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Tag: Education

  • Social Media, Wikipedia Finding More Value in Classroom

    Social Media, Wikipedia Finding More Value in Classroom

    Ask a 21st-century college professor to name a few of the biggest challenges to her art today and “Wikipedia” and “Social Media” are sure to top the list. For more than a decade, the prominence of digital devices in the classroom has been a growing challenge for teachers trying to hold their students’ attention–I’m sure I wasn’t the first person to program Tetris into my TI 83–and you don’t have to look much further than a college syllabus to see the bad rap Wikipedia holds in the academic realm. Many educators now expressly forbid the use of text-messaging, laptops, and smart-phones in their classes; while at the same time, schools from the primary grades on are trending toward tablet-based iBooks and higher-tech “smart” classrooms.

    If these two tendencies seem contradictory, so do the myriad studies that inform them. It seems like the jury’s still out on the ultimate utility or detriment of social media and other technologies in the education world, but a couple of recent studies indicate a pretty intuitive analysis: the value of social media and technology in the classroom depends on the type of social media in question as well as the way students use it. Here’s an infographic breakdown of the pros and cons.

    In a study made available online today, Authors Reynol Junco and Seila R. Cotten find that facebook and text messaging are the communication technologies most likely to negatively impact students’ grades. What about Twitter? An earlier study, also by Junco, found that academically relevant tweets between students, professors, and peers can boost student engagement and elevate grade point averages.

    Meanwhile, the Wikimedia Foundation is looking to foster an “if you can’t beat us, join us” attitude among the academic community. Academic institutions from seven countries are currently participating in the second year of the Wikipedia Education Program, a program aimed at teaching students to become mindful Wikipedia contributors. Participating students from the U.S., Canada, Egypt, Germany, Czech Republic, Macedonia, and Mexico will be required to write and edit articles related to their area of study as a part of their regularly assigned coursework. Volunteer Wikipedia Ambassadors, both on campus and online, will assist professors in ensuring the quality and accuracy of students’ work. More than forty classes are participating in the U.S. alone this term, and the program plans to extend its reach to the U.K. and Brazil later this year.

    [citation needed]

    Long derided by professors as an inaccurate and unacademic information source, Wikipedia might be able to garner a degree of academic respect (see what I did there?) if the program meets with continued success. At the very least, the students of tomorrow might be plagiarizing better-informed content.

    It’ll take a while yet, but it looks like educators are learning to work more organically with popular websites and technology, rather than shoehorning learning into obsolete modes of instruction or rigidly-designed academic software. It’s the virtual elephant in the classroom: members of Gen Y and beyond are going to bring their digital world into learning. Teachers’ success ultimately rides on their ability to bring learning to the digital world.

    What do you think? Does social media detract from traditional learning? Or are today’s teachers not doing enough to present their content in a relevant manner? Let us know in the comments.

  • Google Plus Promotes Open Education Resources

    Open Education Resources (OER) “are teaching and learning resources that anyone can share, reuse and remix” and it is predicted that they will play a huge role in helping students gain the skills they will need in the 21st century. Google has been very proactive in “increasing access to a cost-effective, high-quality education” by supporting “the OpenCourseWare Consortium—a collaboration of higher education institutions and associated organizations from around the world creating OER—in organizing Open Education Week 2012, which begins today.”

    In the following video, Cable Green, Director of Global Learning at Creative Commons, explains the importance of changing policies to ensure that teachers and students will have the resources necessary to legally access textbooks, courses, and find resources for research without having to pay any additional fees. Green ties the spirit of Open Education Week to an ongoing project in which educators are developing “a vast pool of resources on the internet open and free for all to use.” He also emphasizes the importance of increasing the amount of “publicly funded education resources that operate on an open license allowing the public to revise, reuse, remix, and redistribute those materials.”

    To increase awareness about Open Education, the U.S. Department of Education will be launching a video competition that highlights how the movement to publicly funded education that uses open policies will benefit Americans: “The competition will award cash prizes for the best short videos that explain the use and promise of free, high-quality Open Educational Resources—or “OER”—and describe the benefits and opportunities these materials create for teachers, students and schools.” Aside from the intrinsic value of making a video about this subject, there are handsome financial rewards for the winners: “Video submissions are accepted until June 5, 2012 and winners will be announced July 18, 2012. Cash prizes, provided by the Open Society Institute, include $25,000 (first), $5,000 (second), and $1,000 (Public Choice Award). Judges include prominent artists and education experts, including Davis Guggenheim, Nina Paley, James Franco, and many others.”

    The top prize reflects the average yearly salary for Adjunct instructors working in community colleges (adjuncts make approximately $2,000 per 15 week course) so i wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of educators decided to compete and get the word out.

