The document discusses the increasing use of technology in classrooms and challenges schools face in implementing technology effectively. Key points:
- US schools are spending $10 billion annually on classroom technology like tablets, interactive whiteboards, and online learning programs.
- While technology promises to improve learning, schools must have a clear plan for how devices will be used, acquired, supported, and integrated into curricula. Without a plan, technology risks going to waste.
- Schools face many decisions around what devices to purchase, content options, security, teachers' roles, and data management. Successful implementation depends on factors like ongoing funding, internet access, updated policies, and prepared educators.
Are Schools Getting a Big Enough Bang for Their Education Technology Buck?Luis Taveras EMBA, MS
Far too often, school leaders fail to consider how technology might dramatically improve teaching and learning, and schools frequently acquire digital devices without discrete learning goals and ultimately use these devices in ways that fail to adequately serve students, schools, or taxpayers.
AN INTELLIGENT SELF-ADAPTABLE APPLICATION TO SUPPORT CHILDREN EDUCATION AND L...ijcsit
ABSTRACT
This Children are future of a society within a country. They should be provided with all round educational development since educating children has many advantages. If they are educated, they can face any problem and this makes them strong and happy. In other words the growth of a country is dependent on its learned population. Children with special education needs have problems to develop cognitive abilities like thinking, learning and obtain new knowledge and concept. It may also be required to improve their conduct, communication skills and interactions with their environment. It is required to develop customizable and compliant applications designed to support them in adapting with respect to the current situations they face and thus take actions appropriately. Such applications would provide them the assistance to allow them frame their learning essentials and help to process to the diverse sensory and cognitive impairments including the mobility issues. This research will be based on artificial intelligence concept and will be self-adaptable. Besides, in many cases they have the opportunity to perform activities that previously were not accessible to them, because of the interface and contents of the activities have been adapted specifically to them. The study also suggests that the repertoire of types of activities provided is suitable for learning purposes with students with impairments. Finally, the use of electronic devices and multimedia contents increases their interest in learning and attention.
Are Schools Getting a Big Enough Bang for Their Education Technology Buck?Luis Taveras EMBA, MS
Far too often, school leaders fail to consider how technology might dramatically improve teaching and learning, and schools frequently acquire digital devices without discrete learning goals and ultimately use these devices in ways that fail to adequately serve students, schools, or taxpayers.
AN INTELLIGENT SELF-ADAPTABLE APPLICATION TO SUPPORT CHILDREN EDUCATION AND L...ijcsit
ABSTRACT
This Children are future of a society within a country. They should be provided with all round educational development since educating children has many advantages. If they are educated, they can face any problem and this makes them strong and happy. In other words the growth of a country is dependent on its learned population. Children with special education needs have problems to develop cognitive abilities like thinking, learning and obtain new knowledge and concept. It may also be required to improve their conduct, communication skills and interactions with their environment. It is required to develop customizable and compliant applications designed to support them in adapting with respect to the current situations they face and thus take actions appropriately. Such applications would provide them the assistance to allow them frame their learning essentials and help to process to the diverse sensory and cognitive impairments including the mobility issues. This research will be based on artificial intelligence concept and will be self-adaptable. Besides, in many cases they have the opportunity to perform activities that previously were not accessible to them, because of the interface and contents of the activities have been adapted specifically to them. The study also suggests that the repertoire of types of activities provided is suitable for learning purposes with students with impairments. Finally, the use of electronic devices and multimedia contents increases their interest in learning and attention.
Towards well being in digital media educationdebbieholley1
EU Lifelong learning symposium
We are proud to invite you to yet another event at the annual Lifelong Learning Week. After last year’s successful event on Development-oriented and age-appropriate media education, this year’s focus is on how to preserve and build well-being when it comes to interacting with digital media.
Under the headline “Towards well-being in digital and media education”, our webinar sheds light on the ongoing revision of DigComp, presents a competence-based media curriculum and introduces the planned HERMMES project on digital literacy.
What to expect?
With regards to the ongoing DigComp 2.2 revision process, one of the aims of the event is to present the successes and the blind spots of the DigComp framework through the lens of health and well-being;
This will be followed by a case study of an age-appropriate and entirely competence-based digital media curriculum developed by Steiner Waldorf schools that has been fully mapped to DigComp;
Finally, we will be looking at the future, shedding light on the upcoming HERMMES project on digital literacy and its different dimensions and actions.
Our event therefore fits well into this year’s annual theme “assessment and wellbeing”.
Edtech 2.0: Tokenizing and Gamification of the Education SystemVeronica Andrino
In line with the Government's goal of promoting and enhancing Education in The Philippines, there are other factors that also need to be addressed such as managing the enrollment system every semester and year. With limited manpower in each and every University, accommodating a large number of students is a tough challenge, not to mention managing the data and funds, both sent and paid, which are still mostly manually processed. The situation in the Philippines is similar to many other countries.
Unifinity Application is an Edtech at its core where the Application is created to help the other institutions who can’t afford to pay for expensive software cost. Unifinity aims to provide the solution to Government schools which relatively host 87% of the population of the students are enrolled on a Government institution while the rest of the students are enrolled in Middle-Class schools which are Semi-Private and the rest will be in a Private Class where the population of the students belongs to the First Class.
Unifinity aims to support the Institutions and Students who can't afford to pay for their school fees by giving them access to an application that offers accessibility by using their mobile phones and they can still attend the class, study even at home, making sure that the students will never miss a single lesson submitted by the teachers and the students can still study at home without the need of downloading an application.
Unifinity aims to create the first blockchain-based decentralized application (Dapp) built to enhance security, operational efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and transparency in the entire value chain of educational institutions.
Blockchain technology can be used as a powerful tool to improve the current education system by creating a simplified process and automation of all administrative processes including the authentication of data and identity of users as well as Tokenizing the traditional grading system by utilizing the smart contract on issuing remarks using ERC777 Tokens.
Towards well being in digital media educationdebbieholley1
EU Lifelong learning symposium
We are proud to invite you to yet another event at the annual Lifelong Learning Week. After last year’s successful event on Development-oriented and age-appropriate media education, this year’s focus is on how to preserve and build well-being when it comes to interacting with digital media.
Under the headline “Towards well-being in digital and media education”, our webinar sheds light on the ongoing revision of DigComp, presents a competence-based media curriculum and introduces the planned HERMMES project on digital literacy.
What to expect?
With regards to the ongoing DigComp 2.2 revision process, one of the aims of the event is to present the successes and the blind spots of the DigComp framework through the lens of health and well-being;
This will be followed by a case study of an age-appropriate and entirely competence-based digital media curriculum developed by Steiner Waldorf schools that has been fully mapped to DigComp;
Finally, we will be looking at the future, shedding light on the upcoming HERMMES project on digital literacy and its different dimensions and actions.
Our event therefore fits well into this year’s annual theme “assessment and wellbeing”.
Edtech 2.0: Tokenizing and Gamification of the Education SystemVeronica Andrino
In line with the Government's goal of promoting and enhancing Education in The Philippines, there are other factors that also need to be addressed such as managing the enrollment system every semester and year. With limited manpower in each and every University, accommodating a large number of students is a tough challenge, not to mention managing the data and funds, both sent and paid, which are still mostly manually processed. The situation in the Philippines is similar to many other countries.
Unifinity Application is an Edtech at its core where the Application is created to help the other institutions who can’t afford to pay for expensive software cost. Unifinity aims to provide the solution to Government schools which relatively host 87% of the population of the students are enrolled on a Government institution while the rest of the students are enrolled in Middle-Class schools which are Semi-Private and the rest will be in a Private Class where the population of the students belongs to the First Class.
