In partnership with the Alliance for Excellent Education and Getting Smart, KnowledgeWorks and Ohio Education Matters are pleased to announce Ohio’s participation in the first-ever Digital Learning Day on Wednesday, February 1st, 2012.
By participating in Digital Learning Day, Ohio strives to build momentum for a wave of innovation that changes policies, shifts attitudes, and supports wide-scale adoption of promising instructional practices.
This national effort is designed to celebrate educational practices that make learning more personalized and engaging for students and to explore educational policies to support innovative models of teaching and learning.
Events will take place across the U.S. and we invite you to these events right here in Ohio.
“Getting Smart” Book Chat with Tom Vander Ark
KnowledgeWorks, Ohio Education Matters, The Ohio State University College of Education and Human Ecology and the Ohio Resource Center will co-host this exciting opportunity to engage in dialogue with Digital Learning Now! luminary Tom Vander Ark about his recently-released book Getting Smart: How Digital Learning is Changing the World. Executive Director of Innosight Institute Michael B. Horn lauds: “Provocative and bold, Tom Vander Ark’s Getting Smart challenges long-held assumptions about education, points to why innovation will be so critical to enabling the education system of the future, and paints a vision of what learning could look like throughout society—and how we so desperately need it.” The book talk will conclude with reflection from President Debe Terhar of the State Board of Education of Ohio. Click here for a sample chapter of Getting Smart.
- 2:00pm
- The Ohio State University, Thompson Library, Campus Reading Room, 1858 Neil Avenue Mall, Columbus, OH
- Directions & Parking: There are entrances to the Thompson Library on the Oval (east) and Neil Avenue (west) sides of the building. Recommended parking for Library is Tuttle Parking Garage at 2050 Tuttle Park Place, Columbus, OH 43210. (Note: The Neil Avenue Garage, which is normally used for the library is not available to the public until after 4:00pm.) The Campus Reading Room is located on the top floor.
Education Committee to Hear Testimony on Digital Learning
The Education Committee of the Ohio House of Representatives of the 129th General Assembly will begin its February 1st hearing with testimony on digital learning from Tom Vander Ark and a cadre of digital learning stakeholders. This opportunity to engage with the committee is especially important as the recommendations of the Ohio Digital Learning Task Force will be released on March 1.
- 5:00pm
- Room 313, Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Square, Columbus, OH Note: This constitutes a room change from Room 17 to Room 313.
- Directions & Parking: Vehicles can reach the Statehouse parking garage from Broad Street, State Street or Third Street. Parking is available in the Statehouse’s underground garage, which will provide you with direct, sheltered access to the Ohio Statehouse. There is no access to the garage from High Street.
Ohio Digital Learning Day Reception
KnowledgeWorks, Ohio Education Matters, Getting Smart, and the Alliance for Excellent Education in partnership with the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Ohio Grantmakers Forum and eTech Ohio will co-host a reception to celebrate National Digital Learning Day in Ohio. Remarks by: Senator Peggy Lehner, Chair of the Senate Education Committee and member of the Ohio Digital Learning Task Force; Representative Gerald Stebelton, Chair of the Ohio House of Representatives Education Committee; Brian Ross, President and CEO of KnowledgeWorks; digital learning luminary Tom Vander Ark of Getting Smart, and more. The event (including light fare and refreshments) is an opportunity to recognize the work of the Ohio Digital Learning Task Force and celebrate the potential of digital learning in Ohio.
- Reception begins at 6:00pm, Opening Remarks at 6:30pm
- Statehouse Atrium, Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Square, Columbus, OH
- Directions & Parking: Vehicles can reach the Statehouse parking garage from Broad Street, State Street or Third Street. Parking is available in the Statehouse’s underground garage, which will provide you with direct, sheltered access to the Ohio Statehouse. There is no access to the garage from High Street.
Click the registration link for these Columbus, Ohio events.
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In addition to these local events, be sure to check out Ohio in the national spotlight.
Town Hall Meeting in Nation’s Capital Featuring Ohio’s New Tech West
Digital Learning Day events will take place across the country, with many ways to participate. Don’t miss the special live Virtual Town Hall meeting from 1:00-2:30pm EST that will feature Cleveland Metropolitan School District’s New Tech West, a member of the New Tech Network of innovative schools. This Town Hall meeting will feature U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, President of the Alliance for Excellent Education and Former Governor of West Virginia Bob Wise, Founder of the Foundation for Excellence in Education and Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Harvard University professor and author Chris Dede.
Click here to register for the Virtual Town Hall meeting!
