Category Archives: Academic

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist

CMLE Thinkfinity Webinar

CMLE Thinkfinity Webinar 

Are you interested in learning more about Thinkfinity — or perhaps you’ve never heard of Thinkfinity? Well, you’re in luck! Thinkfinity Trainer, Kate Bessey, from CMLE, will be providing an overview of Thinkfinity via webinar on Thursday, December 8th from 3:00-4:00PM. Kate attended a Thinkfinity “Train the Trainer” 2-day workshop this past summer, and is eager to present what she has learned to you!

Learning Outcomes:

  • Participants will have new awareness of this powerful website that provides free high-quality K-12 Internet content for educators, including lesson plans, cross-disciplinary resources and interactive student tools, many of which are mapped to Minnesota Academic Standards.
  • Participants will be able to begin using Thinkfinity for their own teaching/educational purposes.
  • Participants may find that they wish to train other educators in their school to use this valuable resource.

If you’re interested in attending this webinar, please send an email to Kate Bessey at kmbessey@stcloudstate.edu to register.

Kate will send you a confirmation email and additional information on December 6th. You’ll just need a high-speed internet connection and a flash player (it’s likely that your computer already meets these requirements) – if you’re not sure, the email Kate sends on December 6th will allow you to test your connections/system.

We hope to “see” you at our first CMLE hosted webinar!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Using Tablets for News

Pew Research Center reports that tablets are one of the fastest growing technologies ever. Though the iPad has only been available for a year and a half, already 11 percent of American adults report that they own an iPad. The publishing industry, sensing a huge opportunity in this new market, has begun pumping out apps to support the reading preferences and interests of this quickly growing market. Of the 11 percent of adults that own an iPad, roughly 53 percent say that they use the device every day to get their news. A full 79 percent of tablet users claim that they are now using the tablet for their news rather than using a desktop or laptop. Another interesting statistic is that 41 percent of iPad users say they enjoy reading books about the same in both print and on the tablet. Interested in finding out more? Check out Pew Research Center’s Infographic!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Minnesota Broadband Statistics

A recent study conducted by the non-profit organization, Connect Minnesota, found that more than a quarter of Minnesotans still do not have broadband in their homes. One of the top two reasons cited for not having broadband in the home is fairly obvious – cost. Of those without broadband in their homes, 18% reported that they do not have broadband due to cost. However, the most popular reason reported by 29% of those without broadband in their homes is that “…there isn’t content relevant to them on the Internet”.  

Wow, that statistic really shocked me! I can’t imagine someone believing that the Internet contains nothing relevant to them! If you’re surprised by this too, and want to learn more, start by checking out today’s article from MPR, then be sure to follow the article’s links!

Image by: Sean MacEntee

Academic

Virtual Educause Annual Conference

Virtual Educause Annual Conference

 

 Educause is the leader in high education IT. “Whether your focus is on administration, teaching and learning, information technology infrastructure, information systems, cybersecurity, policy, library systems or information technology leadership, there’s something at this online annual conference for you. This event will give you practical takeaways, help you develop beneficial relationships, and advance your professional knowledge and skills.”

Join Us for an Online Viewing Party

Where: St. Cloud State University, Miller Center Library –

(Room B18 Wednesday & Thursday, Rooms 114/115 Friday)

When: Wednesday, October 19th – Friday, October 21st

Since most cannot attend the Educause Annual Conference in Philadelphia, the Miller Center has graciously paid for the streaming of this online event and has allowed us to host a viewing party by opening this event up to academics in our region. Please see the Educause Sessions document to view a full schedule for this three day event as well as session descriptions. Find some sessions that interest you? Consider attending for a full day or half day — it’s very informal.

Lunch will be on your own; the Atwood Center on the SCSU campus has plenty of options, or consider bringing your own lunch or ordering delivery from a local sandwich shop. We highly recommend parking in the 4th Avenue Parking Ramp across the street from the Miller Center, for $1.00/hr. Visit http://www.stcloudstate.edu/campusmap/default.asp for a SCSU Campus map.

Registration is not required, but please send Kate Bessey an email at kmbessey@stcloudstate.edu if you’d like to attend, so we have adequate space.

Please also indicate which day(s) you plan to attend.

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Register today for the CMLE Annual Meeting!

CMLE invites everyone to attend its Annual Meeting and Workshop on Tuesday, September 27th at Saint John’s University. The cost of the event is $16.00 per person. The event will include a presentation on the new ELM platform with Matt Lee from Minitex and a buffet dinner. There will also be a cash bar. Jonathan Friesen is the author this year—winner of ALA’s 2009 Schneider Award for Jerk, California, “Best Book for Teens”. His personal experience with Tourette’s Syndrome and Epilepsy inspires him to write many books and articles about mental health issues.  Check out Jonathan’s website www.jonathanfriesen.com for more information.

Registration for this event is easy, just go to: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CMLEAnnualMtg

Please contact Kate Bessey at kmbessey@stcloudstate.edu if you have any questions.