Techno-News Blog

By Tanya Roscorla, Center for Digital Ed

California computer science legislation could open doors for students to learn about a subject that’s gaining national attention. Computer science education is getting plenty of attention in the California Legislature, with four out of eight bills passing both the Assembly and Senate. And the Golden State’s efforts are part of a national push to bring more computer science into schools. With the national Hour of Code campaign last year and recent legislation in many states, lawmakers and educators on both sides of the aisle are making computer science education a priority. In 23 states, computer science now counts toward high school graduation requirements for math or science, according to Code.org, the nonprofit that drove the Hour of Code campaign.

http://www.centerdigitaled.com/news/California-Computer-Science-Education.html

By Esther Shein, University Business

Montana State had already standardized on switching and control gear, and officials opted to use several solutions from the same vendor, including a system that allows users to send 1080p video and high-definition audio, and shared Ethernet over a single cable. “From the most basic standpoint, it’s a massive reduction in cables,” says Packwood. The transmitters at the tables and the receivers at the flat panels can be remotely powered from the switcher location. In other words, an electrician isn’t needed to bring in additional power to transmit-and-receive locations, and the placement of these devices is much more flexible.

http://www.universitybusiness.com/article/equipped-interaction-campus

by Lindsey Burke, Daily Signal

Less than two-thirds of high schools across the country offer physics. Just half offer calculus, according to Michael Horn, an education innovation guru. That only half of high schools offer calculus might come as a shock to a large portion of parents, who have worked to ensure their children have adequate educational opportunities. And it’s just one more reason why choice in education should be universal and not confined to choice among schools. What exactly is course choice? Course choice enables students to craft an à la carte education uniquely tailored to their learning needs. Louisiana’s course choice program enables K-12 students to take courses from colleges, public high schools, virtual schools and private online providers.

http://dailysignal.com/2014/09/02/students-get-access-courses-high-schools-dont-offer/

by Carolyn Lewis, Training Zone

Effective online pedagogy is not exclusively applicable to delivery of formal qualifications it is equally important whether it’s social learning or short courses. The full extent of skills may not be required for all types of learning, but in my opinion we can pretty much apply the standards set out in the UK Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers in Education and Training to online pedagogy whatever the objective.

http://www.trainingzone.co.uk/blogs-post/what-does-pedagogy-mean-when-it-comes-online-learning/187606

By JOHN B. TAYLOR, Wall Street Journal

Econ 1v was offered to Stanford undergraduates, including matriculated students and incoming freshmen, and visiting students from other universities who were willing to pay Stanford’s tuition. For Stanford students the credit would count for their degree. For non-Stanford students the credit could be used at their colleges. The course was also offered online free to anyone. The video lectures and the platform for the open online and the for-credit track were identical, but students in the for-credit course had additional interactive sessions and more comprehensive assessments with grades at the end. We gave the open online students the option of taking only key parts of the course—such as the supply and demand model or basic monetary and fiscal policy. People in the open online course could earn a Statement of Accomplishment issued by Stanford.

http://online.wsj.com/articles/john-taylor-a-new-twist-in-online-learning-at-stanford-1409610594

by Stephanie Kingsley, Chronicle of Higher Ed

Built as a WordPress Theme, Ivanhoe is simple to install and easy to learn and use. Rather than have students in your course on Gothic fiction write a paper after reading Dracula, why not have them assume their theoretical stances in the forms of roles and experiment with them — and thus better develop them — by playing an Ivanhoe Game on the novel first? Give your game a title and description/prompt, and you’re ready to go! Even create rules for your game if you like — although none are required! Ivanhoe can be played in any discipline, with a variety of media, and with players of all ages and educational backgrounds. Players develop roles related to any topic and then make comments from their assumed roles.

http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/playing-in-the-classroom-with-the-ivanhoe-game/57713

By Emily Ko, Edudemic

The sideways classroom utilizes online interactive teacher resources like a flipped classroom, but melds group tutoring and typical classroom discussion with after-school learning. Since it is a less radical departure from what students and parents expect, there’s less stress and uncertainty. If you fear that students may not have access to video lectures or get distracted from learning while on their own time, then teacher resources and equipment available in most schools solve this logistics problem. Wealth and home situation do not become a barrier to learning.

