Latest Education Policy & Technology News: i360 Gov

Feds float guidelines for school-based Race to the Top grants

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:48:51 -0400

eSchool News: Following a wave of state education reforms spurred by its Race to the Top competition, the federal Education Department (ED) said May 22 that individual school districts will be able to compete for $400 million in grants to bring the initiative to the classroom level.

School districts with at least 2,500 students—40 percent or more of whom must qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a key indicator of poverty—will be eligible to receive up to $25 million to create plans targeting specific groups of students with the aim of closing the achievement gap.

Schools given $25K to help kids move

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:47:41 -0400

CNN: (CNN) -- As the district director of physical education and health literacy for Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Jayne Greenberg's annual budget is $0.

That's right -- $0.

It's almost unbelievable when you know the statistics -- that one in six U.S. children are obese, that nearly one-third are overweight, and that these rates are even higher for Hispanic children (of whom Miami has a high population).

Digging into Climate Change, U.S. Students Find More Than Science

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:47:16 -0400

Scientific American: BERLIN, Md.—Fifth grader Aman Shahzad looked closely at the level attached to the plumb line. "Lower, lower," she called out. "OK! The bubble is in the middle." Her classmate, holding the wooden surveyor's pole, read the measurement: 14 centimeters.

The two students were from Pemberton Elementary School in nearby Salisbury, Md., the first to participate in a new, three-month interdisciplinary unit called "Investigating Climate Science" that spans science, math, economics and government. On this spring day on Maryland's eastern shore, they were on a field trip to Assateague Island, measuring the slope of the beach as the first step in a lesson on sea-level rise.

Virtual Education Seen Lacking Accountability

Wed, 23 May 2012 08:46:44 -0400

Education Week: Although virtual schools continue to grow each year, more research and accountability are needed to foster and support effective full-time online educational environments, says a report from the National School Boards Association.

"We want to harness all the benefits of technology to really propel student learning, ... but at the same time, we find the lack of really good information about results and accountability really troubling," said Patte Barth, a co-author of the report and the director of the NSBA's Center for Public Education, which provides data and research for school board members and other educators. She spoke in a conference call tied to the release of the report this month.

Education Group: Schools Need 100 Mbps Per 1,000 Broadband Users

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:48:58 -0400

CIO: IDG News Service (Washington, D.C., Bureau) — Schools in the U.S. will need broadband speeds of 100 Mbps per 1,000 students and staff members by the 2014-15 school year in order to meet a growing demand for Web-based instruction and a skyrocketing number of student-owned Web devices, according to a new report by a trade group representing state education agencies.

Lack of foreign language skills, education called ‘a national disgrace’

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:48:16 -0400

Federal Times: The state of foreign language education in the United States remains abysmal, and is endangering the federal government’s ability to operate in a multinational world, a panel of senior government officials testified today.

Only 30 percent of American high school students and 8 percent of post-high school students are enrolled in a foreign language today, Eduardo Ochoa, the Education Department’s assistant secretary for postsecondary eduction, told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee on the federal workforce.

CA: State: Calif. school districts hit finance crisis

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:47:46 -0400

San Francisco Chronicle: The California Department of Education says a record number of school districts are in financial dire straits this year, with a dozen facing insolvency.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said Monday that 188 districts have received either negative or qualified financial ratings from the state.

Report: Robots stack up to human professors in teaching Intro Stats

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:47:10 -0400

Inside Higher Ed: Without diminishing learning outcomes, automated teaching software can reduce the amount of time professors spend with students and could substantially reduce the cost of instruction, according to new research.

In experiments at six public universities, students assigned randomly to statistics courses that relied heavily on “machine-guided learning” software -- with reduced face time with instructors -- did just as well, in less time, as their counterparts in traditional, instructor-centric versions of the courses. This largely held true regardless of the race, gender, age, enrollment status and family background of the students.

U Kansas Boosts Workflow Efficiency

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:46:41 -0400

Campus Technology: The University of Kansas has decided to deploy Perceptive Software workflow management solutions—currently only used by a handful of business units—across its campus.

