Our New Book On The Next Wave Of K12 Innovation

I said earlier in the week that this would get applied to the K-12 setting.  Anyway, as I say each week…  From the neo-liberal, educational privatizers masquerading as an academic body – so the term research here is used VERY loosely (as none of this actually represents methodologically sound, reliable, valid, or empirical research in any real way).

Check out this week’s highlights from the Christensen Institute.

Christensen Institute · 92 Hayden Avenue · Lexington, MA 02421 · USA

NCVPS E-lert – Fall Edition I – August 16, 2018

A K-12 online learning program newsletter from yesterday.

Fall Edition I August 16, 2018 Subscribe View as Webpage Greetings, everyone! Final summer grades have been posted in our registration system. Early start courses began on Monday, August 13. We posted today the Day-3 Student Status Report that shows which students have logged in and those who have not. If you registered students for early start courses, and they have not begun classes yet, please email their NCVPS instructors to let them know when they will start Or, if the student should have logged in already but hasn’t, then please contact the student. We will have a Day-7 report for you, also. Traditional calendar classes begin on Monday, August 27. We have a number of courses that are reaching full capacity and several that are closed due to low enrollment. See our Course Capacity list here. See the details on all these items and more below. In This Edition Student Course Access Canvas Parent App Virtual Open House 2018-2019 Updates Grade Reporting Calendar Check / Important Links Live Support / Tech Updates Previous News Accessibility Statement Student Course Access Students will have access to their courses at 7 a.m. on the first day of classes. For students registered in Early Start courses, that was Monday, August 13. For Traditional Calendar courses, that is August 27. Many districts and charter schools have their own link for Canvas courses. Be sure your students are logging into their NCVPS courses at this URL:https://ncvps.instructure.com/login/canvas Before classes begin, students can go through our Canvas Orientation. We also have Pre-Instruction Resources for each class. These resources help students get a better understanding of courses before classes begin. Canvas Parent App The Canvas Parent app has a new (and easier) procedure to connect to student accounts. Students will now generate a “pairing code” that parents, advisors, and mentors will use to connect to the student accounts. See the full details on our Canvas Parent App and Web Portal page. Virtual Open House – Aug. 16 NCVPS invites you to its 2018 Virtual Open House. We have one session left if you would like to attend: Thursday, August 16, 7 PM to 8 PM See our Virtual Open House Announcement for more details and registration. 2018-2019 Updates 2018-2019 Registration Details Enroll students through the NCVPS registration system. If you need access, contact our Virtual Support Center. If you are a new e-learning advisor and NCVPS point-of-contact for your school, please update your contact information in our registration system. Click on the “My Info” tab when you log in to update your information. Please remember that there is only one login per school. If your school already has access, you will need to share the login username and password. If you are new to the NCVPS registration system or need a refresher, Quick Registration Guide or our Registration System User’s Guide. Calendars View our Summer 2018 and full 2018-2019 Calendars. Catalog Updates Our 2018-2019 Course Catalog is posted online. We have a few courses that are undergoing revisions, and they will not be offered next year. Courses at Capacity and Course Closings We have a number of courses that are reaching full capacity and several that are closed due to low enrollment. See our Course Capacity list here. Course Updates and Alerts See our Course Updates and Alerts webpage for details on new courses added to the catalog and important alerts about other courses. Semester Success with NCVPS See our Semester Success with NCVPS webpage for some sure steps to help you and your students in their NCVPS classes. Guides and Checklists We have a number of printable guides for ELAs, students, and parents. Student Enrollment and Access Guide. You will need to fill in the password details. Pre-Instruction Resources. Students can prepare for their classes before they begin by checking out the resources on this page. We have something for each course! Student Start-Up Guide. Student Success Guide. Students can also explore our Student Resource Center before classes begin. Visit our Getting Start for Schools page to find our checklist for schools and other details. Grade Reporting What Grades Are Currently Posted? August 16 – Final Summer Grades Posted in Registration System August 16 – Early Start Day 3 Status Report Posted in the Registration System What’s Next on the Schedule? August 22 – Early Start Day-7 Status Report Posted in the Registration System Reporting Overview See our Grades and Testing Quick Reference Guide for an overview of our reporting. We have details on our Student Status (No-Show) Reports, Progress Reports, Final Grade Reports, and how we calculate grades. Calendar Check and Important Links Summer 2018 Dates Start: June 18 Last Add: June 22 Last Drop: June 29 Last Day: August 10 Final Grades Posted: Aug. 16. Fall 2018 Dates Early Start: August 13 Early Start Drop/Add: Aug. 24 Traditional Start: Aug. 27 Traditional Drop/Add: Sept. 10 See our calendar for progress report dates. We post updates every two weeks throughout the semester. How to Register Printable NCVPS Guides How to Open a Ticket with the Virtual Support Center Lab Facilitators Guide Help for Students Course Syllabus & Pacing Guide for NCVPS Courses Course Descriptions & Prerequisites E-lert Archive Live Support and Tech Updates NCVPS offers live online support each week for ELAs and facilitators. Dates and Times: Mondays from12:30 pm to 1:30 pm Access: Access Link Accessories: headphones, a microphone, or a headset See our Tech Updates and Messages page for the latest news from our technology department. We are currently reporting on the following: Issues with certain emails Chrome updates Opening tickets with our support center password resents Confirming student emails in canvas Previous News The 1Million Project Grants Math 1 Co-Teaching Webinar New Look for Online Professional Development Louise Carte Names ELA of the Year Meet NCVPS Super Student and Cricket Star Smit Doshi Accessibility Statement The North Carolina Virtual Public School is continually striving to improve our courses for all students, ensuring courses are accessible to everyone. If you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns regarding the accessibility of a course please do not hesitate to reach out to the NCVPS teacher or open a ticket with our Virtual Support Center.  ‌  ‌

