Educational Apps and Help Lists for Teachers/Parents

Amplify Guide to K-12 Android Apps

Amplify has partnered with Common Sense Media to curate a set of the best educational apps available for Android. We continuously update this list to ensure it includes the latest and greatest apps for students.

Also the following links are good for "mobile" apps and Google

Google on your IOS devices
Google on your Droid devices
Google “on the go” mobile and moving from different computers

New ITRT Page is Rich in Content

Visit us at: http://blogs.rockingham.k12.va.us/jshowker/

Visit my new Rockingham County Public Schools ITRT page.  It's rich in content for instructional use, student and parent use. 

There are many drop down menus with digital ethics content including the CURRENT editions of my published "From the Frontline" newsletter.

Cellphones and Texting Data

So much is in the news these days about cellphone use.  Texting while driving or DWIt is a huge issue now for all of us that have cellphones. Click here to visit this new and informative site Texting and Driving

Privacy, GPS tracking, snapchat, bullying, sexting are other topics that concern users. Here are several great links to spend a little time on if you want to use your phone safely.

Click here to see the full infographic on DWIt

For Parents:

• http://www.netsmartz.org/cellphones
• http://info.uknowkids.com/blog/bid/312302/3-Ways-Your-Teenager-s-Smartphone-Puts-Them-at-Risk
• http://vimeo.com/39709895#

For Students:

• http://www.netsmartz.org/Teens
• http://www.netsmartz.org/RealLifeStories/6DegreesOfInformation

How productive are you with social media tools?

Great reads on social media and effective teacher tools.  Lot's of carry over into BYOD and use of digital devices in the classroom.

Trending Reasons to Teach Social Media in Schools

"Users of this media have to be savvy. Being literate in social media is an essential skill for the future workforce.

“We don’t have a choice on whether we DO social media. The question is how well we do it.”  –Erick Qualman

These stats aren’t new, but they are still impressive.

50% of the world’s population is under 30. These are high-end social media users.

96% of the Millennials belong to a social network.

Facebook tops Google in weekly traffic.

1 in 8 couples married in the U.S. met through social media."

The 10 Most Popular Teacher Tools Being Used This Year

"....these teacher tools are useful for a variety of reasons. Most save students and teachers time while some simply make it easier to connect with others. Whatever you’re looking for, make sure you know about these apps and web tools before stepping foot into the classroom. These tools can be used as part of your ‘teacher toolkit’ or ‘arsenal’ depending on how aggressive you view your teaching style."

Ethical co-existance on social media and blog threads

This is a great article from The Guardian on how to be a good citizen in a social media or blog thread.  Kudos to our local school board member for posting this himself after a question and answer post got a little testy.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/community-standards

"There are 10 simple guidelines which we expect all participants in the community areas of the Guardian website to abide by, all of which directly inform our approach to community moderation (detailed below). These apply across the site, while moderation decisions are also informed by the context in which comments are made."

From the Frontline Summer Edition 2013

Here is the "From the Frontline" newsletter I publish quarterly during the school year.

"From the Frontline" - Summer Vacation 2013 Internet Safety and Digital Ethics

eNews briefs for students, parents and professionals living, learning and teaching in the digital world.

It's the "end of the school year" issue of the Frontline. We'll talk trends and new choices for your social media needs. Trending nation wide is the revelation of instrusion into our personal privacy by both government and private sectors. Digital Ethics have vaulted to the forefront in mainstream media. We've got some summer activities for you and your kids.
It's also a good time to take stock of just what you are doing on social media, how is your privacy being compromised and the big IF it's all worth it in the long run. And for you purists... MySpace is on a comeback!

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1.  The Interactive History of Social Media- "Infographics are a hot item across the web. Enjoy this visual tour with a little history.
http://visual.ly/complete-history-social-media?view=true

2.  9 Social Media Trends You Need to Know About for 2013 - A+++ article for keeping up with what's trending in social media.
http://ustandout.com/social-media/9-social-media-trends-you-need-to-know-about-for-2013

3.  Kids' Apps and Games to Make Summer Days Fun - Kids have fun this summer
http://www.commonsensemedia.org/guide/digital-fun-for-creative-kids?utm_source=2013_06_Newsletter_1&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly

May is Digital Ethics Month in California

Common Sense Media continues to shine in the ethics field. Their main link

Their media is top drawer.  Here are new media resources

From the Principals Office: BYOD

From the Principal's Office: Ideas for Establishing & Revising Your School or District's BYOD Policies

Principal J. Robinson says: "A Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy is a necessity in a 21st century school. I am not sure deciding whether or not to provide wireless Internet access to students is even optional anymore. With more and more of our students getting technological devices with WiFi capabilities, they come to our schools with the expectation that they are going to be connected. Add the fact that municipalities like our own hometown of Newton, North Carolina are working to set up city-wide WiFi, and lower costs of cellular hotspots, educational leaders are quickly finding it difficult keeping schools a "WiFi dead-zone."

BYOT Network-"One Teacher's Journey"

The BYOT Network is a blog complete with a Twitter feed that posts information about Bring Your Own Technology.  A good "regular" visit for stakeholders in the digital device movement.

Included is a current article by a teacher "in the trenches"... "I was petrified.  A year ago I didn’t know how to use any of these devices.  But, my students did. That’s all that mattered. My students couldn’t wait for the opportunity to use their device in class. "
http://byotnetwork.com/

New Pew Internet study looks at use of digital devices at home and at school.

• 73% of AP and NWP teachers say that they and/or their students use their mobile phones in the classroom or to complete assignments
• 45% report they or their students use e-readers and 43% use tablet computers in the classroom or to complete assignments

Some more interesting numbers:

• 92% "say the internet has a 'major impact' on their ability to access content, resources, and materials for their teaching," but 41% say that "major impact" means it requires more work for them to be an effective teacher, 69% say the “major impact” is on their ability to share ideas with other teachers, 67% say that impact is on their ability to interact with parents, and 57% say it the impact is on enabling their interaction with students. 
• 79% have their students access assignments online and 76% have students submit assignments online. 
• 62% of the teachers surveyed "feel their school does a 'good job' supporting teachers’ efforts to bring digital tools into the learning process, and 68% say their school provides formal training in this area." 
• 85% of teachers "seek out their own opportunities to learn new ways to effectively incorporate these tools into their teaching."

"From the Frontline" - Holiday 2012 Edition (highlights)

Internet Safety and Digital Ethics
News briefs for students, parents and professionals living, learning and teaching in the digital world.

Happy Holidays to all and a shout out to my VSTE/Edmodo friends @ http://www.vsteconference.org/.

This edition starts with an important opportunity to give input on the new Virginia Computer Technology Standards of Learning.  At the November 2012 Virginia Board of Education meeting, VDOE was authorized to proceed with the K-12 Computer Technology Standards of Learning review process. The new 2012 standards are available for public comment from November 29th to December 2nd.

Twitter, new research, FBI tools, new digital ethics page links and more in this edition of The Frontline.

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1.  Virginia Dept. of Education released "Computer Technology SOLs" DRAFT 
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/standards_docs/computer_technology/2012/index.shtml

3.  Smishing Scams: Sorry, You Did Not Win a $1,000 Target Gift Card - "Smishing is similar to "phishing," in which you receive an email that seems to be from a reputable source, asking for your credit card data, password, or other private information. Only instead of an email, smishing takes place through the SMS text messages you receive on your cell phone."
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/05/30/smishing-scams-sorry-you-did-not-win-a-1-000-target-gift-card/