The Lived Experiences of 24/7 Connectivity on Secondary Educators

Student access to the Internet has dramatically increased during the first decade of 2000. A recent study indicated that over 85% of US teens have regular access to a cell phone (Rideout et al., 2010). The cell phone coupled with an Internet plan has created the smart phone. This technology allows students to decide when and where they want to learn. This new connectedness has created a new phenomenon for classroom teachers; the ability to connect with their students in a 24/7 environment. This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of five urban/suburban teachers in the Metro-Milwaukee area who routinely connect with kids 24/7 for educational purposes to examine what the impact of this phenomenon has on the teachers. The significance of this study was to shed light on the experiences of teachers who use technology to teach students when and where the students are ready to learn. There has been little or no research on this phenomenon given the newness of the technology. The teachers\u27 stories shed light on their experiences using a variety of software products to connect with students in an effort to increase student engagement and achievement. This study examined five high schools and is not generalizable to all high schools. The findings of this study revealed that teachers and students find a benefit to being able to connect with each other outside of the traditional classroom. Five themes, Connections; Firm Boundaries; Support - Administrative and Technological; Staff Development Needed; and The Evolving Classroom, and seventeen sub-themes were explored to determine implications for practice. Six implications for practice were identified: establishment of boundaries, time commitment needed, administrative and technological support, effective and meaningful staff development, curriculum development, and policy development. The study concludes with a list of recommendations for administrators and teachers who wish to explore opportunities to connect with students in a 24/7 learning environment

A Study of the Application of a Bring Your Own Device Strategy in an Elementary School

Numerous studies have been published on the efficacy of a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) at the U.S. secondary and postsecondary school levels to increase student access to technology. However, there is a lack of data on the efficacy of a BYOD AUP to increase elementary student technology access. The purpose of this descriptive case study was to determine if a BYOD AUP at the U.S. K-5 level would increase students\u27 access to technology as necessitated by the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). This study was grounded in social transmission and transformative theories. The phenomenon of a northwest suburban elementary school BYOD implementation was examined by documenting the perceptions, attitudes, beliefs, lived experiences, and practices of administrators and teachers. This study used interview and classroom observation of a purposive selection of 3 elementary educators, the principal, and superintendent. Coding of data according to key words lead to analysis according to nodes and themes. Triangulation of multiple data sources and member checking helped to establish the credibility of data. Study findings documented increased access to technology for elementary students, best practices and steps to implementation. Study recommendations for elementary educators and administrators considering BYOD include consensus building, AUP, technology infrastructure, communications, professional development, classroom management, and lesson design to inform the field on elementary BYOD. Study findings facilitate social change by providing BYOD implementation recommendations, increasing elementary student access to technology at a reduced cost to districts and schools

Internet Predictions

More than a dozen leading experts give their opinions on where the Internet is headed and where it will be in the next decade in terms of technology, policy, and applications. They cover topics ranging from the Internet of Things to climate change to the digital storage of the future. A summary of the articles is available in the Web extras section

An Exploration of How Health Professionals Create eHealth and mHealth Education Interventions

The purpose of this study was to explore how health education professionals create ehealth and mhealth education interventions. Three research questions led this qualitative study. The first research question focused on the use of learning theories, instructional models, and instructional design models. The second research question focused on the use of elearning and mlearning design principles. The third research question focused on the use of health behavior theories and models. Twelve health professionals selected for their involvement in the creation of ehealth and mhealth education interventions participated in this study. The themes emerging from the research questions showed a variability in how the participants used education theories and models, principles of elearning and mlearning design, and health behavior and health education theories and models to create ehealth and mhealth interventions. On education theories and models, the participants used elements of instructional design (i.e., analysis, design, evaluation) but did not use any specific instructional design model. Moreover, they invested efforts in creating instructional strategies that reflected instructional models of different learning theories but did not specify particular models or theories. Four themes emerged on the instructional strategies they used in the interventions: (1) connections to behaviorist approaches to learning, (2) connections to cognitivist approaches to learning, (3) connections to constructivist approaches to learning, and (4) unspecified learning theories. On the use of elearning design principles, seven patterns emerged: (1) interaction, (2) learner control, (3) provision of help, (4) use of multimedia, (5) engagement, (6) user friendliness, and (7) visual appeal. On the use of health behavior theories and models, three themes emerged (1) no use of health behavior theory or model, (2) use of a mix of health behavior theories or models, and (3) use of a particular health behavior theory or model. The variability of the findings and the resulting themes suggested implications for practice and further research. These implications concern all health professionals creating ehealth and mhealth interventions as well as scholars in the field of instructional design and health education and heath behavior. The implications and limitations of the study were also discussed

