simSchool May 2012 News

Posted by on May 11, 2012 No comments

simSchool logo 
David GibsonDear Colleagues:  

Summer is coming! and simSchool will be busy preparing to visit and help friends around the world. As you think about next year, I hope you’ll include a simSchool Module in one or more of your courses and will step up your efforts to conduct research using the platform for data collection, analysis and reflection on teaching.

This May news update has a summary of our 4th quarter of the EDUCAUSE Wave 1 activities (Jan-Mar 2012). Your data updates from work with students will help us make a case for continued support to take the work to scale in the year ahead. We want to top 40,000 users within the next 12 to 18 months to show the power and utility of the platform for teacher education worldwide.
Benchmarks from January to March
 
Logins: Total number of logins during the quarter 5096 by 1025 unique users. This metric is a picture of our “in-depth” user base, people who visit frequently, use simSchool in courses, and stay in touch with us.

 

Project Participants: As reported last month, we topped 10,000 users in March! We now report out daily on our simPartners page: currently simSchool is in 102 institutions serving 10506 users in 137 countries. If you see your institution here, you can track its development toward Level 3 status (when professors are using simSchool to create research data for themselves).

 

Courses: Number of courses created during the quarter totaled 46 (created by 36 unique users) bringing our total since the start of the project to 93 (by 60 unique users). 

 

Course participation: 448 registrations (by 416 unique users – primarily students).

 

simSchool Content:

Modules: 34 (by 13 unique users)

Simulations: 1536 (by 597 unique users)

Custom students: 383 (by 134 unique users)

Custom tasks: 110 (by 62 unique users)

    simSchool Publications 

Christensen, R., Tyler-Wood, T., Knezek, G., & Gibson, D. (2011). SimSchool: An online dynamic simulator for enhancing teacher preparation. International Journal of Learning Technology, 6(2), 201-220.

 

Ellison, A. M., Tyler-Wood, T.L., Periathiruvadi, S., Sayler, M., Barrio, B., & Lim, O. (2011). Preservice teacher experiences with a computerized classroom simulation: A content analysis of discussion postings. New Orleans, LA: AERA.

 

Gibson, D. (2011). Modeling Emotions in Simulated Learning. Standards in Emotion Modeling. Lorentz Center International Center for workshops in the Sciences.

 

Gibson, D. (2012). Teacher education with simSchool. In R. Hartshorne (Ed.), Teacher Education Programs and Online Learning Tools: Innovations in Teacher Preparation. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

 

Gibson, D., & Kruse, S. (2011). Next generation learning challenge: Simulating teaching. Educause Quarterly, 34(4).

 

Knezek, G., Christensen, R., Tyler-Wood, T., Fisser, P., & Gibson, D. (2012). SimSchool: Research Outcomes from Simulated Classrooms. Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2012.

 

McPherson, R., Tyler-wood, T., Ellison, A., & Peak, P. (2011). Using a Computerized Classroom Simulation to Prepare Pre-Service Teachers. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education (JTATE), 19(1), 93-110.

 
Our continued thanks to EDUCAUSE and the Next Generation Learning Challenge grant program for their support and colleagueship.

David Gibson
simSchool

Scholarship Foundation Student Award SITE 2012 Evaluation

Posted by on May 11, 2012 No comments

Visited Conference: SITE 2012, Austin, Texas, USA
Name: Ijeoma Okeke

1. Introduction (more information about the reasons why you applied for this scholarship and why you selected this conference)

I am currently an MSc student of Computer Engineering at the Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. As part of my previous studies in my home country Nigeria, I carried out a research on the use of technology to enhance instructional delivery and student performance, and was looking for an opportunity to present my findings within the research community, preferably at the international level. The main goal for me was to share the results of our experience of integrating technology into the learning process at an institution of higher learning in Nigeria. Also, as a young

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Math, Lost in the MishMosh for Preservice Teachers?Try Dynabooks

Posted by on April 3, 2012 No comments

“Mathematics is a more powerful instrument of knowledge than any other that has been bequeathed to us by human agency.” (René Descartes, French philosopher, mathematician, scientist, and writer; 1596–1650.)

Dynabook: A Digital Resource for Preservice Mathematics Teachers

http://www.ctl.sri.com/projects/displayProject.jsp?Nick=dynabook

Jeremy Roschelle, John Brecht, Jennifer Knudsen, Teresa Lara-Meloy, Charles Patton, Ken Rafanan,Patti Schank, Anna Werner

This project is developing and conducting initial tests of a highly innovative interactive digital textbook to enhance middle grades mathematics teachers’ understanding of core concepts in proportionality and their understanding of ways that technology can be used to enhance instruction.

As part of their preservice program, teachers will experience a flexible, responsive digital textbook that supports their reflective, thoughtful engagement with central middle school mathematics content. The textbook… Continue reading

Digital Citizenship.. SITE leads the way….

Posted by on March 14, 2012 No comments

 

On SITE 2012 in Austin: So What Is Digital Citizenship?

Initial publiching oat ETCJournal   http://etcjournal.com/2012/03/07/on-site-2012-in-austin-so-what-is-digital-citizenship/

Report from SITE2012 AACE in Austin, Texas.

Social Justice and Digital Equity SIG has, with Mike Searson, created a project in Digital Citizenship that is funded by Facebook. We will hold our first meeting tomorrow to iron out details. We are at the SITE.org Conference in Austin, Texas.

Digital Citizenship is a concept which helps teachers, technology leaders and parents understand what students/children/technology users should know to use technology appropriately. Digital Citizenship is more than just a teaching tool; it is a way to prepare students/technology users for a society full of technology

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Globaloria, A Field Trip ,A Concept to Bridge the Digital Divide , sharing Ideas at SITE and SXS

Posted by on March 13, 2012 No comments


Globaloria Creator Idit Harel Caperton Discusses Her Recent Visit To East Austin College Prep

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Facebook funds our Initiative for Digital Citizenship!!

Posted by on March 3, 2012 1 comment

When I started thinking about the use of the Internet, I remembered all of the people who could not read who asked me to teach them to read when they found out I was a teacher.  That was many years ago and reading literacy is still a problem.

Now I have a new way of thinking, there needs to be more than just reading literacy, I believe digital literacy is a civil rights issue. The headline here talks about the urban poor but it is more than just the urban poor who are worried. See www.niti.org.

The National Indian Telecommunications Institute is a dynamic, Native-founded… Continue reading