Unifinity aims to support the Institutions and Students who can't afford to pay for their school fees by giving them access to an application that offers accessibility by using their mobile phones and they can still attend the class, study even at home, making sure that the students will never miss a single lesson submitted by the teachers and the students can still study at home without the need of downloading an application.
Unifinity aims to create the first blockchain-based decentralized application (Dapp) built to enhance security, operational efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and transparency in the entire value chain of educational institutions.
Blockchain technology can be used as a powerful tool to improve the current education system by creating a simplified process and automation of all administrative processes including the authentication of data and identity of users as well as Tokenizing the traditional grading system by utilizing the smart contract on issuing remarks using ERC777 Tokens.
TEACHING AND LEARNING WITH ICT TOOLS: ISSUES AND CHALLENGESIJCI JOURNAL
The students nowadays are more friendly with tech devices. So, to make it less boring need to start
innovative ways that involve technology. Teaching via ICT tools have the potential to make a change in the
academic sector. It is a dynamic learning method. It provides more benefits as compared to the traditional
blackboard and chalks learning. The whole process of education can sometimes feel tedious for students. In
this digital era, ICT use in the classroom is important for giving students opportunities to learn and apply
the required 21st century skills. Hence studying the issues and challenges related to ICT use in teaching
and learning can assist teachers in overcoming the obstacles and become successful technology users. With
the advent of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) in education, teachers form their own
beliefs about the role of ICT as a teaching tool, the value of ICT for student learning outcomes and their
own personal confidence and competency. Barriers exist in integrating ICT in teaching and learning. The
barriers are extrinsic to the teacher and include lack of resources, time, access and technical support.
Educational Technology such as the online whiteboard is constantly transforming how we work, play, create, and communicate. So it’s only logical that new digital technology is transforming schooling.
Teachers may use technology to help students learn and grow. These days, there’s a lot of buzz about how assistive technology might help individuals learn better.
Microsoft Bring Your Own Device to School - K-12 Briefing Paper - 2013 Update Microsoft Education AU
This white paper by Brice Dixon, Anywhere Anytime Learning Foundation and Sean Tierney, Microsoft Australia Academic Programs manager explores their previously produced document.
Personalisation, on-demand and predictive analytics: e-learning’s next leap f...Mindfire LLC
While online learning gained popularity in the 90’s, off late it has gained further traction. With the Covid-19 pandemic and its associated lockdowns, e-learning has emerged as one of the prominent uses of technology in the 21st century. E-learning as an educational experience is delivered electronically. It comprises many elements such as live or pre-recorded lecture content, videos, quizzes and other interactive elements.
Disruptive Innovationen in der FinanzwirtschaftSemalytix
The Largest Independent Payment Infrastructure
- Germany is still extremely cash-driven
- Especially Low-Income Population Extensively Uses Cash
- Germany’s Largest Independent Payment
Infrastructure
- Strong Partner Network Allows for a Rollout of Services
across Europe
von Prof. Dr. Hans-Gert Penzel, ibi research an der Universität Regensburg GmbH
Verändertes Zahlverhalten wird stark im Einzelhandel geprägt
Innovationszyklen im Zahlungsverkehr seit dem Jahr 2000
SEPA als Regulator-getriebener Standard - wird vom Endkunden eher als Bedrohung empfunden
E-Commerce explodiert – und verlangt nach E-Payments
Bei Zahlungen im E-Commerce dominieren die „neuen Oligarchen“
Marktführer PayPal
Retail in africa still the next big thingSemalytix
The African Retail Development Index (ARDI) ranks the top countries in Sub-Saharan Africa for retail expansion. Based on A.T. Kearney's Global Retail Development Index, the ARDI identifies not only the most attractive markets today, but also those that offer the most potential in the future. The 2015 ARDI ranks the leading 15 nations and reconfirms the region’s potential arising from not just oft-discussed markets like Nigeria and Ghana, but also small, dynamic markets such as Gabon and mid-sized but fast-growing countries like Angola.
Bip connected risks investing in a divergent worldSemalytix
A.T. Kearney issued its first Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index® in June 1998, in the shadow of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Despite jitters following economic collapse in Southeast Asia, businesses saw investment opportunity in the Americas, Western Europe, Russia, and East Asia, and the United States took first place. Here we are in 2015, with the United States first place in the Index again and business executives still tormented by a recent global financial crisis. Today’s investors must account for divergent monetary policies in large developed economies, alongside a surging U.S. dollar and a sustained commodity super-slump. Developed and developing markets alike are moving in unexpected ways.
Yet, amid growing divergence and multiplying risks, there is genuine excitement in the global business community. It starts with the growing belief that the combined strength of the U.S. and Chinese economies—first and second in this year’s FDI Confidence Index—can buoy the world economy while others get back on track. And there is genuine dynamism elsewhere if you know where to look. Numerous countries are opening up long-guarded sectors to privatization and foreign investment. Downturns and fluctuations in other countries are creating opportunities for mergers and acquisitions. And new free-trade agreements are already in place or close at hand, even if the U.S. political environment will continue to frustrate its reliable engagement.
Risk has been a constant since the inception of this Index. The challenge for all global business leaders remains how to think beyond the last crisis while seeking to avoid the next. Those that take a “wait and see” approach often find that their competitors—whether small businesses or country governments—do not hold back in seeking positive growth. Our view is that opportunities abound for those that know where to look, aided by strategic foresight and analysis.
The world is more complicated now than it was in 1997. Global interconnectedness has created a more competitive and complex landscape. Technologies, ranging from unconventional energy extraction to predictive and even prescriptive analytics, are changing the game and increasing the probability of strategic disruption in every sector and corner of the world.
The complexity of risk and opportunity in 2015 underscore the importance of the insights contained in this year’s FDI Confidence Index. As always, we welcome any input you may have regarding the Index, its scope and our analysis.
Nach einem eher verhaltenen Jahr 2013 nahmen 2014 M&A-Transaktionen in der Öl- und Gasindustrie deutlich zu. Angesichts des weiter sinkenden Ölpreises und der Entscheidung der OPEC gegen eine Drosselung der Fördermengen werden 2015 noch intensivere M&A-Aktivitäten in der gesamten Wertschöpfungskette stattfinden. Diese strategischen Deals sind für die Unternehmen wichtig, um Wertzuwächse zu erzielen, sich für kommende Marktturbulenzen zu rüsten und die Wettbewerbslandschaft zu ihren Gunsten zu formen.
