Special Education Today

30 July 2010

Top Web 2.0 tools for teachers and students

Filed under: Technology in Education — Maria Angala, NBCT @ 11:05 pm
Three leading consultants in educational technology offer their opinions on the best Web 2.0 tools for encouraging collaboration in learning and teaching. Blogs, Google Docs, and Twitter are among the standouts -- for reasons including their ease of use and their ability to reach many users instantaneously -- that can be used by students and teachers in both online and traditional classrooms. T.H.E. Journal

2 May 2010

Going Green!

Filed under: Technology in Education, video clip — Maria Angala, NBCT @ 8:40 pm
Colleagues, let us explore some ways on how to make our classrooms environmentally friendly. With the economic downturn and budget squeeze affecting our jobs, I see that this is just one of the answers to this problem.
I am attending the Good Jobs, Green Jobs Conference this week co-sponsored by the AFT. Good timing, shortage of copy papers has been a perennial problem in my school. The solution, cut back on photocopying worksheets and quizzes. Let us watch our paper consumption. It has never been a concern to me, the two reams that was given at the beginning of the school year was enough for me. Why? Because I have a "green classroom" (***correction, attempting to have one!).
As teachers, it is important not only to teach our students about the environment but also to conserve our natural resources. It is imperative that we set as a role model to our students of how to respect our environment. In this digital age, we can make use of the technology that is now bombarding our digital natives (the students that we teach), it is time for us to become digital immigrants. How?
Here's how Broward County is having a paperless classroom (been trying it in my room, it works for my students! Works wonders for me!)...


20 April 2010

Teacher Sol is listed as a top 50 special education blog

Filed under: Special Education, Teacher Sol's Lifestory, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 1:14 pm
I tried to avoid for my blog to become a venue for me to vent some political issues in education happening in our school district, although I will be posting more about my own experiences and reflections here related to education reform. My goal for having this blog is to share my resources with the teachers, parents, students, and other professionals in this field in my school district, across the country and around the globe. For six years, I have been getting emails and feedback from teachers around and outside the country thanking me for the vast resources, teaching tips and ideas, news articles, etc... my blog has served its purpose.
This morning, I received an email that "Teacher Sol is listed as a top 50 special education blog":

Hello Maria

I’m just writing this to let you know about a new featured post we just made over here at TeachTechTopia entitled,
“Top 50 Special Education Blogs.” I felt that both you and your readers at Teacher Sol might find it to be an interesting article. Please do let me know if you have any feedback --


Warm Regards,

Emily Johnston
TeachTechTopia


Thank you, Emily. I am honored for my blog to be included in the Top 50 SPED Blogs. I hope your readers find my blog helpful.

11 March 2010

Twitter is used to communicate with parents, teach students

Filed under: Teachers/ Educators, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 6:14 am
Teachers in Kentucky's Jefferson County are slowly integrating social-networking Web sites into the classroom, saying the sites help improve student learning and communication with parents. One teacher has established a classroom Twitter page and selects students to post short updates about classroom activities throughout the day for parents. Teachers also are using YouTube in lessons, and officials say they are considering lifting a ban on Facebook in schools. The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Ky.)

13 February 2010

Educators are using one-to-one computing to individualize lessons

Filed under: Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 10:21 am
More schools are employing one-to-one computer technology in the classroom to help educators tailor lessons for all types of learners. In one Iowa classroom, sixth-grade students are working to create a promotional video for a fundraiser for Haiti to be shown to younger students. Each student is working on their own 20-second clip and choosing subjects such as profiling relief organizations or providing information on the science behind earthquakes. "There's not a single subject that the project doesn't touch," their teacher said. The Tribune (Ames, Iowa)

31 January 2010

Facebook is a promising tool for teacher collaboration

Educators should take advantage of the popular social-networking site Facebook as a free and timely forum for sharing ideas and improving education, writes Nancy Flanagan, a former teacher who is an education writer and consultant. If teachers can overlook the site's tendency toward lightweight social content and administrators can work through filtering issues, the site could provide a user-friendly and highly collaborative tool for teachers, schools and professional associations, Flanagan writes. Education Week/Teacher in a Strange Land blog

Students in gifted program produce school’s morning news show

Filed under: Special Education, Technology in Education, gifted — Maria Angala @ 12:03 pm

Students who are gifted at a Tennessee elementary school produce a video news program shown throughout the school each morning. The fourth- and fifth-graders create the 5- to-7-minute program in the school's news studio equipped with a green screen, video cameras, a mixer, a laptop and other equipment, which was funded through a grant, fundraisers and private donations. "I've learned a lot and it's fun -- problem-solving, technology. ... We all have jobs, but we're all needed to fit it together," one student news anchor said. Farragut Press (Tenn.)

