3 Components for Developing a Great eLearning Game

As technology has advanced, lots of innovative ideas are being tried in the education domain to make the experience of children pleasurable. Keeping this in mind, this article focuses on crucial components for developing a great e-learning game.

Combining education with entertainment is not a cup of tea for ordinary developer. It requires lot of creativity and patience. The smooth layouts and graphics add to the visuals of the game. But the major purpose of the e-learning game should be to impart knowledge to the students. But it is quite subjective to define a good e-learning game. It is still an unknown entity which has not been answered properly. This article talks about different components which help in developing a great e-learning game. Let us look at these components in detail:

• Perfect combination of learning and entertainment: Always ensure that there is a perfect blend of learning and entertainment while developing an e-learning game. Care should be taken that the learning objectives behind developing the game is fulfilled. For example; for English you can have various word jigjaw puzzles and memory games to strengthen the memory of the student. Always try to integrate all the crucial aspects that are important from the learning perspective to be present in the game.
• Give impetus to the students to play the game: Children are the most difficult target audience to attract because they genuinely like or dislike the game. Hence, it is very important to provide proper impetus to the students to play the games. For example; if there are puzzles in the game each level needs to present different challenge so that children do not get bored with the games and play to learn something from it. Engagement and attraction are two things which make children focus on the game.
• Target the essential elements of learning in the game: Always focus on the learning aspect in the game. Try to eradicate those portions wherein the learning aspect gets diverted. For example; if you are playing a game on grammar which deals with identifying verbs and nouns from a group of sentences. If you are constantly clicking on the ground to walk around, examining surroundings to identify boxes and then picking them up, the verbs that get collected are not of relevance as they are not part of the learning mechanism.

Context is of prime importance in an e-learning game. An experienced e-learning provider would follow the points mentioned above and create extravagant e-learning games for children.

About emPower

emPower  is a leading provider of comprehensive Healthcare Compliance Solutions through Learning Management System (LMS). Its mission is to provide innovative security solutions to enable compliance with applicable laws and regulations and maximize business performance. empower provides range of courses to manage compliance required by regulatory bodies such as OSHA, HIPAA, Joint commission and Red Flag Rule etc. Apart from this emPower also offers custom demos and tutorials for your website, business process management and software implementation.

Its Learning Management system (LMS) allows students to retrieve all the courses 24/7/365 by accessing the portal. emPower e-learning training program is an interactive mode of learning that guides students to progress at their own pace.

For additional information, please visit http://www.empowerbpo.com.

Media Contact (emPower)
Jason Gaya
marketing@empowerbpo.com

emPower
12806 Townepark Way
Louisville, KY 40243-2311
Ph: 502 -400-9374
http://www.empowerbpo.com
http://hardik.practutor.com

SIX E-LEARNING MYTHS AND THE REALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH IT

E-learning courses have seen a downward trend in recent times. In this article; we look at several misconceptions and realities associated with e-learning courses.


E-learning industry has been going through a tough stage. There are mixed reactions which have been received from students about the quality of e-learning courses. There are some misconceptions associated with e-learning which needs to be clarified. Let us look at these misconceptions and the realities associated with it:

• Myth: Quantity is as significant as quality. Generally e-learning is priced according to the volume produced. Even customers are concerned with the volume of content rather than the quality of the content. But this is not correct.

Reality: If the e-learning course is designed taking into consideration quality of the content, then the same course can get reduced by a considerable margin. This will ultimately result in saving of time. The employees can then concentrate on their work and learn through practical case studies provided in the e-learning courses.  

• Myth: All the content is important.  Lots of times customers feel that all the content is important for the e-learning course. However, that is not the case.

Reality: There is no guarantee that everything displayed in the course will be understood and recalled by the student. Hence; it is important for the customers to understand that all the content is not required for the course and only the important parts that comprises of major learning needs to be integrated in the course. Content should be designed keeping in aspect different things like: usability approach, frequency, importance and type of use etc. Once these aspects have been decided then the content is prepared keeping in focus the training, reference material and things to exclude from the content.

• Myth: E-learning is just a course. Most of the customers believe that e-learning is merely an electronic textbook that replaces classroom training. That is not true.