    Maggie Johnson, Director of Education and University Relations at Google, explains that Google will “[…] be acknowledging OER week through a panel event in Washington, DC, and over on our +Google in Education page, where we’ll be posting articles, and sharing stories and interviews about the benefits of open education resources. Opening these resources to everyone can improve the quality of education while getting more out of our investments in educational resources.”

  • SXSW 2012: Pearson Showcasing iBooks And Digital Classroom

    South by Southwest has emerged as one of the top events to showcase new technologies and product announcements. Education will be a major topic this year and Pearson is leading the charge.

    Pearson announced today that it will be showcasing its new iBooks and digital education initiative at SXSWedu. The iBooks presentation will go down on Tuesday while Wednesday will showcase their plans for the digital classroom of the future.

    Pearson has been at the forefront of interactive textbooks by designing learning experiences based around video, 3D animation and other interactive images. To continue this trend, Pearson CEO Marjorie Scardino will be using her keynote at SXSWedu to showcase their new iBook line that allows students to digitally highlight, take notes, bookmark, quickly look up definitions, link to relevant topics and more.

    “Educators across the country are making a major push to transform the classroom experience by integrating digital programs that will help better prepare students for college and careers,” said Mike Evans, Pearson Senior Vice President. “The classrooms of tomorrow are digital, and iBooks are among the interactive programs that will help teachers reach the Facebook generation of students in a way never before possible.”

    While the push for iBooks is commendable, the cost of the iPad and other materials will still have to be considered. We reported on a study that found traditional textbooks to be the cheaper way to go for high schools at this point in time. Apple is the main factor when it comes to cost, but Pearson could introduce a way to lower costs somewhat so smarter education could be more affordable to all, especially in those areas that need it the most.

    We’ll be covering more SXSW 2012 events and announcements as they happen, so stay tuned to our coverage.

  • iPads Improve Kindergarteners’ Literacy Scores

    Nearly a year ago, in April 2011, we told you about a small town in Maine that was set to become the first town in America to give every kindergartener an iPad to be used in their education. Auburn, Maine, a town of 24,000, gave roughly 285 students iPads (staggered, but more on the later) at the start of the 2011-2012 school year.

    “The more education teachers have using these tools the better we can enhance children’s learning and take them to that next level,” said one teacher involved in the initiative. The preliminary results are now in, and it looks like the iPad program was a success – at least in the short term.

    According to Audrey Watters at Hack Education, the iPads have increased the Kindergarteners’ literacy scores.

    While it’s true that the kids’ literacy scores have indeed improved, a researcher on the iPads to Kindergartners project warns that it’s not accurate to claim a direct, singular correlation. From Hack Education:

    But as Damian Bebell, one of the project’s researchers argues, we can’t just act as though the devices “arrive on parachutes” into a classroom and suddenly and magically students perform better. “It’s really about pedagogy and teaching,” says Bebell. The iPads are “just a tool.”

    They’re a new tool in the arsenal of the Auburn School District’s kindergarten teachers, for sure, but the district has been working for a number of years on improving its early literacy efforts. That has involved extensive training for the teachers and staff. It also means there’s several years worth of data in how well kindergarteners in Auburn have read and written — important when it comes to ascertaining how much impact these iPads actually make in the short- and long-term.

    So, like many experiments, there are other factors to consider. But they can say, with certainty, that the kids in the classrooms with the iPads performed better mid-year. And the kids who had the iPads the longest performed better.

    You see, half of the 16 Kindergarten classes got the iPads at the beginning of the year, and the other half had to wait until December. Although most of the metrics to judge progress showed no statistical significance between the two groups, one did: the “Hearing and Recording Sounds in Words” test. This measures a student’s ability to make connections between sounds and letters – a phonetical test. The kids who had the iPads since the beginning of the year performed better on this test.

    So, do iPads help kids learn? That’s a broad question to be answered by a specific, short-term study like the one from Auburn, Maine. But the results there are interesting. They should probably make us glad that 7 out of 10 children under the age of 12 reported to using tablets in the home.

  • Schools Discuss New Student/Teacher Policies for Facebook and Twitter

    In the classroom, it’s a good thing when students follow along with their teachers, and it’s even better if the class likes the instructor. Still, new considerations have arisen, as some see a connection on a social network being not much different than a teacher tutoring a student after school hours. The question of whether or not school administrators should be notified when a student “likes” or “follows” a teacher on a social media network is up for debate in the Miami-Dade and Broward County districts.

