Why an iPhone could actually be good for your 3-year-old

But here’s the tantalizing part: If done the right way, with the right limits, handing a preschooler a smart phone could be good not just for the parents’ sanity. It might even be good for the child’s development.

Read the full article here. I question his logic. He quotes from sources to show both sides of the story but makes the leap to say it is a good thing without having proved that it is.

I think the evidence shows that kids should spend more time away from technology and TVs as long as possible. The book "Last Child in the Woods" raises the issue of "nature-deficit disorder". Kids should spend more time in nature and less time with technology. For more on this topic, you can read what I wrote earlier this year.

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Why an iPhone could actually be good for your 3-year-old

via Boston Globe -- Globe Magazine by Neil Swidey on 10/30/09

Parents who hand smart phones to their preschoolers as a distraction are shocked to see how quickly the kids become pros. They may worry about such early screen time. But for this generation of "mobile kids," portable, wireless technology promises to improve the way they learn.

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• Subscribe to Boston Globe -- Globe Magazine using Google Reader
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Open Learning Initiative - Great Courses

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Open Learning Initiative - Great Courses

via Free Technology for Teachers by noreply@blogger.com (Mr. Byrne) on 9/11/09

The Open Learning Initiative offers free high-quality courses created by Carnegie Mellon University. There are courses available in Statistics, Engineering, Science, Economics, French, and more. All of the courses are open to anyone that wants to give the courses a try. Users can create an account to track their progress or users can just jump into the course materials without creating an account.

In addition to offering open learning opportunities to students, the Open Learning Initiative provides instructors with course packages that they can use for free. To explore the free options offered to educators, request an OLI Instructor Account.

Applications for Education
The Open Learning Initiative provides high school students with the opportunity explore their interests and get a sense of what is required by collegiate level courses. If you're school allows you to create independent study opportunities, the OLI instructor resources could be starting place for creating those opportunities.



Here are some related items that may be of interest to you:
100 Awesome Open Courses
Lectures and Courses from Great Universities
Yale Open Courses Added to iTunes

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• Subscribe to Free Technology for Teachers using Google Reader
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The Month in Review - July's Most Popular Items

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

The Month in Review - July's Most Popular Items

via Free Technology for Teachers by noreply@blogger.com (Mr. Byrne) on 7/31/09

As I do every month, I've compiled a list of the most popular items from the last month.

Here are the seven most popular items in the month of July, 2009
1. 10 Things Teachers Should Know Before 1:1
2. DL Hughley Reminds Us Why We Teach
3. When I Become a Teacher...
4. The World Images Kiosk - 75,000 Images
5. A Very Simple Way to Make Screen Captures
6. More Wordle in the Classroom Ideas
7. Using Blogs and Wikis are Core Skills

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Free Technology for Teachers using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

Live reporting - Finance Committee - 5/5/09

Attending:
Brett S. Feldman
Juan Rivera
Patricia Goldsmith
Phyllis Messere
Rebecca Cameron
Jack Caufield
Mark Cataldo
James Roche
Tina Powderly
Craig Maire
Robert Teixeira


Almost final budget hearing

Information Technology
Tim Raposa

Similar to last year's budget, bare bones

"School Dude" work order management system, being set up this year to be used
should be set up over the next couple of months
doing cafeteria point of sale systems now

Efficiency based, current work order system is paper based

Virtual townhall - they do the website hosting, all done off-site
Folks call them directly, training is done on their site

Complete salary budget for technology department is in the School Budget

Motion to approve budget - Passed 11-0

"the bigger cost is that we’re navigating blindly"

Dr Scott McLeod completes his week of posting on the state of education in Iowa. He raises some great questions about the data that is currently not collected by the state. A sample (only the first four questions) are as follows:

Here are some questions that we should be asking in Iowa:

• What percentage of Iowa schools and districts have a technology plan? For those that do, what do those plans cover?
• What percentage of Iowa schools and districts have technology teams that advise the organization on technology-related concerns? Who’s on those teams?
• What are schools purchasing with their hardware and software money? What proportion of expenditures goes to teacher-centric technologies versus student-centric technologies? What proportion goes to software that provides powerful learning opportunities for students versus software that simply focuses on drill-and-kill remediation?
• How new are the computers in Iowa schools? What percentage of Iowa hardware and software is more than 2 years old?

I would recommend substituting "Franklin, MA" for Iowa as you read through these questions and the full listing on his page here

Do we already collect this data for MA? I do not know as I sit here but will spend some time in the coming weeks to go looking. If you know in the meantime, please let me know.

I want to play with these blocks!

From TED, we get a glimpse of what computers and human interaction can really do. No, not the kind where some one sits in front of a screen and uses a keyboard or mouse.

Watch, this is delightfully exciting!




Now that is a good use of computer technology for educational purposes!

How would you use these Shiftables?

Thanks to the folks at Free Technology for Teachers for the pointer to this!

one laptop per student

Dr Scott McLeod is continuing his series on recommendations for the Iowa schools. In part 3, he writes:

In addition to funding, numerous other challenges exist as well. One of the biggest is the current predisposition of schools to invest in teacher-centric technologies like televisions, DVD/VCR players, projectors, electronic whiteboards, and document cameras. They’re important and useful but they’re also primarily used as yet another way for teachers to push out information to students. In contrast, laptops, netbooks, digital cameras, small high-definition camcorders, digital voice recorders, webcams, digital scientific probes or sensors, and other devices are primarily used by students to facilitate their own academic learning. If we want Iowa students to gain the technology skills they will need to be productive citizens and workers, schools should be making as many investments in these latter, student-centric devices as possible. There also are a number of free or low-cost online software and tools that students and teachers can use in creative and productive ways.

