T H E Journal (Technological Horizons In Education) articles from October 2007

T H E Journal (Technological Horizons In Education) archives from October 2007

L3RN: Seattle Public Schools brings social networking in-house.(NEWS)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... The video-sharing site YouTube is hugely popular with young users, but content and participation can't be controlled, making it problematic for K-12 use. In response, Seattle Public Schools launched its own social learning network, L3RN....

Webinars.(NEWS)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... www.thejournal.com/the/ learningcenters/webinars LIVE EVENTS Moodle October 18 Learn tactics for using Moodle to improve teaching, learning, and collaboration. Dates are subject to change without notice. Please check our...

Students explore lunar plant growth through NASA engineering challenge.(what's ONLINE: www.thejournal.com)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] NASA HAS LAUNCHED a new competition aimed at getting school children involved in engineering--specifically plant-growth engineering. The contest challenges students to design chambers that might be viable for growing...

AccessMyLibrary offers 30 million free articles.(HOT TOPICS)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... AccessMyLibrary is now providing students and educators with free web access to almost 30 million online articles from a collection of more than 4,000 publications in categories such as health and science. www.thejournal.com/articles/21247

College Board approves online AP courses.(HOT TOPICS)(Aventa Learning)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Aventa Learning, a provider of online educational courses for K-12 schools, has received approval for 22 of its advanced placement online courses from the College Board, the organization that administers the AP program. www.thejournal.com/...

ePals delivers free E-mail, blogging for schools.(HOT TOPICS)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Education technology provider ePals is making its formerly subscription-based services available to schools free of charge. These services, available to all schools around the world, include SchoolMail, SchoolBlog, and In2Books....

Lincoln Public Schools decentralizes web content management.(CASE STUDY)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Posting all web content for your users is like giving them a fish instead of teaching them how to grab a pole and catch one for themselves, according to Kirk Langer. He's director of technology at Nebraska's Lincoln Public Schools, a highly...

Happy birthday 2.0: how I learned it's not so easy to gift-wrap the internet.(our SPACE)(Editorial)
October 1, 2007... A SINGULAR BLEND of vanity and boredom, Googling yourself is the new thumb twiddling. It is the nadir of idleness, a last desperate act before you're forced to do something constructive, like sit-ups. In truth, there's one floor lower than...

All of the above: Maryland's new multiple-choice-only state exam a) will leave key skills untested; b) is a step backward to the 20th century; c) rejects technology; or d) is a poor gauge of learning?(commentary)(Editorial)
October 1, 2007... I'M STEPPING OUT on a limb here, but either we have some very bizarre decision making going on in Maryland, or some very poor reporting from The Washington Post. In light of the Post's article on the supposed ineffectiveness of educational...

Keynotes.
October 1, 2007... "They went from being afraid to say anything to telling my students, 'This time, I'm going to kick your butt!'" (28) --Edd Schneider, college professor, on the improved English-speaking skills demonstrated by a group of Chinese middle...

NCLB draft a boost for ed tech: the bill's newest iteration includes key goals of the ATTAIN Act, but unresolved budgeting issues still loom large.(in brief: Technology + Online + Industry + Partnerships)(No Child Left Behind policy)
October 1, 2007... THERE'S GOOD NEWS about education technology funding at the federal level: The latest draft outline of No Child Left Behind reauthorization legislation incorporates the main components of the Achievement Through Technology and Innovation...

Grant moves stem experts to teach.(in brief: Technology + Online + Industry + Partnerships)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (www.nsf.gov) has awarded the University of Rochester Warner School of Education $634,157 to "help encourage and train both talented undergraduate majors in science, technology, mathematics, and engineering and...

Metametrics launches Lexile Framework for Writing.(Industry News)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Adding to its Lexile Framework for Reading and Quantile Framework for Mathematics, MetaMetrics (www. metametricsinc.com) has debuted its latest assessment tool, Lexile Framework for Writing, which is designed to measure student writing...

VMware offers free academic program.(Industry News)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Virtual infrastructure software company VMware (www.vmware. com) says that more than 300 schools are participating in its academic program, which provides products, resources, and source code--at no cost to qualified schools--for research and...

TRLD conference tackles 21st-century skills.(Industry News)(Conference news)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... The Administrator Forum at the upcoming Technology, Reading, and Learning Diversity (TRLD; www.trld.com) Conference will focus on 21st-century skills, and will also cover the use of technology to support instruction. The forum will include...

DigiLore kicks off software grants.(Industry News)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Education technology provider DigiLore (www.digilore.com) has launched a new $2 million grant program that will provide K-12 schools and colleges with free licenses for the DigiLore Learning Lifecycle Management suite. The grant application can...

