Initiative Will Train 20,000 Teachers to Introduce Computational Thinking in CS Education

By Sri Ravipati, THE Journal

In an effort to close the gap between available jobs and qualified workers in the computer science field, Discovery Education and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Tuesday launched a multi-million dollar initiative to reshape American education by making computational thinking a foundational skill for all students. Ignite My Future in School aims to train more than 20,000 teachers to implement computer science into other subjects and engage one million students over the next five years. The program enables administrators, teachers and students to become “ambassadors of a trans-disciplinary approach and introduce computer science within the context of core subjects, such as English, mathematics, social studies and the arts,” according to a news release.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/03/28/initiative-aims-to-introduce-computational-thinking-in-cs-education.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=25662

Houston Nonprofit Delivers Refurbished Computers, Tech Education to Underserved Youth

By Sri Ravipati, THE Journal

In the greater Houston area, an estimated 133,000 families do not have a computer at home. To help bridge the digital divide, the nonprofit Comp-U-Dopt has delivered more than 8,600 refurbished computers to Houston students from underserved communities. Comp-U-Dot celebrates 10 years of providing technology access and education training. Its Computer Adoption Program, for instance, involves taking in lightly used, donated corporate computers; converting them to a Linux operating system; loading freeware education programs; and distributing the devices to applicants who demonstrate a need for a computer.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/03/27/houston-nonprofit-delivers-refurbished-computers-tech-education-to-thousands-of-underserved-youth.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=25647

All-Girl Team Takes First in Wonder League Robotics Competition

By Joshua Bolkan, THE Journal

An all-girls team from Hartland, MI — the Pink Eagles — has won the grand prize for the 9–12 age group in the Wonder League Robotics Competition. A team from Bangalore, India (Team X-PLODE) took first place for the 6-8 age group. Wonder Workshop, the company behind Dash and Dot robots, hosted the competition, which challenged more than 20,000 students from around the world to compete in collaborative teams by designing solutions to real-word challenges in science and technology. The competition launched in October, and the finalist round was held in January. The latest competition focused on rescue animal habitats on “Bear Byte Island.”

https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/03/28/all-girl-team-takes-first-in-wonder-league-robotics-competition.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=25637

Visualizing 21st-Century Classroom Design

by Mary Wade, Edutopia

Problem-based learning, makerspaces, flipped learning, student blogging — these are becoming perceived staples of 21st-century learning. With such ambitious practices taking the spotlight for how people regard modern classrooms, it’s not surprising that a murmur of impracticality or skepticism is still a frequent response when they’re first introduced. So how do we encourage teachers everywhere to believe that great changes can happen in their classrooms? By helping them envision small, practical steps that will lead them there. Here are five elements of 21st-century classrooms, along with concrete suggestions that teachers can visualize and implement today.

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/visualizing-21st-century-classroom-design-mary-wade

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=15478

Private School Turns to Tech To Manage Classroom Activities Online

By Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology

A private school in Fort Worth, TX with 167 students in grades preK-8 has adopted a new Internet management tool to keep students on task. All Saints Catholic School chose NetRef from a company with the same name to enable its teachers to set Internet access boundaries in their classrooms. All Saints, which runs a dual-language program in English and Spanish and maintains a computer lab, also is increasingly using tablets in its classrooms. NetRef helps the educators manage student Internet usage via a touch-screen panel. Teachers can program allowable domains and applications that are relevant to the lesson and receive real-time alerts when a student wanders off-task.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2016/03/30/private-school-turns-to-tech-to-manage-classroom-activities-online.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=15475

Your Course Accessibility Checklist

By David Raths, Campus Technology

Yes, it’s possible to embed accessibility into the course creation process, without expending too much time or effort. Here are things to consider during each development phase. “If you are teaching an online course, the chances are you have a student with a disability,” according to Jason Khurdan, department administrator in the Office of Disability Services at Rutgers University (NJ). Regardless of whether a university considers accessibility a priority now, he said, “eventually they will because it is becoming an issue that is more apparent in society as a whole.” Khurdan spoke about accessibility issues at a Rutgers-hosted online learning conference in New Brunswick, NJ, this past January. He started his presentation by giving a live demonstration of the struggles a student would have using an NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access) screen reader on a typical syllabus he found online. “Attendees saw how difficult it was to work through this document.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2016/03/30/your-course-accessibility-checklist.aspx

