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Sunday, December 7, 2014

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Monday, September 15, 2014

Monday, September 1, 2014

21 Century Education, Why are we not there yet?


Why are we still struggling 21c pedagogy?

We are 14 years into the 21century and we are still struggling with the 21c pedagogy concept. Why?
It seems simple, as a matter of fact, it is so simple that Socrates  was engaging in the practice 2300 years ago.

Here is why I think it is so simple and it stems from a simple quote that Socrates so eloquently articulated a very long time ago.

He said, "I cannot teach anyone anything, I can only make them think."

Wow, do you not see how this perfectly describes our current reality? If we think we can teach people things, think again with exponential growth happening all around us it is impossible for one person to be current.

With the use of a few search engines you can get the answer to almost any question you have.  Educator's role is to help individuals sort through all the fluff and find the useful information.

At the end of the search you will find a lot of valuable information and now the thinking comes into play. What can you do with all the information that one finds?

The most important part of education now happens when you take all the information you found and use your imagination to create something new from what you found.

The role of 21c education is not to impart knowledge, but to ignite thought. If, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle and the rest of the crew were able to engage in 21C learning over 2000 years ago let's take a page out of the Republic and replicate it today.

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

The Top 3 Ways to Find an App

Mario's Thoughts

The Top 3 Ways to Find an App

What is a good math app?

I constantly get this question or a similar question for another subject area. The question should not be What is a good.... but what is the goal of my lesson. Once you know your goal, now you can bring the tablet into the equation. Always keeping in Mind that the tablet is just a manipulative like building blocks (but more expensive and a lot cooler) than most manipulatives.  The tablet is not the teacher, but a tool to help consolidate, practice or check the learning of a concept.

Establish the goal:
Let's say your goal is to improve the understanding of one to one correspondence.

Before you start your search, create a basic criterion of what you would like the app to have. Some examples: tracks progress, creates charts, has a login, has no login, print feature, email option, fun,colourful, nice graphics etc.
Once you have a goal and some basic features you need in the app you can start your search.

1. Start off with a Google search. Type in what you are looking for and add "Top ten one to one correspondence app for …"

Once your list appears take a look at each app and then compare the features to the list of options you created. Start off with the free ones, download a couple of the free apps and try them. If they are still not what you are looking for try the paid apps. Be careful because once you purchase them, they are yours. You can also Google the paid app and see what people are saying about it before you purchase it.

2. Take a look at the app store for your tablet.

Type in your search and read the ratings and features. The ratings can be deceiving make sure you have at least 25+ individuals that rated the app. As above, start with the free ones download a few try them, make sure they meet your requirements if not look at the paid apps. Do further research on the paid apps before you purchase them.

3. Join an online forum (Twitter, Pinterest, blogs, etc.) for your grade or subject area. You can also contact other teachers in your district for suggestions.

This is a great way to network with other professionals that do what you do. When you contact your school resource people, many of them service a wide range of grades or subject areas so they can only give general recommendations. When you contact colleagues who are in a similar situation as you are in, you will get specific recommendations that have been tested. Remember word of mouth is a great way of collecting relevant information, especially from colleagues. 

I know this sounds like a daunting task and you don't have time to go through this process, just remember your school is full of tech experts that would love to do this for you. Who are they, you ask? Students in the older grades. This is a great example of real world problem solving and students love doing things like this. Once you tell them what you are looking for they can search and test for you.

Once you have gone through this process, consider creating a blog or use another tool to share the resources you found. I hope this may help reduce some of the anxiety around finding apps.

Mario Addesa

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Ramsey Musallam: 3 rules to spark learning | Video on TED.com

The power of questions.

RealtimeBoard: Online whiteboard & online collaboration tool

Collaborative whiteboard tool.

Online whiteboard & online collaboration tool | RealtimeBoard:


Stoodle Whiteboard Tool

Collaborative whiteboard tool.

Stoodle:


Text 2 Mind Map

A simple mind mapping tool.

Text 2 Mind Map a simple mind mapping online tool - Barattalo:


Groupiful - Group work made simple

This site allows students to collaborate.

Groupiful - Group work made simple:


Kuizza : Create a Quizze

This site allows you to create and share quizzes.

Kuizza : Knowledge is power:


Math Disk Home

Create your own worksheets to visualize, interact with and explore the amazing world of mathematics.

MathDisk Home | Exponential Learning:

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