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My thanks to Mr. Steven Chevalia for this resource
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Living room video calling users to surpass 16 million in 2015 — from instat.com
Excerpt:
The video calling market can be divided into three sub-markets depending on the device which is being used to make the call: PCs, Mobile, and living room (digital home) devices. Living room video calling is a nascent market and currently has a relatively small user base. New NPD In-Stat (www.in-stat) research forecasts that total users will increase from 1.5 million in 2011 to 16.4 million in 2015. Asia Pacific will be the largest market for living room video calling by a significant margin as this is the region with the highest video calling enabled device shipments.
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From DSC:
Also see:
A Disrupted Higher-Ed System — from The Chronicle by Jeff Selingo
Excerpt:
Just look at the last month:
Pearson acquires Connections Education
Gains leading position in fast-growing market for virtual schools
Excerpt:
(PRWEB) September 15, 2011
Pearson, the world’s leading learning company, [announced on 9/15/11] the acquisition of Connections Education from an investor group led by Apollo Management, L.P.
Through its Connections Academy business, the company operates online or ‘virtual’ public schools in 21 states in the US—serving more than 40,000 students in the current school year. These virtual charter schools are accredited and funded by the relevant state and are free to parents and students who choose a virtual school in place of a traditional public institution or other schooling options.
Virtual schools serve a diverse population of students including those who may be gifted, struggling, pursuing careers in sports or the arts, in need of scheduling flexibility, or who have chosen home schooling. It is a large and rapidly-growing segment in US K-12 education: in 2010, 48 states and Washington, D.C. had virtual school programs and 27 states allowed virtual charter schools. Approximately 200,000 students attended full-time online courses and an estimated 1.5 million students took one or more courses online. (Source: Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning, 2010, Evergreen Education Group).
From DSC:
Immediately below is a presentation that I did for the Title II Conference at Calvin College back on August 11, 2011
It is aimed at K-12 audiences.
From DSC:
Immediately below is a presentation that I did today for the Calvin College Fall 2011 Conference.
It is aimed at higher education audiences.
Note from DSC:
There is a great deal of overlap here, as many of the same technologies are (or will be) hitting the K-12 and higher ed spaces at the same time. However, there are some differences in the two presentations and what I stressed depended upon my audience.
Pending time, I may put some audio to accompany these presentations so that folks can hear a bit more about what I was trying to relay within these two presentations.
Intel predicts Smart TV is the device of the future — from nyxiotechnologies.com’s blog
Chipmaker Intel believes that the Smart TV is the electronic device of the future, in the living room anyway.
Excerpt:
The Smart TV is already upon us, in its various forms from various manufacturers. It has arrived with 3D capabilities, web browsing and social networking and applications. Currently Samsung and LG seem to be two of the big players pushing the Smart TV to consumers.
Also see:
From DSC: It would be sharp (and somewhat James Bond-ish) if you could take the concepts within the iTable from Kyle Buckner Designs.com…(esp. motorized parts and a customizable design)
…and combine those concepts with concepts found within a Microsoft Surface type of table: (esp. multi-touch capabilities for a group of people to work collaboratively on)
…and combine those concepts with concepts found within Steelcase’s Media:Scape product… (esp. the ability to bring your own device and instantly “connect” it and press a puck-like device to begin displaying it on the screen/table)
…kinda gives us a flavor for what may very well be part of the integration and continued convergence of devices…and it may be a device in your living room or study.
K12Online and South Carolina Virtual Charter School leave children with special needs behind — by Gretchen Herrera, parent of a child being left behind
…as accessed via The Innovative Educator blog
Excerpt:
I have been working for years to advocate for the needs of my son. Recently when I requested to opt-out of our state’s standardized test, I was met with not only resistance, but threats. Threats that my son would be removed from South Carolina Virtual Charter school powered by K12 Online and returned to the hostile environment he escaped from should we not comply.
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Deeply concerned about my son’s well-being, I reached out in writing twice to the director of South Carolina Virtual Charter school who ignored my outreach. I also called and spoke with the counsel for the South Carolina Department of Education and was told, begrudgingly, there isn’t a state law that says my son has to test. However, I received threats from the Department. She said if I didn’t produce my son on the day of testing and he didn’t participate, he would suffer consequences. His absences could trigger truancy through my “unlawful actions”…even though there was no law against me following his doctors orders and my instinct about what was best for my child. She explained I could NOT “opt-out” for pieces of a child’s education and how every district can instill their own penalties. Of course, I was not opting out of the education. I was opting out of the assessments which my son, my doctors, and my instincts tell me are wrong for my child. I was told the penalty for my doing what was best for my child was that I would no longer be allowed to have my child attend the only school he was ever safe in. She also informed me that if I didn’t make my child available for their testing, there would be a compulsory attendance issue and that I could then be held liable and may face charges…even though I assured them he would be engaging in real learning activities in alignment with his passions, talents, and interests.
