Howdy, folks! Welcome to another in a series of biweekly ed tech news roundups. We hope you enjoy — and if you have a story you’d like to see included, let us know.

Making a Plan

As the new school year beckons, a few folks are thinking big when it comes to learning. The Maker movement is marching past isolated building activities into a framework for learning, and immersive learning is offering new paths to engage students.

Digital Promise, an ed tech nonprofit, has revamped their Maker Learning Leadership Framework, designed to grow maker learning in education. [ Digital Promise , STEAM Universe ]

, ] Immersive learning often refers to learning facilitated by multi-sensory digital environments. The underlying notion of using space to enhance learning can refer to physical spaces, too, and spaces where the physical and digital overlap. [School Planning and Management]

Kids These Days

The students funneling into classrooms across the country represent Generation Z and Generation Alpha (the children of Millennials), digital natives whose behaviors and preferences, always crucial to educators, are starting to gain the attention of the wider world.

NBC News jumps into the world of Gen Z looking for insights on the generation’s tech and social media use, which includes some interesting results (they don’t, for example, watch much TV). [ NBC News ]

] One seemingly unstoppable trend among younger generations is a huge — and lucrative — fascination with esports. Take a peek into the first Fortnite World Cup with 12 year-old gamer “H1ghSky1.” [Vulture / New York Magazine]

Project Management

Engaging students with project-based learning can help them understand material in hands-on, real-world ways. But using PBL in the classroom can be a challenge. Luckily, lots of smart educators are sharing a wealth of experience.

Going deep into in-the-field experiences with PBL can help teachers solve some of their most common issues. [ THE Journal ]

] For those putting together PBL lesson plans, reviewing a few do’s and don’ts can help avoid issues, too. [Ed Tech]

…And Finally

Ed tech innovations often reach students through a screen. But could new ways of delivering education through technology actually reduce screen time? This startup says it can.

Photo: Peter Gonzalez