CAN ROBOTS HELPAUTISTIC KIDS CONNECT?

THE ANNUAL [ELEMENTARY] EDUCATION + TECHNOLOGY ISSUE2012

APPS & DEVELOPMENT: A CRITICAL INFOGRAPHIC STUDY

TIPS & TRICKS FORGETTING CREATIVE IN THE CLASSROOM

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HOw DO wE Measure

What Really Counts?OCTOBER 2012 $4.99

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CAN ROBOTS HELPAUTISTIC KIDS CONNECT?

APPS & DEVELOPMENT: A CRITICAL INFOGRAPHIC STUDY

TIPS & TRICKS FORGETTING CREATIVE IN THE CLASSROOM

010 024012A LETTER FROM GUEST EDITOR ZOE wIEL

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It’s also possible few students have taken the time to thank you, because they may be so stressed and frustrated by endless tests, long hours sitting in a chair learning things that don’t seem relevant and important to them, or by a couple of other teachers, administrators or fellow students who’ve demoral-ized, bullied, scared, or bored them to tears mak-ing them hate school despite all you have done.

So if you haven’t received the thanks you deserve, I want to thank you publicly now. And by “you” I mean those teachers who love to teach and do so with all their heart and soul to provide their students with what is important and necessary and inspiring and beautiful and meaningful and true and good and honest. I mean those teachers who care about kids and empower them and ignite their passions and help them achieve their big dreams. I mean those teachers who demand that their students ques-tion everything, including what they themselves teach, to ensure that they become the best criti-cal and creative thinkers they can be. I mean those teachers who listen and care. I mean those teachers who are passionate about the subjects they teach and who cannot help but impart that passion.

I want to thank you for doing the most important work of all – educating the next generation. The real hope for our world, for creating peace, for solving our entrenched problems, for developing sustainable, humane, and healthy systems in technology, farm-

ing, economics, production, transportation, defense, and so on, lies with you— how well you provide your students with the knowledge, tools, and motivation they need to be able to create such systems. And you deserve extra gratitude for doing what you can to make your curricula serve such ends when standard-ized bubble tests demand something else entirely from you and often hinder the greater goals for a truly educated populace that you aspire to provide.

Thank you for being willing to work long hours for modest pay and minimal status when you surely could be making more money with less stress and greater prestige. Thank you for buying supplies when the school ran out of money and extending yourself far beyond your job descrip-tion to help and mentor your students outside of the classroom. Thank you for trying to figure out every day how to manage the needs of so many children and for loving the ones who are hard to love because they make your days so difficult.

Thank you for modeling patience, honesty, courage, perseverance, wisdom, responsibility, generosity, and a commitment to lifelong learning to the best of your ability each and every day in your classroom.

Most of all, thank you for everything you have done and will continue to do to create a better future. There is no other profession that so directly shapes the world of tomorrow. Thank you for teaching.

zoe weIl > President for the Institute of Humane Education

The Institute for Humane Education offers the first and only M.Ed. and M.A. programs in Humane Education. Weil is the author of Most Good, Least Harm: A Simple Principle for a Better World and Meaning-ful Life; Above All, Be Kind; and The Power and Promise of Humane Education. She has also given a TEDx talk on solutionary education.

Learn more: www.commondreams.org/author/zoe-weil

letter from tHe GUeSt eDItor zoe weIl

an open thank youto eduCatoRsIt’s possible that you have had a few students thank you, tell you that something you taught them, did for them, helped them learn was important and meaningful and changed them and inspired them and meant the world to them.

curiosity · october 2012

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Age: 22+Gender: NeutralRegion: North AmericaEthnicity: NeutralReligion: NeutralProfession: K-12 Education

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The Curiosity reader is a K–5 educator working in a public or private school environment. They are interested in making the classroom more inviting by utilizing the latest technologies and research without wasting time in teacher training seminars. More importantly, they are monetarily limited and understand the need for creativ-ity in time and resources.

Guest editoRZoe Wiel

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InnovatIve Robots

help autistiC kidsConneCtAnitA Hamilton

Toy robots can bring out the kid in anyone, but children with autism are especially mesmerized by them. Now a startup called Interbots in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania has developed a 10-inch tall robot named Popchilla that is designed specifi-cally for kids with autism spectrum disorder. “Some autistic children are more willing to interact with robotic devices than humans. We want to use Popchilla to help those chil-dren with their social skills and interacting with real people,” says Interbots Chief Technical Officer Michael Knight.

