“The Becker Ed Tech Test”: Part 1

Approximate Reading Time: 4 minutesThis is the first part of my response to the Audrey Test (see my previous post). I’m calling it the Becker Ed Tech Test (BETT) because I already have the Becker Lazy Test (BLT), which is something I developed some years … Continue reading →

“The Becker Ed Tech Test”: The Other Side of the “The Audrey Test” Coin. (Part 0)

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesWhen Audrey Waters was asked to create something similar to Stack Overflow co-founder Joel Spolsky’s “Joel Test“. She admitted that she wasn’t sure she could create a comparable test for techies in education, so instead she came up with this: “The Audrey Test”: Or, … Continue reading →

Turns Out, Play is Play, Even If It’s a Videogame

Approximate Reading Time: 2 minutesWell that’s nice to hear. Children get the same value from playing videogames as they do from other forms of imaginative play. A Surprising New Study On How Video Games Impact Children. However, the findings do indicate “that electronic play … Continue reading →

What Wellesley learned when it stopped giving out so many A’s – Vox

Approximate Reading Time: 4 minutesI’m not defending grade inflation, but I also think it’s misguided to think every class contains a statistically normal range of abilities. If courses are focused on learning rather than sorting, then the idea of requiring professors to give out … Continue reading →

The Learning Myth: Anyone can Be/Learn Anything

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesWhen you say that all you need to do to succeed is to try, and they fail, the implication is they simply aren’t trying hard enough. That’s not good. Not everyone is a genius. Really. And there is no evidence … Continue reading →

Course Design is Scholarly Work and Deserves Attribution

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesMy course websites used to be public, but I got tired of others taking my design work w/o permission or attribution. Now most of my courses are password protected. I hadn’t really thought about my syllabi until last year when … Continue reading →

Students drop a bomb at the #gafesummit Vancouver: “We don’t like rubrics.” | A Stick in the Sand

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesDo students really like rubrics? Are YOU using them right? Students drop a bomb at the #gafesummit Vancouver: “We don’t like rubrics.” | A Stick in the Sand. For my part I quite like rubrics, but I also think many, … Continue reading →

The Power of a Nudge?

Approximate Reading Time: 2 minutesI’ve been working on my talk for the EdTechTeam Calgary Summit featuring Google for Education (#gafesummit) and I’ve had a couple of AHA moments regarding gamification. I hate feeling like I’m being manipulated – and this seems to be a … Continue reading →