Techno-News Blog

by Jacquelyn Bengfort, EdTech
As more states adopt funding formulas based on student performance — such as graduation rates and degrees awarded — higher education institutions are ­laser-focused on improving retention. Regardless of state policy, however, such strategies make fiscal sense: Enrolling a new student is more expensive than retaining a current one. To both control those costs and serve students more effectively, many institutions leverage data analytics. Temple University’s Fox School of Business developed its analytics initiative in concert with a major curriculum review, which included surveying businesses and focus groups about the ­competencies they look for in graduates. The school then looked for a way to help students measure their competencies in an integrated, cross-course fashion. “We wanted to demonstrate value and return on investment to a student’s degree,” says Cliff Tironi, Fox’s performance analytics manager.

https://edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2017/08/colleges-embrace-data-analytics-improve-student-retention

by Associated Press

To push the boundaries of artificial intelligence further, one of the world’s most renowned researchers in the field says many more humans need to get involved. So his focus now is on teaching the next generation of AI specialists to teach the machines. Nearly 2 million people around the globe have taken Ng’s online course on machine learning. In his videos, the lanky, 6-foot-1 Briton of Hong Kong and Singaporean upbringing speaks with a difficult-to-place accent . He often tries to get students comfortable with mind-boggling concepts by acknowledging up front, in essence, that “hey, this stuff is tough.” Ng sees AI as a way to “free humanity from repetitive mental drudgery.”

http://www.vindy.com/news/2017/aug/22/why-andrew-ng-teaches-humans-to-teach-co/

by Jacquelyn Bengfort, EdTech
As more states adopt funding formulas based on student performance — such as graduation rates and degrees awarded — higher education institutions are ­laser-focused on improving retention. Regardless of state policy, however, such strategies make fiscal sense: Enrolling a new student is more expensive than retaining a current one. To both control those costs and serve students more effectively, many institutions leverage data analytics. Temple University’s Fox School of Business developed its analytics initiative in concert with a major curriculum review, which included surveying businesses and focus groups about the ­competencies they look for in graduates. The school then looked for a way to help students measure their competencies in an integrated, cross-course fashion. “We wanted to demonstrate value and return on investment to a student’s degree,” says Cliff Tironi, Fox’s performance analytics manager.

https://edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2017/08/colleges-embrace-data-analytics-improve-student-retention

by Emily Schwartz, ITHAKA S+R

For the past two years, I worked on the development of OERs in K-12 education. As the movement ramped up, it was exciting to be at the forefront, considering questions of costs and quality. I gained some important insights from this experience that are also applicable for the development and adoption of OERs in higher education. Some of the lessons are linked below.

http://www.sr.ithaka.org/blog/open-educational-resources/

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

Using a new app in the classroom is fun and exciting, but it can also be tricky. Finding the right app, making sure it works and setting it up can all take up time and frustrate teachers. Make implementing new apps in the classroom easier by following these five simple steps. Choosing the right app can make implementing a new app much easier. First, think about why you really need this app. Too many teachers use apps simply for the sake of using more technology in the classroom.  Instead, look for apps that add value to your teaching. Tons of apps can make everything from grading to classroom management easier. Consider what you need help with and find an app that will make your life easier, not harder.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/5-steps-implementing-app-classroom/

By Emily Liebtag, Getting Smart

I value many different learning models and environments and honestly do not feel it is my role to judge or evaluate what is “good.” That said, from years of teaching in the classroom and countless visits and interactions with excellent educators worldwide, I’ve created a list of things I commonly observe in great student-centered learning environments. As the Nellie Mae Education Foundation describes, student-centered learning “engages students in their own success—and incorporates their interests and skills into the learning process.” Student learning is personalized, competency-based, happens anytime and/or anywhere, and students have ownership in their learning. I paired my personal list with thoughts from my teammates at Getting Smart to create a collection of “School Look Fors” based on our discussions and experiences in schools.

http://www.gettingsmart.com/2017/08/8-things-look-student-centered-learning-environment/

by eSchool News
Computer science is becoming more essential to future jobs; but are students developing the skills they need? As computer science education grows across the nation, many states are making it a core subject and are counting it toward math and science requirements. But progress across states varies. Here’s a look at how two different states, California and Maine, are faring in their computer science efforts. In California, some think the state’s progress to make computer science a graduation requirement is too slow. An editorial in the San Diego Union-Tribune says the state’s is displaying “astounding lethargy” in its efforts to increase access to computer science. And in Maine, the Portland Press Herald notes that “not too long in the future, almost all jobs will require some fundamental skill with computing, and many of the best new jobs will require a mastery of it. Yet computer science remains a subject on the periphery

https://www.eschoolnews.com/2017/08/10/state-computer-science-programs/

BY LADISLAS DE TOLDI, eSchool News
Physically engaging with tangible toys is the best way to take a lesson that is taught on a computer screen and apply it to everyday skills. With 80 percent of teachers reporting that they support the use of technology in the classroom, it is important to integrate tools that best fit with a child’s learning abilities, as well as school curriculum. Just this spring, a tech trend spun through the nation and it seemed as though almost every elementary school child was holding a fidget spinner. It was reported that the momentum of these small, ball-bearing devices provide a pleasing sensory experience, and therefore help hold the attention of those with ADHD or Autism.

