"Appogogy": Choosing the Right App for Maximum Student Engagement and Content Mastery

Presenter: Dr. Chris Moersch
Date: Tuesday, January 22nd, 2013
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.
Location: Nashville, TN
Room: Gaylord Opryland Hotel & Convention Center, Governors' A

Overview:
With the proliferation of BYOD (e.g., iPads, laptops, tablets) in Title 1 campuses, there is a growing need for educators to use proven strategies for choosing the right App or Web 2.0 tool for their content. Too often educators are looking for a one stop “app” that will allow them to find the perfect connection with students’ thinking and the content being taught. The problem is one teachers implementing technology have been through before. The wave of new technology always promises big breakthroughs, but without making thoughtful connections between the learner, the tool, the app, and the content these tools will see the same decline in effectiveness as the generations of tools before them.

Through collaborative conversation with teachers at 16 Title 1 Grade 3-8 campuses, we built a rubric based on Moersch’s research-based H.E.A.T. Framework (Higher Order Thinking, Engaged Learning, Authentic Connections, Technology Use) which can be used by any group to help make careful choices when selecting a digital tool or resource.

In this presentation we will share digital tools that have been thoroughly tested by the schools we coached during the 2011-12 school year -- tools that specifically support content mastery through higher levels of engagement, differentiation, and formative assessment. Participants will be using the Choosing the Right Tool Rubric to guide their own thinking and about the factors which must be considered when choosing and App or an online tool.