Career & Technical Ed
EdTech
Ed Policy
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.
EdTech
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.
EdTech
EdTech 10: Popes, Particles & Personalized Learning
This week’s global headlines included the appointment of new Pope (with #newpope knocking #sxsw from the top spot in trending tweets) and the confirmation of the Higgs Boson “God particle” (a pretty cool return on the $9B investment in the Large Hadron Collider). Were you too busy with…
Personalized Learning
Infographic: The Future of Higher Education
This week, like so many lately, our team thought a lot about how to transform the higher ed learning experience. Like this infographic, we believe the landscape will change drastically in the next few years.
Personalized Learning
Hacking the Scouts
In the world of DIY, “hacking” is the idea of taking something and modifying it to fit your needs. With the spread of maker culture (think Maker Faire, makerspaces, or the proliferation of knitting clubs), many parents have found benefits beyond the ability to build Arduino-based gadgets. They’ve found a way to engage with their kids in “STEAM” – Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math – while at the same time building their kids’ confidence, resourcefulness, and ingenuity.
EdTech
Book Review: The Leader’s Guide to 21st Century Education
Ken launched the Partnership for 21st Century Learning a decade ago to add the 4Cs--critical thinking and problem solving; communication, collaboration; and creativity and innovation--to the 3Rs. He was successful at gathering corporate support for the agenda but it was slow to be adopted by school districts preoccupied by state testing programs.
Leadership
Campus Leadership: Susan Korzinek – “EdTech Leaders Must Be Open to Ideas”
With Edcetera's Campus Leadership profiles, learn about what makes CIOs, IT directors, and other executive level IT professionals tick. Here’s a Q&A with Susan K. Korzinek, Director of IT at Grand Valley State University.
EdTech
Infographic: K-12 Technology Usage
Tech Counts 2013, by Education Week, will be released in print this week (online today). View the infographic released with the report that outlines the K-12 technology use in the United States.
Ed Policy
Leading Edge Certification
The system of education certification is badly out of date and benefits schools of education more than K-12 schools. The rise of blended and online learning has accelerated the obsolescence of traditional employment barriers.
Personalized Learning
SXSWedu: Keeping it Weird
Much like Austin, SXSWedu kept it weird for the third annual conference. Weird in a good way. Suits traded in for boots and jeans. Typical presentations traded in for interactive discussions. Its one of the few conferences that skips the exhibit hall and puts more emphasis on networking time. SXSWedu also features the best music of any education conference. From music before session starts to live performances by Wheeler Brothers and Alpha Rev we felt the Austin music spirit. For more on the first part of the week check out our halftime report.