When you think of the Supreme Court, you think of old people in black robes that dispassionately determine the fate of the country’s laws. That’s all true, but there’s more to maintaining law and order than a podium and a gavel. The Supreme Court is the apex of one of three branches in the American government:

• The Legislative (the House and the Senate) passes laws
• The Executive (the President) executes the laws
• The Judicial (all courts in the United States) judges whether laws abide by the Constitution

The Supreme Court consists of nine individuals who are nominated by the President and voted in by the Senate. Once approved, they serve for life, the hope being that this allows them to judge apolitically, based on the merits of the case rather than political leaning. These guidelines are not without controversy but are critical to a healthy, democratic environment.

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In this article, discover how high school education is shifting towards personalized learning. Gain insight into the strategies administrators are using to meet the changing needs of teen students.

The Future of High School Education: Navigating the Shift to Personalized Learning

High school – a time of excitement, curiosity, exploration and growth. The world is filled with endless possibilities! Students have never been so empowered to explore their true potential and find paths that work for them. However, there’s no doubt that the high school experience has changed drastically in recent years. Technology advances and education evolves at an unprecedented pace.

Educational trends have been changing towards personalized learning approaches. We’ve thus seen a fundamental shift in how high school students learn within the classroom setting. But what exactly does this mean for the future of our educations? In this blog post, we’ll dive into the evolution of high school teaching styles to get an idea of just how far these changes can go!

What is personalized learning and how it is different from traditional schooling

If you’re a student who can’t seem to thrive in a traditional classroom setting, then personalized learning may just be your ticket to success. Personalized learning is an approach that tailors education to each individual’s strengths and weaknesses. Unlike traditional schooling, which often relies on one-size-fits-all teaching methods, personalized learning takes into account diverse learning styles and interests. With the rise of technology, this future highschool is leaning towards this modern approach to education.

Another way in which learning has evolved

Another benefit of adaptative learning is that students don’t fear getting help anymore. Gone are the days when getting help was stigmatized. Today, students have a handy tool up their sleeves: the Edubirdie writing service. This content writing service is a lifesaver for students who need help with their research paper on nursing or different coursework about any other topic. With a reputation that precedes it, EduBirdie has become a go-to for students looking for high-quality writing assistance.

Whether you’re struggling to get started or just need a second pair of eyes to proofread your work, EduBirdie has got you covered. Thank goodness for technology! Read more for more benefits.

Benefits of personalizing education for high school student

Personalized education may be just what you need! Not sure? Here are five benefits.

1. Boosted Confidence. Once you start receiving education tailored to your individual learning style, you’ll gain a newfound confidence in your academic abilities.
2. Targeted Learning. Personalized education allows for teachers to focus specifically on each student’s areas of weakness. This can help them build up to their full potential.
3. Improved Performance. Students tend to perform better on assessments and standardized tests. It’s a proven fact!
4. Passion-Oriented Education. Got a passion? Personalized education can help you pursue it! Teachers can work with students to incorporate their interests into their coursework.
5. Increased Engagement. Are you tired of being bored in class? Personalization can help with that! When students feel that their unique needs are being met, they are more likely to be engaged and stay focused in class.

Obstacles with such strategy in the classroom setting

Picture it – a high school of the future, where every student has a tailored learning experience to fit their unique needs and interests. Sounds nice, right?

Indeed. But nothing comes without challenges. In fact, technology can have both positives and negatives. It allows us to individualize instruction but it also requires significant investment and upkeep.

Then there’s the challenge of teacher preparation. We need to ensure educators are equipped to facilitate this type of learning environment. Plus, monitoring progress and assessment can become more complex as time goes by. That’s when students are all working on different tasks.

And last but not least, there’s the issue of equity. We need to ensure that personalized learning doesn’t perpetuate disparities.

