THE Journal — eLearning/Web
TEF Launches Problem-Solving Resource Site for Students
It shouldn't come as a surprise to our readers to hear that students often make poor decisions based on emotion rather than information (as opposed to us adults, who always make informed decisions). But the Tregoe Education Forum, a non-profit out of Princeton, NJ, has launched a new online resource to help educators teach skills that can help lead to better decision making.
(3/20/2008)
Palm Springs USD Rolls Out Instructional Writing Program
Southern California's Palm Springs Unified School District is rolling out an online writing program called MY Access! from Vantage Learning. The rollout will begin in elementary and middle schools in the first year and expand to high schools beginning in the second. The full deployment, expected within three years, will run $800,000.
(3/20/2008)
Kansas Launches Tuition-Free Online Public High School
Kansas' Spring Hill Unified School District #230 has teamed up with Insight Schools to launch a new online virtual public high school that's being offered tuition-free to students throughout the state. The new virtual school, dubbed Insight School of Kansas, will launch its first semester in August, with course selection taking place this spring.
(3/20/2008)
A Taste of Web 2.0
In the initial launch of Collaboration 2.0, Dave Nagel (2008) reported that during 2008 educators can look for "a continued trend toward more and more hosted, mashed-up, collaborative tools in education, from assessment platforms to collaborative learning tools (such as blogs and wikis) to online delivery of audio and video to full-blown productivity tools, such as Google Apps for Education and others" (p. 2). Everything on the Web sounds good.
(3/19/2008)
Academy Pushes Out Mobile Poetry
The next time a student is asked to stand and recite a poem to the class for National Poetry Month in April, will he or she get credit for whipping out an iPhone and reading a little something off Poets.org? That may be the question teachers ask now that the official Web site of the Academy of American Poets has made its collection of 2,500 poems and audio clips of 150 poems freely available for most mobile devices.
(3/19/2008)
IBM Expands Information Server, Sets Delivery Dates for Collaborative Software
IBM this month will release two new software updates focused on collaboration--Lotus Quickr 8.1 and Workplace Collaborative Learning 2.7. The company has also expanded its Information Server software platform with the introduction of IBM Information Server FastTrack, a new module for information integration projects.
(3/19/2008)
Blackboard Debuts Educator Central Professional Development System
Blackboard has launched Educator Central, a new solution for K-12 teacher professional development. It's a hosted system for building education communities and managing professional development programs, as well as delivering and evaluating these programs.
(3/18/2008)
Podcasting Basics: Simple Steps for Introducing Podcasting into Your K-8 Class, Part 2
In the first segment in this two-part series, teacher and consultant Brad Pearl explained what kinds of hardware and software you'll need to introduce podcasting into your classroom. He also shared advice for selecting a first project and getting students involved in the work of recording podcast segments.
(3/18/2008)
Idaho and Minnesota High Schools Go Virtual
Insight Schools, a company with a network of free, diploma-granting, online public high schools, recently announced virtual campuses for students in Minnesota and Idaho, which will open for the 2008-2009 school year. The service is free for the participants.
(3/18/2008)
IBM Addresses Web 2.0 Security Concerns With 'SMash'
IBM announced new technology to secure "mashups," Web applications that pull information from multiple sources, such as Web sites, enterprise databases, or e-mails, to create one unified view. Mashups allow users to gain insight on complex situations but, as with all Web-based initiatives, security has been a concern.
(3/18/2008)
Symposium Focuses on Use of 3D in Education
A consortium of vendors is hosting a conference for educators on the use of 3D simulation-based learning. The Interactive Digital Center (IDC) Consortium is a collaboration formed by EON Reality, Nvidia, HP, Christie Digital, and Microsoft to promote the advancement of interactive 3D (i3D) visualization solutions for simulation-based learning and workforce development. The event will be held in Florence, SC April 9 through 11.
(3/17/2008)
Desire2Learn CEO Makes Case Against Blackboard Patent, Court Ruling
Desire2Learn recently became the first education technology provider to fall victim to litigation stemming from Blackboard's patent covering learning management systems. In February, the company lost a patent-infringement lawsuit filed by Blackboard and in March was enjoined by the court from selling any versions of its learning management system containing the "infringing" code. In this exclusive interview, John Baker, Desire2Learn's president and CEO, discusses the case with us, its impact on the company and its customers, and the implications for education technology as a whole.
(3/17/2008)
On Heels of Injunction, Desire2Learn Releases New LMS, Repository, ePortfolio
Desire2Learn has released new versions of its Learning Environment and Learning Repository software, as well as its new ePortfolio product. The announcement comes on the heels of two legal setbacks in Desire2Learn's patent infringement case with Blackboard.
