New publications

Today's parents, academics, policymakers and practitioners are scrambling to keep up with the rapid expansion of media use by children and youth for ever-larger portions of their waking hours. This report by Sesame Workshop and the Joan Ganz Cooney Center takes a fresh look at data emerging from studies undertaken by Sesame Workshop, independent scholars, foundations, and market researchers on the media habits of young children. The report reviews seven recent studies about young children and their ownership and use of media. Adapted from publisher's description, which links to the full report online.

In 2010 Project Tomorrow surveyed 294,399 K-12 students, 42,267 parents, 35,525 teachers, 2,125 librarians, 3,578 school/district administrators and 1,391 technology leaders representing 6,541 public and private schools in the USA. The majority of middle and high school students supported wider use of ICT in schools, including mobile phones, smart phones and MP3 players. They also wanted internet access to be less restricted by filters and school firewalls. When asked if their school was doing a good job using technology to enhance learning and student achievement, 74 percent of high school teachers, 72 percent of principals and 62 percent of parents said yes. Conversely, 47 percent of high school students agreed. Adapted from publisher's description. The full report is available online (4.2MB)

The report aims to promote awareness about the performance of government services across the country and help drive improvements. Chapter Four covers school education. It provides performance information with regard to equity, effectiveness and efficiency for government funded school education, in government and non-government primary and secondary schools.

Today's students are bombarded with visual messages, complex instructions, technical specifications and graphic illustrations. They become overloaded with information and cannot discern the genuine and valid from the misleading and unsubstantiated. Much of the time, when students are engaging with the internet, they are unaware of the ethical and legal challenges pertaining to this information. Through the internet, classic works of literature are being adapted and transformed for a new genre that may or may not be true to the original. The Secondary English Teaching Resource highlights the need for students to think critically and become discerning consumers about multi-media texts. Separate strands cover the themes of Consuming Critically, the Individual as Media Producer and Adaptation and Transformation. Adapted from the publisher's description.

Part of the Macmillan Masterclass series, this resource aims to help teachers integrate ICT into the curriculum. It also covers ways in which technology can be used for research, communication and as an organising tool, and discusses the risks in online activities. Also included is 'a plain English glossary to demystify the blogs, the wikis and the web2s of ICT'. Adapted from the publisher's description.

This book explores the ways in which digital technologies can be used in schools. It suggests ways to develop new, more relevant pedagogies, particularly for social learning, literacy and literate practices. The book aims to help the reader analyse their own practice and to carry out their own small-scale research projects. It is targeted principally to undergraduate and postgraduate education students in Britain. Adapted from the publisher's description.

Developed for US educators, this book outlines a step-by-step approach to lasting, positive change across a local education district. It examines ways to improve teacher and student performance, and includes school-specific strategies that support effective assessment and instructional practices. Adapted from the publisher's description.