Online Learning Update

by Katherine Long, Seattle Times

According to an analysis by The Chronicle of Higher Education, Washington is one of 11 states where 10.1 to 20 percent of the population lives in an “education desert,” where it’s at least a 60-minute drive to get to a college campus. The distance from college is key, the Chronicle notes, because most students stay close to home to earn a degree. In 2016, almost 40 percent of first-time, full-time freshmen said their colleges were less than 50 miles from their homes, according a national study of college freshmen. In Washington, rural superintendents are working to try to get more kids to be better prepared for college or some type of degree after high school, said John Glenewinkel, the superintendent of both the Curlew and Republic school districts in Ferry County, one of the state’s northeastern counties.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/education-deserts-in-our-state-up-to-1-in-5-washington-students-live-far-away-from-college/

By Cory Nealon, University of Buffalo
Anyone with an internet connection can attend college from home. Yet a common complaint about online learning is that it lacks the feel of a physical classroom. That’s starting to change. The University at Buffalo and its partners recently demonstrated how to integrate virtual reality (VR) into a massive open online course (MOOC) focusing on collaborative robot safety.

http://www.buffalo.edu/news/releases/2018/08/021.html

by ASU Now
Students in general biology classes usually don’t get to take blood samples from people, but an online class at Arizona State University not only lets students draw blood, they also can manipulate DNA — all in virtual reality. Thirty students in the general biology course under way now are using virtual-reality headsets to complete their lab requirement as part of a new partnership among ASU Online, Google and Labster. In total, 140 pairs of headsets will be available for students to borrow for the next round of classes starting in October. The new technology can be a boon to students in both online and face-to-face classes, according to Amy Pate, manager of instructional design for the School of Life Sciences.

https://asunow.asu.edu/20180823-solutions-asu-online-biology-course-first-offer-virtual-reality-lab-google-partnership

by Ahmed Dirar, Ripple Coin News

The blockchain revolution is in full swing. This is the marquee technology of this era because of its disruptive potential especially in financial institutions. Naturally, a lot of tech enthusiasts and anyone for that matter would want to get in on the action. This is because the distributed ledger technology represents the future. There are a myriad of ways to learn but the most convenient channel is online Blockchain courses. Some of these courses can take a dedicated person from a blockchain newbie to a developer in a matter of weeks. This is because they are packaged and tutored by experienced innovators and experts whose insights are unmatched.

6 Best Blockchain Online Courses For Training & Certification 2018

by Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed
U.S. News will consider them unranked for the rest of this rankings year, but that punishment will last only a few weeks. Errors included graduation rates, spending per student, average faculty salaries and more. It’s just a few weeks from the next edition of the U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” rankings, widely questioned by educators but relied on by many students and parents (and boasted about by some of the same educators who say that the rankings are a lousy way to pick a college). But it turns out that eight of the colleges ranked a year ago submitted information that was sufficiently incorrect that it would have changed their places in the rankings. And so U.S. News has declared them to be “unranked,” a punishment that lasts until Sept. 10, when the new edition comes out.

https://www.insidehighered.com/admissions/article/2018/08/24/eight-more-colleges-identified-submitting-incorrect-data-us-news

By Jeffrey R. Young, EdSurge

EdSurge: MOOCs were once headline news around the world and now you hardly hear about them. How would you describe the state of MOOCs and where are things going?

Dhawal Shah, founder and CEO of Class Central: Yeah, they might have fallen off the big newspapers and the public eye. But they’ve figured out a monetization model. They might not be profitable but they’re making a lot of money. Udacity itself announced that they made 30 million dollars last year. So I think they’re grinding it out there. More people are using them than at any point in time before. They’re making money and now they are looking forward going into the online degree market and the corporate learning training market.

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-08-21-moocs-are-no-longer-massive-and-they-serve-different-audiences-than-first-imagined

by Open Access Government
The Royal Air Force have partnered with digital transformation experts AVADO and the CIPD to announce a new learning initiative for their service personnel. Formed in 1918, the RAF is the oldest independent airforce in the world, employing 32,000 military service personnel globally. Since its very conception, the organisation has paved the way for technological advancements and today (Wednesday 22, August) they are announcing a new and innovative way to use digital learning to support their employees. This new learning partnership is part of the Royal Air Force’s ongoing commitment to enhancing career development for those currently serving, as well as extending the post-service qualifications for those who are moving, or have moved onto new employment. Alongside AVADO , and the CIPD, the Royal Air Force will be supporting the opportunity for Service Personnel, both Regular and Reserves of the Personnel Support Branch, to study with AVADO for the online HR qualifications (Level 5 Diploma in HR and Level 3 Certificate in HR) in order to gain accreditation to CIPD.

RAF embraces digital learning in centenary year