(3/14/2008)
K-12 Online Teaching Endorsements: Ohio Department of Education Perspectives
In "K-12 Online Teaching Endorsements: Are They Needed?" (Deubel, 2008), I noted that four states, including Georgia, have endorsement programs for teaching online and suspected that it is only a matter of time for more to follow. A reader responded with concerns. Endorsements might deter current licensed teachers from pursuing teaching online, require some colleges and universities to create new courses for their teacher preparation programs, add thousands of dollars to the expenses for teachers-to-be to take additional coursework, and ultimately impact state departments of education, which might need to create new administrative offices. Of course, this is just one opinion, but the reader raised legitimate issues. There is the flip side to an endorsement movement.
(3/13/2008)
California Superintendent: Parents Have Right To Homeschool
Saying that public schools might not be a good fit for every student in California, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell released a statement this week supporting the rights of parents to homeschool their children, despite the Feb. 28 Second District Court of Appeals ruling to the contrary. The statement comes on the heels of a pledge by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to support homeschooling by fighting against the court ruling either through the courts or through other political means.
(3/13/2008)
Video Surveillance Joins Blackboard Commerce Suite
Ed tech developer Blackboard this week launched a new video surveillance solution for its campus management system called Blackboard Video Surveillance. The new tool, announced at BbWorld Commerce conference in Phoenix, AZ March 10, will become part of the Blackboard Commerce Suite, a payment and security management system designed for education.
(3/12/2008)
Fast ForWord Makes Gains in Florida, Texas
Florida's Department of Education has approved Scientific Learning's Fast ForWord family of reading improvement software for use as K-12 supplemental intervention reading programs in schools throughout the state. Fast ForWord has also made gains in Texas, where the Dallas Independent School District recently released a study showing improvements on state tests after using the tool.
(3/12/2008)
5 New Schools, Districts Adopt 'Web Lockers'
Five school groups have signed on for School Web Lockers, a file sharing and storage provider. The new customers include the Roman Catholic Diocese Schools of Albany, NY; Clarkstown Central School District in New City, NY; De La Salle Institute in Chicago, IL; New Urban High School in Milwaukie, OR; and Pierson Vocational High School, in Nogales, AZ.
(3/10/2008)
Gov. Schwarzenegger Promises Reprieve to California Homeschoolers
In late February, California's Second District Court of Appeals issued a ruling that effectively banned every form of homeschooling in the state--whether coordinated through a public school district, combined with online schooling, or otherwise administered in a way that does not include full-time, in-person instruction from a credentialed teacher. It was a ruling with widespread implications for every homeschooling parent in the state, and one that is now being challenged on two fronts: by homeschool advocates and by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger himself.
(3/10/2008)
Kidspiration 3 Adds Visual Math Tools
Education developer Inspiration Software this week released an update to Kidspiration, a K-5 visual learning software suite. The new version 3.0 includes expanded math tools, as well as features for boosting vocabulary and reading comprehension.
(3/7/2008)
ExploraVision Science Competition Regional Winners Named
More than 4,500 student teams submitted projects for the 2008 Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards Program, an annual K-12 science competition. Twenty-four of them were named regional winners in the science competition this week.
(3/7/2008)
Stoneware Integrates Virtual Desktop with iTunes U
Stoneware announced the integration of Apple's iTunes U with its virtualized Web desktop solution, WebOS. iTunes U allows colleges and universities a way to let students search, download and play education content just like they do music, movies, and TV shows. With the integration of iTunes U into the user's virtualized WebOS desktop, students can access applications, files, documents, educational podcasts and other content from a Web desktop that is accessible from anywhere.
(3/5/2008)
Microsoft Expands Office Live Workspace Beta Worldwide
After nearly three months of private beta testing involving about 100,000 users, Microsoft Office Live Workspace (OLW) is being rolled out worldwide as a full public beta. Previously, participants had to be qualified by Microsoft for the beta; now, as of today, it's open to all comers who wish to create workspaces. Coinciding with the public beta, Microsoft has also revved OLW with new features and enhancements and has kicked off a sweepstakes to build awareness for the service.
(3/4/2008)
PBS Launches Professional Development for PreK Literacy
PBS Teacherline and PBS Kids have combined forces to launch a new preschool literacy professional development program. Dubbed "Raising Readers: Preparing Preschoolers for Success," the program includes one asynchronous online course, available now, with two more courses slated to roll out later in the year.
(3/4/2008)
Wimba Unveils New Collaborative Messaging Tool
At the inaugural Wimba Connect 2008 user conference Tuesday, Wimba unveiled its new Wimba Pronto, a collaborative instant messaging tool geared specifically toward education.
(3/4/2008)
