Educational Technology

by Tanmay Patange, Indian Express

With a growing presence of smartphones worldwide, people have successfully touched upon some modern ways to learn new skills. On top of that, there are many websites that provide insightful material, video tutorials and what not. But now that we spend more time with smartphones, consumption of apps has grown exponentially. So here are some apps you may want to consider to add to your knowledge.

Top educational apps for Android and iOS to learn different skills

by Mara Leighton, Business Insider

Though you might typically focus more on hard skills, 57% of the business leaders surveyed said they believe soft skills are most important. You can always progress technically, but soft skills translate to any career path and most aspects of being a great employee, teammate, and leader. We’ve laid out LinkedIn’s most in-demand soft skills of 2018 below along with courses you can take to back up your claims of aptitude. While you might be able to convey a substantial amount of soft skills within the parameters of an interview, a course or certification is an advantage for giving examples and anecdotes within the interview process.

http://www.businessinsider.com/best-resume-soft-skills-employers-look-for-jobs-2018-4

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

There’s one thing that a future ready instructional coach most definitely does not look like: an instructional coach from a decade ago. Today’s instructional coaches need to be aware of the latest edtech tools so that they can incorporate those tools into their materials. This is not a position where a practitioner can perfect her art and then merely reproduce the same thing from year to year. A good coach deploys the latest edtech. One easy way to do this is to use a framework designed to emphasize what students need to be future ready. Instructional coaches will quickly see that their role in curriculum, instruction, and assessment puts them on the front lines of helping prepare students to be future ready. But that’s not all. The framework encourages them to consider these questions:

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/what-does-a-future-ready-instructional-coach-look-like/

by LINCS

In the second of three reports, Power in Numbers examines opportunity areas for technology to drive impact for adult learners. We propose that edtech investors and developers focus on five key opportunity areas, and invest in technology solutions to improve adult education outcomes. Each opportunity area represents a framework for analyzing technologies to achieve maximum impact.

https://lincs.ed.gov/professional-development/resource-collections/profile-1075

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

Have you noticed how prevalent Google is in today’s academics? Students from elementary school all the way through high school have taken a part in a monumental shift away from most sought-after products to the variety of apps and devices made by Google. In many ways, Google has made a lasting effort to take over the modern classroom with its variety and cost efficiency. Day by day, students are becoming more entrenched in what Google has to offer them.  If you aren’t sure what your students could be doing in Google on a daily basis, you’ve missed the transformation most often found in the contemporary classroom. Take a look at some of these important ways that Google is taking over.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/google-taking-classroom/

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

First, be flexible. Quality instruction will involve a wide variety of activities, and the classroom should be designed to encourage this. If the arrangement isn’t flexible, it can result in, for example students having to crane their necks to see a presentation because their desk is positioned for small group work or students distracting each other because it is easier for them to see each other than to see a video playing at the front of the room. Second, think outside the box. Having a variety of seating options means that students can choose seating that they find comfortable, which can make it easier for them to focus. Ask for donations, hit up garage sales, and be creative with flexible seating options. Third, keep the clutter to a minimum.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/how-to-design-spaces-that-amplify-learning/

By Rob Marvin, PC Mag

PCMag got an exclusive look at Amazon’s new 3D development platform for building AR/VR apps, which feature walking, talking AI-infused characters called ‘hosts.’ Amazon is making a grand entrance into the augmented and virtual reality space with Sumerian, an all-in-one development platform that can build AR and VR apps for smartphones and headsets, and—soon enough—AR/VR apps that’ll run right in your browser. Within these experiences, Sumerian can create immersive virtual worlds populated by “hosts”—3D characters brought to life by the same artificial intelligence tech that powers Alexa. Sumerian is platform-agnostic. Rather than developing its own branded device or headset, Amazon opted for integration with existing offerings. Sumerian is built on open web standards and supports both Apple’s ARKit and Google’s ARCore, meaning app creators can build one Sumerian app that runs on Android, iOS, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and beyond.