    Today, Miami-Dade School Board member Raquel Regalado plans to bring a new policy that would prompt teachers to notify their principals when a connection on a social network is made with a student. In the Broward district, a community of parents, students and staff have likewise been developing a system of online etiquette to help combat cyberbullying. Jeanine Gendron, director of instructional technology for Broward County Public Schools states, “what’s appropriate in your face-to-face conversation with people, being respectful, and having good social etiquette, should also be followed online.” In Broward, the district’s technology use policy hasn’t been looked at since 1996, long before social media, smartphones and tablets were a part of curriculum.

    Gendron states that no restrictions on student/teacher social networking have yet been implemented, and Regalado claims that she doesn’t seek to limit online interaction, but would like to get a better picture of how many teachers are engaging in social networks. “We need that information. If the results come back, and only 5 percent of our employees have these links on social media, it’s not going to keep me up at night. If it’s 78 percent, then we have to have a serious conversation about what they can post for students to see, how they’re posting and assessing any other needs,” Regalado said.

    Nationally, teachers have been getting fired over Facebook posts as of late. A schoolteacher in Maine recently posted nude photo of himself on his Facebook wall, prompting his resignation. And in New Jersey, first grade teacher Jennifer O’brian was fired for referring to her students as being “future criminals.”

    Parry Aftab, executive director of Wired Safety made the simple suggestion that teachers might set up separate social networking accounts for personal and professional use.

  • Maine Football Coach Posts Nude Photo of Himself Online, Quits.

    A longtime high school football coach in South Paris, Maine resigned Monday, after accidentally posting a nude photo of himself on his Facebook wall, according to the Lewiston Sun Journal. Oxford Hills Comprehensive High football coach Paul Withee was also a math and science teacher at the school, and claims the completely nude image of himself was intended for his girlfriend. The photo in question was allegedly online for roughly ten minutes, where it was seen by a football parent, according to Oxford Hills Superintendent Rick Colpitts. It is unclear if Mr. Withee decided to take the photo down on his own accord, or was prompted to after realizing his special post to his Facebook timeline was public.

    Regardless, the image raised concern in regards to Oxford Hill School System’s stance on social networking, which allows teachers to be Facebook friends with students. Though Mr. Withee was not connected to any students on his Facebook profile, an investigation was opened by the district. The investigation was subsequently closed, as soon as the coach resigned.

    “I’m embarrassed, I’m ashamed, I’m humiliated,” Withee told the Sun Journal. Paris Police Chief David Verrier states that there were talks with the office of the district attorney, but it was decided that no charges would be filed, as the incident was an accident. Perhaps students will learn a valuable lesson concerning the dangers of posting any sort of nude pictures of oneself on the internet, ever.

    A man inside Withee’s Norway home would not answer the door, according to WMTW.

  • eBooks Are Beginning to Replace Textbooks in the Classroom

    Technology has forced changes in the role of textbooks in education, and e-books have been gaining popularity, along with standard textbook rental. Companies like Chegg rent both standard textbooks and e-textbooks, and Amazon’s Kindle Store claims students can save up to 80%, as well as designate the length of the rental.

    Two of the most popular e-book readers are the Apple iPad, and the Amazon Kindle Fire. The Amazon Kindle Store offers over 1 million publications for use on both platforms, and Apple’s iBooks 2 allows students to engage in interactive material, as well as take assessments.

    Advances in the online classroom have harbored a more student-oriented approach to learning, as tablet devices can be linked to projectors in the classroom setting. Also, all formerly written materials can be more easily accessed, making note-taking more efficient, and digital library research functions make student publishing easier.

    With these advances comes the concern of content ownerships, copyrights and plagiarism, and it is important for educational institutions to properly manage online ethics, without getting in the way of the classroom learning process. More information can be found at Online Universities.

    The Digital Classroom
    Via: Accredited Online Universities Guide

  • iPad Vs. Textbooks: By The Numbers

    The iPad is widely looked at as a revolutionary device. Even non-Apple fanboys have to acknowledge the tremendous success the device has had and the quick impact it has had on quite a few facets of society, including education. Take this story about the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce at the University of Kentucky using the device to train diplomats, for example. And that was a year ago, before the iPad 2 even came out. Now the iPad 3 is expected to be unveiled as soon as next month.

    During Apple’s Q1 earnings call, the company said there are 1.5 million iPads in use in educational institutions. Apple is expected to sell at least 48 million iPads this year.

    Last month, Apple unveiled iBooks 2, iBooks Author, and the iTunes U App. Apple sold 350,000 textbooks in just 3 days.

    OnlineTeachingDegree.com released the following infographic looking at iPads vs. textbooks:

    iPads vs. Textbooks
    Created by: Online Teaching Degree

  • Craig Silverstein, Google’s First Hire, Leaves For Khan Academy

    Craig Silverstein, the first employee Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin hired, has just now leaving the company to join Khan Academy.

