Christensen Institute’s Fisher: Schools must expand students’ social capital

By Roger Riddell, Education Dive

Everyone realizes when you get to the job market that networking and who you know matters, but the education system is sort of silent on that matter. You obviously have the luck of who you end up going to school with that may help you open doors, but we don’t organize students’ networks in a deliberate way from a young age, or even up through college. It’s sort of only when you go to the career office in college and there’s a list of alumni that you understand that there’s this idea of a network. I want to call out on two fronts, one, just the fact that we don’t tell kids this, and I think that’s a disservice. But from an equity perspective, the fact that we’re leaving this up to the luck of who you know through family connections or where you end up going to college, I think, is worrisome. And I think that the achievement gap conversation has gotten us a long way around content and skill gaps, but it’s ignoring this piece around networks.

http://www.educationdive.com/news/christensen-institutes-fisher-schools-must-expand-students-social-capita/411043/

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14649

Looking Back at the Year in Ed Tech

by Jeffrey R. Young, Chronicle of Higher Ed

Concerns about Yik Yak and analysis of MOOCs and online teaching were among the most popular stories this past year on our Wired Campus blog. Each year we run the numbers to see which items drew the most reader attention, and this year’s list highlights a continuing interest in understanding how technology — and online education, in particular — might change college as we know it. And while massive open online courses have largely fallen out of the national headlines, three of the top 10 articles in 2015 involved MOOCs (in one case, charting their fade from prominence).

http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/looking-back-at-the-year-in-ed-tech/57704

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14631

Georgetown MSF Uses Technology to Shape the Future of Classroom Learning

by Georgetown University

A new “Blended Classroom” allows students in the Master of Science in Finance (MSF) program at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business to participate either online or on campus during weekly live class sessions. The new @GeorgetownMSF blended classroom is the future of online, on-campus learning. While adding an on-campus component to what started as an online program might seem counterintuitive, it is the beginning of what MSF Director Allan Eberhart sees as the shape of classrooms to come – an environment where students work independently through the “Anytime Media” platform, complete with animated lectures and searchable transcripts, and then gather in the Blended Classroom for case discussions. On-campus students fill the first three rows and the online students “sit” in the “fourth row” — a large monitor that displays crisp, real-time videos of up to 40 students.

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151218006088/en/Georgetown-MSF-Technology-Shape-Future-Classroom-Learning

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14613

Digital Badges Certify Competencies Gained through Student Clubs

by Styliani Kounelaki, EDUCAUSE Review

This study investigated the potential for digital badges to certify and showcase the competencies students gain while participating in campus-based clubs. Thirty-one young professionals who were active in student clubs during college were asked about the value that digital badges might have had for their careers if the badges had been available when they were students. Most (58 percent) said that using digital badges to certify and highlight competencies gained through student club activities would have been useful as they entered the job market after college. Study participants’ views varied depending on their club experiences; those who focused on knowledge acquisition and leadership in their clubs were more favorable toward digital badges than those whose involvement emphasized professional networking.

http://er.educause.edu/articles/2015/12/digital-badges-certify-competencies-gained-through-student-clubs

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14514

Weston High faculty creates online courses for the world

By Boris Korsunsky, Weston Town Crier

In total, five Weston High School teachers received grant support to develop their own “on-ramp” mini-MOOCs for some of the AP courses offered at Weston – Mary Liu for biology, Natalie Griswold and John Monz for calculus, Sophie Kulas for French language and culture, and Boris Korsunsky for physics. In addition, Korsunsky, as a member of the group led by Professor David Pritchard of MIT, participated in developing an online version of a full AP physics course.

http://weston.wickedlocal.com/article/20151204/NEWS/151208990

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14475

Three Chicago suburban districts to test e-learning on snow days

by Madhu Krishnamurthy, Daily Herald

At three suburban school districts, students won’t be able to head for the sledding hill on a “snow day” as a new electronic learning program is tested for the next three years. “Snow days” might not be quite the cause for celebration in three suburban school districts. Students in Gurnee, Leyden Township and West Chicago have been selected for a pilot program in which “e-learning” would be used when snow or other emergencies force schools to close.

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20151202/news/151209759/

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14460

Blended Learning Is Making Teachers More Productive in the Classroom. Here’s How.