Reality: It is more involved in practical approaches which help people in improving their performance. It should comprise of various different subjects like:

• Knowledge management
• Performance support systems
• Intranets
• Practice environments
• Standard electronic courses


• Myth: Things will become easier once the technology improves.  There is a common belief that e-learning is falling behind because of the current state of technology. There is always a hope for a miracle cure round the corner but the major problem is the level of training at the level of delivery. Reality: Lot of time is devoted to understand the content management and training approach which will never go away. This does not mean that improvements in technology, standards, and theories will not help but it will not cure the current problems faced in designing e-learning courses easily.
• Myth: E-learning is easy.  Clients believe that they are paying for simplicity. But is it so simple to make the complicated subject simpler?

Reality:  Clients often expect simpler solutions to complicated ones. But e-learning has always been more about making complex things clearer and simple.

• Myth: E-learning provides one-time quick fix solution.  It is often believed that e-learning provides quick fix solution to practical problems in real time. However; that is not true.

Reality: It really takes time and energy to develop content for the courses in accordance to the target audience.

E-learning courses give practical exposure to the students. With the help of these courses; corporate executives can learn to solve practical problems faced in the organization. An efficient e-learning course provider should take these points seriously and create a proficient course that meets the needs of the target audience.

About emPower

emPower  is a leading provider of comprehensive Healthcare Compliance Solutions through Learning Management System (LMS). Its mission is to provide innovative security solutions to enable compliance with applicable laws and regulations and maximize business performance. empower provides range of courses to manage compliance required by regulatory bodies such as OSHA, HIPAA, Joint commission and Red Flag Rule etc. Apart from this emPower also offers custom demos and tutorials for your website, business process management and software implementation.

Its Learning Management system (LMS) allows students to retrieve all the courses 24/7/365 by accessing the portal. emPower e-learning training program is an interactive mode of learning that guides students to progress at their own pace.

For additional information, please visit http://www.empowerbpo.com.

Media Contact (emPower)
Jason Gaya
marketing@empowerbpo.com

emPower
12806 Townepark Way
Louisville, KY 40243-2311
Ph: 502 -400-9374
http://www.empowerbpo.com
http://www.empowerlms.com

THREE DYNAMIC REASONS EXHIBITING THE IMPORTANCE OF E-LEARNING

Lots of e-learning courses have come up recently. These courses give valuable options to the students and professionals to get higher education and build a bright future. In this article; we look at the reasons exhibiting the importance of e-learning.


Technological advancement has made the entire globe a tiny place where we live in. We are already seeing the impact of globalization in education. Students are no longer restrained to classroom education. They can now learn at their own pace and time. E-learningcourses are not restricted to education but they are also beneficial for corporate trainings and businesses. These courses have been created with specific e-learning solutions like Learning Management System (LMS). A good LMS includes various collaborative e-learning tools that provide speedy, effective interactions and creates a synchronized learning mechanism for the trainers and learners.

Let us now look at the various reasons which exhibit the importance of e-learning:


1. Increasing demand for higher education: Education has become a key criterion for career expansion. We have already seen increasing demand of professionals for higher education; and distance learning has become a boon for these executives. With the help of selected e-learning courses, students and executives can now pursue professional courses online with greater ease. Professors and trainers can also conduct virtual classrooms and online trainings in a better way.

2. For better information dissemination: E-learning is extremely important medium for better information dissemination. It also makes learning more complete and well structured.

3. Easy to learn and take tests at your own convenience: With the advantage of global classroom environment, students can now learn at their own pace and convenience. They can even choose courses as per their interests and take standardized tests to evaluate their grip on the subjects.

E-learning courses provide tremendous opportunities to professionals as they can now aim for higher positions by opting for online courses. These courses also provide a basic outline of the topics which gives students an opportunity to revise the topics thoroughly, and prepare for the exams. A proficient e-learning course provider will always try to create courses according to the needs of the target audience. It is also very important to consider end goals that you would like to achieve to get maximum results from the courses.

About emPower


emPower  is a leading provider of comprehensive Healthcare Compliance Solutions through Learning Management System (LMS). Its mission is to provide innovative security solutions to enable compliance with applicable laws and regulations and maximize business performance. empower provides range of courses to manage compliance required by regulatory bodies such as OSHA, HIPAA, Joint commission and Red Flag Rule etc. Apart from this emPower also offers custom demos and tutorials for your website, business process management and software implementation.

Its Learning Management system (LMS) allows students to retrieve all the courses 24/7/365 by accessing the portal. emPower e-learning training program is an interactive mode of learning that guides students to progress at their own pace.

For additional information, please visit http://www.empowerbpo.com.

