What Is Digital Transformation, and What Does It Require?

by eMarketer

Most executives agree that a digital transformation is necessary to remain competitive, keep pace with disruptive technologies and evolve with shifting consumer expectations. Still, many are unsure of how to start the process, or even what it entails. eMarketer defines digital transformation as the process by which business leaders harness the capabilities and advances of emerging technologies to digitally reinvent their company’s operations, products, marketing, culture and goals for future growth.

https://www.emarketer.com/Article/What-Digital-Transformation-What-Require/1015854

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=27829

What Higher Education Can Learn From Summer Camps

by Steven Mintz, Inside Higher Ed

The American higher educational system has proven to be remarkably adaptable and resilient. As we’ve recently learned in the case of Sweet Briar, it’s awfully hard to close a college. The value of an institution – to faculty, staff, alumni, and the surrounding community – is simply too great to allow a college to shut down without protest. But the challenges that face higher education are daunting, especially for small rural colleges and regional comprehensives located in areas with falling populations. Demographic, financial, and political pressures appear likely to intensify. What, then, might the future hold? Let’s look at an odd but plausible analogy: Summer camps.

https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/higher-ed-gamma/what-higher-education-can-learn-summer-camps

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=27814

Ten Characteristics of Teachers Who Successfully Use EdTech

by Matthew Lynch, tech Edvocate

Technology is changing the landscape of teaching and learning. Textbooks are being phased out, makerspaces are becoming increasingly common, and communication between teachers and students has never been easier or more abundant. Technology is unavoidable, and while some teachers may still feel hesitant about the changes that are coming fast and furiously in the wake of these advancements, most teachers want to embrace the potential. Teachers that are successfully integrating educational technology in their classrooms are beacons for their peers – and there is much they can teach us.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/ten-characteristics-teachers-successfully-use-edtech/

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from Educational Technology http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/?p=27804

3 Keys to Creating an IT Strategic Plan

By Frank DiMaria, Campus Technology

An information technology strategic plan provides tech workers with guidance and ensures that all personnel are working in alignment with the university mission. Here are three things to keep in mind when formulating an IT strategy. Woe is the IT shop operating without a strategic plan. Staffers may be tasked with supporting the overall university mission, but without a specific strategy they are working with little or no guidance. On these campuses unofficial strategic plans often hatch organically — or perhaps haphazardly — as tech workers do what comes naturally and makes sense to them, said Christopher Eagle, IT strategist and enterprise architect at the University of Michigan. A formal IT strategic plan helps ensure all personnel are moving in the same direction.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2016/05/26/3-keys-to-creating-an-it-strategic-plan.aspx

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Moodle Intros Full Support for Competency-Based Ed

By Rhea Kelly, Campus Technology

The flagship feature of Moodle 3.1 is support for competency-based education. Open source learning platform Moodle today released version 3.1, which introduces new features for competency-based education. “With Moodle 3.1, administrators can create learning plan templates and apply them to individuals or entire cohorts of students,” according to a press release. “Competency frameworks and learning plans can now be constructed within Moodle or imported from external sources using a plugin.”

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2016/05/23/moodle-intros-full-support-for-competency-based-ed.aspx

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U Wisconsin Prof Seeks To Bring Data Science to Life with Virtual Reality

By Joshua Bolkan, Campus Technology

Students in an online data science program offered by the University of Wisconsin (UW) may soon get an opportunity to use virtual reality headsets to interact with mountains of data. “Ryan Martinez, an instructional designer for UW-Extension, sees both a need and an opportunity to make big data come to life in a way that can dramatically change people’s behavior,” according to a news release.”If data scientists could more quickly analyze data that’s already available, they could make faster decisions, act sooner and potentially even save lives,” said Martinez in a prepared statement. “All someone needs is a phone and a VR headset. What we can do to bring the data from virtual reality into real life — it’s incredible.”

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2016/05/19/u-wisconsin-prof-seeks-to-bring-data-science-to-life-with-virtual-reality.aspx

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Best of the Best: Apple and Google Educator Programs

By Sarah Muthler, Edudemic

Can you imagine life without Google? How about without your iPad? Both Apple and Google products have become indispensable to many teachers. And both companies have designed programs for educators who want to make the best use of technology in their jobs. If you feel that you need more technological training, or if you want to take on a leadership role to help push your school into the modern, high-tech age, these programs might be for you. And they aren’t limited to classroom teachers. Librarians often need to be the go-to source for information technology, and principals might want to stay a step ahead of what is happening in the classroom. We’ve gathered the details on the Apple Distinguished Educator program and the Google Educator program. So whether you’re an Apple devotee or a Google aficionado, you’ll know how to take the next step in your educational journey.

http://www.edudemic.com/what-are-apple-distinguished-educators-and-how-can-i-be-one/

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6 steps to a successful BYOD program

By Bridget McCrea, eSchool News

Bring your own device programs are evolving. It’s time to take a fresh look. Bring-your-own-device and one-to-one laptop/tablet implementations on K-12 campuses usually sound simply enough in theory—but they can actually be quite complex. Lenny Schad, chief technology information office at Houston Independent School District (HISD), has spearheaded a number of successful BYOD rollouts, and frequently distills advice to struggling districts. Here, he gives technology teams his top six strategies for ensuring a smooth implementation and long-term success for a K-12 BYOD initiative.

http://www.eschoolnews.com/2015/05/20/byod-program-425/

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Harvard School of Ed Launches Free Online Library of Student Work

By Joshua Bolkan, Campus Technology

The Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) has launched the Center for Student Work, an online collection of exemplary student projects. A collaborative project between HGSE and K-12 education nonprofit Expeditionary Learning (EL), the free resource includes videos, writing samples and other work designed to provide teachers foundations to create their own projects. The searchable collection includes projects in English language arts, health and wellness, math, performing arts, science and technology, social studies, visual arts and world languages.

http://campustechnology.com/articles/2015/05/19/harvard-school-of-ed-launches-free-online-library-of-student-work.aspx

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Twilight school helps boost Savannah-Chatham graduation rates

By Jenel Few, Savannah Now

There are several members of the public school system’s Class of 2014 who have extra reason to celebrate. Aaliyah Davis is one of many students who would not be graduating if not for the Savannah-Chatham school system’s Twilight School. Because she repeated eighth grade, Davis thought she was destined to trail behind students her age. But Twilight School’s online classes enabled her to complete four years of high school coursework in three years and graduate on time with the class of 2014. “I changed middle schools twice, failed the math section of the CRCT and I had to repeat the eighth grade,” Davis said. “When I finally got to Johnson High, I was self-conscious about being older than everyone else.”

http://savannahnow.com/news/2014-05-24/twilight-school-helps-boost-savannah-chatham-graduation-rates

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Ease of online education allows many to get degrees

by PETER CAMERON, Citizen’s Voice

When Maj. Chris Costello of the Pennsylvania National Guard received his fourth overseas deployment in a decade, this time to Kuwait in 2012, he decided to go back to school — in the Arabian Desert. Along with 20 other soldiers at Camp Buehring, about 10 miles south of the Iraqi border, Costello enrolled in an online MBA course through Marywood University, more than 6,000 miles away. Camels would roam the outskirts of the base. Most of the servicemen and -women lived in tents. And sandstorms sometimes knocked out the basewide Wi-Fi and sent some of the soldier-students scrambling through the stinging wind for a better connection in the recreation hall. As an officer, Costello had the benefit of living in an air-conditioned apartment on the base with his own Internet connection.

http://citizensvoice.com/news/ease-of-online-education-allows-many-to-get-degrees-1.1687840

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Experts: Evolution of higher education inevitable

by Debra Erdley, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Buffeted by increasing costs, shrinking public subsidies, soaring student debt and growing public skepticism, American colleges are approaching a tipping point. More than 4,000 colleges and universities are scattered across the country, and experts agree that — with the exception of elite, well-endowed research universities — few will remain unchanged in 30 years. Some will close, others might merge, and leaner models likely will emerge to meet public demand. “I think all change is incremental, but what’s different about the period we’re in is there are so many forces out there that the cumulative effect of those forces will produce big changes,” said Patrick Callan, president of the Higher Education Policy Institute. Donald Heller, dean of the College of Education at Michigan State University, said colleges and universities will emphasize more online offerings as they reshape to survive.

http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/6035965-74/online-governors-percent#axzz32kvaS78T

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