By Ellie Kaufman, Tech Mic

While the success of blended learning programs is debatable, incorporating technology more actively into any subject helps students learn basic tech skills they will need later in life. And it engages them with material in a completely new, potentially more effective, way. Tracy Rudzitis teaches technology and digital media classes at the Computer School, a public middle school in New York City’s Upper West Side neighborhood. She teaches computer programming and other courses in which students design and build real-world projects using PCs. “If they are using technology and computers, they are using them because those are really powerful tools that allow students to create and construct powerful ideas,” Rudzitis told Mic. “They can use a computer to create a program, which is much more powerful than drawing a picture.”

http://mic.com/articles/126856/blended-learning-is-making-teachers-more-productive-in-the-classroom-here-s-how#.K0nDTvIhJ

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14403

High Stakes Computer Testing Reaches Tipping Point

By Dian Schaffhauser, THE Journal

For the first time ever, most states will be giving their end-of-year, high-stakes tests in elementary and middle school via technology other than pencil and paper. According to a new report by EdTech Strategies, only 15 percent of the 800-plus tests being offered to students in grades 3-8 this year will be available in printed format. Douglas Levin, president of EdTech and author of the report, “Pencils Down: The Shift to Online & Computer-Based Testing,” noted that while the adoption of the Common Core State Standards and its “associated tests” from PARCC and Smarter Balanced contributed to the shift to digital testing, that was “neither the root cause of the shift nor even the dominant driver.” The more likely reasons are the “compelling advantages” of computer-based testing: efficiency of test delivery, faster turnaround of scores, better security, enhanced accessibility, increased student engagement and more opportunities to gauge student understanding of the content.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2015/11/05/high-stakes-computer-testing-reaches-tipping-point.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14285

Dropouts: innovative online schools attract Santa Clara Co. youth

By Sharon Noguchi, Mercury News

Three Opportunity Youth Academies that opened this fall offer free online classes, guidance and a path to young people like Schmeing who dropped out of school but want to earn their diploma. Organizers hope to reel in some of what they estimate to be 8,000 dropouts ages 16 to 24 in Santa Clara County. The Santa Clara County Office of Education held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday at the newest of its three academies, this one tucked into a Gilroy strip mall. The innovative academies allow students to work at their own pace wherever they want. Furnished with couches, tables and computers, the sites deliberately don’t fit the image of a traditional school.

http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_29081764/dropouts-innovative-online-schools-attract-santa-clara-co

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14278

Online Research Repository Adds Finer Access Control

By Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology

An online digital repository for academic researchers is being updated. The newest version of Figshare from Digital Science puts an emphasis on controls for more granular management of data. This repository allows users to make their research available in a citable, shareable and discoverable manner. People can upload any file format — figures, datasets, media, papers, posters, presentations and filesets — to be made viewable in a browser. According to the company, increasingly, researchers must develop a data management plan as a requirement of their funding or must address data sharing in interdisciplinary or cross-institutional projects. To address these changes and other areas of usage, the new release focuses on three areas: control, discoverability and usability.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2015/11/05/online-research-repository-adds-finer-access-control.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14268

Wyoming proposes new model for online education

by Kristine Galloway, Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Tribune The Wyoming Department of Education is taking steps to improve students’ options in K-12 education. The department’s Distance Education Task Force is recommending new state distance education models that would provide greater support for both traditional students and students enrolled full time in online schools. If approved by the state Legislature, the new models would allow traditional students in brick-and-mortar schools to take single courses online if the courses are not offered within the student’s school.

http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2015/11/02/news/20local_11-02-15.txt

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14240

Why Aren’t More Girls Pursuing Careers in Computing and Tech Fields?

By MICHAEL GONCHAR, New York Times

In “What Really Keeps Women Out of Tech,” Eileen Pollack writes: Technology companies know they have a gender and diversity problem in their work force, and they are finally taking steps to try to fix it. But where are those new employees going to come from if women and minority students aren’t opting to study computer science or engineering? Figuring out why people who choose not to do something don’t in fact do it is like attempting to interview the elves who live inside your refrigerator but come out only when the light is off. People already working for a company might tell you what makes them unhappy. But these complaints won’t necessarily pinpoint the factors that keep women and minorities away from studying computer science in the first place.

http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/10/30/why-arent-more-girls-pursuing-careers-in-computing-and-tech-fields/?ref=education&_r=1

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14234

Modeling Constructive Online Behavior

by David Cutler, Edutopia

Plenty of students may know how to create digital media, but too few know how to produce engaging, high-quality content, the kind that makes them stand out not only to college admission officers, but also to potential employers. What does that kind of quality involve? We need to teach and encourage students to post original, outstanding content that will distinguish their unique identities in a sea of increasingly indistinguishable resumes — which are going the way of the typewriter. To help accomplish this task, I model creating a positive digital footprint by making effective use of social networking and blogging. I owe my students that much — after all, if they don’t take control of their online identities, someone else will.

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/modeling-constructive-online-behavior-david-cutler

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14174

5 gray areas of higher education’s reinvention

By Meris Stansbury, eCampusNews

New innovations in higher-ed technology and practice are popping up daily in higher education’s reinvention—but that doesn’t mean they have seals of approval. Textbook engagement analytics, cloud systems, career training programs, MOOCs, flipped learning, virtual worlds, game-based instruction…the list could continue for pages. And while institutions emphatically communicate that many of these technologies and practices part of higher education’s reinvention need further research, even some of the seemingly accepted innovations have yet to receive a clear green light. These “gray areas” on campuses across the country often occur due to technology-based changes in social practices; and though college and university staff often are eager to incorporate these practices in the classroom or within administration, conflicts over institutional mission, student satisfaction or learning quality can occur.

http://www.ecampusnews.com/technologies/higher-education-reinvention-829/

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14165

Edraak: Expanding access to education for Arab youth online

by Nina Awad, StepFeed

Adamant to change to future of Arab youth, Edraak, a non-profit Massive Open Online Course platform, was launched by the Queen Rania Foundation for Education and Development in mid-2014. Edraak offers free online courses in Arabic, including courses from prestigious international universities such as Harvardx and MITx. Edraak’s mission is to revolutionize delivery and access to education across the region to enable Arab society to reach its full potential. According to Edraak, progress in the region is hindered by the growing void in critical thinking and lack of problem-solving skills. It aims to address these voids by providing relevant and customized learning content across the region. Additionally, the platform showcases prominent Arab professors and role models by “broadcasting online courses” developed by these experts in a variety of fields such as STEM and entrepreneurship.

https://stepfeed.com/more-categories/big-news/edraak-expanding-access-education-arab-youth-online/

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=14132

Online courses may help universities recruit students

By: Kevin Carey, Winnepeg Free Press

Technology is poised to shake up the admissions game in a way that will level the playing field for students in America and abroad. Massive open online courses, or MOOCs, offered by dozens of elite colleges, give students a chance to prove that they’re ready for a university — and in turn, the institution gets an accurate measure of whether a student is prepared for its academics, helping refine what is quite an imprecise science. But this new way to assess prospective students isn’t great for everyone. It could become harder for U.S. students with certain social and economic advantages — children of alumni, and those who can afford the top high schools, SAT prep classes and tutors — to get into elite colleges.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/Online-courses-may-help-universities-recruit-students-297041041.html

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/FV1d9lVAUpM/

Study reveals tough economic road for young adults

by Dan DeLuca, News-Press

Millennials are the best educated group of young adults in American history but are earning about $2,000 less per year than their parents did in 1980. That seemingly contradictory equation is among the demographic data revealed in a recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau, “Young Adults Then and Now,” which focuses on the 18-34 age group. The analysis included data from the 1980, 1990 and 2000 censuses as well as the 2009-13 American Community Survey.

http://www.news-press.com/story/news/local/2015/02/07/study-reveals-tough-economic-road-young-adults/23035755/

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/48zbaDSVDBk/

Virtual learning may make snow days a thing of the past

by Jenn Savedge, Mother Nature Network

Winter has been hammering certain regions of the U.S. this year, burying some cities in foot after foot of snow and resulting in a backlog of missed school days that will have to be tacked on to the schedule in the summer months. But there are some parts of the country where school doesn’t stop for snow days, schools where students are expected to log-in from home so that the learning can continue — even when school buildings are closed.

http://www.mnn.com/family/family-activities/blogs/virtual-learning-may-make-snow-days-a-thing-of-the-past

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/yKrY8oMoLUs/

New partnership supports online learning for special education students

by eSchool News

Learning team to give schools innovative, flexible special education solution. Across the country, schools and districts are leveraging digital learning to overcome staffing and resource challenges to improve outcomes and to address the many needs of their K-12 students—whether to expand course options, to provide assistance to those who need additional help, or to provide an alternative learning environment. Now, through a partnership between PresenceLearning and Fuel Education, schools can use digital learning to address the needs of their special education students, too.

http://www.eschoolnews.com/2015/02/16/special-ed-partnership-753/

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/oAsYvt6eu0s/

FVCC Introduces New Technology to Improve Online Learning

by Justin Franz, Flathead Becon

Distinguished colleges and universities across the country, including Notre Dame, Columbia, Stamford and now Flathead Valley Community College, are adopting a new technology called Lightboard that is improving online learning. And while FVCC may seem like an outlier in that distinguished list, the Kalispell-based college is no less excited about offering classes using the new video system. The technology is part chalkboard and part projection screen that creates an online learning environment that simulates face-to-face teaching, according to Assistant Chemistry Professor David Long, who helped bring the system to FVCC. Prior to coming to college three years ago, Long taught at the University of Colorado and Montana State University.

http://flatheadbeacon.com/2015/02/14/fvcc-introduces-new-technology-improve-online-learning/

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