https://www.eschoolnews.com/2017/08/21/vr-tangible-physical-toys/

By Joshua Bolkan, Campus Technology

The Georgia Institute of Technology is opening the “Robotarium” this month to allow users from around the world to test out their code on a rotating pair of robot swarms. The 725-square-foot facility features a 12-inch x 14-inch bowl-shaped court and is home to teams of wheeled and flying swarm robots that users can put their code to the test on after honing it on simulators provided by Georgia Tech. Passersby can see the robots in action through a window and users can watch video captured by motion-activated cameras on the Robotarium’s ceiling of the robots running their code.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/08/17/georgia-tech-launches-facility-for-remote-users-to-control-robot-swarms.aspx

By Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology
This panel of analysts examined the issues currently faced by post-secondary education and how tech and regulation can and will influence the outcomes. Even as technology continually promises to deliver a more effective education to a more engaged audience of learners, it hardly ever measures up in the classroom let alone institutionally. Could it be that current policies constrain schools from being able to innovate in deep and important ways? During Blackboard’s recent user conference, BbWorld, a group of leading analysts in education met to discuss the post-secondary landscape and how government policy and the use of tech can influence the outcomes.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/08/16/the-bittersweet-convergence-of-policy-higher-ed-and-tech.aspx

by ROBBIE FEINBERG, NPR

Welsch learned what a lot of teachers, researchers and policymakers in Maine have come to realize over the past 15 years: You can’t just put a computer in a kid’s hand and expect it to change learning. Research has shown that “one-to-one” programs, meaning one student one computer, implemented the right way, increase student learning in subjects like writing, math and science. Those results have prompted other states, like Utah and Nevada, to look at implementing their own one-to-one programs in recent years. Yet, after a decade and a half, and at a cost of about $12 million annually (around one percent of the state’s education budget), Maine has yet to see any measurable increases on statewide standardized test scores. That’s part of why Maine’s current governor, Paul LePage, has called the program a “massive failure.”

http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/08/18/536875865/15-years-later-how-did-it-go-with-maines-school-laptop-program

BY ALEX GILYADOV, IGN

You can now learn one of Game of Thrones’ ancient languages, High Valyrian, thanks to Duolingo. Quartz reports the company teamed up with the show’s linguist David J. Peterson to create a free online course that teaches Daenerys Targaryen’s mother tongue. You can try it out on Duolingo’s website now, and it will soon be available on iOS and Android devices. The course is free, with an option to pay for a subscription to remove ads. You’ll learn everything from how to simply say father, which is “kepa” in High Valyrian, to more complex phrases like “Daenerys praises the dragon,” which translates to “Daenerys zaldrīzī rijas.”

http://www.ign.com/articles/2017/08/18/game-of-thrones-shows-linguist-creates-online-course-to-teach-high-valyrian

by Chris Parr, Times Higher Ed

There is a “crisis of capacity” on the African continent, Dr Andrews said, pointing out that half the population is under 19 – just one of the factors contributing to the spiralling demand for higher education. “To meet that demand,” he said, “Africa would need to build 10 universities a week, [with] each [one enrolling] 10,000 students every week for the next 12 years.” This simply isn’t going to happen. “I am not saying that all bricks-and-mortar institutions need to be closed, but it is impossible for African governments to build enough to [educate the population] in the traditional way,” said Dr Andrews, who was a lecturer at Bournemouth University for 13 years, leaving in 2006. “They have to think about innovations, to think about online as part of the solution.”

