Are you going to ISTE in Atlanta?

There's still time to schedule in a Speak Up Session at ISTE! If you are attending the ISTE Conference in Atlanta, please be sure to stop by and see Julie at one of the following sessions:

Measuring teachers' readiness to leverage digital content: Are you ready?
Sunday, 06/29/14, 2:30 p.m.–3:30 p.m.
GWCC Murphy Ballroom 1/2
ISTE 2014
Atlanta, GA

Online Learning Trends Breakfast with Project Tomorrow and Blackboard at ISTE
June 30th at 7:30am
Omni CNN Center International Ballroom AB
ISTE 2014
Atlanta, GA

Empowering student and educator voice through the Speak Up surveys
(Birds of a feather session)
Monday, 06/30/14, 5:15 p.m.–6:30 p.m.
GWCC B312
ISTE 2014
Atlanta, GA

The emergence of the self-directed digital learner
Tuesday, 07/01/14, 1:15 p.m.–2:15 p.m.
GWCC Murphy Ballroom ½
ISTE 2014
Atlanta, GA

The 10th Annual Online Learning Institute
Tuesday, July 1, 2014, at ISTE
The Omni Hotel
100 CNN Center (Across from the Convention Center)
Atlanta, GA 30313
Registration required, visit the ISTE Conference Registration Site for more details.

Verizon's New Inspirational STEM Commercial

Verizon recently came out with a new commercial to inspire young women and girls to get involved in STEM. The commercial asks those around young women to inspire them to be more than just “pretty.” Instead, it asks us to say to these girls, “you’re pretty brilliant.”  The Verizon Foundation says they are “committed to helping parents and teachers inspire more girls to get involved with STEM.” When you go to the website, there is much to explore with facts and scenarios that young girls face. It asks us to help spark her imagination in playtime, allow her to try things on her own, encourage her to build her own future, and take risks. The site also tells us that women currently hold less than 25% of our country’s STEM careers. “The greatest opportunities in the future will be high-tech jobs in STEM fields. But we're lagging behind the rest of the world, currently ranked 36th in math and 28th in science.”

This commercial inspires us to “Empower young minds.” It truly does. As adults, we have such a huge responsibility to lead our youth. And empowering these young girls to become more interested in STEM is a huge battle that we are all facing. We are getting closer, but we’re not there yet. Thank you Verizon Foundation for helping to get the word out and inspiring us all! Together we can encourage and guide young girls and inspire their minds!

What are your thoughts? We’d love to hear from you. Check out the commercial and let us know what you think!

Click here to watch the commercial  

Click here to view Verizon's website.

Enter to win $5,000 for your technology program! Our friends at Kajeet® want to contribute towards your technology program to inspire and prepare students for a successful future.

Enter to Win $5,000 for your Technology Program Technology is critical in today's world by giving students access to invaluable resources right at their fingertips. Our friends at Kajeet® want to contribute towards your technology program to inspire and prepare students for a successful future. If you are planning to attend ISTE in Atlanta, enter before June 30, 2014, 11:59 p.m. ET to win a $5,000 donation to your school’s technology program. (#FundYourTech). You can also stop by their booth #3378 for a second chance to enter. Click here to enter to #FundYourTech for a chance to win $5,000! Note: The winning name will be chosen at random on July 1, 2014, at approximately 12 pm ET. You do not need to be present at ISTE when the selection takes place.The winner will be contacted via email and/or Twitter immediately following the drawing. Kajeet will use #FundYourTech to notify the winner on site. Please be sure to follow @Kajeet4Edu. If the name chosen does not respond within 24 hours, another name will be chosen. No purchase of any kind is necessary to enter or win the drawing. Valid only for residents in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia for publicly funded K-12 schools. A check will be issued to the winner's designated publicly funded K-12 schools within 6-8 weeks from the time of the selection.The check will be made out to the selected winner's school of choice.

Report Release! RSVP to attend the release of our latest report on Online and Blended Learning at ISTE, hosted by Blackboard--breakfast provided!

