virtual K-12 schools

Virtual schooling: Disrupting the status quo — Michael Horn

On 06/16/2010, in dangers of the status quo, disruption, virtual K-12 schools, by Daniel Christian

Tagged with: dangers of the status quo • disruption • virtual schools

Tagged with: K-12 • online learning • virtual schools

Cameo Multimedia (Kalamazoo, MI) — excellent designers of interactive learning experiences

On 05/20/2010, in education technology, elearning, engagement / engaging students, higher education, K-12 related, multimedia, user experience (UX), using teams, virtual K-12 schools, by Daniel Christian

Tagged with: interaction design • interface design • Keeping students engaged • multimedia • user interface design • virtual schools

Tagged with: elearning • game-changing environment • K-12 • online learning • virtual schools

Another example of the pace of change — and disruption

On 04/21/2010, in disruption, K-12 related, legislatures / government / legal, pace of change, policy, virtual K-12 schools, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
Consider the following timeline of the Florida Virtual School according to this article:

1997: Florida Virtual School is founded.

2002: Hillsborough County establishes a virtual school program for high school classes.

2007: Hillsborough County starts offering middle school classes.

2008: Hillsborough County starts the elementary program.

2009: New state law requires school districts to offer full-time virtual classes for K-12 students.

Now consider that they started with 77 students.

Now consider that the “…program served more than 71,000 students during the 2008-2009 school year, according to its Web site.” (emphasis DSC)

The pace has changed significantly and quickly

Do not underestimate the disruptive impact of technology.
And I realize it’s not just about the technology…it’s about people.
But technology can connect people to each other at ever-increasing speeds.

Tagged with: disruption • K-12 • legislation • pace of change • policy • virtual schools

Some quotes from “Traditional schools aren’t working. Let’s move learning online.”

On 04/12/2010, in K-12 related, online learning, virtual K-12 schools, by Daniel Christian

Quotes from Traditional schools aren’t working. Let’s move learning online. — from the Washington Post by Katherine Mangu-Ward

From DSC:
The title of this posting makes this transition sound so easy and it is probably too simplistically stated. However, she has some great points (emphasis DSC):

Smart kids are bored, and slower kids are left behind. Anxiety about standardized tests is high, and scores are consistently low. National surveys find that parents despair over the quality of education in the United States — and they’re right to, as test results confirm again and again.

But just as most Americans disapprove of congressional shenanigans while harboring some affection for their own representative, parents tend to say that their child’s teacher is pretty good. Most people have mixed feelings about their own school days, but our national romance with teachers is deep and long-standing. Which is why the idea of kids staring at computers instead of teachers makes parents and politicians extremely nervous. (From DSC: Removing the human element is not the goal here. In fact, technology connects human beings all the time — student to student, student to teacher/faculty member. The difference is that the teacher now has diagnostic tools to work with and students can pursue their passions. A teacher doesn’t need to be able to teach everything — an impossible task anyway these days.)

However, it’s time to take online education seriously — because we’ve tried everything else.

Since the Internet hit the big time in the mid-1990s, Amazon and eBay have changed the way we shop, Google has revolutionized the way we find information, Facebook has superseded other ways to keep track of friends and iTunes has altered how we consume music. But kids remain stuck in analog schools. Part of the reason online education hasn’t taken off is that powerful forces such as teachers unions — which prefer to keep students in traditional classrooms under the supervision of their members — are aligned against it.

In the 2010 annual letter from his foundation — the biggest in the United States, with a $33 billion endowment — Bill Gates listed online education as one of his top priorities and rattled his pocket change in the direction of reform. He wrote: “Online learning can be more than lectures. Another element involves presenting information in an interactive form, which can be used to find out what a student knows and doesn’t know.”

How do we know online education will work? Well, for one thing, it already does. Full-time virtual charter schools are operating in dozens of states.

Few people have a clear picture of what online education really looks like, which is one reason so many people are reluctant to consider what it has to offer.

