How ed tech was born: Twentieth-century teaching machines--from Sidney Pressey's mechanized test-giver to B. F. Skinner's behaviorist bell-ringing box. Contrary to popular belief, ed tech did not begin with videos on the internet. The idea of technology that would allow students to "go at their own pace" did not originate in Silicon Valley. In Teaching Machines, education writer Audrey Watters offers a lively history of predigital educational technology, from Sidney Pressey's mechanized positive-reinforcement provider to B. F. Skinner's behaviorist bell-ringing box. Watters shows that these machines and the pedagogy that accompanied them sprang from ideas--bite-sized content, individualized instruction--that had legs and were later picked up by textbook publishers and early advocates for computerized learning. Watters pays particular attention to the role of the media--newspapers, magazines, television, and film--in shaping people's perceptions of teaching machines as well as the psychological theories underpinning them. She considers these machines in the context of education reform, the political reverberations of Sputnik, and the rise of the testing and textbook industries. She chronicles Skinner's attempts to bring his teaching machines to market, culminating in the famous behaviorist's efforts to launch Didak 101, the "pre-verbal" machine that taught spelling. (Alternate names proposed by Skinner include "Autodidak," "Instructomat," and "Autostructor.") Telling these somewhat cautionary tales, Watters challenges what she calls "the teleology of ed tech"--the idea that not only is computerized education inevitable, but technological progress is the sole driver of events.

The framework for teaching document is an evolving instrument, but the core concepts and architecture (domains, components, and elements) have remained the same.Major concepts of the Common Core State Standards are included. For example, deep conceptual understanding, the importance of student intellectual engagement, and the precise use of language have always been at the foundation of the Framework for Teaching, but are more clearly articulated in this edition.The language has been tightened to increase ease of use and accuracy in assessment.Many of the enhancements to the Framework are located in the possible examples, rather than in the rubric language or critical attributes for each level of performance.

This study explores the role that communications technologies can play in securing rural America's future. It develops several policy strategies and options to encourage economic development. The study was requested by the Joint Economic Committee of Congress and Senators Charles E. Grassley and Orrin G. Hatch. Chapter 1 provides a summary and policy conclusions. Chapter 2, "The Challenge for Rural America," describes unemployment, poverty, and out-migration and advocates upgrading the labor force. Chapter 3, "Rural America and the Changing Communication Infrastructure," proposes Rural Area Networks to deliver communication services to rural areas. Chapter 4, "Rural Development," explains a holistical approach to rural development that accompanies economic development by improving education, health care, and public administration capacities. Chapter 5, "Regulation and Rural Development," recommends that regulators must develop new regulatory approaches for rural areas. Finally, Chapter 6, "The Role of the Federal Government: Orchestrating Cooperation and Change," suggests that the Federal Government make rural development and the use of communications technologies a national priority. The appendix is a field journal that gives narrative impressions of the four states visited during the study: Kentucky, New Mexico, Washington, and Maine. The document contains a list of contributors, a glossary, and an index, as well as numerous figures, charts, tables, and photographs. (KS)