From the television we watch and the films we consume to the experience of user-generated content, this volume explores various forms of popular culture as teaching tools. Teaching popular culture well hinges on the application, not the mere inclusion of popular culture artifacts. It is the nuance of praxis where theory meets practice, the artful marriage of academic knowledge with popular culture. In this volume, the authors leverage popular culture as a powerful teaching tool that is fam...

For many, the Beatles offered a delightful alternative to the dull and the staid, while for others, the mop-top haircuts, the unsettling music, and the hysterical girls that greeted the British imports wherever they went were a symbol of unwelcome social and cultural change. This opposition to the group—more widespread and deeper rooted in Chicago than in any other major American city—increased as the decade wore on, especially when the Beatles adopted more extreme countercultural values.

Bringing history teaching into the twenty-first century, Teaching History Online is a concise guide to developing and using internet resources in history instruction. It offers practical, jargon-free advice to help the history teacher develop online assignments, and provides an informed introduction to the myriad resources and tools available for use in the online classroom.Beginning with a chapter on the benefits of teaching and studying online, John F. Lyons goes on to a...

Reinventing Project-Based Learning offers educators an accessible guide for maximizing the benefits of project-based learning in todays technology-rich learning environment. This reader-friendly book speaks directly to educators, administrators, and professional development specialists who want to transform learning into a more active, student-driven experience, using technology tools for inquiry, collaboration, and connection to the world beyond the classroom. Examples from educators in m...

How can online instructors and course designers' instruction harness the popular Web 2.0 tool, the wiki, for successful collaboration and learning outcomes? This book focuses on using wikis in the active learning processes that are the hallmark of collaborative learning and constructivism. It provides both the pedagogical background and practical guidelines, tools, and processes for accomplishing these goals with special emphasis on wikis and other collaborative design tools. This book sup...

Web 2.0, the second generation of the World Wide Web, allows us to connect, create, collaborate, and share information. When we bring Web 2.0 tools into the classroom, we transform learning. By applying these tools thoughtfully, we see a shift in student engagement, creativity, and higher order learning skills. In this companion book, the authors of the best-selling Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools introduce you to more Web 2.0 tools and expertly lead you through classroom and professional ...

Teaching in Blended Leaning Environments provides a coherent framework in which to explore the transformative concept of blended learning. Blended learning can be defined as the organic integration of thoughtfully selected and complementary face-to-face and online approaches and technologies. A direct result of the transformative innovation of virtual communication and online learning communities, blended learning environments have created new ways for teachers and students to eng...

Observing the User Experience: A Practitioner's Guide to User Research aims to bridge the gap between what digital companies think they know about their users and the actual user experience. Individuals engaged in digital product and service development often fail to conduct user research. The book presents concepts and techniques to provide an understanding of how people experience products and services. The techniques are drawn from the worlds of human-computer interaction, marketing, an...

Students in the 21st century still need to develop traditional reading and writing skills, and they must also learn how to use technology for communicating and collaborating in new ways. This book offers specific teaching strategies for developing student literacy in using search engines efficiently, evaluating information found on websites, avoiding plagiarism, communicating with a wide audience, working collaboratively, and creating multimedia products.

Facebook, Twitter, Google...today's tech-savvy students are always plugged in. However, all too often their teachers and administrators aren't experienced in the use of these familiar digital tools. If schools are to prepare students for the future, administrators and educators must harness the power of digital technologies and social media.With contributions from authorities on the topic of educational technology, What School Leaders Need to Know About Digital Technologies and...

Some students find writing to be a chore. Others write to get an assignment done but dont put in any extra effort. Theres nothing like blogging to change those attitudes! Students will experience a whole new level of engagement when they are writing for an audience, writing about topics they are interested in, and responding to their classmates posts. Bring blogging into your classroom, and your students will not only be excited about their work, they will also develop their writing, readi...

This is an essential resource for anyone designing or facilitating online learning. It introduces an easy, practical model (R2D2: read, reflect, display, and do) that will show online educators how to deliver content in ways that benefit all types of learners (visual, auditory, observational, and kinesthetic) from a wide variety of backgrounds and skill levels. With a solid theoretical foundation and concrete guidance and examples, this book can be used as a handy reference, a professional...