Latests Posts
Can States and School Districts Cut Costs Through Digital Learning?
January 18, 2012 By admin Leave a Comment
Digital learning represents wide-open terrain for K-12 education reform. Several states — Alabama, Arizona, Idaho, Michigan and Minnesota — require students to take an online course to receive a high school degree. Twenty-seven states have established statewide full-time virtual schools since the first opened in 1997 in Florida, according to a report by the International Association for K-12 Online Learning, an indication of virtual education’s growing appeal.
As with all innovations, though, there is always a question of cost for providing such new technologies, especially when states are providing less per-pupil funding.
A study released last week by the Education Center of Excellence at the Parthenon Group (commissioned by the conservative education think tank, the Fordham Institute) suggested that the costs of digital learning could be significantly less than more traditional modes. The authors cautioned that its findings must be interpreted with some caveats: costs vary across digital education platforms and different entities pursue online learning for different reasons (cost-savings versus enhanced offerings, for example).
For the rest of the article, go to Can States and School Districts Cut Costs Through Digital Learning?
Sign On to National School Choice Week 2012!
January 16, 2012 By admin Leave a Comment
National School Choice Week, a grass roots effort, will be held this year from January 22-28. Activities and events sponsored throughout the nation will focus on effective education options for all children and support of school choice options in all states. This is an opportunity to educate local school boards and state legislatures about the need for education reforms that empower parents to choose the best educational environments for their children, whether those environments are public schools, public charter schools, magnet schools, virtual schools, private schools, homeschooling and more.
For the rest of the article, go to Sign On to National School Choice Week 2012!
UAB instructor receives recognition for online teaching
January 1, 2012 By admin Leave a Comment
BIRMINGHAM, AL (WBRC) -
An instructor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham has been nationally recognized for his efforts to instruct over the internet.
Mickey Gee, with the UAB School of Business, was awarded the seal of recognition from the Quality Matters Program (QM) for his Basic Marketing class.
“It is a great honor and it is nice to see the UAB School of Business recognized for taking the lead in doing online learning right,” Gee says. “Our staff recognizes that access to education online is becoming more and more important and to do it right means a major commitment in time and resources.”
QM holds 40 quality standards that are reviewed by a team of three. The standards focus on objectives, learning activities, course materials and engagement.
“Online courses without interactivity and engagement with the instructor and other students are really just correspondence courses,” says Elizabeth Fisher, Ph.D., is the instructional design manager for the UAB School of Business and a certified QM peer reviewer. “We work hard to make sure students receive the high quality education and experience online that they expect from the UAB School of Business.”
Fisher has designed 40 online courses with 35 faculty members and plans to increase the online offerings. Her role is to ensure quality standards and best practices in online instruction by providing design and pedagogical support to faculty.
For the rest of the article, go to UAB instructor receives recognition for online teaching
