Sketchfab-June2016

 

 

Paper 53 is the ‘sketch-iPad’ you always wanted — from edtech4beginners.com

Excerpt:

Paper 53 is a brilliant app which combines drawings, notes, photos and sketches. It is available on the Appstore. The app is simple and user-friendly; just use your finger (or a stylus) to draw, paint, select colours, erase and lots more.

 

 

Google’s virtual reality field trips are available to everyone — from engadget.com by Jon Fingas
Students can also use Google Cast to share their screens across the classroom.

 

 

10 very good new educational web tools — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

Below is a collection of some new educational web tools and mobile apps to try out in your instruction.  The purpose is to keep you updated about the new releases in the EdTech world and empower you with the necessary technology to take your teaching and learning to the next level.  Some of the things you can do with these applications include: Learn English pronunciation from native speakers, easily save web content to Google, search YouTube without having to stop the video playing, learn basic math skills through challenging games and activities, unshare sent files in Gmail, create interactive and engaging videos by adding polls, short questions and quizzes, create beautiful presentations and animations  using drawn images and stick figures and many more.

 

 

Teaching with digital timelines — from Derek Bruff

Excerpt:

This year the Center for Teaching hosted a few educational technology working groups for faculty, staff, and students interested in exploring ways particular technologies might meet their instructional goals. One of the groups investigated the use of digital timeline tools, like Tiki-Toki and TimelineJS, that facilitate the creation of online, multimedia, interactive, and collaborative timelines. I had used such tools in my own teaching, having asked my 2010 writing seminar students to create a class timeline on the history of cryptography, and I was eager to talk with other instructors about the potential of student-produced timelines.

 

 

Top 5 AI virtual assistants: Now and into the future — from interestingengineering.com

Excerpt:

In Silicon Valley and elsewhere there’s currently an AI arms race going on. The first wave of this race is centered around artificial virtual assistants that are poised to become our new digital best friends in the very near future. While many people are familiar with Apple’s popular AI virtual assistant, Siri, there are four other main players in the AI virtual assistant space.

 

 

From DSC:
Twitter is also a tool that you should consider putting in your toolbox — or in your students’ toolboxes. Consider how it was used here –> This Henry VIII Twitter Account Is The Best Way To Learn About Brexit | @KngHnryVIII tells it like it is (and like how it was in the 1500s).

 

TwitterandKingHenryVIII-June2016

 

 

Heuristic Media is working on 37 apps, 1 for each Shakespeare play — with The Tempest as its pilot app.

 

TheTempest-IanM-Spring2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Addendum on 6/30/16:

 


 

 

 

From DSC:
Twitter is a tool that you should consider putting in your toolbox — or in your students’ toolboxes. Consider how it was used here –> This Henry VIII Twitter Account Is The Best Way To Learn About Brexit | @KngHnryVIII tells it like it is (and like how it was in the 1500s).

 

TwitterandKingHenryVIII-June2016

 

Stanford’s virtual reality lab cultivates empathy for the homeless — from kqed.org by Rachael Myrow

 

Excerpt:

The burgeoning field of Virtual Reality — or VR as it is commonly known — is a vehicle for telling stories through 360-degree visuals and sound that put you right in the middle of the action, be it at a crowded Syrian refugee camp, or inside the body of an 85-year-old with a bad hip and cataracts.  Because of VR’s immersive properties, some people describe the medium as “the ultimate empathy machine.” But can it make people care about something as fraught and multi-faceted as homelessness?

A study in progress at Stanford’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab explores that question, and I strapped on an Oculus Rift headset (one of the most popular devices people currently use to experience VR) to look for an answer.

A new way of understanding homelessness
The study, called Empathy at Scale, puts participants in a variety of scenes designed to help them imagine the experience of being homeless themselves.

 
 

We can do nothing to change the past, but we have enormous power to shape the future. Once we grasp that essential insight, we recognize our responsibility and capability for building our dreams of tomorrow and avoiding our nightmares.

–Edward Cornish

 


From DSC:
This posting represents Part VI in a series of such postings that illustrate how quickly things are moving (Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, and to ask:

  • How do we collectively start talking about the future that we want?
  • How do we go about creating our dreams, not our nightmares?
  • Most certainly, governments will be involved….but who else should be involved in these discussions? Shouldn’t each one of us participate in some way, shape, or form?

 

 

AIsWhiteGuyProblem-NYTimes-June2016

 

Artificial Intelligence’s White Guy Problem — from nytimes.com by Kate Crawford

Excerpt:

But this hand-wringing is a distraction from the very real problems with artificial intelligence today, which may already be exacerbating inequality in the workplace, at home and in our legal and judicial systems. Sexism, racism and other forms of discrimination are being built into the machine-learning algorithms that underlie the technology behind many “intelligent” systems that shape how we are categorized and advertised to.

If we look at how systems can be discriminatory now, we will be much better placed to design fairer artificial intelligence. But that requires far more accountability from the tech community. Governments and public institutions can do their part as well: As they invest in predictive technologies, they need to commit to fairness and due process.

