lifelong learning

9 BIG Questions Schools Must Answer to Avoid Going “Back to Normal” (*Because “Normal” Wasn’t That Great to Begin With) — from bigquestions.institute

Excerpt from email/e-newsletter (dated 1/27/21)

As we start to emerge from this dark moment, individuals and institutions need to be asking two important questions Given the trauma of the last 12 months, who are we now? And now that so much has changed about the world, who do we want to become?

Reflecting on those questions is especially important for educators. The “old normal” of schools is not coming back, nor should we want it to. Instead, this is an incredible opportunity to reset, to redefine our work.

To that end, we’ve written a new, free ebook: 9 Questions Schools Must Answer to Avoid Going Back to Normal (*Because Normal Wasn’t That Great to Begin With). Rather than innovate our way forward, Homa and I believe this is a moment to interrogate deeply the foundations of our work with children. That starts with a willingness to answer some big questions upon which we build our collective futures.

Q1: What is Sacred?

Q2: What is Learning?

Q3: Where is the Power?

Q4: Why do we _________?

Q5: Who is Unheard?

Q6: Are we Literate?

Q7: Are we OK?

Q8: Are we Connected?

Q9: What’s Next?

“Real change will require us to leave many of our old ideas about school behind.”

From DSC:
We must figure out better ways to get away from creating game-players to developing curious, passionate learners instead. Even in law schools, points and grades are still used as the currency to get students to do some things. Holy smokes! That pull/embedded behavior is a strong undercurrent even for adults learning about new things.

Students need to see their faculty members and/or teachers as people who ARE ON THEIR TEAM. Not an adversarial, controlling relationship. But one wherein the teacher or the professor is trying to help that person develop into a better, ___, ___, or ____.

I love the suggestion mentioned in the “Towards a new normal” on page 23 that says…

“Instead of ‘students’ and ‘teachers,’ refer to everyone in the school as ‘learners.'”

#behaviorism #learning #education #educationreform #K12 #lawschools and more.

Learning channels of the future will offer More choice. More control. Daniel Christian

Flipping Virtual Classrooms for More Impact [Bendici]

On 01/30/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, adjunct faculty, adult learning, blended learning, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, distance education, education, education technology, flipping -- inverted learning, higher education, hybrid learning, instructional design, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, liberal arts, lifelong learning, media/film, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, online learning, online media, productivity / tips and tricks, relationships, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, training / L&D, trends, universities, by Daniel Christian

Flipping Virtual Classrooms for More Impact — from techlearning.com by Ray Bendici
Flipping virtual classrooms can help maximize teaching time and resources

Excerpt:

The mantra of flipped learning is that you can reach every student in every class every day, said Bergman. So if you have less synchronous time, you need to provide more time with your students one-on-one to work on the hard stuff, and flipped mastery learning, in particular, accommodates that.

“Flipped learning teachers have been preparing for the pandemic for the past 10 years,” Bergman said. “It’s really a great way to amplify your reach to teach.”

When the pandemic hit, Bergman and his flipped learning team realized that the most important thing is connections with students and the physical time spent with them. “So what’s the best use of your face-to-face class time?” Bergman said. “I’m going to argue it’s not you standing up and then introducing new content, it’s giving students the new content first and allowing them to apply, analyze, and evaluate it.”

Reflections on “How to become a livestreaming teacher” [Grennier]

On 01/27/2021, in communities of practice, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital video, distance education, education, education technology, experimentation, Facebook / Meta Platforms, Google, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, innovation, instructional design, internet, K-12 related, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, library / librarians, lifelong learning, marketplaces, multimedia, new business models, online learning, platforms, remote teaching and learning, smart classrooms, smart/connected TV, streams of content, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, tools, United States, vendors, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

How to become a livestreaming teacher — from innovatemyschool.com by Bobbie Grennier

Excerpts:

What is an encoder?
The format that a video camera records content in has to be transcoded so that it can be livestreamed to a destination like Facebook Live, YouTube, Twitch and Periscope. This is accomplished using an encoder software. An encoder optimizes the video feed for the streaming platform. The key to using an encoder is to learn to set-up scenes.

