Posted by: Kathy
on Mar 17, 2010
High school students seem to be overwhelmingly in favor of online instruction as a component of their educations.
The vast majority have taken an online course or expressed interest in taking one, according to new data released this week by Project Tomorrow.
Article here: http://bit.ly/b2byMW
Posted by: Kathy
on Mar 10, 2010
Broadband Plan Looks To Overhaul E-Rate, Promote Online Learning
By David Nagel
In a presentation to stakeholders Wednesday, FCC Director of Education Steve Midgley provided a preview of the forthcoming National Broadband Plan, which will be formally released next week. The plan, as it pertains to education, calls for an expansion of E-Rate and new federal supports for the promotion and delivery of online learning.
Read more about how this plan will help promote online learning nationwide.
Posted by: Kathy
on Mar 05, 2010
National Education Technology Plan — The draft National Education Technology Plan (NETP) was released today. It provides the context and vision for how information and communication technologies can help transform American education. The plan provides a set of concrete goals to inform state and local educational technology plans, as well as recommendations to inspire research, development, and innovation.
You can download a copy of this document, which highlights the importance of technology in the classroom.
Plan PDF (1.6M) - Transforming American Education - Powered by Technology
The NETP presents 5 goals, with recommendations for meeting the goals:
1.0 Learning. All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and outside of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society.
2.0 Assessment Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement.
3.0 Teaching Professional educators will be supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that enable and inspire more effective teaching for all learners.
4.0 Infrastructure All students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure for learning when and where they need it.
5.0 Productivity Our education system at all levels will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of the power of technology to improve learning outcomes while making more efficient use of time, money, and staff.
Posted by: Kathy
on Feb 23, 2010
Just published earlier this month -- this excellent 9-page brief titled, "The Online Learning Imperative: A Solution to Three Looming Crises in Education," is written by Governor Bob Wise. Wise is from the Alliance for Excellent Education and outlines clear and compelling evidence for the ways online learning solves the major challenges in K-12 education today and looking ahead.
The link to download is:
http://www.all4ed.org/files/OnlineLearning.pdf
Posted by: Kathy
on Feb 03, 2010
A study by Wendy Way and Karen Holden titled “Teachers’ Background and Capacity to Teach Personal Finance: Results of a National Study” published in the Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning in 2009 found that teachers are not prepared to teach financial literacy. Fewer than 20 percent of teachers and prospective teachers reported feeling competent to teach any of the six personal finance concepts normally included in educational standards.
Although the trend for states to mandate financial literacy education is encouraging, it's shocking to me that the mandates typically include no training for the teachers!
Surely, if state legislators want students to learn essentials of personal finance, it follows they should want their teachers to learn the essentials, too. In most states, these same underprepared teachers are expected to review materials for congruency with the curriculum, for efficacy, and for engagement. It's quite literally the blind leading the blind!
An instructionally complete program like MoneyU®, which doesn't depend on the subject-matter expertise of the teacher for her students to succeed, is a good way for the teacher to learn financial skills alongside the students.
Dr. Lusardi has posted thoughtfully on this study as well: Financial Literacy and Ignorance