Media Contact (emPower)
Jason Gaya
marketing@empowerbpo.com

emPower
12806 Townepark Way
Louisville, KY 40243-2311
Ph: 502 -400-9374
http://www.empowerbpo.com
http://www.empowerlms.com

SIX E-LEARNING MYTHS AND THE REALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH IT

E-learning courses have seen a downward trend in recent times. In this article; we look at several misconceptions and realities associated with e-learning courses.


E-learning industry has been going through a tough stage. There are mixed reactions which have been received from students about the quality of e-learning courses. There are some misconceptions associated with e-learning which needs to be clarified. Let us look at these misconceptions and the realities associated with it:

• Myth: Quantity is as significant as quality. Generally e-learning is priced according to the volume produced. Even customers are concerned with the volume of content rather than the quality of the content. But this is not correct.

Reality: If the e-learning course is designed taking into consideration quality of the content, then the same course can get reduced by a considerable margin. This will ultimately result in saving of time. The employees can then concentrate on their work and learn through practical case studies provided in the e-learning courses.

• Myth: All the content is important. Lots of times customers feel that all the content is important for the e-learning course. However, that is not the case.

Reality: There is no guarantee that everything displayed in the course will be understood and recalled by the student. Hence; it is important for the customers to understand that all the content is not required for the course and only the important parts that comprises of major learning needs to be integrated in the course. Content should be designed keeping in aspect different things like: usability approach, frequency, importance and type of use etc. Once these aspects have been decided then the content is prepared keeping in focus the training, reference material and things to exclude from the content.

• Myth: E-learning is just a course. Most of the customers believe that e-learning is merely an electronic textbook that replaces classroom training. That is not true.

Reality: It is more involved in practical approaches which help people in improving their performance. It should comprise of various different subjects like:

• Knowledge management
• Performance support systems
• Intranets
• Practice environments
• Standard electronic courses


• Myth: Things will become easier once the technology improves. There is a common belief that e-learning is falling behind because of the current state of technology. There is always a hope for a miracle cure round the corner but the major problem is the level of training at the level of delivery. Reality: Lot of time is devoted to understand the content management and training approach which will never go away. This does not mean that improvements in technology, standards, and theories will not help but it will not cure the current problems faced in designing e-learning courses easily.
• Myth: E-learning is easy. Clients believe that they are paying for simplicity. But is it so simple to make the complicated subject simpler?

Reality: Clients often expect simpler solutions to complicated ones. But e-learning has always been more about making complex things clearer and simple.

• Myth: E-learning provides one-time quick fix solution. It is often believed that e-learning provides quick fix solution to practical problems in real time. However; that is not true.

Reality: It really takes time and energy to develop content for the courses in accordance to the target audience.

E-learning courses give practical exposure to the students. With the help of these courses; corporate executives can learn to solve practical problems faced in the organization. An efficient e-learning course provider should take these points seriously and create a proficient course that meets the needs of the target audience.

About emPower

emPower  is a leading provider of comprehensive Healthcare Compliance Solutions through Learning Management System (LMS). Its mission is to provide innovative security solutions to enable compliance with applicable laws and regulations and maximize business performance. empower provides range of courses to manage compliance required by regulatory bodies such as OSHA, HIPAA, Joint commission and Red Flag Rule etc. Apart from this emPower also offers custom demos and tutorials for your website, business process management and software implementation.

Its Learning Management system (LMS) allows students to retrieve all the courses 24/7/365 by accessing the portal. emPower e-learning training program is an interactive mode of learning that guides students to progress at their own pace.

For additional information, please visit http://www.empowerbpo.com.

Media Contact (emPower)
Jason Gaya
marketing@empowerbpo.com

emPower
12806 Townepark Way
Louisville, KY 40243-2311
Ph: 502 -400-9374
http://www.empowerbpo.com
http://www.empowerlms.com

Learning in the electronic way

Digital learning is advanced ways of making the students learn in an interactive way. Many schools are bringing in the latest methods of learning to make the students learn after their school hours. Technology has drastically changed in the recent years and also has developed mew methods in the education field. It is helping people learn in a new and interesting way which has probably changed the teaching methods in many schools.

The new interactive learning concepts have made people learn even with a small device. Digital learning is possible beyond the schools through the electronic learning concept. Many educators around the world are unaware about the latest technology. They help them to make kids learn very easily along with the practical knowledge. The organization’s community is very much keen to develop the digital learning method in the schools after their school hours to let the kids gain extra knowledge.

