Educational Technology

December 31, 2017

For Some Colleges, 1:1 Programs Are Starting to Make Sense

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:38 am

by Dave Doucette, EdTech
Dave Doucette is director of West Coast higher education sales for CDW•G.
One-to-one device initiatives traditionally have been the province of K–12 education, but recent rollouts in higher education have me wondering if this trend is coming to colleges, too. Like K–12 districts, higher education institutions will have to assess the pros and cons of one-to-one versus bring your own device on a case-by-case basis, but some are already choosing to issue devices to give students a standardized, consistent computing experience.

https://edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2017/12/some-colleges-11-programs-are-starting-make-sense

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Credit hour definitions may be dying as Congress takes up HEA reauthorization

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:35 am

By Autumn A. Arnett, Education Dive
Saying Obama-era credit hour definitions “only created barriers to innovation for students and institutions,” House Education and the Workforce Committee Chair Virginia Foxx (R-NC) is leading the push to scrap the definitions with the new PROSPER Act to re-authorize the Higher Education Act. Critics of this proposal worry the change will lead “bad actors” to shuffle more students along at a quicker pace, taking advantage of financial aid dollars while leaving students with little learned, according to The Hill. One audit, for example, found an institution had allowed a student to accumulate nine credit hours in one 10-week online course.  The act also would soften the requirement that any online program obtain authorization from each state in which it operates and collects federal financial aid.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/credit-hour-definitions-may-be-dying-as-congress-takes-up-hea-reauthorizati/513312/

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STEM must include focus on literacy, critical thinking as much as hard skills

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:30 am

By Roger Riddell, Education Dive
No matter how many extra letters get added to the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) acronym, the primary takeaway should be the need for equal consideration of all subjects and the importance of critical thinking and literacy across all areas, according to EdTech: Focus on K-12.  Noting the recent inclusion of an “R” for reading alongside the “A” for arts (to create “STREAM”), K-12 education strategist Amy Brown writes that literacy’s importance is just as much (if not more) about being able to write, speak, analyze arguments and communicate effectively than it is about simply being able to read. Additionally, STEM should focus on teaching students to think critically and solve problems, so that they’re adaptable to any situation — a trait that will only become more important in an economy where the fields they enter could be disrupted and many of the jobs they’ll eventually hold don’t even exist yet.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/stem-must-include-focus-on-literacy-critical-thinking-as-much-as-hard-skil/513656/

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December 30, 2017

Report: National graduation rates surpass pre-recession highs

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:42 am

by Jeremy House, Education Dive
Nationally, six-year graduation rates for first-time college enrollees rose to 56.9% from 54.8%, according to the National Student Clearinghouse’s annual report on college completion rates. The 2.1% bump lifts graduation rates above the pre-recession high of 56.1% and represents about 48,000 more degree earners. Disparities still remain along racial lines, with Black and Hispanic students lagging behind their white and Asian peers.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/report-national-graduation-rates-surpass-pre-recession-highs/513653/

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The 10 ‘Prime Directives’ of repairing and upgrading tech

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:36 am

By Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, ZD Net

Now, I’m not going to try to fool you into thinking that I’m some “fixing guru” or “tech ninja.” I’m not. While I have a pretty high success rate when it comes to resuscitating things, I’ve had plenty of failures, too, and I’ve been responsible for letting the magic smoke out of a lot of devices by doing something daft. But, over that time, I’ve built up a set of rules that I keep in mind when fixing things. I call them the “Prime Directives,” not because I’m a huge Star Trek fan, but because they’re important, and bad things tend to happen when I violate them.

I present them here in no particular order.

http://www.zdnet.com/article/the-ten-prime-directives-of-repairing-and-upgrading-tech/

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Security in 2018: Buckle Up, This Isn’t Getting Any Easier

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:31 am

by Rob Marvin, PC Mag
Security experts discuss the trends to watch next year, from cryptocurrency hacks and ransomware to potential vulnerabilities in IoT devices and connected cars.  This was another rough year for online security. From the Equifax breach to full-on election hacking by a foreign government, major security problems affected nearly every industry, institution, and consumer in the country. We spoke to security experts from across the industry and rounded up 10 of the most prevalent security threats and trends to watch out for in 2018.

https://www.pcmag.com/feature/357913/security-in-2018-buckle-up-this-isn-t-getting-any-easier

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December 29, 2017

Athletes, other students find flexibility with online education

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:40 am

By Brant Wilkerson, Winston-Salem Journal

In the eyes of the NCAA, there’s no difference between traditional, online or home-school classes – so long as they receive approval from the NCAA’s Eligibility Center. “High school students in general – not just student-athletes – complete more online and/or blended courses than before,” NCAA spokesperson Michelle Hosick said. College basketball player Marvin Bagley III has done that, completing four online classes during the summer to reclassify to enter Duke as a freshman in August instead of going through a senior year at Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth, Calif.

http://www.journalnow.com/sports/colleges/basketball/athletes-other-students-find-flexibility-with-online-education/article_8be18118-19eb-57bd-a4f8-34c10af7b359.html