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=15472

10 Most Powerful Uses of Technology for Learning

by Saga Briggs, Innovation Excellence

We now have programs and platforms that can transform learners into globally active citizens, opening up countless avenues for communication and impact. Thousands of educational apps have been designed to enhance interest and participation. Course management systems and learning analytics have streamlined the education process and allowed for quality online delivery. But if we had to pick the top ten, most influential ways technology has transformed education, what would the list look like? The following things have been identified by educational researchers and teachers alike as the most powerful uses of technology for learning. Take a look.

http://www.innovationexcellence.com/blog/2015/03/30/10-most-powerful-uses-of-technology-for-learning/

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/Jva6rK5KFMA/

Yakima Online: Self-paced learning draws students who are able to work on their own

by Destini Dickinson, Yakima Online

Yakima Online serves a broad range of attendees among its approximately 125 students from sixth through 12th grade. The program is an alternative option to regular, traditional schools like Franklin Middle School or Davis High School. Yakima Online is served by the Advanced Academics site, which is owned by the Baltimore-based online learning company Connections Education. Advanced Academics also serves online schools in several states, and its teachers are based throughout the country.

http://www.yakimaherald.com/news/latestnews/2972923-8/yakima-online-self-paced-learning-draws-students-who-are

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/rjx71dCaTp4/

NetMath 25 Years Old

By Reema Abi-Akar, Daily Illini

For 25 years, the NetMath program has been breaking down distance barriers in education and making University-based math courses more widely available for students around the world. NetMath is a web-based distance learning interface that is accessible to high school students, college students and anyone else wishing to expand their mathematical knowledge. It provides University credit through a variety of 16-week math courses, from 100-level and below to 400-level courses. Headed by Randy McCarthy, program director of the department of mathematics, the program teaches about 1,000 students per year and comprises over 50 lecturers, TAs, undergraduate mentors and personnel. “The pedagogy is a little different than traditional online classes in that the students are actively engaged with the software,” McCarthy said. “So instead of sitting back and passively watching a video of someone else doing (the exercises and problems), the machine helps you experiment and do it so you can learn by doing.”

http://www.dailyillini.com/lifeandculture/article_a7534ee8-b862-11e3-bf40-001a4bcf6878.html

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/nyX-z3lCm1Q/

Three Factors Influencing Persistence and Withdrawal for Part-Time Adult Graduate Students

By Marian Cohen and Scott Greenberg, Evolllution

In 2011, we looked into institutional and external factors that promoted or hindered the persistence of part-time adult students who completed or were currently matriculated in a master’s degree program at a public state university (The Struggle to Succeed: Factors Associated with the Persistence of Part-time Adult Students Seeking a Master’s Degree). When asked whether they had withdrawn or seriously considered withdrawing from the program at any time, students who answered affirmatively cited three leading reasons:

1. Feeling overwhelmed by the workload


2. Problems with faculty/curriculum


3. Family issues

In this article we explore these factors and suggest how institutions might address them.

http://www.evolllution.com/research/factors-influencing-persistence-withdrawal-part-time-adult-graduate-students/

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from Educational Technology http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/uis/edtech/~3/AixGo1sJBdc/

Harvard and MIT invite high schools to create their own Moocs

By: William Stewart, TES magazine

Schools will soon be able to offer courses directly to millions of learners through two of the world’s most prestigious universities, TES can reveal. EdX, the massive open online course (Mooc) provider run by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US, has already helped to revolutionise higher education by offering courses to anyone with an internet connection. It is now poised to do the same for schools, with plans to offer high-school-level lessons. In an interview with TES, edX president Anant Agarwal said this could include courses designed by individual schools.

http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storyCode=6420246

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