Blended school program working at Haverford

By LOIS PUGLIONESI, Daily Times

A blended school program is performing well and saving money, according to a recent presentation to the school board by Coordinator of Secondary Special Programs David Parker and special education instructor Nicole Battestelli. Parker noted that while blended school students take some or all of their courses online, they retain access to district resources associated with learning and emotional support, athletics/sports programs and other activities. They’re also eligible to earn a Haverford High School diploma, Parker said.Of the 16 students currently enrolled, nine are special ed and seven are regular ed. Additionally, 22 students participated in some level of blended programming. Battestelli said the program is useful to students taking recovery credit or accelerating.

http://www.delcotimes.com/general-news/20131217/blended-school-program-working-at-haverford

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Find Your Perfect Tablet With This Flowchart

By Jeff Dunn, edudemic

If you’re looking to embrace education technology, you’re likely considering an Apple iPad, an Android tablet, or perhaps a few other options. There’s the built-for-education but getting-mixed-reviews Amplify tablet and a slew of options to consider. This useful flowchart from Mashable lays out exactly which of the newest tech goodies are right for you. Hunting for the perfect tablet? Use this as a jumping off point as you begin your epic journey.

http://www.edudemic.com/find-perfect-tablet-flowchart/

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PBS LearningMedia Seeks Digital Superstar Teachers

By Dian Schaffhauser, THE Journal

PBS LearningMedia is seeking teachers who are using innovative digital media in their classrooms to apply for membership in a corps of digital innovators. Those who make the cut will provide feedback to the organization, which provides a free media-on-demand service to educators nationwide. They’ll also participate in a year of professional development activities, including virtual training and events focused on using digital media and technology. Fifteen recipients will attend an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C. in 2014 for a summit at PBS’ headquarters. The 2014 PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovators Program requires candidates to submit a one- to two-minute video and answer two essay questions describing how they’ve become “digital superstars” within their schools. The online application is available at pbslearningmedia.org.

http://thejournal.com/articles/2013/12/12/pbs-learningmedia-seeks-digital-superstar-teachers.aspx?admgarea=News1

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A Look At Creating Online Collaborative Spaces For Students

By Christina Inge, Edudemic

Even in a traditional classroom setting, today’s students expect an online space to complement their classes, and more and more, they expect that space to be social and collaborative. For my students, I’ve found that tools, from simple file-sharing like Dropbox to something more elaborate like journaling applications, are something they increasingly ask for, since their comfort zone is to communicate online as well as in person. For educators, it’s an added tool in the arsenal to use collaboration technologies, from dedicated platforms to existing social media, to engage students, especially in higher ed.

http://www.edudemic.com/online-collaborative-spaces-for-students/

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10 Web Resources For Learning How To Code

by Dawn Casey-Rowe, Edudemic

Commit to exploring computer science, no matter what age group you teach. This week’s Learnist feature includes resources for the very young through to the adult level. Once you try coding and make your first simple creation, you’ll be hooked. Even if you’re hesitant, promise yourself the “Hour of Code” at the very least. If you’re currently in the classroom, dedicate one hour to your students as well. Please comment–tell the world how it went, and if you’re hooked, too. We’d be interested to hear via Twitter as well. Tag us at @Edudemic, contact me @runningdmc, or comment directly on the Learnist boards or and by following @LearnistTweets. I’d love to continue the conversation on this all-important issue.

http://www.edudemic.com/learning-how-to-code/

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10 big reasons for rise of corporate MOOCs

by Donald Clark, Plan B

When you consider the rationale for corporate MOOCs, Udacity’s move in that direction doesn’t seem so surprising. They have forged a relationship with Google, Autodesk, and other tech companies and this is fine. EdX is being used by the steel manufacturer Tenaris in its Tenaris University to deliver learning to 27,000 employees. Udemy and others already serve this market. McAfee use MOOCs for sales training, essentially a flipped classroom model. MOOCs are no longer just an HE issue. Once an innovative digital genie escapes from the bottle, all sorts of people want to see what it can offer, and corporates are no slouches when it comes to innovation, especially when that innovation offers very low costs, quick access and global, online reach.

http://donaldclarkplanb.blogspot.com/2013/12/10-big-reasons-for-rise-of-corporate.html

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‘iLabs’ offer a new way to add science experiments to online education

by Bjorn Carey, Stanford

The virtual labs are Hesselink’s latest effort to bring advanced laboratories to the masses online, an approach he pioneered in 1996. That first version included several then-new features, such as remote control and scheduling of the lab, chat, faculty support and an electronic notebook. The most recent “lab in a box” generation of iLabs involved automated hardware that students could access through the Internet and control remotely from anywhere in the world. The labs took up only a few cubic feet of space, which significantly lowered operating costs compared to traditional setups.

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2013/december/lab-ina-box-120613.html

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The Beginner’s Guide To Augmented Reality

By Katie Lepi, Edudemic

I was having a discussion recently with someone about trends in education, and the topic of augmented reality came up. Without re-hashing the entire conversation, it basically boiled down to this idea “Isn’t augmented reality mostly something in the movies”? Well, no, it isn’t. Augmented reality is more mainstream than many of us think. It does have the potential to sound like something that isn’t in our immediate future, but the future is now, apparently! The handy infographic below takes a look at some examples of augmented reality that many of us see in daily life. Many of these can have a variety of applications in the classroom, too. Keep reading to learn more! There are a lot of cool applications of augmented reality that you may already know about, and others that you don’t.

http://www.edudemic.com/guide-to-augmented-reality/

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5 Innovative Companies Changing The Course Of Education

by Cindi Brown, Inventor Spot

Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” Here are five of the most innovative companies seeking to change the world by equalizing educational access. Visit the URL for profiles of Khan Academy, Coursera, StraighterLine, Lyrnsoft, and OpenStudy.

http://inventorspot.com/articles/5-innovative-companies-changing-education

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Coursera and Udacity are NOT Open Courseware

by Clint Lalonde Blog

This is the fundamental problem many in the open movement have with Coursera and Udacity – they are not open resources. But yet they are getting connected by association to the open resource movement. And this is wrong. Not only does it undermine the many years of hard work done by open education advocates to make sure educational resources are openly licensed resources, it is a vitally important pedagogical difference, especially when examined through the lens of this article. The article makes the point that, MOOC’s as they are being implemented and used in developing countries have the potential to reduce local capacities and lead to the Americanization of education in the developing world. The MacDonald’s version of higher ed. Or, as the author puts it with a better metaphor, the “Baywatch” of learning.

http://clintlalonde.net/2013/11/28/coursera-and-udacity-are-not-open-courseware/

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An online quiz a day keeps poor grades away?

by Jennifer Smola, USA TODAY

Could a quiz a day keep the bad grades away? A study by professors from the University of Texas-Austin published last week in PLOS ONE — a scientific journal run by the Public Library of Science — showed that giving brief online quizzes at every class meeting in an introductory psychology class boosted student performance.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/11/26/more-quizzes-blessing/3707307/

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Let’s Talk About Your EdTech Career

By Joshua Kim, Inside Higher Ed

The job of a educational technologist, be it a learning designer (you know how people learn and how to collaborate with faculty to create effective learning environments) or educational technologists (you know some about learning and course design, and also spend time running and improving technology platforms and negotiating with vendors), is the best job on campus. Our goal in the edtech profession is to figure out how to bring more resources to teaching and learning. More resources to faculty. More resources to students.

http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/technology-and-learning/lets-talk-about-your-edtech-career

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Kickstarter Project cloudBoard Brings Tactile Learning To The iPad

By Jeff Dunn, Edudemic

If you have an iPad or use one in a classroom, then listen up. There’s a new Kickstarter project that, as of this writing, is still in need of some funding. It’s a fascinating take on the classic video game controller. The new project being called cloudBoard (lower case ‘c’ apparently) lets students create sequences to try and solve problems. They do this by playing adorably educational video games that require critical thinking and careful planning. It’s like learning to play chess but, you know, with iPads and video games. So, win-win.

http://www.edudemic.com/cloudboard-ipad-controller/

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A Handy Visual Guide To Twitter Lingo

By Jeff Dunn, Edudemic

Are you tweeting a RLRT that’s NSFW and a MT? Did that sentence look like total nonsense? Do you hate acronyms? Me too! Does it mean you should avoid knowing what people are talking about on Twitter? No. In an effort to get you up to speed on the current language of Twitter, Mashable created this handy visual guide to Twitter lingo. It features just some of the countless acronyms and symbols that every Twitter user should know. From hashtags to mentions, there’s a lot going on with every tweet. It’s actually quite incredible to see how far it’s all come. Just a few years ago (before Twitter), this stuff was only used in email. Even then, not on a regular basis. Now with Twitter, it’s everywhere! Did you know all these symbols and acronyms? Which are new to you? Which are some that are being left out? Add yours (where else?!) by mentioning @edudemic on Twitter and I’ll retweet them!

http://www.edudemic.com/handy-visual-guide-twitter-lingo/

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Google Glass Release Date: How Are College Students Experimenting With The Wearable Technology?