KU's phased expansion is designed to enhance the efficiency of its business processes. The university will begin with updates to eight core processes among seven business units, including the Comptroller’s Office where Brainware will be installed to streamline invoice processing.

K-12 Education's Broadband Internet Needs Continue to Grow

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:46:10 -0400

Governing: Digital textbooks, streaming video lectures and online class discussions: these are a few examples of how education in the 21st century is moving more to the virtual realm. But with that movement comes the need for faster and more reliable Internet connections for students and teachers, both inside and outside the classroom. According to a new report from the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA), states and school districts have plenty of work left to meet those increasing demands.

Number of Homeschoolers Growing Nationwide

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:45:38 -0400

Education News: As the dissatisfaction with the U.S. education system among parents grows, so does the appeal of homeschooling. Since 1999, the number of children who are being homeschooled has increased by 75%. Although currently only 4% of all school children nationwide are educated at home, the number of primary school kids whose parents choose to forgo traditional education is growing seven times faster than the number of kids enrolling in K-12 every year.

Smart Notebook App Moves to iPad

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:04:40 -0400

THE Journal: Smart Technologies will release an iPad version of its Smart Notebook app this summer, the company said. The new mobile app, which will retail at $6.99 and be available in the Apple app store, is designed to let students use its collaborative learning software on personal or school-owned iPads.

The Smart Notebook on iPad is designed to make many of the tools available on the Smart Board interactive whiteboard available to students on their mobile tablets, including interaction with teachers.

4 Free Tools for Sharing Files with Students

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:04:08 -0400

Emerging Ed Tech: Way back when I was still in school, at least half my teachers shared things online. Whether it was syllabuses or lecture notes, teachers posted documents online all the time. The one drawback was that many times, teachers used school-issued software to share these files online. This software was frequently buggy and/or difficult to use.

New PBS deal could shake up video streaming market for schools

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:03:39 -0400

eSchool News: A new agreement between the Public Broadcasting Service and SAFARI Montage will make SAFARI the main provider of PBS video content streamed to schools—an arrangement that could shake up the market for school video streaming services.

In the figurative arena of content distribution, it seems that SAFARI Montage—a K-12 digital media management and distribution solution—has been taking no prisoners, as evidenced by the company’s announcement of a deal with PBS to provide hundreds of additional PBS videos. The deal also reportedly terminates PBS’ contracts with other major players such as Discovery Education and Learn360.

Blackboard Adds Messages to Connect for Teachers

Mon, 21 May 2012 07:03:09 -0400

THE Journal: Blackboard has released an update of the Blackboard Connect for Teachers service, intended to assist teachers in getting parents more involved with their student's education. This Web-based notification application, part of Blackboard's Connect product line, allows teachers to communicate directly with parents via phone or email. Since the program's release in 2010, the company has found that customers use Connect for Teachers to get the word out about assignments, tests, grades, class conduct, work habits, general updates, and other standard teacher-parent fodder.

There are two primary changes with the upgrade. The first is an increase in the number of prerecorded messages made available to teachers; that has grown from about a hundred to about a thousand. Also, the messages are available now in 23 languages; previously, it was 22.

Congress pulls plug on Pell Grants; thousands of students affected

Mon, 21 May 2012 06:42:12 -0400

Mercury News: A mother of four who was laid off in 2008, Danielle Torno had planned on turning her life around next year with the help of a Cal State East Bay business degree.

Instead, the 36-year-old San Jose resident will be searching for another solution because of a little-noticed congressional decision to reduce or eliminate Pell Grants for hundreds of thousands of the poorest college students.

Digital Learning Games to Expand Nationwide

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:23:40 -0400

Converge: Math is dull and boring.m

That's what Edward Solis thought. He asked his teacher at the School of Global Studies in L.A., "When am I ever going to use this kind of math in life?"

"I was good at math, but I always found it boring, so I wasn't really into math," Solis said.