How technology can support personalized learning in the classroom

With the increasing advancement in technology, personalized learning can be implemented quite easily in this so-called highschool of the future. AI-driven content is quickly becoming a reliable and robust alternative to traditional textbooks. Students can absorb information that caters to their personal learning styles. Furthermore, with VR technology, students can experience interactive and immersive learning experiences. VR adds a whole new dimension to learning that is both exciting and educational.

Plus, adaptive learning platforms and interactive whiteboards are also available to support this. Teachers can also use learning management systems to provide students with individualized assignments and assessments. Thus, while augmented reality can transport students to new and exciting learning environments. And let’s not forget about gamification! This is where game-based learning can motivate and engage students while providing them with immediate feedback.

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The future of high school education is looking quite promising as we navigate the shift to personalized learning. No longer do we have to sit through lectures and activities that don’t appeal to our interests or learning styles. Instead, we’re able to take control of our education and tailor it to our unique needs. It’s like having a personal trainer for our brain! Plus, we can expect to see even more exciting changes in the years to come. So let’s buckle up, embrace the shift, and get ready for a high school experience that is truly personalized and fulfilling.

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Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-18 technology for 30 years. She is the editor/author of over a hundred tech ed resources including a K-12 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, Master Teacher, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, contributor to NEA Today, and author of the tech thrillers, To Hunt a Sub and Twenty-four Days. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.

Earlier this month,, we posted activities for a summer school student program. Now, we’ll focus on you–what do you want to accomplish with your summer? Here are popular AATT articles. Pick the ones that suit you:

6 Must-reads for This Summer

Summer for me is nonstop reading — in an easy chair, under a tree, lying on the lawn, petting my dog. Nothing distracts me when I’m in the reading zone. What I do worry about is running out of books so this year, I spent the last few months stalking efriends to find out what they recommend to kickstart the upcoming school year. And it paid off. I got a list of books that promise to help teachers do their job better, faster, and more effectively but there are too many. 

10 Books You’ll Want to Read This Summer–prior edition

If you want more than those in the “6 Must-reads for This Summer”, this is the list from an earlier year.

5 Apps to learn this summer

Summer has a reputation for being nonstop relaxation, never-ending play, and a time when students stay as far from “learning” as they can get. For educators, those long empty weeks result in a phenomenon known as “Summer Slide” — where students start the next academic year behind where they ended the last.

This doesn’t have to happen. Think about what students don’t like about school. Often, it revolves around repetitive schedules, assigned grades, and/or being forced to take subjects they don’t enjoy. In summer, we can meet students where they want to learn with topics they like by offering a menu of ungraded activities that are self-paced, exciting, energizing, and nothing like school learning. We talk about life-long learners (see my article on life-long learners). This summer, model it by offering educational activities students will choose over watching TV, playing video games, or whatever else they fall into when there’s nothing to do.

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Kids love personalizing their computer stations. Show them how to create their own wallpaper using internet pictures, pictures on the computer, or their own photos or drawings (more…)

Screen time for kids is a huge discussion among parents and teachers. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends:

• Ages 0-18 months: No screen time at all, except for video chatting.
• Ages 18-24 months: One hour of high-quality, interactive screen time per day, such as educational programming or video chatting.
• Ages 2-5: One hour of screen time per day, with a focus on high-quality, interactive content.
• Ages 6-12: Two hours of screen time per day, with a focus on educational and prosocial content.
• Ages 13-18: Three hours of screen time per day, with a focus on educational and prosocial content.

But other experts vary considerably in their recommendations. In the end, it’s up to parents to make those decisions, based on what’s right for their child. Here are the critical factors to consider when making those decisions:

How Much Screen Time is Okay for Kids on the Evenings and Weekends? 

In today’s fast-paced world, modern-day kids have unprecedented access to electronic devices that can serve as valuable tools in their learning journey. However, despite the numerous benefits these devices offer, it’s important to acknowledge the potential negative consequences of their excessive use. 

As such, parents should be mindful of regulating their child’s screen time, especially during evenings and weekends, to ensure their overall well-being and balance between digital engagement and other aspects of life. In this article, we’ll explore the effects of too much screen time as well as the best ways to regulate screen time, especially during weekends and holidays. 