High School Band Directors\u27 Experiences Using Social Media in the Classroom

While social media is becoming an innovative tool in education for teacher and student use, little is known about how social media is being used in the high school band room to communicate with students, increase student-connectedness, or improve classroom community. Using Vygotsky\u27s theory of social constructivism, Siemens\u27s theory of connectivism, and Wenger\u27s community of practice theory as a framework, this study explored the phenomenon of social media as used in the high school band room for communication, student-connectedness, and classroom community. Participants included 10 high school band directors located throughout the United States who shared their experiences through 1-on-1 semistructured interviews and focus group interviews. Data analysis included coding and categorizing responses from interviews and focus groups to identify themes. Results indicated social media use contributed to improved communication, increased student-connectedness, and improved classroom community in the high school band classroom, though challenges of access, cyber-bulling, and a lack of training in social media use for the classroom were also revealed as concerns by participants. These findings could impact social change by providing evidence to support appropriate use of social media in high school band programs and change teacher mindset to embrace the power of social media for communication, for student connectedness, and to improve classroom community as well as in teacher preparation programs to encourage incorporating social media as a plausible teaching tool

Flexible, Physical Learning Environment Design Elements: How Do They Impact K-12 Stakeholders?

The purpose of this qualitative study, using a phenomenological design, was to examine the perspectives of seven K-12 stakeholders and to examine their understanding and experience with flexible learning environmental designs and how the stakeholders helped to support students’ sense of place. Data were collected using semi-structured one-on-one interviews. Three key findings emerged from this study. First, fluidity and connectedness allow teachers and students to transition from big more easily to medium to small spaces within a flexible instructional model. Second, flexible learning space does a better job inclusively engaging multiple student learning preferences, and third, teachers need to become champions for a change to flexible, physical learning environments. This study provided the following recommendations for research, K-12 school district and building leaders, teachers, boards of education, and state policy makers: First, K-12 school district and building leaders must provide a district-wide mission of fluidity and connectedness for inclusivity that is grounded in a sense of place to address multiple student learning preferences. Next, by using student-centered learning approaches in flexible, physical learning environments that do a better a job of reaching more students, teachers can be change agents for greater inclusivity. Lastly, boards of education need to act on administrator recommendations for physical space that promotes equitable opportunities for greater engagement, and state policy makers must welcome design solutions from architects that safely break down barriers, preventing collaboration by increasing a variety of space adjacency, fluidity, and connectedness

In the Eye of the Storm: A Special Report About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Response to the 2005 Gulf States Disasters

Describes the foundation's early decision-making, immediate response, and long-term commitment to rebuilding in the hurricane-affected areas. Highlights staff and grantee activities, as well as lessons learned about the grantmaking process and strategy

Voices of middle and high school teachers on the knowledge, skills, and motivation needed when using iPads in teaching

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston UniversityThis study reports teacher self-perceived needs for using iPad mobile technology (MT) in terms of knowledge, skills, and motivation. Using qualitative methods, twelve experienced teachers who had already used iPads in their teaching for at least one year were the participants in interviews, classroom observations, and document analysis. The teachers' observations and reflections on using MT in education can contribute to an understanding of how education may improve through the use ofMT. The overarching research question was: which factors, related to knowledge, skills, and motivation, do teachers report as influential when using MT, specifically iPads, for educational purposes? The questions that guided this study were: • What components of knowledge do teachers think they need to use iPads? • What skills do teachers think they need to use iPads? • What motivates teachers to integrate iPads in the classroom? The data suggested that the participating teaches relied on sixteen elements of skills, knowledge, and motivation when integrating iPads in teaching. However, when the teachers reported the application of those elements in the iPad integration process, they tended to focus on instructional goals, strategy and implementation, which revealed the intertwined nature of those sixteen elements that teacher rely on. Based on these teachers' intertwined application of skills, knowledge, and motivation toward to instructional goals, this study proposed a refinement of the TPACK conceptual model as a three- dimensional "web" diagram, to include these practical elements. The diagram also includes motivation. The history of educational media and technology has repeatedly found that motivation is an important factor in the technology integration process. Conclusions include that adding motivation to the model to expand the TPACK framework (Mishra & Koehler, 2006) is important and that the holistic view of TPACK and motivation allows educational stakeholders to gain a better understanding of teacher needs for MT integration. Findings also include suggestions for better strategies and policies regarding MT training to take advantage of the uniqueness of the iPad and other MT that may improve and enhance teaching and learning