NYC Schools Prepare For Common Core Standards Introduction

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:23:12 -0400

Education News: Next year sees the introduction of the new Common Core standards introduced across 42 states, D.C. and the Virgin Islands, with some districts such as New York City set to introduce the standards gradually, year by year. Anna Phillips and Beth Fertig, writing in the New York Times’ SchoolBook, report that city officials have sent a memorandum to public school Principals asking for that effort to be ramped up.

This year schools in the city have been trying out the new standards in math and English classes. In practical terms this means that math teachers have been focusing more on depth than breadth of knowledge and English teachers have been increasing the percentage of nonfiction texts used.

Building a Statewide Enterprise Active Directory

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:22:42 -0400

Campus Technology: Students attending one of Virginia's Community Colleges (VCCS) have always been able to use a single username and password to access the Student Information System (SIS), Blackboard, and other centralized services. When Richmond, VA-based VCCS rolled out a single sign-on Enterprise Active Directory (EAD) in February, students, staff, and faculty members at eight of its schools began using that login information to access both state- and college-hosted resources across the entire system. The remaining 15 colleges will be online by the end of the year.

SunPower Foundation One Million Lights Partner on Solar Education

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:22:12 -0400

THE Journal: Two California nonprofit organizations are coming together to provide solar power education to K-12 schools. SunPower Foundation in San Jose, and One Million Lights, based in Palo Alto, have developed a program called One Million Students, which provides K-12 teachers with curriculum about solar energy.

The One Million Students program includes three downloadable lesson plans that show how solar technology is being used worldwide, as well as tools for hands-on projects, such as solar LED lights and solar electricity testing kits. Curriculum is organized by school level--elementary, middle, and high school--and can be used as part of teachers' existing lessons in math, science, and environmental studies. Classrooms will also have access to SunPower employees, and inspirational stories from One Million Lights.

DE: Delaware Gov Defends Common Core

Fri, 18 May 2012 07:20:10 -0400

Stateline: PHILADELPHIA – Delaware Governor Jack Markell defended the new Common Core English and math state standards at a meeting here Thursday, dismissing the contention that national benchmarks for what students should be learning are part of a “high-level conspiracy from the federal government” to impose its standards on states.

“This has been done from the ground up, with teachers,” the governor said at a conference of education writers. Developing a common set of high standards, he said, is essential for preparing each state’s students to compete against students in other parts of the country and the rest of the world.

Universal Design for Learning: The next big thing in school reform?

Thu, 17 May 2012 07:32:48 -0400

eSchool News: As educators brace for new reforms, what will these changes look like? How will assessments and curriculum differ from previous versions? How can all students get the best education possible? The answer, some experts believe, lies partially in Universal Design for Learning (UDL)—a framework that’s quickly gaining momentum across the U.S.

Student Loan Changes: What You Need to Know Now

Thu, 17 May 2012 07:32:20 -0400

U.S. News and World Report: Student loan interest rates have been elevated to the national political stage in recent weeks, thanks to President Obama's call on Congress to prevent the rate of one federal loan from doubling this summer.

The debates surround subsidized Stafford loans that undergraduate students will take out this year. By law, the interest rate on those loans is set to jump from its current 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent on July 1, though Congress is toying with a one-year extension that would hold the current rate steady and cost the government $6 billion.

6 Emerging Technologies From the 2012 K-12 Horizon Report

Thu, 17 May 2012 07:29:51 -0400

Converge: Mobile devices, tablets and apps could become mainstream with education in a year or less, according to the "2012 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition."

While the report from the New Media Consortium won't be released until June, the Consortium for School Networking hosted a webinar on Tuesday, May 15, to preview the results.

The New CIPA Deadline

Thu, 17 May 2012 07:28:57 -0400

THE Journal: Starting in just a little over six weeks, the Child Internet Protection Act (CIPA) has a new regulation that schools receiving E-rate funds must adhere to or risk losing their discounts. That's the addition of a requirement that all students from grades K through 12 be educated on online behavior and safety and cyberbullying.

What's unique about this is that the bulk of the effort falls on the academic side of the school, not the IT side. And that's causing a professional development challenge. Districts need to find ways to teach teachers--who may already feel maxed out--about online safety.