Tagged with: K-12 • online learning • virtual schools

Wimba Connect 2010 — check out the applications of these tools

On 03/18/2010, in blended learning, colleges, community colleges, computer science, convergence, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, disruption, education technology, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, faculty, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, hybrid learning, innovation, internet, K-12 related, languages and translation, learning ecosystem, learning spaces, liberal arts, mathematics, mobile learning, multimedia, online learning, participation, pedagogy, smart classrooms, social learning / networks, staying relevant, student-related, teaching & learning, teaching online, telecommunications, telepresence, tools, universities, videoconferencing, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, web-based collaboration, webinars, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Wimba Connect 2010 — check out the applications of these tools

OPENING KEYNOTE
Carol Vallone, CEO, Wimba

Teaching Math & Sciences with Wimba (Panel)Andrew Byrne & Kurt Mederer, Convent of the Sacred Heart; David Tao, Santosh Madhavan & Dan Lim, Florida Hospital College of Health Sciences; Michele Barbeau & Kem Rogers, The University of Western Ontario

Using Wimba to Engage and Empower an Academic Community of Learners: The Case of the Global Citizen
Linda Ralston & Rebekah Grow, University of Utah

Faculty Development Wimba Style
Janet Welch & Stacey Mateika, Red Deer College

Using Wimba Voice, Pronto, and Create in Synchronously in Wimba Classroom and Asynchronously in an Online Environment
Brooke Eberwine, Steven Frecka & Jamie Westyn, OHDELA

Small Scale Implementation of Wimba Classroom – The Possibilities Are Endless
Regina Bobak & Julie Wolfe, Bloomsburg University of PA

Language Learning with Wimba (Panel)
Teresa MacKinnon, University of Warwick Language Centre; Ana Garcia Allen, The University of Western Ontario; Barbara Cohen, Berkeley College

Wikis, Wimbas, Whatevers! What Teachers Weave!
Jane Overmoe, Dakota Prairie HS

Taking the Troy Colloquium Online + Wimba: The Solution to Quality Online Learning
Gayle Nelson & Peter Paige, Troy University

Wimba Product Presentation
Annie Chechitelli, Wimba

Presentations Live or On-the-Go with Wimba Classroom MP4 Archives
Jason Rhode, Northern Illinois University & Larry Holland, University of Arkansas at Little Rock

NCVPS Cultural Cafe
Thomas Moncrief, North Carolina Virtual Public School

Our Journey: From Face 2 Face 2 Online Masters Degree
Gary Shouppe & Tom McCormack, Columbus State University

So Many Choices, So Little Time: Effective Voice Tools Training
Stacey Powell & Kathy McClelland, Auburn University

Features, Technical Problems and Technical Support in Higher Education Wimba Classrooms
Mary Nell McNeese, Amy Thornton & Jalynn Roberts, University of Southern Mississippi

ALAKAZAM!!! Instantly Transform your Physical Classrooms into Lecture Capture Spaces Using Wimba!
Scott Smith & Brian Reed, Wimba; Mark Burris, Michael Merritt & Linda Stauffer, University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Using Wimba to Prepare for H1N1 and other Potential Disasters (Panel)
Phil O’Hara & Tim Fedak, Dalhousie University; David Tao & Dan Lim, Florida Hospital College of Health Sciences

Diminishing the Distance in Distance Ed – Wimba’s Live Tools: People Reaching People
Crystal Havely Stratton & Patricia Landy, Laramie County Community College

“Keep It Live” – What the Students Say!
Mike Scheuermann, Drexel University

Wimba Pronto 4 All: Pronto Invitations and Universal Integration
Marlen Rattiner & Chris Dixon, Wimba

Online Learning is all about Collaboration!
Mark Gensimore, Jed Friedrichsen & blendedschools.net

Bringing In Local and Global Guest Speakers through Wimba Classroom
Chunyan Song , Ann Steckel & Laura Sederberg, California State University, Chico

Envelop, Develop: Building a Statewide and College-Level Professional Development System with Wimba and your LMS
Terry Pollard & Christian Pruett, Mississippi SBCJC; Rebecca Butler, Northwest Mississippi Community College; Jennifer Nowotny, Wimba

Where Did My Wimba Go and Do Users Know It’s Missing?
Michael Rogers & Jim Wolfgang, University System of Georgia; Sean Hessenthaler, Wimba

The Professor is In: Lessons Learned in Delivery of Online Student Support
Michelle Escudier & Sharon Davis, Central Texas College

Pet Kangaroos and Other Tall Tails – Live and MP4 Examples, Best Practices and Case Studies on Using Wimba Down Under
Steve Watt & Thalia Cosmidis, NetSpot Pty Ltd