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I taught technology to kindergarten through eighth graders for almost fifteen years (now I teach grad school classes). Parents and colleagues were constantly amazed that I could get the littlest learners to pay attention, remember, and have fun with the tech skills required to grow into competent, enthusiastic examples of the digital generation.

I have a confession to make: It’s not as hard as it looks. Sure, those first few kindergarten months, when they don’t know what the words enter and backspace mean, and don’t understand why they can’t grab their neighbor’s headphones or bang on their keyboard, I do rethink my chosen field. But that passes. By January, every parent tour that passes through my classroom thinks I’m a magician.

What’s my secret? I teach every child to be a problem solver. If their computer doesn’t work, I have them fix it (what’s wrong with it? What did you do last time? Have you tried…?) If they can’t remember how to do something, I prod them (Think back to the instructions. What did you do last week? See that tool—does that look like it would help?) I insist they learn those geek words that are tech terminology (There’s no such thing as earphones. Do you mean headphones? I don’t understand when you point. Do you mean the cursor?) No matter how many hands are waving in my face, I do not take a student’s mouse in my hand and do for them, nor will I allow parent helpers to do this (that is a bigger challenge than the students. Parents are used to doing-for. They think I’m mean when I won’t—until they’ve spent a class period walking my floorboards.). I guide students to an answer. I am patient even when I don’t feel it inside. My goal is process, not product. (more…)

Most elementary-age students struggle with typing. This doesn’t surprise me. They’ve been handwriting since kindergarten. They’re proud of their new cursive skills. It’s easy to grab a pencil. Typing requires setting up their posture, hand position, trying to remember where all those pesky keys are (why aren’t they just alphabetized? Discuss that with students).

In third grade, we chat about why they learn to keyboard when they can already handwrite–faster. The discussion eventually ends up with a comparison of handwriting and keyboarding:

• Discuss whether students handwrite faster/slower than they type. You are likely to get opinions on both sides of this discussion. If not, prod students with logic for both.
• When it’s clear the class is divided on this subject (or not–that’s fine too), run an experiment to see which is faster—handwriting or typing.
• Circle back to science class and engage in a discussion on the Scientific Method. Develop a hypothesis for this class research, something like: Third grade students in Mr. X’s class can handwrite faster than they type (this is the most common opinion in my classes).
• Have students hand-copy the typing quiz they took earlier in the trimester for 3 minutes.
• Analyze the results: Compare their handwriting speed to their typing speed. I encourage an individual comparison as well as a class average comparison to help with understanding the conclusion.
• Discuss results: Why do students think some students typed faster and others typed slower? (In my classes, third graders typed approx. 10 wpm and handwrote approx. 15 wpm. Discussion was heated and enthusiastic on reasons. Especially valuable were the thoughts of those rare students who typed faster).
• Students will offer lots of reasons for slower typing (they’re new to typing, don’t do it much in class, their hands got off on the keyboard). In truth, the logistics of typing make it the hands-down winner once key placement is secured. Fingers on a keyboard are significantly faster than the moving pencil.
• One reason students suggest is that they don’t usually type from copy. Key in on this reason (quite valid, I think—don’t you?) and revise the experiment to have students type and handwrite from a prompt.
• What is the final conclusion?
• If possible, share results from 4-8^th. What grade level do students consistently type faster than they handwrite? Why? Are students surprised by the answer?
• Post a list on the wall of students who type faster than they handwrite. This surprises everyone.

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A lot of teacher-authors read my writers blog, WordDreams. In this monthly column, I share a popular post readers over there enjoyed. 

One of the popular posts on WordDreams was about progress on my next prehistoric fiction, but what really caught readers’ attention were 1) skills we never thought our ancestors possessed 150,000 years ago, and 2) the unexpected roots of music. See what you think:

 

Endangered Species is Book 1 of  Savage Land, the third trilogy in the primeval man series, Dawn of Humanity.

