Online Learning Update

by Tom Vander ArkBlogger, GettingSmart.com

Together, six technology trends are making it easier for individuals to learn and easier for teachers to create great schools.

1.Personalization: adaptive tools that quickly diagnose needs and online systems that power anywhere anytime learning.

2.Profiles: comprehensive records of learner progress that help teachers and algorithms better meet student needs.

3.Playlists: a sequence of tailored learning experiences that customizes learning for every student (like iTunes Genius does for music).

4.iPad: cheap mobile devices are powering an explosion of learning apps

5.Progress: it’s becoming more common for students to progress to the next unit or grade after they show what they know (see CompetencyWorks.org for more)

6.Platforms: there are lots of efforts to build powerful next generation platforms that combine content, social learning, profiles, assessments, and services.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-vander-ark/dont-be-lame-personalize-_b_2211926.html

by Rajiv Rao, Business Standard (India)

India, with its enormous appetite for — but paltry supply of — quality education, sits squarely in the middle of this upheaval. For instance, for-profit Coursera, the leading player in this market which has signed up close to two million unique users in less than six months and has 206 online courses, says Indians comprise 4.83 per cent of its active student base and are its second-largest cohort, next only to the US and ahead of Britain, Canada and Brazil. It offers courses from 33 of the world’s best colleges — Stanford, Princeton, and the Berklee College of Music included. Here, students have access to the same curriculum, even professors, as on-campus students would at these respective colleges. It’s also completely free. Anant Agarwal’s edX is the other pioneer in this field but, unlike Coursera, it is a not-for-profit entity with 10 classes currently offered on its website. However, much like Coursera, it has begun attracting Indians in waves. Overall, India is the second-ranking location for seven of the eight courses that edX offers (US holds the first rank in these seven). It is also the number-one location for an online course that is the bedrock of any MIT education in its campus avatar — Circuits and Electronics — with 30 per cent of its online students based in India (The US was second with 22 per cent).

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/online-courses-set-to-changeeducation-landscape/493675/

By ANTHONY DOESBURG, New Zealand Listener

The internet is threatening to shake up education, as it has already done with music, retail and journalism. The core of any student’s education was once the 3Rs: reading, writing and arithmetic. But in the 21st century, educators are just as likely to be talking about the 4Cs: critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity. In this new way of educational thinking, teachers and students are connecting through the “cloud”: the international network of servers that can link digital devices almost anywhere on the planet. The aim is to build, collaborate, share and manage lessons through a multitude of media – trading chalk and blackboards for digital tools that foster collaboration and interactive learning.

http://www.listener.co.nz/commentary/the-internaut/online-learning-the-future-of-education/

by Chris Kenrick, Palo Alto Online

As surely as it crashed over the publishing and music industries, the Internet is inexorably remaking the world of education. Stanford University President John Hennessy has likened the latest wave of online education — from simple video lectures to entire degrees earned online — to a tsunami. “What I told my colleagues is there’s a tsunami coming,” he said recently. “I can’t tell you exactly how it’s going to break, but my goal is to try to surf it, not to just stand there.” Though Stanford and others have dabbled in distance learning for decades, recent advances have dramatically improved the student experience, making it more interactive and unleashing a torrent of renewed interest in online courses.

http://www.almanacnews.com/news/show_story.php?id=12370

by Lacey Mason, wtop.com

Continuing your education can be pricey, even at schools with the most lax requirements. But what if you could take classes like Introduction to Mathematical Thinking or An Introduction to the U.S. Food System: Perspectives from Public Health – for free? And if that’s not intriguing enough, what if you could take them from home? And from universities like Stanford or Johns Hopkins? Well, it’s not a “What if?” While you won’t walk off with a college degree, Coursera.org offers classes that really are free and taught online by professors from Stanford, Duke, Princeton, Berklee College of Music, the University of Maryland and 28 other schools. Coursera describes itself as a “social entrepreneurship company” with a goal of providing anyone and everyone with a world-class education – the type of education previously available only to a select few.

http://www.wtop.com/262/3089234/Where-to-take-free-college-courses

By Adriana Lee, TechnoBuffalo

Google has thrown its weight behind Khan Academy, partnering with it in a new competition to discover “educational YouTube stars.” The initiative seeks “10 super talented and engaging content creators” to become Next EDU Gurus, who will benefit from training and promotion, plus receive a $1,000 B&H gift card for video equipment.