Online Learning Trends Breakfast at ISTE Hosted by Blackboard and Project Tomorrow When: Monday, June 30th Time: 7:30am to 8:30am Where: Omni CNN Center International Ballroom AB 190 Marietta St. NW Atlanta, GA 30303 Join us for breakfast and the launch of the latest Project Tomorrow and Blackboard report on Online and Blended Learning. During this special executive breakfast, Julie will discuss the online learning trends from the Speak Up 2013 national data and moderate a panel discussion with K-12 students. Be the first to learn about this new data on online and blended learning and receive a free copy of the report! Please visit Blackboard's website athttp://bbbb.blackboard.com/PTBreakfast2014 to RSVP or reply to this email to confirm your attendance. We also encourage you to share this invite with any additional colleagues that may be interested in attending. If you are not attending ISTE this year and would like to sign up to receive a copy of the 2014 Online and Blended Learning Trends Report, please click here.

Speak Up News June 2014

Happy June! We hope that you are all enjoying the start of summer! With the school year winding down, we do hope you will keep in touch with us during the summer months. Catch up on all things Speak Up by visiting our website and if you're attending ISTE in Atlanta later this month please be sure to stop and say hi to Julie at one of her many sessions! In this newsletter, you will find information regarding... * Report release! RSVP to attend the release of our latest report on Online and Blended Learning at ISTE, hosted by Blackboard--breakfast provided! * Enter to win $5,000 for your technology program! Our friends at Kajeet® want to contribute towards your technology program to inspire and prepare students for a successful future. Click to learn more! * Speak Up on the Go! Upcoming presentations with our CEO, Julie Evans. * Get a head start on Speak Up 2014! Registration now open, surveys will be available October 6th- December 19th, 2014 Happy Reading! Feel free to share your thoughts with us on Facebook, Twitter, and our Blog. -The Project Tomorrow team Online Learning Trends Breakfast at ISTE Hosted by Blackboard and Project Tomorrow When: Monday, June 30th Time: 7:30am to 8:30am Where: Omni CNN Center International Ballroom AB 190 Marietta St. NW Atlanta, GA 30303 Join us for breakfast and the launch of the latest Project Tomorrow and Blackboard report on Online and Blended Learning. During this special executive breakfast, Julie will discuss the online learning trends from the Speak Up 2013 national data and moderate a panel discussion with K-12 students. Be the first to learn about this new data on online and blended learning and receive a free copy of the report! Please visit Blackboard's website athttp://bbbb.blackboard.com/PTBreakfast2014 to RSVP or reply to this email to confirm your attendance. We also encourage you to share this invite with any additional colleagues that may be interested in attending. If you are not attending ISTE this year and would like to sign up to receive a copy of the 2014 Online and Blended Learning Trends Report, please click here. Enter to Win $5,000 for your Technology Program Technology is critical in today's world by giving students access to invaluable resources right at their fingertips. Our friends at Kajeet® want to contribute towards your technology program to inspire and prepare students for a successful future. If you are planning to attend ISTE in Atlanta, enter before June 30, 2014, 11:59 p.m. ET to win a $5,000 donation to your school’s technology program. (#FundYourTech). You can also stop by their booth #3378 for a second chance to enter. Click here to enter to #FundYourTech for a chance to win $5,000! Note: The winning name will be chosen at random on July 1, 2014, at approximately 12 pm ET. You do not need to be present at ISTE when the selection takes place.The winner will be contacted via email and/or Twitter immediately following the drawing. Kajeet will use #FundYourTech to notify the winner on site. Please be sure to follow @Kajeet4Edu. If the name chosen does not respond within 24 hours, another name will be chosen. No purchase of any kind is necessary to enter or win the drawing. Valid only for residents in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia for publicly funded K-12 schools. A check will be issued to the winner's designated publicly funded K-12 schools within 6-8 weeks from the time of the selection.The check will be made out to the selected winner's school of choice. Speak Up on the Go! Upcoming Presentations There's still time to schedule in a Speak Up Session at ISTE! If you are attending the ISTE Conference in Atlanta, please be sure to stop by and see Julie at one of the following sessions: Measuring teachers' readiness to leverage digital content: Are you ready? Sunday, 06/29/14, 2:30 p.m.–3:30 p.m. GWCC Murphy Ballroom 1/2 ISTE 2014 Atlanta, GA Online Learning Trends Breakfast with Project Tomorrow and Blackboard at ISTE June 30th at 7:30am Omni CNN Center International Ballroom AB ISTE 2014 Atlanta, GA Empowering student and educator voice through the Speak Up surveys (Birds of a feather session) Monday, 06/30/14, 5:15 p.m.–6:30 p.m. GWCC B312 ISTE 2014 Atlanta, GA The emergence of the self-directed digital learner Tuesday, 07/01/14, 1:15 p.m.–2:15 p.m. GWCC Murphy Ballroom ½ ISTE 2014 Atlanta, GA The 10th Annual Online Learning Institute Tuesday, July 1, 2014, at ISTE The Omni Hotel 100 CNN Center (Across from the Convention Center) Atlanta, GA 30313 Registration required, visit the ISTE Conference Registration Site for more details. Past Presentations Webinar: New Research: Digital Tools and Personalized Learning, Today and Tomorrow Project Tomorrow and Dreambox Learning Hosted by District Administration Magazine Tuesday, June 10, 2014 2014 Congressional Briefing—National Release of the Speak Up 2013 Findings for Educators and Parents 2014 Congressional Briefing Recording Monday, June 2nd, 2014 We are excited to announce that the Speak Up 2014 surveys for students, parents and educators will be open for input October 6th through December 19th! With Speak Up 2014 just around the corner, it's not too early to start making plans to take the survey. Get a head start and update your school or district profile for the 2014 surveys at: http://www.speakup4schools.org/speakup2014/. Each year a school or district primary contact will need to re-register with a new district profile (contact info, passwords) to gain access to their Speak Up information both during and after the survey process. Thank you for your interest and continued support of Speak Up! Be sure to stay updated on all things Speak Up by following us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our Blog. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at jhostert@tomorrow.orgor via phone at 949/609-4660 ext. 17. Jenny Hostert Speak Up Operations Manager Project Tomorrow