https://www.pcmag.com/feature/360323/inside-sumerian-amazon-s-big-bet-on-augmented-and-virtual-re

by Sherrie Negrea, University Business

Formal and informal learning spaces transforming campuses internationally.  Active learning spaces are cropping up at campuses on nearly every continent as schools transform lecture halls, classrooms and informal study areas into collaborative technology hubs. While many international campuses have just started to create active learning spaces, others have been developing them for more than a decade.

https://www.universitybusiness.com/article/world-active-learning-higher-ed

by Jarrett Carter, Education Dive
Southern Maine Community College is trying to reverse a dangerous workforce trend — a lack of emergency responders in its surrounding region — with a new program designed to offer affordable training and certification in the field. The plot twist? The program specifically targets immigrants for enrollment, according to The New York Times.  The program is funded in part by a workforce development grant from the John T. Gorman Foundation. The program delivers an 16-week, eight-hour per-week course to qualify for tests and certification. Officials said that because many immigrants have prior medical training, they are an ideal fit for the program.  Maine is one of many states suffering from population loss and its impact on the job market. According to The New York Times, just two of the state’s counties had more births than deaths in 2016.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/community-college-addresses-workforce-crisis-with-training-for-immigrants/521168/

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

The smartest ed tech entrepreneurs know that developing educational technology and selling it for profit involves much more than simply a “good idea.” There are major strategies involved – one key strategy is relocating to a city that is open to ed tech start-ups and entrepreneurs. And, let’s face it – not everyone can afford to live in Silicon Valley. Some cities are simply more affordable and more receptive. If you are serious about moving, here are the best cities for ed tech entrepreneurs.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/the-best-cities-for-ed-tech-entrepreneurs/

by Laura Ascione, eCampus News

Today, technology and digital learning are critical to students’ educational experiences, and institutions are using the physical campus footprints to incorporate technology that adapts to learning needs. Trends in university environments include constructing new environments to foster collaboration and new ideas, equipping learning spaces as smart environments with cutting-edge technology, following modern business models, and finding creative ways to repurpose unused campus space through partnerships.

10 new trends defining the state of higher education

by News-Miner Editorial

The internet has revolutionized education in Alaska’s rural schools. But the internet remains expensive and most often slower than what is available in cities such as Fairbanks. Senate Bill 102, sponsored by the Senate Finance Committee, aims to improve internet speeds in Alaska’s rural schools. First, the bill would raise the floor for internet speeds in Alaska schools from 10 megabytes per second to 25 mbps. Currently, schools that do not meet the floor internet speed of 10 mbps can receive a state Broadband Assistance Grant, or BAG, to help achieve faster internet speeds.

http://www.newsminer.com/opinion/editorials/speed-up-internet-for-alaska-schools-house-should-pass-sb/article_efa2deac-3f95-11e8-b881-5362a3c402f6.html

By Cait Etherington, eLearning Inside

By and large, the gender gap in edtech reflects the gender gap in tech. In order words, with few exceptions, women represent less than half the workforce and occupy under 20% of tech roles. On a more promising note, however, most of the edtech companies we reached emphasized that they are aware of the problem and doing everything possible to bridge the gender gap moving forward.

Women in EdTech: Find Out Who Is Bridging the Gender Gap in Overall Workforce & Tech Roles

by Cindy Rampersaud, TES
The rise of the robots is often presented as a terrifying prospect for young people, writes one educationalist, but if we get education right, the technological future could prove to be a land of opportunity.  Technology and innovation; population and environmental change; urbanisation and globalisation; increasing inequality – all these are disrupting and influencing the demand for jobs and skills right now. But more is to come. Governments around the world – including in this country – are deeply concerned about artificial intelligence and technological advancement that we will witness in the imminent future. This is no longer sci-fi.

https://www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-views/pace-change-economy-might-be-scary-our-students-if-we-get-education

