Archive

element:where

EdTech

Q&A: The Educational World Is Flat

Tom Vander Ark is an educational innovator who thinks like an engineer. He is currently the CEO of Open Educational Solutions, a partner in Learn Capital, and director of the International Association for K-12 Online Learning. Previously he served as President of the X PRIZE Foundation and was the Executive Director of Education for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He is a prolific writer and speaker, and in 2006 Newsweek readers voted Tom the most influential baby boomer in education.

Personalized Learning

Educational Management Organizations: The Rest of the Story

The NCEP, issued its annual data compilation covering educational management organizations (EMO). While the summary sounds benign, I think it’s fair to say that the NCEP hates EMOs—especially the for-profit versions. This AFT funded report is not a sympathetic data compilation. From the ensuing stories it is clear that journalists were coached on attack strategies. EMOs have the unique opportunity to develop coherent academic models and support networks where everything works together to benefit teachers and students.

EdTech

The Alliance Addresses New Digital Learning Imperatives In K12

This month, the former Governor Bob Wise's Alliance for Excellent Education (Alliance) released "The Digital Imperative: How Technology and Teaching Meet Today's Education Challenges," a report showcasing the ways technology can better prepare students for college and career as an update to its report nearly two years ago.

Personalized Learning

Teacher-Led Blended Learning, Students Win

There are three moments that addict me to teaching. When students have “light up,” “light bulb,” and “lead” moments. Creating an environment that fosters the space for these is becoming easier as the tools at our fingertips continue to improve. I see technology as a cornerstone of education that can help bring to life content for students.

EdTech

Technology as a Passport to Personalized Education

Daphne Koller recently made an excellent case for online learning in her New York Times article "Death Knell for the Lecture: Technology as a Passport to Personalized Education." Her article brings logic to the shift toward increased classroom technology with a view back into history about the ways technology improved our lives over time.

Personalized Learning

Pros & Cons: Is Elementary Too Early for 1:1 Technology?

The merits of 1:1 technology in education are so impressive that one question might be raised: How young is too young for students to benefit from 1:1 classroom technology? Specifically, are elementary students too young to have one computing device per child available to them at all times?