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Recognizing Digital Learning Day on February 1st is just a start. We are excited to share the work of agencies throughout Ohio who will extend the work of Digital Learning Day and continue to build awareness for the potential of digital learning with events throughout February and beyond.
From our partners:
The Ohio Department of Education will use Digital Learning Day as an opportunity to kick off a month-long initiative promoting the integrated use of technology as a teaching tool. The primary message is that technology can be leveraged to encourage a culture of learning and high engagement for problem-based learning and 21st century skills. ODE will partner with eTech, University System of Ohio, INFOhio and Knowledge Works to showcase various resources on ODE’s homepage – ohio.education.gov. This will include featuring topics on a daily basis, loosely following this format: Monday – digital resource/actual tool; Tuesday – Ohio digital story; Wednesday – webinar (live or recycled); Thursday – resource used in other states; Friday – digital resource/actual tool and designing a web page for ODE to collect the daily topics and introduce a new ODE Facebook page targeted at teachers.
eTech Ohio, a state agency dedicated to preparing learners for a technology-driven world, will participate in National Digital Learning Day by promoting Ohio’s dynamic digital learning initiatives. eTech Ohio will harness its network of networks to promote access to digital learning resources for Ohio students, parents and educators, including National Digital Learning Day materials and toolkits. We will share stories of innovation and transformation from across the state about the utilization of digital tools that engage learners of all ages to improve, prepare, and achieve. eTech Ohio will convene over 6,000 participates to the Ohio Educational Technology Conference (Next Generation Innovation, February 13-15, 2012) to continue the dialogue and make every day digital learning day for Ohio learners. Specialized learning tracks for 2012 include interactive mobile technologies, specialized resources for technology coordinators, emerging issues for administrators and policy makers and much more.
The Ohio Resource Center (ORC) is pleased to participate in Ohio’s Digital Learning Day by partnering with KnowledgeWorks to co-host a book talk with noted author Tom Vander Ark. ORC will record this event and provide footage to share on partner websites. ORC will also celebrate the day by featuring DL Day tips and ideas on its website, along with a sampling of planned school activities occurring throughout Ohio.
We would also like to provide the following information related to Digital Learning resources in Ohio:
INFOhio is the go-to site for online database access for K-12. About every other week, INFOhio hosts an hour long webinar on different digital topics. Some webinars focus on INFOhio resources, but some of them are on more general topics, such as cybersafety. Some of the topics covered are Preparing Students to Survive and Thrive in College, Support Inquiry Learning: Using critical thinking and 21st Century resources, Ohio as America: Teaching 4th Grade Ohio History Just Got Better! For a complete list of webinars, go to http://www.infohio.org/
21 Essential Things for 21st Century Learning–This is a self-paced, online study program that introduces teachers to the breadth of Web 2.0 tools available. It’s free to anyone who wants it. Teachers can earn graduate credit with it, as well, but there is a charge for that. The list of modules is at http://learningcommons.
Instructional Strategy Modules–This is a series of professionally produced videos that give teachers insights into teaching inquiry learning. They cover teaching 21st century skills such as cooperative learning and self-assessment as well as old standbys such as note taking. They are found at http://learningcommons.
Ohio’s Learning For the Digital Age Initiative
Learning for the Digital Age is a professional development initiative for Ohio’s K-12 administrators and teachers that explores the role of technology in supporting critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork and communication – the skills students need to be effective in today’s classroom and tomorrow’s workplace. This statewide collaboration of Ohio’s Educational Technology Agencies, Educational Television Stations, and eTech Ohio provides high-quality interactive training for educators to help students use technology to master these essential skills for success throughout life.
The “Four C’s” of Critical thinking, Creativity, Collaboration, and Communication are widely recognized as encompassing the necessary skills to support independent and lifelong learning. However, the “Four C’s” also provide the framework for interaction and productivity that contribute to success academically, professionally, and personally at any stage of life. Once mastered, these skills travel with an individual for life.
The trainings available as part of this initiative allow educators to explore the “what,” “why” and “how” of using technology in the classroom to foster the “Four C’s.” They engage in hands-on activities that allow them to experience and practice the “Four C’s” during the training experience with a selection of commonly available technology tools and digital resources. As a result, they develop a deeper understanding of the importance of these skills and are able to more effectively integrate them into everyday instruction.
The Learning for the Digital Age self-paced, online class is open to all Ohio Educators. To participate, you will need to register for the class. Click here to begin.
For more information, visit:http://www.digitallearningday.org/