From DSC:
It will be interesting to see how learning-related platforms develop in the future. I’m continually on the lookout for innovative ideas across the learning landscapes, especially due to the Learning from the Living [Class] Room vision that I’ve been tracking this last decade. The pieces continue to come together. This might be another piece to that puzzle.

An online-based teaching and learning marketplace — backed up by AI, cloud-based learning profiles, voice-driven interfaces, learning agents, and more. Feeds/streams of content into how to learn about any topic…supporting communities of practice as well as individuals. And people will be key in this platform — technology will serve the people, not the other way around.

A Strategic Roadmap for The Next Decade [Westervelt]

On 01/26/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adult learning, Alternatives, Amazon, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, data related items, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, Google, higher education, ideas, innovation, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, platforms, reinvent, society, staying relevant, strategy, student-related, surviving, technology (general), trends, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, web-based collaboration, workplace, by Daniel Christian

A Strategic Roadmap for The Next Decade — from evolllution.com by Rob Westervelt

Excerpts:

Get obsessed with your learner
Adopt more than one model
Align with partners
Create lifelong learning models
Build the system of the future

Building a Learner-Centered Ecosystem [The Strada Education Network]

On 01/21/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, colleges, community colleges, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, education, entrepreneurship, experimentation, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, lifelong learning, love of learning, online learning, strategy, training / L&D, United States, universities, vendors, vision/possibilities, workplace, youth, by Daniel Christian

Strada Institute identified five key pillars these lifelong learners will need from an education and training system designed for them:

It has to be easy to navigate.
Supports are needed to help learners balance their lives.
Targeted education should lead to a job.
Hiring practices must be transparent and fair.
Students must be able to earn while learning.

Also see:

Are we ready for this? — from stradaeducation.org by Andrew Pelesh
Preparing the Education-Workforce System for the 100-Year Career

MOOC Enrollment Explodes in 2020 — from campustechnology.com by Dian Schaffhauser

Excerpt:

According to a new report by Class Central, a company that tracks massive open online courses, of all learners who have registered for MOOCs throughout their history, a third did so last year. Coursera, the largest MOOC operator, added nearly four times the number of new registered users, exploding from 8 million in 2019 to 31 million in 2020 — a rise of 387 percent. Dhawal Shah, founder of Class Central, estimated that Coursera’s total number of users is currently 76 million.

Whereas topics in technology, business and career development dominated pre-COVID-19, during the pandemic learners focused on wider interests: Art and design, self-improvement, the humanities, communication skills, health & medicine and foreign languages surfaced in the top 10 subjects.

Also see:

Start the New Year off Right With Thought Provoking Content From CuriosityStream — from futurism.com
It’s the streaming service for people who love to learn.

Excerpt:

With the arrival of the New Year, it’s time to make your New Year’s resolutions. And if one of your New Year’s resolutions is to learn more about the world and its wonders, you’re in luck. CuriosityStream is a streaming service for people who love to learn. It hosts numerous award-winning, thought-provoking educational content covering history, science, technology, and sports. Offering everything from documentaries about the Declaration of Independence to the life of an oak tree, CuriosityStream is guaranteed to transform your binge-watching habit into an entertaining educational experience. And best of all, CuriosityStream offers a “sneak peek” so you can sample everything CuriosityStream has to offer.

Also see:

From DSC:
While I haven’t used this service, I find it incredibly interesting! So while I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the content, it reminds me of the Learning from the Living [Class] Room vision.