Reaching Over Wall: Linking Kindred Spirits via Live Web Conferencing
Phil O’Hara & Corinne Tobin, Dalhousie Unversity; Paul Lowe, University of the Arts London

Collaborating With Students – A Glimpse of the Future With Blackboard
Brian DeKemper, Solutions Engineer, Blackboard

The Blended Language Learning Consortium (presented remotely)
Paul Snookes & Judy Barker, University of Worcester

Bringing Wimba out of the Web and into the Classroom
Bryan Vandiviere, Kansas State University

Wimba Classroom Beyond Classes
Cory Stokes, Univeristy of Utah & Edwin Perez, Wimba

The Power of Wimba 6.0 Archives: Developing and Editing the Archive Library
Jun Yang, University of Maryland

From the Lands Down Under – Wimba Firing Up Staff and Students in Australia and New Zealand
Lisa Ransom & Oriel Kelly, Manukau Institute of Technology; Kerry Trabinger, Canberra Institute of Technology

A Triple Threat to Student Attrition: Three Disciplines, Three Perspectives, and Three Uses of Wimba Classroom to Improve Student Retention
Monica Brooks, Tracy Christofero, Karen Mitchell, & Marty Laubach, Marshall University

High Impact Pedagogy: Bringing Online and Blended Courses to ‘Life’ through Learning Simulation and Wimba
Kristen Betts, Drexel University

Video, Vodcasts, and YouTube – Oh My!
Sarah Bryans Bongey & Chery Takkunen, The College of St. Scholastica

Online Education and the Power of Web 2.0 for Student Retention
Felice Nudelman, The New York Times / Epsilen

The Ways Wimba Classroom Can Revolutionize the Offering of Online Degree Programs
Daniel Powell, University of Alabama School of Law

Using Breakout Rooms to Foster Faculty Development
Ann Morgan, Kelly Kist & Heather Zink, Rasmussen College

Computer Science “eXperience:” Using Wimba Tools to Enhance Computer Science Education
Adel Abunawass, Alexandra Young & Edwin Rudolph, University of West Georgia

The Virtual Student Experience: Addressing Emotional & Multiple Intelligences & Soliciting Student Feedback
Dawn Muhammad, Calumet College of St. Joseph & H. Jean Bryan, Ed.D., DePaul University

CLOSING KEYNOTE BY JEFF NOEL, THE DISNEY INSTITUTE
Jeff Noel, The Disney Institute

Poster Presentations

Online Office Hours: How I Get Them To Attend
Lyndasu Crowe, Darton College
Enhancing Student/Instructor Interaction in the Online Environment through Podcasting
Heather Zink, Rasmussen College
Mastering the Point: Using Wimba Live Classroom with Effective PowerPoint Presentations to Enhance Online Learning
Sue Burris, National Park Community College
Unleashing Wimba: Letting Students Take Control. A case study in providing webinar technology for students to facilitate group work.
Laurie Grosik, Indiana University of Pennsylvania & Cori Dunagan, Edinboro University
Building Tech Capacity in a Non-Profit Collaborative Using Wimba Classroom
Bruce Roxburgh, Green Communities Canada

Tagged with: blended learning • face-to-face • faculty • hybrid learning • languages • online learning • professional development • videoconferencing • web-based collaboration

K12Online Presentation: Around the World with Skype — Silvia Tolisano

On 03/08/2010, in K-12 related, videoconferencing, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

K12Online Presentation: Around the World with Skype — Silvia Tolisano — via Dr. Z. and Wes Fryer

Tagged with: K12 • Skype • videoconferencing • web-based collaboration

Tagged with: K-12 • online learning

Tagged with: K-12 • online learning • virtual schools

Tagged with: K-12 • K12 • virtual schools

From DSC: Here are a couple of items to highlight the continued power of the Internet to create exchanges & new business models within the worlds of education — both for K12 as well as for higher ed:

Teachers selling their lesson plans online [1/24/10] from the Dallas Morning News by Matthew Haag — original posting from Ray Schroeder
Check out this example pricing from powerspeak:

From DSC:
The above reminds me of a graphic I did last July:

Some potential/different models of pricing -- Daniel Christian -- July 2009

Tagged with: budgetary • exchanges • game-changing environment • higher education • K-12 • learning ecosystem • strategy

Tagged with: K-12 • virtual schools

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Virtual schooling: Disrupting the status quo — Michael Horn

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