The furry blue bot, which is still a prototype, has bunny ears and a tail like a lion’s. But Popchilla’s human-like facial expressions really set it apart from other toys. When he’s happy, Popchilla’s ears shoot straight up while his eyes open wide and glow green. When angry, his eyes narrow and flash red while his ears descend. The lED-lit eyes can also turn pink to show embar-rassment, yellow for confusion, and orange to register surprise.

unlike most robotic toys, which are completely autonomous, Popchilla’s movements are controlled either by a parent or therapist using a remote control or software program. This electronic puppeteering helps keeps Popchilla’s costs down (since no sensors or expensive microprocessors are built into the toy itself) and allows adults to customize the toy’s actions to meet kids’ individual needs. “Children with au-tism don’t react well to things that are unpredictable, and therapists prefer to use tools and technology that they have full control over,” says Interbots CEO Seema Patel.

Popchilla isn’t the only robot for autistic kids--researchers at the university of Hertfordshire in the united Kingdom recently showed off their humanoid Kaspar model--but it will likely be one of the most affordable options. The company hopes to market the toy for around $500, but has not yet set a release date. In the meantime, it is developing an iPad game called Popchilla’s World that helps autistic kids overcome the fear of daily routines--like brushing their teeth and getting dressed in the morning--by rewarding them with virtual prizes like balloons falling down from the sky. The company will demo Popchilla’s World at the Consumer Electronics Show in January and plans to release a free version of the game later in the year.

anITa hamIlTon > Freelance writer

Anita Hamilton is a freelance writer covering business, technology, health, environment and lifestyle topics. She has also written for Time, Bloomberg Businessweek, Time Out New York, and CNET.

Learn more: www.fastcoexist.com/users/anita-hamilton

Popchilla might look like an adorable plaything, but it’s way more than that. It’s a special tool to interact with autistic children.

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Unlike most robotic toys, which are completely autonomous, Popchilla’s movements are controlled either by a parent or therapist using a remote control or software program.

PhoTo CReDITS

TOP> Courtesy of Interbots Inc.ABOVE> Fast Co. existRIGHT> matt Freed, POST GAZETTE

TRISHA RIChe

8 tIpS & trIckS FoR UTIlIzIng

CReativity in the ClassRoom

There is a common misconception that the word

creative has to do mostly with the arts. But being

artistic is only a small part of creativity.

here’s an experiment you can conduct in many schools, maybe even the school where you teach. look through the door of one classroom and you might see the students hunched over, not engaged, even frowning. The teacher looks frazzled, tired and wishing he or she were somewhere else. You might think, “Well, everyone has a bad day.” But you might witness this scenario in this teacher’s classroom no matter what day you look through the door. For the second part of the experiment, look through the door of another classroom, and you might see a room full of lively students, eager, engaged and participating. The teacher is full of energy and smiling. This happens no matter what day you look through that door.

What is the second teacher doing that the first one isn’t? He or she is using creativity in that classroom. Creativity makes a huge difference. Creativity is vital for a classroom to be successful.

01> CReaTIvITy IS ThInkIng oUTSIDe The boxEverything doesn’t always have to be black and white. Some-times the oddball activities are the ones that work.

02> CReaTIvITy IS ImPRovISaTIonThings don’t always turn out the way you planned. When I’ve realized that a lesson wasn’t working midway through, I literallytossed it out and started over. I tried a different angle (in this case, incorporating a movie that my students liked), and it worked.

03> CReaTIvITy IS PRoFeSSIonal gRowThWe don’t always have all of the answers. If you can’t figure out what to do, use your coworkers as resources. You might find some really great ideas that make sense for your students. Also, look at research and see what has worked for other teachers around the world. use resources like KS1, KS2, hubbardscup-board.org and starfall.com for some fun engaging activities.

TRISha RIChe > Kindergarten Teacher

Trisha Riche is a kindergarten inclusion teacher at R.l. Brown Elementary in Jacksonville, Fl. She enjoys painting, drawing, dancing, and mentoring young teachers. She is nationally recognized as a creative educator.

Learn more: www.edutopia.org/user/76446

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04> CReaTIvITy IS PaSSIonBe passionate about what you are doing. You are there to in-spire students to become lifelong learners. If you want them to love learning, you have to love what you are teaching.