It helps one to create live models about various subjects to give a live demonstration about the subjects. Also the e-learning methods allow kids to educate themselves anywhere with just a mobile learning device. The youth staffs would know the technology very well and also can handle the e-learning technology well. Many of the organizations are unable to help their individuals to learn through the digital learning concept due to the lack of the infrastructure and staff facilities. But the e-learning concept is now being spread and is being incorporated in every institute to benefits the students. The digital and e-learning concepts support all the electronic form of teaching and learning techniques. The basic need is an electronic device connected to a network and anyone can start using the digital learning the service. The web based learning technology allows one to get details about any subject and also upload their piece of knowledge to let other people learn.

Apart from the advantages it also has many drawbacks. The technology is changing and hence the already running systems need to update their old technology. In many cases the devices go obsolete and cannot be configured with the new technology. Also when a new technology is introduced its cost may be very high which cannot be used by all the institutes. There are also security and privacy issues along with the outdated equipments. These are the reasons why the e-learning and the new learning concepts are not yet widely accepted by many of the organizations.

About emPower


emPower  is a leading provider of comprehensive Healthcare Compliance Solutions through Learning Management System (LMS). Its mission is to provide innovative security solutions to enable compliance with applicable laws and regulations and maximize business performance. empower provides range of courses to manage compliance required by regulatory bodies such as OSHA, HIPAA, Joint commission and Red Flag Rule etc. Apart from this emPower also offers custom demos and tutorials for your website, business process management and software implementation.

Its Learning Management system (LMS) allows students to retrieve all the courses 24/7/365 by accessing the portal. emPower e-learning training program is an interactive mode of learning that guides students to progress at their own pace.
For additional information, please visit http://www.empowerbpo.com.
Media Contact (emPower)
Jason Gaya
marketing@empowerbpo.com

emPower
12806 Townepark Way
Louisville, KY 40243-2311
Ph: 502 -400-9374
http://www.empowerbpo.com
http://www.empowerlms.com

100+ iPad Apps Perfect For High School

If you’re a student, teacher, or administrator at a high school looking into adopting iPads for educational purposes, it’s important to know that the iPad is more than just an easy way to browse the web or visit the app store.
There are actually thousands of educational apps hiding in the bowels of the app store.But how do you find them? Unless you know exactly what you’re looking for, it is usually pretty tough to find the best apps. Heck, once you may come across an app it may prove to not be worth the time it took to download!
The Palm Beach School System has an incredible wiki where members of the community share their favorite apps for specific disciplines. Below I’ve embedded their list for the top high school apps but they also have a curated list of apps for middle school and elementary school.
I wanted to give a mention to the people behind the project. Be sure to reach out to them if you have any questions or just want to let them know that you are benefiting from their hard work:

• John Shoemaker (John.Shoemaker@palmbeachschools.org)
• Melissa Lander (Melissa.Lander@palmbeachschools.org)
• John Long (John.Long.1@palmbeachschools.org)

(H/T to @rmbyrne for introducing me to this wiki! Be sure to follow him at the always wonderful Free Tech 4 Teachers site.) Most of the links below are to the iTunes store. It may open up iTunes on your computer.

Language Arts/Reading:

1. iBooks – a ereader book store.
2. Book Creator – Create your own iBooks right on the iPad. (Allows everything except video)
3. Reading Trainer – This app teaches you how to train your eyes and brain to read and comprehend text faster. Think of it as exercise for your reading skills.
4. Free Books – 23,469 Classics to Go
5. Dictionary.com – Dictionary & Thesaurus – A dictionary and a Thesaurus.
6. Literary Analysis Guide – Elements of literature are arranged graphically around three wheels (poetry, prose, and rhetoric).
7. Kindle – Kindle is an eReader from Amazon.com
8. Shakespeare Pro – Complete works of Shakespeare. 41 plays, 154 sonnets, and 6 poems. All works can be cross searched for anything.
9. Jules Verne Collection – Sixteen of Jules Verne’s books
10. MaxJournal – A simple and elegant journal.
11. meStudying: Reading For College Success – A practice reading placement test from the Florida Virtual School.
12. LitCharts – Link to LitCharts website. Each of the LitCharts are available on the iPad

Math:

1. Math Formulas – Reference Guide – This app contains over 100 math forumlas at a high school level. Most formulas have examples for ease of understanding. A great app for higher level math.
2. The Ruler – measure things in inches or centimeters
3. Math Quizzer – Math Quizzer is an interactive and fun way to, not only learn, but also to boost your skills in; Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, and Division. It offers an easy to understand chalkboard visual, which keeps track of your “score” as you progress.
4. Bloomberg – Bring the power of the most trusted source for financial information to your iPad, along with tools to help you analyze the world’s markets.
5. Fractals – Move and pinch fractals in real time.
6. Geometry Stash – Access the most commonly used theorems, postulates, and corollaries.

