Special Report: Troubled Children: Diagnosing, Treating, and Attending to Context

Online Version: Troubled Children: Diagnosing, Treating, and Attending to Context
A Hastings Cen­ter Spe­cial Report By Erik Parens and Josephine John­ston
March-April 2011 Hastings Cen­ter Report vol. 41, no. 2

Download PDF: Troubled Children:  Diagnosing, Treating, and Attending to Context (pdf)


The following information was taken from the publication:



Primary Authors and Editors:
Erik Parens is senior research scholar at The Hastings Center and an adjunct professor in the Science, Technology, and Society Program at Vassar College."


Josephine Johnston is research scholar and director of research operations at The Hastings Center.


Sidebar Authors
Mary G. Burke is a psychiatrist at the Sutter Pacific Medical Center, as well as project coordinator in the Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit and associate clinical professor in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco.


William B. Carey is clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine and senior physician in the Division of General Pediatrics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.


Gabrielle A. Carlson is professor of psychiatry and pediatrics and director of child and adolescent psychiatry at Stony Brook University’s School of Medicine.


Peter Conrad is the Harry Coplan Professor of Social Sciences in the Department of Sociology at Brandeis University.


Lawrence Diller is a behavioral/developmental pediatrician/family therapist in Walnut Creek, California, and assistant clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco.


Susan Resko is the executive director of the Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation.
John Z. Sadler is the Daniel W. Foster Professor of Medical Ethics, professor of psychiatry and clinical sciences, chief of the Division of Ethics and Health Policy in the Department of Clinical Sciences, and chief of the Division of Ethics in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Texas’s Southwestern Medical Center.


Ilina Singh is reader in bioethics and society at the London School of Economics and Political Science.


Benedetto Vitiello is chief of the Child and Adolescent Treatment and Preventive Intervention Research Branch of the National Institute of Mental Health at the U.S. National Institutes of Health.


Julie Magno Zito is professor of pharmacy and psychiatry in the Department of Pharmaceutical Health Services Research at the University of Maryland, Baltimore

RELATED
About the Project
Read more: Download Special Report PDF – Hastings Center Report on Pediatric Psychiatry
Erik Parens and Josephine Johnston, “Troubled Children: Diagnosing, Treating, and Attending to Context,” Special Report, Hastings Center Report 41, no. 2 (2011). 


Thanks to Kevin McGrew for the link!

iPad: Links to a couple of interesting articles from WIRED

I thought I'd share links to two articles about the iPad, a tablet that is enchanting millions around the globe: 


Nobody Needs a Tablet.  So Why Are We Gobbling Them Up?
Brian X. Chen,  WIRED Gadget Lab, 3/24/11


"Indeed, it turns out that a tablet needn’t do everything that a more powerful PC can, according to multiple research studies on iPad usage. Rather, the tablet’s main appeal lies in the approachable touchscreen interface that just about anybody at any age can pick up and figure out...That’s the genius of the blank slate — with nearly 400,000 apps that allow the iPad to become a toy, a TV, a medical tool for doctors, a notetaker for students and more, it caters to an extremely broad audience." -Brian X. Chen


iPads Are Not A Miracle for Children With Autism
Daniel Donahoo, WIRED GeekDad, 3/22/11


" ...the potential of the iPad is not achieved by the iPad alone, nor by simply placing it in the hands of a child with autism. The potential of the device is realized by the way professionals like speech pathologists, educators, occupational therapists and early childhood development professionals apply their skills and knowledge to use the iPad to effectively support the development of children. The potential is realized by engaged parents working with those professionals to explore how the device best meets the individual needs of their child." -Daniel Donahoo


(I have a few thoughts about the iPad of my own that I'll share in a future post.)

Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.

