Archive: 2012
Leadership
Staff Picks: Opportunity Gap, Resilience & Learning Apps
Karen and Carri Pick “The Education Response to the Opportunity Gap” Karen says, “There’s still lots of work to do to improve the opportunity gap. I really appreciate all of the groups mentioned here. Not time to slow down on equity.” Carri says, “Tom does a great…
Personalized Learning
Resilience Monitoring Tool Could Be Good for Troops–and Students
DARPA is working on a psychological resilience monitoring tool for the troops. A similar monitoring tool for students could also be part of a comprehensive learner profile. DARPA participated in a a conference for i3 grant managers in Washington DC today.
Personalized Learning
Free School Reforms in Sweden Boost Quality, Innovation, and Choice
Barbara Bergstrom takes a look at "free school reform" in Sweden and its effects on the classroom. She shares critical observations around quality and reputation, looking at the Swedish Knowledge Schools as a primary case study.
EdTech
SMARTtech Roundup: Blended Learning, STEM, Common Core
Blended Schools & Tools HBCU blends. The Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) and Connections Education will launch TMCF Collegiate Academies a blended learning program that will allow students to individualize their education and work at a personalized pace. More than “just add water.” PBS/Media shift provides two questions to guide technology integration:…
Personalized Learning
Online Learning Studies Must Evaluate Individual Student Trajectories
The “gotcha” research on charter schools and innovation continues, with the latest aimed at K12 Inc.’s online schools. There are plenty of important policy and oversight research questions around the performance of charter schools and online schools, but unsupported claims like the latest from the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) are frustrating and unproductive.
Personalized Learning
The Difference Between Improvement and Innovation
Improvement is doing things better. Innovation is doing things differently. Well-deployed technology enables both. Two bloggers missed these important distinctions this week.
Personalized Learning
The Talent & the Agent: My Desired Class
Leaning on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s famous “frightening conclusion” quotation, I am Zen-like in my focus on the classroom atmosphere and I intend to create - the talent and the agent this upcoming school year. By developing flexible lesson plans, implementing interactive learning structures, and engaging the customers with passion-based projects, the class of my dreams will be a reality.
EdTech
NAF Launches Student Certification Assessment System
National Academy Foundation announced a new certification system today. We think it signals a real commitment on NAF's part to getting serious about outcomes. We are bullish on certification systems as market signaling strategy that will grow in importance over time. We like the way NAF approached the design of this system. They are one of small handful of organizations that has the reach to do this at scale. In other words, we think this is a pretty big deal.
Personalized Learning
The Education Response to the Opportunity Gap
Robert Putnam's data is really disturbing. The Harvard sociologist is at it again. Like Bowling Alone, Putnam's new data (discussed recently at the Aspen Ideas Festival) suggests the opportunity gap is widening. More than race and poverty, class and a lack of social mobility are widening gaps that reduce opportunity.
EdTech
Do You Have the Edtech Lingo Down?
When was the last time you were at an edtech conference and heard fragmented conversations laced with the latest education lingo and acronyms? Does flipped classroom, blended learning, gamification, OER, BYOD sound familiar? Here at Getting Smart, we toss around many of these words every day and work constantly to keep up with the latest trends. We understand how confusing it can be, which is why we've decided to share this great Edtech Cheat Sheet by Boundless.