    Khan Academy is a nonprofit education organization, which provides freely available online resources for teachers, students and others looking to expand their education. It has an extensive video library, with content for grades K-12 in math, biology, chemistry, physics, history, finance, etc.

    At Google, Silverstein created some of the company’s original IT components, which were critical in supporting the search engine’s growth. As you can see from some of the talks he’s given, he’s been involved with some of Google’s more educational endeavors:

    Kara Swisher shares a statement from a Google spokesperson on Silverstein’s departure: “Craig’s been with Google since the early days. He was instrumental in the development of search and made numerous contributions to Google over the years. We wish him all the best at the Khan Academy and know that he will do great things to help them promote education around the world.”

    She also shares his goodbye email to the company. In that, Silverstein says:

    Some of you thought this day would never come (as one person once put it: “Will you die at Google?”), and it was an extremely difficult choice. I am as passionate about Google’s mission now as I’ve ever been, and as proud of the work we’re doing to achieve it. While a lot has changed at Google over the years, I think we’ve done a remarkable job of staying true to our core mission of making the world a better place by making information more accessible and useful. I am looking forward to pursuing that same mission, though in a slightly different way, at Khan.

    I’m extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to work with such smart, passionate, and interesting people — not just a few, either, but (almost 🙂 ) everyone I worked with. I’m grateful not just that I had so many co-workers I could respect, but even more that I had so many that I could count as friends. I will miss that most of all, and I hope you will continue to be in touch. I also accept lunch invitations!

  • Sweden Looks To Replace Textbooks With iPads

    Sweden seems to have taken Nolan Bushnell’s words to heart. A school system in the country wants to modernize teaching with computer integration.

    A suburb of Stockholm, Sollentuna, is proposing that the public schools do away with textbooks by 2013. In their place, they want to give every student an iPad.

    Maria Stockhaus, chair of Sollentuna’s children and education board, argues that schools in her municipality are in the “backwater” compared to the rest of the country according to The Local.

    “The schools will take a step into the now instead of staying in the old days. Computers are as natural in schools as paper and pens, yet the fact that only every other teacher in Sweden has a computer today is completely insane,” Stockhaus said.

    There has been backlash at the idea though. Sweden’s education minister Jan Björklund insists that reading books and writing by hands are still relevant, even in the far out future of 2012.

    “Even in the future people will need to read and write. You can’t always have access to a computer in some places,” he told DN. “Books have an obvious place in school, and national exams are still written by hand. I predict that they will not follow through with their proposals.”

    Sollentuna has already issued computers to all teachers, and plans to give tablet PCs to every student from 2nd grade onward.

    The schools receiving iPads are Helenelundsskolan, Sofielundsskolan and Runbacka. Say those names three times fast.

    In a bold move, Stockhaus says that students won’t be given pen and paper until they are 8-years-old. This way, students will be accustomed to touch screen technology earlier in life. She argues that this will equip students for the future.

    The benefit of giving every child their own computer is more about leveling the playing field for families with different incomes.

    “We know that not every student has computer access at home. These students who come from homes with tighter finances have worse grades. An even greater wedge will occur if they do not get the same digital competence as the others,” Stockhaus said.

    She also claims that feedback is immediate on a computer, thus speeding up the learning process.

    Another school with a name I can’t pronounce (Tegelhagsskolan) introduced PC access to all students three years ago. Their students have consistently excelled in academics since.

    The initial investment will cost $2.45 million in the start up phase. The cost will increase to $3 million in 2013. It will be partially paid for by the elimination of costly textbooks.

  • Principal Who Turned Blind Eye To Cinnamon Challenge Placed On Leave

    I wonder how much pain and embarrassment has been caused by the words “I bet you can’t do that?” I bet you can’t jump over that. I bet you can’t drink all that. I bet you can’t eat all of that.

    People has been doing stupid things since long before the advent of the internet. But YouTube has added one new dimension to people doing stupid stuff – the viral dimension. Now, a video of one person attempting some ridiculous feat can catch on and become a trend. Thus is the case with the Cinnamon Challenge.

    As you probably already know, the Cinnamon Challenge is simple in premise. The challenger must eat a tablespoon of ground cinnamon at one time, and get it all down. That means not vomiting or inhaling it. Oh, and you can’t wash it down with anything. According to Know Your Meme, it first hit the interwebs around 2001 but really got its start on YouTube in 2006.

    But for anyone who has watched the videos, or dare I say, tried it themselves – you know that it’s anything but simple in practice. Side effects include uncontrolled coughing, burning, nausea, breathlessness, and an overwhelming feeling of failure. Very few people succeed. Exhibit A:

    Now, the Cinnamon Challenge has led to a New Haven principal being put on leave, just because she reportedly turned a blind eye to the game being performed on school grounds.