16 January 2010

How to include the Haiti disaster in classroom lessons

Filed under: Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 10:04 pm
Having students create written responses to news photos of the Haitian earthquake and its aftermath or tackling the science behind the natural disaster are two ways educators might address this recent event in the classroom, according to suggestions outlined in this blog post. The writers offer links to background materials on the history of Haiti and relief organizations that provide aid to those affected by such events. The New York Times/The Learning Network blog

5 January 2010

Video of a great teacher

Filed under: Teachers/ Educators, Technology in Education, video clip — Maria Angala @ 10:30 pm
I love this video! I wish I am motivating my students the way he does...


22 December 2009

More teachers should take advantage of Internet tools

Filed under: ADHD/ ADD, Special Education, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 10:00 am
More teachers should use Web sites to share homework assignments and other information with parents, Jay Mathews argues. He writes in this blog post that parents could use the information to take a more active role in their child's education. While teachers might have trouble finding the time to update the Web sites, Mathews argues it will actually save time by eliminating some parent phone calls and encouraging more students to turn in their work. The Washington Post/Class Struggle blog

12 December 2009

Experts predict top trends in 2010 school technology

Filed under: Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 11:15 pm


A look at the top technology tools and trends to keep an eye on in the coming year

Technology that tracks student progress and helps teachers develop more individualized curricula will be among the top five trends in school technology for 2010, experts predict. Other trends to watch are the use of personal devices like iPods and smart phones -- often banned from the classroom -- by a growing number of teachers to enhance lessons. Digital eBooks also make the list, with experts predicting a growth in their use in K-12 classrooms. T.H.E. Journal
1. eBooks Will Continue to Proliferate
eBook readers aren't going to replace traditional math and English textbooks anytime soon, but J. Gerry Purdy, chief analyst, mobile and wireless, for business research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan in Atlanta, said the devices will gain traction in the K-12 arena this year.
2. Netbook Functionality Will Grow
One-to-one computer initiatives are proliferating throughout United States schools and are expected to become even more popular in 2010 as netbooks become even more affordable. Priced at $200 to $300, these small, inexpensive computers are helping to bridge the technology divide that exists at those schools where individual students don't have access to their own laptops.
3. More Teachers Will Use Interactive Whiteboards
Large, interactive display systems that allow teachers and students to work together in ways that traditional blackboards could not are gaining ground in the K-12 environment. Expect the trend to continue this year, said Sheryl Abshire, chief technology officer for Calcasieu Parish Public Schools in Lake Charles, LA.
4. Personal Devices Will Infiltrate the Classroom
Sometimes barred from the classroom owing to perceptions of security risks and student "distractions," smart phones and iPods are now making their way into the K-12 space, and with teachers' and administrators' blessings. "We're definitely on the cusp of seeing more of these personal devices in the classroom," Abshire predicted.
5. Technology Will Enable Tailored Curricula
On educators' and administrators' wish lists right now is an easier, tech-based way to assess, record and track individual student performance in the classroom. David Stienes, principal with private equity fund LLR Partners in Philadelphia, said those wishes could come true this year, courtesy of several emerging companies that are working on new student assessment tools.

Students with visual impairments praise Amazon’s efforts with Kindle

Filed under: Special Education, Technology in Education, Visual Impairment — Maria Angala @ 11:13 pm

As the chairman of Wayne State University's Board of Governors, Richard Bernstein led a call on Amazon.com in September to make its electronic reader accessible to blind and visually impaired people. (PATRICIA BECK/Detroit Free Press)


Students with visual impairments are lauding an announcement by Amazon that it will enhance its Kindle to be more user-friendly for consumers who cannot see. "This is the first time to have truly equal access to academic texts," said Jason Turkish, a law-school student in Florida. Richard Bernstein, chairman of the board of governors at Wayne State University in Michigan, said Amazon's move could revolutionize higher education for students with disabilities. Detroit Free Press

