The Impact of Digital Tools on Student Writing and How Writing is taught in Schools

A survey of teachers who instruct American middle and high school students finds that digital technologies are impacting student writing in myriad ways and there are significant advantages from tech-based learning.

Some 78% of the 2,462 advanced placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) teachers surveyed by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project say digital tools such as the internet, social media, and cell phones “encourage student creativity and personal expression.” In addition:

•    96% agree digital technologies “allow students to share their work with a wider and more varied audience”
•    79% agree that these tools “encourage greater collaboration among students”

According to teachers, students’ exposure to a broader audience for their work and more feedback from peers encourages greater student investment in what they write and in the writing process as a whole.

 Read more at: http://zunia.org/post/the-impact-of-digital-tools-on-student-writing-and-how-writing-is-taught-in-schools

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OER (Open Educational Resources)

Find out more about Open Educational Resources (OER) - the digitized materials that are available for use and re-use in teaching, learning, and research ...

 

Read more at: http://onlineanddistancelearning.com/oer

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Privacy and Biometric ID Systems: An Approach Using Fair Information Practices for Developing Countries

While defining privacy is challenging, Fair Information Practices offer familiar and generally accepted privacy principles used in many countries around the world.  The principles of Fair Information Practices can be implemented in a variety of ways to meet the needs of any given activity, culture, or nation.  Related factors that should be considered include security threats, the existence of identity theft, and the surveillance consequences of centralization of data from an identification system or from transaction records.
The paper suggests ways to use the elements of Fair Information Practices in a biometric identification system to achieve a balanced outcome that protects privacy to an adequate degree.  Using Privacy Impact Assessments to consider privacy consequences before making decisions can also assist in achieving a result that minimizes data processing activities that affect the privacy of individuals.
 Link:http://international.cgdev.org/sites/default/files/privacy-and-biometric-ID-systems_0.pdf

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Massive Online Courses Are Terrible for Students and Professors

The word mooc sounds a bit like slang from Goodfellas or the affectionate shortening of the already-affectionate name of a former outfielder for the New York Mets. In fact, a MOOC is a new kind of college-like experience that seems to possess the magical power to turn some of the smartest people in academia into followers of a faith-based cult because they want to become its idols.

MOOC stands for “massive open online course.” The term was coined by a group of Canadian academics in 2008 to represent a recently invented type of online class that depends upon small group interactions for most of the instruction. More recently, three instructors in the Stanford University computer science department appropriated that term to start two separate private education companies, Udacity and Coursera. Despite being free of charge, the MOOCs that these firms offer bear a more-than-passing resemblance to ordinary college classes—except they are delivered over the Internet to tens of thousands of people at once.

  Read more at: http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2013/07/moocs_could_be_disastrous_for_students_and_professors.html

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Obama Proposes New Transparency Measures for NSA Surveillance

In response to an increasingly volatile national debate on government surveillance, President Barack Obama laid out a four-part plan to increase government transparency.
Before detailing the specifics, Obama criticized repeated leaks of top secret information for creating a debate that is "not always fully informed," but he acknowledged that the conversation about maintaining an appropriate balance between security and freedom is an important one.
SEE ALSO: 2 Encrypted Email Services Shut Down to Avoid NSA Snooping
"Given the history of abuse by governments, it is right to ask questions about surveillance, particularly as technology is reshaping every aspect of our lives," Obama said at a White House press conference on Friday afternoon.
 Read more at: http://mashable.com/2013/08/09/obama-transparency-nsa/

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Ghana ICT for education plan on track

The Ghana government has provided 459 schools and institutions with fully furnished and equipped ICT laboratories and Internet access.

This is according to the Minister for Communications, Dr Edward Omane Boamah, says so far, 38 colleges of education, 37 national vocational training institutes, 26 technical institutes, 10 youth leadership training centres and 249 senior secondary schools have benefited from the government’s schools connectivity project.

  Read more at: http://www.biztechafrica.com/article/ghana-ict-education-plan-track/6597/

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Experience other cultures with a Certificate in TESOL

With a certificate in TESOL you can travel and experience other cultures, whilst having a rewarding teaching career. On this page you'll find out more about TESOL online certificates and where you can take them.

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infoDev launches mAgri challenge

infoDev’s Mobile Innovation program, in partnership with Sweden, is proud to announce the mAgri Challenge. Building upon previous World Bank challenges, five teams will be invited to a Mobile Startup Camp in November 2013 for a chance to refine their models and practice pitching their businesses to angel investors.

The World Bank and other organizations have gathered information on many agricultural mobile applications and produced detailed case studies on such apps in select countries.  Perhaps best known for providing market and extension information and increasing purchasing power of farmers, mobile agri apps can also improve agricultural supply chain integration, increase access to extension services, and facilitate global market linkages.

 Read more at: http://www.infodev.org/mAgri#

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1984 Day Sees 'Restore the Fourth' Protests Across the Country

Sunday was "1984 Day" across the United States, a day of protest against the recently disclosed NSA snooping programs. The name is a play on the date 8/4 and a nod to George Orwell's famous book on a surveillance state.

"Restore the Fourth", an activism organization born on Reddit, chose the day to call for protests against the NSA in 20 cities across the country. The goal of the organization is to end what its members see as the NSA's unconstitutional surveillance regime and to ensure the enforcement of the Fourth Amendment and its protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

 

 

Read more at: http://mashable.com/2013/08/04/1984-day/

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A Must See Graphic on Creative Commons for Students

"Creative Commons is a non-profit that helps sharing and reuse of creativity and knowledge via free legal and technological tools . These tools are not alternatives to copyright laws, rather they work alongside them.

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