Ed.—This article was written in conjunction with Digital Learning Day, held Feb. 5 of each year. Digital Learning Day is a national call to support the effective use of technology to improve education for all students.
You might wonder, “What is Digital Learning?” According to Ohio Senate Bill 316, “Digital learning, means learning facilitated by technology that gives students some element of control over time, place, path or pace of learning.” Digital learning encompasses the effective use of technology to empower teachers and students. Digital Learning Day (DLD) allows schools a set time to discuss and share ways to provide every child the opportunity to learn in a robust digital environment every day, with the goal of success in college and a career. It is a day to celebrate and empower teachers, showcase innovative usages of technology and share resources.
DLD is a national event, the first of which was launched Feb. 1, 2012, by the Alliance for Excellent Education. Tenets of the alliance’s DLD are:
- It is essential to support the critical role of teachers.
- Implementation of digital learning needs to be aligned with student learning outcomes.
- Regardless of ethnicity, economic circumstances, or social forces, ALL STUDENTS deserve the opportunity to succeed in high-quality schools close to their homes and communities.
- Career-and college-ready standards cannot be achieved without deploying technology effectively to personalize learning.
These tenets exemplify the need to support teachers, provide quality professional development and address the issues of the digital divide and the need to view educational technology as an integral part of student learning.
Ohio’s participation in the third annual DLD celebration is a collaborative effort between state agencies, school districts, regional agencies and universities. As part of the DLD celebration, several pre-cursor events were planned, which included the launch of the DLD video contest, a presence at the annual Ohio Educational Technology Conference (OETC) in January and a panel discussion with four Ohio Innovative Educational Leaders.
The Ohio Board of Regents provided for a DLD Booth at OETC conference last week. DLD activities and videos from the “I am a Digital Learner” video contest were highlighted for public voting. K-20 educators from across the state were at the booth each day to share resources and strategies that can be used to incorporate the use of technology w
ithin the curriculum and in the classroom. Booth participants included: Jim Harvey, systems analyst at The Ohio State University; Ann Gleek, librarian and Selene Kelly, PE teacher, both from Gahanna Lincoln High School; Kevin Snyder, director of Education Technology Services for Lancaster City Schools; and Dr. Melissa Askren-Edgehouse and Dr. Mandy Capel, assistant professors of Education at Mount Union University. Otis Winston, Ohio State basketball star, actor, writer, producer and accomplished IT professional, also spent some time at the booth to share his passion for advancing student achievement and the impact technology has had in his professional career.
Ohio students were invited to showcase their creative talents and technology skills in the DLD video contest, “I am a Digital Learner.” Students submitted one-to-three-minute videos featuring how they use technology to deepen, stretch and expand their learning. The top four videos selected for public voting were: St. Joseph Academy, Hilliard City Schools, Alliance City Schools and A-Tech/Grand Valley Schools. These videos were showcased at OETC with public voting during and after; the winning video will be announced Feb. 5 and featured on the Ohio DLD webpage.
Transforming teaching and learning requires great leadership and collaboration. A few weeks prior to DLD, four Ohio Innovative Educational Leaders met for a panel discussion sharing their perspectives regarding the benefits and challenges of innovative teaching and learning. It was a powerful conversation sharing insights that included: the use of mobile technology to extend learning beyond the classroom, the importance of collaboration for the implementation of a successful project and the necessity of creating a supportive environment for initiating new methodologies within the classroom.
Steve Dackin, superintendent of the Reynoldsburg City School District; Brent Wise, director of Innovation and Extended Learning for the Hilliard City School District; Ashlin Henderson, an English Language Arts teacher for Lancaster City Schools; and Edward A. Hill, Jr., a digital learning specialist for the Ohio Resource Center and director of Wexford Innovations, participated in the forum. The recorded session will be released Feb. 5 on the DLD website and will air on WOSU Plus, March 21 at 9 p.m. and again on March 28 at 9 p.m.
After many months of planning, February 5th has arrived and is packed with events for the day!
In addition to the student video contest announcement and the airing of the panel session, the Creative Learning Factory at the Ohio Historical Society will provide free online learning programs to Ohio students. These sessions will be streamed live via YouTube, and students will interact with the program characters via chat. The schedule features:
- High school session: 8:30-9 a.m. (Q&A 9-9:30)
“Picture This” (Interpreting the past with photographs) - Middle school session: 10-10:30 a.m. (Q&A 10:30-11)
“Mound Building Cultures” (Exploring the ancient cultures of Ohio) - Elementary school session: 1-1:30 p.m. (Q&A 1:30-2)
“Can She Trust You?” (Helping a runaway slave to find freedom)
A recorded version will be available on demand, if the live sessions do not coincide with respective teaching schedules. Registration and information for the day can be found at www.ohiodld.org.
Ohio has a plethora of online resources available to assist Ohio’s K-20 students in the digital transition. ilearnOhio is a comprehensive platform which includes a searchable repository of standards-aligned content and an e-commerce marketplace for online courses for the K-12 community. OhioLINK, a member of the Ohio Technology Consortium (OH-TECH), shares an extensive digital and print library across the s
tate that can be accessed 24 hours/7 days a week by Ohio college students, faculty and researchers. Additionally, synchronous and asynchronous tutoring support is available to students via eTutoring, which provides academic assistance for traditional classes, online courses and for distance-learning students. The Ohio eTutoring Collaborative is funded by eStudent Services, a division of OH-TECH.
On Digital Learning Day, and throughout the month of February, resources will be available on the Ohio Digital Learning website to assist districts/schools expand digital learning within and beyond the classroom.