Science fair invites entries via YouTube.(Awards)(2007 International Virtual Science Fair Contest )(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... The 2007 International Virtual Science Fair Contest (www. super-science-fair-projects.com) is calling for students from first grade through college to post video versions of science fair projects on YouTube (www.youtube.com). Each video,...

Interwrite, TeacherTube launch school video contest.(Awards)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Interwrite Learning (www.interwrite learning.com), an interactive classroom technology provider, has partnered with education portal TeacherTube (www.teachertube.com) to launch a new video contest for K-12 schools. The contest asks students to...

Levin elected treasurer of the partnership for 21st-century skills.(People)(Douglas Levin)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Douglas Levin, senior director of education policy for Cable in the Classroom (www.ciconline.org), has been named treasurer of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (www.21st centuryskills.org), an advocacy organization focused on infusing...

Tom Knight named DeepNines VP.(People)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Network security systems provider DeepNines Technologies (www. deepnines.com) has appointed Tom Knight to the position of vice president of worldwide sales. Knight's new role will be to drive the company's overall sales strategy.

Woolley-Wilson honored by Aspen Institute.(People)(Jessie Woolley-Wilson)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Jessie Woolley-Wilson, the newly hired president of K-12 for Blackboard (www. blackboard.com), has been named a 2007 Henry Crown Fellow by the Aspen Institute (www.aspeninstitute. org). The fellowship brings together entrepreneurial...

Follow the money: federal largesse only goes so far. So to support their technology programs, districts are pursuing funding sources in the state, local, corporate, and taxpayer ranks.(technology funding)
October 1, 2007... THERE'S AN OLD ANTI-WAR bumper sticker that reads, "It will be a great day when our schools get all the money they need and the Air Force has to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber." If anything, that day seems even further away, what with...

This land is their land: a Texas elementary school teacher is using a quartet of new computers to educate her students about the region's history and culture--and its passion for rodeo.(wireless technology)(Sandy Harrell )
October 1, 2007... UNLIKE WHAT MOST PEOPLE might assume, Texas school children are not raised on cowboys, cattle, and rodeo. Even rural children are totally removed from the land, their own local history, and all the things that are considered synonymous with the...

On a quest for English: Online role-playing games, which take players on explorations of medieval fantasy worlds, are showing the potential to be a powerful tool for ESL learning.(educational gaming)(Cover story)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When Professor Edd Schneider and game designer Kai Zheng suggested to attendees gathered in San Francisco last spring for the annual Game Developers Conference that massively multiplayer online role-playing games,...

Problem solvers: US students continue to lag behind the rest of the world in the four core STEM subjects. The answer, many believe, is a practical approach to instruction: project-based learning.(STEM Teaching)(Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] JEREMIE MEYER, AN INSTRUCTOR IN MECHANICAL engineering and manufacturing, has two rooms at Preble High School in Green Bay, WI. One is a typical classroom. The other, connected by a small door, is a shop, with...

Help wanted: for an alarming number of new teachers, the school gates have turned into a revolving door. Here's how technology can assist districts in addressing the reasons for the rampant turnover.(teacher turnover)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When Gabe Soumakian joined Burbank Unified School District (CA) two years ago as assistant superintendent for the human resources department, collecting data about teacher turnover was not a high priority. Shortly...

Leapfrog Schoolhouse which makes preK-8 learning tools, has released Leapster Story Explorers, an interactive English language program for K-3 students to use with its Leapster handheld units.(product: FOCUS: The latest releases, services, and new product versions)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] LEAPFROG SCHOOLHOUSE, which makes preK-8 learning tools, has released Leapster Story Explorers, an interactive English language program for K-3 students to use with its Leapster handheld units. Story Explorers offers...

Apple has launched new versions of its professional audio applications Logic Pro and Logic Express.(product: FOCUS: The latest releases, services, and new product versions)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... APPLE has launched new versions of its professional audio applications Logic Pro and Logic Express. The high-end Logic Pro, now in version 8, has been released in a studio suite, with pricing cut in half for education institutions. Logic...

Corel has released Paint Shop Pro Photo X2, an update to the company's image-editing suite that's positioned as a low-cost alternative to other professional image editors and targeted in large part toward students.(product: FOCUS: The latest releases, services, and new product versions)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] COREL has released Paint Shop Pro Photo X2, an update to the company's image-editing suite that's positioned as a low-cost alternative to other professional image editors and targeted in large part toward students....

Event: calendar.(Calendar)
October 1, 2007... November 2007 NOV 2 Worldwide Instructional Design System WIDS Users Group 2007 Madison, WI www.wids.org NOV 11-12 Massachusetts School Library Association MSLA Conference 2007 School Libraries in a 2.0...

