Interactive whiteboard use is rapidly becoming a popular and effective teaching tool in classrooms; this article explores specific uses within music classrooms. Not only do these boards prepare students to function in a technological world, they offer myriad creative uses within the music classroom, allowing for enhanced interaction, instruction,…

Gaming equipment (such as Nintendo's Wii[TM]) is making its way to schools and classrooms. However, most of the discussion regarding how to use this technology and integrate it into lesson plans is happening in blogs on the Internet. An advocate of interactive media in the classroom, Dr. Dawn Hawkins, a faculty member for the Art Institute of…

This article describes key elements for faculty development programs to prepare mathematics teachers for technology-rich environments. We offer practical examples from our experiences in teaching mathematics with technology and in teaching others to incorporate technology-based pedagogies. We address challenges faced by faculty using technology,…

Despite the widely-held acknowledgment of the great potential of the Internet for improving social studies instruction, the available research tells us that most social studies teachers who use the Internet in their classroom do so without changing much in their traditional approach to teaching. This article suggests using the NCSS Position…

The present article reports on the results of a three-year German-wide program Biology in Context ("bik"). In this program teachers and researchers worked together in 10 learning communities with the goal of enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in biology classrooms as mandated by the recently passed National Educational…

This paper reports on the design and the implementation of the Technological Pedagogical Science Knowledge (TPASK), a new model for science teachers professional development built on an integrated framework determined by the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) model and the authentic learning approach. The TPASK curriculum…

This article uses the framework of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK; Mishra & Koehler, 2006) to analyze findings across projects from the U.S. Department of Education's Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) initiative. Approaches such as mentoring methods course faculty, teachers, and creating technology-rich…

"The Montessori Observer" is mailed four times each year, in March, May, September and November, to Society members throughout the world. The purpose is to provide news and information about the Society's work in Montessori education, and to extend awareness of Montessori principles throughout the world. This issue contains a feature article,…

Emerging digital technologies enable teachers and students to access and manipulate sights and sounds in their school environments. The challenge is to systematically include these new media in academic environments, and to include adults who are ill prepared in technical issues as primary guides in this effort. This article suggests that child's…

This article features Ohio teacher Carol Fleck's use of videoconferencing in teaching Contemporary BioScience and Genetics. Fleck, who says her initial vision for the class was "science without classroom walls," covers such topics as emerging diseases, bioterrorism, and forensic science. Collaboration between schools is a key part of the…

In December 2007, the XO laptop was launched in Uruguay. The XO laptop is an inexpensive computer created by the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Foundation, which the founders hope will advance education in the developing world. In the frenzy to light up children's faces with the glow of an LCD, it is the librarians and teachers and their role in…

This article presents a social studies unit plan taught to fifth graders in a gifted resource class that infuses technology into student-centered activities. The unit demonstrates how the teacher and students were able to use the technology to learn about life during the Klondike Gold Rush. The goal of the unit was to show how the Klondike Gold…

Smart classrooms are just as popular on other community college campuses. Through a combination of PowerPoint presentations, videos, Web pages, and other technologies, faculty can engage students using multimedia to create a richer, more compelling learning experience. This article talks about the use of smart classrooms and the educational…

It was the purpose of this study to determine teacher perceptions of the effective implementation of interactive technologies in one Virginia middle school. The questions that guided this study were the following: What are the Virginia middle school teachers' perceptions of effective integration of interactive technologies? Specifically: What are…

Technological tools and the connections they offer represent a virtual podium to enhance coaches' roles. They can serve to support professionalism, minimize a sense of isolation, help develop content knowledge, keep coaches informed of innovations (and innovators) in practice, clarify coaches' roles and responsibilities, increase their…