Performance Ecosystem Maturity Model [Quinn]

On 01/12/2021, in adult learning, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, innovation, learning, learning ecosystem, lifelong learning, training / L&D, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Performance Ecosystem Maturity Model — from blog.learnlets.com by Clark Quinn

Excerpts:

In my book, Revolutionize Learning & Development, I pushed for the performance ecosystem, going beyond ‘the course’ to talk about all the ways that L&D could assist organizational learning. I posit that optimal execution is only the cost of entry, and the only sustainable differentiator is continual innovation. And I argued for what that meant. I want organizations to have a concrete picture of what this looked like.

Big Changes in the Federal Student-Aid System Are Coming. Here’s Why They Matter. [Hoover]

On 01/04/2021, in adult learning, career development, colleges, community colleges, funding / grants, higher education, learning, learning ecosystem, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, parents/guardians, society, student-related, United States, universities, by Daniel Christian

Big Changes in the Federal Student-Aid System Are Coming. Here’s Why They Matter. — from chronicle.com by Eric Hoover

Excerpt:

After all, a recent NCAN analysis led the organization to conclude that fewer than half of community colleges and only a quarter of public four-year institutions are affordable for the average Pell Grant recipient.

That’s why the group plans to push for a doubling of the maximum award in the months ahead. “Fafsa simplification and getting more students to apply for aid is a first step,” Warick said, “but we know there are not enough affordable options out there for families considering higher ed. We need a broad investment in the Pell Grant program.”

Also see:

Their Stories Helped Lift a 26-Year Ban on Pell Grants for Prisoners — from chronicle.com by Katherine Mangan
A college education transformed former inmates’ lives. But some critics fear low-quality programs will rush in.

Excerpts:

“Every time we sat before elected officials, sharing expertise and stories about the transformative power of education, we lived a paradox,” Nixon wrote in a statement after the ban was lifted. “The power of our testimony came with the stigma of incarceration. Yet, chins held high, we claimed that we are worthy of educational opportunity. And many educators stood with us — keeping hope alive by providing college behind bars when Pell was not an option.”
…
Expanding such opportunities has enjoyed growing bipartisan support as a way to reduce recidivism, save taxpayers money, and mitigate the discriminatory effects of mass incarceration and unequal schooling. But some fear that inmates might end up exhausting Pell eligibility on poor-quality programs that are rolled out too quickly, without the wraparound supports and face-to-face contact they say incarcerated students especially need.

The Year TV Leaped Into The Future [Roettgers]

On 12/27/2020, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, bots, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, communications, content development, aggregation, repositories, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital video, distance education, education, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, future, game-changing environment, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, internet, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, lifelong learning, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, new business models, online learning, online media, online tutoring, platforms, reinvent, smart classrooms, smart/connected TV, social learning / networks, social media, society, staying relevant, surviving, teaching online, technologies for your home, technology (general), telecommunications, telelegal, telemedicine / telehealth / virtual health, telepresence, television, tools, training / L&D, trends, United States, using teams, vendors, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

The Year TV Leaped Into The Future — from protocol.com by Janko Roettgers

The lockdowns this year have transformed our homes into offices, schools, concert halls, movie theaters and gyms. Our homes are working harder for us, but so is our technology. The device that is working the hardest is perhaps the TV—becoming our lifeline to a far more virtual world.

Addendums:

The Second Year of The MOOC: 2020 Saw a Rush to Large-Scale Online Courses — from edsurge.com by Dhawal Shah

Excerpt:

This was the year that more people learned what a MOOC is.

As millions suddenly found themselves with free time on their hands during the pandemic, many turned to online courses—especially, to free courses known as MOOCs, or Massive Open Online Courses. This phenomenon was compounded by media worldwide compiling lists of “free things to do during lockdown,” which tended to include MOOCs.

Within two months, Class Central had received over 10 million visits and sent over six million clicks to MOOC providers. These learners also turned out to be more engaged than usual. In April 2020, MOOC providers Coursera, edX and FutureLearn attracted as many new users in a single month as they did in the entirety of 2019.

.

