Great resources on Digital Equity from CoSN (free)

As schools go more and more digital with systems, curriculum, assignments and more, they face the need to provide equity in digital access for their students. Student devices are part of it, but so is internet access at home.

This year has seen a huge increase in attention to "Digital Equity" or the "Digital Divide". Here are some great free resources from CoSN ( Consortium for School Networking ) that can help you understand the issue, and address it.

Digital Equity Action Toolkit

Students without home access to high quality broadband connectivity are at a disadvantage, unable to realize the full power of digital learning. Only 3 percent of teachers in high-poverty schools said that their students had the digital tools necessary to complete homework assignments, compared to 52 percent of teachers in more affluent schools, a discrepancy sometimes labeled the "homework gap."

To address this key challenge, CoSN launched the Digital Equity Action Agenda initiative. This effort highlights how some school districts are building meaningful community partnerships and creating tools to help district leaders get started in achieving digital equity.

Our new toolkit provides educational leaders with the information they need to address digital equity in out-of-school learning. As a member said:

"The CoSN Digital Equity Action Toolkit is the best and most practical document I have seen on this topic." --Devin Vodicka, Superintendent, Vista USD, California

Download the ToolKit here: http://www.cosn.org/digital-equity-action-toolkit-february-2016


Digital Equity Infographic (click to go to original PDF)

More resources

Digital Divide Resources

Digital Literacy Resources

Digital Equity Resources






-

Turn any exisiting PC or Mac into fully functional Chromebook - for free!

Neverware, a startup that has developed a software product, CloudReady, in partnership with Google, which turns almost any computer from the last 8 years into a full-fledged Chromebook.

Since launching this spring in the K-12 education market, they've deployed CloudReady in over 100 school districts, helping them dramatically extend the life and functionality of their existing computers. Earlier this month they quietly released a completely free version of the product for individual use, and they've had really positive feedback from the IT & enthusiast communities,

Yesterday, they officially announced the free version for individual use to the public. Imagine being able to use that old PC or Mac you have lying around as a Chromebook. It will run faster and better than it used to and provide you with more years of useful life for your old devices.

I'm going to install it on my old laptop and netbook and see how it goes.

If you want to use this in your school and managed the devices through the Admin Console, contact Neverware for more info. 

Check it out!

Neverware’s CloudReady converts existing computers into fully functional Chromebooks

NEW YORK – October 15, 2015 – Neverware announced the availability of a free version of CloudReady, an operating system that, in partnership with Google, turns almost any existing PC or Mac into a fully functional Chromebook.
Like the paid version of CloudReady, the free offering has been certified by Neverware on nearly 200 computer models and can be used on hundreds of others. Both versions include automatic updates and simple installation from a USB thumb drive. Since CloudReady is based on the same code that powers Chromebooks, it offers complete and secure integration with Google Apps and other Google services.

“We’re very excited to be able to offer a free version of CloudReady,” said Neverware CEO Jonathan Hefter. “This will allow users around the world to have free access to the simplicity and speed of Chromebooks, using the computers they already have.”
The paid version of CloudReady, which offers dedicated support and integration with Google’s device management console, launched in spring 2015. It has already been purchased by over 100 school districts in the United States, and CloudReady pilot programs are underway with organizations in 10 countries.

“Our teachers are amazed that they are using the same hardware - the difference in student engagement is astounding.”, commented Dawn Young, Director of Educational Technology at Binghamton School district in New York. “As we move to learning environments that require increased access to technology, CloudReady has been a great way to increase our device to student ratio.”

CloudReady can be downloaded for free at neverware.com

About Neverware
Neverware is a New York-based developer of operating systems. Its flagship product, CloudReady, enables school districts and other organizations to cost effectively transform their existing hardware into simple, secure, and fast machines that can be managed right alongside Chromebooks.

Neverware recently launched a joint initiative with Google to let organizations that have never tried Chromebooks to do so, cost-free, using CloudReady. Neverware’s investors include Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst, Rethink Education, and Collaborative Fund.