http://www.edudemic.com/flipped-classroom-or-sideways/

by Jessica Else, The Argus Observer

Oregon Connections Academy puts a new spin on education with online classes for students in kindergarten through grade 12. The virtual school held an information session at Four Rivers Cultural Center this week to answer questions. One family was in attendance. Janet Carlsen and Carrie Hargrove, teachers at the virtual school, hosted the session.  “We work in a virtual environment, so we connect with our students on the Internet in real time classrooms,” said Carlsen, who is from Summerville and teaches elementary school at Oregon Connections Academy. “And we also spend a lot of time on the phone supporting our students.”

http://www.argusobserver.com/news/online-program-puts-new-spin-on-student-learning/article_05e67554-30bb-11e4-85f2-001a4bcf887a.html

by Nicole Shepard, Deseret News

When MIT implemented over 100 free online courses, it considered the traditional purpose of education.  “Sometimes I wonder if we’ve lost our vision of education,” said Tom Bronson, MIT online programs committee member. “Universities were created to establish an educated society. There is strength and stability that comes with a citizenship that can think outside the box. We’re looking to create and sustain an educated society.”

http://national.deseretnews.com/article/2248/with-so-many-free-and-cheap-online-courses-now-available-anyone-can-go-back-to-school.html

by John Seed, Huffington Post

I think Smarthistory has hit critical mass. I think it truly can replace standard high school and college texts for a variety of widely taught survey courses in art history and art appreciation. Smarthistory now provides workable online syllabi for several courses, and I have made up my own “Virtual Art Appreciation” text using Smarthistory in combination with other free and open resources. The list of resources below are here for you to inspect and consider. If you are a K-12 teacher or college professor, please consult your institution’s curriculum guidelines, and your supervisor before you consider going textless. Please also keep in mind that these resources need to be properly integrated with your other resources, lecture content and evaluations. I will leave it up to you to vet these materials to make sure they meet your standards.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-seed/virtual-resources-for-art_b_5738100.html

By JEANNE MILLSAP Shaw Media

Leanne Dammann’s computer maintenance technology classes at the Grundy Area Vocational Center have been popular for years, with instruction in understanding computers, printers, cellphones, switches, routers and more. But seniors trying to enroll in the second year of the series – CMT II – were having difficulty fitting the class into their schedules. Dammann was able to start offering her CMT II course as a blended class beginning with the 2012-13 school year. This year, she has 15 students in the class. They said so far they have managed to keep up by finding time during their daytime schedules to study.

http://www.morrisdailyherald.com/2014/08/29/blended-tech-course-combines-classroom-independent-study/aq50w24/

by MELANIE PINOLA, LifeHacker Australia

Want to learn everything you might in an MBA program — without having to pay for the expensive classes? Online learning hub SlideRule has gathered free online courses from top schools such as Wharton and Harvard Business School into a well-rounded curriculum. The MBA Essentials learning path covers six core MBA subjects — Finance, Accounting, Marketing, Operations Management and Strategy — plus secondary subjects such as Data Analysis. For each subject, they picked what they thought were the best available classes from sites including edX and MIT Open Courseware, as well as alternative courses if the first choice isn’t available or for a different perspective.

http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2014/08/get-an-mba-equivalent-education-with-these-free-courses/

By Tom Simonite, Technology Review

Wearable computers could find many uses but are hampered by short battery lives. Existing wearable devices such as Google’s head-mounted computer Google Glass require battery charging at least once a day, even with light use. A new kind of low-power chip aimed at such wearable devices could not only extend battery lives but also allow the devices to constantly listen for voice commands. The new chip, made by startup company Ineda Systems, is intended to work alongside the main processor inside a device, performing functions such as listening for voice commands and running simple apps. That saves energy by allowing the main processor to spend more time powered down.

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/530341/a-chip-for-longer-lasting-wearable-computers/

By David Talbot, Technology Review

The Internet is critical infrastructure for homes, businesses, and government. A system crash blacking out broadband service for all 11.4 million of Time Warner Cable’s customers for three hours early Wednesday morning raises questions about the stability of U.S. Internet infrastructure and the potential impact of Time Warner’s proposed mega-merger with Comcast, experts say. A human error that cascaded throughout Time Warner’s Internet routers appears to have triggered the outage. The company said in a statement that during overnight network maintenance, “an erroneous configuration was propagated throughout our national backbone.”