Calculators

1. SpaceTime – Powerful graphing calculator. 2D and 3D graphing
2. PocketCAS pro – Advanced Graphic and Symbolic Scientific Calculator. Handles every mathematical problem you might encounter in school or university.
3. PocketCAS lite – Free Graphic calculator. Not as many features as the pro version above.
4. Quick Graph – 2D and 3D graphing calculator.

Social Studies:

1. U.S. Geography by Discovery Education – Become an expert in U.S. Geography with this app. Dozens of videos and interactive gameplay.
2. Civil War America’s Epic Struggle-Civil War: America’s Epic Struggle Features over 1,000 high-res photos, more than an hour of multimedia presentations, in excess of 100 authentic maps, dozens of first hand accounts, and numerous text articles and biographies, it provides instantaneous access to information on every aspect of the war.
3. Beautiful Planet HD – Beautiful Planet is a groundbreaking app that captures the breathtaking beauty of our world and its cultures. Featuring a collection of galleries three decades in the making by travel photographer, author and explorer, Peter Guttman, Beautiful Planet spans seven continents and 160 countries.
4. World Atlas HD – The best maps available from National Geographic
5. History:Maps of World – Collection of High-Resolution historical Maps.
6. USA Thematic Atlas & Facts – High quality maps filled with facts and information.
7. USA Puzzle – A USA puzzle that needs to be put together. Double tap on the state for information about that state.
8. Motionx GPS HD – Maps and navigation instruments. Maps from all over the world. Can include waypoints. Can be good for Geocaching.
9. The History Clock – An app that converts the current time to a year and gives a fast fact about that year.
10. The World Factbook for iPad – Extensive information of over 250 countries around the world.
11. WORLD BOOK – This Day in History – Interactive multimedia calendar that features historical events for the day.
12. The Presidency – Historical information on every President of the United States.
13. Presidents HD- Historical information on every President of the United States.
14. Declaration for iPad – A copy of the Declaration of Independence.
15. Constitution for iPad – A copy of the Constitution of the United States.
16. MyCongress – A portal to detailed information about elected congress officials. Please note: This is not an official government resource
17. GeogXPert – A reference app – containing maps which allow you to look up countries and find country information – as well as a quiz app.

Science:

1. 3D Cell Simulation and Stain Tool – Learn about the cell and its structures in a 3D tool.
   
2. EMD PTE – A highly interactive periodic table of elements.
3. AP Biology Vocabulary Review – All of the vocabulary included in the College Board AP Biology Course.
4. VideoScience – Science experiments with video.
5. Chem 11 Prep – Grade 11 Chemistry exam prep.
6. The Elements: A Visual Exploration – If you think you’ve seen the periodic table, think again. The Elements: A Visual Exploration lets you experience the beauty and fascination of the building blocks of our universe in a way you’ve never seen before. And as the first really new ebook developed from the ground up for iPad, The Elements beautifully shows off the capabilities of this lovely device.
7. A Life Among Whales – Video documentary featuring the exploration into the life and work of whale biologist Roger Payne
8. Newtons Laws – Explains Newton’s first two laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation.
9. Periodic Table of the Elements – Standard periodic table of elements. Free as of May 16, 2010
10. Molecules – View and manipulate 3D renderings of molecules.
11. 3D Brain – Rotate and zoom around 29 interactive structures in the brain.
12. Science Glossary – an extensive glossary of scientific terms and biographies.
13. PhysicsXL: Mechanics – An app that contains a series of exercises based on physics.
14. HD Birds Encyclopedia – Highly graphic encyclopedia that has detailed and comprehensive information about a variety of birds.
15. myArm Muscles – Visually rich and stimulating way to learn about our complex arm muscles.
16. PLoS Reader – Read the most recent articles from the seven journals published by the Public Library of Science.
17. HD Marine Life – An encyclopedia of marine life.
18. Frog Dissection – A virtual frog dissection app.

Astronomy

1. HD Solar System – Highly graphic encyclopedia that has detailed and comprehensive information about the solar system.
2. GoSkyWatch Planetarium – Easily and quickly identify and locate stars, planets, constellations and more with a touch or by simply pointing to the sky. Have fun with family and friends discovering the images in the night sky. Go outside and explore the night sky.
3. Star Walk – An interactive astronomy guide.
4. Solar Walk – A 3D Solar System Model.
5. Distant Suns – A database of over 130,000 stars, nebula, and galaxies.
6. DrakeEQ HD – 3D simulation of the Milky Way Galaxy
7. GoSkyWatch Planetarium – Locate stars, planets, and constellations.