One piece of man’s prehistoric past I’ve wanted to uncover is when our ancestors first discovered religion. Conventional wisdom says that came about to answer unanswerable questions like why does it rain? And proof man believed in a god arrived when we began to bury our dead.

But I wanted more so I kept digging.

I discovered an interesting bit of paleo history in France called Bruniquel Cave. This is a 176,000 year old cavern

built deep underground by Neanderthals.

We know they did it because they were the only early man in Europe at that time. It is about

350 strides beyond the reach of natural light.

Not just any cave, though, with stone walls and a hearth. This one had been constructed:

Neanderthals gathered over 400 pieces of  heavy stalagmites and placed them in two rings, one within the other, and did it without natural light. 

How did they see in the pitch dark? There is evidence of fire around the circles–to light the area? Watch this:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbTEwV3EfKs]

To build this structure required brilliant planning, advanced technology, and symbolic thought — traits never attributed to Neanderthals prior to Bruniquel Cave. Now we know:

Neanderthals wielded fire

traveled comfortably deep underground

cut and moved massive stalagmites long distances

created a complex subterranean construction

imagined a world beyond survival and procreation

No researcher I read would even venture a guess why this construction was there or what its use. But, I will, in my upcoming trilogy Savage Land.

There’s something else about stalagmites and stalactites I learned: They make beautiful music.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EokR9C3CrZU&w=560&h=315] [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm1_aCjrC5o&w=560&h=315]

It makes me wonder if our ancestors built these stalagmite circles for music? Or worship? Any ideas?

Copyright ©2023 worddreams.wordpress.com – All rights reserved.

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Summer is a great time to reset your personal pedagogy to an education-friendly mindset and catch up on what’s been changing in the ed world while you were teaching eight ten hours a day. My Twitter friends gave me great suggestions, but first:

A comment on the selections: I did get more suggestions than I could possibly list so I avoided books that involved politics or hot-button subjects that teachers are divided on and focused on positive and uplifting reading. Yes, there is a lot wrong with education around the world but I wanted a selection of books that would send me — and you —  back to teaching in the fall with a can-do attitude for how to accomplish miracles with your next class of students.

Having said that, here’s a granular list of teacher-approved books to keep you busy this summer:

Digital Leadership: Changing Paradigms for Changing Times

by Eric C. Sheninger

Digital Leadership defines a strategic mindset and set of behaviors that leverage resources to create a meaningful, transparent, and engaging school culture. It takes into account recent changes such as connectivity, open-source technology, mobile devices, and personalization of learning to dramatically shift how schools have been run for over a century.

Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns

by Clayton M. Christensen

Selected as one of Business Week’s Best Books on Innovation in 2008, Disrupting Class remains a worthy read. It is filled with fascinating case studies, scientific findings, and insights into how managed innovation can unleash education. Disrupting Class will open your eyes to new possibilities and evolve your thinking. For more detail, read my review, Disrupting Class.

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In these 169 tech-centric situations, you get an overview of pedagogy—the tech topics most important to your teaching—as well as practical strategies to address most classroom tech situations, how to scaffold these to learning, and where they provide the subtext to daily tech-infused education.

Today’s tip: 5 Ways to Find Lost Files

Category: Problem-solving

One of the scariest things for students is not being able to find their file. They assume (often wrongly) that it’s gone forever and they’ll have to start over. Sometimes, they find a version of the document, but not the latest version. This usually means they performed a ‘save-as’ rather than a simple ‘save’ when last they updated the file—so students need to remember where they might have saved it. Often, students save it to a default location—like My Documents on the local drive. This means they have to know where they were sitting, because that’s the ‘local drive’.

Show them the logical steps they can follow that will find many a lost file. These are common sense questions such as where did they save it? Can they search the network for it (which requires they know the name of the document)? Here’s a poster with five ways to prod students into finding a lost file:

Sign up for a new tip each week or buy the entire 169 Real-world Ways to Put Tech into Your Classroom.

What’s your favorite tech tip in your classroom? Share it in the comments below.

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