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Making Online Classes Work

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:35 am

Wheeling Intelligencer Editorial

Educators need all the tools available to ensure every student gets what he or she needs from school. Good for Hancock County Board of Education members for pulling another tool out of the box. On Jan. 16, the county school system will add another classroom, this one virtual. Beginning that day, some students will be able to take some classes online instead of in person. Labeled an online “academy,” the program has been developed in cooperation with Edmentum, a company with offices in Minnesota and Texas. The firm bills itself as a pioneer in online education for 50 years.

http://www.theintelligencer.net/opinion/editorials/2017/12/making-online-classes-work/

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The Internet Plus revolution in Chinese education

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:30 am

by Xinhua writers Guo Ying and Zhao Wanwei, Zinhuanet

More than 20,000 students from 31 junior high schools of Beijing’s Tongzhou District have two teachers for each subject. One is the class-based teacher at their school; the other is a Beijing Excellent Teacher who offers regular tutoring and individualized tutoring online. They benefit from Beijing’s Middle School Teachers Online Tutoring Service Platform. Initiated by Beijing Municipal Education Commission and first adopted in Tongzhou, the project encourages core teachers from Beijing’s public middle schools to offer real-time tutoring, for free, especially in less advantaged schools. The project collects students’ whole learning process data, diagnoses and analyzes learning problems, and models the knowledge and ability structure. It will present a personalized analysis report for students, teachers and parents.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-12/20/c_136840337.htm

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December 28, 2017

VR and AR: Learners as Creators and World Builders of Our Immersive Future

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:40 am

by Emory Craig and Maya Georgieva, EDUCAUSE Review

In working with faculty, staff, and administrators in higher education, we’re often asked, How do you get started with VR? What will be the impact of immersive computing on education? What are the real benefits for students beyond the novelty factor of a new technology? Thinking through these important questions, it is helpful to reflect on the work of the New Media Consortium’s Horizon Report. One of the major developments across the educational spectrum is the idea of students as creators; we see this as one of the most exciting areas in the use of virtual and augmented reality. Students today aspire to do more with technology than simply be passive consumers of a new media form. The compelling nature of immersive technologies inspires them to become creators and active explorers in the making of a new medium. For this post, we’d like to explore some of the early and exciting student projects in this area.

https://er.educause.edu/blogs/2017/12/vr-and-ar-learners-as-creators-and-world-builders-of-our-immersive-future

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The Role of Higher Education in the Changing World of Work

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:35 am

by Dianne F. Harrison, EDUCAUSE Review
The changing world is a universal topic of interest, with particular resonance to higher education. Colleges and universities research change, teach about change, and often impact current and future change. To support students to live in this ever-changing world, those of us who work in higher education strive to provide solid, relevant preparation at the baccalaureate and graduate levels. We proactively and thoughtfully integrate and rely on educational technologies — in curriculum and instruction, labs, assignment design, libraries, support services, and more. But increasingly, employers tell us that our graduates are not adequately prepared for the changing world. Why? Because the “world of work” has also changed, and these changes are not always configured as one would expect.

https://er.educause.edu/articles/2017/10/the-role-of-higher-education-in-the-changing-world-of-work

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Survey: Students not aware of campus cybersecurity threats

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:30 am

by Jeremy House, Education Dive
A new survey from CDW-G suggests college IT departments are missing the mark when it comes to educating their student bodies about cybersecurity threats, reports University Business. Only 26% of college students said they were aware of cybersecurity breaches at their institutions, even though the the vast majority IT professionals said they reported such incidents campus wide. Cybersecurity training is often mandatory for faculty and staff, but most institutions lack the resources and infrastructure to provide the same to students, making it difficult to educate students not just to protect the school’s systems, but to safeguard their own off-campus affairs as well.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/survey-students-not-aware-of-campus-cybersecurity-threats/513373/

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December 27, 2017

When Degree Programs for Pre-K Teachers Go Online: Challenges and Opportunities

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:38 am

by Shayna Cook, New America

What is the best way to support lead teachers in attaining a bachelor’s degree? What are the equity implications of this credential requirement for the existing workforce, for people new to the field, and for children? What do we know about the availability and quality of existing degree programs? Could they be offered in a way that would enable a teacher to earn her degree at night without disrupting her work with children? Could online degree programs provide new opportunities? Or do they simply represent a new set of challenges related to quality and access? This report aims to answer those last two questions, which represent new and unexplored terrain in early childhood education policy. To investigate the intersection of issues in teacher preparation, early childhood policy, and online degree programs, we synthesized findings from published reports on the state of teacher preparation, conducted interviews with experts, culled information from websites of institutions offering online degree programs, and analyzed national data sets on early childhood teacher preparation programs, as well as surveys of the early childhood workforce.

https://www.newamerica.org/education-policy/policy-papers/when-degree-programs-pre-k-teachers-go-online/

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Popularity of Online Education Growing in Cornwall

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:34 am

 

