DreamBox Learning®» Technology in the classroom http://www.dreambox.com DreamBox Learning, a web-based math learning company Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:01:10 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Tuesday Teacher Tips: My How Times Have Changed! http://www.dreambox.com/blog/how-times-have-changed http://www.dreambox.com/blog/how-times-have-changed#comments Tue, 10 May 2011 16:41:31 +0000 Lisa W http://www.dreambox.com/blog/?p=7828 Welcome to the Tuesday Teacher Tips series! Each week we’ll highlight teaching and learning resources, ideas to use in the classroom, as well as things to ponder as you go about your teaching day. When I was in fifth grade there was one lone computer in the entire school. It was very apparent, even to a ten year old, that my teacher didn’t quite know what to do with this new piece of machinery. At one point we had to fill out punch cards to program the computer to say, “Hello.” The objective may have been for us to understand programming and computer language, but in reality the students didn’t see the purpose. It was not something we needed and we had no previous experiences on which to base our learning. And I’m pretty certain that my teacher didn’t understand the purpose either. I remember at one point after many students complained—their run program didn’t work, the cards were jamming the machine, and the computer crashed—the teacher threw up her hands and said, “Enough! We’re putting this away!” We didn’t see the computer again until sixth grade. The next year, the lonely computer sat in the hall and was available as a reward. Twice during the year, if you were good, you were allowed to play, “Oregon Trail.” No programming instruction was taught that year. When I first began my teaching career, the computer was an extra. For me it was like having a deluxe blender in my kitchen, I thought I needed one, it looked impressive on the counter, but if pressed, I would admit, I didn’t use it all that much. Then slowly, the computer became an administrative tool. Instead of sending the attendance to the office on a slip of paper, we logged on, completed the attendance, and logged off. Our professional development time included learning how to point, click, drag, and drop. And now? The change is incredible, not only what the internet brings into the classroom and what is available, but how indispensible it has become. School computers are no longer the one extra computer sitting in the hall, available for a turn with Oregon Trail. They are used for real, authentic student learning. A local school district recently approved Project REAL (Resources to Engage All Learners). Next fall, all students in grade 5-12 will have an iPad. And grades K-4 will have sets of iPod Touches. Instead of textbooks, the district is investing in technology and digital curriculum. Sometimes I feel a bit like my grandmother when she sees people with personal cell phones walking through the store. She remembers when one phone was installed, by a professional, into her home. She usually shakes her head and says, “My how times have changed!” It's exciting to experience the changes that technology has brought to education. But it’s also challenging. Not only are teachers trying to keep up with everything new, but they have to figure out to integrate it in the classroom without throwing up the hands and shouting, “Enough!” What changes have you seen in educational technology throughout your career? How do you integrate technology into daily instruction? Email and let us know. We’d love to hear from you.]]> http://www.dreambox.com/blog/how-times-have-changed/feed 0 Tech & Learning Award of Excellence to DreamBox Learning http://www.dreambox.com/blog/tech-learning-award-2010 http://www.dreambox.com/blog/tech-learning-award-2010#comments Thu, 11 Nov 2010 23:38:32 +0000 Tracy H http://www.dreambox.com/blog/?p=6869 TechLearningAward2010Tech & Learning has announced their 28th annual Awards of Excellence winners, which honors products that help educators teach and manage classrooms with technology.
“Now that the use of technology in schools is no longer a novelty but a reality, it’s no longer about the promise of what a product can do; it’s about the proof," says Kevin Hogan, Editorial Director for NewBay Media’s Tech & Learning Group.
DreamBox Learning K-3 Math has won the Tech & Learning Award of Excellence for the second year in a row! We are honored to have been included as a winner – thank you to the more than 30 educators who reviewed our product and found it among the best of the best. Read more about the 28th Annual Awards of Excellence by Tech & Learning Magazine. View a list of our awards and honors!]]> http://www.dreambox.com/blog/tech-learning-award-2010/feed 0 Michael Horn on the Need for Differentiated Instruction via Technology http://www.dreambox.com/blog/michel-horn-on-the-need-for-differentiated-instruction-via-technology http://www.dreambox.com/blog/michel-horn-on-the-need-for-differentiated-instruction-via-technology#comments Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:54:49 +0000 Lou http://www.dreambox.com/blog/?p=2457 Education Update. "Q&A: Disrupting Class - an interview with Michael Horn" speaks to the core need for differentiated instruction via technology in the classroom.]]> Education Update. "Q&A: Disrupting Class - an interview with Michael Horn" speaks to the core need for differentiated instruction via technology in the classroom. My favorite segment of the interview is a quote that could have been right out of DreamBox Learning’s executive summary:
“All students learn in different ways, and in the book, we use the theory of multiple intelligences to describe this," explains Horn. "Considering these differences and constraints on time and space for learning, it's incredibly hard to individualize instruction for 20 or 30 students at a time. So our big question was: how do you break apart that interdependency and allow for truly student-centered learning?’ Horn calls for educators to be more purposeful in their use of technology in the classroom and discusses the new role of the teacher in a disrupted classroom.”
Michael Horn is co-author of “Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns.”

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