North Carolina Virtual Public School | 1017 Main Campus Drive, Partners I Bldg., SUITE 3900, Raleigh, NC 27606

 

Greetings From The IVS Director!

From a US-based K-12 online learning program a day or two ago.

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We, at Illinois Virtual School, are beyond excited to begin another school year. However, for me, my excitement is even more profound because of the opportunity to serve as the next director. From the moment I began the interview process to the present, it is has been evident clearly to me what a special place IVS is. Our entire team shares a profound and contagious passion toward online learning including an innate desire to serve all of our partners with a quality virtual learning experience. As I near the completion of my first month, I find myself reflecting over an observation I recently experienced which represents the inner workings of our program. Last Saturday I was loading my groceries into the trunk, and I couldn’t help but observe a common action many of us are probably guilty of…..A man across the crowded parking lot had also finished loading the groceries in his car. Based on his facial expressions and pace, he appeared to be in a hurry. As he sat down in his vehicle, a few pennies had fallen out of his left pant pocket. (I observed him pause briefly and decide whether or not he should exit the car to gather the dropped pennies). He started to reach for one but realized the other rolled underneath a nearby car. He made a decision to leave the pennies and drive away. I suspect we have all been guilty of this at one point in time. However, the act of leaving  pennieson the ground represents a larger symbolic presence. This presence is where my reflection originates. John Wooden was once quoted as saying: “It’s the little things that are vital. Little things make big things happen”. My observations during the first 25 days at IVS have shown me the exemplary attention our team places on the little things. In order to ensure we provide our students with an authentic, engaging, and rigorous learning experience, we have to grab every penny off the ground including those that roll in uncomfortable places. Each detail, no matter how small, warrants an intentional focus because this is what our students deserve. Each IVS student matters, all our students count, and every student may exceed learning expectations. Our IVS team has a shared bond toward these powerful beliefs and equally important, strives to model them through their daily actions.  The promise of this upcoming school year for students is vast and filled with tremendous opportunity. My pledge to you is we will continue to advocate for all of our students no matter how big or small the details are. This is what our team has demonstrated to me and this is what we will continue to uphold. We look forward to continuing working alongside all of our partners, students, and families. Together, we will pursue the positive difference we all aspire to achieve for our learners. So the next time you drop that penny on the ground, consider taking the time to pick it up. No corners may be cut. No detail related to the education of our students deserves to be left unattended. Let us share in the virtual journey together picking up each penny along our path. Thank you to our IVS Team for showing me the “IVS Way”. -Kip Pygman, IVS Director 309.676.1000

Copyright © 2018 Illinois Virtual School, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you are an IVS Partner School contact.Our mailing address is: Illinois Virtual School 10112 West DuBois Road P.O. Box 103 Edwards, Illinois 61528

USDLA Newsletter 2018 (08-14-2018)

A newsletter from a couple of days ago.