PhoTo CReDITSRIGHT> anissa Thompson

05> exPlaInIng whaT maTTeRSDrop some food coloring into beakers of cold and warm water and note the difference. Then pour the contents of one beaker in a bag and put it in the freezer. The next day, compare the liquid bag with the solid chunk of ice and note differences.

06> bReakIng The ICeuse the ice from the above activity and talk about gravity. Stand on a chair and discuss what will happen if you drop the ice, and if it matters which way you drop it. let your students predict the possible outcomes.

07> geT oUTSIDeTaking the lesson plans outside will give students an opportunity for a memorable hands-on learning experience and some much needed fresh air.

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08> lIve lIke a TURTle

Make time for creativity. Most of the above creative activities take only a few minutes to do. They also require very little prep time and cost very little money, if any. Dr. Ruth once said: “live life every day like a turtle.” To get anywhere, a turtle has to stick its neck out and take a risk. So take risks every day. It’s the only way to truly live and make a difference in the world.

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Take RISkS eveRyDay.- trisha riche

How Do we measuRe

What Really Counts?

CATHY DavIDSon

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CaThy DavIDSon > Professor, Duke University

Cathy Davidson is a professor at Duke university where she co-directs the Ph. D. lab in Digital Knowledge. Davidson is the au-thor of most recently, of Now You See It: How the Brain Science of Attention Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Learn.

Learn more: www.fastcoexist.com/users/cathy-davidson

a new geneRaTIon Assessment tools are hoping to piggyback off the wealth of online rating software to find a better and more efficient method of assessing students.

we are all evaluating products, restaurants, doctors, books, hotels, and everything else on-line, but education has not yet moved past the standardized assessment, which was invented in 1914. Frederick Kelly, a doctoral student in Kansas, was looking for a mass-produced way to address a teacher shortage caused by World War I. If Ford could mass produce Model T’s, why not come up with a test for “lower order thinking” for the masses of immigrants coming into America just as secondary education was made compulsory and all the female teach-ers were working in factories while their men went to the European front? Even Kelly was dismayed when his emergency system, which he called the Kansas Silent Reading Test, was retained after the war ended. By 1926, a varia-tion of Kelly’s test was adopted by the College Entrance Examination Board as the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). The rest is history.

So when Kyle Peck (Penn State) and Khusro Kidwai (university of Southern Maine) demoed their nonprofit, free eRubric assessment tool at Duke recently, we were all surprised at the flex-ibility it allowed, in a customizable and highly automated form.

An art history teacher and a prof teaching geographical information systems were both beta-testing it to grade essay and short an-swer exams to hundreds of students. eRubric allowed them to assess everything from the accuracy of the specific content on individual answers to logical thinking, verbal expression, imaginativethinking-outside-the-box applica-tion of the material– in other words: originality. In a different kind of assignment, the

professors might have added categories for collaborative work, or the ability to take an idea from beginning to conclusion of a project the kinds of skills good teachers discover but rarely have a chance to test, measure, or pro-vide any good feedback on, especially if there are 90 or 400 students in a course. The eRu-bric allows anyone evaluating others the ability to customize the categories to be evaluated, to weight the individual categories differently on different assignments, and could be used in in-formal or formal education, from kindergarten through college and beyond, and with applica-tions for any Human Resources department at any corporation too.

That’s just the beginning. If a teacher wished, she could even begin the first day of class with a blank eRubric and have students, together, write the categories and the feedback for each

The ReST IS hISToRy.category together. They would then know, on each challenge or test or essay they were given, how they would be judged, the terms of the assessment that would, in the end, determine their grade. All research on assessment shows we learn more if we understand, participate in, and agree with the basic learning or work goals we’re aiming at. An investment in outcomes that research shows improves learning.

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With eRubric, the teacher decides, on any assignment, which categories apply and how to weight them. When the test papers, problem sets, or essays come in, the teacher reads and then clicks each category box to generate complex feedback in each category. eRubric allows the teacher to write an individual comment in each category or on the whole assignment if he thinks the pre-written comment could use more precision. eRubric then automatically sends all of this feedback (probably a page-long assessment in the end) to the student in an email: summary grade, break down, general comments, specific comments. A week or so later, eRubric sends any student who hasn’t opened the assessment document a reminder email and sends one to the professor indicating whether or not the student has bothered.