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/africa-must-embrace-online-learning-meet-demand-degrees

By Joshua Bolkan, THE Journal

A group of students led by a virtual reality artist-in-residence at Brown University have created a VR experience that aims to bring a bit of history to life for middle and high school students. Beginning in May 2016, Adam Blumenthal led a team of 14 undergraduate students from more than a dozen majors (or concentrations, as Brown refers to them) in an independent study project designed to bring the Gaspee Affair to virtual reality. “They were great collaborators,” said Blumenthal, according to a university report about the project. “What I taught them was how an interactive media production works, from concept to almost completion.”

https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/08/17/brown-u-students-develop-vr-history-experience-for-use-in-education.aspx

By Tim Greene, Network World
If you’re wondering whether your network is vulnerable or not, you haven’t been paying attention – everybody’s is. This free online course shows what it takes to effectively conduct network vulnerability assessments and analysis that will help you keep the hackers at bay. Protecting your network means first you have to discover and shore up its weaknesses, making it as difficult as possible for attackers to succeed. This course can help you systematically identify potential vulnerabilities before attackers exploit them. In partnership with PluralSight, Network World presents “Conducting Network Vulnerability Analysis”, step-by-step instruction that lays out both intrusive and non-intrusive methods of targeting systems, details how to leverage Internet-based resources and explains the intricacies of passive and active vulnerability scanning.

http://www.networkworld.com/article/3217327/lan-wan/network-vulnerability-analysis-101-free-online-training.html

by Nikki Sullivan, Cape Breton Post

“Our initial idea was we’d be really happy if we got 25-30 people … and we had 1,000. It went absolutely crazy,” said Laura Baker, manager of distance online and distance learning at CBU. Last fall, the university decided to add open online learning courses which allows people to register for certain courses three different ways — credit, certificate and curiosity. Credit is for students who are registered at CBU and will count as credits toward their degrees. Certificate costs $75 and students receive a certificate saying they participated in the course. It is free to take courses as a curiosity student. Baker said an hour after posting the courses on Facebook she had about 300 email inquiries. “It’s like a taste of university and honestly, that’s kind of why it was started,” Baker explained. The classes are broadcast on Facebook live and archived for those registered to watch later.

http://www.capebretonpost.com/news/local/2017/8/17/free-cbu-courses-popular.html

by Brandon Busteed, Gallup
The term “liberal arts” no longer works as an effective means of communicating one of higher education’s most precious assets. “Liberal” is politically charged, and “arts” has a negative connotation regarding improving graduates’ job prospects, which is the main reason why Americans and currently enrolled college students value higher education. Putting the words liberal and arts together is a branding disaster, and the most effective way to save or defend the liberal arts may be to change what we call them. Note, the problem isn’t with the substance of a liberal arts education but with the words we use to describe it.

http://www.gallup.com/opinion/gallup/216275/higher-education-drop-term-liberal-arts.aspx

by Marissa Kynaston, 13 Action News

Severe allergies can be difficult for anyone, but imagine going to school and being allergic to just about everything.  A girl in Nevada would have had to deal with that problem, if it weren’t for getting an education from the comfort of her own home. Sophia Riella had her first day of school, just like CCSD students across the valley, but Sophia didn’t have to change out of her pajamas.  Sophia is in her second year as a student at Nevada Connections Academy, a free online public school.  Her parents decided on this over a traditional school because of her severe allergies and autoimmune deficiency.

http://www.ktnv.com/news/more-students-opting-out-of-traditional-schools-online-classes-see-increase

By Mark Samuels, ZD Net

The robots are coming and the world of work is set to change forever: recent research from consultants PWC estimates a third of existing jobs are susceptible to automation, due to the use of robots and artificial intelligence (AI) by 2030. The survey adds more weight to a fast-growing body of work on the impact of AI. Take KPMG’s recent global CIO survey in conjunction with recruiter Harvey Nash, which found almost two-thirds of CIOs are investing or planning to invest in digital labour, which broadly covers robotics, automation, and artificial intelligence. A quarter of these technology chiefs have already see very effective results. The survey suggests digital leaders are investing in digital labour at four times the rate of other executives. These CIOs are also implementing digital labour solutions across the enterprise, in some cases at twice the rate of their less-pioneering peers.

http://www.zdnet.com/article/ai-projects-are-taking-off-what-does-this-mean-for-the-future-of-work/

By Joe McKendrick, RTI Insights
Online learning has moved to the next level. Instructors can now administer their courses with real-time data feeds, enabling interactions in the moment.  As education is increasingly delivered online, there are new possibilities for real-time interaction between educators and students. That’s the word from Erin Brereton, who notes in a recent issue of EdTech: Focus on Higher Education. Online learning is seen as a huge piece of the future of higher education, Brereton says. “Faculty can provide coursework from a learning management system and measure track student learning and program outcomes,” Brereton says. “The real-time data that some learning management system platforms provide can help faculty see patterns, such as how many students answer introductory-level questions incorrectly, to determine what extra resources are needed.”

https://www.rtinsights.com/real-time-platforms-add-personal-touch-to-online-learning/