©2014 Project Tomorrow | 15707 Rockfield Blvd. Suite 250 | Irvine CA | 92618

Did you miss Julie Evans' webinar yesterday?

If you missed Julie Evans' webinar with District Administration Magazine, "New Research: Digital Tools and Personalized Learning, Today and Tomorrow," or would like to view the presentation again, click here. You can also download the slideshow from the webinar here.

Thank you to everyone who attended the webinar! You can learn more about District Administration Magazine at their website.

TODAY's Free Webinar: Digital Tools and Personalized Learning, Today and Tomorrow

When: TODAY at 2PM ET

Where: register at District Administration Magazine's website for more information

What: Julie Evans & Alec Iogman's webinar, "Digital Tools and Personalized Learning, Today and Tomorrow"

Join Julie Evans and Stamford Public Schools' Elementary Math Curriculum Associate Alec Iogman for District Administration Magazine's webinar, "Digital Tools and Personalized Learning, Today and Tomorrow." The FREE webinar benefits superintendents, curriculum directors, technology directors, principals, and others involved with personalized or blended learning - however, anyone may attend.

Webinar information:

Digital tools are transforming learning and teaching, and Project Tomorrow’s Speak Up National Research Project surveys provide insights into how these tools are being used, 21st century skills and STEM instruction in classrooms today. Attend this web seminar to hear from Julie Evans, CEO of Project Tomorrow, who will share recent survey findings and discuss what the future of personalized, blending learning is expected to look like. She will be joined by a curriculum administrator who led his district’s transition to a blended learning model—a 12-school pilot with a new “Centers Approach.” 

Topics will include:

• The student vision for digitally-rich, personalized learning
• How administrators are leveraging technology solutions to decrease costs
• How technology is being used to personalize learning across the U.S.

Don't forget to register at District Administration Magazine's website in order to participate in the webinar. Be sure to mention @SpeakupEd,@ProjectTomorrow, and/or @Julie_EvansPT if you are taking the conversation to Twitter!

