found this great infographic on Kids and Mobile Technology that agrees with the notions of this digital generation. My 2-year old operates an iPad mini better than many of the adults that I train on an everyday basis. If we can't beat them... might as well Meet Them Where They Are!

Kids & Mobile Technology infographic by michelleink88.

Does Social Media Belong In The Classroom???

A parent called the lab this week and left a message explaining her displeasure with her student using Google+ in class to converse with her pen pal in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She felt that school was no place for students to be spending time on the internet video chatting with people and their time is better spend reading from a text book to gain knowledge. Ok, when I recovered from the laugh attacked that ensued, I invited her to the school to show her along with a few other parents how social media can be used in the classroom. The meeting is being held in a few weeks, but the list of interested parents has grown to 132. Guess how she got the word out to other parents to get them involved...FaceBook. Wow! So, as I was putting together my presentation, I began by asking myself if Social Media actually belongs in the classroom. People who know me understand that I'm always willing to try something new for learning especially if it fits my ed tech philosophy of meeting students where they are, but when considering implementation, one truly has to consider the why not and all the fears that are associated with students collaborating online. So, is it worth the risk?

Source: learndash.com via Holly on Pinterest

The Learning Life of StudyBlue

Understanding the mind of the digital child is challenging and I say this as parent and educator. However, the most difficult aspect to fathom is the study habits of this generation. As a part of my business research, I am finding that study habits are not introduced at an early age, students tend to have a difficult time with time management and priortizing their study schedule. Personally, my daughter seems to have the most success when she creates flash cards to help her retain. However, along with my students, paper flash cards got boring, using power point and Keynote was successful, but she didn't always have access to her laptop. However she always had her iPhone. StudyBlue has put together a cool way to study as they have truly taken some time to look into how today's digital student operates.
Via: STUDYBLUE.com So far, my student's who are using the tool have improved their test grades dramatically. It's worth a shot.