Resources for Learning about Educational Technology

I read a quote today that made me think about my summer professional development. Nataf Emmanuel wrote, “Education used to be simple: there was a blackboard, a teacher, and desks in a classroom. Today, a student can practice English online, upload homework through a portal and learn chemistry through 3D immersion — such is the rise of educational technologies” (2018, para. 1).

It is true. I can’t keep up with educational technology. But I certainly try. Technology is ever-evolving, and that is one of the things on my list to study during the summer. I am going to try out a couple of new things so that I can share them with my classes. After all, our current AASL Standards note that “Educational leaders and policymakers should strive to provide sufficient access to up-to-date, robust technology and connectivity. An effective school library plays a crucial role in bridging digital and socioeconomical divides” (2018, p. 14).

I wholeheartedly agree. It is not a secret that I believe that school librarians should be leaders in their schools, and one way to lead is to share technology. While your school may have a technology specialist, you can still work collaboratively with them to provide professional development and teach students. I also believe that we don’t need to know everything about technology. We need to know the basics and a couple of tricks. In other words, we need to understand a couple of things that can help our school communities. Technology that is important for one school may be irrelevant to another.

A question that I often get is, “Where should I look to learn about new technology?” Of course, AASL has the Best Websites for Teaching & Learning and the Best Apps for Teaching and Learning resources. They are updated each year and contain a wealth of information. I am also sharing a list of websites and blogs related to educational technology. Occasionally reading them can help you get acquainted with new technology so that you can put some tricks in your bag for the next school year.

Please note that I have not read all of the content on these blogs. In addition, I know that there are other blogs to read. This list is not all-inclusive. If you have a website or blog that you like, please share.

Educational Technology Websites
Class Tech Tips https://classtechtips.com/
Colleen Graves https://colleengraves.org/
Education World: Technology https://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/
Edudemic: Connecting Education & Technology http://www.edudemic.com/
Edtech 4 Beginners https://edtech4beginners.com/
EmergingEdTech https://www.emergingedtech.com
Free Technology for Teachers http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Blog https://www.iste.org/explore
Mighty Little Librarian (Tiffany Whitehead) http://www.mightylittlelibrarian.com/
NeverEnding Search (Joyce Valenza) http://blogs.slj.com/neverendingsearch/
School Library Journal Technology Archives https://www.slj.com/technology/
TeacherCast https://www.teachercast.net/instructional-technology/
Tech & Learning https://www.techlearning.com/
The Ed Tech Round Up http://www.edtechroundup.org/
The Innovative Educator https://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/

References

Emmanuel, N. (2018). Education technology is a global opportunity. Retrieved from https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/19/education-technology-is-a-global-opportunity/

American Association of School Librarians. (2018). National school library standards for learners, school librarians, and school libraries. Chicago, IL. ALA Editions.

Note: The photo in this post was purchased from DepositPhotos.com.

 


June 2018 Professional Development

 

Organization Date & Time Professional Development Title
Booklist June 7, 2018, 2:00 PM EST Picture Book Parade: New Titles from Small Presses
Early Childhood Investigations June 20, 2018, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EST 5 Things You Can Do Today to Lessen Challenging Behaviors Tomorrow, by Michelle Salcedo
 

edweb.net

June 13, 2018, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST Using Research to Improve Education: Resources to Explore over the Summer
June 19, 2018, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EST Project-based Learning with Agile Project Management
infopeople.org June 12, 2018, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST Demonstrating Library Impact with Data

 

  June 14, 2018, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST “I could really use a good laugh!” How to Give a Laughter-as-Therapy Program in Your Library
Library 2.0 June 7, 2018 Blockchain Applied: Impact on the Information Profession
SimpleK12 June 2, 2018,
10:00 AM – 10:30 AM EST
Manage Your Classroom and Your Students with 21st Century Web Tools

 

June 2, 2018,
11:00 AM – 11:30 AM EST
Classroom Management: Quick and Simple Fixes

 

June 2, 2018,
12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EST
Designing Learning Spaces for a Creative, Collaborative Future

 

June 6, 2018,

12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EST

What Fun! Improve Literacy with 10 Free Comic Tools and Apps
June 6, 2018,
12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EST
Full STEAM Ahead: Girls as STEM Scholars in the Mobile Learning Environment
June 6, 2018,
1:00 PM – 1:30 PM EST
Kids Need to Code: Introducing Your Elementary Students to Coding

 

June 7, 2018,

10:00 AM – 10:30 AM EST

Getting Started With Makerspaces and STEAM
June 7, 2018,

11:00 AM – 11:30 AM EST

STEAM Up Learning to Inspire Inquiry, Critical Thinking, and Problem-solving
June 7, 2018,

12:00 AM – 12:30 PM EST

Hour of Code: Free Resources to Help Your Students Code
June 12, 2018,
11:00 AM – 11:30 AM EST
Student Projects that Promote 21st Century Skills

 

June 12, 2018,
12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EST
Project Ideas and Tools that Empower Student Voice and Choice

 

June 13, 2018,
11:00 AM – 11:30 AM EST
Foster Creativity and Innovation with Digital Storytelling

 

June 16, 2018,
10:00 AM – 10:30 AM EST
Top 10 Free Google Extensions for Classroom Use

 

June 16, 2018,
11:00 AM – 11:30 AM EST
Creating Personalized Assessments with Google Forms
June 16, 2018,
12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EST
Game-based Learning with Google

 

June 16, 2018,
1:00 PM – 1:30 PM EST
Help Students Demonstrate Learning and Make Thinking Visible with Google Tools

 

June 16, 2018,
2:00 PM – 2:30 PM EST
Google Slides: Going Beyond a Simple Slide Show

 

June 16, 2018,
3:00 PM – 3:30 PM EST
 Using Google Maps for Virtual Journeys

 

June 21, 2018,
10:00 AM – 10:30 AM EST
When Tragedy Strikes Home: 10 Ways to Manage Difficult and Violent Youths in School

 

June 21, 2018,

12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EST

Must Have Mobile Apps for Classroom Management
June 28, 2018,

10:00 AM – 10:30 AM EST

10 Hacks for Using Google Classroom
June 28, 2018,

11:00 AM – 11:30 AM EST

Google Classroom: Setting Up, Organizing, Archiving, and More!
Texas State Library and Archives Commission June 5, 2018 ,11:00 AM – 12:00 PM EST Explore the New AASL National School Library Standards & Program Guidelines

 

 

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Author: Daniella Smith

Daniella Smith, PhD. is a former school and public librarian. She is currently the Hazel Harvey Peace Professor in Children’s Library Services at the University of North Texas.



Categories: Blog Topics, Professional Development

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1 reply

  1. I use Kasey Bell at Shake Up Learning all the time. (https://shakeuplearning.com/) We are a Google school, and her blog and website containseverything Google – great tips, tricks, downloads, podcasts, certification classes, and more.

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