Press Release from the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and others: Defunding the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program will have long-range negative consequences for education in the US

ELIMINATION OF EETT WILL UNDERCUT ENGINE OF K-12 EDUCATION INNOVATION, REFORM

All news

March 08, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 8, 2011


Contacts:
CoSN: Jennifer Cummings, 202-822-9491, jcummings@cosn.org 
ISTE: Marlene Nesary, 541-302-3789, mnesary@iste.org
SETDA: Sara Hall, 410-279-3368, shall@setda.org  
SIIA: Mark Schneiderman, 301-943-5702, marks@siia.net

Education and Business Leaders Express Dismay Over Efforts to Defund State Ed Tech Grants Program  
Elimination of EETT will Undercut Engine of K-12 Education Innovation, Reform


Washington, DC – Four leading education and business associations – on behalf of more than 100,000 educators and hundreds of high-tech employers in all 50 states – today expressed deep disappointment with Congressional proposals to defund the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program. EETT is the only federal program (ESEA Title IID) dedicated to making technology and training investments in K-12 education that benefit all students. The associations – the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), International Society for Technology Education (ISTE), Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) and State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) – released the following joint statement.


“Today, as President Obama speaks at TechBoston Academy to tout the need for more technology-related innovation in education, there is an effort under way to defund the EETT program. EETT is the only existing authorized education program designed to leverage innovation and technology to get our economy back on track and adequately prepare all of the nation’s children for the competitive 21st century global economy.


“We are deeply disappointed that despite many Members’ understanding of the vital role technology plays in K-12 education in their states and districts, Congress is on the verge of eliminating funding for this critical program.


“Elimination of the program also is the surest way to devalue the billions of dollars invested over the last two years on improving broadband access to K-12 schools and directly undercuts ongoing state and federal efforts to deploy education data systems, implement new college and career-ready standards and assessments, and address the well-documented STEM crisis.


“Our educators and students deserve better, and we urge Congress to reverse course and fully fund the EETT program.”


About CoSN, ISTE, SETDA, SIIA:

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is the country’s premier voice in education technology leadership, serving K-12 technology leaders who through their strategic use of technology, improve teaching and learning. For further information, visit www.cosn.org.

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE ®) is the premier membership association for educators and education leaders engaged in advancing excellence in learning and teaching through the innovative and effective use of technology in PK-12 and teacher education. Home to ISTE’s annual conference and exposition and the widely-adopted NETS, ISTE represents more than 100,000 professionals worldwide.

The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) is the national member association that represents the interests of the educational technology leadership of state and territorial education agencies in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. SETDA members work collectively and in public-private partnerships to ensure that meaningful technology innovations with broad potential for systemic improvements and cost-savings in teaching, learning and leadership are brought to scale. www.setda.org.

The Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA) is the principal trade association for the software and digital content industry. SIIA provides global services in government relations, business development, corporate education and intellectual property protection to 500 leading software and information companies. www.siia.net.

Words of Wisdom about technology integration from Vicki A. Davis, Cool Cat Teacher

"It is, however, NEVER about the technology but what it lets you do. I like Voicethread because students can easily use their voice. If they can learn to TALK in a topic sentence then when they are ready to construct paragraphs by hand - the concept is in their mind already. Anything to help bring multisensory learning and expression to differentiate and reach all students should be what we do - but it shouldn't be done some here some there...As Chris Lehman says, technology should be like air. Ubiquitous, everywhere, invisible."


CAN'T WE JUST  "INTEGRATE IT EVERYWHERE?"
Vicki Davis, Cool Cat Teacher, 3/10/11

Words of Wisdom from Ira David Socal: "Writing without the blocks" using free/low cost technologies.

"Liberate students from the cognitive waste going to mechanical issues which have nothing to do with effective communication. Help them to become communicators and storytellers, and let your teaching focus on construction of effective writing, and what separates "writing" from "talking" in our culture." -Ira David Socal 


You don't need to be a student to appreciate this approach to writing and communication!


WRITING WITHOUT THE BLOCKS
Ira David Socal, SpeEdChange 3/10/11


Ira Socal starts out his thoughtful blog post by mentioning that he dictated it using a Jawbone bluetooth headset and Windows 7 Speech Recognition, which is a free component of the operating system.  He's found that this is a great approach to use with students who struggle with the writing process.   He points out that there are many barriers that students face when attempting to write, especially for those who have difficulty holding a pen or using a keyboard efficiently.  He also points out that "keyboards injure more people each year than any other workplace tool."