About District Adminsitration Magazine: District Administration is the most widely received, most regularly read publication for K12 district-level school leaders nationwide. DA provides cutting-edge coverage of education technology, news, curriculum, policy, finance, profiles and more to this exclusive audience across print, digital and in-person event platforms. Year after year, independent research has proven that no other K12 education management publication matches the reach, readership and audience engagement of District Administration.

Enter to win $5,000 for your technology program

Technology is critical in today's world by giving students access to invaluable resources right at their fingertips. Our friends at Kajeet® want to contribute towards your technology program to inspire and prepare students for a successful future.

If you are planning to attend ISTE in Atlanta, enter before June 30, 2014, 11:59 p.m. ET to win a $5,000 donation to your school’s technology program. (#FundYourTech). You can also stop by their booth #3378 for a second chance to enter. 

Click here to enter to #FundYourTech for a chance to win $5,000!

Note: The winning name will be chosen at random on July 1, 2014, at approximately 12 pm ET. You do not need to be present at ISTE when the selection takes place.The winner will be contacted via email and/or Twitter immediately following the drawing. Kajeet will use #FundYourTech to notify the winner on site. Please be sure to follow @Kajeet4Edu. If the name chosen does not respond within 24 hours, another name will be chosen. No purchase of any kind is necessary to enter or win the drawing. Valid only for residents in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia for publicly funded K-12 schools. A check will be issued to the winner's designated publicly funded K-12 schools within 6-8 weeks from the time of the selection.The check will be made out to the selected winner's school of choice.

2014 Congressional Briefing National Release of Speak Up 2013 Report for Teachers, Administrators and Parents

“As schools and districts move ahead with plans to leverage technology to support college and career readiness, it is important to keep three essential factors in mind: the context of the usage of digital tools, the relevancy of those tools to the student, and how the usage, both in and out of the classroom, is supported by the overall education community.” - Julie Evans, CEO—Project Tomorrow

On June 2, 2014, Project Tomorrow released the report “The New Digital Learning Playbook, Advancing College and Career Ready Skill Development in K-12 Schools” at a Congressional Briefing held in Washington, DC and online in a special live stream of the event. Julie Evans, Project Tomorrow CEO, discussed selected educator and parent national findings from the Speak Up 2013 report and moderated a panel discussion on the impact of digital learning tools to support college and career readiness in K-12 schools with leaders in the education field. Over 70 people attended the Congressional Briefing including congressional staff members, student and staff representatives from some of our Speak up schools, and staff from many of our sponsors, champion outreach partners and non-profit partners. Additionally over 500+ people watched the briefing online through our live stream feed and took the conversation online via social media using the hashtag#SpeakUpBriefing. The briefing included special guest speakers Joseph South, Deputy Director, Office of Educational Technology, U.S. Department of Education and Mark Belles, Senior Vice President, K-12, Blackboard. Additionally the following panelists shared their insights on college and career readiness: ▪ Dr. Katherine Bihr, Vice President and Executive Director, Tiger Woods Learning Center Foundation ▪ Tamika V. Culbreath, Reading/ English Language Arts Teacher, Prince Georges County Public Schools ▪ Monet Deadwyler, Rising Senior, Cesar Chavez Public Charter School for Public Policy at Capitol Hill ▪ Breck DeWitt, CTO and National Director K12 and Higher Education, EMC Corporation ▪ Dr. Patrick Murphy, Superintendent, Arlington Public Schools, 2014 Virginia Superintendent of the Year Watch the recording of the briefing online here. We also encourage you to take the conversation online and tweet your thoughts on the briefing! Don't forget to mention @SpeakUpEd/@ProjectTomorrow and/or #SpeakUpBriefing so we can see what you have to say!