The woRlD IS CaUghT uP IN AN INFORMATION AGE REVOluTION.

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KNEWTON KNOWS

TURNING EDUCATION AROUNDTHE FLIPPED CLASSROOM

+50%

+44%

95%

WORLD WIDE WEBThe number of people who viewed online educational videos doubled between 2007 and 2010.

BEfORE thE fLIpPrior to the classroom model adjustment, forty-four percent of students failed freshman math.

fRactIOns aRE fun?An overwhelming ninety-five percent of students who used the program felt the app was fun and helpful.

Higher education is trying a new classroom model. The flipped classroom inverts traditional teaching methods, delivering instruction online outside the class and moving "homework" into the classroom.

When we hear every year that the u.S. has fallen in the OECD rankings to, say, 14th in reading, 17th in science, and 25th in math in the world, as we did in 2010, we’re always alarmed. Isn’t that a problem? It may well be, but it the problem is far more complex. Americans use standardized tests earlier and more often than any other nation on the planet. Research shows that high stakes, after-the-fact or end of grade, multiple choice test-ing has little impact on learning motivation and even little real quantitative relationship to content mastery.

When I talk to corporate trainers, they insist that, in this job market, they can hire the smartest students in the country, those who have had the highest grades through the entire school system. But because the No Child left Behind national law began requiring the standardized tests for all students since 2002, it takes them one to two years to retrain these great students not to think in terms of single-best-answer (multiple choice) options. They have to make them “unlearn” the skill of guess-ing the best answer from five available ones (a pretty useless skill in the workplace), and begin to “relearn” how to think about what they do or don’t really under-stand about a situation, who to go to in order to find out, and what they need to do to have the best results.Learn more: www.Knewton.com

americans use standardized tests earlier and more oftenthan any other nation on the planet.

PhoTo CReDITSTOP> mokraABOVE> madmaven/T.S. heiseleRIGHT> Tim & annette

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DIGItal meDIa: is app teChnoloGy

neGatively affeCtinG ouR youth?

Seven out of ten kids in tablet-using homes use the tablet

themselves. The author of a new book argues parents are

paying attention to the wrong criteria to decide what’s good

and what’s bad in kids’ media.

The amount of digital media exposure we’re getting, even among the tiniest infants, just keeps growing. Half of all children under the age of 8 have access to a touch-screen device, whether smartphone or tablet, at home, and half of infants under one year watch TV or videos— an average of almost two hours a day. The educational app field is seeing massive growth with 80% of educational apps in the iPad store targeted to young children. But research, says one expert, is lagging far behind in practice.

“Parents tend to think: ‘If my kids are interacting with media, that they’re getting something out of it,’ verse ‘If they’re just watching they’re not,’” says lisa Guernsey. “It’s a dangerous dichotomy— it’s not always true. Some passive screen media maybe designed much better than some interactive media.

Guernsey’s book Screen Time has been newly revised and updated, summarizing the latest peer-reviewed research on kids and digital media. There’s stillfrustratingly little research that has been published on kids and games or apps, but one Georgetown study was promising. It found that 3–year–olds who played a simple hide–and–seek game with puppets by pressing a space bar were able to

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apply that knowledge to the real world (looking for the dog puppet behind a clothesline in a real-life setting similar to the game), while those who merely watched the puppets on video were less engaged and less able to apply what they saw.

What’s unknown, but fascinating, is how media and especially touch screens, might shape — or warp— a child’s attention span, language de-velopment, and drawing an understanding of concepts like object permanence and “pictorial competence.” That phase refers to the fact that between 9 and 15 months of age, babies are apt to grab at or even try to taste a picture of a bottle in a book, not quite understanding the dif-ference between a 3–D and a 2–D representation. But what happens when that 2–D bottle is on a touch screen and can be moved around, tipped over, and “spill” with sound effects?

“We’re primed now for some research that digs into how very young minds are understanding what they’re touching on a screen and how it relates to real life,” Guernsey says.

anya kameneTz > Senior writer, Fast Company

Kamenetz writes the column life In Beta about change. She’s the author of two books, Generation Debt (Riverhead, 2006) and DIY u: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education, (Chelsea Green, 2010).

Learn more: www.fastcoexist.com/users/anya-kamenetz

ANYA kameneTz

On average, thirty–eight percent of kids age 0–8 have used tablets and smartphones. Here’s a breakdown by age:

thERE’s an app fOR that!Twenty-five percent of Parents have downloaded apps for their kids to use.

