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Friday, September 30, 2011 |
In this issue: |
Premier’s Award of ExcellenceOn September 9, 2011, a project team from Alberta Education’s School Technology Sector was presented with a Premier’s Award of Excellence. The Emerge One-to-One Laptop Learning Initiative project team received a Bronze award for its work in planning and implementing Emerge, a three-year research initiative that investigated the use of laptops in learning and teaching. In 2006, School Technology Sector developed the Emerge initiative to examine how laptops could be used to enhance learning and teaching for specific student populations or improve student learning in targeted areas. In total, 2,500 students, 170 teachers and 50 schools participated in the initiative, as well as district-level administrators, professional development providers, researchers and technical staff. More information on Emerge is available on the Alberta Education website. Since 1995, the Premier has presented awards annually to promote and recognize superior client service and business practices in the Alberta public service. The award serves as a standard of achievement, and a guide to business excellence practices. A complete list of 2011 Premier’s Award of Excellence award winners is available online. School Technology Sector would like to recognize the efforts of the school authorities participating in Emerge. Their collective expertise and commitment helped in making Emerge the success it was.
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School Technology Sector Staffing UpdateSchool Technology Sector is pleased to announce two new staff members. Michelle Toy is our new Project Coordinator, Technology Standards and Strategic Relationships. Prior to joining Alberta Education, Michelle was a Project Leader in Technical Strategic Planning in Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, where she researched emerging technologies and practices in IT, and identified opportunities for cost optimization and service improvements for the department. Michelle's IT experience over the past 18 years with the federal government includes desktop and network support, product support and project management for both small and enterprise-wide projects. Michelle will be working with stakeholders on a range of projects related to technology standards and associated partner relationships to support transformation of the education system. Michelle can be contacted at Michelle.Toy@gov.ab.ca or by phone at 780-643-1903. Tara Reimche is our new Business Analyst, Technology Planning and Management. Tara has more than 10 years of experience working as an analyst in both the education system and government. At Edmonton Catholic Schools, she led the design and development of eLuminate, a web-based student assessment program used by teachers and administrators. She also helped improve jurisdiction data management/reporting, set data standards and worked closely with high schools to help address individualized assessment needs through the design of the web-based GradeBook program. Tara will be identifying and monitoring emerging technologies and technology management practices for their applicability to the provincial K-12 context and working with stakeholders to plan and coordinate the delivery of innovative systems, solutions and technologies. Tara can be contacted at Tara.Reimche@gov.ab.ca or by phone at 780-415-0820.
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Alberta Involved in an International StudyThe US Department of Education’s The International Experiences with Technology in Education Final Report is a survey of how other countries use information and communications technologies (ICTs) in their education systems. Alberta was selected for participation in this study because of Alberta Education’s investment in technology infrastructure for schools, mandated ICT curriculum and its support of applied innovation research in schools. >> For information on this report and its key findings, click here.
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Provincial Approach to Student Information (PASI) Usage AgreementSchool authority superintendents/CEOs will soon be receiving a customized Provincial Approach to Student Information (PASI) Usage Agreement which is to be signed and returned to Alberta Education by no later than December 31, 2011. The deadline was extended to provide Technology leaders, FOIP coordinators and other appropriate school authority personnel sufficient opportunity to apply appropriate due diligence and attention to ensure that adequate security and privacy measures are in place by the date the PASI Usage Agreement is signed. For more information, contact Sam Radke at Sam.Radke@gov.ab.ca.
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Upcoming EventsJurisdiction Technology Contact Events – by invitation only November 24, 2011 – Mount Royal University, Calgary May 3, 2012 – Fantasyland Hotel, Edmonton
Alberta Technology Leaders in Education (ATLE) Annual Conference November 16 to 18, 2011 Capri Centre, Red Deer Alberta Technology Leaders in Education (ATLE) is hosting its sixth annual conference, Any3: AnyTime, AnyPlace, AnyWare. This conference is for anyone with a role in education technology leadership or wanting to know more about the interface between technology, learning and leadership. The conference offers keynote speakers, breakout sessions, and an exhibition hall featuring more than 70 vendors.
Destination Innovation 2012 Conference August 19 to 22, 2012 - The Banff Centre The goal of the Destination Innovation 2012 Conference is to advance educational innovation by exploring imaginative practices for learning with technology. The call for presenters is open until November 20, 2011. Anyone interested in presenting at this conference can apply using the online form.
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ResearchAlberta Education’s School Technology Sector is continually monitoring research on best practices in the use of technology for learning and teaching. Research articles or reports from outside sources that may be pertinent to the work of tech.news subscribers will occasionally be included in this newsletter. The information in the articles or reports does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Alberta Education.
>> For more information and links to these reports, click here.
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Digital Citizenship for Media Literacy Week 2011The Media Awareness Network and the Canadian Teachers’ Federation have announced that Digital Citizenship is the theme for this year’s annual Media Literacy Week. The focus will be on encouraging young people to reflect on their online lives and their rights and responsibilities as they navigate the digital world. During the week of November 7 to 11, 2011, events will be offered for all ages. To find out more about the week and how to be involved, visit the Media Literacy Week website.
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Computers for Schools Milestones CelebratedComputers for Schools is a Canada-wide initiative that provides refurbished computers to schools, public libraries and non-profit learning organizations at little or no cost to recipients. Alberta Computers for Schools recently celebrated the distribution of its 150,000th computer and the opening of its new Calgary shop on September 14, 2011. A Computers for Schools vignette can be viewed on Alberta Prime Time. The new Calgary shop is located at Chinook Learning Services, which is part of the Calgary Board of Education. The shop can be contacted by phone at 403-243-6321 or by email at cfsclg2@telusplanet.net. Other shops are located in Edmonton, Lethbridge and Brocket. Since 1993, Alberta Computers for Schools program has distributed refurbished computers with the support of the provincial and federal governments, companies and volunteers. More than 1,000 computers are distributed monthly. For information on the program and how to apply for equipment, visit the Alberta Computers for Schools website.
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High School Mathematics Demonstration CoursesThe Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia is supporting high school Mathematics teachers in the implementation of the new high school Mathematics curriculum. Demonstration courses in Math 10C, Math 10-3, Math 20-1, Math 20-2, and Math 20-3 are available to provide examples of the new curriculum in practice. High school Math teachers will have access to teacher plans, reflections and learning resources as these courses are delivered throughout Alberta. A variety of technologies will be accessed to support and facilitate the development of a community of practice for the learning of Mathematics. For more information please visit the ARPDC website.
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2Learn.ca Newsletter2Learn.ca publishes Vantage, a bi-weekly newsletter for the Alberta education community that provides information on videoconferencing opportunities, resources and the newest collection of teacher resources. The resources and opportunities are designed to provide professional development for teachers and collaboration opportunities for students. To subscribe to Vantage or to visit to online archive of past editions of the newsletter, visit the 2Learn.ca website.
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Vol. 11 No. 2Tech.News is an electronic newsletter for Alberta's education community. It is produced by Alberta Education, School Technology Sector. Send your questions, suggestions, or article submissions to tech.news@gov.ab.ca Next edition: October 2011
LINKS: Alberta Education - Technology section
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