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Dr. Farhad Saba Founder, Editor USDLA Hall of Fame Inductee Dr. Reggie Smith III CEO / Executive Director Associate Editor OFFICIAL USDLA SPECIAL EDITION FEATURED ARTICLE OF THE WEEK Download Report In February 2018, the Education Week Research Center fielded an online survey to a representative sample of more than 500 school leaders, including principals, assistant principals, and deans. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percent. The topic of the survey was technology. Specifically, the questionnaire focused on screen-time, personalized learning, social media, […] Keep Reading Share this article: RESEARCH-BASED ARTICLES OF THE WEEK The Evolution of Designing E-Service-Learning Projects: A Look at the Development of Instructional DesignersThis design case will discuss how design strategies evolved through the development and implementation of two e-service-learning project cohorts. The article provides a detailed account for how Designers for Learning launched its first e-service-learning instructional design project to address adult basic education needs. Information and design feedback gathered at the end of project informed design […] Keep Reading Share this article: The Evidence Based Curriculum Design Framework: Leveraging Diverse Perspectives in the Design ProcessThe ubiquity of touchscreen, mobile tablet technology has resulted in a plethora of apps for learning yet few leverage the learning sciences as a design driver. This paper describes our approach to integrating the learning sciences with best practices in app design: a design framework that involves researchers and developers in a co-development process to […] Keep Reading Share this article: Higher education students experiences of digital learning and (dis)empowermentThis paper focuses on learning practices in higher education in relation to a digital participatory culture. Using key principles of critical education, the research set out to explore higher education students sense of agency online or lack of it as part of their formal learning practices. The research found that although students were proficient […] Keep Reading Share this article: Student Presence and Faculty Availability in Fully Online Courses: Is Alignment Requisite?Distance students consider online faculty availability and immediacy to be very important. Understanding student course usage is imperative to be able to align with their needs. The results of daily course usage by fully online nursing students enrolled in three separate clinical courses on an LPN-to-BSN track illustrate a clear pattern of extraordinarily consistent usage […] Keep Reading Share this article: IN THE NEWS Reading Signals from the Future: EDUCAUSE in 2038In 1992, I was in a meeting at Apple Computer and was asked if I wanted to see the next “killer technology” the company would soon release. My Apple colleague left the conference room and came back to unveil the Apple Newton, a handheld device (sort of) that Apple was calling a “Personal Digital Assistant” […] Keep Reading Share this article: A Bird’s-Eye View of Online Program QualityLaura Dicht has since last November served as manager of online program quality in New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering. Before that, she spent two years as an instructional designer for the school. In the nine months in her new role, she’s gathered some newfound insights into the online teaching experience, shaped new processes […] Keep Reading Share this article: Defining Regular and Substantive Interaction in the Online EraThe Trump administration is considering an overhaul of a 26-year-old federal rule that is seen variably as a barrier to innovation and an important guardrail against substandard instruction. Inside Higher Ed Keep Reading Share this article: Why the FCC’s E-rate Makes Funding High-Speed Internet a Slow CrawlIt’s one of the cruelest ironies in education: today’s schools must build and maintain robust high-speed, fiber-optic internet connections. But the process involved in finding funds for these upgrades can feel like a laggy dial-up modem, slow to a crawl when its not cutting out completely. EdSurge Keep Reading Share this article: Benefits of a Pro Supporter 2x More Newsletters Monthly Abstracts Archived Content Support & Subscribe

United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA), 840 First Street, NE,3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20002

Plugged In | 8.15.18 – iNACOL Innovator Award Deadline Approaching, Webinar Registration Now Open

And from another group of neo-liberals.

