Online Learning Update

By Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology

Harvard University has begun experimenting with the use of adaptive functionality in one of its massive open online courses (MOOCs). The initial finding is that students using the adaptive assessments learned more than those who didn’t — and spent less time overall getting through problems. Adaptive technology uses information gained as the learner interacts with the system to change up how a concept is presented by level of difficulty, order and types of help provided. The experiment took place in a single HarvardX course, “Super-Earths and Life” (now available as an on-demand course), deployed in the current academic year.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/02/02/harvard-tailoring-the-mooc-experience-with-adaptive-learning.aspx

By David Weldon, Campus Technology

Georgia Tech first began offering MOOCs in 2011 and has since increased its investment in the program. Last year the school put its most difficult degree program — the master’s degree in information technology — online, at a cost to the student of $6,700. In order to be accepted into the MOOC program, a student had to meet the full criteria of being a Georgia Tech student. And the institution worked hard to make sure that online students would receive an education that is on par with their campus counterparts. So, once students have gone through such a high-quality program, how do they use their MOOC experience to best advantage? Sham Mustafa, CEO and founder of Correlation One, has some thoughts. His company provides matchmaking services, focused on connecting employers with highly skilled data scientists. Those data scientists are heavily represented in the first waves of MOOC students.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/02/09/7-tips-for-listing-moocs-on-your-resume.aspx

by Technavio, Business Wire

Global medical education market to grow at a CAGR of close to 17% during the period 2017-2021. Medical professionals are increasingly imparting education through online methodologies, largely replacing traditional physical classrooms. Universities and healthcare organizations are providing online medical education courses. Online methods such as flipped classrooms and blended learning offer myriad benefits to both students and teachers. These benefits vary from access features to course materials, online assessment facilities. It also has varied synchronous as well as asynchronous communication means such as webcasts and video conferencing. “Online learning technologies are becoming largely popular in emerging nations such as Kenya and China wherein most students do not have access to qualified teachers,” says Jhansi.

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170207005730/en/Online-Learning-Technologies-Boost-Global-Medical-Education

By Mary Grush, Campus Technology

Technology surrounds us, and so do questions about the readiness of our students to step into future job markets that have ever-increasing demands for technical competencies — and application proficiencies — in emerging technologies like augmented reality. One faculty member at Bentley University in Waltham, MA, considered ways that his students might best learn to create and use augmented reality. He designed a bold experiment with a partner school, Politehnica University of Timisoara, in Romania — the students would create AR artifacts to examine and learn from each other. In this learning collaboration, students from these two schools, on separate continents, learn about augmented reality and how it is used in industry. Here, Mark Frydenberg, a senior lecturer of computer and information systems and director of the CIS Sandbox at Bentley University in Waltham, MA, details the project and the thinking behind it.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/02/13/students-across-the-globe-learn-from-each-other-about-augmented-reality.aspx

by Bezinga

Four major associations join together as a cohesive voice advocating for adult students and the institutions that serve them. With support from Lumina Foundation, the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), the Online Learning Consortium (OLC), Presidents’ Forum, and University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA) are pleased to announce the National Adult Learner Coalition. “For more than a century, UPCEA has advocated for adult learners,” said Robert Hansen, CEO, UPCEA. “Once a small minority, adult and non-traditional learners now constitute up to 85 percent of today’s students.” “Our coalition is dedicated to help realign federal policy with this new higher education landscape, advocating for the expansion of access, innovation, and creative solutions.”

https://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/17/02/p9009921/national-adult-learner-coalition-created-to-advance-student-success

by John Boitnott, Entrepreneur

To assess the efficacy of their programs, Coursera surveyed 52,000 of their users and asked them how taking an online course benefited them. The majority (over 60 percent) said the move helped them develop skills in their new position. Forty percent reported that they believed it improved their candidacy for a new job. Only 25 percent, however, said that they found a new job, and less than 5 percent received a raise. The final takeaway is this: free online courses can improve your current skill set and make you a better employee. It also shows initiative, which managers like. But it won’t necessarily land you a dream job.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/288781

by Daily Fly

Thanks to a collaboration between Sandpoint High School, the University of Idaho College of Engineering, and UI Coeur d’Alene there will be a new dual-credit computer science course made available online to high school students across Idaho this fall. The course, “CS 112: Computational Thinking and Problem Solving,” is based on a face-to-face class co-designed by Sandpoint High School math teacher Nanette Brothers and UI associate professor Robert Heckendorn. Any high school student who completes Algebra 2 with at least a C average will be eligible to enroll.