The New Digital Learning Playbook: Advancing College and Career Ready Skill Development in K-12 Schools Speak Up 2013 National Findings K-12 Teachers, Administrators and Parents The New Digital Learning Playbook: Advancing College and Career Ready Skill Development in K-12 Schools is the second in a two part series to document the key national findings from Speak Up 2013. For the past eleven years, Project Tomorrow’s® annual Speak Up National Research Project has provided schools and districts nationwide and throughout the globe with new insights into how today’s students want to leverage digital tools for learning based upon the authentic, unfiltered ideas of students themselves. In our first report on the findings from the 2013 Speak Up National Research Project, “The New Digital Playbook: Understanding the Spectrum of Students’ Activities and Aspirations,” we provided thought-provoking new insights into how today’s students are already tapping into digital tools, both in and out of school, to personalize learning and to self-prepare themselves for future college or career success. The findings discussed in this report are based upon the online Speak Up surveys completed in fall 2013 by 39,986 teachers and librarians and 4,530 school, district and technology administrators representing 9,005 schools and 2,710 districts nationwide. Additionally, as part of the important capacity discussion, we also highlight the views of both parents of school-aged children (32,151) and community members at large (1,346) about the linkages between school, technology, and students’ future success. In this new digital learning playbook, we aim to address four key questions: ▪ How do K-12 education stakeholders define college and career ready skills, especially within the context of digital learning? ▪ How are classroom teachers using digital tools and resources to support students’ development of college and career ready skills? ▪ How are schools and districts building up both their capacity for digital learning and meeting the new imperative of preparing students for an uncertain future? ▪ How can parents and community members support classroom use of technology and district goals for skill development? These are important questions for both national as well as local discussions. It is our privilege to share this year’s Speak Up national findings to inform these conversations so every child, in every grade, in every community has the same opportunity to dream big and realize their potential on whatever path they choose to success.

Infographic- The New Digital Learning Playbook: Digital Content Story Key Findings from this year’s report include: ▪ More than 40 percent of high school principals are now offering online classes for students in math, science, history and English/language arts. Only 17 percent of high schools are not offering online classes, according to school principals. ▪ Principals are offering online learning for multiple reasons, including providing academic remediation (66 percent), keeping students engaged in staying in school (63 percent) and providing options for students that need credit recovery (61 percent). ▪ Teachers who teach online classes, in particular, see a strong correlation between the use of technology and students’ college and career ready skill development. More than half of these teachers say technology use helps students understand how to apply academic concepts to real world problems (58 percent), take ownership of their learning (57 percent) and develop problem solving and critical thinking skills (57 percent). ▪ The professional development requests of teachers are fairly common among new and veteran teachers. Even new teachers, who are presumed to be more digitally native and comfortable with technology, have a wish list of professional development support. The rookie teachers have a greater interest than other teachers in learning more about incorporating games and using social media with both students and parents. ▪ Parental support of mobile device as part of learning does not appear to have an economic, community type or grade level bias. Around 60 percent of all parents said they would like their children to be in a class where using one’s own mobile device was allowed. Two-thirds said they would purchase a mobile device for their child to use within class, if that was allowed by the school. ▪ Two-thirds of community members and a similar number of parents of school-aged children expressed support for paying $.50 more per month on their phone bill if those funds were used to increase school access to the Internet for student learning. ▪ One-third of elementary school teachers (32 percent) report using games in their classrooms. The top two reasons given for using games within instruction were increasing student engagement in learning (79 percent) and providing a way for teachers to address different learning styles in the classroom (72 percent). Download Links: Download PDF of the report View the report in HTML Speak Up Report Landing page Press Release Infographic- The New Digital Learning Playbook: Digital Content Story Congressional Briefing Homepage Congressional Briefing Packet Materials Recording of the event

Thank you for your interest and continued support of Speak Up! Be sure to stay updated on all things Speak Up by following us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our Blog. If you have any questions please feel free to contact our Speak Up Operations Manager, Jenny Hostert, at jhostert@tomorrow.org or via phone at 949/609-4660 ext. 17.

Watch our 2nd Congressional Briefing here!