Product images, case studies, company bios and additional quotes are available at: www.neverware.com/media

Related:

Google Apps and Chromebooks Resources




-

PowerUp WHAT WORKS - free resources for struggling students and those with disabilities

PowerUp WHAT WORKS is a free resource to help teachers help struggling students and those with disabilities. It is part of the OpenEd collection. PowerUp WHAT WORKS (www.powerupwhatworks.org) provides customizable materials, lesson plans, instructional strategies, videos and more to enhance learning for students with diverse needs, and to personalize learning with technology and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). OpenEd (www.opened.com) is the creator of the world’s largest online collection of standards-aligned resources.

PowerUp allows teachers to access training and resources to allow them to enhance learning for students with disabilities, personalize learning with technology. It is evidence-based, standards-aligned, and technology-focused.

The sites has tips and resources for teachers, administrators and more, with lesson plans, assessments, videos, playlists, ideas for integrating technology, professional development, and much more.

It is easy to search and find resources and there are some great things. You can also browse all resources or click on each menu item above for more information and resources.

Take a look.










-

paper.li - easily create online "newspaper" - great for schools and projects

Paper.li is a free site that allows you to create an online "newspaper". You can set it to automatically collect, organize and publish content from the web, or manually create you paper. You choose online content around a specific theme, then place it into the online “newspaper,” displaying individual items as stories. The newspaper then gets its own unique link which can be shared with others.

The site can collect information from over 140 million websites. This blog has shown up on some people's Paper's too.


Easy to use:

1. Select your sources by source or topic
2. Customize the sources and layout
3. Publish and share

Paper.li could be used for classroom/school/district newsletters, classroom projects and much more.

Here's a video about it:




-

Noodle releases list of 32 best free apps for Education

Noodle, a site that provides families with information about schools, tutors, summer camps, study abroad programs, and online learning tools, has just released a list of the 32 best, free apps for education. 

The list covers some apps that I've reviewed before, such as Edmodo, Prezi, Desmos, and Knowledge Graph, but also has some I've never covered. Each listing is set up with "What it is", "Who would love it", "Why it's good", and "Why it's relevant", and "Something you didn't know" providing a quick look at what the app does, the intended audience and how to use it.

The selections were evaluated based on a list of strict criteria, including:
Orientation toward high school or college students
User-friendliness
Design language strength
Ease of use
No-cost options

There are some great apps listed here. Take a look. 

Example of a listing:

Related:

Top 5 Apps for Educational Administrators to Use

My most used/favorite Apps and how I use them

My Favorite Resources for Teachers and Students

-

Gynzy - free embeddable interactive content for teachers

Gynzy is a site that provides high quality interactive content for teachers to use. Teachers can use it on their websites, show it with a projector and/or IWB or even just let the students use them. All of the content is created in cooperation with teachers.

You go to http://www.gynzy.com/teachers/publishers/ and simply embed the resources you like on your website by using the embed code or just open the item in your browser. 

Here is an example:

-

Permission Click - making permission slips online and easier to handle

Permission Click is a new, free, online resource that allows teachers to create and send digital permission slips directly to a parent's email instead of using paper permission slips for trips and events. Parents give approval through the cloud-based app, and can even send payment if needed.

It's easy to setup and use and can save teachers, parents, and students a lot of time and aggravation. There is nothing needed from the school's IT department either.

Teachers can also use it for fundraising events, registration, yearbook sales and more. Teachers can upload created forms or use the included forms templates. You can also download reports to CSV for use in other systems like Google Sheets or Excel and all events and info is securely archived and searchable.

Parents just click the link in their email and they are taken to the form.

Here is a video overview of Permission Click:



PER 1408 Promo Video FIN H264 from Permission Click on Vimeo.




There is also a Premium, fee based service with it that integrates with your Student Information System and integrates across an entire district. This can be added by the district at any time.




-