Below are two videos Ira Socal shared on his blog:

RELATED/SOMEWHAT RELATED
How to set up Windows 7 Speech Recognition
MIT Freedom Stick (Michigan Integrated Technologies Supports)
Freedom Stick and Firefox Accessibility
"The MITS Freedom Stick is designed to provide students with information and communication access on any computer using a Windows or Linux operating system. When you insert the USB Flash Drive into the computer the LearnApps software should load giving you a menu in the toolbar on the lower-right corner of the screen. Please note, however, that when using the software on some computers you may need to open the drive and click directly on the LearnApps icon to open."

Video: Apple's iPad - How about some apps for school psychology and related fields?

The video provides a recap of the iPad and highlights how it can be used in education, for students with special needs, in aviation, in doctor's offices, in the board room, in an art studio, in the kitchen - just about anywhere.


I wonder how an iPad could transform the work of a school psychologist!   I have a plenty of ideas, now that the iPad2 is out.  How can it help with RTI?  Progress monitoring?  Digital social stories?   Social skills activities?  Counseling? Behavior intervention?   Transition planning?  Assessment?  Communication? Productivity?  IEP collaboration and development?   


Wouldn't it be nice if there were a few iPad apps that could effectively support the work of school psychologists and those who work in similar fields?   


So much of what we use in our productivity work as school psychologist was built upon applications first developed in the mid-to-late 1990's,  at best.  There must be more efficient and effective solutions out there.  What can be done to move us forward?


Psychological and educational test publishers, can you hear me now?    


I have some ideas.

Game Accessibility Example: Control Sims 3 with your eyes!

The video below was shared by SpecialEffect Accessible GameBase:





RELATED
SpecialEffect Accessible GameBase website.


SpecialEffect Accessible GameBase (Facebook)



Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.

"Study Finds Social-Skills Teaching Boosts Academics" via Education Week

Here's more support for integrating social-emotional learning activities in school settings!  


A recent Education Week article highlights the findings of a meta-analysis of social and emotional learning programs in schools in the US -- this type of support improves the academic performance of students at a significant level: 


Study Finds Social-Skills Teaching Boosts Academics
Sara D. Sparks, Education Week, 2/4/11


Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. D. and Schellinger, K. B. (2011), The Impact of Enhancing Students' Social and Emotional Learning: A Meta-Analysis of School-ased Universal Interventions . Child Development, 82: 405–432. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x


Abstract
"This article presents findings from a meta-analysis of 213 school-based, universal social and emotional learning (SEL) programs involving 270,034 kindergarten through high school students. Compared to controls, SEL participants demonstrated significantly improved social and emotional skills, attitudes, behavior, and academic performance that reflected an 11-percentile-point gain in achievement. School teaching staff successfully conducted SEL programs. The use of 4 recommended practices for developing skills and the presence of implementation problems moderated program outcomes. The findings add to the growing empirical evidence regarding the positive impact of SEL programs. Policy makers, educators, and the public can contribute to healthy development of children by supporting the incorporation of evidence-based SEL programming into standard educational practice."


RELATED
Social Smarts website
Ripple Effects
An Evidence-based Approach to Fostering Positive Social Behaviors in the Schools (Havard Graduate School of Education)
CASEL:  Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning

CASEL's five core groups of social and emotional competencies:

• Self-awareness—accurately assessing one’s feelings, interests, values, and strengths; maintaining a well-grounded sense of self-confidence
• Self-management—regulating one’s emotions to handle stress, control impulses, and persevere in overcoming obstacles; setting and monitoring progress toward personal and academic goals; expressing emotions appropriately
• Social awareness—being able to take the perspective of and empathize with others; recognizing and appreciating individual and group similarities and differences; recognizing and using family, school, and community resources
• Relationship skills—establishing and maintaining healthy and rewarding relationships based on cooperation; resisting inappropriate social pressure; preventing, managing, and resolving interpersonal conflict; seeking help when needed
• Responsible decision-making—making decisions based on consideration of ethical standards, safety concerns, appropriate social norms, respect for others, and likely consequences of various actions; applying decision-making skills to academic and social situations; contributing to the well-being of one’s school and community

Interactive multimedia for social skills, understanding feelings, relaxation, and coping strategies.