Over-the-Top Video (OTTv) in the Middle East: How to Win the MarketSemalytix
With growing demand among Middle East viewers for online video content, new players cast in the Netflix mold are competing with traditional TV companies for a market potentially worth $1 billion by 2020. Around the world, over-the-top video (OTTv) is becoming more mainstream.1 These services as a share of total television viewing have doubled globally over the past 12 months and exceed 30 percent in some developed economies. In the United States, 75 million households have an active OTTv subscription, compared to 32 million just four years ago. Fueling this trend is the emergence of an abundance of user-friendly OTTv services, coupled with the increasing quantity and quality of content available online. Netflix launched its streaming service in 2007. As of April 2014, it was being used by 50 million people in 41 countries. Hulu, the OTTv service from NBC Universal, Disney, and Fox, now has six million paying U.S. subscribers. More pay TV operators are offering multiscreen packages to their subscribers and online-only packages to nonsubscribers in a bid to compete head-on with Netflix and similar services. In the Middle East, OTTv is still nascent by global standards. Fewer than 100,000 homes subscribe to dedicated commercial OTTv services—less than 1 percent of television-viewing households.2 Yet despite the low penetration, interest is strong—as suggested by the popularity of online short video services such as YouTube—and a flurry of new services has emerged (see figure 1). Etisalat introduced its eLife TV app on iOS in 2013, just one year after MBC's Shahid TV app became the top downloaded app in the Middle East App Store. Istikana and icflix, which follow a Netflix model, launched the region's first major standalone OTTv services in 2011 and 2013 respectively. OSN recently followed by announcing the launch of Go by OSN for non-pay TV subscribers. In 2014, beIN SPORTS relaunched its OTT service and began selling multiscreen subscriptions, and MBC partnered with Samsung to launch Shahid on smart TVs. - See more at: http://www.atkearney.com/paper/-/asset_publisher/dVxv4Hz2h8bS/content/over-the-top-video-ottv-in-the-middle-east-how-to-win-the-market/10192?#sthash.6QbS8wM6.dpuf
Going Digital: The Banking Transformation Road MapSemalytix
The leaders in digital banking are more client-centric, tech-savvy, and inclusive—and are fundamentally changing to deliver the best results.
Most banks today want to become digital banking leaders—after all, that's where the customers are. And for much of the past decade as digital banking has taken hold, most leading traditional banks have incorporated strong digital strategies.
So what separates the digital banking leaders from the laggards? A new A.T. Kearney study on digitization, in conjunction with Efma, seeks the answer and finds three main findings: the leaders understand the importance of mobile in a digital strategy, they are developing more agile operating models, and, most notably, they have tackled the need for internal culture shifts (see sidebar: About the Study).
With top-down implementation, these leaders have set their paths toward becoming more client-centric, more tech-savvy, and more inclusive. As the market evolves even more rapidly through the end of the decade, all banks will have to adapt to a disruptive model in people and IT—the two engines of retail banking—and must fundamentally adapt to deliver the best results.
This paper looks at the trends and the path forward.
The Evolving Digital Journey
Most banks began their digital journey years ago and have clear digital strategies, yet even those are facing major changes. In particular, as more customers use their mobile phones and tablets to do their banking, and omnichannel takes hold in financial services, the mobile experience is becoming a crucial aspect of digital strategy that banks must address.
Secondly, to keep up in this fast-changing market, traditional banks will have to adapt their operating models. In particular, changes in IT, new products and services development, and changing expectations for time-to-market will be key factors going forward.
Perhaps the most important step, however, is that banking in the digital age requires a drastic, profound reset of how banking staff reacts to customer needs. This means thinking customer first, rather than by channel; as one panelist puts it, "Banks think in channels, but customers don't." It means being conscious that small digital players can gain market share faster and in a manner that is more disruptive to traditional banks' models. It means understanding that organizational silos pose significant obstacles to creating new solutions for customers. Most importantly, it means looking inward, changing organizational beliefs and habits to facilitate clients and drive digital innovation.
A new spirit of banking—led by top executives—will lead the way to addressing market changes, becoming more agile, and improving openness in day-to-day business.
- See more at: http://www.atkearney.com/latest-article/-/asset_publisher/lON5IOfbQl6C/content/going-digital-the-banking-transformation-road-map/10192?_101_INSTANCE_lON5IOfbQl6C_redirect=#sthash.oKsJGij3.dpuf
Leaders use procurement to catalyze lasting, superior business performance through excellence in managing categories, suppliers, and teams. The rush to cut costs in the wake of the 2008–09 Great Recession propelled procurement organizations to the forefront at companies around the world. Faced with so much uncertainty, companies raced to shed costs—and procurement rose to the challenge, delivering exceptional results. With this came an increase in procurement's stature, influence, and reach. A.T. Kearney's Assessment of Excellence in Procurement (AEP) 2011 study saw a doubling in the rate of benefits achieved by the procurement functions since the 2008 study, yielding the highest percentage gains seen in the more than two decades since we began conducting this study. In 2011, we projected that this upward trajectory would continue: procurement appeared poised to deliver even greater impact to the business. Our 2014 AEP study finds that while leading companies continued their trajectory, most procurement organizations only sustained the gains in influence and reach made between 2008 and 2011. In short, the typical company may be "wasting a crisis" by not continuing to enhance one of the most powerful levers to improve profitability and competitive advantage. - See more at: http://www.atkearney.de/studie/-/asset_publisher/Rv2vNmilj1Kf/content/procurement-powered-business-performance?_101_INSTANCE_Rv2vNmilj1Kf_redirect=%2Fresearch-studies#sthash.CJibvJBu.dpuf
Nutraceuticals: The Front Line of the Battle for Consumer HealthSemalytix
Nutrition products can be an inexpensive and safe solution to tackle important unmet health needs.
Consumer healthcare has become the battleground where pharmaceutical and consumer goods firms compete for growth. With more people around the world dying from obesity than starvation, poor nutrition is now recognized as a major risk factor for chronic diseases. Most health systems are ill-equipped to deal with this trend.1 Increasingly, patients are being encouraged to take part in their own treatments, and a consumer market has been developing midway between the supermarket-based world of consumer goods companies and the scientific, pharmacy-based world of pharmaceutical firms.2
The front lines of this battle are nutritional products that have been proven to help prevent or cure disease. These "nutraceuticals" present a tantalizing opportunity for breakthroughs to prevent and manage common health problems, offering consumer-focused solutions to issues that are currently addressed only by pharmaceutical interventions—or not at all.3 However, despite being a hot spot for growth, they still suffer from the same challenges as the rest of the sector, with market growth barely keeping up with the rise in gross domestic product.4
In this paper, the third in our Winning the Battle for Consumer Healthcare series, we delve further into the nutraceuticals market to understand the opportunities and barriers to growth. We also look at the successes and challenges faced by both consumer goods and pharmaceutical companies as they struggle to gain the upper hand in this exciting new market.
- See more at: http://www.atkearney.com/paper/-/asset_publisher/dVxv4Hz2h8bS/content/nutraceuticals-the-front-line-of-the-battle-for-consumer-health/10192#sthash.Fx04jdM8.dpuf
A.T. Kearney: History of strategy and its future prospectsSemalytix
From The Art of War to The War for Talent, strategy has been evolving for centuries. What we have learned in the past 2,500 years is highlighted here—not only where strategy began but also why it is on the verge of reclaiming its rightful place in history.
Strategy, for most of its 2,500-year history, was one-dimensional. Warmongers were largely focused on avoiding wars by not instigating them and business was mostly focused on building power and monopolies. The past 50 years have more than made up for this one-way view as strategy hit its prime and spewed out countless new ideas and solutions.
But as the strategies piled up so did the complexity, and the chance that any one overall strategy was the answer to ever expanding strategic freedom was trampled in the competitive scramble.
As a result, we are in for some interesting times. Strategy is on the verge of reinventing itself and reclaiming its rightful place at the top of the business food chain. We believe that strategy will come back as a much more powerful guiding force of organizational energy, which we are excited about because it brings "strategy" and "doing" back together again—something we wholeheartedly believe in.
This paper constructs a brief history of strategy within a framework of noteworthy publications. We generalize, simplify, and cut corners, not out of ignorance but to create a holistic overview to show where strategy has been and where we believe it is now headed.
