2016 April

Way to go Sue Ellen! My sister was named as 1 of 3 Michigan Distinguished Professors of the Year!!!

On 04/08/2016, in Daniel S. Christian, faculty, Michigan, teaching & learning, United States, by Daniel Christian

Western Michigan University prof named state Professor of the Year — from mlive.com by Emily Monacelli

Excerpt:

Christian has taught at WMU since 2001 and has received several awards and grants at the university. Christian has used the grants to tka her students into local high schools and into the community for experiential learning about journalism, multimedia, diversity and bias, and she advises students through WMU’s Student Media Group board and through journalism internships.

Christian’s book, “Overcoming Bias: A Journalist’s Guide to Culture and Context,” is used in newsrooms and classrooms as a guide to addressing implicit biases in news.

“Professor Christian demonstrates a commitment to her discipline which extends well beyond the role of instructor and greatly benefits the Kalamazoo community and Western Michigan University,” WMU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Timothy Greene said in the press release.

From DSC:
From a proud brother — congrats to you Sue Ellen on your award here! Way to go!

“20 awesome BYOD & mobile learning apps” plus 9 other items about ed tech-related apps and/or tools

On 04/06/2016, in 21st century, A/V -- audio/visual, assessment, blogs / blogging / vlogging, Bring your own device (BYOD), cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, collaboration, digital storytelling, e-books, e-publishing related items (EPUB and more), e-readers, education technology, Google, K-12 related, learning ecosystem, mathematics, Microsoft, mobile learning, mobile technologies, music, open courseware and systems, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, story, storytelling, tablets, teachers, teaching & learning, technologies for your home, tools, vendors, web-based collaboration, writing, by Daniel Christian

20 awesome BYOD and mobile learning apps — from edutopia.org by Vicki Davis; updated 2/4/16

Excerpt:

We have now been Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) for three years, and boy, do the students bring it. They bring it all! We have iPads, Surface, iPhones, Droids, Chromebooks, Macs, and PC laptops. Here’s my current thinking.

7 best Google apps and tools — from interestingengineering.com

Google Keep
Google Scholar
Gmailify
Google Lego
Google Mars
Google Developers
Google Sky

Chrome Music Lab

Excerpt:

Music is for everyone. So this year for Music In Our Schools month, we wanted to make learning music a bit more accessible to everyone by using technology that’s open to everyone: the web. Chrome Music Lab is a collection of experiments that let anyone, at any age, explore how music works. They’re collaborations between musicians and coders, all built with the freely available Web Audio API. These experiments are just a start. Check out each experiment to find open-source code you can use to build your own.

My challenge to you – 8 things all teachers should learn about #edtech — from ictevangelist.com by Mark Anderson

Excerpt:

I love the School Report scheme that the BBC run via Newsround. We all remember the Newsrounds of our youth. For me it was John Craven who made me watch it whenever it was on. It was this report I saw recently on eight things teachers should learn, which got me thinking about eight things I thought teachers should learn about edtech.

My work sees me regularly helping teachers learn different things related to the use of technology and so in this post, I’m going to talk about the eight things I think teachers should learn with #edtech to help support their use of technology to enhance learning in the classroom.

Mark mentions: Google, Padlet, Kahoot, Socrative, Camera, Microphone, Twitter, Videoconferencing software

Quiz accommodations for students in Canvas and Moodle — from thejournal.com by Emmett Dulaney03/16/16

Excerpt:

As we move toward interacting more with students who have an individualized education program (IEP) indicating that they need additional time on tests and quizzes or just need to deal with life issues, it is imperative that the learning management system (LMS) depended upon by an instructor and student alike be properly configured for such accommodations. Canvas and Moodle are currently two of the most popular learning management systems, and both offer the ability to make adjustments to quiz functions within the course without compromising the overall structure of the course. In this article, we will examine how to do so and offer some tips on situations where they are relevant.

Use these Chrome apps to unleash students’ creativity — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

[The] Chrome web store is packed full of all kinds of educational apps and extensions some of which are also integrated with Google Drive. For those of you looking for a handy resource of Chrome apps to use with students in class, check out this comprehensive chart. In today’s post we are sharing with you a collection of some practical Chrome extensions to unleash learners creativity. Using these resources, students will be able to engage in a number of creative literacy activities that will allow them to multimodally communicate their thoughts, share their ideas and develop new learning skills.

Integrating technology and literacy — from edutopia.org by Frank Ward

Excerpt:

How do you work technology into the pedagogy, instead of just using something cool? That task can be especially daunting in language arts literacy classrooms where reading and writing skill development is the crux of daily lessons. However, as 1:1 technology initiatives roll out, integrating technology into the classroom is our reality.

