Edtech Situation Room By @techsavvyteach & @wfryer

Welcome to episode 49 of the EdTech Situation Room from April 26, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Martin Horejsi from the University of Montana discussed Apple's struggle to keep and win back school users, the new online newspaper from WikiPedia founder Jimmy Wales, and varying perspectives on robotics. Wes Fryer was out on assignment but will return next week. Please follow @edtechSR on Twitter to stay up to date about our upcoming show schedule. Thanks for listening (and possibly watching) the EdTech Situation Room!

Welcome to episode 48 of the EdTech Situation Room from April 19, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the implications of Apple's announcement to make all iLife apps free for both MacOS and iOS, Microsoft's new licensing strategy for Windows 10 and the "Creator's Update," and the potential for Google's AutoDraw website to be used for sketchnoting inside and outside the classroom. Additional topics include a recent study suggesting kids who use touchscreen devices sleep less at night, a New York Times article on a paper suggesting social media is NOT contributing significantly to political polarization, and the X-Prize victory by an underdog family team who created a "tri-corder" to accurately diagnose thirteen different medical conditions. Jason and Wes also discussed two cell phone company related articles, including Verizon's announcement to purchase tons of new fiber and bring 1 Gbps connectivity to homes via 5G

Welcome to episode 47 of the EdTech Situation Room from April 12, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week special guest Beth Holland (@brholland) joined Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) for discussions focusing on Anderson Cooper's recent 60 Minutes Episode "What is 'brain hacking?' Tech insiders on why you should care," new IoT (Internet of Things) home hacking episodes, the federated (and FREE / open source) social networking platform "Mastodon," and helpful articles on finding a secure VPN to protect your privacy. Geeks of the Week included realtimeboard.com (from Beth), Google Flights (from Jason) and an $18 6 port smart ID USB charging hub (from Wes). Check our shownotes below for all referenced links from the show, which are also available on http://edtechsr.com/links. Be sure to follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates. Next week we'll be back on Wednesday night at our regular time: 10 pm Eastern, 9 pm Central, 8 pm Mountain, 7 pm Pacific. If you liste

Welcome to episode 46 of the EdTech Situation Room from April 4, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Apple's announced spec update for the Mac Pro, a recent Google sponsored survey indicating teens think Google is cooler than Apple, and a variety of articles and movies tangentially related to intelligence, artificial intelligence, and cyborgs. As usual they discussed continuing improvements to home assistant technologies like Google Home, as well as articles about recent privacy protection rule changes in the United States and their implications for US consumers. Privacy discussions also included Quincy Larsen's February 2017 post, "I’ll never bring my phone on an international flight again. Neither should you." Jason shared a shout out to the Note to Self Podcast episode, "Blind Kids, Touchscreen Phones, and the End of Braille?" On the topic of digital distractions, Jason provided an update about his continuing us

Another Seedlings podcast mini-reunion! Welcome to episode 45 of the EdTech Situation Room from March 29, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) was again out on assignment, so Wes Fryer (@wfryer) joined Maine educators Alice Barr (@alicebarr) and Cheryl Oakes (@cheryloakes50) for a discussion about their recent trip to Brazil and experiences at the "Amplifica Conference" in Sao Paulo. Alice and Cheryl also shared some updates about 1:1 learning in their respective schools, and discussed a few recent technology news articles. These included articles about tech moguls who severely restrict their own children's access to technology and social media, a recent National Geographic (April 2017) article about cyborgs ("Beyond Human") and recent announcements by Apple about updates to the Classroom app as well as less expensive, entry-level iPads. Check out all our shownotes on edtechsr.com/links, and be sure to follow us on Twitter @edtechSR. Next week we an

Welcome to episode 44 of the EdTech Situation Room from March 22, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) was out on assignment this week. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Wes Fryer "flew solo" in tonight's episode which featured discussion about Apple's new iPad announcements this week, new "Share to Kindle" features in iOS, and Screentime / Digital Citizenship. In addition (as usual) articles relating to security, surveillance, and privacy were discussed, as well as some very insightful (and troubling) articles falling within the topic "Fake News, AI and Technology Dark Arts in Elections." Wes' Geek of the Week was the company Securi, which specializes in security hack prevention and hack cleanup for WordPress websites. Please refer to our podcast shownotes for links to all referenced articles, videos, and resources from the show, and take a few minutes to complete our listener surve

Welcome to episode 43 of the EdTech Situation Room from March 8, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) was out on assignment this week. Carrying the #edtechSR torch forward, Miguel Guhlin (@mguhlin) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the lackluster state of iBooks and the "abandonware" status of iBooks Author. They also explored the implications of Vault 7, the WikiLeaks archive of alleged CIA documents which highlights security vulnerabilities in supposed "secure" messaging apps and platforms, as well as the hackability of smartTVs and other iOT devices. Miguel and Wes talked about the educational implications of these announcements, especially as they relate to digital citizenship, privacy, and Constitutional / human rights. Wes briefly highlighted the DNA storage milestone of the past week (215 petabytes per gram) as well as an enlightening article on the future of Apple's Maci

Welcome to episode 42 of the EdTech Situation Room from March 1, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Walt Mossberg's recent analysis and hopeful prediction of an Apple iOS laptop, the uncertain future of Google's Pixel Chromebook laptop, and a host of Apple product rumors including USB-C charging cables for iOS, updates to the iPad lineup, and new additions to the Apple Pro hardware line. As we often do, we jumped into some privacy / surveillance state rabbit holes with recent articles about big data and artificial intelligence (Big Nudge), the need for ethics and a Hippocratic Oath ("Do no harm") in computer science programs, and the use of state-sponsored propaganda as well as carefully tuned marketing messages to direct public opinion and influence elections. Geeks of the week included StackUp (get credit for what you read online),

Welcome to episode 41 of the EdTech Situation Room from February 22, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) and Ben Wilkoff (@bhwilkoff - aka "the 12th man of @edtechSR) discussed unlimited cell phone carrier plans, rumored Apple iPad and iPhone upgrades, the privacy and surveillance hazards of taking a smartphone on an international trip, and slow, disruptive changes brought by technology to network television. They also discussed the continuing relevance of "old school" technologies like email in the workplace. Geeks of the week included Skitch for Mac, Canva for image/graphic design, extensions.af and Toby for browser tab management. Please refer to our podcast shownotes for links to all referenced articles, videos, and resources from the show, and take a few minutes to complete our listener survey on http://wfryer.me/edtechsr.

Welcome to episode 40 of the EdTech Situation Room from February 15, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the dangers posed by IoT (Internet of Things) hacks, the new 802.11ax wifi standard which will bring greater capacity to our networks, strategies to address fake news, and the ongoing demise of Twitter from a financial / investment perspective. They also discussed automation and the danger it poses to middle class jobs, a recent Guardian editorial piece about rejecting standardization in schools, and the amazing capabilities technology has brought us in the last 20 years. Geeks of the week included iThemes Security Pro for WordPress (Wes) and the "3-2-1 backup strategy (Jason). Please refer to our podcast shownotes for links to all referenced articles, videos, and resources from the show, and take a few minutes to complete our liste

Welcome to episode 39 of the EdTech Situation Room from February 1, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Jennifer Carey (@teacherjencarey) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed screen time and a recent response by Derrick Willard (@dwillard) to a provocative Time editorial. They also discussed the recent sunsetting announcement of Club Penguin by Disney, the importance of parents getting into the virtual worlds their kids are playing in and exploring, and Microsoft's forthcoming "Windows 10 Cloud" product release. The recent successful ransomeware attack on an Austrian hotel, hacking the Internet of Things, uses for digital assistants like Google Home and Alexa, the importance of 2 step verification, and the dangers of Google Authenticator were also addressed. In a "Geek of the Week" bonus moment, Jason shared the $30 bluetooth lightbulb and speaker (from Amazon) which he'

Welcome to episode 38 of the EdTech Situation Room from January 25, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Ben Wilkoff (@bhwilkoff) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed in-depth the new Chromebook announcements by the Google Chrome team, Samsung and Asus, and Microsoft's announcement of "Intune for Education," a cloud-based tool offering functionality to manage Windows10 devices similar to the Administration console in Google Apps for Education (gSuite). They discussed the alarming aggregation of data on millions of U.S. citizens by private companies using innocuous sounding web interactives like "Facebook quizzes." Topics also included a recent major ransomware security event in U.S. libraries, China's new crackdown on VPN connections, Walt Mossburg's reflection on FireFox (the first serious alternative to the dominant Internet Explorer browser from Microsoft), and Trump's

Welcome to episode 37 of the EdTech Situation Room from January 18, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Eric Langhorst (@elanghorst) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed LinkedIn privacy policy changes, the major updates to Evernote and the Evernote mobile app, the excellent job prospects for physicists in coding, and the negative role of advertising in the online news landscape. Additional topics included the use of more tricky phishing schemes by hackers, the continuing development of personal assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Home, President Obama's recent interview with the New York Times discussing his recent favorite books to read, and the ability of AI to predict the mortality of heart disease patients with startling accuracy. Geeks of the week included Bitdefender, the Ancestry Education grant, and SimpleNote. Please refer to our podcast shownotes for links

Welcome to episode 36 of the EdTech Situation Room from January 11, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show (as well as some we didn’t have time to discuss.) This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Eric Langhorst (@elanghorst), Ben Wilkoff (@bhwilkoff) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) reflected back on 10 years ago when Steve Jobs first announced the iPhone, discussed new "2 in 1" laptops announced this week at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Store, and more! Follow us on Twitter @edtechSR to stay up to date about upcoming show times. Please refer to our podcast shownotes for links to all referenced articles, videos, and resources from the show, and take a few minutes to complete our listener survey on http://wfryer.me/edtechsr.

Welcome to episode 35 of the EdTech Situation Room from January 4, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This was our first show of 2017, starting our second year of live webcasts on YouTube and archived audio podcasts! Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show (as well as some we didn’t have time to discuss.) This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed news coming out of the soon-to-start Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada. They also discussed the rise of VPAs (virtual personal assistants), genomics and the potential of CRISPR to not only transform agriculture but also impact a wide variety of medical applications, our need for more family-oriented connection apps, and the recent legislative victory of French workers over the tyranny of work email. They also talked about "The Trump Effect" as described by Walt Mossberg as well as the ability for Google's DeepMind AI to read lips better than human beings.

Welcome to the 2016 EdTech Year in Review, the final episode of the EdTech Situation Room for the year! Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Eric Langhorst (@elanghorst) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed many of the most notable topics and technology news stories from year as they relate to schools, education and teaching. These included fake news during the 2016 U.S. Presidential election, artificial intelligence and Google's new "AI First" strategies, cybersecurity, screentime, 3D printing, and the struggles of Apple with the new MacBook Pro. Geeks of the Week included inexpensive world phones / global GSM phones (Jason), the Photo Scan app from Google (Eric), and the book "Raising the Floor" by Andy Stern (Wes). Check out our shownotes on http://edtechsr.com/links for all referenced articles and resources from the show. Please fill out our listener survey on http://wfryer.me/edtechsr to let us know where you’re tuning in from and what you’ve liked from our shows. Follow us on Twitter @edtechSR to stay up to

It's the holiday season, and for episode 33 we've brought you a special "Technology Shopping Cart" panel discussion helping you find the perfect gifts for the tech nerds in your life! Welcome to the EdTech Situation Room from December 14, 2016, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show. This week we had four panelists including Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Martin Horejsi, Miguel Guhlin (@mguhlin) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) share book recommendations and techie gift ideas under $10, in the $10 - $20 range, and the over $100 category. Everyone also shared a movie or video series recommendation to check out over the holidays. You'll definitely want to visit our shownotes this week for a complete list of referenced links. If you purchase something, read something, or watch something as a result of our show please let us know! We'll be back for one more episode in 2017 with our "EdTech Year in Review" show, but that date will

Welcome to episode 32 of the EdTech Situation Room from December 7, 2016, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show (as well as some we didn't have time to discuss.) This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the launch of the new Google WiFi home router, screen time surveys for adults and kids, Gmail account hacks to well known politician accounts (Colin Powell and John Podesta) via clever phishing attacks, and recent Apple headlines about MacBook Pro issues. A considerable part of the show focused on Carole Cadwalladr's recent article for The Guardian, "Google, democracy and the truth about internet search," and the resulting response by Google to alter auto-complete search results. Thanks to Peggy George (@pgeorge) for sharing the excellent TEDtalk video, "Machine intelligence makes human morals more important" byZeynep Tufekci (@zeynep). Jason shared a collection of "travel nerd" websit

Welcome to episode 31 of the EdTech Situation Room from November 30, 2016, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show (as well as some we didn't have time to discuss.) This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Martin Horejsi discussed the implications of President-elect Trump's use of Twitter and first direct use of YouTube to communicate with the U.S. electorate instead of calling a traditional press conference. They also discussed implications of our social media dominated news and information landscape, especially as it pertains to journalism and the historic role of journalists to be the "news reporters" and not necessarily the "new analyzers." They discussed Apple's recent announcement that "air pods are coming soon" as well as new rumors of an iPad Air 3, and what upgrades or improvements are even possible now in the iPad line beside speed bumps. Jason and Martin also discussed Netflix' announcement about offline dow

Welcome to episode 30 of the EdTech Situation Room from November 22, 2016, where technology news meets educational analysis. Visit http://edtechsr.com/links to access all referenced links from our show (as well as some we didn't have time to discuss.) This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the challenges of "fake news" continuing to be shared in the aftermath of the U.S. election, and the responsibilities we have to vet and verify articles before passing them on to others. The future of net neutrality in the Trump administration, the rumored end to development of Apple's AirPort routers, and the impact of both robotics and artificial intelligence on global labor markets were also addressed. As always, Jason and Wes focused on the impact and relevance of these stories for teachers. Please follow @edtechSR for updates on Twitter http://twitter.com/edtechsr as well as on Facebook. If you listen to the show, please submit our listener survey using the shortened link http://