Recently, Common Sense Education, which focuses on teaching students to critically analyze what they see and how they interact online as they navigate that space, released a new curriculum that includes lessons on media literacy. The curriculum is for Kindergarten to 12th grade classrooms and is free to parents, educators and schools.
Learning how to conduct online searches safely and effectively is a skill that is important for young people to have. A student-friendly interactive map of the research process, called “How To Do Research,” spells out the steps for making the most of the research process, from planning to searching to taking notes and ultimately using gathered information effectively..
ClassDojo is a classroom management system designed to help teachers improve student behavior. Positive and negative feedback points can be awarded in real time for behavior in class and teachers can create reports using the data for parents and students to access...
With teen attention focusing away from Facebook and onto other social networking apps, Time magazine outlines 5 iPhone apps that parents should know about to stay in the loop on what is popular with teens...
A recent Piper Jaffray survey found that 9 out of 10 American teens say they use social media, with Instagram being the most popular site. For girls, the site has taken on a special language, becoming a way for tweens and teens to find out what their peers really think of them...
Perhaps you have heard about the Alex from Target story. A picture of Alex, a 16 year old from Texas, went viral recently after a teenage girl from Britain randomly came across a Tumblr photo of him that had been taken surreptitiously. She posted it on Twitter, and within hours, Alex’s Twitter followers went from 144 to hundreds of thousands...
The New York Times recently posed a question on Facebook about the role of schools in regulating the off-campus and online behavior of their students...
A new survey has suggested to researchers in Britain that a sharp decline in British schoolgirls’ self esteem over the last seven years can be directly linked to their online activity, with the internet’s emphasis on images being cited as a factor. It was also acknowledged that social media has changed the face of bullying, with girls no longer able to leave upsetting behavior at the school gates and continuing to experience friendship problems online...
A new study surveyed 1,000 drivers and found that 98% of those who text everyday and drive frequently say the practice is dangerous, but nearly 75% say they do it anyway. The lure of text messages is actually a lot like the appeal of slot machines, David Greenfield of the University of Connecticut Medical School explains. He says both can be difficult compulsions to overcome for some people...
Microsoft has decided to put out free mobile editions of Office products, including Word, Excel and PowerPoint. The free software for iPads, iPhones and Android tablets will have most of the essential functions of the computer versions of the products..
Facebook's newest tool, known as Safety Check, aims to allow people to quickly alert friends and family that they are safe after a natural disaster. For instance, if an earthquake is detected in the area Facebook predicts a user is located, Safety Check sends a notification asking whether the user is OK...