Innov8: New Year, New Beginnings

With the rush of the holidays finally over it’s time to focus on kicking 2017 off right. This week’s stories show how the world of education is doing just that–and we’re excited to see that several of our 2017 predictions have already begun!

From a $1 million donation of virtual reality equipment to schools in need to major support for a social emotional learning startup, we’re seeing several ways we’re starting off on the right foot to ensure the future of this country develops important skills they’ll need for future success in college, career and life.

#NewSchools & #EdTech Tools

1. Virtual Reality Made Real

Low-income schools across Arkansas getting $1 million in virtual reality gear from @facebook, @bhfanney reports: https://t.co/95SaaNuy6r

— Chris Bahn (@cbahn) January 5, 2017

Check out our latest podcast with Seth Andrews, White House advisor and co-founder of the Washington Leadership Academy in D.C. where VR is central to the learning vision.

Dollars & Deals

2. SEL Startup

#EdTech #startup @EQtainment raised $5m to nurture #SocialEmotional learning https://t.co/kFgmeHToJb @VentureBeat #EduVC #SEL pic.twitter.com/8qQYIXwAKO

— Tom Vander Ark (@tvanderark) January 9, 2017

What better commitment to make in the new year than to engage in simple activities that improve school culture? Read more about Mayerson Academy’s #5toThrive challenge that can help you do just that (there is even a free toolkit to get you started!).

#STEM Gems

3. STEM Prep

New TGR EDU – #STEM & #CollegePrep for MS & HS from @discoveryed & @TWFoundation https://t.co/gDqaaTOBWN #Innov8 #edtech pic.twitter.com/5K3Ur8GKpu

— Carri Schneider (@CarriSchneider) January 9, 2017

#SmartPlanet

4. Zeal for New Zealand CBE

New blog by @susandpatrick: New Zealand leads the way on #competencybased learning https://t.co/GHTsJO5xL2 #competencyed #CBE

— iNACOL (@nacol) January 5, 2017

Interested in CBE progress in the U.S.? Be sure to join this webinar today at 2 p.m. ET from iNACOL and CompetencyWorks: Insights on Advancing #CompetencyEd in New England

Deeper, Further, Faster #HigherEd

5. Math Badging

.@GoCCCS awards math badges on @CanvasLMS with @credly https://t.co/5os8sv9slF #HigherEd #CompetencyEd pic.twitter.com/ayxQKM5Q7e

— Tom Vander Ark (@tvanderark) January 10, 2017

6. Join The Future of HigherEd

Check out @OpenIDEO‘s #FutureHigherEd Challenge: add ideas to improve edu w/@usedgov for a chance at $25K by Jan 20– https://t.co/jA8s7yy4q1

— Causeartist (@causeartist) January 10, 2017

#EdPolicy Pieces

7. Education = U.S. Success

Thank you to outgoing U.S. Education Secretary John King! We appreciate his focus on equity.

“Education is fundamental to the long-term success of our economy and our democracy.” @JohnKingatEDhttps://t.co/y2tzeGdfqj via @npr_ed

— US Dept of Education (@usedgov) January 9, 2017

Let’s Get Personalized

8. #PLearning in 2017

10 Trends of Personalized Learning in 2017 https://t.co/4bWXueJCSO Enjoy! from @khmmc and @bbray27 #plearnchat pic.twitter.com/i4KINkZDVy

— Kathleen McClaskey (@khmmc) January 6, 2017

Check out this recap and even more trends to watch this year in our blog 2016 #YearInReview and Predictions for 2017.

Have a news item you’d like us to consider for next Wednesday’s edition? Tweet us @Getting_Smart using #innov8 or to email [email protected] with “Innov8” in the subject line. For more ideas on what type of stories we run, check out the full Innov8 series on our blog.

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