Extracurricular for technologists who do their homework.(Table)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Large-district (4,000-plus students) technology coordinators speak out on their experiences with a fundamental component of the 21st-century school system: internet access. HIGHLIGHTS * SCHOOLS RELIANT ON STATE NETWORKS * T-1, T-3 MOST...

Preemption not reaction: districts must take steps to ward off threats to school security, rather than responding to them once they occur, when it may already be too late.(COMMENTARY)
October 1, 2007... IF SCHOOL TRAGEDIES can teach us one thing, it's that students are vulnerable and deserve the best protection possible. Districts must realize that school violence can happen anywhere at any time. From the country's smallest rural districts to...

A helping hand: a federal grant program gives school districts the financial support they need to develop updated, comprehensive disaster plans.
October 1, 2007... WHO COULD FORGET the harrowing images of Greensburg, KS, after a deadly tornado in May leveled the small town and tore the local high school to shreds? Just two months earlier, tornados pummeled several towns in neighboring Missouri. In...

On alert: recent events point up the need for school districts to upgrade campus security procedures. But while some have acted by adopting emergency notification systems, many don't seem to have gotten the message.
October 1, 2007... IF ANYONE IN K-12 was prone to forgetting the Columbine killings, the murderous spree carried out by a disgruntled and disturbed student at Virginia Tech earlier this year provided a horrific reminder that schools must give unwavering attention...

Ready and waiting: database-driven crisis management software solutions provide first responders with instant access to vital emergency information.
October 1, 2007... THICK, UNWIELDY three-ring binders are no place to keep school emergency response protocols. In a crisis, information and time are critical. Precious time can be lost in locating a binder, flipping through the tabs to find the correct section,...

Garrett PD 6500i.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (www.garrett.com) The PD 6500i walkthrough metal detector is designed for maximum patron throughput and features 33 distinct zones to precisely identify multiple target locations. Easy to assemble, the PD 6500i...

Stopware PassagePoint EDU.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... (www.stopware.com) The PassagePoint EDU visitor management system, developed for the specific needs of K-12 schools and districts, allows visitors to quickly sign in and receive temporary badges. Accurate reports on visitors, volunteers,...

Ioicam mmp100DN.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Ioimage intelligent video camera)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (www.ioimage.com) The mmp100dn is a 3-megapixel "intelligent" video camera with picture-in-picture capabilities for synchronized analytics visualization. The camera features wide-area coverage, day/night...

Extreme CCTV WZ18.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (www.extremecctv.com) The WZ18 all-weather integrated day/night camera offers 550TV lines of resolution and mechanical filter CCD technology. The camera delivers 65 feet of night vision and incorporates 18 LEDs...

Honeywell ACUIX series.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... (www.honeywell.com) The ACUIX series of pan/tilt/zoom speed dome cameras features multiple housing configurations and five integrated high-resolution, auto-focus cameras/optic systems. The series supports analog and digital video...

Geovision GV-2008/GV-2016.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (www.geovision.com.tw) The GV-2008/GV-2016 digital video recorder features full D1 live recording and real-time display with up to 16 cameras and audio channels. The DVR offers 30 frames per second and...

Axis Communications 233D.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... (www.axis.com) The 233D is a day/night network dome camera. The camera includes 35x optical zoom, wide dynamic range, and mechanical precision and speed. It also includes electronic image stabilizing, area zoom, image freezing between...

Toshiba NVR Software.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (www.toshibasecurity.com) Network Video Recording (NVR) Software allows users to view, record, and play back up to 16 local or remote IP network cameras simultaneously. The system integrates with existing digital...

Advanced Technology Video Falcon FA-DR.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... (www.atvideo.com) The Falcon FA-DR series DVR offers built-in DVD-RW archiving capability in addition to multiple external archiving options using USB devices. Features include video motion detection, digital zoom, clip/copy function, and...

Brady people ID Tempbadge.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... (www.bradypeopleid.com) The Tempbadge school-visitor passes feature color-changing adhesive badges that expire in a clay or half day. To activate the temporary badge, apply a timing circle sticker to it-"smiley face" covers expire in a...

Hi-Touch Imaging Technologies (HiTi) CS-300.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... (www.hitouchimaging.com) The HiTi CS-300 dual-sided, dye-sublimation ID card printer comes standard with a built-in IC smart card encoder and comprehensive software bundles. A magnetic-stripe encoder module and RF encoder module also are...

Elmo USA TD4114IPII.(A BUYER'S MARKET)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (www.elmousa.com) The TD4114IPII network dome camera offers power over Ethernet (PoE) support via a network connection and third-party bridges, eliminating the need for an external power source and reducing...