Posts by Tom Vander Ark
Personalized Learning
McKinsey Report on Edu to Employment: Useful Frame, Missing Innovation
McKinsey released a report called Education to Employment: Designing a System that Works. The six findings are rationale but fall short on the innovation front. The big sector wide solutions that the McKinsey team described will be beneficial when and where the occur. In the mean time, watch for organic solutions that emerge around new skills acquisition capabilities and marketing signaling strategies.
Personalized Learning
How a Poor Kid From Turkey Grew up to Create Anything Anywhere Learning
Udemy is the leading marketplace for anywhere anytime learning with 5000 courses and 400,000 students.
Personalized Learning
Great Boards for Great Schools
Two decades of experience with performance contracting in the delivery of public education has wrought some hard earned lessons. We know what good authorizing looks like. We know how to open great new schools.
Personalized Learning
5 Megatrends That Shaped 2012 Education
Five big trends that will shape education for the next decade became fully evident this year.
Personalized Learning
10 Things School Board Members Should Do in 2013
Set a high bar. Adopt the EPIC definition of college/career ready knowledge, skills, and dispositions. Insist on evidence of real college and career ready standards. Showcase examples of student work at board meetings.
EdTech
The Pivot to Digital Learning: 40 Predictions Revisited
Two years ago I made 40 predictions. I said, "The education sector has not historically been very dynamic, but this year (2010) things changed. Despite the recession, we have seen more start-ups and more cool applications than ever before." In many areas we've seen accelerated progress in the last two years. In a few areas progress has been slower than I expected. Following is a review of how my one-, five-, and ten-year predictions are fairing.
Personalized Learning
6 Innovations in Social Emotional Learning
Social emotional learning "teaches the skills we all need to handle ourselves, our relationships, and our work, effectively and ethically," says Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL). CASEL was formed almost two decades ago started by CEO Roger P. Weissberg who is also professor at UIC. In addition to Weissberg, CASEL's agenda has been influenced by Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence.
Personalized Learning
Don’t be Lame, Personalize Learning
At a Baltimore gathering of learning professionals we discussed six important advances underway: personalized learning, learner profiles and customized playlists, iPads and mobile learning, powerful platforms, and progress by demonstrated competency.
Ed Policy
Bush-Sponsored Summit Calls for Excellence at Scale
The fifth annual Excellence in Action National Summit on Education Reform, was held in Washington DC the last two days. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush chair of the host organization, kicked off the event Tuesday by urging state policy makers to hold firm on college and career ready standards.
Ed Policy
Will Common Core State Standards Accelerate or Slow Innovation?
Some friends are working on a paper on the topic of common standards and innovation. The primary question is how and whether the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) will accelerate or slow innovation.