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Players see how politicians use the redistricting process to select their voters - wow! Political Science Research Advisor: Kareem Crayton, Assistant Professor of Law and Political Science, USC Gould School of Law, kcrayton [at] law [dot] usc [dot] edu, http://law.usc.edu/ - created at the USC Game Innovation Lab - part of the USC School of Cinematic Arts', Interactive Media Division. It was developed for the USC Annenberg Center for Communications by the following people: Lead Game Designer and Project Lead, Chris Swain, Assistant Professor, Co-Director, EA Game Innovation Lab, Interactive Media Division, USC School of Cinema-Television, cswain [at] cinema [dot] usc [dot] edu, http://interactive.usc.edu/research/games "The game provides a basic introduction to the redistricting system, allows players to explore the ways in which abuses can undermine the system, and provides info about reform initiatives - including a playable version of the Tanner Reform bill to demonstrate the ways that the system might be made more consistent with tenets of good governance. Beyond playing the game, the web site for The Redistricting Game provides a wealth of information about redistricting in every state as well as providing hands-on opportunities for civic engagement and political action."

The MOOC Business Plan- With millions of students taking high-quality MOOCs for free, schools and course providers are searching for a viable business model. Editorial: MOOC Shake- MOOCs will change higher education radically, but not in the way we expect right now. Assessment Tools for MOOCs- As MOOCs are made available for credit, scalable assessment options are essential. Building a Sense of Community in MOOCs- Massive class sizes can breed feelings of isolation, but they also enable more student interaction. Blended MOOCs: The Best of Both Worlds?- Combining in-class instruction with high-quality MOOCs may resolve some of the hurdles facing xMOOCs, but questions about cost and the impact on faculty remain unanswered. Watch video: Catheryn Cheal, AVP and senior academic technology officer at San Jose State, discusses how the school adapted a course for use in a blended MOOC. The Rise of MOOCs… What does it mean for higher education? Watch video: Cathy Sandeen, VP of education attainment and innovation at ACE, talks about the potential of MOOCs to increase the number of Americans gaining a post-secondary degree. cMOOCs: Putting Collaboration First- Alternative MOOC models are fostering creativity and collaboration with peers. How to Convert a Class Into a MOOC- The sheer size and diversity of the student body in a MOOC require a new approach to teaching. C-Level- The role of MOOCs in learner-initiated learning. MOOC News & Analysis- Georgia Tech's MOOC Degree

Ashton Anderson and Jure Leskovec (Stanford) Daniel Huttenlocher and Jon Kleinberg (Cornell) re Coursera students' activities/user rates: "engagement taxonomy" 5 different categories based on student interactions with the platform (http://www.openeducationeuropa.eu/en/news/mooc-study-creates-new-taxonomy-engagement): Bystanders are registered for the course, but their total activity is below a very low threshold. Collectors primarily download lectures, but don't participate much. Viewers watch lectures, handing in few if any assignments Solvers hand in assignments for a grade, viewing few if any lectures All-Rounders balance the watching of lectures with the handing in of assignments QUESTION: what about the way-finders - those who help create signposts for others to follow as learners navigate the course? or the web-makers - assisters/facilitators who help craft communities among learners?

The CSU's Affordable Learning Solutions Campaign is designed to enable faculty to choose and provide quality educational content that is more affordable for their students. CSU students typically pay over $800 per year for their books. By reducing their expenses, we believe we can provide better access to a quality CSU learning experience. We are launching this campaign in 2010 and will be continuously improving the services to CSU faculty and students each semester. The Affordable Learning Solutions website is designed to: - Make it easy for faculty, staff, and students to find no/low cost course content that can substitute for more costly textbooks Enable faculty to be recognized for their efforts in reducing costs for students - Share practices for using no/low cost digital content in CSU courses - Support campuses in customizing their strategies to enable affordable learning solutions For example: As part of a three-year partnership with Nature Publishing Group (NPG), publisher of the world's leading scientific journal Nature, CSU faculty guided and advised the development of NPG's Principles of Biology - the first in a series of interactive "born digital" textbooks. The text will be incorporated into courses for students at the Los Angeles, Northridge and Chico campuses starting in the 2011/2012 academic year.

1-gather resources 2-add interaction 3-build course

Mike James urges programmers to adapt gaming techniques to allow the regular-Joe academic expert to include a simulation quickly and easily into a learning experience (instead of videotaping them as they present it via words or pre-produced visuals)