http://lcvalley.dailyfly.com/Home/ArtMID/1352/ArticleID/45861/Dual-Credit-Computer-Science-Course-Available-Online-to-High-School-Students-Across-ID

by Insights, Samsung Government

Today’s workforce faces a greater range of threats to their livelihoods than ever before. Many jobs will come under threat in the next decade from trends such as globalization, automation and robotics. However, the growing digital workforce doesn’t necessarily mean the end for today’s workers. With the abundance of education and training classes now available online, employees can stay ahead of the game and safeguard their futures by developing new skills and talents, making them indispensable to their employers. Education has long been seen as something which you do at the start of your career, jamming as much training as possible into the early part of your life, before moving into the world of work. However, with today’s digital workforce and the trend of continuing education gaining pace, employees — and employers — are beginning to see the benefits of upgrading skills while on the job.

https://insights.samsung.com/2017/02/09/reprogramming-the-digital-workforce-with-online-education/

by Knight Center

For the first time, students in a Knight Center MOOC (massive open online course) will be viewing some lessons in 360 degrees through interactive videos. In our newest MOOC, “Introduction to Immersive Journalism: Virtual Reality and 360 Video,” we will be using some of the very tools taught in the course. Watch this video of MOOC instructor, professor Robert Hernandez, explaining course content using 360 video. Immersive journalism, based on virtual reality and 360 video, has been used around the world as a new narrative format that allows reporters to tell stories and, at the same time, bring the audience to the places they want to show, as never before. It’s a skill that is in demand within news organizations that have experimented or want to start experimenting with the new tool that allows for immersive storytelling.

https://knightcenter.utexas.edu/00-17990-learn-about-virtual-reality-and-360-video-knight-center%E2%80%99s-free-online-course-intro-immersiv

By Marian Stoltz-Loike, US News

Online education is transforming the way students learn. One 2016 survey found that online undergraduate students are an average of 29 years old and online graduate students are an average of 33, reflecting both the popularity and effectiveness of online programs to help adults meet educational and career goals. Online education is well-suited to older students often balancing education with work, family and other obligations.

http://www.usnews.com/education/online-learning-lessons/articles/2017-02-10/4-reasons-online-learning-works-well-for-working-adults

By MATTHEW LYNCH, Tech Edvocate

Gamification has grown in popularity as teachers and educators realize the wealth of potential that games offer their students, no matter the age. Fast fading is the idea that video games are a waste of time. Children these days are among the most tech-savvy people precisely because they have been playing games on a range of devices for nearly their entire lives. Gamification is not a new concept (Oregon Trail was a unique blend of fun and learning back in the 1980s), but it is only recently where educators actually began to embrace it for its potential. As gamification grows in popularity, some Edtech companies have not only embraced it but have found ways to take gamification to a whole new level.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/five-edtech-companies-that-are-taking-gamification-to-the-next-level/

by Jarrett Carter, Education Dive

Federal officials have completed amending a section of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which could create new standards of compliance for colleges and universities in their website and IT management duties. The updates include new standards for access of telecommunications equipment, operating systems, screen and sound magnification and access points for websites. The new rules are scheduled to take effect in January 2018, but some observers question if the new administration will be active in forcing timely compliance.

http://www.educationdive.com/news/disability-compliance-may-emerge-as-key-issue-for-higher-ed/435454/

By MATTHEW LYNCH, Tech Edvocate

Students, whether in grade school or in higher education, are always on social media. They are creating, connecting, networking, and collaborating. Professors can easily take advantage of these platforms to help manage their classroom. Not only will taking advantage of social media help reduce the amount of paper used, but it will also benefit both the professor and the class. By doing so, professors can create a learning environment that becomes an advantage to students and help them learn more networking and collaborative skills for their profession.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/10-ways-that-professors-can-use-social-media/

By Carl Straumsheim, Inside Higher Ed

The survey, conducted by the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies (WCET), found that most colleges charge students the same or more to study online. The higher prices — what students pay — are connected to higher production costs, the survey found. Researchers asked respondents to think about 21 components of an online course, such as faculty development, instructional design and student assessment, and how the cost of those components compares to a similar face-to-face course. Virtually every administrator surveyed said online courses are more expensive to produce. That shouldn’t come as a surprise, according to Russell Poulin and Terri Taylor Straut, the authors of the study. Producing an online course means licensing software, engaging instructional designers, training faculty members and offering around-the-clock student support, among other added costs, they point out in the report.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/02/17/study-challenges-cost-and-price-myths-online-education

