Excerpt:
What’s our agenda? It’s basically in three parts:
Also see:
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iPad-crazed toddlers spur holiday sales — from bloomberg.com by Adam Satariano and Katie Linsell
From DSC:
From DSC: Expectations, today, are getting hard to beat
Since Apple’s event yesterday, I’ve heard some conversations on the radio and reviewed several blog postings and articles about Apple’s announcements…many with a sense of let down (and some with the usual critical viewpoints by the backseat drivers out there who have never tried to invent anything, but who sure like to find fault with everyone else’s inventions and innovations).
It made me reflect on how high our expectations are becoming these days! It wasn’t enough that iCloud is coming on 10/12 (and who knows the directions that will take society in). It wasn’t enough to introduce some serious software-based innovations such as Siri (which bring some significant advancements in the world of artificial intelligence) or AirPlay for the iPhone. It wasn’t enough to enter into the multi-billion dollar card industry with their new Cards app for the iPhone. Wow…tough crowd.
What might these announcements — and expectations — mean for education?
Well…I can see intelligent tutoring, intelligent agents, machine-to-machine communications, the continued growth of mobile learning, learning from the living room, the initiation of programs/events caused by changes in one’s location, continued convergence of the television/computer/telephone, continued use of videoconferencing on handheld devices, cloud-based textbooks/apps, and more.
Not your mother’s connected world [infographic] — from Cisco.com by Marie Hattar
What the Internet means to young adults around the world
Also see:
Air, Food, Water, Internet – Cisco Study Reveals Just How Important Internet and Networks Have Become as Fundamental Resources in Daily Life
Global Report Examines Focus on Next Generation of World’s Workforce, Spotlights Impact on Future Demands and Behavior Involving Network and Information Access in Work EnvironmentsSAN JOSE, Calif. – September 21, 2011 –
Demonstrating the increasing role of the network in people’s lives, an international workforce study announced today by Cisco revealed that one in three college students and young professionals considers the Internet to be as important as fundamental human resources like air, water, food and shelter. The 2011 Cisco Connected World Technology Reportalso found that more than half of the study’s respondents say they could not live without the Internet and cite it as an “integral part of their lives” – in some cases more integral than cars, dating, and partying.
These and numerous other findings provide insight into the mindset, expectations, and behavior of the world’s next generation of workers and how they will influence everything from business communications and mobile lifestyles to hiring, corporate security, and companies’ abilities to compete.
The findings will be presented today by Cisco executives during a free Internet TV broadcast at www.cisco.com/go/connectedreport.
From DSC:
I haven’t had the chance to research this much, but I wanted to post several items re: the Common Core Standards. The jury is still out with me as to what I think about them. My initial concerns center around the ideas/curriculums and course offerings/assessment tools involved with the word “standards” — with implementing things that result in clear, consistent expectations.
I have become increasingly hesitant towards words like “standards” and “expectations” — at least as these words are currently being used in this context. I’m not saying that the Common Core Standards will try to further pound round pegs into square holes — though that type of thing captures my hesitation here — as not everyone has the same gifts, abilities, and passions. Much of the current K-12 systems focus so much on STEM-related items — at the expense of so much more that’s out there in the world today.
With that said, I like the idea of getting students prepared — as much as possible — for helping them hit the ground running later on in life when they will need to either go to college and/or get a job. I can see where if a student moves from one district/state to another, how it can be very helpful to have a shared foundation from which to develop the student’s current educational needs and plans.
Some items on this:
From DSC:
What do you think? What are the pros and cons of implementing the Common Core Standards? From the teacher’s viewpoint? From the student’s viewpoint? From the administrator’s viewpoint? From the parent’s viewpoint?
I look forward to learning more about them and to hearing others’ perspectives on them.
The Digital Revolution and Higher Education — from the Pew Research Center by Kim Parker, Amanda Lenhart, and Kathleen Moore
College Presidents, Public Differ on Value of Online Learning
Excerpt:
This report is based on findings from a pair of Pew Research Center surveys conducted in spring 2011. One is a telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,142 adults ages 18 and older. The other is an online survey, done in association with the Chronicle of Higher Education, among the presidents of 1,055 two-year and four-year private, public, and for-profit colleges and universities.
Here is a summary of key findings…
From DSC:
First, [perhaps it’s in the appendices, but] how many of the people out in the public who were surveyed have actually taken an online class? If so, how many classes (each) have they taken and when did they take them? From whom did they take them? My guess is that most of them have never taken a class online.
Secondly, I wonder how many people thought that the telephone was a useful instrument/communication device shortly after it was introduced? Perhaps not too many…but did you use one today? Yesterday? I bet you did. I did…several times; and I bet that the same will be true of online learning (as online learning didn’t really begin to be used until the late 90’s).
The question is not whether online learning will blow away the face-to-face classroom, it’s when this will occur…? There will be many reasons for this, but the key one will be that you are putting up a team of specialists instead of using just one person. If they are reeeeaaaalllyy good (and a rare talent), that person can do the trick for now; but their success/job will continue to be increasingly difficult to perform, as they continue to pick up new hats each year, as the students’ attention spans and expectations continue to change, as lower cost models continue to emerge, etc, etc…
As Christensen, Horn, and Johnson assert, the innovation is taking place in the online learning world, and it will eventually surpass what’s possible (if it hasn’t already) in the face-to-face classrooms.