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/530431/massive-internet-outage-points-to-flaws-in-policy-and-technology/

by Shahida Sweeney, CIO

Victoria University (VU) has gone live with an integrated learning platform that uses data analytics and mobile apps to help design, deliver and manage anywhere, anytime learning programs for more than 40,000 students. The university is using D2L’s data analytics tools for more detailed reporting, assessment and collaboration to revitalise its e-learning environment. “A big component of our blended learning strategy is to be able to support our students effectively,” Dr Germany said. VU’s CIO Professor Peter Creamer, said the concept of blended learning offers a completely different experience. “Learning can be sourced from different places, quite unlike the traditional model.”

http://www.cio.com.au/article/553337/victoria_university_taps_analytics_provide_blended_learning/

by Gregor Kennedy, the Conversation

One reason institutions like Stanford University and Edinburgh University embraced MOOCs was that they provided a wonderful opportunity to learn about online learning. These institutions recognised that MOOCs were a vehicle for educational research, particularly through the use of learning analytics. Learning analytics use the digital data trails that students leave in online learning environments to develop an understanding of students’ learning processes. Every video watched, quiz answered and comment posted can be tracked, mined and analysed to better understand how students are learning online. Researchers are able to capitalise on the big data sets generated by tens of thousands of MOOC students to uncover productive and unproductive patterns of learning behaviour.

http://theconversation.com/moocs-learning-about-online-learning-one-click-at-a-time-30782

By LindsayH, Edudemic

Higher education institutions are abuzz with the concept of Open Badges. Defined as a symbol or indicator of an accomplishment, skill, quality or interest, Open Badges are not only a hot topic as of late, but are also debated by some critics as the latest threat to higher education. A closer look at this emerging trend reveals benefits for traditional institutions and alternative learning programs alike. Some advocates have suggested that badges representing learning and skills acquired outside the classroom, or even in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), will soon supplant diplomas and course credits.

http://www.edudemic.com/open-badges-in-education/

By Jeff Dunn, Edudemic

We have been examining education technology products for more than 4 years now at Edudemic and it’s given us a unique perspective. We’re able to look back at where things were with vivid detail since it’s all documented right here on this site. In fact, Edudemic launched the same week as the announcement of the iPad! Back in April 2010, though, there was only one tablet. Now, there are a lot of other players in the game. So let’s get the device debate going. What tablet is right for your classroom? In the interest of providing some real-world concrete examples, we’ve tested a few of the tablets we think would make a decent fit in most modern classrooms. We chose one tablet for each major operating system and tried to ensure each had a price that was reasonable for a school or district’s budget. Linked below are some of the newest tablets on the market.

http://www.edudemic.com/device-debate-tablet-right-classrooms/

by Christopher Pappas, eLearning Industry

There are a variety of advantages associated with synchronous learning, such as increased collaboration and immediate feedback for learners, just to mention a few. To get all of the benefits you have to know which eLearning tools will help you enhance your synchronous learning strategy. In this article, I will share 6 Google Hangouts Tips for synchronous learning that will help you utilize all of the features that Google Hangouts has to offer you.

http://elearningindustry.com/6-tips-use-google-hangouts-for-synchronous-learning

by MITx

edX is offering a MOOC starting on 8 October 2014 called Design and Development of Educational Technologyfor anyone who wants to get a deeper understanding of this field. This project-based course explores educational technologies and the theories underlying their development through interviews with experts in the field. To be effective, educational technologies must be designed based on what we know about how people learn. Through interviews with multiple experts in the field, this course examines educational technologies, outlines the theories that influenced their development, and examines their use. The course leads up to a final project – a kickstarter style pitch for a new educational technology – which is worked on iteratively across the weeks. It involves active weekly participation.

https://www.edx.org/course/mitx/mitx-11-132x-design-development-2686#.U_5JnPmwJ-1

by Jason Llorenz, Huffington Post

Having experimented with social media for learning — especially Twitter — across my courses, I am convinced that social media offers powerful opportunities to connect with students, by providing new ways for them to own the learning. But doing it well takes a good deal of planning and structure, especially if social will be part of your graded class activities. Below are 10 strategies and tactics for integrating Twitter into your college course.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jason-a-llorenz/ten-steps-to-using-twitte_b_5692021.html