With hundreds of sites, apps, Chrome extensions, and platforms available, choosing the right ones can seem overwhelming. As an eighth-grade language arts teacher, I’ve experienced this myself. Following are four tools that can help provide immediate formative assessment data as well as top-of-the-rotation feedback to help students develop personal learning goals.

If, like my school, you’re in a “Chromebook District,” these suggested tools will work well because all integrate perfectly when you sign in with your Google ID, limiting the need for multiple passwords. This saves a lot of student confusion, too.

Teachers are using theater and dance to teach math — and it’s working — from washingtonpost.com by Moriah Balingit

Excerpt:

This giggly play session actually was a serious math lesson about big and small and non-standard measurements. Dreamed up by Richardson and kindergarten teacher Carol Hunt, it aims to get the children to think of animal steps as units of measurement, using them to mark how many it takes each animal to get from a starting line to the target.

Teachers call such melding of art and traditional subjects “art integration,” and it’s a new and increasingly popular way of bringing the arts into the classroom. Instead of art as a stand-alone subject, teachers are using dance, drama and the visual arts to teach a variety of academic subjects in a more engaging way.

Some older items include:

Tech Tip: Using Nearpod for math instruction — from smartblogs.com

Storytelling app a hit; launches a new chapter in transmedia — from blogs.vancouversun.com

Excerpt:

Paul Pattison and Luke Minaker knew they were onto something when they got an email from the mother of a nine-year-old who read the first instalment of their interactive story, Weirdwood Manor.

“She wrote that she couldn’t get her son to pick up a book,” said Pattison, technical director of All Play No Work, producer of the iPad app. “She got the app for her son and he went through it in two nights. He finished both books.

“And then because we don’t have book 3 out yet, unprompted by her he went over to the bookshelf and pulled off a paperback and started reading chapter books again.”

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Will more institutions of higher education join something like the new “University Learning Store?”

On 04/05/2016, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, business, career development, changing business models, collaboration, colleges, communications, community colleges, consortiums, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, distance education, elearning, experimentation, future of higher education, higher education, ideas, innovation, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, microlearning, new business models, online learning, platforms, professional development, technologies for your home, telepresence, television, United States, universities, workplace, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:

Will more institutions of higher education be joining/contributing courses to this type of University Learning Store? I’ve often wondered about the place of consortia in higher ed…perhaps this will be one of the ways that institutions pool their resources. (i.e., creating and contributing content, tapping into content that’s been aggregated)
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How will corporate training / L&D groups view his sort of development? Will it be helpful to them?
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Will the University Learning Store, like Lynda.com, continually expand the list of topics that they are offering/addressing?
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Will these types of efforts morph into what I’ve been calling Learning from the Living [Class] Room? (i.e., learning on demand across a lifetime; employing web-based learner profiles, cognitive computing, social networking/learning while offering the ability to instantly form or join communities of practice) Another way of asking this question is this: “As technology-enabled collaborations increase what’s possible, what’s to keep courses from being ported to tvOS-based apps for on demand learning?”

For example, fast forward a few years from the technologies found in “The Video Call Center” and one could imagine some powerful means of collaborating from one’s living room:

The Living [Class] Room -- by Daniel Christian -- July 2012 -- a second device used in conjunction with a Smart/Connected TV

Also see:

Micro-credentials offer universities an opportunity to bridge skill gaps — from centerdigitaled.com by Tanya Roscorla
By working with employers, universities can help students of all ages learn skills that industry leaders need.

Excerpt:

Higher education leaders are pondering how to make bite-sized, low-cost learning opportunities available to students in different ways.

Working adults who change jobs and careers frequently often don’t need to go through an entire degree program to learn different skills. However, they do need a flexible way to earn credentials that are recognized by employers and that demonstrate their ability to apply the skills they learn, said David Schejbal, dean of continuing education, outreach and e-learning at University of Wisconsin-Extension. University micro-credentials can help fill that role.

Six universities have been working with employers to find out what skills they need their employees to have, including the Georgia Institute of Technology, University of California Davis Extension, University of California Irvine Extension, University of Wisconsin-Extension, University of Washington and University of California, Los Angeles.

As a result of collaborating with industry, these universities created short courses and certification programs for the University Learning Store that launched last week. These courses fall into three categories: power skills, technical skills and career advancement skills. Power skills used to be called “soft skills” and include communication, collaboration and critical thinking.

Microsoft Build: the 10 most important announcements — from theverge.com by Ben Popper and Dieter Bohn
Here come the bots!

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Every year, Microsoft holds a developer event called “Build.” And recently, those events have gone from snoozers to exciting showcases. Microsoft has a winner with Windows 10 (as long as you ignore the phones), a robust personal assistant in Cortana (that works just fine on a laptop), and a wild holographic future to plan with HoloLens. It’s a lot to take in, and at this year’s Build Microsoft we got updates on all of it. And a few surprises.

Going in, we weren’t totally sure what would be coming next for Windows 10, but it turns out there’s a lot that Microsoft has planned. It’s not just that there are new apps, there are also new bots, which will help people handle all sorts of small tasks. In fact, those bots and Microsoft’s vision of how they should work stole the entire show. Windows, Xbox: you’re cool, but the future is bots.

Why Microsoft wants to help developers build bots — from pcworld.com by Blair Hanley Frank
Conversations are cross-platform and mobile, even when Windows 10 Mobile isn’t winning

Excerpt:

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is pushing developers to create virtual assistants and intelligent chatbots to help users do everything from managing their calendars to booking hotel reservations.

To that end, Microsoft has published a new Bot Framework, which makes it easier to build chatbots using either C# or Node.js. Working with the tools isn’t so easy that anyone could do it, but they can help reduce some of the difficulties of conversing with a computer.

It was one of the main announcements from Nadella’s keynote address at Microsoft’s Build developer conference Wednesday.

Also see:

Microsoft’s Build 2016 message: ‘we love Cortana’ (but should users?) — from thenextweb.com by Nate Swanner
Excerpt:
Build 2016 has one clear takeaway: Cortana is what matters, at least for now. At almost every product or service announcement at this morning’s keynote, Microsoft made a point to mention that it would also work with Cortana. At a deep dive event for press later in the day, Microsoft further highlighted its commitment to the digital assistant.
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Microsoft’s new Bot Framework will let anyone build assistants for their apps — thenextweb.com by Napier Lopez

From DSC:
Questions/relevance for those working higher ed:

Are Computer Science programs able to keep up with the pace of these Human Computer Interaction (HCI)-related changes? The changes in AI/cognitive computing? Are courses being created to address these new skills? These developments also impact those teaching about user experience design, application/product design, and more.
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How will such personal assistants be used by the students? By faculty members?

As Silicon Valley fights for talent, universities struggle to hold on to their [AI & robotics] stars [economist.com]

On 04/04/2016, in 21st century, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning / Deep Learning / Algorithms, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, data related items, Google, Microsoft, research, robotics, United States, universities, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Million-dollar babies — from economist.com by
As Silicon Valley fights for talent, universities struggle to hold on to their stars

Excerpt:

THAT a computer program can repeatedly beat the world champion at Go, a complex board game, is a coup for the fast-moving field of artificial intelligence (AI). Another high-stakes game, however, is taking place behind the scenes, as firms compete to hire the smartest AI experts. Technology giants, including Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Baidu, are racing to expand their AI activities. Last year they spent some $8.5 billion on deals, says Quid, a data firm. That was four times more than in 2010.

In the past universities employed the world’s best AI experts. Now tech firms are plundering departments of robotics and machine learning (where computers learn from data themselves) for the highest-flying faculty and students, luring them with big salaries similar to those fetched by professional athletes.

Experts in machine learning are most in demand. Big tech firms use it in many activities, from basic tasks such as spam-filtering and better targeting of online advertisements, to futuristic endeavours such as self-driving cars or scanning images to identify disease.

Also from The Economist, see:

Why firms are piling into artificial intelligence

Excerpt:

AI is already starting to generate big financial gains for companies, which helps explain firms’ growing investment in developing AI capabilities. Machine-learning, in which computers become smarter by processing large data-sets, currently has many profitable consumer-facing applications, including image recognition in photographs, spam filtering and those that help to better target advertisements to web surfers. Many of tech firms’ most ambitious projects, including building self-driving cars and designing virtual personal assistants that can understand and execute complex tasks, also rely on artificial intelligence, especially machine-learning and robotics. This has prompted tech firms to try to hire up as much of the top talent as they can from universities, where the best AI experts research and teach. Some worry about the potential of a brain drain from academia into the private sector.

The biggest concern, however, is that one firm corners the majority of the talent in artificial intelligence, creating an intellectual monopoly of sorts.

What will the bank of the future look like? [Hinrikus]

On 04/04/2016, in business, corporate / business world, future, game-changing environment, global / globalization, history, society, by Daniel Christian

Facing the future: “Everything about our financial services experience will change.”

What will the bank of the future look like? — from weforum.org by Taavet Hinrikus (formerly…as Skype’s first employee, Taavet helped build a company that has changed hundreds of millions of lives…so he knows how to ride these “waves.”)

Excerpt:

Lionel Barber, the editor of the FT, summed it up at Davos: “Nobody wants to be in banking, everyone wants to be in FinTech”. FinTech — or financial technology — has reached the mainstream, but what does this mean for the banks?

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is taking hold in banking. The rise of FinTech came about over the last five years primarily as the result of five key developments:

Loss of trust in the global financial crisis of 2008
Higher expecations
Rise of the Millennials
The rise of the mobile Internet
Regulation that truly looks after the rights of the consumer

…

Looking ahead to ten years’ time, the picture changes even more dramatically: 20% of consumers anticipate they will trust technology providers with all their financial service across the board from credit cards to mortgages.

Understood.org — resources for learning & attention issues

On 04/04/2016, in accessibility / UDL, attention, K-12 related, mathematics, parents/guardians, productivity / tips and tricks, reading, relationships, social learning / networks, special needs, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, technologies for your home, writing, youth, by Daniel Christian

understood.org

From DSC:
I’d like to thank Jenny Zeeff for the reminder on this resource. Though I’ve posted this item before, Jenny reminded me of this set of resources that might be very useful to someone else out there as well.

Interesting use of AR: Combining AR into 3D printing makes “animated physical models” [Relentless Designs]

On 04/04/2016, in 3D, A/V -- audio/visual, Augmented Reality (AR), design, emerging technologies, experimentation, ideas, innovation, tools, trends, user experience (UX), vendors, by Daniel Christian

From Relentless Designs LLC

Description:

Combining Augmented Reality into 3D Printing makes it “Animated Physical Models.” Combining new technology to grab the attention people will change the whole business meeting world.

Highlights:

Use of 3D models vs. static drawings on paper
Use of augmented reality to show things that aren’t really there…yet

Also see:

Relentless Designs add fourth augmented reality dimension to 3D printed models

Kids learn from podcasts, so why aren’t adults making more for them? [Hayes]

On 04/02/2016, in A/V -- audio/visual, digital audio, digital learning, podcasting, youth, by Daniel Christian

Where are all the Kidcasts? — from theatlantic.com by Stephanie Hayes
Kids learn from podcasts, so why aren’t adults making more for them?

Excerpt:

The obvious follow-up question is why? Podcasts for kids seem like such a no-brainer. Podcasts could offer a solution to kids overdosing on dreaded “screentime,” a way to entertain and educate kids without fear of burning their retinas or letting their imaginations go to ruin. Plus, they could fit seamlessly into existing routines, filling long car trips or down-time before bed.

“One argument we’ve heard is that kids won’t sit through podcasts if they’re not being engaged visually,” said Molly Bloom, one of the producers of the children’s podcast Brains On!, echoing a sentiment I heard many times while researching this article. “But kids are used to hearing stories all the time.”

A gorgeous, 300-year-old library, that has 200,000 rare books in it. Check it out!

On 04/01/2016, in Europe, history, learning spaces, library / librarians, by Daniel Christian

300-year-old library in Dublin featuring a hall filled by 200,000 rare books — from fubiz.net

Example pictures:

The final report of Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Online Education Policy Initiative presents findings from discussions among the members of the Institute-wide initiative supported by advice from the advisory group. The report reflects comments and responses received from many sources, including education experts, government education officials, and representatives of university organizations.

Our findings target four areas: interdisciplinary collaboration, online educational technologies, the profession of the learning engineer, and institutional and organizational change. Focused attention in these areas could significantly advance our understanding of the opportunities and challenges in transforming education.

Recommendation 1:
Increase Interdisciplinary Collaboration Across Fields of Research in Higher Education, Using an Integrated Research Agenda

Recommendation 2:
Promote Online as an Important Facilitator in Higher Education

Recommendation 3:
Support the Expanding Profession of the “Learning Engineer”

Recommendation 4:
Foster Institutional and Organizational Change in Higher Education to Implement These Reforms

Also see:
MIT releases online education policy initiative report — from news.mit.edu by Jessica Fujimori, April 1, 2016
New report draws on diverse fields to reflect on digital learning.

