Archive: 2013
Detroit: Pulling Out of the Death Spiral
“The Motor City’s traditional district remains the worst-performing big-city school operator in both the Midwest and the nation,” reported RiShawn Biddle. “With 69 percent of its fourth-graders and 57 percent of eighth-graders being functionally illiterate in 2011, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, Detroit has become infamous for perpetuating educational neglect and malpractice.” Biddle notes, “the district’s financial mismanagement has been even more spectacular.”
Ellevation: Taking on the ELL Challenge
As a partner at NewSchools Venture Fund Jordan Meranus didn’t see anything entrepreneurial in the English Language Learning (ELL) space to invest in despite the persistent achievement gap experienced by ELLs. With co-founder Teddy Rice he started a company to build new tools to drive better outcomes for English Language Learners.
GlassLab and Beyond: Who’s the Designer and Who’s the Learner of the Next-Gen Game-Based Ed-Tech
By: Dr. Idit Harel Caperton The so called “gamification of education” has taken on multiple forms as computers and tablets become more common in the classroom and as games are becoming a dominant media in our lives. At the root of all “game-based learning” is the unique opportunity to engage students in learning where they want to be: inside video games. The ESA reports 32% of gamers are under 18 years old, and the industry only continues to grow.
Students Talk about Blended Learning at #ASCD13
Mickey Revenaugh, Connections Education, hosted a student panel at #ASCD13 titled Why I Hate High School, but the conversation was really about "LovingHighSchoolNow. The five students now enjoying the benefits of #BlendedLearning represented Nexus Academy in Columbus, VOISE Academy, and Chicago Virtual.
#ASCD13: Whole Child, Whole Teacher
The teaching and learning association, ASCD, gathered in Chicago this week--nearly 11,000 strong but the conference seemed swallowed by the giant McCormick Convention Center. It's not the crazy crush of SXSWedu or the ASU Summit.
Juilliard and Connections Join Forces
The Juilliard School in New York City and Connections Education today announced the launch of Juilliard eLearning, the conservatory’s first-ever group of online courses for students in grades K-12. The partnership brings together Juilliard’s expertise with Connections’ reach to bring a world-class music education to students everywhere.
Retention – It’s Not Just About Students
Student retention is a buzzword that always raises eyebrows among educators. Enrollment officers are being pushed to improve retention and student success.
Good Work: Commitment to Place
It's a blessing to work in a place you love--a place where you feel connected, grounded, rejuvenated. but I really appreciate the teachers & leaders that have deep commitment to place.
PARCC Provides Advice on Access and Test Administration
The 22 state assessment consortia PARCC issued administrative guidelines this week and they included more advice about access. Previously, PARCC issued updates the design of both the assessments and released item prototypes. District and school administrators should pay attention to the The PARCC Assessment Administration Capacity Planning Tool.
Juan Lopez-Valcarcel: Bridging Islands
The app explosion of the last two years is arguably the most notable education event of this new decade. The guy tracking that at Pearson is Juan Lopez-Valcarcel from Pearson’s London office. We visited with his team at BETT in January and caught up with Juan last week. Here’s the summary of our conversation.