Monthly Archives: January 2016

Hactivism

1024px-Aaron_Swartz_profile

Aaron Swartz: hacktivist, genius, martyr, leader in the charge for information to be free, victim of the rights and freedoms for which he stood

The Internet’s Own Boy: “The story of programming prodigy and information activist Aaron Swartz. From Swartz’s help in development of the basic internet protocol RSS to his co-founding of Reddit, his fingerprints are all over the internet. But it was Swartz’s groundbreaking work in social justice and political organizing combined with his aggressive approach to information access that ensnared him in a two year legal battle with the Federal government. It was a battle that ended with the taking of his own life at the age of 26. Aaron’s story touched a nerve with people far beyond the online communities in which he was a celebrity. This film is a personal story about what we lose when we are tone deaf about technology and its relationship to our civil liberties” (iTunes, 2014).

Take Action: sign the petition for greater accountability and better oversight for Federal Attorney misconduct

Tim

Computer coding added to BC’s K-12 curriculum

At the inaugural BC Tech Summit, Christy Clark,the Premier of British Columbia announced that computer coding will be added to the province’s K-12 school curriculum:
Opening Keynote
www.cbc.ca
www.vancitybuzz.com
www.techvibes.com
www.theglobeandmail.com
www.thestar.com

What are some of the difficult questions concerning BC’s new tech strategy, including: teacher training, backend support, equitable funding for classroom technologies, and the need for government accountability?

What are the complex ethical, technical, and pedagogical issues associated with the development and implementation of BC’s new ADST framework?

How is technology changing the way children think, learn, and focus in school?

How might we increase student voice and choice in the development of new curriculum? For example, consider ISTE (International Society for Technology Education): Student FeedbackStandards for Students (7 Standards; 28 Performance Indicators).

BCIC (British Columbia Innovation Council)

Scratch Coding Curriculum Guide (draft by the Scratch Ed Team)

Computational Thinking (Wing, 2006)

Big ideas on British Columbia’s redesigned curriculum

Ipad

Bringing classroom learning to life through VR

How might educational VR experiences be designed to create powerful, accessible, and personal learning opportunities in K-12 classrooms?

Introducing Oculus Medium a virtual sculpting tool that allows you to access various sculpting tools and manipulate clay-like material into different sizes, shapes, textures, and colors to magically create anything you can imagine. Users can easily interact/create together and share their creative process with other people in the same virtual environment.

Introducing Microsoft HoloLens where VR technology becomes more personal and can adapt to the ways humans communicate, learn, and create. Holograms can improve the way we do everyday activities, and enable us to do things we’ve never done before. For education, HoloLens can help to make incredible leaps forward in productivity, collaboration, and innovation. See how VR transforms the way Case Western Reserve University teaches anatomy and transforms our understanding of the human body. Watch as 30 high school girls try out the HoloLens device during a Holographic Academy developer education session at DigiGirlz, a Microsoft YouthSpark program that helps girls and young women learn about careers in technology.

VR

Why do makerspaces matter?

makerspaces
Fleming, L. (2015). Worlds of Making: Best Practices for Establishing a Makerspace for Your School. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

SchoolingVSMaking
Contrasts in Educational Stance by Gary S. Stager, Ph.D.co-author of Invent To Learn – Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom

Pop-Up Classroom Makerspaces

“All children deserve opportunities to be the creators of the media and technology that create our world, as well as to take part in changing who controls, owns, and shapes our future” (MacDowell, 2016)

Download Apps:
Google Cardboard
Jakku Spy

Maker Education Activities:
1) Osmo
2) Autodesk 123D
3) Squishy Circuits [activities] [projects]
4) Before I die I want to…[images]
5) Toys from the Trash
6) Google Cardboard VR [DIY headset] [buy it#1] [buy it#2]
7) Makey Makey

RockyVR