By John LaMar, US News

In my experience, the online learning environment has allowed me to thrive in ways I was never able to in a traditional classroom. I will concede, however, that online learning is definitely quite a departure from the educational experience most students are used to. From my experience and the conversations I’ve had with others, here are three signs that online education might not be right for you. Those with poor time management skills might want to consider an on-campus program.

http://www.usnews.com/education/online-learning-lessons/articles/2017-02-03/3-signs-online-learning-isnt-right-for-you

By JOSEPH B. TREASTERFEB, NY Times

At Georgia State’s nursing school, the faculty used to believe that students who got a poor grade in “Conceptual Foundations of Nursing” probably wouldn’t go on to graduation. So they were surprised, after an analysis of student records stretching back a decade, to discover what really made a difference for nursing students: their performance in introductory math. “You could get a C or an A in that first nursing class and still be successful,” said Timothy M. Renick, the vice provost. “But if you got a low grade in your math courses, by the time you were in your junior and senior years, you were doing very poorly.” The analysis showed that fewer than 10 percent of nursing students with a C in math graduated, compared with about 80 percent of students with at least a B+. Algebra and statistics, it seems, were providing an essential foundation for later classes in biology, microbiology, physiology and pharmacology.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/02/education/edlife/will-you-graduate-ask-big-data.html

by Eleanor Bright, University Herald

In MSU, faculty members teaching online classes are always available to answer questions and to assist students in their lessons, according to The State News. The rising popularity of online master’s degree program will result to several new trends in the field of teaching and learning. Non-traditional credentials might replace traditional ones. Instead of a diploma, a certificate of program completion might be enough. Real time data will be considered and not just test scores. Teachers will check log in times as well as participation. Artificial intelligence will be put into use. Computers might be used to replace a teacher in situations where it will have better outcomes, according to US News Higher Education.

http://www.universityherald.com/articles/62827/20170128/online-master-s-degree-programs-gain-national-popularity-in-the-us.htm

by the New Media Consortium

This 14th edition describes annual findings from the NMC Horizon Project, an ongoing research project designed to identify and describe emerging technologies likely to have an impact on learning, teaching, and creative inquiry in education. Six key trends, six significant challenges, and six important developments in educational technology are placed directly in the context of their likely impact on the core missions of universities and colleges. Among the technologies that are spotlighted: Adaptive Learning, Mobile Learning, Internet of Things, Next Generation LMS, Artificial Intelligence, and Natural User Interfaces.

http://www.nmc.org/publication/nmc-horizon-report-2017-higher-education-edition/

By: CAROL ROBIDOUX, Manchester Ink Link

Talk to millennials about adulting – the trendy term describing the metamorphosis young people experience when they go from being dependent on their parents to living independently – and they will probably chuckle or give you a knowing smile. Then they will want to know more. More is what Bellwether Community Credit Union is providing with the launch of “It’s a Money Thing,” an online learning center intended for young adults aged 18 to 30. The free online education program provides essential and engaging financial education on topics such as credit scores, loans and budgeting. “One of our younger members said our program was ‘adulting, made easy.’ I was pretty amused by the term, but that was all I needed to hear,” says Mike L’Ecuyer, President and CEO of Bellwether.

http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/uw-class-on-how-to-spot-fake-data-goes-viral-within-hours/

BY MATTHEW LYNCH, Tech Edvocate

The idea of leadership development doesn’t often bring a sense of excitement. Most educators expect training and development activities to remain in the old paradigm with an instructor standing in front of a classroom. Overall, it isn’t a very inspiring image. But, what if there was a better way to get the same information across while keeping everyone engaged in the process? In fact, there is. And it’s called gamification. Gamification refers to the process of bringing in aspects of video games and using them to increase the intrinsic motivation behind completing certain tasks. Often, these systems include aspects like the ability to earn points, reaching new levels, and even advancing on a leaderboard.

http://www.thetechedvocate.org/using-gamification-in-education-leadership-development/

By Jordan Friedman, US News

For prospective online students, sampling an online degree program is key to determine whether the format is right for them and choose a program based on structure and flexibility, many experts say. These opportunities are often available on a program’s website or by contacting an admissions or enrollment counselor. “I think sometimes, perceptions of students don’t necessarily align with the actual reality of what a program is,” says Vickie Cook, director of the Center for Online Learning, Research and Service at the University of Illinois—Springfield. Online learning requires self-motivation and the ability to communicate with peers and instructors from a distance, experts say. And each program is created differently. Here are six ways prospective online students might sample online degree programs, depending on what’s available at different schools.

http://www.usnews.com/higher-education/online-education/articles/2017-01-26/6-ways-to-sample-an-online-degree-program