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iNACOL PLUGGED IN 8.15.18 Dear Colleagues: Your engagement and action are needed over the next couple of weeks. Below are opportunities you should know about. Pick Our SXSW EDU 2019 Panel iNACOL has proposed a session for 2019 SXSW EDU Conference being heldMarch 4-7, 2019 in Austin, TX, and we need your help to ensure we are able to share important insights and lessons about personalized learning. You’re invited to vote and share input on our proposed session, A National Landscape Scan of Personalized Learning, which we’ll present along with our friends at LEAP Innovations and Center on Reinventing Public Education, University of Washington Bothell. The session stems from our recently published report summarizing new research on how personalized learning is being approached and implemented across the nation. Online voting is now open through Thursday, August 30, 2018. Your participation plays a significant role in whether our session is accepted. Click here to vote for the National Landscape Scan of Personalized Learning panel. And share the invitation to participate with your colleagues by tweeting about it. Nominate an Education Transformer for an iNACOL Innovator Award Each year, iNACOL honors and celebrates education pioneers for their work in personalized, competency-based education. Nominations are now being accepted for the iNACOL Teacher of the Year and Outstanding Individual Contribution to Personalized Learning awards. We’ll announce honorees at the iNACOL Symposium in Nashville, TN, which runs October 21-24, 2018. Additional information, including eligibility requirements and nomination forms, is available on our iNACOL Innovator Awards page. Please submit a notice of your intent to nominate by 8 p.m. ET on August 31, 2018. Final nomination packages are due by 8 p.m. ET on September 7, 2018. Please send all intents to nominate and any questions to awards@inacol.org. Join the Conversation about Supportive Policy for Education Innovation You’re invited to join Susan Patrick, iNACOL’s president and CEO, and our policy team for an hour-long discussion about long-term policy approaches for personalized, competency-based education in the United States. We’re hosting a Special Edition Webinar on August 28, 2018 at 2 p.m. Eastern; here’s how to sign up for it. It’ll be helpful to read this recent report too. Plugged In Headlines: Other News in Personalized, Competency-Based Education A Year of Personalized Learning: Mistakes, Moving Furniture and Making It Work Mike Elsen-Rooney, Hechinger Report I’m a Principal Who Thinks Personalized Learning Shouldn’t Be a Debate. Lisa Epstein Chalkbeat What’s School Without Grade Levels? Chris Berdik, Hechinger Report 4 Big Shifts That Can Personalize the Learning Journey Sam Peterson, EdSurge How to Prepare Students for the Unknowable Adam Garry, eSchool News How to Make the Most of the First 20 Days of Personalized Learning Megan Huneck, Education Elements TOOLKIT: Building Bridges to Big Dreams Krista Sabados, Jobs for the Future New from iNACOL’s Blog: Education Domain Threshold Concept: Building Capacity for Assessment Literacy in Personalized, Competency-Based Education The lack of assessment literacy across the system is a major blind spot. Thus, building significant capacity for assessment literacy is needed to advance new competency-based approaches and address tough issues in our current system… Learn more. Opportunities for Competency Education in the Reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Act On July 23, Congress voted to pass a bill to reauthorize the Carl D. Perkins and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins Act) and on July 31, President Trump signed into law, the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, providing states with the opportunity to advance competency-based pathways in career and technical education (CTE) programs.… Here’s how. Issue to Tackle for Certifying Learning: Redefining Student Success Moving to a future state of an equitable K-12 education system requires that we consider and perhaps rethink what students need to know and be able to do to achieve success. It also requires that we set a vision and foundation for achieving success throughout the state education system. Here we dig into the second issue to tackle related to certifying learning: broadening the definition of student success… Read more. Upcoming iNACOL Events August Special Edition Webinar |  Fit for Purpose: Taking the Long View on Systems Change and Policy to Support Competency Education August 28, 2018  |  2-3 p.m. ET Learn more and register. iNACOL Symposium 2018 October 21-24, 2018, Nashville, TN Attendee registration is open.  iNACOL in the News This Accelerator Seeks to Scale Equity in Schools by Mixing the Start-Up Mentality with Social Justice Jenny Abamu, EdSurge Caroline Hill is a firecracker. She keynoted the Blended Learning Conference in Rhode Island and iNACOL in Florida. At both events, she asked educators to challenge their notions of the use of technology in the classrooms and their conversations around equity.… Read more. Chicago Principal: Personalized Learning Is ‘Bottom Up and Teacher Led’ Linda Jacobson, Education Dive Last month, iNACOL, and other partner organizations, released a “landscape scan” of personalized learning in the U.S., which points to rapid growth of K-12 schools and districts using various models since 2015.… Read more. Where Can Districts Turn for Personalized Learning Resources? Eli Zimmerman, EdTech A new push for personalized learning has put competency-based education back on the map, however, with this new model of teaching to the individual, cost is becoming a major issue for school districts.… Read more. Study: Personalized Learning Requires Proper Funding, Greater District Guidance Amelia Harper, Education Dive Another recent study on state funding strategies for innovation in education conducted by national education nonprofit iNACOL, revealed that, as of 2018, almost all states have a form of K-12 competency-based education policy and that 18 of those states have comprehensive policies designed to help districts get the resources they need to support personalized learning.… Read more. Facebook Twitter Linkedin YouTube

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