7 December 2009

DCPS Inclusive Schools Week

To celebrate Inclusive Schools Week (12/7 – 12/11), the DCPS Office of Special Education will be hosting three evening screenings of the documentary Including Samuel (read about the film here: http://www.includingsamuel.org). The first screening will be on Wednesday, 12/9 at Noyes EC. The second screening will be on Thursday, 12/10 at Columbia Heights EC and third screening will be this Friday 12/11/2009; all will begin @ 6pm. Watch the preview:


3 December 2009

TeachUp! program helps teachers infuse technology into lessons

Filed under: Teachers/ Educators, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 6:30 am
Teachers in Louisiana and southern Mississippi are improving their understanding and use of classroom technology through the TeachUp! program, which pairs them with technologically savvy college students and graduates. About 160 schools are participating in the program. TeachUp! participants review a teacher's lesson plans and find ways to integrate technology. One tool being used is a a Web site called TrackStar that finds and organizes lesson-related Web sites for teachers. The Sun Herald (Biloxi-Gulfport, Miss.)

Free Web site helps teachers improve math instruction

Filed under: Special Education, Teachers/ Educators, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 6:20 am
An educator in an Ohio district is using a free, Web-based computer program to enhance math lessons. Geogebra provides teachers with a venue for sharing lesson plans, creating work sheets and interacting with students at home and at school. "The neat thing about it is, the kids can be involved in it and can have a hand in changing or working with the equation. Kids can go in at home and practice with a dynamic worksheet," high-school math teacher Susan Kerkhove said. "It's not a piece of paper anymore. It's an experience." Middletown Journal (Ohio)

Cell-phone technology helps people who cannot see navigate daily life

Filed under: Special Education, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 6:11 am

Cell phones programmed with software developed through a partnership between the National Federation of the Blind and Kurzweil Technologies are helping people with visual impairments decipher text they encounter. Users snap a picture and the device uses an electronic voice to announce what the item is. What sets the product apart, say users, is its small size, which allows it to be used easily throughout the day. Press And Journal

Funds for special education will pay for school technology

Filed under: Special Education, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 6:09 am
A Virginia school board has approved plans to use $1.7 million in federal stimulus money earmarked for special education to install interactive whiteboards in all of its kindergarten, first-grade and special-education classrooms. District officials said that the whiteboards will help students with special needs because many spend at least part of their school day in the classrooms receiving the technology. Leesburg Today (Va.)

8 November 2009

Software provides digital, Braille books to students with disabilities

Filed under: Technology in Education, Visual Impairment — Maria Angala @ 11:03 pm


A new computer program is helping provide quicker access to digital and Braille textbooks for university students with disabilities. The Alternative Media Access Center provides the adapted textbooks to colleges in Georgia and hopes to provide the service to half of U.S. colleges by next year. "If I didn't have this service, I can tell you with 100 percent certainty that I would have failed my classes this semester," one student said. WCTV-TV (Tallahassee, Fla.)

6 November 2009

Teachers see possibilities in classroom technology

Filed under: Teachers/ Educators, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 11:15 pm

At conference: Clay Middle School teacher Liana Giles writes on a whiteboard -- an interactive electronic display that combines functions of a blackboard, computer and overhead projector, allowing computer monitor displays to be viewed and worked on in class. - Matt Detrich / The Star


Educators and students caught a glimpse of the classroom of the future at a conference in Indiana. Teachers said tools such as interactive whiteboards, laptop computers and the Internet will help improve achievement by providing a wider variety of teaching tools that will allow them to find a way to meet the individual needs of all students. "I would use something different every day," one teacher said of having the latest technology in the classroom. "Every kid would be interested in something." The Indianapolis Star (11/6)


Report: Interactive whiteboards improve student learning: A report released at the recent State Education Technology Directors Association Education Forum showed that the use of interactive whiteboards does have a positive effect on learning, if done correctly. "The teachers [who] didn't see improvement with [whiteboards] were usually those who didn't make sure the content, and not the add-ons, came first. Content, and knowing what you're trying to teach, is key," said Robert Marzano, CEO of Marzano Research Laboratory, which conducted the research. eSchool News (11/4)

5 November 2009

Studies to look at video games that could help people with disabilities

Filed under: Autism, Technology in Education — Maria Angala @ 11:01 pm
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation announced $1.85 million in funding for nine research projects involving the design of video-game technology to help people change behavior, manage chronic illness and improve communication. Among the projects that won funding: A study that will look at the effect of facial-perception video games on brain activity and facial-perception skills in children who have autism; and research that will examine if video-game use decreases the chances of people with Parkinson's disease suffering falls. Computerworld
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