Multimedia Instruction of Social Skills (CITed)

Video Interview of 114-Year-Old Wlater Bruening: Words of wisdom from the timeline of his life

"Everyday is a good day...and make it that way!" - Walter Bruening



Some quotes from the video:

If you could give one piece of advice to today's youth, what would it be?

"I'd tell them to stay in school, get educated, as much as you can, because if you're not educated today, fully, all about computers and everything like that, you are not going to get a job, because you got to be fully qualified to go to work on any kind of job right now."


Walter Bruening's words to live by:
"Be good to everybody, be kind to them."
"People should be helping other people."
"The more you do for other people, the better your going to help your self."

Interview of Walter Breuning at age 11, includes a multimedia timeline:
(Video starts at the end of the CSI ad)


Idea:
Although younger generations will leave the world digital legacies in some form or another,  the ideas, and views of our elders are not often found online. Wouldn't it be great if we could capture the wisdom of our elders in a broad way and get it on the web?

It would be great if students in schools around the world could work on a shared on-line multimedia timeline project like this, highlighting their elderly relatives and friends of the family!

If something like this exists, please let me know.

RELATED
Centuries of Wisdom From the World's Oldest Man
Aaron Saenz, Singularity Hub, 1/8/11

Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog

Multi-modal Interactive Maps for People With Visual Impairments: Featuring a Stantum multitouch screen with a tactile layer

To learn more about this project, take a look at the video and related publications below. This is a great example of a team that is harnessing emerging technologies to improve the lives of people with disabilities.


Video: "Multimodal Maps for Blind People"


Website


Publications
Anke Brock, Philippe Truillet, Bernard Oriola, Christophe Jouffrai (IRIT CNRS and Universite de Toulouse) Usage of Multimodal Maps for Blind People: Why and How
ITS’10, November 7–10, 2010, Saarbrücken, Germany
Paper: http://www.irit.fr/~Philippe.Truillet/projects/doc/MultimodalMapsForTheBlind-ITS10.pdf
Poster: http://www.irit.fr/~Philippe.Truillet/projects/doc/Poster-ITS10.pdf

Stantum (Multi-touch screen used for the application.)
Ivy Middleware (Used in this application.)

Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog

Child-Computer Interaction Workshop on May 7th at CHI 2011: Deadline extended to February 18th!

The deadline for submissions to the CHI 2011 Child Computer Interaction: 2nd Workshop on UI Technologies an their Impact on Educational Pedagogy has been extended to February 18, 2011.

The workshop will be held on May 7, 2011, Vancouver, Canada, in conjunction with ACM's CHI 2011 conference. Interested researchers should submit a 4-page position paper in the ACM CHI adjunct proceedings style to the workshop management system.

Note that the best 3 papers will be pre-accepted for a upcoming for a theme issue of the Springer Journal Personal and Ubiquitous Computing on “Child Computer Interaction”.

IMPORTANT DATES
Submission Deadline: February 18th, 2011
Author Notification: March 15th, 2011
Final Version Deadline: April 1st, 2011
Workshop Date: May 7th, 2011


DETAILS 
2011 Workshop Website
Call for Papers
Workshop Management System

ACM CHI 2011 Website

Note:  Deadlines for several other CHI 2011 workshops have also been extended to February 18th. (Pictures and links from the CHI 2010 workshop are located at the end of this post.)

CALL FOR PAPERS

IN CONJUNCTION WITH CHI 2011

Child Computer Interaction: Workshop on UI Technologies and Educational Pedagogy

in conjunction with CHI 2011, Vancouver

May 7th, 2011

Topic: Given the emergence of Child Computer Interaction and the ubiquitous application of interactive technology as an educational tool, there is a need to explore how next generation HCI will impact education in the future. Educators are depending on the interaction communities and to deliver technologies that will improve and adapt learning to an ever- changing world. In addition to novel UI concepts, the HCI community needs to examine how these concepts can be matched to contemporary paradigms in educational pedagogy. The classroom is a challenging environment for evaluation, thus new techniques need to be established to prove the value of new HCI interactions in the educational space. This workshop provides a forum to discuss key HCI issues facing next generation education.


