Reinventing Curriculum | Blog

Here you'll find analysis and views on technology, policy and curriculum in elementary and secondary education by two outspoken technology advocates, Elliot Soloway and Cathie Norris. Reinventing Curriculum is published twice per month. Below you will also find the archive for Elliot and Cathie's previous blog, Being Mobile.


Face-to-face Universities Absolutely Still Have a Place!

Online — for all things, online — certainly looks like the right side of history. But, as we argue in this week’s blog, face-to-face universities offer undergraduates two unique opportunities that online universities simply can’t!

Mobile Learning: Now In the Hands of Teenagers

While "mobile learning" may be overshadowed these days by other tech trends, make no mistake: in the hands of today’s youth, mobile learning is huge! Data to back that claim up — and more like it — are in this week’s blog post, where we interview Dr. Julie Evans, CEO — and Diva Extraordinaire — of Project Tomorrow. Using their "phones" teens are absolutely exploring "socially-based, un-tethered and digitally rich learning."

Understand NGSS in 5 Minutes

Understand NGSS in 5 Minutes: Sort of

NGSS – The Next Generation Science Standards – is the hot new way to teach science in K-12. NGSS is a revolution in science education. In our blog, we briefly try to do that revolution justice by explaining its five key terms.

Here’s How to Manage the Full Lifecycle of Your Digital Lessons

Deeply digital, highly interactive curricula are fast becoming the new normal; such materials are needed in order to take advantage of those newly minted 1-to-1 classrooms. The Collabrify Roadmap Platform at http://roadmap.center is a free resource designed to take the burden out of creating and using this new generation of curricula.

The Holy Grail of Ed Tech Apps: Require Minimal Teacher Investment and Provide Maximal Student Impact

Why don’t techies typically understand how to reach the Holy Grail of ed tech with their apps? In this week’s blog post we look to Kahoot! — a Jeopardy-style game — to better understand the value of making a teacher’s life easier!

Mobile Learning: 1998, 2008, 2018

In its first decade, 1998-2008, "mobile learning" was all about getting devices into the hands of K-12 students and teachers. Palms initially proliferated; then Pocket PCs. In those early days, there was plenty of excitement and energy — for good reason — amongst the early adopters. Why didn’t mobile learning catch on, then?

TV Is (Finally) an App: The Goods, The Bads and the Uglies for Learning

TV – live shows (news, documentaries, etc.), not just YouTubes – is now available on all devices as an app. And, TV as an app makes absolutely unique resources readily available in the palm of a learner’s hand. However, as we discuss in this week’s blog post: if only it were that simple!

Use Computers in the Classroom for Personalized Learning and Social Learning

Personal computing devices are entering the K-12 classroom at a dramatically increased rate. Using those computers to support personalized learning is definitely in the cards. However, we urge those in charge: remember your Dewey — "education is a social process" — and use those computers for social learning as well!

Students Write More, Write Better on the Computer: Rigorously Supported!

Singer and Ivory, in their Nov. 4 New York Times article, made a major mis-speak: "... there is little rigorous evidence so far to indicate that using computers in class improves educational results." In this week’s blog post we identify research that addresses Singer and Ivory’s concern, as well as documenting the fact that K-12 students write more and write better when using a computer.

IT Staff Support is Critical for Success in 1-to-1 Classrooms

Educators typically have mixed views on their school’s IT staff — to put it mildly. In order to better understand IT staff’s priorities, responsibilities and resources, we lunched with them recently. Our eyes were opened by those conversations!

Being Mobile | Podcast

The Being Mobile podcast series features Elliot Soloway and Cathie Norris at their outspoken best, having lively conversations about a different mobile technology topic each month.

  • Bringing Down Barriers to Mobilism

    Fresh from UNESCO Mobile Week in Paris, Elliot and Cathie report on how students in developing countries are using feature phones for education. April 2013; File Type: WMA; Size: 2,919 KB Length: 04:00 Listen Now

  • One Tablet Per Child?

    Falling prices for computers and data plans could have a major impact on K-12, but is your infrastructure ready? March 2013; File Type: WMA; Size: 2,039 KB; Length: 02:48 Listen Now

  • What Does "Successful" Mean?

    When it comes to using mobile devices in class, Elliot and Cathie caution against mistaking engagement for achievement. February 2013; File Type: WMA; Size: 2,757 KB; Length: 03:47 Listen Now

  • Welcome to the Podcast

    Mobilists Elliot and Cathie introduce their podcast and explain why mobile technologies are becoming an inescapable part of the classroom. January 2013; File Type: M4A; Size: 7,246 KB; Length: 03:39 Listen Now