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A very interesting way to engage individuals on a personal level via video. It startled me the first time around (see :56). I wonder how quickly the novelty of providing subtle dynamic elements to video would wear off, but if done properly, might have a place in a nonformal educational setting for children ... a new type of personalized learning experience. Ah, and I may have altered the web link a bit to make it a bit more appropriate for our class :)

Technology is a double-edged sword. Young children cannot be exposed to the screen all day long, but there is no need to make a fuss about it. They can still learn a lot if they are properly guided.

"The world is ripe for another revolution - this time in education. Technology has advanced so much over the last two decades that we can virtually change the way we educate." - Vivek Wadwa, senior research associate at Harvard Law School and director of research at Duke University's Center for Entrepreneurship.

"We can do to schools what PayPal did to banks and do to college networks what Facebook did to friendships. We can now make education affordable and pervasive. All this requires is investment in the right technologies and the type of mentoring and support being provided to students, such as the Thiel fellows. You could impact the lives of billions" - Vivek Wadhwa, Senior Research Associate at Harvard Law School and Director of Research at Duke University's Center for Entrepreneurship.

"Jochim and Siddell's books converge a traditional children's book format, a CD-ROM, a webcam and a computer to create "the same interactivity you could have on an iPad or (a Hewlett-Packard Co.) tablet, but with paper," said Jochim, president and founder of the Tempe-based Digital Tech Frontier."

Three long-time Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, veterans from Yahoo, Sun Microsystems, and Google, started funding education start-ups last Spring. Their incubator, Imagine K12, has now "graduated" its first group of startups. If accepted, Imagine K12 give $15k to $20k to startups and empower them with "dazzling network of connections."

Lubbock School District in Texas are investing $28 million in technology. "SMART Document Camera 330 in all classrooms where core subjects, such as science, math, language arts or social studies, are taught. Additionally, the district is installing 75 SMART Height-Adjustable Wall Mounts in pre-kindergarten classrooms to ensure that younger students have easy access to the interactive whiteboard to engage with digital content."

One of nations best University systems, University of California, is about to start its first group of fully online courses for undergraduates. At the same time, the California State Universities (CSU) starting its computer-based options for its 412,000 students. Currently, there are master's degrees in 63 disciplines entirely online. Some educators are skeptical and raise concern on cheating and of "walmartaization" of CSU education.

"As professors mix and match book chapters, case studies, and journal articles, the site keeps track of how much royalties are going to cost. Once the book is made, students have the option of buying it digitally or paying an extra $10 (with an additional 3 cents per page if the book is more than one hundred pages) for the textbook"

Michigan State senate approved Cyber Schools. Experts question this legislation. A new report by education professors from the University of Colorado finds that there's no reliable evidence showing such institutions are as good brick-and-mortar schools. Some are just not comfortable with all the unknowns in the cyber school equation. Sounds familiar?

There is a lot murkiness in the conversation. There may be no evidence but so much goes on in brick and mortar schools that has no evidence behind it anyway, I'm less and less convinced by that particular rhetorical approach. I think there is no more to lose by the effort than we already lose in undocumented ways. As with any endeavor, planning and execution will be the determinants of success. I'm beginning to resent the attempts in the media to summarize these complex issues because I think they have a significant impact on public opinion but they horrible at conveying complexity.

In India, three young men redefine teaching in the slums of India through the "smile school" project.

There were two recent articles in NYTimes on use of technology with opposing view. While one article proposes replacing textbooks with laptops, the other school "doesn't compute." This article takes a middle path, a balanced used of technology in our schools. The author argues that computer cannot replace books, technology cannot replace a teacher, writing, or discussion. Technology is a tool to enrich the material and agument a curriculum.

Arne Duncan, Education Secretary, says greater use of technology in teaching may engage students and help prevent dropout rates.

Superintendent and School Board understand the need for technology investment in Education and MUSD residents chose to extend the $40m bonds to fund this crucial initiative.

Microsoft is showcasing range of products and solutions aimed at leveragng technology to transfrom education. Live@edu, a rich collaboration and communication platform, is the highlight of the show.

Interesting topic! One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) founder Nicholas Negroponte plans to airdrop tablet computers in remote villages and then come back a year later to see how it worked. Remember the movie "The Gods Must be Crazy" or the story of "Hole in the wall" in India? Here is the link (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2_CjRbZ5EI)