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

K-12 schools don’t always appreciate what type of technology they really need. They don’t attend industry conferences that help them to stay abreast of all the latest developments in technology.  This means that they can be easily swayed by representatives who do not have the students’ best interests in mind. Instead, they are only looking at how many sales they can make for their bottom line. Administrators are also tempted to purchase by brand name when they are uneducated on the products themselves. This can lead to lots of technology that might be clunky for educators, too expensive for the district to truly afford, and ineffective for students. The brand name isn’t necessarily an indicator that technology is going to be right for K-12 schools.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/k-12-schools-need-to-stop-wasting-money-on-tech-they-dont-need/

by Mo Cuevas, the Express-News

I decided to enroll him in Texas Online Preparatory School (TOPS), an online public school, in hopes of breaking the pattern. TOPS has helped Nicholas gain his confidence back in school and allowed me to work directly with the program to help him succeed. TOPS gives him the chance to learn without the distractions that were making him leave class. Although there are other students in his classes, it is as if he is receiving one-on-one time with his teachers. Nicholas especially likes his teachers in both his biology and English classes.

https://www.expressnews.com/opinion/commentary/article/Explore-online-learning-for-kids-on-the-spectrum-12831577.php

By Melissa Marcello, US News

https://www.usnews.com/education/online-learning-lessons/articles/2018-04-13/consider-an-online-bachelors-degree-in-interdisciplinary-studies

by Anne E Bromley, UVA Today

Amid the uncertain origins of some internet news sites, social groups and an avalanche of information available with a few clicks, college students are getting lost – this time in virtual collections of books.  Students are grabbing digitized copies online when they’re assigned certain books without knowing whether they’ve found a reliable version, not to mention the right edition. Even well-known, copyright-free classics of literature that are digitized could be suspect. Scholars and other academic staff, including librarians with technological expertise, have been working on raising standards for some years, but it’s still an ongoing battle, according to University of Virginia English professor John O’Brien and Christine Ruotolo, the University Library’s director of arts and humanities.

https://news.virginia.edu/content/what-page-are-you-making-online-texts-more-reliable-teachers-and-students

by Matthew Lynch, Tech Edvocate

As technology continues to evolve, educators and those in Edtech are looking for ways to improve technology to match the needs of teachers and students. In particular, the world of higher education sees a move from traditional LMS (learning management systems) to what EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative has termed “The Next Generation of Digital Learning Environment” (NGDLE). EDUCAUSE explains, “The next generation digital learning environment (NGDLE) is conceived as an ecosystem—a learning environment consisting of learning tools and components that adhere to common standards.” Ultimately, the next generation of digital learning environment will become more focused on learning rather than administration.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/what-is-the-next-generation-of-digital-learning-environments/

By Cait Etherington, eLearning Inside

The first part of our investigation focuses on the leadership teams of nine of the largest edtech companies. Our investigation discovered that with few exceptions, the gender gap is still prevalent in edtech. Indeed, with the exception of Coursera, which currently has gender parity on its leadership team, most of the companies we investigated have just as much work left to do as other types of tech companies. As a point of comparison, earlier this week, Recode reported that in terms of leadership roles in tech, women occupy anywhere from 19% (Pinterest) to 36% (Lyft) of positions and on average occupy 22% to 28% of the top positions (this is currently the case at Uber, Google, Amazon, and Facebook). Our investigation discovered that edtech companies are not all that different, but there is at least one notable exception. While at least one company (Coursera) has achieved gender parity on its leadership board, several others report women occupying as low as 10% of their leadership roles.

Women in EdTech: Find Out Who Is Bridging the Gender Gap in Leadership

by American Association of Community Colleges

According to data recently released by the National Center for Education Statistics, most adults in the workforce (58 percent) either have a postsecondary degree or some other form of workforce credential, including postsecondary certificates, occupational licenses or occupational certifications. This is higher than the 45 percent of adult workers with postsecondary credentials using traditional measures that only looked at postsecondary degrees (associate degree or higher). Over one in 10 adult workers (13 percent) indicated that they had no postsecondary degree, but had some form of nondegree credential. Over half (56 percent) of the non-degreed adult workers who had one or more non-degree credentials had an occupational
license; 43 percent had a postsecondary certificate, and 21 percent had an occupational certification. These data provide a better understanding of the diverse training background of the working adult population in the United States.

https://www.aacc.nche.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/DataPoints_April2018_No6.pdf