Head of the Class

Classroom technology is focus of Digital Learning Day
Today marks the second annual Digital Learning Day, organized to promote digital literacy and celebrate best practices for the use of education technology. A digital town hall, which will include Education Secretary Arne Duncan, will stream live online today, and about 20,000 teachers and 4 million students from every state and Washington, D.C., are expected to recognize the day. Planned events include demonstrations of iPad applications, lessons to help students teach their grandparents about computers and others designed to ensure students stay safe online. T.H.E. Journal (2/5)
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Federal legislation would speed adoption of classroom technology:
On Tuesday, the day before Digital Learning Day, Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., introduced the Transforming Education Through Technology Act. The bill is intended to "help speed adoption of innovative digital tools to improve student outcomes, close achievement gaps, boost educator skills and improve efficiency and productivity." If the legislation passes, states and school districts would be required to draft plans and policies that make the best use of technology in the classroom. The Huffington Post/The Blog (2/5)
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eLearning

MOOCs slowly making waves in K-12 virtual education
Massive open online courses have been gaining traction in higher education, and now educators are considering whether they would be valuable additions to K-12 education. Some experts, however, say MOOCs are not ready for mainstream adoption in K-12 education, but they could help students as they prepare for high-stakes standardized tests. Education Week (premium article access compliments of EdWeek.org) (2/6)
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Other News

Systems Management

Web-based system allows district to record, track problems
A school district in Nebraska is seeking to reduce crime and identify and prevent potential behavioral problems, such as bullying, using a new Web-based incident management and prevention platform. The Threat Assessment, Incident Management and Prevention Services -- or TIPS -- system from Awareity allows users to report potential problems -- anonymously or not -- by alerting appropriate personnel and tracking and recording the data. T.H.E. Journal (2/4)
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Education Cartoon

Managing Budgets

Obama proposes changes to delay cuts to federal K-12 funding
President Barack Obama has introduced a series of proposals intended to delay the implementation of across-the-board spending cuts to K-12 education and other parts of the federal budget. Without action by Congress, the cuts are scheduled to take effect March 1. The spending cuts, known as the "sequester," have been considered since last year and already have been delayed once. Education Week/Politics K-12 blog (2/5)
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Schools and Social Media

Educator uses social media to lead project-based lessons
Gifted-education teacher Krissy Venosdale uses various digital media tools, including Skype, Twitter and blogs, to take learning to the next level, journalist Suzie Boss writes in this blog post. Venosdale uses KnowGlobe to connect students to others around the world and recently organized a mock election at #KidVote. "My kids are used to that sense of exploring. They want to know. They want to ask. They're constantly thinking," she said. Edutopia.org/Suzie Boss's blog (2/4)
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Last Byte

Colo. school district orders $100,000 flight simulator
A new aviation program affiliated with the Aspen School District in Colorado designed to incorporate aviation into multiple fields of study from elementary school on up is moving forward with the recent order of a $100,000 Redbird FMX flight simulator. "The ultimate goal is that we want to excite kids about engineering," said pilot and advanced ground-school instructor Greg Roark. "We need a new generation of kids that build stuff." The project is funded by private donors and will also include ground-school instruction in classrooms. Aspen Daily News (Colo.) (2/4)
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SmartQuote

We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men.
Herman Melville,
American writer and poet
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