Latest education updates from around the world
Razer Launches Free Haptic Authoring Tool for Quest, PS5, & More
Razer, the popular peripheral company, today announced the free release of the Interhaptics haptic authoring tool which is designed to make it faster and easier for developers to create compelling haptic effects for multiple haptic devices.
Razer acquired haptic software tool company Interhaptics earlier this year. Having gotten its start building VR haptic peripherals under the name Go Touch VR, it’s no surprise that the Interhaptics tool is compatible with Meta’s Quest headset controllers, in addition to PS5 and non-VR game platforms like Android and iOS.
Now free for developers to use, the Haptic Composer tool from Interhaptics […]
How to Create Custom QR Codes in Canva
Over the last fifteen years I’ve seen QR codes rise in popularity, fall in popularity, and rise again. They never lost their appeal to me because they can be used in schools a bunch of helpful ways. There are more QR code creation tools than ever before including one that is built into Canva.
In Canva you can take any design that you’ve made and use that design as the basis for a custom QR code. Or you can do what I demonstrate in the video below and simply use Canva […]
One More Day
.png){kind=link}
Over the last year many of you have kindly supported my work here on Free Technology for Teachers and Practical Ed Tech by purchasing a copy of my eBook, 50 Tech Tuesday Tips. If you’ve been thinking about purchasing a copy, there’s a 20% discount available until the end of the day on November 30th.
50 Tech Tuesday Tips was curated from more than 400 editions of The Practical Ed Tech Newsletter. In 50 Tech Tuesday Tips you will find ideas for lots […]
Mapme- Customizable Interactive Maps for Students
A Mean PhET Simulation
PhET is one of my go-to resources for math and science teachers. Just before the Thanksgiving break (for those of us in the United States) PhET released a new simulation designed to help students understand the concept of mean.
Mean: Share and Balance is an interactive simulation in which students are shown a series of beakers of water. They then have to estimate where the mean water level will be. The simulation can be adjusted to show as few as two beakers or as many as seven beakers. When displaying the simulation to your […]
Best Ereaders for Students and Teachers
The best ereaders for help you do paper-free while getting access to a wealth of digital content.
What is Closegap and How Can It Be Used to Teach? Tips & Tricks
Closegap is a wellbeing app designed to help students cope with life, using daily strategies.
‘Super Smash Bros’ Creator Masahiro Sakurai Says VR is “Truly the perfect fit” for Some Games
In his video series introducing aspiring developers to the basics of game development, Super Smash Bros creator Masahiro Sakurai recommends viewers give VR a try to understand what it does uniquely well.
Masahiro Sakurai has had an illustrious career in game development. Though best known as the creator and director of the Super Smash Bros series, the first game in the series was actually his fourth game. He first got his start back in 1992 with another franchise you’ve probably heard of… Kirby.
With 30 years of experience under his belt, Sakurai recently started up his own YouTube channel to share his game design […]
Threadit is Closing – A Few Alternatives to Try
Threadit is a Google product that when it launched I thought could have become a rival to Microsoft Flip. As feature-laden as Threadit is, it never really caught on and now Google is shutting it down in a few weeks. On December 19th Google is closing the doors on Threadit. If you have videos in it that you want to save, you need to download them sooner than later.
Alternatives to Threadit in the Google Workspace Environment
Some of what Threadit does can be replicated with other tools that are still available […]
15 Years of Free Technology for Teachers – Some Thoughts
Fifteen years ago today I was supervising detention when I wrote the first post on this blog. I did not have any idea what was to come over the next fifteen years let alone that I’d still be writing about educational technology in 2022. So on this occasion, if you’ll indulge me, I’d like to take a few minutes to reflect on the last fifteen years.
People and Places
I’ve met some wonderful people and made great friends as a result of writing my blog. I’ve been invited to speak at events on six […]
How EdTech Can Encourage Healthy and Professional Social Media Use in Teens
Image Source: Pexels
Today’s teens have never known a world without social media. It’s an established – and growing – part of everyday life, from the professional to the personal. While teens are pretty savvy regarding social media use, it can be a slippery slope if they aren’t educated on how to use it correctly and safely.
