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Wednesday, May 27, 2009 |
In this issue: |
Stakeholder Technology Branch Staffing UpdateDoug Bewick is joining Stakeholder Technology Branch (STB) as Senior Manager, Technical Publications. Doug will be working on several projects related to technology planning and standards. Doug has been working with Service Alberta, and has moved to STB as part of the Alberta government’s Executive and Senior Manager Mobility Program. As part of the Enterprise Services branch in Service Alberta, he had a range of responsibilities for emerging enterprise-wide initiatives such as eDiscovery and Case Management, as well as existing corporate applications and services. Doug can be contacted by email at Doug.Bewick@gov.ab.ca or by phone at 780-427-0174.
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New Education Standing Offer for Electronic Whiteboard TechnologyAlberta Education has established an Education Standing Offer with mimio, a manufacturer of interactive whiteboard technology. The mimio interactive bar is designed to transform any flat surface into a fully functional interactive whiteboard when combined with a computer and projection device. Education Standing Offers enable jurisdictions to acquire selected technology products from a centralized product catalogue at educational pricing levels that would not be available using independent purchasing arrangements. For additional information about this and other Education Standing Offers please see the product catalogues found on the Learning Resources Centre website at http://www.lrc.education.gov.ab.ca.
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Jurisdictional Videoconferencing Capacity Funding ResultsIn 2007/2008, Alberta Education provided Jurisdictional Videoconferencing Capacity Funding to all publicly funded school jurisdictions to increase the number of videoconferencing sites in the province’s education system. This funding followed-up on the success of the 2004/2005 initiative to establish videoconferencing capacity. As a result of this additional funding, the number of sites increased to 822 as of August 2008, from 524 sites in 2006. >> For a brief overview of the findings, click here.
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Provincial Approach to Student Information (PASI) UpdatePASI began, and continues to be, a collaborative effort between school authorities and Alberta Education. It is a strategic, multi-year project aimed at ensuring that business processes and technology related to student information are effectively positioned to serve the evolving needs of Alberta’s Kindergarten to Grade 12 students and parents. To enhance the degree of collaboration, school authorities have the opportunity to be directly involved in steering and guiding PASI over the next few years. School authorities are presently letting the PASI team know their level of preferred involvement in the various PASI committees. Invitations have been sent by the Deputy Minister to the Alberta School Board Association, College of Alberta School Superintendents and Association of School Business Officials of Alberta to name a representative to the PASI Steering Committee and to Alberta School Councils Association, Alberta Teachers Association, Association of Independent Schools & Colleges in Alberta & Alberta Technology Leaders in Education to name a representative to the PASI Advisory Committee. Student information system (SIS) software provider integration is planned to take place between June 2009 and March 2010. The integration stage requires that some school authorities partner with their SIS providers to begin integrating PASI’s enrollment capability functions into their information systems. In addition, a transitional feature called PASIprep is being developed for September 2010 implementation by all school authorities that will replace SISprep and will be used to submit SIS files to Alberta Education. For further information, contact Sam Radke, PASI Project Director, by e-mail at Sam.Radke@gov.ab.ca or by phone at 780-427-6930.
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Alberta Education Job OpportunityAlberta Education is currently looking for an Executive Director, Curriculum. This position will have a direct impact on the development of the Alberta Education programs of study, curriculum frameworks and the associated print, digital and distributed learning resources including distance and e-learning. The deadline for applications is June 5, 2009. For more information, visit the job posting website.
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Excellence in Teaching Awards Celebrate Alberta’s Outstanding TeachersTwenty-three teachers from across Alberta were recognized for their outstanding creativity and inspiring work in the 2009 Excellence in Teaching Awards. These teachers, nominated by their peers and the public, will be recognized at an award ceremony and dinner in Edmonton on May 30, 2009. Three teachers received the SMARTer Kids Foundation Innovative Use of Technology Award. As in previous years, these teachers will receive a technology package for use in their classrooms, including a SMART board. Sherri-Lynn Fricker, Joshua Hill and Trenton Lunde received the Innovative Use of Technology Awards. Sherri-Lynn Fricker teaches at Fort Saskatchewan Elementary School in the Elk Island Public School Division. In addition to developing her own skills through online learning activities, Sherri-Lynn uses technology throughout her daily instructional practices. As a technology leader, she shares her knowledge with other teachers, including through sessions at district professional development days. Joshua Hill teaches at Langdon School in the Rocky View School Division. His students learn in a collaborative environment working with laptops in a flexible setting. Joshua’s class connects with other classes through the use of web-based technologies. He also travels to other schools in the division to share his ideas and expertise with other teachers. Trenton Lunde teaches at Grand Centre Elementary School in the Northern Lights School Division. His students read, write, view, research, communicate and make presentations using a variety of technology. Trent has also guided colleagues in moving along the technology continuum. For more information on these awards, visit the Excellence in Teaching Awards’ website.
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Research ArticlesAlberta Education’s Stakeholder Technology Branch is continually monitoring research on best practices in the use of technology for teaching and learning. Research articles or reports from outside sources that may be pertinent to the work of tech.news subscribers will occasionally be included in this newsletter. The information in the articles or reports does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Alberta Education. The following two reports were published in May 2009.
>> For links to these reports, click here.
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Tools4Teachers UpdatesNew Resources The following resources are posted on the Tools4Teachers site: § Social Studies 10-1 Teacher’s Guide § Social Studies 10-2 Teacher’s Guide The Tools4Teachers website can be accessed at http://www.tools4teachers.ca. Contact your school administrator for a login and password. For more information, contact Lori Ristoff at Lori.Ristoff@gov.ab.ca.ca or by phone at 780-674-8719.
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Vol. 8 No. 10tech.news is an electronic newsletter for Alberta's education community. It is produced by Alberta Education, Stakeholder Technology Branch. Send your questions, suggestions, or article submissions to tech.news@gov.ab.ca. Next edition: June 2009
LINKS: Alberta Education website – Technology section Emerge One-to-One Laptop Learning initiative website Technology and High School Success initiative website
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