Tag Archives: K-12

Submitting Questions to US Ed Secretary Arne Duncan

Posted on February 18, 2011 by | 3 Comments

Liz Dwyer has a new post suggesting a way to submit question to US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. From the post:

For a shot at Secretary Duncan answering your burning education question, simply head to the SparkAction! contest page and post your query. The public will then vote American Idol-style on which questions they like the best—so make sure you’re ready to have everyone you know in real life, plus all your Facebook friends, vote for your question.

Thanks to Maria Popova for the link.

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More on Open High School of Utah

Posted on February 15, 2011 by | 1 Comment

Open Education News has covered the Open High School of Utah a few times. Tom Vander Ark two new posts (one at the Huffington Post and one at edReformer). From the edReformer post:

Active collaboration takes place in the virtual faculty room, the Teacher Commons. They just integrated the Genius student information system and to ensure that no one or nothing drops through the cracks, the faculty uses Highrise as a case management tool to track interventions and conversations related to individual students.

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Open Source at Maryland School

Posted on January 18, 2011 by | Leave a comment

Bridget McCrea has a new post on open source at Chelsea School in Maryland. From the post:

Working primarily with students who have language-based learning differences, a handful of teachers at the school rely heavily on technology to accommodate 86 students, for many of whom syntax, reading comprehension, organization, and writing fluency are severely impacted.

Thanks to Pratham Books for the link.

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The “Standard” Softward Choices in K-12

Posted on December 23, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Algot Runeman has a new post discussing the use of proprietary software in K-12 classrooms because they are “standard.”

When schools install expensive learning tools on school computers, are they making it easier for the students or more difficult?

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Canada’s Copyright Tipping Point

Posted on December 21, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Michael Geist has written an article about Canada, copyright and education. From the post:

The tipping point toward using technology as a replacement may have come this year when Access Copyright, the copyright collective that licenses copying on Canadian campuses, demanded a significant increase in the fees associated with photocopying articles and producing printed course packs.

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Open Education in Maine

Posted on December 10, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Timothy Vollmer has a new post about open education policy in Maine. From the interview:

The success of Maine and others’ OER projects is not assured. Dwindling budgets will remain an ongoing challenge, and while there’s been some recognition of OER in policy initiatives such as the National Education Technology Plan, Jeff and Bob question whether current budget woes will derail national and state efforts for change.

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Saving Schools From Lock-in

Posted on December 7, 2010 by | Leave a comment

John Spencer has a new post arguing that schools should embrace open source to prevent lock-in. From the post:

Quite simply examination vendors should be barred from being text book suppliers. Not only do they have an unfair advantage over their commercial rivals they completely undermine the use of free materials as the predominant source of school-knowledge.

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California and Open Textbooks

Posted on December 4, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Kara Platoni has written about open textbooks in California. From the article:

Digital textbooks are starting to be accessible on cell phones, too. “Even the students who are at lower income levels have these tools,” says Dave Fontaine, an online instructor for the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Education.

Thanks to Stephen Downes for the link.

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“Deinstitutionalizing Education”

Posted on November 9, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Stephen Downes has a new post discussing the deinstitutionalization of education. From the post:

People today are beginning to realize, I think, that the solution of the problem of institutional excess does not lie in the creation of more institutions. The solution to the problem of the corruption of mass movements does not lie in the creation of yet another mass movement.

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Downes Posts on Huffington Post

Posted on October 21, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Stephen Downes has placed his first post on the website Huffington Post. The post is a good summary of Downes’ viewpoint regarding education reform. From the post:

But if we focus our attention on the needs of learners, all learners, they are not served either by cutting the system to the barest of bare bones or handing of the reins over to the private sector.

Also, Lisa Guernsey on open content adoption in K-12 (via Creative Commons).

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