From DSC:
The pieces continue to come together…

...team-based content creation and delivery will dominate in the future (at least for the masses). It will offer engaging, personalized learning and the AI-based systems will be constantly scanning for the required/sought-after skills and competencies. The systems will then present a listing of items that will help people obtain those skills and competencies.

#AI #LearningProfiles #Cloud #LearningFromTheLivingClassRoom #LearningEcosystems #LearningSpaces #21stCentury #24x7x365 #Reinvent #Surviving #StayingRelevant #LifeLongLearning and many more tags/categories are applicable here.

The most fundamental skill: Intentional learning and the career advantage — from mckinsey.com by Lisa Christensen, Jake Gittleson, and Matt Smith
Learning itself is a skill. Unlocking the mindsets and skills to develop it can boost personal and professional lives and deliver a competitive edge.

Excerpt:

This article, supported by research and our decades of experience working as talent and learning professionals, explores the core mindsets and skills of effective learners. People who master these mindsets and skills become what we call intentional learners: possessors of what we believe might be the most fundamental skill for professionals to cultivate in the coming decades. In the process they will unlock tremendous value both for themselves and for those they manage in the organizations where they work.

Our ability to reflect is threatened on many fronts. Being overscheduled, overworked, and overloaded affects our ability to pause and assess our circumstances and performance. But the noisier the world around us, the greater the need for dedicated reflection time. Intentional learners not only engage in reflection but also, in many cases, ritualize it. They create consistent and predictable patterns, both for when they will reflect and what they will think about. They establish strategies for capturing these thoughts and referring back to them often. By relying on ritual, learners reduce the number of decisions associated with reflection (for example, when, what, and how), so it becomes easier to return to the practice repeatedly.

From DSC:
That last quote (re: taking the time to reflect and to think about one’s thinking) brought the power of learning journals to my mind.

How E-Learning Content Is Evolving: 7 Trends You Need to Know About [Harper]

On 12/21/2020, in adult learning, Augmented Reality (AR), business, change, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, data related items, digital learning, digital storytelling, elearning, future, innovation, instructional design, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, lifelong learning, microlearning, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, online learning, personalized/customized learning, platforms, social learning / networks, story, storytelling, training / L&D, trends, ubiquitous learning, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, XR - extended reality, by Daniel Christian

How E-Learning Content Is Evolving: 7 Trends You Need to Know About — from trainingmag.com by Tiffany Harper
Continuous, personalized learning in small bites through a storytelling approach—that sums up the future of the e-learning industry.

Excerpt:

VR and AR
Technological innovations let us play better games. The progress of VR and AR technology (virtual reality and augmented reality) is closely related to the gaming industry, but that doesn’t mean it stays there.

We can turn any space into an environment that’s ready to explore. If we learn about the universe, we can see it around us. If we learn about industrial technology, we can be virtually present in a plant. This technology is especially important for corporate learning. Instead of sending employees away to develop new skills, companies benefit with lower expenses and greater convenience.

We haven’t seen the best of virtual and augmented reality in e-learning yet. But as the trend progresses and more learners get their devices, it won’t be unusual for AR and VR to be included in every online course of the future.

DC: This is not right! When will there be justice?! We need to help Native American colleges, universities, & communities out!

On 12/04/2020, in Access to Justice (A2J), adjunct faculty, Amazon, Apple, business, change, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, collaboration, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, culture, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, economics, education, education reform, education technology, ethics, Facebook / Meta Platforms, faculty, faith, funding / grants, future, future of higher education, geography / geology, Google, health, higher education, history, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, internet, IT in HE, K-12 related, leadership, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning spaces, legislatures / government / legal, lifelong learning, Michigan, Microsoft, mobile technologies, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, morals/values, new media literacies, online learning, platforms, policy, remote teaching and learning, society, student-related, surviving, technologies for your home, telecommunications, ubiquitous learning, United States, universities, vendors, videoconferencing, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, youth, by Daniel Christian

The Digital Divide for Tribal College Students — COVID, CARES Act, and Critical Next Steps — from diverseeducation.com

Excerpt:

In this episode staff writer Sara Weissman shares a story that focuses on the digital divide for Native Americans by bringing in voices of tribal college leaders and their students during the COVID 19 pandemic.

