I want to tell you about some new (or somewhat new) blogs about handheld computing that are out there in the blogosphere:

Mobile Musings
Karen Fasimpaur, president of K12 Handhelds, writes about mobile technologies.

Handheldman - Journal
Steve Byrd, a passionate and geeky educator, writes about educational technology. Steve's writing has a unique voice that is really entertaining to read. Also check out his Handheldman Podcast.

Pocket-Ed Futures Blog - Pocket PCs in the Classroom
Ian Marsden from Australia writes about his use of Pocket PCs with students. Ian includes lots of great lesson ideas.

Handhelds in the Classroom
Debbie Donohue recently started a blog. She is really hooked on handhelds. I mean, really hooked. I submit this quote as evidence, "If I lost my handheld computer I may as well stay in bed in the morning because I wouldn't know where to go or how to get there!" Be sure to check out the cool video Debbie recently posted.

Ubiquitous Thoughts
Mark van 't Hooft works for the Research Center for Educational Technology at Kent State University. He writes his thoughts and ideas about teaching, learning, and computing.

The Pre-Service Teacher Blog
Dale Ehrhart is going to make one heck of a teacher. He has lots of interest in handheld computing. Recently he's been blogging about educational applications he has programmed himself. You go Dale!

How do I come across these brilliant blogs? I subscribe to Google Blog Searches. As you know, I'm an avid Bloglines user. I absolutely love that all of my updated blogs and RSS feeds are waiting for me in one place. I use Bloglines to subscribe to the RSS feeds for searches like these: handhelds + education, handhelds + classroom, handhelds + learning, podcasting + education, and pda + classroom.

If you have a blog or know of one that you'd like to share, please tell us about it by adding a comment to this post!

Labels: palm, pocket pc

I've been very busy working on the second edition of Handhelds for Teachers & Administrators. The first edition was written in 2003 and a lot has changed in three short years! We have much more educational software, handhelds can play audio and video, and there are many more resources out there for handheld computing! Even the operating systems have changed. In 2003 Palm OS 5 was brand new and most educators were using Palm OS 4. Pocket PC 2002 was out. Just last year Pocket PC 2003 was replaced by Windows Mobile 5.

If you need a book that focuses on the older Palm OS 4 or Pocket PC 2002/2003, then you better hurry and order the first edition of Handhelds for Teachers & Administrators. You can save $12 by purchasing the book through Amazon.com. The second edition will be quite different from the first, so you might want to own both.

My co-author, Janet Caughlin, and I are collecting stories and quotes from educators and students about handheld computing. If you have something valuable to say about using handhelds, producing podcasts, managing a classroom, purchasing hardware, or troubleshooting problems, please email me at learninginhand@mac.com and you might be quoted in the new book!

And speaking of a new book, Handheld Applications for the Classroom by Chris Cuppett is available for order from Visions Technology in Education. Chris has written about 43 freeware and shareware Palm applications and how to use them in the classroom.

Don't forget that there are many other books about educational handheld computing. I've listed them here.

Labels: palm, pocket pc

District Administration publishes Education in Hand twice a year. Education in Hand is described as a "custom publication for informational and marketing purposes." The publication is about marketing Palm handhelds, but the content is actually quite informational. The June 2006 issue is now available online.

One thing I noticed is that Palm is really pushing its Treo smartphone into education. I do think it's a great choice for administrators, but I prefer nonphone handhelds for students. Don't worry, although Education in Hand's cover story is about Treos, the rest of the publication isn't so Treo-centric.

Check out page 14. It has a great idea for using animation software like Sketchy in a science classroom:

"Sometimes, in a lab situation, it was hard for my students to describe in words what was happening," she says, explaining that it was often difficult for them to describe bacteria and other organisms observed under microscopes. "So I had them use the Palm computing device to draw what they saw."