- See more at: http://www.atkearney.com/paper/-/asset_publisher/dVxv4Hz2h8bS/content/the-history-of-strategy-and-its-future-prospects/10192#sthash.3JIQGHKj.dpuf
A.T. Kearney: GCC Family Businesses: Unlocking Potential Through Active Portf...Semalytix
Since 2008, times have been tough for family businesses. The antidote: tapping into hidden value.
Like families in general, family businesses seem to function relatively well in troubled times. In fact, many studies show that, in the long run, they perform better than other business models. Key factors for their ongoing success include a management perspective that emphasizes the long term, strong brand and family name recognition, and often a strong focus on the core business.1
But in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), family businesses are trending in the opposite direction.2 During the recent crisis, they have been less resilient than the rest of the economy despite a pre-downturn history of rapid growth and market dominance. Since 2008, the A.T. Kearney GCC Family Conglomerate Index has decreased by 60 points, while the Bloomberg GCC 200 Index has decreased by 40 points, a 20-point performance gap (see figure 1).3 After a tough 2008, GCC family businesses rebounded to some extent (as did the market), but this did not last. As the overall market has trended mostly up, family businesses have trended downward.
- See more at: http://www.atkearney.com/paper/-/asset_publisher/dVxv4Hz2h8bS/content/gcc-family-businesses-unlocking-potential-through-active-portfolio-management/10192#sthash.sb692Hgw.dpuf
Digitization is bringing a sea change to a U.S. healthcare industry already facing waves of uncertainty. By taking the right steps, this can be a major opportunity for industry players.
Forecasting the future of any industry is difficult, none more so right now than healthcare in the United States. There are countless reasons why healthcare will look different in the near future, not least of which being the country's movement toward national coverage. However, digital transformation—the cumulative change that comes when digital technologies are introduced wholesale into an established industry—is poised to have an even bigger impact. For the U.S. healthcare industry, digital technology will be transformational, cutting healthcare delivery costs, eliminating errors through improved electronic medical records, and establishing routinized, evidence-based approaches to treatment.
Digital forces are pulling at the industry and significantly altering services, products, innovation, delivery, and remuneration (see figure). There are digitally integrated healthcare providers, digital medical devices and technologies, and digital delivery and monitoring of home healthcare. In addition, new ideas are emanating from developing markets, agile competitors are embracing technology, and a digital-friendly federal administration is pushing innovation. And don't forget the digital consumer who is used to digital banking, digital retailing, and digital education, and expects digital healthcare.
- See more at: http://www.atkearney.com/paper/-/asset_publisher/dVxv4Hz2h8bS/content/digital-healthcare-or-bust-in-america/10192#sthash.gP6B4uWR.dpuf
The Indian economy is classified into different sectors to simplify the analysis and understanding of economic activities. For Class 10, it's essential to grasp the sectors of the Indian economy, understand their characteristics, and recognize their importance. This guide will provide detailed notes on the Sectors of the Indian Economy Class 10, using specific long-tail keywords to enhance comprehension.
For more information, visit-www.vavaclasses.com
How to Make a Field invisible in Odoo 17Celine George
It is possible to hide or invisible some fields in odoo. Commonly using “invisible” attribute in the field definition to invisible the fields. This slide will show how to make a field invisible in odoo 17.
2024.06.01 Introducing a competency framework for languag learning materials ...Sandy Millin
http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/iateflwebinar2024
Published classroom materials form the basis of syllabuses, drive teacher professional development, and have a potentially huge influence on learners, teachers and education systems. All teachers also create their own materials, whether a few sentences on a blackboard, a highly-structured fully-realised online course, or anything in between. Despite this, the knowledge and skills needed to create effective language learning materials are rarely part of teacher training, and are mostly learnt by trial and error.
Knowledge and skills frameworks, generally called competency frameworks, for ELT teachers, trainers and managers have existed for a few years now. However, until I created one for my MA dissertation, there wasn’t one drawing together what we need to know and do to be able to effectively produce language learning materials.
This webinar will introduce you to my framework, highlighting the key competencies I identified from my research. It will also show how anybody involved in language teaching (any language, not just English!), teacher training, managing schools or developing language learning materials can benefit from using the framework.
Unit 8 - Information and Communication Technology (Paper I).pdfThiyagu K
This slides describes the basic concepts of ICT, basics of Email, Emerging Technology and Digital Initiatives in Education. This presentations aligns with the UGC Paper I syllabus.
Welcome to TechSoup New Member Orientation and Q&A (May 2024).pdfTechSoup
In this webinar you will learn how your organization can access TechSoup's wide variety of product discount and donation programs. From hardware to software, we'll give you a tour of the tools available to help your nonprofit with productivity, collaboration, financial management, donor tracking, security, and more.
Ethnobotany and Ethnopharmacology:
Ethnobotany in herbal drug evaluation,
Impact of Ethnobotany in traditional medicine,
New development in herbals,
Bio-prospecting tools for drug discovery,
Role of Ethnopharmacology in drug evaluation,
Reverse Pharmacology.
Students, digital devices and success - Andreas Schleicher - 27 May 2024..pptxEduSkills OECD
Andreas Schleicher presents at the OECD webinar ‘Digital devices in schools: detrimental distraction or secret to success?’ on 27 May 2024. The presentation was based on findings from PISA 2022 results and the webinar helped launch the PISA in Focus ‘Managing screen time: How to protect and equip students against distraction’ https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/managing-screen-time_7c225af4-en and the OECD Education Policy Perspective ‘Students, digital devices and success’ can be found here - https://oe.cd/il/5yV
The Art Pastor's Guide to Sabbath | Steve ThomasonSteve Thomason
What is the purpose of the Sabbath Law in the Torah. It is interesting to compare how the context of the law shifts from Exodus to Deuteronomy. Who gets to rest, and why?
The Roman Empire A Historical Colossus.pdfkaushalkr1407
The Roman Empire, a vast and enduring power, stands as one of history's most remarkable civilizations, leaving an indelible imprint on the world. It emerged from the Roman Republic, transitioning into an imperial powerhouse under the leadership of Augustus Caesar in 27 BCE. This transformation marked the beginning of an era defined by unprecedented territorial expansion, architectural marvels, and profound cultural influence.
The empire's roots lie in the city of Rome, founded, according to legend, by Romulus in 753 BCE. Over centuries, Rome evolved from a small settlement to a formidable republic, characterized by a complex political system with elected officials and checks on power. However, internal strife, class conflicts, and military ambitions paved the way for the end of the Republic. Julius Caesar’s dictatorship and subsequent assassination in 44 BCE created a power vacuum, leading to a civil war. Octavian, later Augustus, emerged victorious, heralding the Roman Empire’s birth.
Under Augustus, the empire experienced the Pax Romana, a 200-year period of relative peace and stability. Augustus reformed the military, established efficient administrative systems, and initiated grand construction projects. The empire's borders expanded, encompassing territories from Britain to Egypt and from Spain to the Euphrates. Roman legions, renowned for their discipline and engineering prowess, secured and maintained these vast territories, building roads, fortifications, and cities that facilitated control and integration.
The Roman Empire’s society was hierarchical, with a rigid class system. At the top were the patricians, wealthy elites who held significant political power. Below them were the plebeians, free citizens with limited political influence, and the vast numbers of slaves who formed the backbone of the economy. The family unit was central, governed by the paterfamilias, the male head who held absolute authority.
