Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/626221
E d Te c h S h o w D a i l y 2 3 W e d n e s d a y, J a n u a r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 and manipulate the world around them in order to understand it. Montessori believed that "a child's hands and devel- oping brain are intimately connected." Her belief can be easily observed in prac- tice by watching any kindergartener try to solve a math equation by counting on his fingers or building a block tower. But what happens when technology becomes a central point of instruction? How do the youngest students engage with the educational content found in apps and games while still feeling and touching the world around them? Today's classroom technology falls short of embracing a young child's sens- es and skill set. That's because the types of technology early learning classrooms offer their students lack the opportunity for tactile interactivity. Most common are tablets, computers, projectors or digital cameras, all of which place a high value on output. Few of these technologies require physical manipulatives – things kids can touch and play with – that also connect to the digital realm. But this is changing. Companies are re-imagining and redefining "educa- tion technology" so that classroom computing becomes a more tactile experience for hands-on activities and learning. This approach, called connect- ed technology, involves pairing a phys- ical object the child can hold, such as blocks, with a digital interface, such as a tablet or robot. Tiggly (Cont'd. from p. 1) Why is connected technology so important for a young learner? The sim- ple answer is that it takes the essential aspects of tactile play and builds a bridge to the digital world. While enhancing cognitive learning in young students, connected technology also puts control back into the child's hands, quite literal- ly. Finding a balance between the tech- nology and the tactile is important, espe- cially for classrooms that use tablets. Connected technology also offers the immediate and personalized feedback that is unique to a digital learning envi- ronment. Multiple studies have shown that integrating connected technology into curriculum leads to higher engagement, greater enjoyment and better collabora- tion while learning. Going forward, early childhood educators must careful- ly weigh the pros and cons of each type of technology they add to their class- rooms. When teachers first see connected technology being used in the classroom, they usually don't need to hear the "why." The potential impact on students' learning is obvious. Maria Montessori would be pleased to know her learning theories have not only withstood the test of time, but are being applied in the new wave of connected technology. — Originally published on EdSurge.com. Visit Tiggly at booth #952. For more infor- mation, email educators@tiggly.com. progressions at the heart of the STAR 360™ assessments, Accelerated Reader 360™, and Accelerated Math™. Developing state-specific learning progressions was an immense undertak- ing that began with understanding the standards themselves. For each state, we asked: What are the expectations for skills, knowledge and practices, and when are these expectations to be met? We then asked how we could use this information to transform expectations into a progression of skills development that advances educators and students to their end goal. Once we had this comprehensive understanding of each state's standards, we began the process of building the pro- gressions, starting with the kernels of learning development: the skills. This means that, for every standard, we identi- fied the skills inherent in that standard. These became the building blocks, with the ordering of the learning progressions informed by nearly 10 years of experi- ence and data from millions of computer- based assessments. What does this mean for you? Whether you're an educator in Florida, Texas, Indiana, Washington or any other state, your Renaissance programs give you a clear articulation of skills for your grade and state. You also have a clear view of the context for these grade-level skills, because you're able to see expec- tations from the previous grade level, and Renaissance Learning (Cont'd. from p. 1) you'll know where your journey with your students through the end of the year will take you. You'll also start each school year with a clear understanding of how each student is performing in relation to your state's standards. How so? Each state- specific learning progression is placed on the STAR scale. When students complete a STAR assessment, the program uses their scaled scores to place them at the appropriate points on the progression. From the beginning of the school year, you'll know which students are "on track" and which may need additional support to meet performance expecta- tions. The progressions provide you with tips and ideas for teaching targeted skills, along with more than 30,000 skills-based instructional resources you can use in the classroom. At Renaissance, we're students too. The work of developing state-specific learning progressions has required us to learn about and assign meaning to the dif- ferences each state calls out. This knowl- edge will be continually enhanced by your feedback on the learning progres- sions, as well as the empirical data we capture on student