Electives/Other:

1. Magic Piano – Play timeless pieces on spiral and circular keyboards, or follow beams of light – mastery requires only imagination. Play alone, or travel through a warp hole and play Piano Roulette with other performers across the world.
2. Fashion Sketchbook: The Stylish Dress Up Game – A fashion design application that allows the users to design outfits.

Art

1. Adobe Ideas – a digital sketchbook
2. SketchBook Pro – A professional-grade paint and drawing application.
3. Brushes – Brushes is a painting application designed from scratch for the iPad. Featuring an advanced color picker, several realistic brushes, multiple layers, extreme zooming, and a simple yet deep interface, it is a powerful tool for creating original artwork on your mobile device. The June 1, 2009 cover of The New Yorker was created in Brushes.
4. Picasso HD – A virtual gallery of Pablo Picasso’s work featuring hundreds of high definition paintings of his greatest works.
5. Van Gogh HD – A virtual gallery of Vincent Van Gogh’s work featuring hundreds of high definition paintings of his greatest works.
6. Klimt HD – A virtual gallery of Austrian Painter Gustav Klimt work featuring hundreds of high definition paintings of his greatest works.
7. Smudge – Finger painting app
8. Skrambler X – Assemble famous masterpieces like a jigsaw puzzle. Learn interesting facts about the artists and their artwork while putting each piece in place.
9. Gravilux – an app that lets you draw with stars
10. The Hot Rod Art Book: Masters of Chicken Scratch – Over 100 pages of hot rod artwork. Over one and a half hours of instructional videos that show the complete process from sketch to rendering.

Foreign Language

1. TAO – TranslateIt! Online – one click translation of text into numerous languages using Google translate.
2. AIUEO-HIRAGANA – Touch, Listen, and Learn Japanese.
3. Japanese Phrases & Lessons – 2,700 Japanese phrases with sound
4. French English Dictionary & Translator – French – English Dictionary
5. TouchLanguage French – Learn over 2,000 French words and phrases
6. BidBox Vocabulary Trainer: English – Spanish – Learn Spanish vocabulary
7. 简明英汉词典 – English – Chinese Dictionary
8. German English Dictionary & Translator – German – English Dictionary
9. Italian English Dictionary & Translator – Italian – English Dictionary

Music

1. Key Wiz – Learn how to play the piano.
2. Virtuoso Piano Free 2 HD – Learn the basics of music and how to play the piano.
3. Magic Piano – Play the piano freestyle or on a spiral keyboard.
4. Air Harp – Strum and pluck the strings for a harp sound.

ESE Modifications/Accomodations

1. Proloquo2Go – full featured alternative communication solution for people who have difficulty speaking
2. Speak it! Text to Speech – A high quality text to speech app.
3. Pocket Picture Planner HD – Use pictures or graphics to create a visual calendar.

All Subjects/General/Productivity:

1. Keynote – A slideshow presentation program
2. Pages- A word processing program
3. Numbers – A spreadsheet application
4. iBooks – a ereader book store.
5. BrainPOP Featured Movie – Tim and Mobi on the iPad! All access to BrainPOP’s 750+ Movie library and Quizzes if your district subscribes.
6. Notability – text to speech or just a note taking app
7. Puppet Pals – Create your own unique shows with animation and audio in real time!
8. Bento – Manage things with 25 ready to use databases.
9. GoodReader – Within moments of downloading GoodReader, you’ll be transferring files from the computer to the iPad. Supports a wide range of files.
10. Note Taker HD – An app for writing handwritten notes, diagrams, etc.
11. Sundry Notes Pro – Sundry Notes is the first social note taking application. Write, draw, record and research right within the app – and then share your notes with others.Take notes right within your application, including: Write text (and change font color, size, etc.), draw anywhere in your notes, search Wikipedia, Google, and Google Books – and grab images from them for your notes using two fingers, Import PDFs from the internet, Import images from your photo library, record sound/voice, Change page background to graph paper, lined paper, legal paper, etc.
12. MindNode – Mind mapping, brainstorming, organization.
13. iThoughtsHD – A mind map tool for the iPad
14. Evernote – Evernote turns the iPad into an extension of your brain, helping you remember anything and everything that happens in your life.
15. Stick It – Sticky Notes with Bump™ – Sticky notes you can share with other iPad Users
16. Educate – The ultimate teacher’s companion providing mobile access to your student’s data, teaching strategies, eLearning tools, and timetable.
17. Cramberry – Create flash cards to study from.
18. Professor Garfield Cyberbullying – Garfield and Friends share information about Cyberbullying
19. Professor Garfield Online Safety – Garfield and Friends share information about Online Safety
20. eClicker and eClicker Host- A personal response system that allows teachers to poll their classes in real time.
21. PDF Reader Pro Edition – PDF reader.
22. Discovery Education – Educational videos (Subscription Required)