We invite authors to present position papers about potential design challenges and perspectives on how the community should handle the next generation of HCI in education. Topics of interest include:


• Gestural input, multitouch, large displays, multi-display interaction, response systems
• Mobile Devices/mobile & pervasive learning
• Tangible, VR, AR & MR, Multimodal interfaces, universal design, accessibility
• Console gaming, 3D input devices, 3D displays
• Co-located interaction, presentations, tele-presence, interactive video
• Child Computer Interaction, Educational Pedagogy, learner-centric, adaptive “smart” applications,
• Empirical methods, case studies, linking of HCI research with educational research methodology
•Usable systems to support learning and teaching: Ecology of learning, any where, anytime, (UX of cloud computing to support teaching and learning)


Submission: The deadline for workshop paper submissions is February 18, 2011. Interested researchers should submit a 4-page position paper in the ACM CHI adjunct proceedings style to the workshop management system. Acceptance notifications will be sent out March 15, 2011. The workshop will be held May 7, 2011 in Vancouver, Canada. Please note that at least one author of an accepted position paper must register for the workshop and for one or more days of the CHI 2011 conference.

The best 3 papers will be pre accepted for a upcoming for a theme issue of the Springer

journal Personal and Ubiquitous Computing on “Child Computer Interaction”. Other authors are also invite to submit/ resubmit their work. We will send a separate call for paper for this special issue soon.

Website: http://www.dfki.de/EducationCHI2011

Contact: Edward Tse, SMART Technologies, edwardtse@smarttech.com

CHI 2010

NEXT GENERATION OF HCI AND EDUCATION

2010 Workshop Website

Join an interdisciplinary, international group of like-minded peers and colleagues.

Brainstorm with thought leaders.

After the workshop, relax, dine, and converse with interesting people.

Link to Education Week Blog Post: "Five Words and Phrases that Sound Different to Teachers"

Five Words and Phrases that Sound Different to Teachers
Roxanna Elden, Education Week Blog. 1/10/10


"Failure is not an option"
"Research-based"
"Rigor"
"Status Quo"
"Paradigm Shift"


Be sure to read the heart-felt comments!

iPad and Tablet Games for Education - via Eliane Alhadeff

Eliane Alhadeff, author of the Serious Games Market blog, has a few posts that include good information and links about the use of the iPad and tablets for education.  

We know the kids are ready.  What about the adults?

Here are the links:
Serious Games For iPad Put Children In The Education Driver's Seat
iPad & Serious Games to Revolutionize the Way Students Access Core Curriculum
Predictions To Rock The Education World: Tablets As Serious Games

RELATED
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
HMH fuse Algebra 1 for the iPad
Math That Moves:  Schools Embrace the iPad
Winnie Hu, New York Times, 1/4/11
Five Predictions for 2011 That Will Rock the Education World
John Moravec, Education Futures Blog 12/30/2010

SOMEWHAT RELATED
Scholastic's Family Playground

Food for Thought: Links to an assortment of articles and posts about key issues in education

The Attack on American Education
Robert Reich, Wal Street Pit, 12/22/10


In this article, the author provides examples of how many states in the US are cutting back funding for K-12 and higher education. School nurses, psychologists, technologists, counselors, social workers, librarians, special educators will be seen in fewer numbers in many states, in an effort to focus limited funds to support classroom teachers. In many states, teachers will have more students in each classroom, and less support for assisting the growing number of students who are "high risk" or have special needs.

Scholar's School Reform U-Turns Shakes Up Debate (About Diane Ravitch)
Sam Dillon, New York Times, 3/2/2010


The Best (and Worst) Education News of 2010
Larry Ferlazzo, Huffington Post, 12/27/10
(Larry is an English teacher)


(I'll add more to this post soon!)


Somewhat Related


 Larry Ferlazzo's blog post, "The Best Sites for Collaborative Storytelling"

Hans Rosling Interacts with Health Data: 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes

Hans Rosling's enthusiasm for data visualization has increased my appreciation for statistics. In the video below, Rosling interacts with 120,000 data points related to 200 countries over 200 years. I especially like the "Alternate Reality" effect.

"Unveiling the beauty of statistics for a fact based world view"

Hans Rosling is a Professor of Global Health in Stockholm, Sweden, and the Director of the Gapminder Foundation.  The Gapminder World website has a wealth of resources for teachers, students, and anyone who is interested in learning about things through the use of information visualization. 

