Hey, Higher-Ed! Lessons from K12 teachers and kids on the cutting edge of EdTech are worth seeing.

Some good things in our professional life happen when you get an invitation. Here's the one I recently received from Vicki Sell, our local Apple Rep here in the Twin Cities.

I was lucky enough to find one of the sessions only a half mile from home, at the school where I did my student teaching almost 60 years ago. My, have things changed since then. Including the way kids can learn today.

Take Expeditionary (Outdoors) Learning, combined with Project-based Learning and you have what kids need today to learn skills for the new jobs in our changing world.

Here's what the agenda for our Session was, so read on:

Apple Computer is working with many schools and teachers who are part of the recent iPad invasions into classrooms and labs across the country....well, even further than that.

Most of the public nods in favor of these new tool expenditures, but some of us who've been in education awhile are concerned about these expenditures when there isn't a plan in place, nor training for staff in how to use them effectively.

A headline often seen today is: "Local School District Invests Millions in Mobile Devices!" When we read further in the article we find there is no basic plan for what to do with them, other than add another distraction from learning.

The fact is these new tools are a significant addition to enriching learning and enhancing teaching, if.... If you have a plan in place.

• What are the objectives? Are they reasonable? Do they promise what no one can deliver?
• What is the Action Plan? How do we measure progress?  
• How do we adijust our plan when corrections are needed? Is it doable in the time allotted? 
• How do we train staff, students and parents in the use of this new learning tool? 
• How do we integrate it into the curriculum? 
• How do we report our progress? 
• How do we extend it to other classrooms and schools? 

Here's some photos on what needs to happen to our kids' K12 learning!

We need to keep looking, keep testing and keep trying....and never give up!