District Administration - December 2012 - (Page 57)

DistrictAdministration InnovatIve K12 Leaders Choose the Most 1 00 pRODUCTS Top 2 0 1 2 PRoDUCtS of 2012 n yet another record-breaking year, District Administration magazine has selected the winners of its annual Readers’ Choice Top 100 Products for 2012. For the first time ever, we received more than 1,000 unique nominations from our readers who shared how these innovative products have made a positive difference in the operation of their schools and classrooms. The DA editorial team spent weeks narrowing down hundreds of nominations that were submitted by K12 administrators from across the United States. Each nomination required a testimonial from a school administrator so that we could learn the impact his or her nomination has made for students and staff. And the products we selected were based on the quality and quantity of their nominations. There were so many well-written and enthusiastic testimonials, which proved this task difficult. But in the end, the editors at DA are confident the final Top 100 products are the best of the best. The following list of winners include a wide variety of products, such as software and hardware, products that will help build and secure districts, and those that will streamline a district’s ever-changing technology functions. The Top 100 list also includes programs that will help improve student reading, writing, science, and math comprehension, as well as products that help evaluate and analyze their growth. District Administration is proud to present its Readers’ Choice Top 100 Products in the following pages, in random order. We hope that these products can help make a difference in your district and inspire change in the world of K12. Congratulations to the winners! —Lauren Williams I Ubermix Ubermix Ubermix is a free, Linux-based operating system designed with the needs of education in mind. Built by educators with an eye toward student and teacher empowerment, Ubermix makes student devices as reliable and easy to use as a cellphone, without sacrificing the power and capabilities of a full operating system. Ubermix offers a turnkey, five-minute installation and a 20-second quick recovery mechanism, and includes more than 60 preinstalled free applications. SmartScope SmartSchool Systems The SmartScope handheld digital microscope allows students as young as preschool age to explore science by putting plants, water, and animal organisms under the microscope. Compatible with both PC and Mac, it has a high-quality digital lens and allows students to take still photos and ordinary or time-lapsed videos from the live images they see. www.smartschoolsystems.com www.ubermix.org “My teachers ranked the SmartScope as the second most important piece of science equipment in the classroom after the digital camera. I am convinced that every classroom should have one or more of these easily learned gadgets.” —Robert Williams, early childhood science consultant, Austin (Texas) Independent School District “The combination of low-cost hardware and reliable, free software has made one-to-one a practical reality for us, enabling us to transform learning and engage our kids with social media tools. It brings most—if not all—of the benefits of tablets to netbooks, without the sacrifices.” —Jim Klein, director of information services and technology, Saugus Union School District, Santa Clarita, Calif. www.DistrictAdministration.com December 2012 57 http://www.smartschoolsystems.com http://www.ubermix.org http://www.DistrictAdministration.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - December 2012

District Administration - December 2012
Contents
From the Editor
News Update
Special Education
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Fab Lab: Using Technology to Make (Almost) Anything!
Neuroscience in Schools
Three Squares at School
Top 100 DA Readers Choose Innovative Products of the Year
CIO News
Problem Solution
Crisis Response
Online Edge
Going Mobile

District Administration - December 2012