According to information from the website, "Gapminder is a non-profit venture – a modern “museum” on the Internet – promoting sustainable global development and achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.Gapminder was founded in Stockholm by Ola Rosling, Anna Rosling Rönnlund and Hans Rosling on February 25, 2005. Gapminder is registered as a Foundation at Stockholm County Administration Board (Länstyrelsen i Stockholm) with registration number (organisationsnummer) 802424-7721."

Below is a list of annotated links to various Gapminder webpages:

Gapminder Labs: "Gapminder Labs is where we experiment with new features, visualizations and tools. Some of these might later gain a more prominent place on Gapminder.org."

Gapminder for Teachers: "This section is for educators who want to use Gapminder in their education. You'll find shortcuts to tools and guides for Gapminder in a classroom."

Gapminder Downloads: This section includes links to downloadable content, such as Gapminder Desktop, handouts, lesson plans, including teacher guides, and a good number of interesting interactive presentations.

Gapminder Videos: The videos include interesting presentations as well as a number of Hans Rosling's TED talks. The material is free to use and distribute under the Creative Commons License.

Data in Gapminder World:  This section includes all of the indicators displayed in Gapminder World.

Gapminder World

Gapminder FAQs

Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology and The World Is My Interface blogs.

SMALLab Update: Embodied and Engaged Learning - ASU researchers partner with GameDesk

SMALLab is an interdisciplinary collaborative project at the Arts, Media and Engineering program at Arizona State University, and includes people from fields such as education, art, theatre, computer science, engineering, and psychology.  The SMALLab provides students with a multi-sensory, multi-modal way of learning concepts in an immersive environment, and uses a motion capture system that tracks the position of the students as they move and interact within the environment.

SMALLab's project lead is David Birchfield,  a media artist, researcher, and educator who focuses on K-12 learning, media art installations, and live computer music performances.  SMALLab researchers have recently partnered with GameDesk to develop a 6th grade curriculum for a GameDesk charter school in 2012. (Information and links related to GameDesk are located in the RELATED section of this post.)

Below is a detailed excerpt from an overview of SMALLab:
"In today’s world, digital technology must play a central role in students’ learning. A convergence of trends in the learning science and human-computer interaction (HCI) research offers new theoretical and technological frameworks for learning. in particular, mixed-reality, experiential media systems can support learning in a way that is social, collaborative, multimodal, and embodied. These systems comprise a new breed of student-centered learning environments [SCLE’s]. Importantly, they must address the practicalities of today’s classrooms and informal learning environments (eg.: space, infrastructure, financial resources) while embracing the innovative forms of interactivity that are emerging from our media research communities (eg: multimodal sensing, real time interactive media, context aware computing)...
...SMALLab is an extensible platform for semi-immersive, mixed-reality learning. By semi-immersive, we mean that the mediated space of SMALLab is physically open on all sides to the larger environment. Participants can freely enter and exit the space without the need for wearing specialized display or sensing devices such as head-mounted displays (HMD) or motion capture markers. Participants seated or standing around SMALLab can see and hear the dynamic media, and they can directly communicate with their peers that are interacting in the space. As such, the semi-immersive framework establishes a porous relationship between SMALLab and the larger physical learning environment. By mixed-reality, we mean that there is an integration of physical manipulation objects, 3D physical gestures, and digitally mediated components. By extensible, we mean that researchers, teachers, and students can create new learning scenarios in SMALLab using a set of custom designed authoring tools and programming interfaces."

Below are a few videos about SMALLab, and information about GameDesk, an organization that is collaborating with SMALLab in California.



SMALLab Learning from SMALLab on Vimeo.

Below is a demonstration of a Smallab learning activity:

Gamedesk Smallab Session from Gamedesk on Vimeo.

SMALLab from SMALLab on Vimeo.