 

 

Facebook is using artificial intelligence to categorize everything you write — from futurism.com

Excerpt:

Facebook has just revealed DeepText, a deep learning AI that will analyze everything you post or type and bring you closer to relevant content or Facebook services.

 

 

March of the machines — from economist.com
What history tells us about the future of artificial intelligence—and how society should respond

Excerpt:

EXPERTS warn that “the substitution of machinery for human labour” may “render the population redundant”. They worry that “the discovery of this mighty power” has come “before we knew how to employ it rightly”. Such fears are expressed today by those who worry that advances in artificial intelligence (AI) could destroy millions of jobs and pose a “Terminator”-style threat to humanity. But these are in fact the words of commentators discussing mechanisation and steam power two centuries ago. Back then the controversy over the dangers posed by machines was known as the “machinery question”. Now a very similar debate is under way.

After many false dawns, AI has made extraordinary progress in the past few years, thanks to a versatile technique called “deep learning”. Given enough data, large (or “deep”) neural networks, modelled on the brain’s architecture, can be trained to do all kinds of things. They power Google’s search engine, Facebook’s automatic photo tagging, Apple’s voice assistant, Amazon’s shopping recommendations and Tesla’s self-driving cars. But this rapid progress has also led to concerns about safety and job losses. Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk and others wonder whether AI could get out of control, precipitating a sci-fi conflict between people and machines. Others worry that AI will cause widespread unemployment, by automating cognitive tasks that could previously be done only by people. After 200 years, the machinery question is back. It needs to be answered.

 

As technology changes the skills needed for each profession, workers will have to adjust. That will mean making education and training flexible enough to teach new skills quickly and efficiently. It will require a greater emphasis on lifelong learning and on-the-job training, and wider use of online learning and video-game-style simulation. AI may itself help, by personalising computer-based learning and by identifying workers’ skills gaps and opportunities for retraining.

 

 

Backlash-Data-DefendantsFutures-June2016

 

In Wisconsin, a Backlash Against Using Data to Foretell Defendants’ Futures — from nytimes.com by Mitch Smith

Excerpt:

CHICAGO — When Eric L. Loomis was sentenced for eluding the police in La Crosse, Wis., the judge told him he presented a “high risk” to the community and handed down a six-year prison term.

The judge said he had arrived at his sentencing decision in part because of Mr. Loomis’s rating on the Compas assessment, a secret algorithm used in the Wisconsin justice system to calculate the likelihood that someone will commit another crime.

Compas is an algorithm developed by a private company, Northpointe Inc., that calculates the likelihood of someone committing another crime and suggests what kind of supervision a defendant should receive in prison. The results come from a survey of the defendant and information about his or her past conduct. Compas assessments are a data-driven complement to the written presentencing reports long compiled by law enforcement agencies.

 

 

Google Tackles Challenge of How to Build an Honest Robot — from bloomberg.com by

Excerpt:

Researchers at Alphabet Inc. unit Google, along with collaborators at Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley, and OpenAI — an artificial intelligence development company backed by Elon Musk — have some ideas about how to design robot minds that won’t lead to undesirable consequences for the people they serve. They published a technical paper Tuesday outlining their thinking.

The motivation for the research is the immense popularity of artificial intelligence, software that can learn about the world and act within it. Today’s AI systems let cars drive themselves, interpret speech spoken into phones, and devise trading strategies for the stock market. In the future, companies plan to use AI as personal assistants, first as software-based services like Apple Inc.’s Siri and the Google Assistant, and later as smart robots that can take actions for themselves.

But before giving smart machines the ability to make decisions, people need to make sure the goals of the robots are aligned with those of their human owners.

 

 

Policy paper | Data Science Ethical Framework — from gov.uk
From: Cabinet Office, Government Digital Service and The Rt Hon Matt Hancock MP
First published: 19 May 2016
Part of: Government transparency and accountability

This framework is intended to give civil servants guidance on conducting data science projects, and the confidence to innovate with data.

Detail: Data science provides huge opportunities for government. Harnessing new forms of data with increasingly powerful computer techniques increases operational efficiency, improves public services and provides insight for better policymaking. We want people in government to feel confident using data science techniques to innovate. This guidance is intended to bring together relevant laws and best practice, to give teams robust principles to work with. The publication is a first version that we are asking the public, experts, civil servants and other interested parties to help us perfect and iterate. This will include taking on evidence from a public dialogue on data science ethics. It was published on 19 May by the Minister for Cabinet Office, Matt Hancock. If you would like to help us iterate the framework, find out how to get in touch at the end of this blog.

 

 

 

WhatsNextForAI-June2016

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

We need to update the New Deal for the 21st century and establish a trainee program for the new jobs artificial intelligence will create. We need to retrain truck drivers and office assistants to create data analysts, trip optimizers and other professionals we don’t yet know we need. It would have been impossible for an antebellum farmer to imagine his son becoming an electrician, and it’s impossible to say what new jobs AI will create. But it’s clear that drastic measures are necessary if we want to transition from an industrial society to an age of intelligent machines.

The next step in achieving human-level ai is creating intelligent—but not autonomous—machines. The AI system in your car will get you safely home, but won’t choose another destination once you’ve gone inside. From there, we’ll add basic drives, along with emotions and moral values. If we create machines that learn as well as our brains do, it’s easy to imagine them inheriting human-like qualities—and flaws.

 

 

DARPA to Build “Virtual Data Scientist” Assistants Through A.I. — from inverse.com by William Hoffman
A.I. will make up for the lack of data scientists.

Excerpt:

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced on Friday the launch of Data-Driven Discovery of Models (D3M), which aim to help non-experts bridge what it calls the “data-science expertise gap” by allowing artificial assistants to help people with machine learning. DARPA calls it a “virtual data scientist” assistant.

This software is doubly important because there’s a lack of data scientists right now and a greater demand than ever for more data-driven solutions. DARPA says experts project 2016 deficits of 140,000 to 190,000 data scientists worldwide, and increasing shortfalls in coming years.

 

 

Robot that chooses to inflict pain sparks debate about AI systems — from interestingengineering.com by Maverick Baker

Excerpt:

A robot built by roboticist Alexander Reben from the University of Berkeley, California has the ability to decide using AI whether or not to inflict pain.

The robot aims to spark a debate on if an AI system can get out of control, reminiscent of the terminator. The robot design is incredibly simple, designed to serve only one purpose; to decide whether or not to inflict pain. The robot was engineered by Alexander Reben of the University of Berkeley and was published in a scientific journal aimed to spark a debate on whether or not artificial intelligent robots can get out of hand if given the opportunity.

 

 

The NSA wants to spy on the Internet of Things. Everything from thermostats to pacemakers could be mined for intelligence data. — from engadget.com by Andrew Dalton

Excerpt:

We already know the National Security Agency is all up in our data, but the agency is reportedly looking into how it can gather even more foreign intelligence information from internet-connected devices ranging from thermostats to pacemakers. Speaking at a military technology conference in Washington D.C. on Friday, NSA deputy director Richard Ledgett said the agency is “looking at it sort of theoretically from a research point of view right now.” The Intercept reports Ledgett was quick to point out that there are easier ways to keep track of terrorists and spies than to tap into any medical devices they might have, but did confirm that it was an area of interest.

 

 

The latest tool in the NSA’s toolbox? The Internet of Things — from digitaltrends.com by Lulu Chang

Excerpt:

You may love being able to set your thermostat from your car miles before you reach your house, but be warned — the NSA probably loves it too. On Friday, the National Security Agency — you know, the federal organization known for wiretapping and listening it on U.S. citizens’ conversations — told an audience at Washington’s Newseum that it’s looking into using the Internet of Things and other connected devices to keep tabs on individuals.

 


Addendum on 6/29/16:

 

Addendums on 6/30/16

 

Addendum on 7/1/16

  • Humans are willing to trust chatbots with some of their most sensitive information — from businessinsider.com by Sam Shead
    Excerpt:
    A study has found that people are inclined to trust chatbots with sensitive information and that they are open to receiving advice from these AI services. The “Humanity in the Machine” report —published by media agency Mindshare UK on Thursday — urges brands to engage with customers through chatbots, which can be defined as artificial intelligence programmes that conduct conversations with humans through chat interfaces.

 

 

 

 

How chatbots and deep learning will change the future of organizations — from forbes.com by Daniel Newman

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Don’t let the fun, casual name mislead you. Chatbots—software that you can “chat with”—have serious implications for the business world. Though many businesses have already considered their use for customer service purposes, a chatbot’s internal applications could be invaluable on a larger scale. For instance, chatbots could help employees break down siloes and provide targeted data to fuel every department. This digital transformation is happening, even in organizational structures that face challenges with other formats of real-time communication.

Still unclear on what chatbots are and what they do? Think of a digital assistant—such as iPhone’s Siri or Alexa, the Artificial Intelligence within the Amazon Echo. A chatbot reduces or eliminates the need for many mobile apps, as the answers are stored inside the chatbot. Need to know what the weather’s like in LA? Ask your chatbot. Is your flight running on time? Ask your chatbot. Is the package you ordered going to be delivered while you’re away? You get the gist.

 

From DSC:
How might institutions of higher education as well as K-12 school districts benefit from such internal applications of chatbots? How about external applications of chatbots? If done well, such applications could facilitate solid customer service (i.e., self-service knowledgebases) and aid in communications.

 

 

Hold Tight: The Chatbot Era Has Begun — from chatbotsmagazine.com by
Chatbots: What they are, and why they’re so important for businesses

Excerpt:

Imagine being able to have your own personal assistant at your fingertips, who you can chat with, give instructions and errands to, and handle the majority of your online research — both personally and professionally.

That’s essentially what a chatbot does.

Capable of being installed on any messenger platform, such as Facebook messenger or text messages, a chat bot is a basic artificial intelligence computer software program that does the legwork for you — and communicates in a way that feels like an intelligent conversation over text or voice messaging.

 

 

 

Once-in-a-decade paradigm shift: Messaging — from chatbotsmagazine.com by Beerud Sheth
In the history of the personal computing industry, we have had a paradigm shift about once every decade.

 

Bots-ChatbotMagazine-June2016

 

 

 

 

Smart assistants and chatbots will be top consumer applications for AI over next 5 years, poll says — from venturebeat.com by Blaise Zerega

Excerpt:

Virtual agents and chatbots will be the top consumer applications of artificial intelligence over the next five years, according to a consensus poll released today by TechEmergence, a marketing research firm for AI and machine learning.

The emphasis on virtual agents and chatbots is in many ways not surprising. After all, the tech industry’s 800-pound gorillas have all made big bets: Apple with Siri, Amazon with Alexa, Facebook with M and Messenger, Google with Google Assistant, Microsoft with Cortana and Tay. However, the poll’s data also suggests that chatbots may soon be viewed as a horizontal enabling technology for many industries.

 

From DSC:
Might this eventually affect students’ expectations? Blackboard’s partnership with IBM and Amazon may come into play here.

 

 

Some like it bot: Why chatbots could be the start of something big — from business.sprint.com
Chatbots are on the rise. With Google, Facebook and Microsoft competing to be the caring voice your customers turn to, what does this mean for your enterprise?

Excerpt:

The most prevalent indicator that the artificial intelligence-driven future is rapidly  becoming reality is the rise of the chatbot – an  A.I. software program designed to chat with people. Well, more accurately, the re-emergence of the bot. Basically, robots talking to humans talking to robots is the tech vision for the future.

 

Maybe one of the most obvious uses for this technology would be in service. If you can incorporate your self-service knowledge base into a bot that responds directly to questions and uses customer data to provide the most relevant answers, it’s more convenient for customers…

 

 

Chatbot lawyer overturns 160,000 parking tickets in London and New York — from theguardian.com by Samuel Gibbs
Free service DoNotPay helps appeal over $4m in parking fines in just 21 months, but is just the tip of the legal AI iceberg for its 19-year-old creator

Excerpt:

An artificial-intelligence lawyer chatbot has successfully contested 160,000 parking tickets across London and New York for free, showing that chatbots can actually be useful.

Dubbed as “the world’s first robot lawyer” by its 19-year-old creator, London-born second-year Stanford University student Joshua Browder, DoNotPay helps users contest parking tickets in an easy to use chat-like interface.

 

 

 


 

Addendum on 6/29/16:

A New Chatbot Would Like to Help You With Your Bank Account — from wired.com by Cade Metz

Excerpt:

People in Asia are already using MyKai, and beginning today, you can too. Because it’s focused on banking—and banking alone—it works pretty well. But it’s also flawed. And it’s a bit weird. Unsettling, even. All of which makes it a great way of deconstructing the tech world’s ever growing obsession with “chatbots.”

MyKai is remarkably adept at understanding what I’m asking—and that’s largely because it’s focused solely on banking. When I ask “How much money do I have?” or “How much did I spend on food in May?,” it understands. But when I ask who won the Spain-Italy match at Euro 2016, it suggests I take another tack. The thing to realize about today’s chatbots is that they can be reasonably effective if they’ve honed to a particular task—and that they break down if the scope gets to wide.

 

Blackboard Partners with IBM and Amazon Web Services (AWS) – North America Customer Announcement

Date Published: Jun 27,2016
Product: Collaborate, ANGEL, Learn, CE/Vista, Xythos, Moodlerooms, Analytics, Open Content
Article No.: 000042385

Announcement Details:
We are excited to share some news with you about Blackboard’s new partnership with IBM and Amazon Web Services (AWS) which will have far-reaching and lasting impacts for the education technology industry.  This communication will provide details on how this will benefit our customers and other business partners.

This partnership will enable us to accelerate our focus on developing innovative educational products and services that serve the needs of our customers. And it will open the door for us to develop novel solutions benefiting the education ecosystem.  There are two parts to this partnership that will benefit you:

Selection of AWS as our strategic cloud platform and partnership with IBM for operations and infrastructure management

We will partner with IBM in the operations and infrastructure management of Blackboard’s data centers.  We have also selected AWS as our cloud services provider and entered into an agreement with IBM to manage our cloud services environments. This partnership will enable Blackboard to focus on what we do best – developing innovative educational products and services – while relying on the world-class data hosting and operational capabilities of IBM and AWS.

This partnership does not affect our Transact customers.

This partnership offers customers many benefits. It will enable us to accelerate our focus on developing innovative educational products and services that serve the needs of our customers. Furthermore, we will leverage IBM’s experience, scale, and tools with the goal of  delivering the highest quality of service possible to our customers. This includes stringent service level agreements intended to ensure that Blackboard customers receive the most reliable and resilient hosting services available in the marketplace.  In addition, this partnership allows for enhanced technical, organizational and physical security measures to safeguard Blackboard customer data.  We will also leverage the power of the AWS ecosystem to accelerate product development and deployment; further improving customer experience in the future.

Our relationship with Amazon and IBM is integrated. There are no gaps in accountability for delivering reliable services to our clients.  And its backed by a comprehensive and robust set of service level commitments to deliver highly available and responsive services for you.

Exclusive partnership to co-develop cognitive education solutions utilizing Watson

Blackboard and IBM have entered into an exclusive agreement to develop cognitive educational solutions for the K-12 and higher education markets.  The partnership will combine Blackboard’s expertise in developing innovative education products in use by millions around the world, with the power of IBM Watson’s cognitive computing technology to create exclusive solutions to address some of the most pressing problems in education.

IBM Watson is a technology platform that uses natural language processing and machine learning to reveal insights from large amounts of unstructured data. In short, it can help to ‘hyper personalize’ the educational experience.

To sum it up, we’re tremendously excited about partnering with IBM and Amazon to deliver extraordinary capability to our customers. And we’re excited by what’s on the horizon for Blackboard and our customers as we continue to focus on delivering innovative products that address some of the most pressing challenges in education.

To learn more about our partnership, check out our press release on Blackboard.com. We’ll also provide further details in the weeks ahead through webinars and at BbWorld.

 


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)


1.  Why did Blackboard select IBM and AWS as their partners?
We spent considerable time selecting our partners, and we’re confident in what both IBM and Amazon will deliver for our customers. IBM is one of the world’s top infrastructure management organizations, and is uniquely positioned because of its experience and work in the education space. AWS is the clear leader in cloud services, with the largest global cloud infrastructure footprint, the most well-developed ecosystem, tremendous momentum and rate of innovation.Both companies share our values and dedication to maintaining the privacy of customer data, and both have invested heavily in world-class security programs to keep your data safe in accordance with global standards and regulations.

2.  Will the partnership extend to infrastructure provision and management for Blackboard’s Transact customers?
No.  Transact will continue to operate as today with no changes.

3.  How can I learn more about this partnership between Blackboard and IBM and the benefits to me?
In order to provide you with an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about this partnership and how it will benefit you, we have planned for several sessions at BbWorld, and have scheduled a series of customer webinars.  BbWorld is scheduled for July 12-14 and the webinars will be scheduled  in July and August.

4.  Will this change in responsibility affect who I call if I have a question or issue?
No.  Your support will continue to be handled by the same Blackboard team that exists today.

5.  Will I see any changes as a result of the partnership?  Yes.  We expect that you will see operational improvements starting in the 3-6 month timeframe.  These include improved system availability and accelerated response time to issues.

6.  What does this mean for Security and Privacy?
IBM and AWS share our focus on providing highly secure environments and experiences. This partnership will provide an enhanced data security program and robust technical, organizational and physical security measures to protect customer data, including student data.  Further, our agreement with IBM and AWS contains detailed provisions intended to safeguard data in North American markets in specific consideration of applicable privacy laws and regulations.   These provisions include geographic restrictions on the location and transfer of customer data, and encryption standards, to comply with applicable law.

7.  Does this partnership mean that I will need to move out of my existing Learn hosted environment?
No.  While in time many customers are planning to transition their Learn deployment to our cloud environment, customers who are currently running Learn 9.1 in our managed hosting datacenters will not be required to move.

8.  What about other Blackboard applications besides Learn?
Many other Blackboard applications are already delivered in a software-as-a-service model using Blackboard-managed datacenters. Over the coming years, IBM and Blackboard will work together to move these applications from Blackboard datacenters to AWS. Any migration plan will be developed in full consideration of giving customers an uninterrupted service and user experience.

9.  What about the current SaaS deployment for Blackboard Learn?
There is no impact.  Learn SaaS already runs on AWS.

10.  What is IBM Watson?
IBM Watson is a technology platform that uses natural language processing and machine learning to reveal insights from large amounts of unstructured data. In short, it can help to ‘hyper personalize’ the educational experience.

Watson gained a level of fame in 2011 when the team put their technology up against two of Jeopardy’s greatest champions in the history of the game. It was an exciting two-day match that resulted in Watson beating out the competition – not just from right answers, but also from using the right strategy for wagers to win the game.

See how Watson beat the Jeopardy leaders in this short video.

How does Watson work? Watch this educational video.

11.  Are there any definitive plans for the cognitive education solutions developed with Watson that I need to plan for at my institution?
We are in the early stages of this relationship. Blackboard and the Watson Education team are starting the process of scoping out the solutions that will bring the most value to K-12 and higher education.  We plan to communicate our progress and solicit your input as we move forward.

12.  What if I have more questions about this partnership?
There are three ways you can get answers to your questions:

  • Attend one of the multiple sessions planned for BbWorld.
  • Attend one of the online webinars will be schedule in the coming weeks.
  • Contact your Account Executive or Customer Success Advocate.

 


Addendum on 6/29/16:

  • Blackboard Inc. and IBM Enter Strategic Relationship to Develop Cognitive Solutions and Manage Infrastructure Operations
    Excerpt:
    IBM and Blackboard will work collaboratively to develop cognitive educational solutions utilizing the capabilities of both companies to advance learner success. The companies will combine Blackboard’s expertise in developing innovative education products used by millions of people around the world with the power of IBM Watson’s cognitive computing technology. The new solutions will offer greater support for teachers and students to address their collaborative needs in the classroom and help students complete and achieve their educational goals.

 

 

ISTE 2016 Monday highlights: Monarch to newspapers, Soundtrap teams up with Google, and Google releases Google Cast — from jeadigitalmedia.org

 

ISTE 2016: Michio Kaku says education needs a revolution — from by Jena Passut
The theoretical physicist says a fourth wave of technology is about to begin, and educators must prepare students to thrive in the new landscape.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

There have been three major waves of technology: steam power and locomotive, electricity and automobile, and high tech, Kaku said. We are about to enter a fourth wave — biotechnology, nanotechnology and artificial intelligence — that will drive the economy, he said.

How should educators respond when computers become part of the wallpaper and Internet-enabled contact lenses make information accessible at the blink of an eye?

 

“I don’t just want my students to learn,” she said. “I want them to want to learn.”

— Kerry Gallagher

 

ISTE and Microsoft collaborate to provide new school planning and professional learning resources — from iste.org
ISTE and Microsoft collaborate to provide new school planning and professional learning resources; multi-project initiative to include first of its kind blueprint for school transformation, leadership courses, school development tools.

Excerpt:

DENVER -June 26, 2016 -At today’s ISTE 2016 opening general session, the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®) and Microsoft Corp. announced they plan to combine and expand a host of their world-class initiatives to ensure educators and school leaders around the world have access to school planning and professional development resources. This collaboration stems from a shared belief that technology has the power to transform learning, and can do so most effectively when it’s embedded in how a school or educator thinks about and drives new learning opportunities.

 

Innovation is more than creating new things — iste.org

 

8 questions to ask before creating a makerspace — iste.org

 

Amazon unveils online education service for teachers — from nytimes.com by Natasha Singer

 

 

 

 

A dozen classic tools in the futurist’s toolbox — from foresightr.com

Excerpt:

In addition to those new tools, however,they still rely on more traditional ones, which are their versions of wrenches and ratchets. Here’s a quick outline the more popular methodologies, listed alphabetically:

  1. Backcasting
  2. Causal layered analysis
  3. Delphi surveys
  4. Environmental scanning and monitoring
  5. Forecasting
  6. Futures wheel
  7. Polling
  8. Gaming
  9. Modeling and simulations
  10. Scenario planning
  11. Trend analysis
  12. Visioning

 

From DSC:
K-20 students need to know about these things!  MBA’s should definitely be required to take courses on futurism. Speaking of such courses, we need more courses that focus on futurism and on helping students develop these kinds of skills. Given the pace of technological change and the level of disruption that can occur these days, these sorts of tools in one’s toolbox can come in very handy indeed.

 

 

 

A theme park inspired by Noah’s Ark to open this summer [in Williamstown, Kentucky, USA] — from aleteia.org by Daniel Esparza
“Ark Encounter” in Kentucky will feature a reproduction of the biblical ark

 



Excerpt:

Williamstown, Kentucky, 30 miles south of Cincinnati, is home to Ark Encounter, a theme park whose main attraction is a reproduction, literally of biblical proportions, of the very famous Noah’s ark.

Being 510 feet long (or 300 cubits, strictly following the biblical description of the legendary ship), the ark is already the biggest timber-framed structure in the United States. Actually, its total surface area rises up to 120,000 square feet; that makes it just over twice as large as the White House, and longer than three space shuttles laid end to end — so, yes, you can bet Noah indeed had room for a pair of each animal.

 

 

 

ArkEncounter-June2016

 

 

 

NoahsArk-NYTimes-June2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

ArkOfNoah-June2016

 

 

Also see:

CreationMuseum-June2016

 

 

 

Amazon unveils online education service for teachers — from nytimes.com by Natasha Singer

Excerpt:

Just ahead of the back-to-school season, Amazon is making a major foray into the education technology market for primary and secondary schools, a territory that Apple, Google and Microsoft have heavily staked out.

On Monday morning, Amazon said that it would introduce an online marketplace with tens of thousands of free lesson plans, worksheets and other instructional materials for teachers in late August or early September.

Called Amazon Inspire, the education site has features that may seem quite familiar to frequent Amazon shoppers. Search bar at the top of the page? Check. User reviews? Check. Star ratings for each product? Check.

 

AmazonInspire-6-27-16

 

 

The top 10 companies working on education in virtual reality & augmented reality — from touchstoneresearch.com by Drew Lewis

Excerpt:

Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are new technologies which have been making all kinds of waves recently; but VR and AR are not only going to be used for gaming, several companies are exploring applications for VR and AR to be used in education. Around 90% of what we see and do is retained, which is something that has always been missing from education; students do not retain as much information if they are just reading a textbook compared to having more real applications of what they’re learning. Which is why VR and AR in education are so beneficial; these technologies engage students in a completely new way which is more fun and engaging for them, and it increases retention. Several companies are currently working on innovations in this space; and the work we’ve seen so far is surely a good sign of things to come.

 

 

 

 

12,000 incarcerated students to enroll in postsecondary educational and training programs through Education Department’s new Second Chance Pell Pilot Program — from ed.gov
Partnerships between postsecondary and penal institutions allow incarcerated individuals to access Pell grants for correctional education

Excerpt:

The Department of Education announced today 67 colleges and universities selected to participate in the new Second Chance Pell pilot program, an experiment announced in July 2015 to test whether participation in high quality education programs increases after expanding access to financial aid for incarcerated individuals. The pilot program will allow eligible incarcerated Americans to receive Pell Grants and pursue postsecondary education with the goal of helping them get jobs and support their families when they are released. Today’s announcement builds on the Obama Administration’s commitment to create a fairer and more effective criminal justice system, reduce recidivism, and combat the impact of mass incarceration on families and communities through educational opportunity.

 

Some relatively recent additions to the education landscape include:


 

GoogleUdacity-CodingJuly2016

 

 

treehouse-2016

 

 

Teachable-June2016

 

 

FutureLeague-2016

 

 

StackSocial-July2016

 

 

Skillshare-July2016

 

 

CenterCentre-June2016

 

 

IBMCourseraGitHub-Courses-June2016

 

 

AmazonVideoDirect-June2016

 

 

Also see:

 

MillennialsPursuingOtherOptions-Selingo-May2016

 

 

Taking competency-based credentials seriously in the workforce — from campustechnology.com by John K. Waters
Companies like AT&T and Google are expanding their partnerships with online education providers, creating new educational pathways to real jobs.

Excerpt:

But in the Age of the Internet, for-profit online education providers such as Udacity and Coursera have tweaked that model by collaborating with companies to develop programs tailored to their specific needs.

Together the two companies created the Front-End Web Developer Nanodegree program, Udacity’s first branded microcredential. (“Nanodegree” is trademarked.)

“We worked with Udacity to develop curriculum based on tangible hiring and training needs,” said John Palmer, senior vice president and chief learning officer at AT&T, in an e-mail. “Our teams collaborated on determining what skills we needed now to address the needs of our business, but also what skills would be needed five to 10 years from now — not just at AT&T, but at other tech companies.”

 

 

uCertify

uCertify-june2016

 

 

Also related:

  • Students and higher ed leaders put their faith in online classes [#Infographic] — from edtechmagazine.com by Meg Conlan
    As a growing number of students enroll in nontraditional college classes, the value of online education becomes more clear.
    Excerpt:
    As cost-effective alternatives to traditional college classes, online learning programs continue to gain steam in higher ed.
    According to statistics gathered for an Online Learning Consortium infographic, 5.8 million students are now enrolled in online courses, and the majority put tremendous stock in the quality of their education: 90 percent of students say their online learning experiences are the same or better than in-classroom options.College and university leadership agrees: The infographic states that 71 percent of academic leaders say learning outcomes for online courses are the same or better than that of face-to-face classes.

 

OnlineLearningAlternativesGrowing-June2016

 

 

 


Related postings:


Acquisitions, mergers and reinvention (not closures) will characterize higher ed’s future — from evolllution.com; an interview with Kenneth Hartman | Past President of Drexel University Online, Drexel University

Excerpts:

We’re going to see a lot of different alternative options popping up at alternative prices with alternative delivery mechanisms offering alternative credentials in the future. I don’t think a lot of institutions will be shutting down. There will be some that close, but it’s more likely that their assets will be acquired by other, stronger institutions.

These types of programs are popping up all over the country and I think the market forces tell a story. Colleges that are able to be adaptable and flexible will be the leaders in this new higher education marketplace. Adaptability, vision and flexibility are going to be critical for schools that are not heavily-endowed. If they do not have the will to do that then I think unfortunately Christensen’s prediction will probably come true. However, I’m optimistic that when the pain gets high enough, trustees of these institutions will demand that their senior leadership provide them with the way to prevent closure.

 

What a Microsoft-owned LinkedIn means for education — from campustechnology.com by Dian Schaffhauser

Excerpt:

Ironically, he suggested, higher ed is also the most vulnerable target of LinkedIn as it continues to work on development of a competency marketplace that could one day replace four-year degrees as the baseline requirement for employment.

The vision of this competency marketplace is that employers can identify candidates who are close matches for positions based on the competencies their jobs require. Likewise, job candidates can get information from LinkedIn about what competencies a given position requires and pursue that through some form of training, whether through a class at a local college, a bootcamp, online learning or some other form of instruction.

“The signal for universities that the world is about to change is when employers begin to drop degree requirements from job descriptions,” said Craig. And by the way, he added, that’s already happening at recognizable companies such as Google, Penguin Random House, EY and PwC, which have either eliminated that requirement from entry-level job descriptions or begun masking a candidate’s degree status from hiring managers because they “think the degrees are actually false or poor or misleading signals of ultimate job performance.”

Not only does LinkedIn have by far the largest collection of candidate profiles, but it has become the leading platform for distributing microcredentials, said Craig.