Excerpts:

A new MIT report on online education policy draws on diverse fields, from socioeconomics to cognitive science, to analyze the current state of higher education and consider how advances in learning science and online technology might shape its future.
…
Titled “Online Education: A Catalyst for Higher Education Reform,” the report presents four overarching recommendations, stressing the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, integration between online and traditional learning, a skilled workforce specializing in digital learning design, and high-level institutional and organizational change.
…
“There’s so much going on in online education, and it’s moving so quickly, that it’s important to take time to reflect,” says Eric Klopfer, a key participant in the initiative, who is a professor of education and directs the MIT Scheller Teacher Education Program. “One of the goals of the report is to try to help frame the discussion and to pull together some of the pieces of the conversation that are taking place in different arenas but are not necessarily considered in an integrated way,” Willcox says.

“We believe that there is a new category of professionals emerging from all this,” Sarma says. “We use the term ‘learning engineer,’ but maybe it’s going to be some other term — who knows?”

These “learning engineers” would have expertise in a discipline as well as in learning science and educational technologies, and would integrate knowledge across fields to design and optimize learning experiences.

“It’s important that this cadre of professionals get recognized as a valuable profession and provided with opportunities for advancement,” Willcox says. “Without people like this, we’re not going to make a transformation in education.”

Finally, the report recommends mechanisms to stimulate high-level institutional and organizational change to support the transformation of the industry, such as nurturing change agents and role models, and forming thinking communities to evaluate reform options.

“Policy makers and decision makers at institutions need to be proactive in thinking about this,” says Willcox. “There’s a lot to be learned by looking at industries that have seen this kind of transformation, particularly transformations brought on by digital technologies.”

Start your journey: Lynda.com introduces Learning Paths to help you stay ahead — from linkedin.com

Excerpt:

We all know that the knowledge and skills required to be successful in our jobs today is accelerating. This rate of change challenges all of us to stay ahead in our roles and sets a high bar for those looking to start or change their careers. Today we are introducing more than 50 new learning paths to help you stay ahead in your current job or if you’re looking to make a career pivot.

Learning paths are step-by-step structured courses, supported with quizzes, practice, and learning reminders to encourage you and support you as you make progress towards your goal. These new learning paths include how to become a Web Developer, a Manager, a Bookkeeper, a Project Manager, a Small Business Owner, a Digital Marketer, a Digital Illustrator. Check out the full list here.

Learning paths are also a great way to continue expanding on your existing skill set. If you’re embarking on a new career, you can take advantage of these learning paths to become more knowledgeable about the skills and experience needed to secure your dream job. If you’re a marketing manager who needs to quickly get up to speed on how to leverage social media for your job, you could take the digital marketing learning path to continue grooming and adding new skills.

We know that making the commitment to learn is incredibly tough; sticking with it can be even harder. To ensure your hard work gets noticed, you’ll receive a certification of completion at the end of a learning path that you can share with your professional network on LinkedIn. Whether you’re looking to transform your current career path, jump into a new career, or sharpen your skills in your current job, Lynda.com can be your guide.

These new learning paths will be available starting today in English around the world and we are working towards adding new paths for you to take. We look forward to hearing about your learning path stories.

Also see:

LinkedIn launches Lynda.com ‘Learning Paths’ in push to grow education business — from forbes.com by Kathleen Chaykowski

Excerpt:

On Thursday, the Mountain View, Calif.-based company launched more than 50 Lynda.com “Learning Paths,” a package of ordered courses intended to prepare users for a specific role or to update users’ skills for their current job. Some of the new “Learning Paths” include how to become a digital marketer, photographer, digital illustrator, small business owner, project manager, bookkeeper or web developer.

“Whether you’re looking to transform your current career path, jump into a new career, or sharpen your skills in your current job, Lynda.com can be your guide,” Arthur Nicholls, a senior product manager at LinkedIn said. ”We all know that the knowledge and skills required to be successful in our jobs today is accelerating. This rate of change challenges all of us to stay ahead in our roles and sets a high bar for those looking to start or change their careers.”

Fuller profiles on candidates’ skills and qualifications will also advance LinkedIn’s efforts in building an economic graph, a digital map of the skills, economic needs, jobs, companies and people around the world.

Learning Ecosystems

Way to go Sue Ellen! My sister was named as 1 of 3 Michigan Distinguished Professors of the Year!!!

Will more institutions of higher education join something like the new “University Learning Store?”

Bot, bots, & more bots! Microsoft Build 2016 — “Why Microsoft wants to help developers build bots”

What will the bank of the future look like? [Hinrikus]

Interesting use of AR: Combining AR into 3D printing makes “animated physical models” [Relentless Designs]

Kids learn from podcasts, so why aren’t adults making more for them? [Hayes]

A gorgeous, 300-year-old library, that has 200,000 rare books in it. Check it out!

New from MIT: “Online Education: A Catalyst for Higher Education Reforms”

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