Tag Archives: technology

Growing up in the 1980’s, I played with a lot of toys and technology. My first experience with a computer was an Apple IIe at school, where I played Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego. At home, my technology-enabled toys consisted of a Speak and Spell that would repeat what I would type, and  video game consoles like the Atari 2600 and Nintendo. When I look back, I don’t recall ever thinking these were creepy experiences. The Speak and…

As media and technology have an increasing presence in our lives, more parents are seeking guidance in how to select the best media for their little ones. That has been the case for many parents who have participated in the national Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors program. They have expressed their worries and struggles with the topic. Often, they don’t even know where to start as they grapple with concerns about how media and tech could have a negative impact on their…

Before the Future of Childhood: Immersive Media and Child Development salon took place in November 2018, we invited experts to share their visions about the ways VR and AR might impact childhood 10 years from now. Chris Chin, Executive Director of VR Content at HTC Vive, believes VR has the potential to play a positive role in building pathways for more equitable learning opportunities.   From Ready Player One to The Matrix, authors, futurists, and Hollywood have painted a picture…

The experience of childhood During the initial phase of onboarding and professional development exercises with the SparkleLAB team, we spend a good part of our time remembering the experience of childhood. Growing up in the Philippines in the 80’s and 90’s, my fondest childhood memories are those of the rainy season—the torrential downpour that marks the months of August and September. I recall huddling under a blanket with a flashlight while rain thundered down on a tin roof overhead, journeying…

Opening minds to new ways of thinking about STEM for young children Researchers who study children often point out that teaching science and math in the early years is also a great way to support children’s literacy skills. But teachers and administrators lament that it is not so easy to integrate these subjects in day-to-day classrooms. It doesn’t help that the very concepts of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) can get short shrift in pre-K, kindergarten, and the early…

On March 29, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center, New America, and the Erikson Institute presented a webinar on integrating STEM into early childhood education to the STEM Ecosystems group at TIES, The Teaching Institute for Excellence in STEM. TIES focuses on STEM school design, STEM curriculum, and instructional support for schools. As our country’s leading STEM innovator, TIES brings STEM design services to districts, states, private philanthropies, corporations, federal agencies and many more. The STEM Ecosystems Initiative is made up of nearly 40 communities of…

What does László Moholy-Nagy, a Hungarian artist active during the early 1900s, have to do with video game design? The National STEM Video Game Challenge and the Guggenheim Museum’s art education team partnered up last month to host a workshop that explored ways to apply Moholy-Nagy’s artistic process to the practice of game development. In preparation for the workshop, the STEM Challenge team visited the museum to tour the current exhibition, Moholy-Nagy: Future Present. Working with the educators at the…

On May 31-June 1, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center and New America co-hosted Fostering STEM Trajectories: at a two-day event in Washington, DC. Vivien Stewart, Senior Advisor for Education and former Vice President of Asia Society, delivered these remarks on how an international perspective on STEM education for young children may benefit our research and practices.   FIRST: Why thinking internationally ought to be part of our national research agenda in STEM and early learning. Most American educators know that on…

During my teaching career, I taught pre-K in high-poverty areas in the District of Columbia, but I also taught for a year in a high-income, suburban area in Maryland. There was a stark difference in students’ vocabulary and background knowledge. Most of my students from a low-income background didn’t have the breadth of vocabulary that some of my higher income students possessed. Although this was my own personal experience, it is backed up by research which says that by the…

FETC, a division of 1105 Media Inc., is one of the largest conferences in the United States devoted to educational technology. The conference gives educators an opportunity to learn how to integrate different technologies across the curriculum – from kindergarten to college – while being exposed to the latest hardware, software and successful strategies on student technology use. FETC is designed for teachers, principals and deans, district administrators, curriculum designers, media specialists, technology directors and others. At 1:00 pm on…