Educational Technology

By Beth Marshall, Community Impact Houston

Sustaining the most damage of all Lone Star College System campuses, LSC-Kingwood took on water in six of its nine buildings, and officials have worked to convert nearly 600 face-to-face courses to online or hybrid formats. “While the hurricane damaged our buildings, it did not shake our determination to get students educated,” said LSC-Kingwood President Katherine Persson. “Campus personnel pulled together to ensure that students were able to register, pay, and attend classes by Sept. 25.” As of Sept. 22, LSC-Kingwood had a seven percent increase in student enrollment, according to a release from the college. More than 13,000 students are taking online classes and in-person and hybrid courses are being held in the Student Conference Center and the Music Instructional Building on campus.

https://communityimpact.com/houston/lake-houston-humble-kingwood/education/2017/09/25/classes-begin-lsc-kingwood-students-today-flood-damages/

by John Granger, Yorkshire Post

GOOGLE has expanded its inventory of initiatives to boost the UK’s digital skill levels by teaming up with consumer body Which? to launch a new course in online safety. The course is currently available in one-off, hour-long sessions, free of charge to anyone who uses Google’s Digital Garage training centre in Sheffield, but the company has said it will make it available to all online “very soon”. Speaking about the partnership, Google’s communications manager for the UK and Ireland, Elijah Lawal, said: “It seemed like a perfectly natural fit and gives us that extra bit of credibility.

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/business/google-joins-forces-with-which-to-launch-a-new-online-safety-course-1-8771739

By Allison Mills, Michigan Tech University

In a paper published in the Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, STEM education researcher Joshua Ellis shows how empowering teachers in online professional development classes can deepen their learning. The effects can then carry over into their own classrooms. “My background is in designing online learning environments, and we know that you always want to design for the outcome—but we don’t always know how to design for the outcome,” says Ellis, who is an assistant professor in the Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences at Michigan Technological University. “The study spurred conversations for us as designers because, at the end of the day, we have to ask, would we do this again?”

http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2017/september/teacher-leadership-online-classrooms-shapes-communication.html

By Sri Ravipati, THE Journal

Since its debut last year, educators and students in 115 countries are currently using Minecraft: Education Edition. Starting today, classrooms will be able to play a popular educational game from the past within Minecraft’s sandbox world.  Microsoft has launched The Oregon Trail Experience, which focuses on subjects in STEM, humanities and fine arts. The company partnered with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt to bring back The Oregon Trail, a computer game first introduced in 1971 to teach students about frontier life by putting them in the role of a 19th century pioneer.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/09/18/minecraft-education-edition-reboots-the-oregon-trail.aspx

By Maryam Dodhy, Tech Juice

The Cryptocurrency and Blockchain buzz is riding high right now. Despite the fact that the Cryptocurrency market lost billions of dollars and the Bitcoin value dropped below $3,000 following China’s ban on cryptocurrency exchanges, it is now gradually recovering. Malaysia recently announced that it will legalize Bitcoin, Burger King introduced its own cryptocurrency called Whopper Coin, Cambridge University published the first research on the digital currency and Russia’s top 5 universities are now offering courses on it. So, a lot is happening in the Cryptocurrency world.

https://www.techjuice.pk/top-4-cryptocurrency-blockchain-online-courses/

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

If you’re an educator, you’ve probably noticed that the profession has undergone significant change in the last few years. With the growth of the flipped classroom model and the plethora of resources available via apps and websites, teachers are no longer considered the experts. They are moving into the role of facilitator, “guide on the side” instead of “sage on the stage.” Are we headed to a brave new world in which teachers are replaced by giant computer screens and a tech coach to assist on the sidelines? The answer is…yes and no.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/artificial-intelligence-computers-taking-teachers/

By Joshua Bolkan, THE Journal
The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) and Education Networks of America (ENA) have released a new report examining the steps states are taking to close the gaps in wireless access between their schools and districts.

The report offers four recommendations for policy makers and school leaders:

Increase infrastructure to support student-centered learning;
Design infrastructure to meet capacity targets;
Ensure equity of access for all students outside of school; and
Leverage state resources to increase broadband access.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/09/20/4-recommendations-for-closing-broadband-equity-gaps.aspx

By Joshua Bolkan, Campus Technology

A team of researchers led by professors at Cornell University will launch a project designed to ensure that automated decision-making systems respect privacy and come to their decisions fairly. “There’s a lot of new technology being deployed in a variety of important settings, and we don’t fully understand all the ramifications,” said Thomas Ristenpart, associate professor of computer science at Cornell Tech and co-principal investigator for the project, in a prepared statement.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/09/18/cornell-carnegie-researchers-aim-to-hold-computers-accountable-for-their-decisions.aspx

by Rhea Kelly, Campus Technology

Smartwatches may be one of the hottest gadgets in the consumer market — making up nearly a third of all wearables sales this year — but the climate in the classroom is noticeably cooler for the wrist-worn devices. In our 2017 Teaching with Technology Survey, smartwatches came in dead last in the list of technologies faculty consider essential or valuable for teaching and learning. Just 9 percent of faculty called the devices “valuable” (an increase from 5 percent in 2016), and not a one deemed them “essential.” What’s more, 9 percent of respondents considered smartwatches “detrimental.”

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/09/13/smartwatches-deemed-least-valuable-technology-in-the-classroom.aspx