Culturally, the Romans were eclectic, absorbing and adapting elements from the civilizations they encountered, particularly the Greeks. Roman art, literature, and philosophy reflected this synthesis, creating a rich cultural tapestry. Latin, the Roman language, became the lingua franca of the Western world, influencing numerous modern languages.
Roman architecture and engineering achievements were monumental. They perfected the arch, vault, and dome, constructing enduring structures like the Colosseum, Pantheon, and aqueducts. These engineering marvels not only showcased Roman ingenuity but also served practical purposes, from public entertainment to water supply.
Thesis Statement for students diagnonsed withADHD.ppt
The digital school
1. The Digital School
Educators have long been allured by technology—
from radio, film, and television to calculators, VCRs,
and PCs. Now it’s tablets, document cameras,
and interactive whiteboards. With a plan in place,
schools can make sure that their investments
in digital technology don’t go to waste.
The Digital School
1
2. Digitization has rocked the classroom experience and the education system as a whole with
a flood of new technologies that promise to change the way teachers teach and students learn.
From tablets and e-readers to interactive whiteboards and online learning programs, classroom
technology has become a big business. According to the Center for Digital Education, U.S.
elementary, middle, and high schools will spend almost $10 billon on technology in 2013,
an increase of $4 billion since 2003.
Yet cutting-edge technology is so enticing that it’s easy to get caught up in the moment—
acquiring new devices before truly understanding how they apply to the classroom and enhance
the learning experience. The truth is, despite many successes, there remains uncertainty about
the efficacy of technology in the classroom, and how school systems acquire and implement technology remains a challenge. Without a plan in place, even the best technologies can go to waste.
That’s why today’s schools need a flexible, evergreen process in place that gives students and
teachers access to technology while accounting for ever-changing, ever-improving technological advances. This paper examines how those involved in the classroom experience, from
administrators to teachers to educational technology firms, can create a structured process
for developing a technology strategy and a road map for 21st century learning.
The How, What, and Why of Learning
Digitization is changing education, firstly in how students learn. As tablets, laptops, and other
electronic devices proliferate in classrooms, the traditional school setting in which time, place,
content, and pace of learning are constant has been turned on its head. Personal electronic
devices are enabling a shift from classroom-centered learning to personalized, student-centered
learning that can happen anytime, anywhere (see figure 1). Schools can now offer differentiated
curricula and learning concepts—even within a single classroom—that compete with globally
competitive standards and align with a student’s individual level and pace of learning.
Figure 1
Technology enables student-centered, personalized, anytime-anywhere learning
Traditional classroom-centered model
Student-centered mastery model
Standard
curriculum
with limited
differentiation
Time, place,
and pace
of learning
constant
Classroom
Generic
teacher role
not aligned to
teacher talents
or student
needs
Globally
competitive
standards
Test-centric
standards not
tied to college
or career
preparation
Standardized
tests given at
fixed intervals
to determine
progress
Learning
anytime,
anywhere
Student
Differentiated
teacher roles
Personalized
learning
Performancebased
learning
Sources: NYC iZone; A.T. Kearney analysis
The Digital School
2
3. Also, what students need to learn is changing as digital literacy becomes as important, if not
more so, than traditional book literacy. For example, with knowledge so easily accessible online,
memorizing facts for a test will be less important than knowing how to create knowledge with
such skills as coding, which encompasses everything from developing websites to running
programs on personal computers to creating smartphone apps. Yes, core subjects such as math,
science, languages, art, and history will always be important, but more so within the context
of developing analytical skills and encouraging global awareness and economic, civic, health,
and environmental literacy. Living in an interconnected, interdependent world requires a wellrounded perspective.
Finally, why students learn is changing as tomorrow’s leaders need three valuable skill sets
(see figure 2):
• Critical thinking and problem solving. Increasingly complex living and working environments
require a higher level of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Technology offers new tools
for communicating and collaborating across geographies and across disciplines. Those who
can think creatively and innovate in this environment will be highly valued.
• Analytics and discernment. There is an abundance of information and media influence from
formal and informal sources. Successful people will be those able to sift through information
and identify what is relevant, discern opinion from fact, process large amounts of information,
and analyze with a critical eye.
• Flexibility and adaptability. Technology allows new ideas and new ways of doing things to
spread quickly. Flexibility and the ability to adapt quickly to an ever-changing world will be
crucial. Solving new problems requires self-motivation, calculating risks, and understanding
the social and cultural aspects of a global world.
For more on the changing how, what, and why of learning, read our interview with Dr. Chris
Hoadley, an expert on educational technology at New York University, on page 12.
Figure 2
The framework for 21st century learning
Core subjects
English, reading and language arts, world languages, arts,
mathematics, economics, science, geography, history,
government, and civics
21st century skills
Global awareness; financial, economic, business, entrepreneurial,
civic, health, and environmental literacy
Three crucial skill sets
Critical thinking and problem solving; analytics and discernment;
flexibility and adaptability
Sources: The Partnership for 21st Century Skills; A.T. Kearney analysis
The Digital School
3
4. Weighing the Options
There is a wide range of devices and communications tools available with unique features and
educational uses—from personal tablets to interactive whiteboards that connect the teacher’s
computer to the students’ devices (see sidebar: Most Popular Devices on page 9). For cashstrapped public school districts, choosing among so many different technologies is not only
daunting but also controversial when considering the precious tax dollars at stake. Yet many
U.S. school districts—elementary, middle, and high school—are taking the plunge and investing
in technologies, both classroom and personal devices. For example, among elementary
schools, 67 percent have netbooks, 36 percent have tablets, and 4 percent are issued smartphones (see figure 3). Classroom devices are even more popular, with 62 percent boasting
document cameras and 74 percent using interactive white boards. Technology is evolving
quickly, and one only has to look at laser discs and cassette players to understand that it can
soon go obsolete. Tablets and netbooks might be today’s hot trends but in just a few years
they could be upended by other technologies such as augmented reality, natural user interfaces,
and 3D printers (see figure 4 on page 5).1 For example, MakerBot, a 3D printing company from
Brooklyn, recently announced a crowdfunding initiative to attempt to place a desktop 3D
printer in every school in America.2
Figure 3
More U.S. school districts are investing in classroom and personal technologies
Adoption rate of classroom communications and presentation devices
(by grade level, 2011-2012 school year)
63%
59%
Projectors
Interactive
white boards
57%
54%
Document
cameras
47%
44%
Student
response
systems
Amplification
systems
Elementary
Adoption rate of personal devices
(by grade level, 2011-2012 school year)
80%
74%
62%
44%
37%
36%
Middle school
High school
36%
25%
28%
Tablets
Portable
media players
E-readers
Smartphones
7%
67%
57%
54%
Netbooks
20%
16%
16%
12%
13%
14%
4%
4%
9%
All schools
Notes: Adoption rates are based on a Simba Information survey sent to school district educators, administrators, and technology directors.
It estimates overall access to particular technologies for each grade band. Amplification systems data is only available for all schools.
Sources: Simba Information survey; BMO Capital Markets (K-12 Tech Tools and Trends 2012); TeachLogic; A.T. Kearney analysis
“The Tablet Wars,” The Wall Street Journal, 28 October 2013
1
2
“MakerBot Crowdfunds Effort to Put 3D Printer in Every U.S. School,” pcmag.com, 12 November 2013.
The Digital School
4
5. Furthermore, there are dozens of decisions to make: device acquisition, setup, and
management costs; content options; security and privacy; teachers’ role in selecting and
implementing new technology; the role of (and, perhaps, need for) textbooks; the role of
technology in classroom management; and data management.