From the official announcement:

Do you set historical events to music? Doodle your geometry? Sing your Shakespeare? We’re looking for content creators who create all kinds of curriculum-related videos, from grammar to geography, history to histograms. You can submit any style of video as long as it’s educational and family-friendly–just bear in mind that we’re looking for content creators who can take people on a journey through a topic, so if you could imagine making ten, twenty, or fifty more videos on the topic in the future, all the better!

http://www.technobuffalo.com/companies/google/google-partners-with-khan-academy-to-find-educational-youtube-stars/

by James Goodman, Democrat & Chronicle

1,532 RIT students are now taking courses online, with some students enrolled in more than one of these classes. This fall, four-year and community colleges in the Rochester area are offering 556 online courses that have an enrollment of 15,859, with the actual number of students taking these courses being smaller since some take multiple courses. In addition, thousands more students are enrolled in courses that have an online component, such as the professor delivering the lecture online, so classroom time can be used for discussion. Online courses can connect students around the globe with a college. Hongqian Tan, who studied music at Nazareth College last school year, is now taking an online course from Nazareth about the history of piano music from her home in Shandong, China.

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20120921/BUSINESS/309210024/online-learning-RIT

by India Education Diary

A new online course on a new online platform at Stanford succeeds not only in joining people from dozens of countries but enabling them to directly collaborate on group projects: A group of women in Iran put together a tourism project; three men in India devised a way of connecting Indian musicians, audiences and venues; a pair of men in Trinidad and Tobago figured out how to ease road transportation; a team with members in Germany, the United Kingdom and Russia developed a mobile app for buying and selling locally designed products; and four Americans and a Pakistani created a search engine to find online classes. Clearly, some projects will prosper and others will not, though in either case the experience will have taught team members invaluable lessons.

http://www.indiaeducationdiary.in/showEE.asp?newsid=15234

By The Creativity Post

A new online course on a new online platform at Stanford succeeds not only in joining people from dozens of countries but enabling them to directly collaborate on group projects: A group of women in Iran put together a tourism project; three men in India devised a way of connecting Indian musicians, audiences and venues; a pair of men in Trinidad and Tobago figured out how to ease road transportation; a team with members in Germany, the United Kingdom and Russia developed a mobile app for buying and selling locally designed products; and four Americans and a Pakistani created a search engine to find online classes. Clearly, some projects will prosper and others will not, though in either case the experience will have taught team members invaluable lessons.

http://www.creativitypost.com/technology/new_platform_for_online_courses_stresses_team_based_experiential_learning

by Jeffrey R. Young, Chronincle of Higher Ed

Following are the new college and university partners:

Berklee College of Music

Brown University

Columbia University

Emory University

Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Mount Sinai School of Medicine

Ohio State University

University of British Columbia

University of California at Irvine

University of Florida

University of London

University of Maryland at College Park

University of Melbourne

University of Pittsburgh

Vanderbilt University

Wesleyan University

Plenty of other colleges are in talks with Coursera. The University of Texas at Austin has indicated that it is considering participation, and Mr. Ng said he expected to double the number of partners again within a year.

