Oh, say can you see--amazing educators using edtech!
For the past twelve months, we’ve been collecting stories written by educators--teachers, edtech coordinators, librarians, superintendents and others--from all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
We call it The Fifty States Project, an initiative to showcase educators and their stories of supporting learning by using technology.
We celebrate the art, knowledge and best practices shared by educators across urban, suburban, and rural communities, wielding technology to make a real difference for kids. To personalize learning. To help a struggling student find his or her way. To open doors and save other educators time and effort.
We’ve organized these rich, varying and honest accounts into four categories:
- Taking a National School Tour: Educators invite you on a detailed tour of their schools and districts. Hear from teachers and superintendents about how they’ve retooled their classrooms and districts with technologies new and old.
- Water That PD, Grow Those Networks: Personalizing PD is all the rage, and these educators are doing it to the fullest. Check out this section out for ideas and practices on badging, Twitter, fellowships, free conferences and more.
- Good Old American “How-To’s”: Looking to get the most out of iPads? Not sure what a great digital portfolio looks like? These educators will take you step-by-step through their most innovative practices with how-to’s and guides.
- Say It Loud, Say It Proud: How do educators really feel about technology, Common Core, and testing in the classroom? These pieces put their perspective at the forefront of the design and use of technology.
- 2014 Popular Edtech Tools from Coast to Coast: We list the edtech tools mentioned throughout these 52 pieces, uncovering 90 distinct tools--and 13 standouts.
And how about “saying it loud, saying it proud” with your own voice?
Join EdSurge and these educator-writers on Monday, December 22 at 5:00 PM Pacific Time on Twitter for a very special #edtechchat. We’ll share more tales from the classroom and all widen our personal learning networks. See you in the Twitterverse!
Finally, we’re compiling these 52 pieces into a nifty book with a bit of help from Lulu. The books will be available at cost (nope, we’re not keeping a penny!). Reserve your copy today!
Thank you for reading and supporting these innovative educators. We celebrate them, we celebrate you and can’t wait to see where we’ll go in 2015.
By: Mary Jo Madda (Fifty States Project Leader) and Charley Locke (Fifty States Project Associate)
Educators Share: Taking a National School Tour
Educators Share: Water That PD, Grow Those Networks
Educators Share: Good Old American “How-To’s”
Educators Share: Say It Loud, Say It Proud
Popular Edtech Tools from Coast to Coast
Yes, we saw tool diversity! When we tallied up the number of edtech tools mentioned throughout these 52 pieces, we uncovered a total of 90 distinct tools. A few stood out. Here are the most frequently mentioned tools--along with the stories that describe their use.
| Product | Description | Price |
Who wrote about this tool? |
|
Google Apps for EDU |
A collection of free Google tools, apps and collaboration services for K-12 and higher-ed |
Free |
Idaho, Louisiana, Maine, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Wisconsin, Wyoming |
|
Twitter |
Popular networking and microblogging platform | Free |
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, Wyoming |
|
Educreations |
Whiteboarding app and platform that lets teachers and students record lessons to share and access online at any time | Free |
Alabama, Idaho, North Carolina, Rhode Island |
|
Edmodo |
Education-centric social network for teachers, parents and students | Free |
Alabama, Maine, Oklahoma |
| Evernote | Note-taking app with option to attach audio, video, web links, or files for any device | Free |
Connecticut, Georgia |
|
Padlet |
Collaborative virtual sticky note app where users can post video, images, links and more | Free |
Idaho, New Jersey |
| Voxer | App where users can send text, photos, and instant voice messages to individuals and groups | Free |
Nevada, Wyoming |
| YouTube | Video-sharing platform | Free |
Alabama, Virginia |
| Schoology | Cloud-based Learning Management Software (LMS) for K-12 and higher education | Freemium; free for teachers, license for districts |
Alabama, Maine |
| DropBox | Storage platform for files, photos, and more | Free to Start; $9.99/month for 100GB |
Alabama, Connecticut |
| iMovie | Video-editing and sharing software for Mac | Free for Mac OS X and iOS users; $15 for Mac users with older model |
California, Georgia |
| Raspberry Pi | Credit-card sized PC to help young children acquire basic programming and IT skills | $35 per basic unit |
Florida, New Hampshire |
| Blackboard Learn | Learning Management Software (LMS) for higher education and K-12 | License cost varies per school/district |
Maine, Virginia |
Buy the Fifty States Project Book!
Looking for something to make your bookshelf super smart? Reserve your copy of the “Fifty States Project” book today! We’ve compiled these 52 articles into a nifty book with a bit of help from Lulu. The books will be available at cost (nope, we’re not keeping a penny!). Share your email; we’ll ping you when the book is ready.