Never underestimate the many challenges
inherent in using personal electronic
devices in the classroom.
And never underestimate the challenges inherent in using personal devices in the classroom.
How do you integrate digital content into the curriculum? Do you have sufficient infrastructure
and support in place? How do you monitor the devices to ensure they are being used appropriately? This last point can be a challenge as the Los Angeles Unified School District learned
when it rolled out a voter-approved $1 billion program to provide Apple iPads to K-12 students.
The program came under scrutiny after students managed to bypass security measures and
access social media, online games, and other supposedly blocked content.3 Despite critics
of the plan, the district voted in November 2013 to move forward with a trimmed-down program
to provide iPads to students, along with new oversight measures, which include an evaluation
Figure 4
Adoption timeline for major digital education technology trends
Near-term
(one year or less)
1 Mobile devices and apps
Mid-term
(two to three years)
3 Game-based learning
• Smartphones have grown
increasingly more capable with
updates to hardware and operating
systems
• Educational games are typically
goal oriented, have strong social
components, and simulate a real
world experience
• Apps are simple, low-cost software
extensions that have become a
hotbed of development as smartphones become more prevalent
• Forms include alternate reality,
massively multiplayer online, and
global social awareness games
2 Tablet computers
4 Personal learning
environments (PLEs)
Long-term
(four to five years)
5 Augmented reality
• Augmented reality combines what
is seen in the real world with related
information, data, media, and even
live action to enhance the information perceived by the senses
• Examples include Google Glass
(via GPS and image recognition)
and entertainment applications
(virtual gaming)
6 Natural user interfaces
• Tablets blend the features of
laptops (larger screens and high
resolutions) and smartphones
(portability and gesture-based
interfaces)
• PLEs support self-directed and
group-based learning, designed
around each user’s goals, with
great capacity for flexibility and
customization
• Natural user interfaces allow users
to engage in virtual activities with
movements similar to what they
would use in the real world,
manipulating content intuitively
• Tablets can run apps already
displayed on smaller-sized
smartphones
• PLEs are not simply a technology
but an approach that is individualized by design, and thus different
from person to person
• Systems understand gestures, facial
expressions, and voice recognition;
allows users to interact naturally
with devices
Source: NMC Horizon Report 2012 K-12; A.T. Kearney analysis
“Schools Learn Tablets’ Limits,” The Wall Street Journal, 15 October 2013
3
The Digital School
5
6. of how the tablets affect academic achievement. Thirty-five campuses will receive iPads in the
current school year, in addition to the 47 schools that have already received them. All teachers
and administrators in the district will receive iPads as well.4
The good news is that the positive effects of technology are often quantifiable. For example,
one underfunded public school district in North Carolina introduced personalized laptops to all
students 10 and older, and within three years the share of students considered proficient in
science, math, and reading increased from 73 percent to 88 percent (see sidebar: San Diego
Schools Go Digital).5
San Diego Schools Go Digital
San Diego Unified School District,
with one of the nation’s largest
deployments of technology, offers
an example of how a school district
can digitize its classrooms.
The district is in the process of
implementing new technology
tools as part of its Integrated
21st Century (i21) interactive
classroom initiative. i21, now
more than three years old,
incorporates both personal
devices and other presentation
and communication devices
into the classroom:
• Student netbooks. Students
in grades 3-12 have the use
of a netbook computer with
different software; thirdthrough fifth-grade students
have a non-3G model stored in
classrooms, and sixth- through
12th-grade students have a 3G
model to take home.
• Student response systems. The
netbook includes ActivEngage
software that allows students
to respond electronically in real
time to teacher questions,
quizzes, and discussions. It
offers immediate feedback to
teachers and students.
• PCs for teachers. Teachers
have access to a multimedia
laptop and presentation station
computer. Essentially, the PC
acts as a miniature version of
the whiteboard.
• Presentation stations.
Classrooms are equipped with
a digital hub that houses the
teacher PC, a mobile table,
work stool, document camera,
and all switching controls.
• Interactive white boards. The
Promethean ActivBoard Mobile
System widescreen, interactive whiteboard is also in
classrooms. It includes an
integrated video projector
connected to the teacher’s
laptop, allowing the teacher
to project content from the
laptop or document camera
onto the whiteboard.
• Audio-visual systems. An
amplifier, two wireless microphones (one for the teacher
and one for students to share),
and four speakers allows all
students to hear and reduces
teacher vocal stress.
The district initially spent
$35 million to purchase 75,600
netbooks, and then switched
to iPads, with plans to purchase
roughly 25,700 devices for
340 fifth- through eighth-grade
classrooms at a price of $370
each (more than $15 million
total), slightly lower than retail
price and also lower than netbooks at $389. 6
The switch to iPads came after
an assessment of advantages and
disadvantages. The advantages:
They can be “instantly on” with no
booting time, offer larger screens
than netbooks, have an extended
battery life, and feature a large
collection of educational apps.
The disadvantages: They are not
compatible with Adobe Flash,
have no keyboard or mouse, and
require the district must support
another software platform. In
a pilot program using iPads and
Android devices in a variety of
classroom settings, iPads won out.
Several factors ensured an easier
switch from netbooks, including
providing charging and syncing
stations, teacher training, and
cloud storage. Each classroom
received 34 iPads and a cart to
charge and sync the content and
apps with the teacher’s desktop.
Teachers attended a one-day
iPad training session and received
information about educational
apps, with additional training
available as needed. Each school
decides if the devices stay on
campus or can be taken home
and it is up to each teacher to
integrate the iPads into his or
her lesson plans.
“Despite Critics, LA Will Move Forward with iPads in Schools” Government Technology, 14 November 2013
4
“Education technology: Catching on at last,” The Economist, 29 June 2013
5
“SD Unified rolls out iPads in a big way,” The San Diego Union Tribune, April 29, 2012
6
The Digital School
6
7. Success Factors for Digital Educators
Based on pilot programs in many school districts, several practices have proved successful in
implementing digital technology and education plans. The practices, according to the State
Educational Technology Directors Association, include:7
• Sustainable funding for devices. Students need easy access to devices to take full
advantage of digital content and these same devices can and should be leveraged for other
educational ends, including online assessment and access to online learning.
• Internet connectivity. Speed and connectivity are essential. Every district should maintain
a network and Internet infrastructure that enables pervasive, simultaneous use of devices for
instruction, assessment, and school operations.
• Up-to-date policies and practices. In addition to monitoring state policy changes, local
districts may need to replace policies and practices that inhibit the use of digital content with
initiatives and incentives to encourage its use.
• Prepared educators. College-level teacher education programs need to prepare aspiring
educators to use digital content, and districts need to provide opportunities for sustained
professional learning, including online access to communities of practice.
• Intellectual property and reuse rights. The beauty of digital content is its flexibility, so make
sure content is licensed to encourage sharing and customization.
• Quality control and usability. The best digital content is vetted at the local level and then
“tagged” so all teachers can find and use it in a variety of situations; this saves time and helps
teachers personalize classroom learning.
• State and local leadership buy-in. Leadership is essential in making changes to state policies
and it is no less important at the local level; leaders must provide the necessary vision and
support to enable successful implementation.
The Digital Dialogue, What to Expect
District-wide device standards and the processes and procedures to enforce them is important
for ensuring a level technology playing field for all students. You’ll want to understand the pros
and cons of different device options, as well as how to negotiate pricing, manage vendors, and
enforce contracts. There are different discussions for different groups:
Teachers and administrators. Buying a device is only part of the investment. Teachers need
training and professional development, not to mention time to rewrite lesson plans to accommodate technology and personal learning, so that the devices are used to teach children
successfully. Be prepared for teachers unions and others to resist new technology for fears
of how it will affect their profession.
A good time to implement new digital education technologies is when curricula are being
redeveloped. For example, schools that are switching over to a Common Core curriculum have
a transition period that allows time to embed technology into lesson plans. Open educational
resources (OERs) also help avoid reinventing the wheel—teachers share materials rather than
developing new lesson plans from scratch.
Fletcher, G., Schaffhauser, D, & Levin, D. (2012). Out of Print: Reimagining the K-12 Textbook in a Digital Age. Washington, DC: State
Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA).
7
The Digital School
7
8. IT providers. To support increased technology, many schools and classrooms will need
upgrades to existing infrastructure, such as increased bandwidth, cloud storage space, and
additional electrical outlets. Support groups may need additional resources to integrate
technology successfully. Teachers may require additional support and resources such as on-call
assistance, along with new administrative policies that support classroom management. For
example, KIPP Empowered Academy, an elementary school in Los Angeles, found that lead
teachers needed classroom assistants to oversee small group rotations in blended learning
classrooms. IT support models will need to be reevaluated as new technologies and devices
are distributed throughout the district.
Procurement. Procurement will be called upon to play a new, more forward-looking role
in a world where technology evolves rapidly. If procurement cycles take too long, hardware
will become obsolete and content could need to be refreshed soon after it is acquired.
Procurement leaders will need an understanding of the trends in educational technology—
from today’s apps and tablets to tomorrow’s yet to be named technologies.
Procurement will be called upon to play
a new, more forward-looking role in a
world where technology evolves rapidly and
hardware could become obsolete quickly.
Content and technology providers. For private companies that offer educational content and
technology, the procurement cycle for schools often proves long and complicated. Many districts
have decentralized procurement practices that force providers to pitch products to individual
schools rather than districts. The educational technology sector, which is developing innovative
technologies to improve educational methods and outcomes, is broad and crowded right now,
highlighting the demand for innovation, but the end-game remains unclear. Small startups may
have the best solutions, but they typically cannot fund a large sales force that can penetrate
many schools. They often have limited access to early-stage capital because venture capitalists
are wary of the K-12 market and its long sales cycles, buyer familiarity with technology, and the
politics that can get in the way of the decision-making process. Many of the best innovations
for the K-12 market die in the middle stages, when cash is most needed to gain scale.
Students. Students at all levels have varying levels of exposure to technology outside of school.
Even today, not all students have Internet access at home, which limits what can be done with
devices outside of the classroom. Additionally, unique considerations apply to different gradebands, for example, elementary students will need easy-to-use interfaces. Lastly, many experts
are concerned about how electronics limit the development of human interaction skills,
something teachers and administrators will have to manage as they introduce technology
into the classroom.
Policy makers. K-12 schools are subject to federal and state government rules and regulations
that govern everything from what goes into textbooks to how many children are in a classroom.
State-led education funding tends to focus on areas beyond technology. Additionally, there can
be a lack of leadership continuity that leads to frequently changing ideologies and initiatives.
The Digital School
8
9. Government help will be needed to push technology into the classroom. For example, the
U.S. government has announced plans to give nearly all of the nation’s students access to
high-speed Internet, with the Federal Communications Commission using its existing E-Rate
program—which helps schools and libraries gain affordable Internet access—to help meet
that goal. Other government agencies are also redirecting resources toward digital education
technology and teacher training.8
Figure
The most popular classroom and personal communication devices
Most Popular Devices
Classroom Device
Attributes
Examples
Allows interaction with
lessons; less costly than
interactive whiteboard
Students in 40 countries used Skype and classroom projectors to
videoconference with polar explorer Mark Wood.
Encourages collaboration
and interaction with lessons
Teachers at Bristol (Va.) Public Schools share lessons interactively
via an online portal
Magnifies small print and
objects (similar to traditional
transparencies)
Students at Pray-Woodman Elementary (Kan.) learn Mandarin remotely
as teachers use document cameras to display written content
Identifies learning pace
of students in real time
Students at New Milford (N.J.) High School access Poll Everywhere
and answer questions; teachers track responses to gauge
comprehension
Allows students to focus
on lessons with fewer
distractions
Students in the San Diego Unified School District listen to teachers
via classroom amplification systems
Attributes
Examples
Offers benefits of a laptop
with ease of portability
Passaic City (N.J.) Public Schools (New Jersey) gave Chromebooks
and Internet access to all students
Displays visually engaging
content (photo, book, video)
Henry County (Va.) Public Schools gave every third through fifth
grader access to iPads to study digital math and social studies.
Plays educational apps
El Crystal Elementary School (Cal.) pairs print and audiobooks
on iPods to boost reading comprehension
Replaces textbooks
Cushing Academy (Mass.) owns more than 100 Kindles tethered
to a single school account; students check out e-books and other
digital content
Plays educational apps and
offers mobile connectivity
Lodi Unified School District (Cal.) uses “Edmodo” to post alerts to
students; students turn in assignments, share notes, and check grades
Projector
Integrates whiteboard
interactivity onto a projector
Interactive whiteboard
Combines whiteboard and
computer with notes written
in digital ink
Document camera
Displays text and objects with
real-time image capture
Student response system
Captures real-time data
to gauge student
comprehension
Amplification system
Amplifies voice and delivers
sound evenly
Personal Device
Netbook
Small, lightweight,
inexpensive laptop
Tablet
Large screen; natural
user interface; intuitive
Portable media player
Smartphone without
the phone
E-reader
Primarily for reading
digital e-books and
periodicals
Smartphone
Social networking, GPS,
motion sensors, digital
capture, editing
Sources: Simba Information survey; BMO Capital Markets (K-12 Tech Tools and Trends 2012); TeachLogic; A.T. Kearney analysis
“Obama calls for federal money to help bring ‘digital learning’ to US classrooms,” The Washington Post, 6 June 2013
8
The Digital School
9
10. Building a Technology Agenda
The wide range of complex challenges inherent in building a digital school district demands
a new vision for digital technology in education. We advise the following steps to ensure an
immediate impact and a longer-term sustainable advantage.
To develop a technology plan, bring
together all interested parties, including
tech-savvy teachers and administrators,
curriculum leaders, IT and procurement
professionals, and vendors.
Bring everyone together. An important first step in developing a district-wide technology
plan is bringing together all interested parties, including tech-savvy teachers and administrators, curriculum leaders, IT and procurement professionals, and technology vendors.
The interactions must be ongoing, designed to keep up with new classroom technologies
and learning theories as they emerge and to make sure that policies do not become obsolete.
The main points on the agenda include:
• Goals and objectives. Determine the goals for technology—lower costs, enabled learning,
or networked students—and the capabilities necessary for students and teachers.
• Governance. Identify who leads the processes, who makes the big decisions, and how the
governance structure supports the changes that will inevitably arise.
• Current-state technology and costs. Define what technologies currently exist in your
schools and what capabilities they provide; identify the gaps that need to be filled, the
in-school technology costs, and costs that could be eliminated through technology.
• The range of possibilities. Evaluate what other districts are doing, what best practices are
being applied, how high schools and colleges are using digital technology, and what offers
are available from leading technology suppliers.
• The future. Gauge all emerging technology trends for education broadly and for devices
in the classroom, and stay ahead of them; determine which devices will best meet your
requirements.
