PhotoShop Tips - A Great Grab Bag of Tips

If you use PhotoShop, there is probably a lot about the program that you haven't had time to investigate. Here are some tips from MacWorld's James Dempsey. They help you find fonts faster, scale layer styles and effects, and get free layer styles. PhotoShop also has its own Tips & Tricks section, which can give you speedy help with problems like matching colors, dark underexposed photos, saving old photos, and just about anything you want to know. For daily tips, sign up for PhotoShop User TV.

New Web Site for PBS TeacherLine

PBS TeacherLine is known for the high quality of its staff development services and courses. Taking a course from TeacherLine means having the convenience of taking that course when you want. Now it's easier to navigate the PBS TeacherLine site and to read and use the Course Catalog.  Whether you are interested in instructional technology, instructional strategy, reading, language arts, math, or science, you'll want to browse through the updated site and see what's available for you.

ISTE's Refreshed National Education Technology Standards (NETS)

In an effort to keep National Education Technology Standards up-to-date, the International Society for Technology in Education is involved in a three-year plan, 2007-2009 to get educators involved in what the standards should be.  So far over 2500 educators have submitted their ideas to the project. To add your ideas, complete the NETS survey, or register for one of the NETS Refresh forums in Virginia, Michigan, Texas, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Massachusetts, California, and Washington.

Plagiarism Detection Systems - Do they work?

Does your school use a plagiarism detection system such as Turnitin, iPlagiarism Check, Safe Assignment, Integriguard, Glatt Plagiarism Services, etc.? Today with paper mills and so many resources available online, educators are turning to technology to help. Detecting plagiarism has never been easy, teachers want to identify material that has been plagiarized, but they don't want to make accusations if they aren't sure. Many teachers use Internet search engines to check for questionable passages, but others make use of plagiarism detection systems if they are available in their schools. While the systems do help, they aren't without their problems, and controversies have arisen about the systems' copying of submitted student papers for their databases. Perhaps the best way to use these systems is as an adjunct to traditional checking of papers, keeping in mind the problems that could be associated with computer evaluation of material.

ING Unsung Heroes® Awards

Among the awards given by ING is the ING Unsung Heroes Program. It's all about innovative educational programs and is open to K-12 educators in public and private schools in the United States. Last year awards of $27,000; $12,000; and $7000 were made to schools in California, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania. So think about a school program you'd like to create or enhance, review the guidelines, and get your application in by April 30, 2008.

Math Prep Lacking?

Are our middle school math teachers prepared for what they need to teach? No, says a study of Mathematics Teaching in the 21st Century (MT21). Middle School teachers in the United States are not as prepared as teachers in countries such as South Korea and Taiwan. Training in mathematics is described as "weak", which means that US teachers are not ready to deliver the content and skills students need to be competitive in our world. An Education Week article by Kathleen Kennedy Manzo, US Middle-Grades Teachers Found Ill-prepared in Math, discusses this study, the relationship between declining math scores and science performance, and steps that are suggested for improvement. (If you haven't registered with Ed Week, you'll need to do so to be able to view two articles a week without subscribing to the publication.)

Teachers Count on This Site

If you haven't been to the TeachersCount site, you're missing a really great place on the Internet that is dedicated to teachers, those who want to be teachers, and those who support teachers. The site celebrates teaching with its content, and offers lists of grants, competitions, and discounts for teachers. You'll find polls, education news, book and movie review, information on the best sites on the Web, education news, and more.

What Should I Really Be Able to Do with Technologies?

If you aren't following Professor Jim Lengel's Teaching with Technology articles on http://www.powertolearn.com/, you're missing some great ideas that will help with innovative teaching and use of technologies in the classroom. The two-part series, Basic Technology Competencies, for example, discusses "the technical skills teachers should be able to apply to the day-to-day tasks that are common to all professions" and the technology skills that are particular to teaching. Skills teachers need include positive attitude about technologies as well as skills related to productivity, communication, research, media, and presentation. The Lengel list is a good way to find out where you stand on the scale of technology competencies.

$10,000 Cash Grant & More

Intel Schools of Distinction will receive $10,000 plus equipment and services. Six schools with outstanding programs will receive awards, and one of these schools will receive an additional $10,000. The focus is upon mathematics and science. Intel is looking for school programs "that meet or exceed benchmarks, including national mathematics and science content standards." They must be schools that have programs that will serve as models to help other schools improve mathematics and/or science programs. Check the online application for eligibility and details for applying. The deadline for is February 14, 2008.

The Do It Yourself New Year's Celebration from Fablevision

Leave it to FableVision to come up with a wonderful idea to celebrate the new year-2008. It's free and it's inspiring. It's a fablicious recipe that won't put the pounds on you-well, except for the North Star fortune cookies.  Read the North Star story, create your own constellation (You'll need Shockwave), and toast your journey ahead at the Fable Cafe.