Online Learning Update

by Darren Catalano, EDUCAUSE Review

The mantra “data-driven decision-making” is one that institutions of higher education are adopting at an increasing clip. More than three-quarters of colleges and universities say institutional analytics is a priority. However, as more projects get off the ground, some initiatives are falling flat. What’s happening? Data are being kept in the periphery. For an analytics program to be useful, leaders must build an institutional data culture that sets analytics as its modus operandi.

https://er.educause.edu/blogs/2018/5/making-analytics-the-campus-modus-operandi

by Autumn A. Arnett, Education Dive
The U.S. Education Department announced it will delay for two more years implementation of its controversial regulations requiring all online programs to show they are approved to operate in every state where they enroll students, according to Inside Higher Ed. The government says it will publish the regulations in July 2020, a decade after the saga all began, after another public comment period.  WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies (WCET) offers a timeline and analysis of continuing congressional delays of state authorization for distance education provision. In the works since 2016 and originally scheduled to take effect in July of this year, the Department of Education last Friday confirmed another round of negotiated rulemaking for online learning access and eligibility of various institution types.  Colleges and universities have largely looked to individual state regulations and State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements to self-govern online offerings and expansion. “The institution is still under a regulatory obligation to the states in which the institution enrolls students, offers services, or participates in activities.

https://www.educationdive.com/news/state-authorization-rule-to-be-delayed-for-two-more-years/523844/

by Jeff Selingo and Michael Horl with Mamie Merisotis, Future Cast
Lumina Foundation President and CEO Jamie Merisotis talks with Jeff and Michael about his organization’s goal to help higher ed institutions develop students to be better prepared to contribute to the future workforce.

Episode 15: Higher Ed’s Role in Shaping the U.S. Workforce

by Joshua Kim, Inside Higher Ed (Fellow, UPCEA National Council for Online Education)

Are we at peak higher ed? My answer is no, but that answer depends on the definitions that we choose. Does peak higher ed refer to the number of schools, or the number of students enrolled? The number of people employed in higher ed (or just faculty), or the number of credentials granted? Tenure-track faculty jobs or the impact on the lives of graduates? The total number of colleges and universities, or the total value of the knowledge created? Bryan Alexander’s recent piece “American Higher Education Enrollment Declined. Again” would tend to support the peak-higher-ed hypothesis.

https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/blogs/technology-and-learning/are-we-peak-higher-ed

by Chelsea Liu, Journal of ALT

This study explores two key questions: (1) ‘what encourages students to actively utilise social media in their learning process?’ and (2) ‘what pedagogical advantages are offered by social media in enhancing students’ learning experiences?’ Results of a student survey administered at the end of the course show that (1) students are more likely to participate in in-lecture Twitter activities if they are familiar with the technology, (2) Twitter activities encourage students to participate in active learning, (3) Twitter provides a platform enabling two-way student–instructor communication and (4) students find Twitter activities helpful regardless of whether they attend the lecture in real time or view online lecture recordings. These findings deepen our understanding of the pedagogical benefits of using Twitter as a student response system, which will assist educators to better harness the power of social media in the learning–teaching process.

https://journal.alt.ac.uk/index.php/rlt/article/view/2043

by Cindi May, Scientific American

A recent review of the scientific literature on learning styles found scant evidence to clearly support the idea that outcomes are best when instructional techniques align with individuals’ learning styles. In fact, there are several studies that contradict this belief. It is clear that people have a strong sense of their own learning preferences (e.g., visual, kinesthetic, intuitive), but it is less clear that these preferences matter. Research by Polly Hussman and Valerie Dean O’Loughlin at Indiana University takes a new look at this important question. Most previous investigations on learning styles focused on classroom learning, and assessed whether instructional style impacted outcomes for different types of learners. Some might argue that, in this era of flipped classrooms and online course materials, students master more of the information on their own. That might explain why instructional style in the classroom matters little. It also raises the possibility that learning styles do matter—perhaps a match between students’ individual learning styles and their study strategies is the key to optimal outcomes.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-problem-with-learning-styles/

by MIKE COLAGROSSI, the Big Think

New and exciting realities are now just a few screens away. The wildest dreams of fiction writers are slowly seeping their way into our current day and age. Many people are familiar with virtual reality. You put on some kind of headset and you’re whisked into an all-encompassing world of sound and sight. VR’s closest cousin, augmented reality, comes in a few different forms – overlaid blocks of text and information, sometimes cartoonish images and games that let you interact with the world around you. Both of these types of tech have earned their namesake, but what about when you combine the two of them?