RELATED
Learning by Playing: Video Games in the Classroom
Sara Corbett, NYTimes Magazine, 9/15/10
People of SMALLab
SMALLab and Related Publications
ASU's SMALLab, a Mixed Reality Learning Environment - Multi-modal and Collaborative 
SMALLab Learning Lab at Quest to Learn School
Embodied Learning, GameDesk


Info about GameDesk, from the GameDesk website:
"GameDesk is a 501(c)3 nonprofit research and outreach organization that seeks to reshape models for learning through game-play and game development. The organization looks to help close the achievement gap and engage students to learn core STEM curriculum. It develops project-based learning with a strong focus on purpose, ownership, and personal value. The organization (originally developed out of research and support at the University of Southern California's IMSC) has now been in development, practice, and/or evaluation for over two years in various schools in the Los Angeles area."-Gamedesk

Gamedesk Concept Chart

Gamedesk People

Computer Science in Education Week: Videos, Resources, and Links to Promote Importance of Computer Science and Related Fields

This week is Computer Education in Education Week, part of an effort of ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) and CSTA (Computer Science Teachers Association) to promote awareness of the importance of computer science education in K-12 education. CSTA developed a series of short videos to share with students as part of this effort. The videos highlight the multitude of ways that computer scientists impact our world. In my opinion, the videos would be appropriate for sharing with parents, teachers, school counselors, school administrators, and school board members.

Computer Science and Entertainment


Computer Science and the Environment


Computer Science and Communications


Computer Science and Medicine


Computer Science and Empowerment


To dig deeper into this topic, read Running On Empty: The Failure to Teach K-12 Computer Science in the Digital Age (pdf)

RELATED
CSEd: Computer Science in Education Week
Computing in the Core
Computer Science in Education Facebook Page
Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology
ACM/CSTA's Recommendations
A Model Curriculum for K-12 Computer Science (PDF)
Google: Exploring Computational Thinking
ACM Computing Careers Website

Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.

Apps and Gadgets to Soothe the Baby: New York Times Article (video, links)

I came across a link to a recent NY Time's article, "The Pacificer Gets and Upgrade:  Apps and Gadgets to Soothe the Baby" on Nat Torkington's "Four short links" O'Reilly Radar post, and thought it was worth sharing, especially for my readers who are new parents or new grandparents! Here are a few of the links from the NY Times article:


iPhone Apps
White Noise   by TMSOFT  (Rated positive by new dad and NY Times writer Farhad Manjoo)
"White Noise provides ambient sounds of the environment to help you relax or sleep.  Includes high quality looping noises such as ocean waves, crickets chirping at night, and the soothing sound of rain fall."


MamaRoo "It moves like you do"

The following two apps/gadgets didn't seem to work as advertised, according to Farhad Manjoo:
Cry Translator "The iPhone App to Understand Baby Crying"
Why Cry Baby Analyzer


Baby Monitors
Philips Advent Basic with DECT Technology
Angelcare Movement and Sound Monitor
"Besides relaying your baby’s cries, it has a sensor pad, placed under the crib or bassinet mattress, that alerts parents when a baby has not moved for 20 seconds. It does not go off incessantly (the machine is sensitive enough to detect breathing) and is well suited to parents like me who cannot shake the paranoia that can come with caring for a new human being." -Farhad Manjoo


Farhad discussed monitors that feature web connectivity,   such as the MobiCam Digital Wireless Video Monitor and the Home Digital Video Monitor. These systems enable parents to watch the monitor's video of the baby via a smartphone.  To make this work, the baby monitor must be connected to a laptop or computer, which in turn must be turned on continuously, something that might not bee too convenient for busy parents.  He suggested that new parents take a look at the Lorex Wireless Easy Connect Network Camera, which has a built-in Wi-Fi chip that enables it to  connect to a wireless network without a computer. The Lorex isn't a baby monitor, but since it doesn't require a computer to work, it might be useful to anxious parents on-the-go who might want to see if their baby is being treated appropriately by a caregiver in their absence.


OTHER
Voice Activated Crib Light with Womb Sounds (just $14.99!)
Itzben Baby Care Timer ($24.00 -keeps track of diaper changes, feedings, and sleep patterns)


Farhad Manjoo's comment about babies and gadgets is worth heeding:
"... but babies are a fickle, ever-changing lot, and what works one time seems hopeless the next. As a gadget fiend, I’m used to evaluating technology in controlled settings, but there is nothing controlled about life with baby."


RELATED
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Farhad Manjoo, New York Times, 11/24/10


Cross-posted on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog