Also see:
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Also see:
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On 09/02/2010,
in education, education reform, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, innovation,
by Daniel Christian
On 08/17/2010,
in 21st century, change, changing business models, curriculum, education reform, education technology, leadership, professional development,
by Daniel Christian
What do we need? — from weblogg-ed.com by Will Richardson
So I’m asking for a little crowdsourcing feedback for a chapter I’m writing. I’m trying to frame out all the things that ideally need to be in place for an existing school to make the transition to one that provides a more relevant learning experience for kids in the context of the social online technologies that are disrupting the current model. Call it School 2.0, a 21st Centuryized School, or something else, but I’m wondering what qualities or conditions should we be working toward in order to successfully make a transition like that?
Here’s what I’ve been thinking (in no particular order in terms of the big buckets):
From DSC:
Will provides a nice list of areas/items that need addressing…and asks for further feedback here.
On 08/17/2010,
in adjunct faculty, business side of he, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, education reform, faculty, higher education, leadership, liberal arts,
by Daniel Christian
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Two professors examine the American higher education system and explain how students and parents can get the most for their money.
Andrew Hacker
Professor of Political Science at Queens College, New York, and co-author of “Higher Education? How Colleges Are Wasting Our Money and Failing Our Kids – And What We Can Do About It”
Mark Taylor
Chair of the Department of Religion at Columbia University, professor of philosophy of religion at Union Theological Seminary, and professor emeritus of humanities at Williams College. His latest book is titled, “Crisis on Campus: A Bold Plan for Reforming our Colleges and Universities.”
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On 08/16/2010,
in dangers of the status quo, disruption, education, education reform, education technology, future, innovation, K-12 related, leadership, strategy,
by Daniel Christian
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Also see:
On 08/11/2010,
in education, education reform, education technology, elearning, emerging technologies, face-to-face, future, innovation, K-12 related, leadership, strategy, student teaching/teacher education,
by Daniel Christian
Ed-tech innovators share their vision for education — from eSchoolNews.com [via the Ubiquitous Learning Newsletter; see below]
Leaders in education technology offer their insights on the future of education in video interviews with eSN-TV
Ubiquitous Learning Journal, Volume 2, Number 4 now available
The final issue of Volume 2 of Ubiquitous Learning: An International Journal has now been published. Volume 2, Number 4 contains:
- Changes to the Information and Communication Technology Skills of Pre-Service Teachers Over Time by John Kenneth Hope and Anthony Neil Hunt.
- Sustaining Technological Innovation: Is it too Calm after the Storm? by Heather Hemming and Gregory MacKinnon.
- Involving Students in the Development and Evaluation of a Ubiquitous Learning Application for a Design Practice Setting by Lisa-Dionne Morris and Anthea Connolly.
- Dynamic Organizing and Evaluating Project-Based Collaborative Learning by Oleg Tilchin.
- Using a Customized Wiki for Classroom and Online Learning by Arthur Taylor.
- Learning Language, Content, and Collaboration through Group Projects by Paula Korsko, Kate Lyons and Carlos Guevara.
- The Use of Instructional Technology to Impact Student Retention and Attitudes in a College Level Geology Course by Michelle McMahon.
On 07/21/2010,
in 24x7x365 access, business, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, colleges, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, corporate / business world, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, disruption, education reform, education technology, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, face-to-face, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, innovation, leadership, learning ecosystem, lifelong learning, more voice more choice more control, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, online learning, online tutoring, open courseware and systems, pace of change, personalized/customized learning, strategy, teaching & learning, traditional / tradition, universities, using teams, workplace,
by Daniel Christian
From Spring 2010
…
From DSC:
If you are even remotely connected to higher education, then you *need* to read this one!
Most certainly, not everything that Thomas Frey says will take place…but I’ll bet you he’s right on a number of accounts. Whether he’s right or not, the potential scenarios he brings up ought to give us pause to reflect on ways to respond to these situations…on ways to spot and take advantage of the various opportunities that arise (which will only happen to those organizations who are alert and looking for them).
On 07/21/2010,
in education, education reform, engagement / engaging students, higher education, innovation, using teams, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning,
by Daniel Christian
..
On 07/12/2010,
in cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, education reform, future of higher education, game-changing environment, multimedia, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, using teams,
by Daniel Christian
Evaluating Part-Time Faculty — from Academic Impressions by Daniel Fusch
This fall, the US Department of Education is expected to release a report showing a further drop in the percentage of US faculty who are tenured or tenure-track (which as of 2007 had already dropped to 31%, down from 57% in 1975). This comes on the heels of a recent study published in the journal Educational Policy that showed lower persistence rates for freshmen who have many of their courses taught by adjuncts, prompting fresh debate over what the increased use of contingent faculty may mean for the quality of education.
From DSC:
I don’t mean to be critical or find fault here…but I do wonder how many resources are put into full-time faculty’s training and development in terms of helping them learn how to TEACH (vs. doing research, publishing their findings, etc.). Teaching is tough and is both a science and an art. Few can be good at everything.
Also, I think there is an emphasis on teaching at some institutions, but there may be more of an emphasis on publishing and doing research at other institutions.
For example, I went to Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. Currently, NU charges about $55,000 a year to go there. Does the student get top notch TEACHING? In many cases, I doubt it. The students may get subject matter experts (SME’s) who know their subject matter like the back of their hand or they make be taking a course from someone who has carved out a name for himself/herself in a particular discipline…but that doesn’t mean they know how to teach that material. Also, it doesn’t mean that many students will ever get to take a class from these folks, as they may be getting a grad student teaching some of their core courses…I know I did.
Also, this is all the more reason that teams of specialists will be/should be used to create and deliver content. You want the best SME’s you can get…but you need to back them up with the resources to create the best all-around product. You need the skillsets found in instructional designers, programmers, web designers, interaction designers, graphic designers, legal experts, etc. — the best that you can afford to create engaging, interactive, multimedia-based, personalized content.
You can bet that the “Forthcoming Walmart of Education” will get this right! And when they do, watch out. They will leave many institutions in their dust.
On 07/01/2010,
in education, education reform, K-12 related, sociology, student-related,
by Daniel Christian
Resource from Waiting for Superman: calling the education crisis — by Lars Hyland:
The people who brought us An Inconvenient Truth – raising awareness of the environmental challenges ahead of – have turned their attention to the US education system. The documentary ‘Waiting for “Superman”’ directed by Davis Guggenheim intends to pack some powerful punches about the state of the public school system while providing a call to action.
Below is a neat little animation that trails some of the desperate statistics underlying the problem that the film brings out…
…
From DSC:
Also relevant here is my posting entitled:
Unfortunately, the wastes continue — an analogy illustrating lost value/worth and a horrible cost to society
My vote? Allow students to pursue their passions. Minimize what students *have to* take and if they have to take something, it better be relevant and highly used throughout their lifetimes. For example, do today’s students really need to take calculus? How many of us use calculus in our daily jobs? Seriously.
On 06/23/2010,
in 21st century, education, education reform, education technology, game-changing environment, K-12 related, personalized/customized learning,
by Daniel Christian
Envisioning a World of Learning — from blog.futureofed.org by Katherine Prince
The launch of KnowledgeWorks’ new website has provided us with an occasion to articulate more precisely what we mean when we say that we want to transform education in the US from a world of schooling to a world of learning. Here’s an extract from it describing what we envision:
A world of learning
The vision emerging from our study of the future doesn’t much resemble the industrial-era world of schooling most of us know. Instead, we foresee a world of learning where:
- Education centers on the needs of learners, not those of institutions. Teaching is tailored to an individual student’s needs and abilities.
- Learners take charge of their education. Students and families seek out information and experiences from an array of sources rather than depending on schools to direct their learning.
- Children gain 21st-century knowledge and skills – how to make decisions, solve problems and create solutions – through hands-on experiences that cross subject areas and are connected to the real world.
- Success is judged through a wide array of measures that account for different learning styles and assess capabilities and progress, not simply acquisition of knowledge.
- All learners have easy access to technology and other tools that open doors to information and knowledge.
- Learners are supported in all parts of their lives, with physical, emotional and social health being nurtured alongside intellectual growth.
- Teachers are more than content specialists. The teaching profession diversifies to include such roles as learning coaches, classroom coordinators, cognitive specialists, resource managers and community liaisons.
- Learning isn’t limited to a physical place or time of day, but is mobile and constant, with wireless technologies allowing learning anywhere and anytime.