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EdTech
Q&A: PLATO Launches New Virtual Academy
PLATO Learning introduced PLATO Virtual Academy earlier this March to deliver flexible, standards-based courses with certified, online teachers to meet the needs of 21st century learners. The PLATO Virtual Academy will begin helping students with summer school 2012 implementations, with over 50 virtual courses across a wide range of subject areas.
Personalized Learning
Start Making: General Assembly Launches Online
General Assembly launches its online learning program today with Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship –like how to form an entity, business models, and human-centered design and raising your first million. Like the onsite courses, the online programs are very social. Participants connect, comment, share, and learn together. This is an MBA killer.
Personalized Learning
Top 5 Frequently Asked Questions of an Online English Teacher
Most of what I do is trail-blazing: delving into new territory in order to improve the way I teach and the way my students learn. This is both exhausting and exhilarating. Luckily, I have awesome colleagues who are willing to collaborate and explore with me. Here is a list of the top five frequently asked questions of an online, English teacher, along with my most honest answers.
EdTech
SmartTech Roundup: Cheaper & Better Edu
Better & Cheaper Post Secondary Textbook rental service Chegg scored $25 million to make the transition to digital. Texas A&M responded to Governor Perry’s call for a $10,000 degree with a $9,700 IT degree. We’ll soon see Don Kilburn’s group at Pearson powering more lost…
Personalized Learning
Protecting Your Career: Why Virtual School Teachers Need Liability Insurance
More than a year ago, Sarah Walters* was a well‐liked virtual school teacher living in a small community in Colorado. Sarah had taught at a suburban school in its close knit community for more than five years before transferring to a new, virtual school for increased career flexibility where she received many awards. It was in this position that the rug was swiftly pulled out from under her after she was fired for contact deemed “inappropriate” by school administrators.
EdTech
Good Work: Edupreneurs Making a Difference
Wendy and Kim created new pathways to teaching and to building school networks. But what’s new and exciting is that a growing percentage of students graduating from elite institution want to start companies and they want to do it in education. New application development platforms, the mobile inflection, and viral adoption (an alternative to the district sales slog) have made it possible for a team to gain traction with a $500,000 investment instead of $5 million.
EdTech
6 Trends at SXSW Interactive
Technology leaders, entrepreneurs, startup innovators, and a whole lot of tech nerds gathered in Austin, Texas this weekend for SXSW Interactive. Among the countless sessions, mobile exhibitors, flashy technology, and app notifications, a few key trends rose to the surface.
EdTech
Edmodo: From Social Network to Learning Platform
Like Facebook, the platform is free and easy to use. Edmodo grew to 6 million users almost entirely through teacher adoption. The coming app store means lots of new features for the 2012-13 season.
EdTech
1:1 in Peru Suggests Instruction is Important
The OLPC program in Peru appears to be content-light and naive. Kids appears to spend a lot of time on non-academic software (which may have some cognitive benefit) but there is no evidence that student spend more time reading. Unlike top blended models in the states, UNESCO points out that "the time allocated to activities directly related to school does not seem to have changed." With no effort to change time and literacy and numeracy instruction it is not surprising that academic impacts appear to be weak.
EdTech
Portugal’s 1:1 Initiative Propels PISA Improvement
The Portugal model of subsidized sliding scale hardware and connectivity is a great example for states to consider as they consider development of high access learning environments over the next three years in preparation for and adoption of the Common Core State Standards and online assessments. If Portugal and Turkey can figure this out, leaders of each of these United States should be able to orchestrate the development of 21st century learning environments.