It’s up to educators and parents to properly educate today’s teenagers on healthy, productive, and professional social media habits. If teens aren’t well-versed in using certain platforms properly, they could fall victim to cyberbullying and identity theft, or even run into problems later in life […]
In Memory of Ed Webster – Resources for Teaching and Learning About Mount Everest
This morning I opened Facebook and saw the news that fellow Mainer, mountaineer, and author Ed Webster had passed away on Thanksgiving morning. He’s probably most famous for pioneering a new route up Mount Everest in 1988 which he chronicled with words and fascinating imagery in Snow in the Kingdom.
I met Ed a few times over the years. He was incredibly humble and he was someone who you knew right away was a kind and generous soul. The first time I met him was at LL Bean fifteen years ago. […]
Neuralink “Show & Tell” Coming on November 30th, Hints at Thought-controlled Typing
Elon Musk’s brain-machine interface (BMI) company Neuralink has been fairly quiet since it last showed off a live trial of the company’s implant in a macaque early last year. Although originally scheduled for October 31st, Musk says a “show & tell” update is coming on November 30th.
The event is said to take place on November 30th at 6:00 PM PT (local time here). The company’s Twitter profile left a possible hint at this year’s update in an announcement, and it appears to be focused on text input.
Nov 30, 6 pm PT pic.twitter.com/I2J89Q7CYW
— […]
The Midterm Election: What Do The Results Mean for Education?
How the recent midterm election cycle will impact school across the country
Using a Return on Investment Tool to Make Better Grad School Decisions
The MBA program at Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s new return on investment tool is designed to help prospective students make better decisions about graduate school spending.
What is Quandary and How Can It Be Used to Teach? Tips & Tricks
Quandary is a decision-based game that can help educate students on tough ethical choices.
Best Free Christmas Coloring Pages and Printables
Christmas is wonderful, and for all kinds of reasons! From those coveted family get-togethers to those cozy nights of classical Christmas movie watching, Christmas is the time of year that both kids and adults look forward to, impatiently.
I have been working diligently sifting through tons of Christmas resources, trying out different apps and tools, and exploring new resources. The purpose is to create a resource section here in Educational Technology and Mobile Learning where parents, teachers, and students can access educational resources to use during the Christmas season. I have so far covered
Three YouTube Features Every Teacher Should Know How to Use
In last week’s Practical Ed Tech Newsletter I detailed a few features of YouTube Studio that every teacher who uploads videos to YouTube should know how to use. The video included in that newsletter can be seen here. Chances are that even if you don’t upload videos to YouTube, you probably use YouTube to find and show videos in your classroom from time to time. If that’s the case for you, there are some features of YouTube that you should know how to use.
In this new video […]
The 4 Best Santa Tracker Apps 2022
Where is Santa Claus right now? What is he doing? How long will it take him to come visit us?…These are all recurring questions you will be getting from your kids during this season, questions that add to the lovely experience of Christmas. While it is always great to provide answers and partake in kids’ joy as they impatiently await for Santa’s arrival, you can also use the apps below and let them do part of the job for you. And yes, they can do it perfectly well.
These are some of the best and reliable Santa […]
Clipart, Maps, and Food – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where it feels like winter is here to stay. A couple of the local ski mountains are open, a thin coat of ice appears on a lot of the ponds around my house, and I have to wear a lot more layers to ride my bike outside. Like many of you, I’ve had the last few days off to relax and spend with family. That will continue this weekend as we head outside for a hike and to find our Christmas tree. I hope that you have an equally enjoyable weekend.
If you’re […]
Canva Comic Strips Maker- A Great Tool to Easily Make Comic Strips
Best Math Websites for Teachers and Students
Pixton Comic Maker- Full Review
Google Santa Tracker- Fun and Interactive Santa Games and Activities
Google Santa Tracker is a platform developed by Google which allows people with Internet connection to track and find where Santa is. Since its launch in 2004, Google Santa Tracker has added a wide variety of interesting and fun features making it one of the best Santa trackers out there.
