Archive: 2012
Good Work: Edupreneurs Making a Difference
Wendy and Kim created new pathways to teaching and to building school networks. But what’s new and exciting is that a growing percentage of students graduating from elite institution want to start companies and they want to do it in education. New application development platforms, the mobile inflection, and viral adoption (an alternative to the district sales slog) have made it possible for a team to gain traction with a $500,000 investment instead of $5 million.
Digital Portfolios for Primary Students
“Mrs. Cassidy, I showed my blog to my parents last night. I showed them everything on my blog. I showed them all the things on the computer!” That was my morning greeting from one of my six-year-old students not long ago. He had received a surplus computer1 from my school division the day before, and had suddenly been able to show his parents all of the learning artifacts he’d been adding to his digital portfolio through the course of the school year.
6 Trends at SXSW Interactive
Technology leaders, entrepreneurs, startup innovators, and a whole lot of tech nerds gathered in Austin, Texas this weekend for SXSW Interactive. Among the countless sessions, mobile exhibitors, flashy technology, and app notifications, a few key trends rose to the surface.
Staff Picks: Political Leadership, TFA, SXSWedu
Tom picks political leadership, Karen picks Teach for America in Washington, and Sarah picks SXSWedu.
Edmodo: From Social Network to Learning Platform
Like Facebook, the platform is free and easy to use. Edmodo grew to 6 million users almost entirely through teacher adoption. The coming app store means lots of new features for the 2012-13 season.
1:1 in Peru Suggests Instruction is Important
The OLPC program in Peru appears to be content-light and naive. Kids appears to spend a lot of time on non-academic software (which may have some cognitive benefit) but there is no evidence that student spend more time reading. Unlike top blended models in the states, UNESCO points out that "the time allocated to activities directly related to school does not seem to have changed." With no effort to change time and literacy and numeracy instruction it is not surprising that academic impacts appear to be weak.
Portugal’s 1:1 Initiative Propels PISA Improvement
The Portugal model of subsidized sliding scale hardware and connectivity is a great example for states to consider as they consider development of high access learning environments over the next three years in preparation for and adoption of the Common Core State Standards and online assessments. If Portugal and Turkey can figure this out, leaders of each of these United States should be able to orchestrate the development of 21st century learning environments.
6 Leading Trends at SXSWedu
SXSWedu in Austin, Texas this week brought many innovative ideas to the forefront of discussion. Here are six trends that stood out in sessions, discussions, and more.
SXSWedu Brings Positive Discourse to Edu Challenges & Solutions
SXSWedu in Austin, Texas this week brought an enthusiasm to productive discourse around the challenges in education and the tools that hold the potential to improve it. Keynoters Marjorie Scardino, CEO of Pearson, and Secretary Arne Duncan spoke about the importance of informal learning, assessment, global competitiveness, and preparation for the next generation of learning.
LearningJar & BloomBoard Win SXSWedu’s LAUNCHedu
LearningJar (Higher Ed) and BloomBoard (K-12) won the LAUNCHedu challenge at SXSWedu in Austin, Texas Wednesday among six higher ed and six K-12 startup projects. Both groups were awarded a trip to San Francisco to meet with venture capital firms, a consultation with the Advisory Board, and a one-on-one media relations consultation.