Friday Institute News
What are the most important questions to ask when planning a 1:1 learning technology initiative? Three members of the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation team addressed that question in the August 2009 edition of ISTE’s Learning & Leading with Technology magazine. Authors Brian Bouterse, Jenifer O. Corn and Elizabeth O. Halstead’s article titled “Choosing the Perfect Tools for One-to-One” focuses on selecting the appropriate device to ensure a successful learning technology initiative.
According to the article there are six critical questions that must be asked and answered to ensure success. The questions surround issues of purpose, operating system, applications, content, peripheral equipment and robustness. Read the article and view a matrix comparing seven devices using the criteria outlined in the article.
Download the article here.
Dr. Jere Confrey, Joseph D. Moore Distinguished Professor of Mathematics Education and Senior Research Fellow at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation and colleagues presented on the topic of Learning Trajectories at the International Conference of the Psychology of Mathematics Education in Thessaloniki, Greece followed by another seminar at Pamukkale University in Denizli, Turkey.
Dr. Confrey and Dr. Maloney, Senior Research Fellow, presented “Equipartitioning/Splitting as a Foundation of Rational Number Reasoning” unveiling a new approach to rational number reasoning, division and multiplication, a set of concepts and skills that include fractions and ratios. Student success in higher-level mathematics depends on mastery of these ideas. Gemma Mojica, a graduate student, presented "Pre-service Elementary Teachers' Utilization of an Equipartitioning Learning Trajectory", which was the topic of her dissertation studying elementary teacher candidates in the College of Education. Together, the papers outline a major new approach to assisting teachers in using evidence-based research on student learning to provide a more precise diagnostic profile of their students' learning progress.
More information about this topic and the other research that Dr. Confrey’s research group, GISMO (Generating Increased Science and Math Learning) is conducting can be found online at http://gismo.fi.ncsu.edu/.
On July 15, a group of 75 literacy educators gathered to hear Australian scholar, Dr. Brian Cambourne, speak on natural language learning. The group was comprised of members of the New Literacies Teacher Leader Institute, which was a week long intensive workshop experience held at the Friday Institute; literacy faculty from NC State's Elementary Education Department and UNC Chapel Hill's College of Education; and members of the Capital Area Writing Project , which for 26 years has provided professional development for teachers, held at NC State's College of Education. International guests included two teachers from Shanghai, China and two professors from New Zealand.
Dr. Cambourne's witty and fast-paced talk challenged the educators to make critical literacy accessible to as many members of a culture as possible. He emphasized, "Critical literacy is the only way we can have better, fairer, and kinder societies." Entertaining the group by singing the popular song, "Doing What Comes Naturally," Dr. Cambourne advocated for an approach to teaching literacy which un-complicates the process of learning, making literacy more accessible to diverse learners. Dr. Cambourne is presently a Principal Fellow in the Faculty of Education at the University of Wollongong, Australia, and is conducting a lecture tour in America. Earlier in the day, he consulted with the College's elementary education faculty about their innovative teacher education program. Dr. Cambourne has conducted research on how literacy learning occurs for the past thirty years.
Earlier in the week literacy educators attending the New Literacies Institute were challenged by Dr. Yong Zhau, Director of the Confucius Institute at Michigan State, to take advantage of new opportunities to communicate and collaborate as a result of new technologies that limit barriers of time and space. He spurred the teachers to seize the opportunities that come along with a flattened world and to become "global leaders and learners." The international speakers and literacy workshops are in keeping with the NC State College of Education's emphasis on global and digital learning for 21st century teacher education.
For more information visit the College of Education at NC State or join the New Literacies Collaborative.
The Friday Institute was pleased to host The New Literacies Teacher Leader Institute from July 12 – 17, 2009. The institute entitled, “New Literacies, Inquiry, Equity: Teacher Leaders for a New Educational Era,” focused on how new digital tools can create challenging and engaging learning opportunities for students and teachers. Forty-eight teachers from across the country (and China) came together to share ideas, learn from leaders in the field of new literacies, engage in project-based inquiry, and to answer the question: What will you contribute as a new literacies teacher leader?
Teachers were inspired by featured speakers such as Don Leu from the University of Connecticut; Yong Zhao, Director of the Confucius Institute at Michigan State; Milton Chen, Director of Edutopia; Cindy Williamson, Director of Curriculum & Instruction at NC DPI; and Joselyn Todd, from Cary Academy.
Participants engaged in Cool Tool sessions that featured Second Life, Voicethread, Fizz, Trailfire, SAS Curriculum Pathways and many others. Teachers collaborated with a partner to create an innovative inquiry project based on their state’s curriculum standards that culminated in a Design Studio Showcase where they shared the projects with each other.
