Seven Tips for Using iPads with Kids with Autism (and My Favorite Learning Programs)

Like many parents and educators we’re sold on the iPad as a learning tool. My wife and I believe that it’s hard to beat the iPad for learning programs for our sons with autism.   Our twin sons, diagnosed on the spectrum at the age of three, are 10 years old now and in mainstream classes. It was a long...

Three Schools that are Getting it Right

It’s easy to spend a lot of time on what’s wrong with education—and there’s a place for that. Identifying problems can lead us to solutions. But another crucial part of the conversation needs to be discussing schools that have already found solutions—and how can they be replicated. By looking to...

Parents: Make Learning a Priority This Summer!

Summer break is almost here! And with it, the opportunity for kids to continue learning—or actually lose ground in their education. In an article for Getting Smart, Jennifer Peck points out that more than a hundred years of research confirm the phenomenon called “summer learning loss.” She also...

CK-12 and the 21st Century Textbook

One of the iLearn Project’s primary objectives is to highlight innovation using education technology. It’s some of the most fun we have here. Today, we’re going to take a look at how technology is revolutionizing the textbook. Textbooks are expensive. Very expensive. Which is why schools often wait...

eSchool News: “Virginia high school uses technology to increase learning time, boost graduation rates”

“Virginia high school uses technology to increase learning time, boost graduation rates” by eSchool News Staff was originally published by eSchoolNews.com. (Hyperlinks added) T.C. Williams High School, in Virginia’s Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS), uses technology to create online and...

APOLO: Blended Learning in Washington’s Own Backyard

“APOLO: Blended Learning in Washington’s own Backyard” by Diana Moore was originally published on Getting Smart. Winlock, Wash. is a quaint little town of about 1,300 residents spread over one square mile. Yet students from nine districts transfer enrollment to go to school in Winlock....

Interview with KIPP Empower Founder Mike Kerr

Last month, we introduced readers to KIPP Empower Academy, a blended elementary school program achieving outstanding results in Los Angeles, CA. Today, we have to honor of sharing an exclusive, in-depth interview with KEA founder Mike Kerr. To learn more about KEA, visit www.kippla.org/empower.  Scroll down...

KIPP Empower Academy: Truly empowering kindergartners through blended learning

KIPP Empower Academy, one of five public charter schools in KIPP LA’s South and East Los Angeles network, was scheduled to open in the fall of 2010. Based on high standards and low student-teacher ratios, leaders and faculty were excited about what was in store for their 116 kindergarten students....

Exclusive Interview with Carpe Diem’s Rick Ogston

In case you haven’t heard of it, Carpe Diem is changing the way the world sees “school”—and changing the lives of the students who get to attend. We’ve featured Carpe Diem in multiple posts (here and here) as well as our latest publication, Education 2.0: A Catalog of Innovation. Today, we have the...

School of One

Nowadays, when you want to hear a certain song, you get online and buy it, right? Gone are the days of waiting for the song to come on the radio again or—heaven forbid—having to buy the whole album. Today, you get to create “playlists” that cater to what you personally like. In fact, this is the way...

New Modern Explorer: Connections Academy

Last week took at look at Khan Academy, a free online education platform where students of all ages can view 10-minute lessons on mathematics, science, finance, and history. Today we’re going to highlight one of the nation’s most established K-12 providers, Connections Academy®. Connections Academy® is...

Khan Academy

Not very long ago Salman Khan was a young, successful hedge fund analyst. With three degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master’s degree from Harvard, he is by all accounts “smart.” That’s why, when his young cousins were struggling in math class, they went to Sal—as he is...