A few days before the presidential inauguration, the U.S. Dept of Education released their national plan on the future of education technology. In it, they propose a vision that radically reshapes the discourse by focusing less on the use of ed tech in classrooms and more on how it can contribute to the development of a student-centered higher ed ecosystem. Read about their technology report and other major issues taking place in K-12 and higher education below.
U.S. Department of Education Releases New Report on Ed Tech Challenges
In the National Higher Education Technology Plan, the department highlights the need for a more expansive and flexible education marketplace. Their report proposes cross-institutional collaborations, new policies to drive data-driven education, and more. Read more
Five Higher-Ed Leaders Analyze the Hottest Ed Tech Trends This Year
In this tech trends roundup, five experts (from the campus IT department to instructional design to distance learning) tackle the potential applications of virtual reality technologies, artificial intelligence, blockchain and credentialing, adaptive learning, and the Internet of Things for education. Read more
Education Department Drops Fight Over School Money
The U.S. Dept of Education has withdrawn a proposal, which quickly sparked a heated debate in the Senate back in May last year, which would have caused a significant change in federal funding given to schools that serve low-income students. Read more
States Cut in Half the Number of K-12 Students Lacking High-Speed Broadband
In a new report from EducationSuperHighway, more work is still needed to deliver digital tools to 11.6 million students in 19,000 schools lacking adequate access. Check out the full report, which includes a state-by-state breakout of how states have progressed over the years in expanding internet access, and how they could close the broadband equity gap. Read more
Are Education Startups the New Dot Com?
The number of education startups is increasing rapidly in recent years, and the amount of venture funding for education businesses is at an all-time high. This phenomenon is looking like the dot-com boom of the 1990s. Read more
The Top 10 Higher Education Issues We All Agree On
One area of agreement is that rankings are far too important in setting the direction for American colleges and universities. In this story from Forbes, take a look at the ranking of 10 things we can agree on when it comes to addressing the shortfalls of higher ed. Read more