 

“You can identify education and training opportunities to remediate gaps between where you are and what the job description says you need to have to qualify. So all the pieces are there,” he said. “Currently, it’s still early, but you can see where this is going. We think that is the story of the next decade in higher education.”

 

 

12 promising non-traditional college pathways to attainment — from eddesignlab.org

Excerpt:

We hear a lot about reinventing college and how we might better design the journey from school to work. Some students want faster or more experiential pathways to prosperity, re-entry points after stop-outs or opportunities for lifelong learning. “Non-traditional pathways” is a phrase you’ll hear a lot if you hang around policy and design folks who are thinking about broadening “attainment of degrees” to include meaningful credentials that lead to career readiness. This broader college success definition is not a cop out—it’s a recognition that technology, access to micro-credentials, and access to modular learning generally are blurring the lines between vocational training, liberal arts exploration, and 21st century skill building because, increasingly, students are in a position to order all these off the menu.

Lumina Foundation strategists Holly Zanville and Amber Garrison Duncan are in the thick of these designs, and the Lab caught up with them recently to help us build a list of the most promising ways that institutions, students, and third parties are piecing together non-traditional paths to meaningful credentials. Here’s a take on our “Top 12,” but we welcome your tweaks, additions, and favorite examples.

 

Top-ranked coding bootcamp, Fullstack Academy, launches first alumni startup investment fund — from prnewswire.com
Will provide seed funding for its graduates to launch their own startups

Excerpt:

NEW YORK, June 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Fullstack Academy, the Y Combinator-backed top coding bootcamp in the U.S.,  today announced  Fullstack Fund, a new initiative to invest in promising startups created by its graduates.  “Students who complete our software engineering program go on to work for great companies like Google and Amazon, but some have opted for the entrepreneurial startup environment,” said David Yang, CEO and co-founder of Fullstack Academy. “So we asked ourselves — how can we better support alumni with a strong entrepreneurial slant? The Fullstack Fund  will empower some of the amazing teams and products that are coming out of our school.”

 

 

 


 

Addendum on 6/27/16:

 


 

Addendum on 6/30/16:

 

Noodle-June2016

 

Uncollege-June2016

 

CodingDojo-June2016

 

And a somewhat related posting:

More than 90% of institutions offer alternative credentials — from campustechnology.com by Sri Ravipati
The same study to report this statistic also found that millennial students prefer badging and certificates to traditional degrees.

Excerpt:

Millennial students seem to prefer badging and certificate programs to traditional bachelor’s degrees, according to a new study from University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA), Pennsylvania State University and Pearson that explored the role that alternative credentials play in higher education.

Demographic Shifts in Educational Demand and the Rise of Alternative Credentials” includes responses from 190 institutions, including community colleges (11 percent), baccalaureate colleges (12 percent), master’s colleges or universities (27 percent) and doctorate-granting universities (50 percent). Of the 190 institutions surveyed, 61 percent were public entities. Across the board, research revealed that programs offering alternative credentialing have become widespread in higher education, with 94 percent of the institutions reporting they offer alternative credentials. Alternative credentials can take the form of digital badges, certificates and micro-credentials.

 

 

 


 

Addendum on 7/11/16:

A model for higher education where all learning counts — from marketplace.org by Amy Scott

Excerpt:

Imagine it’s 2026, and you’re one of a billion people using a new digital platform called the Ledger.

So begins a new video from the Institute for the Future and ACT Foundation, envisioning a future system that would reward any kind of learning – from taking a course, to reading a book, to completing a project at work.

“Your Ledger account tracks everything you’ve ever learned in units called Edublocks,” the video’s narrator explains. “Each Edublock represents one hour of learning in a particular subject. Anyone can grant Edublocks to anyone else.”

The Ledger would use the same technology that powers bitcoin, the virtual currency, to create a verifiable record of every learning transaction, said Jane McGonigal, director of game research and development at the Institute for the Future, a think tank in Palo Alto, California.

 

What the bot revolution could mean for online learning — from huffingtonpost.com by Daily Bits Of

Excerpt:

We’re embracing the bot revolution
With these limitations in mind, we embrace the bot movement. In short, having our bite-sized courses delivered via messaging platforms will open up a lot of new benefits for our users.

  1. The courses will become social.
  2. It will become easier to consume a course via a channel that fits best for the course.
  3. The courses will become more interactive.
  4. Bots will remove some of the friction

 

 

The future of online learning will happen via messaging services.

 

 

 

 


 

Also relevant here:

 

WatsonTrainPreSchoolers-June2016

 

 

From DSC:
By posting such items, I’m not advocating that we remove teachers, professors, trainers, coaches, etc. from the education/training equations.  Rather, I am advocating that we use technology as tools for educating and training people — and using technologies to help people of all ages grow, and reinvent themselves when necessary.  Such tools should be used to help our overworked teachers, professors, trainers, etc. of the world in delivering excellent, effective elearning experiences for our students/employees.

 

 

 

 
© 2024 | Daniel Christian