Teachers' concerns over online learning

While most non-educators find the use of educational technology appealing, several teachers - new and veterans - are hesitant to welcome the new tools into their classrooms. This may come as surprising to some, as blended learning was created to enable personalized instruction and to fix several frustrating aspects of school. However, out of the many common concerns that teachers have, researcher Thomas Arnett found three worth addressing:

1. Several teachers find technology to be a distraction from the real work and real challenges of teaching. Arnett notes this is legitimate and important concern, and also notes that schools and districts often purchase technology in hopes that something great will happen once the devices reach teachers' hands. Instead technology complicates class time, as schools often fail to provide technology training for teachers. It is suggested that schools should rethink their instructional models by addressing specific educational goals and then finding ways to use technology to meet those goals.
2. Teachers are also concerned that they will be replaced by technology. With apps such as iTunes U and websites such as Khan Academy that provide individualized learning and free tutoring, it's no surprise that this is a common concern. It also does not help that technology is seen as a low-cost substitute for teachers. However, Arnett suggests teachers should note that their roles are going to change - for example, teachers in blended learning schools will focus more on mentoring students, working with small groups, and managing projects.
3. The last common concern is that online learning will undermine teachers' professional judgment - meaning, teachers fear that their work will only consist of grading assignments as students spend all their time with online curriculum. While this may be true for low-quality blending learning programs, this is not the case for high-quality programs. In the latter, teachers' professional judgment will actually expand as they will need to provide more coaching and mentorship, and will need to create a classroom culture in which students realize the real-world relevance to what they are learning.

Arnett notes that as more schools accept technology within their classrooms, "the nature of teaching is going to change." However, with proper instruction and high-quality programs, blended learning can provide teachers with new opportunities that can benefit the classroom.

To read the original article, "Addressing teachers' concerns about online learning" by Thomas Arnett from the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation, click here. What do you think about the use of educational technology in classrooms? Do you agree with these concerns and how Arnett addressed them? Let us know!

About Thomas Arnett: Thomas’ research focuses on the changing roles of teachers in blended learning environments and other innovative educational models. He also examines how teacher education and professional development are shifting to support the evolving needs of teachers and school systems.

About the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation: The Clayton Christensen Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank dedicated to improving the world through disruptive innovation. Founded on the theories of Harvard professor Clayton M. Christensen, the Institute offers a unique framework for understanding many of society’s most pressing problems. Their mission is ambitious but clear: work to shape and elevate the conversation surrounding these issues through rigorous research and public outreach.

Watch today's Speak Up Congressional Briefing LIVE at 2PM ET/ 11AM PT

Please join us for the release of the Speak Up 2013 National Findings for Teachers, Administrators and Parents via our live stream feed.

Go to the following link: http://bit.ly/SUCBLive today at 2PM ET/11am PT to watch it live!

This is the second of two Congressional Briefings on the data results from the 403,000 online Speak Up surveys submitted from education stakeholders nationwide in fall 2013. The June 2nd briefing will include a presentation of the national findings and a moderated panel discussion on the impact of digital learning tools to support college and career readiness in K-12 schools with leaders in the education field. This year’s national report, “The New Digital Learning Playbook, Advancing College and Career Ready Skill Development in K-12 Schools” will be available for download to all those tuning in.

Special Guest Speakers

Joseph South, Deputy Director, Office of Educational Technology, U.S. Department of Education

Mark Belles, Senior Vice President, K-12, Blackboard

Panelists

Dr. Katherine Bihr, Vice President and Executive Director, Tiger Woods Learning Center Foundation

Tamika V. Culbreath, Reading/ English Language Arts Teacher, Prince Georges County Public Schools

Monet Deadwyler, Rising Senior, Cesar Chavez Public Charter School for Public Policy at Capitol Hill

Breck DeWitt, CTO and National Director K12 and Higher Education, EMC Corporation

Dr. Patrick Murphy, Superintendent, Arlington Public Schools, 2014 Virginia Superintendent of the Year

We encourage you to take the conversation online and live tweet during the briefing! Don't forget to mention @SpeakUpEd/@ProjectTomorrow and/or#SpeakUpBriefing so we can see what you have to say!

To download a copy of the first report on K-12 Student data, "The New Digital Learning Playbook: Understanding the Spectrum of Students’ Activities and Aspirations” please click here.

If you need additional information about Speak Up or the Congressional Briefing, please contact: Jenny Hostert on the Speak Up Team at jhostert@tomorrow.org