There's an article about how a Texas school district uses handhelds to motivate students with Asperger's syndrome. Besides learning curriculum with handhelds, the students learn communication and social skills because "it's something [students] can interact with and talk about." Here's a quote from page 20:

As the students show off their work and educate each other on newly discovered features of the devices, they learn more social skills, she says. She cites as an example an assignment she gave students to use the devices to take pictures of their pets and show the photographs to one another. "That gets them to communicate, because now they are discussing their pets and they are having back-and-forth conversations and they are asking appropriate questions," says Parsons, who heads Birdville High School's special education department.

Also, don't miss the article, "Reading, Writing, and Podcasting." It focuses on Virginia's Arlington Public Schools' use of handhelds and podcasting. The link between handheld computing and podcasting doesn't seem strong from the article. But, there are certainly many ways for handhelds to play an important role in preproduction and listening.

Additionally, Region 16 Education Service Center in Amarillo, Texas has a wonderful handheld program in place. Heather Voran, an instruction technologist at the center, makes a good point about handheld software and its effectiveness:

"We're in the digital age with these kids," says Heather Voran, an instructional technology specialist at Region 16 Educational Service Center."They grew up with electronics and a lot of these programs are in a game format, but they're very instructional. The children are so busy having fun, trying to win or beat the machine, that they don't realize how much they're learning."

You can read all 30 pages of June 2006's Education in Hand here.

Labels: palm

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Labels: palm, pocket pc, soft reset

A search of Google News shows that handheld computers are making their way into more and more hands of students:

High-Tech Help: Students Have Access to New Gadgets This Year
by Gwenda Anthony, The Jackson Sun, August 1, 2006
Third and fourth graders at Isaac Lane Technology Magnet School will be using Palm handhelds for learning. The article does a great job of informing the public that these computers go way beyond simple PDA functions.The handhelds were funded by a grant. Students will begin taking the handhelds home after winter break.

Freshmen, Sophomores to Get PDAs at CHS
by Normaida Bright, Central Kentucky News-Journal, July 30, 2006
Campbellsville High School is phasing in 200 Dell Axims, which the writer describes as a "handheld mini computer." The handhelds will actually be leased to students and they will keep them after graduation. Students will be charged a $40 technology fee each year to help cover the cost. If the handheld is lost or stolen, students will have to pay $450 to replace it. The 200 handhelds will be phased in over two years. In fact, the whole first semester will be devoted to teachers and their professional development. CHA teachers will be prepared to use them when some students receive their handhelds second semester.

Gadgets Excite Educators
by Janese Heavin, Columbia Daily Tribune, July 30, 2006
Remember that school board member from Columbia, Missouri who was quoted in the paper? ""Who needs a palm pilot?" she asked. "We are not talking about world travelers who have business meetings all day. This technology is not applicable for teachers, staff or students." Well, I now give her kudos for sitting down with Matt Villasana, a fourth grade teacher at Shepard Elementary, to learn about handheld computing in education! For over an hour, Matt was able to show her that handhelds are not just electronic organizers for business folks. Matt hit home that handhelds engage students, which leads to achievement. The school board member would like to see more research, which SuccessLink says will be available this time next year. However, after talking with Matt, she said, "If it’s essential for Shepard, why is it not essential for another school?" Sounds like progress was made!

One Laptop Per Child Announces 4 Million Pre-Orders
by Jason Denwood, Pocket-lint, August 1, 2006
You may have heard about the $100 laptop project from MIT to bring inexpensive computing to developing nations. Sometimes this program is called One Laptop Per Child (a.k.a. OLPC). The project announced that Nigeria, Brazil, Argentina, and Thailand have each ordered 1 million laptops. What does this have to do with handhelds, you ask? The OLPC is actually more like a handheld than a laptop. It has a smaller screen, 500 Mhz processor, and limited memory. However, limitations not only make the hardware cheaper, but can actually make devices better learning tools. Many educators appreciate the simplicity of handheld computing and its lack of "excessive functionality."

Labels: palm, pocket pc