Many don’t know but Native American colleges and universities have long struggled with the worst internet connectivity in the nation while ironically paying the highest rates for service. Hear first-hand how students from Diné College and other institutions are currently affected. Carrie Billie (Big Water Clan), President & CEO of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) and Dr. Cynthia Lindquist (Star Horse Woman), President of Cankdeska Cikana Community College in North Dakota, break down the data and lay out critical next steps necessary to address the digital divide.

Many don’t know but Native American colleges and universities have long struggled with the worst internet connectivity in the nation while ironically paying the highest rates for service.

From DSC:
When will there be justice!? Let’s join in and make amends and provide the funding, concrete assistance, products, and services to Native American colleges, universities, and communities. Some potential ideas:

For the short term, could there be Loon balloons deployed immediately to provide free and stronger access to the Internet?

Could our Federal Government make amends and do the right thing here? (e-rate program, put Internet access in, make policy changes, offer more grants, other?)
Could Silicon Valley assist with hardware and software? For example:
- Can Apple, HP, Microsoft, and others donate hardware and software?
- Can Zoom, Adobe, Cisco Webex, Microsoft Teams, and others donate whatever these communities need to provide videoconferencing licenses?
Could telecom providers provide free internet access?
Could MOOCs offer more free courses?
Could furniture makers such as Steelcase, Herman Miller, and others donate furniture and help establish connected learning spaces?
How might faculty members and staff within higher education contribute?
How could churches, synagogues, and such get involved?
Could the rest of us locate and donate to charities that aim to provide concrete assistance to Native American schools, colleges, universities, and communities?

We need to do the right thing here. This is another area* where our nation can do much better.

* Here’s another example/area where we can do much better and make amends/changes.

Addendum on 12/7/20:

How to Implement Long-Term Remote Learning in a Rural Area— from techlearning.com by Ray Bendici

More changes to the learning ecosystems out there [Christian]

On 11/27/2020, in Alternatives, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, learning ecosystem, lifelong learning, by Daniel Christian

DC: More changes to the learning ecosystems out there. https://t.co/tLKJf0TrIq #edtech #learningecosystems #K12 #bootcamps #coding #programming

— Daniel Christian (he/him/his) (@dchristian5) November 27, 2020

Americans aren’t turning their backs on education; they are reconsidering how to obtain it.

Is This the End of College as We Know It? — from wsj.com by Douglas Belkin
For millions of Americans, getting a four-year degree no longer makes sense. Here’s what could replace it.

Excerpt:

For traditional college students, the American postsecondary education system frequently means frontloading a lifetime’s worth of formal education and going into debt to do it. That is no longer working for millions of people, and the failure is clearing the way for alternatives: Faster, cheaper, specialized credentials closely aligned with the labor market and updated incrementally over a longer period, education experts say. These new credentials aren’t limited to traditional colleges and universities. Private industry has already begun to play a larger role in shaping what is taught and who is paying for it.

For more than a century, a four-year college degree was a blue-chip credential and a steppingstone to the American dream. For many millennials and now Gen Z, it has become an albatross around their necks.

What has embittered so many millennials is that they played by the rules and still got stuck. Ben Puckett, a 30-year-old pastor in Michigan, earned a B.S. in physical therapy before a Master’s degree in divinity. He is $95,000 in debt.

“I went to college because I was told by parents, friends, teachers and counselors that it was the only way to ensure a good future,” Mr. Puckett says. “At 18 years old, how was I supposed to defy what my school, parents, society, friends were saying about going to college?”

Learning Ecosystems

MOOC Enrollment Explodes in 2020 [Schaffhauser]

Performance Ecosystem Maturity Model [Quinn]

More changes to the learning ecosystems out there [Christian]

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