By Melanie Ehrenkranz, idigitaltimes

“Ok, Glass, go to class.” Google announced in July that five film schools would receive Google Glass eyewear for the fall semester. The selected colleges include American Film Institute, California Institute of the Arts, Rhode Island School of Design, University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Southern California. The participating colleges were granted three pairs of the wearable computing devices and have since taken advantage of the futuristic gadget. Months have passed, and the Google Glass release date looms on the horizon (or perhaps on the San Francisco Bay). How have college students been experimenting with Glass?

http://www.idigitaltimes.com/articles/20726/20131111/google-glass-release-date-film-school-students.htm

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Distance learning expands course offerings in Neb.

by the Associated Press

Live from Beatrice High School, it’s Chinese class. Every school day Caroline Li greets her 16 Chinese language students through a screen on a wall. Through the power of distance learning technology, BHS students have had the chance to take classes that they wouldn’t be typically be offered. Beatrice Public Schools director of curriculum and assistant high school principal Jackie Nielsen said distance learning has been fairly successful since its start about six years ago at the high school and has saved the district money.

http://www.theindependent.com/news/state/distance-learning-expands-course-offerings-in-neb/article_c5b57bef-630a-5b13-a6b4-3ad4bd7b540b.html

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Marshall University Professor’s texting research to be published

The Herald-Dispatch

Dr. Jeanne Widener, associate professor in the School of Nursing, said she chose to utilize text messaging in her medical-surgical nursing course because she believes the standard lecture is not keeping the attention of students in the classroom. “I’ve found that several students slept through all or part of the class, even though it was only 60 minutes of lecture beyond the announcements and discussion of assignments,” Widener said. “Informally, the students have stated they seem to feel the interaction (of texting) and immediate feedback does make them think more and several distant-site students have thanked me for using this approach because they can now participate in classroom activities.” Swartzwelder said she hopes her research generates awareness about the changing educational environment.

http://www.herald-dispatch.com/news/x1572731421/Professor-s-texting-research-to-be-published

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How To Choose The Best Education Technology For Your School

By Benjamin L. Stewart, Edudemic

Inspired by a recent #edchat poll for possible discussion topics: if the choice were yours, would you rather your school adopt 1:1 laptops, bring-your-own devices (BYOD), or a little-to-no approach to educational technology? erhaps those a bit more savvy when it comes to educational technology (ET) might find it strange to still hear the argument that bringing devices into schools does little to advance student learning. Forget the ubiquity of current technologies, students do not learn any differently today than they did in the past, the argument goes. Educators have gotten by without using technology in the past while student learning has not suffered, some may claim. But is this still really a sound argument?

http://www.edudemic.com/best-education-technology-for-your-school/

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Are great teachers a problem for the growth of blended learning?

by John Watson, Keeping Pace K12

The best teachers are, of course, hugely beneficial to students, families, and schools. But holding up the best teachers as models of blended learning success may cause problems for the field. Transformation is not going to happen if it requires an extraordinarily time-consuming, voluntary contribution from millions of teachers. But the stories create the impression that perhaps professional learning isn’t really needed; perhaps the time for professional learning isn’t really needed; perhaps all teachers can learn these tools on their own, or within their professional learning communities, and the transformation will occur. The stories are inspiring, but the lessons that may be taken from them are wrong.

http://kpk12.com/blog/2013/11/are-great-teachers-a-problem-for-the-growth-of-blended-learning/

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From Flipped Classrooms to Flipping with Peer Instruction

by Julie Schell, Turn to Your Neighbor

During the 2010- 2011 academic year, Peer Instruction Network Members Troy Faulkner and Rob Warneke embarked on a quest to reach this ultimate goal. They were looking for something to help their students chart new paths as mathematically confident and proficient learners. They saw great opportunity in the Flipped 101 Model, where instructors put lectures online for students to watch before coming to class; during class, students work on homework problems with their peers with an instructor close by ready for any critical intervention. When they flipped their classrooms at Byron High School, they were surprised at the results. Rob and Troy were able to improve student achievement by a few percentage points on proficiency exams over lecture. Their transition to flipped teaching took a lot of effort and energy. Seeing their students improve just a bit and not radically, Rob and Troy didn’t throw up their hands and revert back to tradition to make their lives easier after just one try. Turn to Your Neighbor interviewed Troy and Rob at FlipCon13 about what they did next and why they stuck with their Flipped 2.0 version.

http://blog.peerinstruction.net/2013/11/04/from-flipped-classrooms-to-flipping-with-peer-instruction/

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