http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/coursera-announces-expansion-adding-16-universities/39964

by the Week

Elite universities are throwing open their classrooms’ doors to anyone with an internet connection — for free. he company Coursera has teamed up with 16 universities (including Stanford, Duke, and Princeton) to offer more than 100 free online courses to anyone with internet access. They don’t want to be left behind in the digital revolution that has already transformed the way we consume news, music, and books. Stanford, Duke, Princeton, and Johns Hopkins are among the 16 universities that have partnered with a newly launched company called Coursera to offer more than 100 free online courses this academic year; MIT, Harvard, and the University of California, Berkeley, are following suit through a nonprofit venture called edX. Now people anywhere in the world can take Stanford’s “Introduction to Mathematical Thinking,” learn the “Principles of Obesity Economics” at Johns Hopkins, or have Duke University behavioral economist Dan Ariely lead them through “A Beginner’s Guide to Irrational Behavior”—all without paying the $50,000 usually required to attend these world-class universities. More than 1 million people from scores of countries have already enrolled in the free classes, which some believe could transform the mission and model of higher education. Anant Agarwal, president of edX, calls it “the single biggest change in education since the printing press.”

http://theweek.com/article/index/232522/virtual-princeton-a-guide-to-free-online-ivy-league-classes

By Peter Delevett, Mercury News

San Francisco-based Knowmia trolls the Web for teaching videos, then organizes them into study plans developed by a network of teachers from around the country. The startup has quietly amassed a trove of more than 7,000 public-domain videos from sources including YouTube, Vimeo and the websites of various government agencies.

“There’s so much out there that people can be overwhelmed,” said Braunstein. “Parents want a curated solution.” Visitors to Knowmia’s website see a dashboard of course offerings organized by subject matter. The site soon will add personalization software to help users find content that’s most germane to them; Braunstein likens it to “Pandora for education,” referring to the music-recommendation service.

http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_21308261/flip-video-co-founder-unveils-new-e-learning

By Julie Titone, College of Education, Washington State University

When Mohamed Elhess was a youngster in Libya, he couldn’t formally study English. Back in the 1980s and ’90s, dictator Moammar Gadhafi had proclaimed that the language not be taught in schools. “So I learned English from pop music, and from books my brother brought from Egypt,” said Elhess, a graduate student at Washington State University. “Now, English is back in Libyan schools, but there are no qualified teachers.” Elhess is eager to find ways to help students in newly liberated Libya, and all over the world, learn a second language. An assignment from Professor Joy Egbert gave him a way: He created several video tutorialson how to use a popular language-learning website called Voxopop. His is one of eight technology-based language learning projects created this summer by Egbert’s students. “I’m heartened by the passion and dedication demonstrated by the students,” said Egbert. “These projects can be a first step toward changing their worlds.”

http://news.wsu.edu/pages/Publications.asp?Action=Detail&PublicationID=31987&PageID=21

by Phyllis Coulter, Bloomington Pantagraph

Driven by the explosion of online learning opportunities and the need to cut costs, school systems are increasingly turning to new ways of offering summer school and to “credit recovery” programs that allow students to take online classes during the school year. The goal is to keep students on track toward graduation. Instead of a teacher teaching one subject to the whole class as in traditional summer school, students work at computers in the same room on courses ranging from British literature to geometry and music appreciation. These courses cost students $25 — far less than the $200 cost that they would have paid for traditional summer school — but they have limited enrollment.

http://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/education/for-many-summer-school-courses-can-be-completed-online/article_cca09b04-b74e-11e1-8c68-001a4bcf887a.html?comment_form=true

by Jim Randle, VOA News

Advancing digital technology is bringing major changes to higher education, after upending journalism, the music business, manufacturing and many other industries. In a few cases, this digital revolution means tens of thousands of students can sign up for one class taught by top professors. The pace of change in higher education is getting faster, and will affect teaching, student evaluation, and access to knowledge. Imagine a university class with 160,000 students sitting at computers all around the world, all learning from the same professors. It is not science-fiction. It is a class at Stanford University in California taught by Sebastian Thrun.