http://bigthink.com/mike-colagrossi/gamifying-reality-how-ar-and-vr-will-combine-to-transform-experience

by Kelly Walsh, University Business
Personalized learning has long been a “holy grail” in education. Ideally, we would love to be able to work with each student to achieve a more personalized level of learning that taps into individual interests, skills and desires. But doing so can take far more time than we have. Our education system was not designed to accommodate this, and moving this mountain seems far too daunting a task. Or is it? The growing interest in artificial intelligence may hold the key to a more personalized learning experience.

https://www.universitybusiness.com/article/ai-and-holy-grail-education

By Nancy Cervasio, US News

Personalized support from university staff can help online students reach their academic and career goals.  Online students often juggle a full-time job and family obligations while working toward their degrees. It can become overwhelming very quickly, so having personalized support from university staff is critical. That’s where a success coach comes in. Many online colleges offer coaching programs as a way for students to feel connected to the larger institution and its resources. Arizona State University’s ASU Online, for example, launched a dedicated student success center to connect students with a success coach who can support them in achieving their academic and personal goals.

https://www.usnews.com/education/online-learning-lessons/articles/2018-05-25/3-tips-for-online-students-from-success-coaches

by JAKE RICHARDSON, the Big Think
An image of computer circuitry and electronics in the profile shape of a childs head. A depiction of learning computer intelligence or childrens exposure to technology. For some us, AI is kind of an iffy proposition. To many, it is nebulous enough to seem like it might replace us or our jobs.  Because of all this, the public perception of AI might be on the negative side. A good way to overcome uneasiness, anxiety or fear is simply be learning more about whatever seems to be the issue or problem. AI is still in its infancy, so there may be many jobs, business and investment opportunities in the near future. In fact, one estimate pegged the number of new AI jobs by 2030 at 2.3 million. Whatever your interest level is in AI we did some research and compiled this list of resources for you to peruse.

http://bigthink.com/jake-richardson/22-online-ai-education-classes-that-you-can-take-right-now

by RICK WAGNER, Kingsport Times-News
rwagner@timesnews.net
Is your child’s teacher a holder of at least one micro-credential and/or certified proficient with Google tools?  If so, he or she may be part of two overlapping groups of educators in Kingsport City Schools. The micro-credential educators in Kingsport City Schools and across Tennessee are in a pilot program of the state Department of Education, which two local educators said is designed to help teachers improve their ability to teach.

http://www.timesnews.net/Education/2018/05/27/Teacher-professional-development-includes-Micro-Credentials-and-Google

by Richa Bhatia, Analytics India

As the buzz around data science grows every day, there is a slew of self-taught professionals who have kick-started the machine learning journey with Andrew Ng’s online courses. Many enthusiasts are gravitating towards the computer science field. But if one wants to pursue a career in Machine Learning, they need to be familiar with statistics and linear algebra. With computer science and ML applications becoming more pervasive in everyday life, people from a non-technical background are also interested in joining the field. In this article, we have discussed in-depth roles a person from non-tech background can explore in the data science/AI field.

Non-Technical Person’s Guide To Entering The Machine Learning Industry

by Stephen Beale, NC Register

The country’s first and — perhaps still only — exclusively online Catholic university is marking its 35th anniversary this year, a testament to the role it continues to play in the landscape of Catholic higher education. Marianne Mount, the president of Catholic Distance University (CDU), said the anniversary has focused the school’s attention on its distinctive mission and identity. “Now, in the words of Pope Francis, the CDU is able to reach the peripheries,” Mount said. Catholic Distance University was founded in 1983 by Bishop Thomas Welch of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, who recognized a need for the formation of the laity after Vatican II’s teachings on the universal call to holiness and witnessing to Christ in the world.

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/going-the-distance-online-catholic-university-marks-35-years

By Danielle Kaeding, Wisconsin Public Radio

Universities like UW-Superior are trying to grow their online programs to provide access to a range of students. At the same time, the university has seen declining enrollment on campus from the populations they serve in northern Wisconsin and Minnesota. Those two issues were key factors in the university’s recent decision to contract with outside company Academic Partnerships to recruit students for online graduate education programs, according to Brenda Harms, interim vice chancellor of enrollment management at UW-Superior.  “The population base is really shrinking and so (we’re) really needing to say how can we get creative in helping to extend our reach more into southern Wisconsin, southern Minnesota and beyond if needed,” said Harms. Academic Partnerships has brought in roughly $900,000 in tuition revenues to UW-Superior since March 2017, half of which has gone back to the company for recruiting students. It’s a common model among online program managers, or OPMs — they provide an upfront investment in exchange for a percentage of the tuition revenue.