practice and achieve- ment. Whenever you use Renaissance programs with your students, you inform the deeply powerful work of understand- ing how learning advances. Visit Renaissance Learning at booth #1235. For more information, go to www.renaissance.com. Productions students produce commer- cials and public service announcements, and the Sports students provide scores and updates. All three classes also work on all aspects of field and studio televi- sion production – including broadcasting and announcing the school's athletic events. They work cohesively to create a polished product, packaged into a profes- sional-level broadcast, which is viewed by the student body throughout the week. The live streaming production soft- ware they use is Wirecast, by Telestream, which gives them the production and live streaming tools necessary to produce their daily shows. A growing number of schools today are using Wirecast to stream lectures, tutorials and other school events such as graduations, assemblies and school sports. As Whitney has demonstrated, it's also a great teaching tool for video production courses and can be used to engage the school community through student-produced live shows. The soft- ware gives students the opportunity to experiment and learn valuable video production techniques that can lead them into rewarding careers. Wirecast is affordable and powerful, yet easy enough to use that students and volun- teers can be trained to use it in just a Telestream (Cont'd. from p. 1) few minutes. Wirecast has functionality that you'd imagine could be possible only with the purchase of expensive hardware: live switching, transitions, titles, lower thirds and more; but because it's a software solution, it's affordable and flexible, and can be used on existing computer hard- ware that the school owns. With Wirecast, you can switch between multiple live camera feeds, enhance your show with graphics keyed into a greenscreen background, add high- quality audio, create text captions and other professional touches. Broadcasts created with Wirecast can be streamed to all the places you want to reach – other classrooms in your school, to the Web or recorded to a disk that can be viewed later. It's an effective way to keep stu- dents, staff and the public informed about school activities and achievements, and it gives parents and grandparents the opportunity to view the shows whenever they wish, engaging them more effective- ly in their students' education. "For the people who use Wirecast, it only takes them a day to pick up the soft- ware," said Bailey Eaton, one of the News producers. Visit Telestream at booth #2514. For more information or to download a free trial, go to www.telestream.net/wirecast. HOVERCAM'S ULTRA 8 SETS NEW STANDARD FOR DOCUMENT CAMERAS HoverCam, a leading document camera manufacturer based in San Diego, California, has once again set a new stan- dard for high performance of document cameras at a price within the reach of many schools. The company's new Ultra 8 is the world's first document camera incorporating an 8.0 megapixel sensor, LCD preview screen and HDMI, VGA and SuperSpeed USB 3.0 outputs. Ultra 8, on display at booth #323, is the company's first document camera with HDMI and VGA outputs, so it may be used in classrooms without a comput- er and connected directly to a large screen display. "We are already seeing many sales to universities and K-12 districts that require HDMI output," said HoverCam's Craig Justice, Vice President of Sales. "The benefits and cost savings of our technology are now available to the schools and districts that want to use doc- ument cameras without a computer." The first thing users notice about the Ultra is the image clarity and speed. Ultra 8 incorporates an 8.0 megapixel sensor in which all pixels are active and the refresh rate is 60 frames per second over HDMI. With a footprint of less than 40 square inches, the Ultra 8 is significantly small- er than other high-end document cameras with HDMI and VGA out- puts. One reason the HoverCam is smaller than traditional document cameras is zooming is done with the high-resolution sensor and not bulky and expensive opti- cal components, according to the manu- facturer. HoverCam calls it ASR Zoom for Adaptive Sensor Resolution, which allows for fast digital zooming without any loss of image quality. Ultra 8 is the only document camera under $1,000 that includes an LCD view- ing monitor. This makes it convenient for teachers to see what they are showing the class without turning around to see what's on the big screen behind them. Ultra includes an 8GB SD card so teachers can take photos and capture video to the SD card without a computer. Another unique feature of Ultra 8 is the USB 3.0 output for teachers who want to bypass the SD card and record directly to the computer. Ultra 8 can record no-lag, full-motion HD video over a USB 3.0 or USB 2.0 cable to the computer's hard drive, where it's easy to edit or share right away. An optional HDMI-in loop-through and VGA-in loop-through adapter is available for schools requiring HDMI or VGA pass through. Ultra 8 is available through educa- tion technology resellers with a price to schools of $449. HoverCam manufac- tures a full range of document cameras priced from the $99 Z5 to the $449 Ultra 8. For more information, visit www .thehovercam.com/ultra8 or stop by booth #323.