    According to the New Haven Register, Clinton Avenue School Principal Carmen Rodriguez saw either one student or a group of students attempting the Cinnamon Challenge during lunchtime and allegedly did nothing to stop it. A purported video of the incident was on YouTube, but has since been removed by the user.

    Rodriguez has been placed on administrative leave and there is to be a full investigation into the incident.

    The Register quotes a Yale researcher as saying ““I think there is a real hazard here. I think for the most part it will cause a lot of coughing and sputtering. Some will end up aspirating cinnamon and some could have acute respiratory distress.” He also said that the possibility of foreign materials in the lungs could be a real problem for kids with asthma.

    Who am I to question that, but kids will be kids. And at least this viral trend is better than that god-awful planking crap. What do you think? Let us know in the comments. And before you do, check out some other Cinnamon Challenge videos from around the YouTubes:

    A rare success story:

  • Wisconsin School Buys iPads With Microsoft’s Money

    Wisconsin School Buys iPads With Microsoft’s Money

    Two weeks ago Apple announced its new textbook initiative. Thanks to an update to the iBooks software for iPad, and agreements with the three largest textbook publishers, the company would start bringing interactive electronic textbooks to students everywhere. Schools in Madison, Wisconsin will be getting a total of 1400 iPads over the course of this year.

    According to a report by the Madison State Journal, the program will put 600 tablets into the hands of students this spring, with a further 800 coming in the fall. Bill Smojver, director of technical services for the school district, pointed out that iPads beat computers in portability, user-friendliness, and price. He called the transition to tablets a major transition point for digital learning. The program will initially focus on replacing paper workbooks, though deputy superintendent Sue Abplanalp said that the transition to e-textbooks was one the district would consider down the line.

    The program comes before the Madison school board for approval today. Assuming it passes the iPads will be in 20 elementary schools, 10 middle schools, and 3 high schools by the middle of March.

    In a development that is sure to peg your irony meter, the money for these iPads – which the disctrict is getting for $479 each – is actually coming from Microsoft. Wisconsin (along with several other states) sued Microsoft on behalf of consumers, claiming that the software giant overcharged for its software. While the company managed to win dismissals in several of the cases, they wound up settling with several states. In 2009 they settled with Wisconsin for $80 million. The money for Madison’s iPads comes from a $3.4 million chunk set aside for schools.

  • Google’s Chromebooks For Education A Success So Far

    This may finally be the year when classroom’s get a major technology upgrade. Apple’s already had success with their iPad-optimized textbooks and now Google’s announced their huge success with providing Chromebooks in order to bring classrooms into the 21st Century.

    At a keynote address yesterday in Orlando, FL, Rajen Sheth, Google Group Manager, talked about the success of Google’s Chromebooks for Education program. In case you didn’t know, Google’s undertaken a mission to provide schools with one Chromebook per student in order to improve access to and integrate the Internet into the education of students in grades K-12. Because most students and teachers aren’t always able to have classroom access to the Internet, Google has been providing these netbooks at very low costs.

    Since the program rolled out last year, Sheth said that “hundreds of schools in 41 states across the U.S.” have integrated the Chromebooks into classrooms. Additionally, three new school districts in Iowa, Illinois, and South Carolina are beginning the 1-to-1 program, which will provide Chromebooks to upwards of 27,000 students.

    Sheth’s full keynote speech about the success of Chromebooks for Education can be viewed below:

    At the rate that tech companies are integrating themselves into classrooms of today, my only hope is that this initiative by the Googles and Apples of the world will narrow the gap in quality education among different students instead of widen it.

    ______________________________

    Correction: This article was edited in order to correct the spelling of Google’s Group Manager, Rajen Sheth.

  • DLD 2012: Atari Founder Details New Education Initiative

    DLD 2012: Atari Founder Details New Education Initiative

    Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese’s, has a new pet project that aims straight for the classroom.

    At the Digital Life Design conference yesterday, Bushnell outlined his plans for Speed to Learn according to the DLD tumblr. The new service aims at updating the classroom for modern students to learn in new ways.

    “ADHD is misspelled – it’s actually called boring teacher syndrome,” Bushnell said.

    He went on to say that the traditional system is not up to date on the kind of learning processes that are needed to keep students engaged.

    At this point, he says that the education system can learn from video games. He says that the classrooms should be rid of lectures and homework, and introduce individual learning styles. He went on to say that the classroom should in incorporate notions of different learning cultures, and add the power of computers. Such a move would create an education revolution he said.

