Mr. B EdTech Blog

Very good tips

From:  http://www.brilliant-insane.com/2015/07/how-youtube-transforms-teaching-and-learning.html

A very interesting concept. From:  http://www.brilliant-insane.com/2015/07/5-reasons-to-allow-texting-in-class.html

Very good info-graphic.

Tech&Learning released this guide to Mobile Device Management http://www.techlearning.com/portals/0/TL_08_15_Final.30.pdf Not included on this guide was Cisco Meraki. We still use this to manage iPads in my district. We also have been using GoGaurdian for our Chromebooks. We were initially just interested in the anti-theft solution, but we have been using their student history management as well. There are still some glitches, but their support team have been helpful at working toward a solution thus far. Cisco Meraki GoGaurdian

This blog post got me thinking about what a future classroom will look like. https://agenda.weforum.org/2015/08/what-will-classrooms-look-like-in-the-future/ The article was written by Sheryl Buckley the Director of the School of Computing at University of South Africa. Moses J. Strydom a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at University of South Africa. It got me thinking about, something I constantly think about, what will the future classroom look like. Even with all of the technology that has evolved in the recent past, classrooms themselves have not evolved too much. They still follow a similar format. What will the future classroom look like? What still looks the same in this video? Students are seated at desks facing a teacher. Teacher models information at the front of the classroom. Students are actively participating in the same activity (synchronous instruction) Each student has their own device to inte...

Came across this tool today. Muvizu (pronnounced Movie Zoo) This is a nifty app that could be great in a variety of situations. Since I have a background in Social Studies, I really liked the idea, shown in the video, of reenacting a battle sequence. From Muvizu.com The easiest & fastest way to tell stories with animation. Muvizu is an interactive 3D animation package. The software includes everything you will need to tell your animated story and share it with your friends. Drag and drop customizable characters and sets, animation libraries and automatic lip-synching makes it easy to create compelling animations in minutes. Click on the "which version is right for you" to get an overview and basic training. https://www.muvizu.com/Get-Muvizu

Carl Hooker, an online tech blog contributor, has contributed this list of 36 ways to innovate in your classroom. 1 (being the Easiest) and 36 (being the most challenging). Definitely worth a look for some ideas for your lessons throughout the year.  http://www.techlearning.com/ blogentry/9740

Q. What is Quizizz? A. Quizizz is a fun multiplayer classroom activity, that allows all your students to practice together. Q. How does it work? View a Video Walkthrough Select one of the  public quizzes  or  create  your own. Click "Play" to generate your unique game code. Ask your students to open  join.quizizz.com  and enter the game code. See students joining on the live dashboard, and launch when ready. The game begins! Track live progress of your class on your dashboard. Q. What devices are supported? A. Quizizz works on all devices with a browser, including computers, tablets & smartphones. Q. Does each student need a device? A. Each student/team needs one device.

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/classcraft/id968213964?    How do you add gaming elements to your classroom? Well I came across this app today called "Classcraft" that adds some gaming elements to your classroom.

See the whole live feed at the link below. Pictures from  http://live.theverge.com/apple-iphone-6s-tv-event-live-blog/?_ga=1.156812216.2047064530.1433793146

Sometime yesterday, Google released Chrome Version 45 (Technically Version 45.0.2454.85 ) If you have used Chrome sometime today on your laptop, chances are you have already downloaded or installed this update. If you use a Chromebook, you will have to reboot when the update has downloaded. (This includes student Chromebooks. Overall, you should notice that your Chrome and Chromebooks should run faster or less sluggish than before today. There are a lot of new features in this version of Chrome that many of you will find helpful. Want more info? Check out this article :  http://www.techworm.net/2015/09/googles-new-chrome-45-now-faster-uses-less-ram-and-improves-battery-life.html

I saw this article on CNN about Windows 10 "Unseen" privacy settings. http://money.cnn.com/2015/08/17/technology/windows-10-privacy/index.html The big issue that I see as a concern is the fact that Windows 10 uses some of your internet bandwidth to assist when getting updates. You can change the setting, but I still don't know if I like the concept of that. With my home internet connection, I'm sure my speed could handle it, but my connection comes with a data cap. I am only allowed up to 350GB of data a month (using Mediacom). Netflix and Amazon Prime streaming uses that up in a heartbeat for me, along with some online gaming and software downloads that I do as a computer enthusiast. I come close to hitting that cap every month, but I would be furious myself if my data was eaten up with other people's updates. I wonder if this is something that Microsoft will take into account when asking each person to host updates with their personal internet connec...