Throughout the week teachers engaged in 21st century forms of communication using twitter, nings, and wikis. Teachers grasped new visions and knowledge of how to tap students’ curiosity, unleash creativity, engender 21st century skills, and be change agents for a new educational era.
Institute sponsors included the NC Business Committee for Education and BB&T.
To view the projects and join in the ongoing dialogue visit www.newlit.org
Additional information and resources about the institute can be found at www.fi.ncsu.edu/newliteraciesinstitute.html.
The Friday Institute and the NC 1:1 Learning Collaborative completed a successful three-day institute entitled Leading Innovation: Implementing Effective 1:1 Learning Technology Programs. The institute was designed to help school and district leadership teams prepare to implement effective programs in which 21st century teaching and learning is enhanced by a 1:1 ratio of students and computers.
Participants of the hands-on learning experience gained a deeper understanding of the nature of 21st century teaching and learning in 1:1 environments and how to prepare and support teachers to teach in a 21st century, 1:1 classroom. All 150 attendees participated in a classroom immersion session (aligned to NCSCOS) where institute attendees collaboratively created a Virtual Civil Rights Museum using a wiki platform illustrating the power of 1:1 computing and its ability to bring down the barriers of time and space.
Institute participants also learned the importance of a robust, reliable technology infrastructure and effective technical and instructional support along with how to lead successful, sustainable innovations in schools and districts by involving teachers, parents, businesses, and communities. Representatives from Greene County, a NC county that has been in a 1:1 environment for the past six years, shared lessons from their experience as well as a great student success story. Watch Abel Real tell his story to congress here.
Participants came away from the institute energized and excited about bringing new ideas to their classrooms and districts. One district level participant commented that the institute was a ”transformational experience” for the team.
More information about the institute and the ongoing conversations related to improving education can be found here:
Leadinginnovation09.wikispaces.com
nc1to1.ning.com
Dr. Bernice Campbell, CRMSE Program coordinator, was elected to the NC State University Staff Senate as an alternate for Districts 12 & 13. In this capacity, she will represent the Colleges of Education and Design on committee assignments and fill in for Staff Senator Patty Field whenever she is unable to attend regular meetings.
The Staff Senate is an advisory body to the University Chancellor on issues related to policies and procedures and in areas affecting the University community.
Abel Real, a sophomore at East Carolina University, and graduate from Greene Central High School in Snow Hill, NC recently testified in front of The Committee on Education and Labor at the U.S. House of Representatives.
The hearings focused on the Future of Learning: How Technology is Transforming Public Schools. Real discussed how participating in a one-to-one program helped him to overcome hardships and achieve his goals.
"Technology helped me to create, learn, explain, document, and analyze the different aspects of my life," Real said during that testimony.
“Since Greene County schools provided change with the one-to-one program, school life is very different than the traditional high school my brothers dropped out of,” said Real. “Students work collaboratively in groups, they are challenged by projects and thoughtful questions and the best part is everyone participates and pays attention. In addition to the laptops, students use digital cameras, video cameras, and interactive white boards. Students are being prepared for college and 21st century careers.”
“It’s clear that technology and innovation in the classroom not only helps make lessons come alive for students, but can help them gain the skills needed to compete in a global marketplace,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the chairman of the committee. “Technology allows teachers to better understand the needs of their students on a real time basis, which in turn can make a dramatic difference in the way teachers teach and students learn.”
Other witnesses told the panel that investments in technology in the classroom can help give students a 21st century skill set to prepare them for 21st century jobs.
You can see Abel’s testimony here and a listing of the other June 16 testimonies at the committee’s YouTube Channel.
For more information and resources related to Learning Technology Initiatives, visit these sites:
NC Learning Technology Initiative
NC 1:1 Learning Collaborative
The Friday Institute for Educational Innovation would like to announce the launch of its white paper series. The series is designed to further the mission of the Friday Institute by presenting expert opinions that begin conversations on topics related to transforming education.
There are currently two papers in the series. The first is entitled, Toward a New Learning Ecology: Teaching and Learning in 1:1 Environments. It describes the new environment for learning that exists in schools today and proposes five professional development strategies for teachers in 1:1 environments. The second paper in the series concerns how students in NC are being prepared for life and work in the 21st century and is entitled, Determining, Developing and Assessing the Capabilities of North Carolina’s Future-Ready Students.
The Friday Institute for Educational Innovation would like to announce the launch of its white paper series. The series is designed to further the mission of the Friday Institute by presenting expert opinions that begin conversations on topics related to transforming education.
As part of the School Connectivity Initiative (SCI), led by North Carolina State University’s Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, all 115 North Carolina school districts are now linked with high-speed access to online content and services through the North Carolina Research and Education Network (NCREN).
This post is part of the series 