https://www.wpr.org/state-universities-look-outside-vendors-grow-online-programs

By Dian Schaffhauser, THE Journal

The report offers little direct guidance for addressing the skills gap. However, it advised governments to “make talent strategy a key priority and take steps now to educate, train and upskill their existing workforces.” The consultancy also suggested that companies themselves recognize their responsibility to train workers and “encourage governments to rethink education programs to generate the talent pipelines the industry will require.” For example, some organizations are hiring students out of high school and college with the expectation that they’ll do the training to prepare the graduates for the unique company culture and ways of working. “Our study reveals that there already isn’t enough skilled talent to go around, and, by 2030, organizations and economies could find themselves in the grip of a talent crisis. In the face of such acute talent shortages, workforce planning and a comprehensive understanding of the talent pipeline are critical,” said Korn Ferry CEO, Alan Guarino, in a prepared statement.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2018/05/23/skills-deficit-will-imperil-u.s.-economy-by-2030.aspx

By Mike Elgan, ComputerWorld

Google’s slow, limited, browser-only, cloud-centric laptop platform is now the most powerful and capable user platform on the planet. Yeah, I said it. Apple fans laugh at this idea, saying that a MacBook Pro can run the Chrome browser and gain all the benefits of a Chromebook, as well as all the benefits and leading-edge content-creation tools of a far more elegant, better designed and better engineered device.  Windows users carp that Chromebooks are cute, but not serious business tools. The Surface Book 2 is also a tiny laptop, they say, but a real computer. Linux developers concede Chromebooks are interesting but argue they can’t be used for software development. But these obsolete stereotypes are not compatible with the new reality of Chromebooks.

https://www.computerworld.com/article/3276329/chrome-os/everything-you-knew-about-chromebooks-is-wrong.html

By Henry Kronk, eLearning Inside

At SUNY Empire State College, students have long been able to participate in residency programs. These opportunities typically stand adjacent to a major or minor program. They’ll involve visits to sites of interest, events that bring together experts, professors, and learners. They often involve blended—online and in-person—study. This fall semester, however, the institution will debut a new modality altogether: a virtual residency. And according to Dr. Rhianna Rogers, who developed the program, it came together somewhat accidentally. “About a year ago, we had a situation where we were going to do an in-person residency in Lebanon, and, at the very last minute, it got canceled,” Rogers said. “As a group of faculty, we were trying to figure out how we would make this residency work. We had a whole bunch of students coming in, there were 12 classes scheduled and 3 days before we were going to leave, we learned that we wouldn’t be able to go. And the students were all ready, they had taken off work, and we wanted to make sure that they still had an engaging experience. So that was the beginning.”

This Fall, SUNY Empire State College Will Debut A Virtual Residency

By Joshua Bolkan, Campus Technology
Students at Brigham Young University have been getting the opportunity to work with real-world clients such as Pepsi, Subaru, the NBA and Marriott thanks to the school’s student-run digital and social media agency, Y Digital. Described on its site as “a full-service, digital communications agency sponsored and housed by Brigham Young University,” the organization’s student-employees work with faculty members and industry professionals for each project. Services offered by Y Digital include social media analytics work, social media listening, content creation, search engine marketing and digital media production.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2018/05/24/byus-social-media-agency-puts-student-learning-to-work.aspx

By David Raths, Campus Technology
New tools are helping colleges and universities tackle the accessibility of instructor-created content, student coursework, note-taking and more. Although most universities have just about mastered website accessibility, their efforts to make sure all course content can be accessed and used by students with disabilities have proved more challenging. “We have been fighting this uphill battle of content accessibility for years, and we have been fighting it without knowing what is actually out there,” said Jeremy Olguin, accessible technology manager at California State University, Chico. “If you can’t inventory, you can’t manage.” But new tools are providing more transparency into classroom document accessibility and automating some steps in making more accessible alternatives available.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2018/05/23/making-progress-on-course-content-accessibility.aspx

By Anna Krelovich, Online Learning Tips

Being a busy student can be tough. Work, school and family activities can feel overwhelming sometimes. However, smartphone study apps are a great help during hectic times. You can use your phone to get in five minutes of studying as you wait for a doctor’s appointment or do your assigned reading on the bus home. Here are seven study apps you can use for studying despite your busy schedule:

Seven Study Apps to Help You Successfully Manage Your Schoolwork

By Mark Toner, ThirtyK
With one million registered users and 130,000 online courses ranging from JavaScript to hobbies and sports, Tutellus is the largest peer-to-peer online learning platform in the Spanish-speaking world. But it suffers from the same core challenge as other edtech ventures and the online courses offered by traditional colleges and universities: low student engagement and high dropout rates.  To turn the tide, learning platform, created in 2013, embraced the blockchain last fall, using tokens to involve students and teachers. With a June ICO currently in pre-sale, Tutellus hopes to make good on its goal of “changing the world through education.”

Blockchain Speaks Online Learning Platform’s Language