Personalized Learning
10 biggest K-12 developments of 2010
Despite lagging state budgets, 2010 will be a year of great progress in American education. Here’s the 10 biggest developments of the year ahead: Race to the Top awards will be made in two phases to about 18 states and will set the standard for excellence in state policy. About…
Personalized Learning
UExcel: University credit by exam
I joined the Western Governor’s University board almost 10 years ago because I was enthusiastic about the idea of credits for competencies. More recently, I’ve been investigating pathways to US universities for international students. Given both of these interests, I was pleased to read about UExcel:…
Personalized Learning
The big switch to digital is on
Texas announced a massive English adoption of Pearson products–both print and digital. Pearson has been making a huge investment in curriculum development by making new Scott Foresman and Prentice Hall material available in both print and digital formats. It’s a big switch from the old days (like a year…
EdTech
Great ConnCAN report unpacks CT's bizarre school funding
ConnCAN, the best state education advocacy organization in the country, continues to beat the drum for equity and excellence in Connecticut. The Tab is a hard hitting report on the bizarre state funding model that rewards failure rather than promoting accountability and school choice. Here’s summary recommendations:…
Personalized Learning
Fixation with Reliability
Compared to other OECD countries the US is fixated on reliability and cost in student assessment. Our friends across the pond value validity more than we do–can you imagine oral exams being proposed in the US? WaPo reviewed Todd Farley’s book My Misadventures in the Standardized Testing Industry…
Personalized Learning
RTI = personalized learning
The National Center on RTI defines the new buzzword as follows: Response to intervention integrates assessment and intervention within a multi-level prevention system to maximize student achievement and to reduce behavior problems. With RTI, schools identify students at risk for poor learning outcomes, monitor student progress, provide evidence-based…
Personalized Learning
A proposal for a performance-based edu system
The fastest way to advance the concept of performance-based student progress and promote innovative school models would be to create several versions of a national performance-based online curriculum. Here’s a quick outline of one way this could work: ED and DOD (and partners) create a competition for a national merit…
Personalized Learning
Scrap credits/time as measures of progress
It’s time to scrap credit accumulation and seat time as the measures of student progress. Seat time requirements are the enemy of performance-based education. We’ve been spouting the mantra ‘vary time not learning’ for a generation but have seldom broken the mold. It’s great to see ED and CCSSO (and…
Personalized Learning
On capital budgeting and innovation
You may recall a boring unit on capital budgeting if you took a finance class in college. Your prof may have failed made the connection, but primary source of innovation is the capital accumulation and allocation decisions to produce a product/service that solves a customer problem. School districts raise…
Personalized Learning
Investment follows incentives (edu doesn't have them)
The National Journal guest hosts asked “what are the essential components of an effective innovation, research, development, and dissemination infrastructure in education?” The question begged for a bureaucratic answer and blog responses went all over the place, but I think most folks missed the boat on this one.