You may remember a year or so back in Chicago, there was talk of opening a brick-and-mortar school that would specifically be designed for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or questioning students. Those plans never came to fruition, but it looks like the concept has moved instead to the online arena. The GLBTQ Online High School is currently accepting applications for the 2010 school year. The private, nonprofit online school, based near St. Paul, Minn., will serve students across the nation, as well as worldwide, on both a part-time and full-time basis. The school is committed to creating a safe, affirming ...

It is clear from the growing presence of open-source technologies at conferences such as NECC and in the education press that these alternatives have reached a level of maturity at which they can be credibly considered, especially given the budgetary constraints so prevalent today.

Erin Gruwell's inspiring keynote, which marked the end of this year's NECC, illustrated the importance of making learning relevant to students and using tools, like education technology, to help students achieve.

The debate about 1-to-1 computing programs at one of the last sessions at NECC was not so much about whether the initiatives are necessary or not, but rather, what kinds of mobile devices should be used for such programs.

School administrators should ask several important questions before deciding whether to create their own online professional development programs or purchase them off the shelf, an online professional development expert told the audience at this NECC session.

A caravan of buses dropped a large group of ed-tech advocates off on Capitol Hill well-prepared to educate lawmakers on the challenges they face in trying to integrate technology and make learning more relevant and engaging for today's digital natives.

The first blind person to reach the summit of Mt. Everest shares the connection between his journey and how teachers can inspire students to take on challenges in the classroom.

Our intern and guest blogger, Tim Ebner, has this report: The historic Library of Congress proved an apropos site for a field trip for the educators attending the National Educational Computing Conference here in Washington. The Library of Congress is the largest public repository of its kind in the world, home to 140 million materials, which include books, videos, and artifacts. Visitors at a reception last night had open access to tour the library, renowned for its architectural beauty and priceless collection, and learn about its newest Web resource—a project called Teaching With Primary Sources Direct. The free online...

Crowds at the National Educational Computing Conference flock to the exhibit hall for demonstrations of cool tools for the classroom, and free giveaways.

A NECC panel discussion hosted by Education Week's Digital Directions turned into a free-flowing give-and-take between the panelists and the audience on topics ranging from the cost of online learning to using students for technology support.