    The Speed to Learn initiative aims to do that. Teachers can not handle the difficult levels of students, but computers can. He says that through using software that mimics the structures of computer games, initiatives like Speed to Learn can speed up the education process and help individual students reach their potential.

    “Matching difficulty with ability makes teaching fun,” Bushnell said.

    Here are some more priceless quotes from the talk with Bushnell:

    @Bill_Gross
    Bill Gross    “The Classroom is the Dumbest Thing Ever Invented For Teaching Children” Nolan Bushnell, Founder of Atari / Pong @ #DLD12 1 day ago via TweetDeck · powered by @socialditto

    @DLDConference
    DLD Conference    Bushnell: “Matching difficulty levels with ability can help keep students motivated” #DLD12 #DLDLearn 1 day ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @mktgchelsea
    Chelsea Rustrum    “I characterize my life on how much fun I have.” Nolan Bushnell, father of 8 and inventor of pong w/120 billion lifetime downloads #DLD12 1 day ago via Twitter for iPad · powered by @socialditto

    @larsfnorway
    Lars F    Nolan Bushnell: Todays school system is outdated. One week of teaching could be learned in ONE hour #DLD12 1 day ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    [Lead image courtesy of DLD tumblr]

  • iPad Textbook App For Algebra Boosts Student Math Scores 20%

    Apple may have re-invented the wheel this time, insofar you can consider the wheel as an algebra textbook.

    Over the past year, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, publisher of textbooks that you and me and everyone else we know have used since time immemorial, have been conducting a pilot study to test the effectiveness of an iPad-based algebra textbook (i.e., an app) to see how it might affect the quality of education for students. They recently concluded the study and the results show that their iPad algebra textbook app worked wonders for students’ math scores.

    Houghton Mifflin Harcourt provided a video of the launch of the HMH Fuse program at the school where the study was conducted:

    The app, HMH Fuse, isn’t just a regular textbook inside of an iPad. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt had the app specifically designed to “full utilize the functionality of the iPad and provide students with a comprehensive, multimedia education experience.” To see if the app would float, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt took their product to a middle school in California and where students were randomly assigned one of two conditions: the HMH Fuse: Algebra 1 app (with a slick new iPad, I imagine) or a textbook version of the same program.

    By the way, all you technophobes out there, get this straight: it’s not even like the students using different materials, okay? It’s the same content, just one’s gone all 2.0 with an iPad and is a lot more interactive whereas the control condition, the textbook, has the same information except it’s in book form.

    So anyways. How’d it work out?

    @HMHFuse
    HMH Fuse    Student Math Scores Jump 20% with HMH Algebra Curriculum for Apple® iPad®; http://t.co/z7oHJStb #edtech #mathchat 22 minutes ago via HootSuite · powered by @socialditto

    The discrepancy between the two groups’ test results are pretty staggering because the students who used HMH Fuse Algebra 1 scored 20%% higher on the state math exams. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt explains, “Comparing student performance, over 78% of students using HMH Fuse scored Proficient or Advanced on the state math test, compared to only 59% of their fellow students” who used the textbook version of the program.

    Houghton Mifflin Harcourt explained the difference in math scores, saying students who used HMH Fuse Algebra 1 “took the initiative to do their work, read the chapter repeatedly, watch lesson videos when they did not understand, and take notes and study, while also being free to leverage the technology for personal use – namely, games and entertainment – in their free time.”

    Somewhere, Apple is very pleased with themselves right now.

  • Apple About To Launch New Pages, iBooks Software?

    Apple About To Launch New Pages, iBooks Software?

    All anyone knows for certain about the Apple event that starts in just a few minutes is that it is related to education. The rumor mill is generally agreed, though, that the announcement will involve textbooks and iBooks in some way. There have even been rumors of a “GarageBand for e-books,” a tool that would streamline the creation of e-book files. Now, just before the event, there are a few new details emerging. Jason O’Grady of ZDNet posted the following Tweet late last night:

    @JasonOGrady
    Jason O’Grady    A little birdie told me that Roger Rosner will announce Pages ’12, iBooks 2 (with Lion support) and textbook rentals in NYC today. 9 hours ago via Itsy! · powered by @socialditto

    Pages has been overdue for an update for awhile now, so a new version of Pages (and iWork in general) is not at all unlikely. Likewise, users have been clamoring for iBooks on OS X since iBooks was announced with the first iPad in 2010.

    Whatever Apple has in store is bound to be interesting, though. The announcement is scheduled for 10 AM Eastern time. Check back soon for more details.

  • SAP To Acquire datango To Expand Education Offerings

    SAP To Acquire datango To Expand Education Offerings

    SAP announced today its intent to acquire datango AG, which provides workforce performance support software. SAP intends to acquire both the software and the company’s assets.

    SAP aims to use the acquisition to bolster its education-related offerings.

    “The workforce performance tools market has become increasingly strategic and critical to our customers’ success, and datango is a proven leader in this space,” said Markus Schwarz, SVP and global head of SAP Education. “By having its own product in this market, SAP can now deliver and accelerate innovations and produce robust content for our customers in the future.”

    In an overview of the deal (pdf), datango says:

    Certain datango employees related to this business are expected to join SAP following the completion of the transaction. datango will retain employees related to its KPS business (acquired from Enlight AB in 2007) and additional employees required to support and service existing client and partner agreements for the datango performance suite solution. The acquisition follows a successful partnership between datango and SAP in support of SAP’s Business ByDesign product.

    Until closing, the datango business remains unchanged and continues as usual. You should expect to receive the same level of professional, courteous and knowledgeable assistance as you have always received from datango.

    The deal, while subject to regulatory approvals, is expected to close by the end of the quarter. Terms were not disclosed.

  • CES 2012: Education, Innovation Key To Growth

    CES 2012: Education, Innovation Key To Growth

    In the midst of the technology gauntlet that is CES, some people still took time out to talk about education and innovation as it relates to the tech industry.

    A panel of CEOs from Xerox, Ford and Verizon spoke on education and innovation during CES as reported by Vegas Inc. The executives pointed out that better education and economic diversification were the key to the United States catching up to leading businesses around the world.

    “We must fundamentally improve our educational system,” Ursula Burns, chairman and CEO of Xerox, said during the CES’ Innovation Power Panel session. “We need to make science and math a desirable place to be. We need great teachers. We need excited learners. We can’t complain if we don’t have them, if we don’t invest in them.”

    She went on to say that a part of the solution was to make students realize that four or six more years of education after high school could change their financial outlook and success.

    “Unfortunately, it’s still not cool to be that way,” Burns said. “And it’s amazing to me how few people are thinking that way.”

    CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro, moderator of the panel, said that the aftermath of the death of Steve Jobs put an emphasis on his role as an innovator. It was good for the industry as it showed the importance of innovators and the need for a solid education.

    Alan Mulally, president and CEO of Ford, said that the United States needed to get back to letting businesses grow.

    “Manufacturing can be a big part of fueling U.S. growth,” Mulally said. “It’s almost like we’ve decided not to be competitive.”

    John Stratton, president of Verizon Enterprise Solutions, said that his company was fostering innovation through the opening of centers in Boston and San Francisco that invite entrepreneurs to develop phone apps and services.

    Stratton blamed the government for not establishing new tax policies and putting regulatory burdens on companies as the main reasons behind their stifled innovation.

    The executives praised the section on the CES show floor called Eureka! Park that features more than 100 new technologies. Shapiro said that the area featured product categories like broadband services, safe driving and sustainable technologies. It’s his hope that venture capitalists will invest in these new technologies to bring them to market.

  • Kanye West Ends Twitter Drought With Rant On Design, Education, And Steve Jobs

    Kanye West Ends Twitter Drought With Rant On Design, Education, And Steve Jobs

    When I first joined Twitter, one of the first people that I followed was humble rapper Kanye West. I’d been told of his amazing Twitter presence by a trustworthy friend, and so I decided to give him a slot in my then-limited stream.

    And as anyone who followed Kanye back in ye olden tymes knows, he did not disappoint. Whether he was discussing the merits of beef flavored pineapples, fur pillows or even ninjas, Mr. West was always a bright spot in my Twitter stream.

    Then something happened. Kanye stopped tweeting. Well, he didn’t really stop tweeting altogether, but the volume of tweets went down – way down. So much so that there were week-long periods where we didn’t get one single musing from him.

    But now, it appears as though Kanye might be back as a Twitter force, as he went on a nearly 100-tweet rampage that spanned only a few hours on Wednesday evening.

    And during that rampage, Kanye tackled the Grammys, the education system, and announced a new design company called DONDA. During all of that he also slipped in some stuff about Steve Jobs and Michael Jackson. All in all, a successful little thought stream.

    Here’s what Kanye says about his idea for DONDA:

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    I have started a new company and I’m so excited about the name…. it’s got the best name ever of all companies of all time!!!…. 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    DONDA is a design company which will galvanize amazing thinkers and put them in a creative space to bounce there dreams and ideas… 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    I am assembling a team of architects, graphic designers, directors musicians, producers, AnRs, writers, publicist, social media experts… 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    DONDA will be comprised of over 22 divisions with a goal to make products and experiences that people want and can afford… 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    We want to help simplify and aesthetically improve everything we see hear, touch, taste and feel. 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    …To dream of, create, advertise and produce products driven equally by emotional want and utilitarian need.. To marry our wants and needs. 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    A little vague perhaps, but you can’t say it’s not a large-scale idea. He also took on this year’s Grammys:

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    I appreciate having the most nominations at the Grammies but I feel so conflicted by the fact that award shows sometimes are completely… 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    …illogical 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    Good logic tells me smile Kanye… the world likes you again… red or blue pill? … aaaaand Swallow lol 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    I wouldn’t have the prestige I have if it wasn’t partially for the Grammies validation and I honor that 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    Then it was on to the American education system:

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    Help education. School systems were designed to turn people into factory workers. 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    Math classes should teach addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, accounting and money management aaaaaand cut!!! …. 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    UNLESS YOU’RE A MATH MAJOR!!!! Kids you should be able to take majors starting in grammar school like how it is at performing art schools 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    Instead of kicking kids out of schools for using there iPhones… why not promote it? Allow kids to use search engines to do test… 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    And the visionaries we need to model our thoughts after to achieve all of this? Michael Jackson and Steve Jobs, of course:

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    We can collectively effect the world trough design. We need to pick up where steve jobs left off 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    We need to take what Michael Jackson felt and Mcqueen and Steve Jobs and we need make things better… 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    Kanye ended the night with a George Bernard Shaw quote:

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    “If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. …. 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @kanyewest
    Kanye West    …But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas.” – George Bernard Shaw 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    Despite what you think about Kanye’s big ideas (and I happen to agree on some of the education stuff), you have to admit that it’s a blast to run through it all. Legitimate big ideas or drug-induced ramblings, it doesn’t really matter to me. It’s just nice to have one of Twitter’s biggest stars back in the game. Let’s just hope he stays there. I’m sure some of this new batch of tweets is worthy of a stitching.

  • So.cl Launched By Microsoft (And It’s Aimed At Students)

    So.cl Launched By Microsoft (And It’s Aimed At Students)

    The tech industry has been waiting for Microsoft’s So.cl to launch, after being various nuggets were leaked over the past several months. Much speculation has been going around about it (including from us).

    Previously leaked screenshots made it seem like Microsoft was working on a Facebook/Google+ competitor. Frankly, that’s just what it looked like.

    Socl via The Verge

    Image credit: The Verge

    Now, it’s been officially announced by the company, which describes it as, “a site designed to give students the ability to network with peers, share useful information quickly, and build their own pages that collect information from both inside and outside the classroom—in a sense, transforming the web and social networks into the new classroom.”

    While there’s nothing wrong with this concept, the whole thing is a little underwhelming for those of us who might have expected Microsoft to be launching a full-on social network player. Though in reality, Microsoft has a pretty good thing going on with Facebook right now (and not a bad thing with Twitter either for that matter), and it probably doesn’t really need a Facebook clone.

    What Microsoft does have is a strong player in the bigger picture with its Xbox platform, which is now becoming much more powerful as an overall entertainment hub and gateway to online applications.

    But back to So.cl (pronounced “social”).

    “So.cl has been designed for students studying social media to extend their educational experience and rethink how they learn and communicate,” says Microsoft’s Douglas Gantenbein. “They can build posts with many elements—photos, video, text, and more—and share them with colleagues. They also can find students with similar interests and build communities around specific educational goals. So.cl might even give students the ability to create their own social tool, customized for their own community.”

    You actually use Facebook to login to So.cl, but for now, when you do so, you’re just added to a waiting list. Microsoft says it will email you an invitation soon.

  • YouTube For Schools Brings You Classroom 2.0

    YouTube For Schools Brings You Classroom 2.0

    In an effort to make sure that your children never have to use chalk erasers and a blackboard to practice their addition problems or, really, for anything ever again, YouTube has kicked off a new service for specifically available to schools.

    YouTube For Schools allows schools to access educational videos for free while limiting any other access to other content that is probably considered less than educational (so no more Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat videos for you kids while you’re at school). In order to focus the attention on the video’s content, The YouTube for Schools service will do away with the related videos you see cluttered on the right toolbar as well as prohibit any comments from being displayed; viewers will literally only be able to see the video.By aggregating content from forward-thinking educational video providers such as TED and PBS, schools will be able to compile material that will only be available within their school network. Educators will be able to search for videos throughout YouTube EDU’s collection of educational videos, which have been categorized by education levels and subjects. Check out the video below that YouTube put together to highlight some of their goals with their new endeavor:

    The new YouTube-integrated education service will be a great tool for any distance learning programs that schools may have struggled to provide in the past. Students will be able to watch videos on science experiments, get help with math homework, learn and practice foreign languages, and keep up with global events both past and present.

    More information can be found on the YouTube for Schools FAQ or by posting a question on the Google Product Forum.