It’s no secret that Apple held its World Wide Developers’ Conference in California today. Among the impressive lineup of hardware and software updates revealed was a relatively small feature added to iOS6 that will have teachers dancing in the streets.
All Apple mobile devices, when upgraded to iOS6, will sport a new Single App mode. It’s a very simple feature that, when activated, removes home button functionality. This essentially turns the iPhone or iPad into a single app device, hence the name.
The educational applications for Single App mode are widespread. Without having to hover, teachers can rest assured that students are actually using the math app and not surfing the Web via Safari. Ambitious classes can use the devices to administer tests and quizzes confidently because the temptation to use other apps or the Internet to cheat is removed. In younger grades, accidental touches of the home button will no longer interrupt usage, and teachers will not have to fear inadvertent trips to the App Store.
Single App mode is a pretty minor thing to come out of WWDC 2012, but it is one that will resonate with teachers.

“Is it possible to study martial arts every day and know how to play the piano by adapting the data and skills we learned in martial arts to the piano? Or what about adapting the skills learned from ballet to cooking? The answer is yes we can.” — Opher Brayer
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Author's Note: This is the final installment of a three-part series on my experiences working as a gifted education resource teacher. I included the references used in all three blogs at the end of this blog.
Part 3: Discussion
During this autoethnography, I explored my progression from a frustrated resource teacher, who second-guessed my decision to accept the position, to a functioning co-teacher, who, in at least in some cases, able to influence my colleagues to better...

“The more we standardize school, the less our kids have the time and support to develop the ability to learn how to learn, think independently, and create initiatives that make their world better.” – Ted Dintersmith
“Our kids will be adults in a world where automated solutions absorb all routine...
In this installment, I write about the themes I discovered in my story of working as a gifted education resource teacher. Essentially, I experienced much frustration until I learned to first collaborate with classroom teachers, until I gained their trust and respect, only then could I begin to share my expertise. Interspersed in the writing are journal reflections and e-mails, which convey my thoughts and emotions at the time of the experience.
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Note: This article first appeared in The Qualitative Report. This is the first installment of a series on working as a resource teacher of gifted education. I am sharing a modified-version of this article in pieces because I think it sheds might light on the challenges that teachers face collaborating together—when one “has” their own classroom and the other visits the classroom to work with students. Both resource teachers and classroom teachers can learn from each other, for the benefit...