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A good demo of the DTP user interface and classroom engagement.

Good read to get a pulse on an online course at Coursera. Students registered online 11,800; students registered in in-person class 20. Only three weeks into the course and student feedback has been very positive.

This page contains a bio for Tom Vander Ark, a leader in didigtal learning. There is a link to a TEDx talk he gave at the bottom of the page about the power of digital learning. He provides very good visuals and paints a very vivid picture of how digital learning can change education.

For the business-type folks in the class, McGraw-Hill just sold its Education division to a private equity company. They think that education will continue to be a good investment.

Yeah, I thought it was weird. I looked into that--I think the sale is to a different "Apollo" group. UPhoenix is something like "Apollo Group" whereas McGraw Hill sold their division to "Apollo Global Management". I think they are different entities, but it is hard to tell. If they are the same organization, it is definitely a weird sign of shifting investments.

Cole, you're absolutely right, I missed that Apollo Global Mgmt is a VC firm.

An interesting, critical appraisal of MOOCs' transformative potential by education historian Larry Cuban. Includes some hilarious graphics, in addition to good insights...

Scientist discusses positive effects of action video games, suggests entertainment industry should join scientists to create engaging educational games.

Thanks for sharing Brandon. I like two things she said in particular 1) General wisdom often carries no weight 2) Like red wine, video games may be good when used appropriately. I'm convinced myself in the power of game-based learning but do agree that more work needs to be done in bringing good ones to the class.

The Knight Center's MOOC on data visualization was a bit smaller than traditional MOOCs (it actually capped enrollment at 2000), but the second version of the same class already has 4000 students registered. It sounds like the professor gave a lot of attention to the students and the projects, and the fact that the numbers went up is a good sign.

Bloom's taxonomy in digital age. Good resource for educators.

Good synthesis of much of what we studied in T561

Good discussion on how distance education and other ed-tech are tools for educators, but don't really replace the in-person education experience.

An interesting take on "Achievement Gap"

More than interesting. This challenges a basic premise of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

People have posted about the Star Wars sale before, but here is an analysis of what the impact means on "Tech Education"--kind of talks about it is more efficient to separate entertainment and education, but using the sale money to directly fund education is a good move.

An article with key takeaways from the 2012 Virtual School Symposium. There is good insight on issues of access, evaluation and transparency.

In light of our recent Blackboard Collaborate class during Sandy, I got curious as to what other good online delivery platforms are out there. I am preparing to teach the MIT App Inventor curriculum to some high school girls on the other side of the world and am wondering if maybe there's a better alternative to Skype. I came across Piazza, which is free and seems to be gaining traction in higher ed. I also once took an online course with Kaplan and really liked their interface, but don't remember what it was and now it seems they are moving toward a platform called "KapX." If anyone can recommend additional platforms, please let me know.

Interesting concept for how to evaluate Ed-Tech. I wonder if it will catch on, as it seems like a good idea from an educators perspective.

A good utility posting that offers links to portfolio management tools; useful for both kids in school and us to showcase our work in TIE, etc. 

A leading game maker is, among other things, dedicating resources toward education games. It's also worth noting, I think, that a company that rejects typical corporate structure might be a good one for disrupting typical education structures.

This article outlines 3 trademarks of excellent teaching. This article seems relevant following our discussions today re: technology supplementing - not replacing - good teaching.

This is a good example of how a product is trying to make you feel more immersed by placing virtual objects in the real world instead of a completely virtual world.

This could possibly put the 'fun' back in 'functional' - if students are operating within the "real world" on sincere applications, they may generalize their skills better. I'm all for perceiving my world in 50% cartoon ;o)