You can read the full article here. It is rich with links and additional media (pictures and video).

Industry: RokkSoft partners with VocalEZ

From the PR news wire today, we find out about RokkSoft.

Franklin, MA, February 11, 2009 --(PR.com)-- RokkSoft Solutions Corp has partnered with VocalEZ LLC to expand the distribution of the VocalEZ voice recognition medical dictation transcription service.

VocalEZ wraps an integrated work flow around voice-enabled software and web technologies to provide a simple, cost effective dictation transcription platform that is scalable from a single dictator to a large clinic or integrated hospital system, resulting in cost savings of 50 percent when compared to traditional transcription methods.

RokkSoft will offer the VocalEZ medical dictation transcription system in a “Software as a Service” (SaaS) model to physician practices and medical clinics. Medical practices of all sizes are confronted with escalating costs. Because VocalEZ is a pay-for-use service, administrators are now equipped with a solution that dramatically reduces monthly expenses, without requiring a major capital outlay.

VocalEZ fundamentally changes the way the transcription industry provides clinical documentation by creating significant enhancements and savings through the entire process. This HIPAA-compliant solution delivers more accurate, timely and integrated medical documentation.

VocalEZ has created a solution that allows every physician practice to enjoy the same benefits that had previously only been available to the largest groups and hospitals. By focusing on the needs of this largely overlooked segment of the healthcare market, the partnership with RokkSoft is an indication of the VocalEZ commitment to improved patient care while driving down costs.

###

About RokkSoft

RokkSoft Solutions Corp represents companies that provide medical practices and businesses with industry-changing technology applications to improve productivity and drive down operating costs. These applications are delivered in a “Software as a Service” (SaaS) model to minimize required startup resources and eliminate capital expenditures. This enables clients to quickly realize ongoing cost savings.

For more information, please visit http://www.rokksoft.com.


From PR.Com here

Free technology for teachers

Yes, there are free things with value. Finding a website with free things especially for teachers struggling with limited budgets and students eager to learn is a very good thing.

One to add to the list of "the best things in life are free" category

Go visit: Free Technology for Teachers

For example, smartboards are being talked of for use in the classroom. There is a website that focuses on the tips and tricks to use them to their fullest.

Enjoy!

live reporting - technology capital

Tim Raposa presenting the technology capital for the Town and the Public Schools

Looking at a sharing laptop project for the high school

The document for the Technology Update can be found here.

The Technology department now covers all Town functions except for the Police Department.

Food service revenues would cover cafeteria automation software.
Nursing software avoids paper copies, integrates into student record keeping system.

Halleluiah! The Cable Commission is bringing streaming video within 3-4 months for all meetings, indexed and archived.

Hopefully close to resolving the legal issue with EdNets and should be able to bring that in within a couple of months.

approx 18-20 smart boards district wide about to be purchased with money already approved.

Armenio - can we get software where a parent can check their students homework or grades from yesterday's test?

Raposa - that software would be about $15,000 per year. I can consider moving it up in the priority listing.

Cafasso - I would echo Sharon Jackson's memo, I hear no complaints from the consumers.

Raposa - Thank you!

Rohrbach -What about the number of smart boards? Is there really a need in the elementary levels?

Raposa - If I could bring in more of them, I would.

Rohrbach - I have been to other high schools where they have multiple smart boards, why do they only have one?

Raposa - It is not a technical limitation at the high school. I was spreading the money around to be fair.

Ogden - You answered it but may not have made the point fully, the survey of the faculty of the high school for what they needed did not reveal smart boards. They do want the wireless and the networking. We may need to do some familiarization amongst the high school faculty to bring their familiarity with smart board technology.

Roy - with regards to the laptops at the high school, about 200 for loan, would also be able to get a deal for parents?

Raposa - It is an option, I can do that, need to work out how to buy them and then in turn sell them within the School Department finances.

Roy - is a laptop in the hands of every student on the radar?

Raposa - the amount of money is the problem, even at the high school with 400 incoming students and a $400 system that adds up. I have focused less on providing the laptop and more on focusing to provide the network to let them access the systems.

FINCOM: Technology Budget FY 09 (audio)

From the Finance Committee meeting on 4/9/08, the discussion on the Technology budget for FY 09. Jeff Nutting, Tim Raposa, Ken Norman, Jim Roche amongst others.

Time: 12 minutes, 16 seconds



MP3 File

Did you know? v2.0

This brief (about 8 minutes) video was created in 2006 for an audience of 150 teachers in a Colorado high school. By June 2007, it had already been viewed by over 5 million people.

Did you know?




What can Franklin afford to provide an education for our youth?

Common Craft explains Twitter

As part of the continuing series on Web 2.0, the tools and how they are used, here is a brief explanation of Twitter from the wonderful folks at Common Craft:




Do you Twitter?

You can find my twitters under the user name of "shersteve".

The Web 2.0 thing explained (video)

I posted this to the Joyful Jubilant Learning blog last year when I found it. It is still relevant today. Dr Michael Wesch prepared this. It moves quickly but can be replayed if you need to catch specific parts again.