This article was originally posted at http://edudemic.com/2011/11/ipad-high-school/

Ipad for e-learning

The Dynabook represented the earliest idea of mobile learning. The geneses of a personal computing device began with an educational vision. Today, with the Apple iPad, that vision is edging towards reality. Across the U.S., the iPad is highly regarded as the device that will truly elevate classroom education into a new era, and particularly, the digital era.

“The iPad appears to be the perfect device for information at your fingertips, which places it in the role to ignite change.” – Greg Smith, CIO at George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon

iPad champions is inspired to initiate the change that will soon displace one-to-many teaching pedagogies in favor of one-to-one, always-on learning that will encourage more participative learning among students. In addition, educators feel that tablets will revolutionize education because they dovetail with the purposes and goals of education in the digital age.

Lets check out some interesting features of the iPad that makes it a great learning device

#1 – Its Touch Screen!!

The touch screen feature of the iPad has extended Human Computer Interaction (HCI) in a manner that imitates human gestures. It enables intuitive touch to interact with computers, sidestepping mouse-click and PC learning requirements, and getting straight into the action.

Children who haven’t learned to read or operate a remote are picking up the iPad’s interface with remarkable speed. According to the June 2010 Ad Age article, “How the iPad Became Child’s Play – and Learning Tool,” after using the device, toddlers as young as 18 months attempt to interface with TVs and monitors as though they were touch screens too, indicating how intuitive this technology may be to the this new iPad generation.

#2 – It’s a better E-Reader than the Kindle!

The iPad’s Book Reader is one of its most popular features and is already outpacing its predecessor – the Amazon’s Kindle. According to a survey ressult released by Student Monitor, a firm that researches consumption trends among college student,1,200 students at 100 colleges indicates that of students who reported interest in buying an eReader, 46% said they favored the iPad, versus 38% for Kindle. Given that the iPad provides better screen resolution, and more importantly a colored interface, it makes reading more conducive and appealing as compared to the Kindle

#3 – Convergence and Productivity

The iPad provides every kind of elearning essentials and requirement without any sort of external devices like a mouse or keyboard. Educators today are voicing the need for more contextual and engaging learning. Mobile phones and digital whiteboards does indeed improve interactivity, but falls short in computing power, and a laptop is relatively bulky and inconvenient at times.The iPad fills this void by enabling a host of activities such as referencing, collaborating, and creating content. In addition, the iPad provides personalized choice of content, which is a huge plus for student users.

This article was originally posted at http://adrianseetho300.wordpress.com/2011/03/21/ipad-for-e-learning/

Learning where you are

I shared this concept video a few months ago to illustrate just one broad aspect of mobile learning. But it has been misinterpreted by at least one administrator that I know.




The point of the video is not about knowing where you are. The point is is learning where you are and using what you (and your students) already have.

This article was originally posted at http://ashleytan.wordpress.com/2011/01/19/learning-where-you-are/

Mobile devices and mlearning in 2011

In case you had any doubts about where mobile technology stands, this video points to the tremendous increase in mobile device and app sales and forecasts what 2011 will look like.

• In January to March of 2010 alone, 314.7 million phones were sold and 54.3 million of these were smart phones.
• A somewhat depressing statistic is also noted: while 85% of children own a mobile phone, only 75% are likely to own a book.
• The most common data sharing “app” reported is SMS (perhaps not surprising, since people who don’t own smartphones remain the majority of mobile device users).
• The video predicts that the Android OS (with a growth rate of 886% year on year) will be the leading smart phone OS in 2011.

The rapid growth of mobile devices means that a majority of learners will be accessing the internet via their mobile phones. This also means there’s a tremendous opportunity to connect people to resources and capabilities at time of need via their mobile devices.

As noted by Pachler, Bachmair & Cook (2010), mlearning “is about understanding and knowing how to utilize our everyday life-worlds as learning spaces.” This doesn’t mean that mlearning is always the best way of providing instruction and/or performance support, but mobile devices certainly extend the reach of teaching and learning.