By Bob Peters, Choose Cornwall
The number of first-time students using the services at Contact North, also known as Ontario’s Distance Education and Training Network, rose to 335 students from 230 students in the previous year. This represents an increase of 45%. “Online courses are a great way to work towards a college diploma or a university degree,” says Emily Lavigne, Online Learning Recruitment Officer for Cornwall. “It is an excellent way for people to upgrade their education, even while maintaining a full-time job. The course load is completely flexible and up to the individual.” More students also mean more courses being studied.

http://www.choosecornwall.ca/eng/news/1502/57/Popularity-of-Online-Education-Growing-in-Cornwall/

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The evolution of ransomware: Get ready for more advanced social engineering tactics

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:30 am

by Leah Brown, Tech Republic

Prepare your company for more sophisticated, complex, and devastating ransomware attacks in 2018, says Avecto COO Andrew Avanessian.  End users are the easiest thing in the world to dupe into clicking something, Avanessian said. If a hacker can socially engineer a user into using their code, they get control over a network. Cybercriminals have moved away from trying to hack a system to now leveraging the internal users, or employees in order to use them as a way to execute their own code. “If you get someone to use your code there are very little ways to detect that because it’s user-initiated activity,” he said.

https://www.techrepublic.com/article/the-evolution-of-ransomware-get-ready-for-more-advanced-social-engineering-tactics/

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December 26, 2017

Three Things to Think About Now that Net Neutrality Rules Are Reversed

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:40 am

by Susan Gentz, Converge

As expected, the Federal Communications Commission voted Thursday on a party line vote 3-2 to reverse the 2015 net neutrality rules. Now that things will be changing a bit when it comes to what Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can and can’t do, it’s important for school districts to keep them accountable, and perhaps begin negotiations. Here are three important things for district leaders to consider.

http://www.centerdigitaled.com/blog/Three-Things-to-Think-About-Now-that-Net-Neutrality-Rules-Are-Reversed.html

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Using Virtual Reality in the Real-Life Classroom

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:32 am

by Student Stone Kessler, Converge
Although we are currently in the infancy stage of using virtual reality as an avenue through which curriculum is delivered, this technology has tremendous potential for connecting students not only with one another, but with the world around them.

http://www.centerdigitaled.com/blog/Using-Virtual-Reality-in-the-Real-Life-Classroom.html

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Student outcomes is the only metric that matters in EdTech

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:30 am

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

EdTech companies use lots of metrics to measure the success of their products. Profits, number of products sold, and market share are among the ways that EdTech firms use to determine whether a product has been successful. But none of these metrics are as important as one thing—student outcomes. In most industries, companies are primarily focused on profits. In EdTech, you have to do business with schools or universities. These institutions don’t operate like traditional businesses. Working with non-profit institutions requires a different mindset than the corporate world. The goal of education is to teach students, not to make money. That means when designing an EdTech product, the only metric that companies need to look at is student outcomes. Student outcomes are the first thing schools will want to hear about when purchasing an EdTech product. If you can show that your product will deliver the results they want, other factors won’t matter.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/student-outcomes-metric-matters-edtech/

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December 25, 2017

Interesting: Rural schools are outpacing others on in-school tech access

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:39 am

BY LAURA ASCIONE, eSchool News
Things might be improving for rural schools that have struggled to secure tech, high-speed internet access. Although schools in rural areas traditionally hit roadblocks when it comes to securing technology tools and high-speed internet access in classrooms and student homes, a new study suggests students in those schools actually outperform their urban and suburban peers in access at school. The data comes from data management and learning analytics firm BrightBytes, which analyzed more than 180 million data points collected via a national survey gauging educational technology access, use and effectiveness across 8,558 U.S. schools.

Interesting: Rural schools are outpacing others on in-school tech access

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Are you Dyslexia aware? Take this short, 10 question quiz

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:35 am

BY JUDITH BLISS, eSchool Quiz
Take a short true/false quiz about the common myths and misunderstandings surrounding the learning disability Dyslexia. Dyslexia is the most common disability affecting young learners today, with 5 to 20 percent of the student population affected, say some studies. Dyslexic learners struggle in school and often do not receive the help they need due to a lack of educator and parental awareness. In order to reverse the negative academic trajectory these students often face, awareness is a crucial first step in helping learners get the help they need. The following true/false quiz addresses many of the common myths and misunderstandings surrounding the learning disability. See how you score on this awareness test!

https://www.eschoolnews.com/2017/12/14/dyslexia-awareness-quiz/

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Online classrooms offer many roads to success

Filed under: Educational Technology — admin @ 12:30 am

By Amy Earle, Santa Fe New Mexican

When I began my teaching career almost 25 years ago, I could never have imagined that one day I would be a teacher in an online school. It was as unimaginable to me as a classroom without physical books, college ruled notebook paper and No. 2 pencils. The journey to my online classroom was a long one, full of many twists and turns. I loved each step of my journey, and the students I met along the way. There were points through the years when I considered other career paths but the draw of teaching kept me in the profession.

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/education/online-classrooms-offer-many-roads-to-success/article_e65ec869-e755-5484-bb08-bd6ab5ec48ee.html

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