http://www.voanews.com/content/digital-revolution-shakes-colleges/1145883.html

by Virtual College UK

Online learning will have a transformative effect on the education sector. This is according to retired superintendent Geoff Johnson, who wrote in a column for Canadian publication the Victoria Times Colonist how he has realised the world of academia has changed quickly in recent years. Although the classic classroom setting of the educator at the front of the room and desks facing a blackboard in a row is not yet obsolete, it is becoming so, he remarked. He compared education to music, arguing as internet access to songs and albums has altered the purchasing habits of people and revolutionised the relevant sectors, “online learning will inevitably affect the traditional delivery of public education”. The change will alter everything about academia, including building designs, classroom practices and the technology utilised within schools, the expert suggested.

http://www.virtual-college.co.uk/news/Elearning-is-transforming-education-newsitems-801373975.aspx

by the Julliard Conservatory

Starting in the 2012-2013 school year, The Juilliard School is launching JUILLIARD eLEARNING, for K-12 students and educators everywhere. Juilliard eLearning is the world-famous conservatory’s first-ever group of online courses, presenting an exciting new option for teaching music and related courses, with distribution and implementation by leading provider of online learning solutions, Connections Education, part of the global education company, Pearson.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-juilliard-school-and-connections-education-launch-juilliard-elearning-the-conservatorys-first-ever-online-courses-2012-05-16

by AppAdvice and Mashable

If you’re one of the tens of thousands of customers who pre-ordered the new iPad and you’re wondering what educational app to download to counter the potentially mind-numbing effects of playing Angry Birds HD for hours on end, look no further than the official app of Khan Academy. Released Sunday, Khan Academy for iPad lets you do exactly what its subtitle says: “Watch. Practice. Learn almost anything for free.” Khan Academy is a non-profit organization that houses an online library of almost 3,000 educational videos. The topics covered by the videos on the site range from the mathematical subject Algebra to the mathemusician Vi Hart. (Apparently, the site has no videos pertaining to a topic that starts with the letter Z.) And the best thing about these videos is that they’re free. You know, the best things in life and all that.

http://mashable.com/2012/03/12/khan-academy-ipad-app/

by Online College

When you think about online learning, it may be MBAs and traditional academic disciplines that come to mind. What about the fine arts? Convenience and access are both motivators for online learners, including those in the arts. Students who are working and managing family obligations can benefit from the flexibility made available through online courses. Online options also open up new possibilities for those who want to study a particular field, but don’t have programs in their local areas. More online options are emerging for those interested in learning about music, art, dance, and theatre. From full academic programs to continuing education courses learning opportunities are available through traditional colleges, online schools, and other organizations. The level and type of classes also ranges from art appreciation to studio art, as well as art education.

http://www.onlinecollege.org/2012/02/24/learning-the-arts-online/

by Aliya Karim, GW Hatchet

Administrators are skeptical about the trajectory of online education after a startup company made a splash last month by offering free online courses taught by universities’ top professors. Udemy, a for-profit company that allows users to create and sell courses, tapped into professors’ knowledge base with the launch of The Faculty Project Jan. 26. Twelve professors at universities like Vanderbilt, Northwestern and Colgate have developed free courses in subjects ranging from public health to Russian literature and music. The Udemy courses – which are offered for no academic credit – are presented through a combination of media, often including video mash-ups in which the professor is seen talking and outlining graphs next to a presentation. Students can post comments and questions under the lectures to which professors might respond.

http://www.gwhatchet.com/2012/02/13/gw-wary-to-adopt-free-online-courses/

By Emily Classon, Andover Patch

Public libraries aren’t stuffy, outdated warehouses of books. Step into Memorial Hall Library (MHL)—in person or online–to experience a true 21st century library. In demand services such as free downloadable eBooks and music, online language learning, and technical and business books online are among the many new services Memorial Hall Library offers. Let MHL help you find resources when and where you want it. If you can’t get to the library, we’ll bring the services to you online–and now, on your mobile phone. Memorial Hall Library is pleased to announce the release of a new mobile app, “MHL Mobile”. Access a variety of library services when you’re on the go. MHL Mobile is compatible with all web-enabled phones on any network. The app works on all major smart phones including iPhone/iPod Touch, Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Palm, Symbian, and J2ME.

http://andover.patch.com/articles/your-library-there-s-an-app-for-that