Mobile device affordances include:

• on demand learning
• opportunistic, context-dependent learning
• one-on-one, personalized learning (pull-based)
• location-based learning
• decision-making, performance support
• authoring
• communication (and connectedness to personal learning networks)
• collaboration

The “range” of these affordances will very much depend on the type of mlearning device used (e.g., mobile phone, smartphone, or tablet). Thus, the range of learning is also very much subject to a digital divide between those who can afford devices with enhanced capabilities and those who cannot, and between those who are more confident about the use of technology and those who are not. While exploiting the promise of mlearning, we shouldn’t leave behind those who have less access to mobile devices for whatever reason.

Source: digitalbuzzblog.com

Welcoming Mobile Technology

During a nine-week period last school year, teachers and administrators at Port Clinton High School reported more than 600 discipline issues related to technology and the use of cell phones on campus. “That’s a huge number, considering that our total enrollment is only 590,” said Ralph Moore, principal at the Port Clinton, OH, school. “And that number doesn’t even include the students that we didn’t catch.”

Moore, who in previous administrative positions may have taken measures to ban the devices that were causing many of the issues, took a different stance this time. Working with the school’s tech-savvy assistant principal, he sat down and tried to come up with a solution that would allow technology on campus while also reducing the high number of violations that students were racking up.

Teachers got involved with the problem-solving exercise, said Moore, who turned to the instructors for their input on how to integrate technology without disrupting classroom and learning time. Administrators also gathered input from the student body, which was given the heads up about a new wireless system on campus and the rules and policies that its users would be required to follow.

“We decided to try an open-access agreement, with some limitations,” said Moore. “We told students that we were going to roll it out for the last few weeks of the [2009-2010] school year, and that if it went well we’d write up a new policy and implement it.” The policies were written up over the summer of 2010, revised several times and reviewed by administrators, parents, staff and students before being put in place for the 2010-2011 school year.

Moore said the new wireless system came about after a $43 million building bond was issued in November 2009 to upgrade the school’s facilities, which were built in 1964. “We’re fortunate enough to live in a community where–despite what’s going on with the economy–everyone is very supportive of education,” said Moore. In need of an improved Internet access solution–either wired or wireless–he said, the district’s technology coordinator and superintendent looked at the options and decided to go with the latter.

“They felt that wireless would give us the most flexibility between our existing and new buildings,” Moore explained. The network, security firewalls, and Web browsing filters were already in place, he said, “so it was just a question of basically providing our students and staff members with additional Web access and allowing them to log onto the existing network.”

That’s exactly what students are doing these days at Port Clinton High School, with a few restrictions. For starters, every device must be “approved” for use on the network prior to logging on and marked with a sticker that administrators place on the back of each approved smart phone, iPad, iPod touch, or laptop. Individual teachers develop their own classroom rules regarding the use of technology, with some requiring all phones to be on silent or vibrate while in class and others prohibiting the use of such devices when class is in session.

The WiFi and device registration process takes just a few minutes and is handled by the school’s technology director. At that meeting, students sign a registration form pledging that they will use the WiFi in a positive manner and not in a way that is prohibited by the district. Students are assigned a user name and password for the Internet access, and their devices are adorned with a sticker showing that they completed the registration process.

Moore said the signed agreements are then sent home for parental signatures and then kept on file in case a problem or question arises in the future. “The agreement basically says that the student has read and understands the rules and that he or she will abide by them,” said Moore. “Once the form is submitted and the passwords are handed out, the student is good to go.”

So in an era when schools nationwide are torn between banning personal devices on campus, Port Clinton High School is already seeing positive results from its contrarian approach. Since the start of the current school year, for example, there have been fewer than 20 technology-related violations reported. The open-access approach has also created a sense of responsibility among students, who have come to appreciate the opportunity.

“I’d say 99 percent of the students who registered their devices are doing what we asked them to do,” said Moore, whose IT team is now struggling with issues like how to filter popular sites like Facebook and YouTube. “These can serve as good educational resources,” said Moore, “but there’s also stuff on those sites that you don’t want students to be able to access.”

Even with that challenge on his staff’s agenda, Moore said he doesn’t regret the decision to embrace technology and open up the campus WiFi to students. “Every school district I’ve ever worked with has had extensive rules in place prohibiting the use of cell phones, iPods and other technology on campus,” said Moore. “Instead of taking that stance, my staff and board collectively decided to find ways to enable technology in such a manner that would provide opportunities for our students.”

Source: thejournal.com