Why must I be forced to do what my doctors, my son, and I know will harm him? I want my son to have access to the joyful, useful, relevant, real, and interesting learning experience that our tax dollars pay for? I’d happily take my tax dollars elsewhere, but unfortunately, our compulsory system of compliance doesn’t afford parents such options. I am forced to subject my son to that which will make him physically and emotionally ill if he is to get the education he he deserves. The system has failed and my child is being left behind.
From DSC:
In hopes of building pressure for change here — I re-post this here at the Learning Ecosystems blog; sounds like the system needs additional methods of assessment.
From DSC:
I realize that many in education don’t view Bill and Melinda Gates with a great deal of admiration or respect. However, they and their foundation are about to make a hugely positive difference in — and contribution to — education. I’m sure that these grants will help create solutions that will feature professionally-done, highly-engaging, interactive, multimedia-based, team-created educational content. I hope that many of the solutions will feature sophisticated back-end engines that will allow for highly personalized/customized learning.
This is huge because such solutions are highly scalable. Plus look at who is involved at this point:
Also see:
Also see:
Daniel Christian:
A Vision of Our Future Learning Ecosystems
In the near future, as the computer, the television, the telephone (and more) continues to converge, we will most likely enjoy even more powerful capabilities to conveniently create and share our content as well as participate in a global learning ecosystem — whether that be from within our homes and/or from within our schools, colleges, universities and businesses throughout the world.
We will be teachers and students at the same time — even within the same hour — with online-based learning exchanges taking place all over the virtual and physical world. Subject Matter Experts (SME’s) — in the form of online-based tutors, instructors, teachers, and professors — will be available on demand. Even more powerful/accurate/helpful learning engines will be involved behind the scenes in delivering up personalized, customized learning — available 24x7x365. Cloud-based learner profiles may enter the equation as well.
The chances for creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship that are coming will be mind-blowing! What employers will be looking for — and where they can look for it — may change as well.
What we know today as the “television” will most likely play a significant role in this learning ecosystem of the future. But it won’t be like the TV we’ve come to know. It will be much more interactive and will be aware of who is using it — and what that person is interested in learning about. Technologies/applications like Apple’s AirPlay will become more standard, allowing a person to move from device to device without missing a beat. Transmedia storytellers will thrive in this environment!
Much of the professionally done content will be created by teams of specialists, including the publishers of educational content, and the in-house teams of specialists within colleges, universities, and corporations around the globe. Perhaps consortiums of colleges/universities will each contribute some of the content — more readily accepting previous coursework that was delivered via their consortium’s membership.
An additional thought regarding higher education and K-12 and their Smart Classrooms/Spaces:
For input devices…
The “chalkboards” of the future may be transparent, or they may be on top of a drawing board-sized table or they may be tablet-based. But whatever form they take and whatever is displayed upon them, the ability to annotate will be there; with the resulting graphics saved and instantly distributed. (Eventually, we may get to voice-controlled Smart Classrooms, but we have a ways to go in that area…)
Below are some of the graphics that capture a bit of what I’m seeing in my mind…and in our futures.
Alternatively available as a PowerPoint Presentation (audio forthcoming in a future version)
— from Daniel S. Christian | April 2011
Addendum on 4-14-11:
School budget cuts fueling virtual high school growth — from prlog.org (originally saw this at Ray Schroeder’s blog)
Faced with budget cuts that have forced the cancellation of low enrollment AP and enrichment classes, schools in 10 states have started their students with VHS online courses this semester.
Mar 21, 2011 – Maynard, MA – Virtual High School Global Consortium (http://www.govhs.org), the pioneer of K-12 online learning and course design for teachers, today announced the addition of 17 new member schools in 10 states this semester, bringing their total membership to 770 member schools worldwide. Many of these schools are using Virtual High School (VHS) to provide their students with access to courses affected by budget cuts.
Virtual education boom hits the states — from Sacramento Bee by David Harrison
Excerpt:
All but two states now offer online courses to at least some students. In most cases, online courses are blended with in-school courses. But 27 states allow students to attend virtual schools full time. Online courses allow students to work at their own pace, with advanced students moving through the curriculum quickly while others might get more of the attention they need from teachers.
Wise and other education leaders say that without more virtual schooling, it won’t be possible to meet President Barack Obama’s goal of producing a large majority of high school graduates ready for college or the work force. At the same time, now that 40 states and the District of Columbia have signed on to common math and English standards, online courses would be more easily transferable from state to state.
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From DSC:
How will these types of technologies affect what we can do with K-12 education/higher education/workplace training and development? I’d say they will open up a world of new applications and opportunities for those who are ready to innovate; and these types of technologies will move the “Forthcoming Walmart of Education” along.
Above item from: