Two-thirds of American students end up leaving school unprepared for college or a career, according to the 2016 Nation’s Report Card.[1] With the rising pressure to improve student outcomes, K-12 educators are turning to a number of new instructional technologies and models to personalize and enrich classroom learning. Read about four key trends that are accelerating the integration of new technologies in the classroom. Online Learning There are many reasons for high schools and colleges to create ad hoc online courses and programs. In some cases, educators have chosen to experiment with this format simply to gather better analytics with…
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4 Emerging Models Pushing Tech Adoption in the Classroom
This Week: Top Headlines in Education
In the past week, a new report from Moody’s Investors Service anticipates a stable outlook for higher education over the next year. Tuition revenue is expected to increase on a modest scale amid a focus on affordability, and enrollment is expected to grow by an average 1.5 percent for 2017-18. Read more of Moody’s industry forecast and other top stories in K-12 and higher education below. Moody’s: Growth Coming for the Higher Ed Sector in 2017 Their report predicts growth in tuition revenue and student enrollments for public and private universities, but some lingering issues threaten to drag on in…
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4 Big Ideas in Machine Learning That Are Changing Education
Machine learning is a hot topic in the current technology landscape, and in the coming years, it is expected to bring about new breakthroughs. Can machines do what humans can do? In the 1950s, Alan Turing published a paper on the idea of a thinking machine, and now machine learning has made a tremendous impact on every imaginable industry. In the past five years, news stories talked about how computers lacked the ability to do complex tasks requiring seasoned judgment (e.g., driving a car) – only computers are getting faster than most predicted. Pedro Domingos, a computer science professor at…
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Columbus Saves $800k in Textbooks with New Teaching Framework
As K-12 school districts face stagnant and shrinking state budgets, there’s a greater need to find creative solutions to ensure the success of every student. Like many other districts, the Columbus Municipal School District (CMSD) have continued to employ traditional teaching models, relying on textbooks to drive learning. By partnering with Fishtree, CMSD was able to implement a new K-16 Instruction and Technology Integration Model that contributed to $800,000 in savings and increased the district’s graduation rates by 20 percent. Their Innovative Approach Eliminating textbooks and integrating technology into the classroom doesn’t happen overnight. The K-16 Instruction and Technology Integration…
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This Week: Top Headlines in Education
Higher education officials are, without a doubt, anxious about 2017. Late last week, the 2016 Higher Education Government Relations Conference brought together a panel of experts on the most pressing issues, including the uncertainty around the FY17 budget, which could mean even less money directed at higher education than the previous year. Read the full conference recap article from EducationDIVE as well as other top headlines in K-12 and higher ed news below. Through the Looking Glass: Higher Ed Experts Weigh in on Industry’s Future This year, public colleges and universities have been challenged by increasing political discord in statehouses…
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A Surge in Diversity Puts More Pressure on Educators
Educators have been lamenting about the problem for decades: What more can they do to help every student succeed? And more to the point: What can be done to close the achievement gap for minority students? Ten years ago, it was estimated that more than 1.2 million students – most of them minorities – wouldn’t graduate from high school after four years (EPE Research Center). Now diversity has grown at such a rapid pace, requiring a serious reexamination of teaching strategies in order to meet the very different needs of their students. Understand and Embrace Diversity Trends in immigration and…
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Future Classrooms and the Power of Big Data and Little Data
Data has been growing on a massive scale, in everything from business, engineering, science, entertainment, and policy, transforming the way we think about the world. On the education front, many initially viewed data as a disruption, and not an ally, to the classroom. And as the American higher-ed system has faced a myriad of post-recession challenges, such as shrinking budgets and increased competition, educators have had to rethink and reimagine what they do – including embracing the potential of technological “trends” like data analytics in the era of the digital classroom. Check out four key facts behind the big data…
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This Week: Top Headlines in Education
Starting today, we’ll be putting together a regular roundup of the best education stories on the web – everything from new tech trends and tools in the classroom, success stories and tips on personalized learning and OEM, and higher ed and K-12 research findings. This week, get a look at the Department of Education’s latest gainful employment data, a national report on K-12 funding priorities and challenges, three ways to prove the ROI of open education, and more. Education Dept. Releases Gainful Employment Data The earnings data show that graduates of certificate programs at public institutions earned nearly $9,000 more…
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A Student’s View: Why We Need to Change the Way We Teach
You’re all familiar with the typical high school students… We sit in class, usually half asleep, listening to our teacher ramble on about applied trigonometry. Though we’re in the classroom, we never seem to retain much of what’s taught. Why? Because the teacher, in most cases, is simply following the curriculum, and the curriculum doesn’t cater to student needs. Not All Students Learn in the Same Way According to KidSpot, “It is estimated that around 80% of all students learn visually”, making them suited to traditional teaching methods, but what about the other 20%? The 20% that won’t be able…
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4 Simple Strategies to Avoid the Summer Learning Loss
Among the excitement of summer’s long awaited arrival, parents and educators are bracing themselves to face a familiar challenge. According to the National Summer Learning Association, “parents consistently cite summer as the most difficult time to ensure that their children have productive things to do.” With years of research proving the typical school-free summer months to have a detrimental impact on student learning, the summer learning loss is a real concern. Advancements in EdTech are helping to tackle the issue, providing resources specifically aimed at keeping students actively learning, developing essential skills, and engaging with educational content, independent of school…
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