Hand-held tablets have changed the ways we think about and use digital technology. Desktop and laptop computers will continue to be used, but the digital landscape has changed dramatically and permanently. This is a great thing for learners because it has extended the range of options for learning tools, as well as other learning resources. I believe this is proving to be especially helpful for learners who require “assistive” technology to overcome barriers.

Apple has captured the lion’s share of the market with its vision of tablet computing. I use both an iPhone and an iPad, and the experience is generally positive. I’m grateful that my employers have made an iPhone and iPad available to me. I have written here about some of the many ways that iOS devices can be used effectively to support learning and provide solutions to specific learning challenges.

At the same time, I’m frustrated by limitations that Apple has built into its devices. At the top of the list is Apple’s refusal to allow Flash to run on its devices. Then there’s the matter of not accommodating USB or SD memory cards. It annoys me that without using a third-party app, I can’t even write or edit posts for this blog on an iDevice! I could go on…

The good news is that Android offers a viable and effective alternative. The open-source Android operating system, sponsored by Google, has evolved to the point where it is used to run a growing number of tablets that compete favourably with Apple’s iPad in terms of performance, quality, and price. Check out the Asus Transformer Prime, or Samsung’s Galaxy Tab.

The number of apps available from the Android Market is rapidly catching up with the total in Apple’s App Store. Many of the most commonly used apps are available for both Android and iOS. “As of September 2011, the Android Market had 319,161 active applications as compared to 459,589 for the Apple App Store.” (ReadWrite Mobile) Android also holds its own when it comes to accessibility.

Android 4 Schools is a blog that was started recently by Richard Byrne of Free Technology for Teachers, with some help from his brother Stephen. The new blog regularly highlights apps with educational value. Recent posts include: Use Google Sky to Know What You’re Looking at Tonight, AndroMedia Video — Video Creation and Editing on Android Tablets & Phones,  and CamScanner — Scan Documents and Create PDF’s With Your Android Device.

This new blog is an invaluable source of information about Android apps and ways they can be used to support learning. Extra effort appears to have been invested in making the blog searchable. In addition to a regular search bar, you can search by grade level or by keyword.

I don’t yet have an Android tablet, but I hope that situation changes soon. When it does, I’ll be an even more avid reader of Android 4 Schools!

It is definitely worth subscribing to Free Technology for Teachers. It’s also worth remembering that you can search previous posts because the blog has become such a huge repository of information. 

What I want to draw attention to here is the collection of free books by Richard that he has made available from a “bookshelf” on his blog. These books  include invaluable information in support of using digital resources in the classroom.  Titles include:

• Google for Teachers
• Google for Teachers II
• Google Earth Across the Curriculum
• Twelve Essentials for Technology Integration
• Beyond Google
• Making Videos on the Web
• How To Do 11 Techy Things in the New School Year
• The Super Book of Web Tools for Educators
• 77 Web Resources for Teachers to Try this Summer

These books can be read online. Or, they can be downloaded and even printed. Perhaps best of all, the online version of the books are searchable. I’ve embedded Richard’s most recent book below so you can take a look.  Below that, I’ve embedded the promotional video for Issuu. You may want to consider that as a vehicle for publishing student work, or maybe even your own.

So what to do about the backlog of literally hundreds of worthwhile resources that I would love to share here?  The list is constantly growing!  I’ve concluded that it might be helpful for you to know where I look first as I trawl for free resources that support a UDL approach to learning.

It should come as no surprise that I find almost everything on other blogs.  If you aren’t subscribing to blogs with a “reader”, I encourage you to begin doing so.  At the end of this post, I’ll embed the Common Craft video ‘Google Reader in Plain English’.  I use Google Reader to keep up with the blogs that I subscribe to, and I recommend it highly.

Here are the blogs where I find most of the resources that I share.

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day

• Larry is an ESL teacher in Sacramento, California.  He is also a prolific blogger, who normally posts to his blog several times a day.  Larry also does an excellent job of listing the websites that he writes about, by category, with literally thousands of cataloged online resources.  Virtually all of these resources are free.

Free Technology for Teachers

• The author of this blog is Richard Byrne, a high school teacher from the state of Maine.  He is another prolific blogger who writes several posts each day about free resources.  In addition to reviewing resources that might be of value to learners at all levels, Richard has recently posted helpful screencasts that illustrate how to use some of these resources.

Free Resources for Education

• This is Patricia Donaghy’s blog.  Patricia is a post-secondary educator in Dublin, Ireland.  Patricia posts regularly; and I’ve discovered some resources on her site that have proven to be invaluable.  Patricia also hosts the International Edubloggers Directory, which connects people who are involved in education from all over the world.

Welcome to NCS-Tech!

• Kevin Jarrett, a K-4 Computer Teacher and Technology Facilitator in New Jersey.  Although Kevin does not always write about resources, most of Kevin’s frequent posts offer detailed reviews of K-8 resources that he is excited about.  Almost all of the resources reviewed by Kevin are free.

Teachers Love SMART Boards

• James Hollis is the blogger here, and he’s based in Illinois.  Clearly, James’ focus is on resources that can be used effectively on the SMART board.  Much of what James writes about, however, also works well on standalone computers or in networked computer labs.  If my memory serves, the resources that James highlights are always free.  I appreciate James’ signature statement at the end of each blog post — Sharing is Caring!

Talking SMART Boards and Much More

• The author of this blog is Anne Marie.  She’s been a special education teacher for over 25 years.  She posts regularly, shares a wide range of helpful free online resources on her blog.

Teaching Learners with Multiple Special Needs

• Kate Ahearn is the prolific host of this blog.  Not all of the resources that Kate shares are free, but many are.  Quite often, Kate shares low cost alternatives to costly resources.  Kate posts regularly and frequently to her blog, and her posts are always worth reading.  She not only shares resources, but she offers practical suggestions in terms of effective use.  I believe that anyone working with learners who have complex special needs ought to subscribe to Kate’s blog.

Jane’s E-Learning Pick of the Day

• Jane Hart is a Social Media and Learning Consultant in the UK.  Not all of the resources that Jane highlights are free, but many of them are.  Sometimes I first learn of something when Jane puts it forward as her ‘Pick of the Day’.  I also appreciate Jane’s ‘Top 100 Tools for Learning’ lists.  These lists are compiled with input from users.

Demo Girl

• Demo Girl Molly McDonald and her sister Maureen are not ‘educators’ as we commonly, and narrowly, define that term.  (I have commented on her blog,  however, that I thought Molly ought to consider taking up teaching.)  This is a blog where I sometimes first discover a powerful and valuable Web 2.0 application.  All of the posts on this blog contain screencasts  that demonstrate how an application works.  This means that the Demo Girl archives are worth checking out if you are ever in need of a screencast to explain an application.

GOTOWEB20

• This blog is authored by Orli Yakuel in Israel.  She highlights numerous brand new Web 2.0 applications, so this is another place where I have first become aware of some genuine gems.  Orli catalogs the applications she blogs about in a special directlory that is worth checking out.

These are not my only sources for resources, the majority of my “finds” come from these.  I encourage you to check them out and to consider subscribing to some of them in a “reader”.  Here’s the promised Common Craft video that explains Google Reader in plain lanuage.

Patricia Donaghy of Ireland has recently begun writing a blog entitled Free Resources for Education. Patricia highlights a new resource here every day. Posts are brief, with links to the relevant websites.

Free Technology for Teachers, by Richard Byrne of Maine in the US, has been online since late 2006. Unfortunately, I’ve only recently discovered Richard’s helpful blog. This illustrates just how much there is on the web that waiting to be discovered!