• Technology procurement and support. Evaluate and procure technology, identify standards
and technology guidance available to educators, and determine all support capabilities such
as help desks and field services.
The next steps and important activities should be outlined early to arrive at an initial technology
proposal and to keep the momentum going so that it’s not a one-time exercise.
The Digital School 10
11. Develop a technology vision. Here, the focus is on developing a technology vision that
outlines your desired capabilities and defines both the short- and long-term priorities. In
general, the capabilities that digital technology brings to education can be divided into three
groups—devices, content, and student and teacher impact—with important considerations
within each (see figure 5). It’s important to understand the goals and which capabilities are
most important for achieving those goals within the established timeframe.
Figure 5
Important considerations when determining where to invest in digital capabilities
Devices
Connectivity. Internet access for all students to bridge the digital divide
Mobility. Portability allows access to content anywhere, anytime
Collaboration. Students and teachers can connect to peer or expert networks around the world
Content
Digital content. Digital textbooks, multimedia, and other supplemental materials replace
paper materials
Applications. Technology enables access to educational and other related applications
Personalized learning. Customizable content allows students to tailor learning to their own pace
Student
and
teacher
impact
Increased engagement. Content interactivity drives student engagement
Immediate feedback. Assessments can be adaptive and integrated into learning so teachers
can immediately gauge student performance
Productivity. Efficiency in preparing and distributing teaching materials and tracking student
performance is increased
Data analytics. Collecting student data allows teachers to analyze and even predict student
behavior and performance
Source: A.T. Kearney analysis
Create a digital technology blueprint. A good digital blueprint prioritizes the technologies
and standards by grade band (such as pre-K, K-8, and 9-12) to meet different needs, and charts
a road map and investment plan to turn the dream into a reality. District-wide technology
standards and the procedures to enforce them are also required along with a training plan
that supports all users across the deployed technologies.
Additionally, allocating budgets at the district level—rather than at the school level, with the
principal serving as a de facto CIO—will ensure that technology goals are achieved across the
district and that there is no digital divide among students within the same district. IT as a districtwide shared service could help with customized application development and support.
Chart a three-to-five-year road map. The final step is to develop a road map incorporating
a three-to-five year technology vision and investment plan, including the implementation
timeline and upfront investments in infrastructure upgrades, broadband, training, cloud
The Digital School 11
12. storage, training, and support systems. One-year goals are defined to fast-track any high-priority
items. Prototypes for day-in-the-life scenarios can help communicate the vision to others,
and a pilot can help test out the plan and assumptions with measurable goals and objectives
before a major rollout.
A Fundamental Shift in Learning
Technology in education is not a substitute for learning—books will remain, whether students
read them in print or on e-readers. But technology brings a fundamental shift in learning.
Students and machines can now work together to launch new ideas and accomplish things
faster than ever imagined. At a time when machines have taken over many professions, from
automotive to finance to legal, school districts must continue to prepare students to become
valued contributors to society. With a clear technology vision and plan, it is possible to stay
ahead of the technology curve while continuing to instill a love of learning in your students.
Interview with Dr. Chris Hoadley,
New York University
Chris Hoadley is associate professor and program director of the
Educational Communication and Technology Program, the Program
in Digital Media Design for Learning, and the Program on Games for
Learning at NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human
Development. With more than 35 years of experience designing
and building educational technology, Dr. Hoadley has researched the connections among
technology, learning, and collaboration. His research focuses on collaborative technologies,
computer support for cooperative learning (CSCL), and design-based research methods,
a term he coined in the late 1990s.
What are the most important technology skills students need to learn?
I think of it in three pillars: coding literacy, data literacy, and maker literacy. This differs from
math, science, and engineering in the sense of applying personally relevant knowledge and
action. I don't mean that we should turn everybody into a hard-core programmer. This is
about understanding enough about software engineering to accomplish what you want in
a technology-focused world.
It is also important for students to look at information and pull patterns out of it. This is already
in many curricula and essentially means being able to put information into a spreadsheet and
run numbers.
What are your views on different approaches to learning such as flipped classrooms and
personal learning environments?
There are three fads right now: online learning resources, the idea that every child should have
a tablet, and education “outsourcing” to aggregated service providers that offer subscriptions
to content accessible on tablets.
The Digital School 12
13. When you think about the three fads, while they may have a significant impact, none changes
the importance of human relationships in teaching. A skilled teacher with a tablet full of software
that supports a good teaching strategy, I'm all for it. But the tablet by itself can't fix anything.
No amount of automation can substitute for the personal relationships that often drive learning.
If the goal is to make sure that all children have all the important knowledge at their fingertips,
we can do that pretty easily. If the goal is to inspire them to actually learn and hold them
accountable, then relationships matter a lot more than content.
This is an old argument—going back to SMART boards, and VCRs before that, and filmstrips and
radios before that. The hardware is merely a platform for the software and the media, which are
resources for classroom activities. These activities have to come from somewhere. That’s why
the human element must be well aligned with the technological.
Will technology change how schools operate?
The technologies most prevalent in K-12 education today are the easiest to buy, not necessarily
the most educationally sound. If a school district has $25 to spend on software, does it make more
sense to buy software that sits in a student's hands or software that gives office administrators
an extra 40 minutes a day to work with kids? This is an interesting vector—putting technology into
the hands of back-office administrators, students, teachers, and facilities. If you can make the
teacher's life simpler and easier, he or she can have better interactions with the kids and feel
more connected to the classroom. These kinds of trade-offs are rarely explicitly considered.
What are the major barriers to adopting digital tools in the classroom?
People often assume that the bottleneck in adopting technology is the teacher who won’t
accept the latest thing, but purchasing systems also play a big role. When you look at something
as simple as how a school district buys an app, you see how the old model of hard goods and
purchase orders present systemic barriers.
One major issue is figuring out who selects the digital education tools. As with textbooks,
politics can get in the way as district-level IT services people often make these choices, rather
than the teachers, students, or administrators who make instructional decisions every day.
There might be minimal conversation between the district’s IT person and teachers, parents,
and administrators about the goals of technology. This is an important issue, because there
can be varying perceptions of good and bad, and radically different ideas about what
technology is for and how it can be used.
Follow-through is also a barrier. Somebody signs a contract, the technology shows up, and then
who knows what happens. The technology is thrown out there without explicit answers to why and
how. I have spoken with many teachers who are really excited about SMART Boards in the classroom because they see the possibilities, but at the same time there is no clear mandate about
what to do with the board. In the end, the board is used neither consistently nor productively.
Being deliberate is crucial in making technology adoption decisions. Is the technology for drill
and practice or having something for kids to do when they finish an assignment early? Is it for
remedial students or advanced students? Is it for individual time or group work? And so on.
Technology adoption provides a venue for discussing these and other questions, just as textbook
adoption provides a venue for debating school values. In the best-case scenarios, we see that
the debate over school technology adoption—even if it is heated—will lead to a productive,
growth-oriented dialogue.
The Digital School 13
14. Authors
Kish Khemani, partner, Chicago
kish.khemani@atkearney.com
Christian Hagen, partner, Chicago
christian.hagen@atkearney.com
Brent Ross, principal, Chicago
brent.ross@atkearney.com
Alanna Klassen Jamjoum,
director, digital transformation, New York
alanna.klassenjamjoum@atkearney.com
Melissa Neugebauer,
consultant, New York,
melissa.neugebauer@atkearney.com
The Digital School 14