Games just for fun

Educational games

Creative

Based on TV character

Other

tOp fIvE EDucatIOn appsMolecules free

Today in History free

HMH Fuse Algebra 1 free

Flashcards+ free-$1.99

Teach me Toddler $0.99-$1.99

What kinds of apps are kids ages 0–8 using?Q

70% 22% 25%

WhERE DOEs thE appLE faLL?Seventy percent of kids in tablet-owning homes who have used a tablet.

taBLEts—thE nEW nanny?Twenty-two percent of parents have admitted to giving their kids a smart-phone, ipod, or ipad to keep them occupied while they run errands.

38%

TABLETS IN THE HOME

AGE 0–1

AGE 2–4

AGE 5–8

SAY WAA—?!

10%

39%

51%

PARENTS TEND

TO THINK: ‘IF

MY KIDS ARE

INTERACTING

wITH MEDIA,

THAT THEY

ARE GETTING

SOMETHING OUT

OF IT’ VERSE ‘IF

THEY’RE jUST

wATCHING

THEY’RE NOT.

- Lisa Guernsey

46%

42%

28%

19%

16%

APPS IN THE CLASSROOM

600+MODERnIZInG thE MInDSix hundred school districts are implementing iPad programs.

fifth grade math studymotion math ipad app

+10%

+15%

95%

LOvE It OR hatE ItAfter using the application, students experienced a ten percent increase in self-efficiacy and liking fractions.

WhOLE hEaRtEDTest scores improved overall by fifteen percent compared to plain textbook use.

fRactIOns aRE fun?An overwhelming ninety-five percent of students who used the program felt the app was fun and helpful.

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This is how we innovate.CAPTION: Gotham Bold/Book, 07 pt.

This is how we innovate.

style Guide

Growing up I enjoyed rearranging the furniture in my room, cleaning out the garage, and organizingmy family’s pantry. All my friend’s parents loved having me stay for sleepovers too, because I would clean my friend’s rooms for them. I was a strange kid. I loved cleaning and reorganizing for hours on end— always driven by my fascination with the final product. Even as a child I preferred a functional and simple style.

The versatility and functionality of graphic design is crucial to my expression. I treasure having the freedom to study virtually any topic of interest. Beyond the versatility of content, design is critical as a mode of sharing ideas. With this project in particular, I sought to better the public education system by stimulating the essence of education — curiosity and technology.

desiGneR bio

As a product of the public education system, I am inspired by the lifelong commitment educators make to helping students grow. It is in the classroom that the concept of curiosity blooms into a life-long pas-sion. One such idea that inspires those to push the boundaries of our society on virtually every platform from culture to technology.

This special issue of Curiosity is aimed to help educators grow and develop their professional knowledge of today’s technology as it relates to the young mind. A sleek and colorful approach to design makes the issue professional and inviting. Subtle elements like geometric patterns and the warm color palette stimulate the senses beyond traditional bland educational publications. Curiosity seeks to elevate the standards of elementary education by educating teachers on the latest technologies for an approach to education that stimulates and maximizes learning.

ConCept statement

textuRe & ColoR palette

Weil, Zoe. "An Open Thank You letter to Teachers | Common Dreams."

Common Dreams. N.p., 15 June 2012. Web. 02 Nov. 2012.

https://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/06/15-6

Hamilton, Anita. "Can Robots Help Autistic Kids Connect?"

Co.Exist. Fast Company, 27 Sept. 2012. Web. 02 Nov. 2012.

http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680618/can-robots-help-autistic-kids-connect

Riche, Trisha. "22 Simple Ideas for Harnessing Creativity in the Elementary Classroom."

Edutopia. N.p., 14 Dec. 2011. Web. 02 Nov. 2012.

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/creativity-in-classroom-trisha-riche

Davidson, Cathy. "How Do We Measure What Really Counts In The Classroom?"

Co.Exist. Fast Company, 20 Sept. 2012. Web. 02 Nov. 2012.

http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680584/how-do-we-measure-what-really-

counts-in-the-classroom

Kamenetz, Anya. "What Is This App Doing To My Kid’s Brain?"

Co. Exist. Fast Company, 21 Sept. 2012. Web. 02 Nov. 2012.

http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680579/what-is-this-app-doing-to-my-kids-brain

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