Pearson Embedded a 'Social-Psychological' Experiment in Students' Educational Software
Sidney Fussell, Gizmodo, 2018/04/19
According to this article, "Pearson is drawing criticism after using its software to experiment on over 9,000 math and computer science students across the country." The experiment was disclosed in a paper presented on Tuesday (not Wednesday, as was incorrectly reported by Gizmodo). More...

Uncited Research
Simon Baker, Times Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, 2018/04/19
The argument documented here is familiar, but it's still a point of frustration for researchers working in the humanities and social sciences when they are compared with peers in technology, engineering and mathematics. Simply, the former receive much fewer citations because citations, and papers themselves, play a different role in those disciplines. More...

Why collaboration is a bad idea for developing personalized learning teachers
Thomas Arnett, Christensen Institute, 2018/04/19
According to Thomas Arnett, "the 'collective action' approach will likely flounder at creating the pipeline of excellent personalized learning teachers that the field needs." This is because "when new innovations are still stretching to meet our expectations, the best strategy for pushing a product’s performance forward is for a single entity to control all the interdependent pieces of the solution." He draws a parallel between the development of teachers and the development of touchscreens. More...

The Future of College Looks Like the Future of Retail
The Atlantic, Jeffrey Selingo, 2018/04/18
The suggestion here is that "similar to e-commerce firms, online-degree programs are beginning to incorporate elements of an older-school, brick-and-mortar model." I would comment that the e-commerce physical storefront is a novelty, not a trend, but let's continue. More...

Open the Gateless Gate: OER and Open Education
Geoff Cain, Brainstorm in Progress, 2018/04/18
I love how Geoff Cain mixes a new spirit of optimism and positivity with a couple of 'get off my lawn' moments. The positivity he finds in the Open Pedagogy Notebook created by Robin DeRosa and Rajiv Jhangiani to “support community sharing of learning materials and ideas around access to knowledge and knowledge creation.” I've added the feed to my reader. More...

New Education Marketplace Development Funded by Crypto Coins
Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology, 2018/04/18
The script for the On-Demand Education Marketplace (ODEM) reads like it came straight from the Christensen playbook: "The platform reduces costs and improves access to premium education by directly connecting educators with students and eliminating inefficient and costly intermediaries." The idea is that you have to buy cryptocurrency to do this. More...

After-school Code Club – Lifelong Kindergarten?
Angela Brown, AACE Review, 2018/04/18
It's funny how the after-school activities seem more educationally relevant than classes, when when they're not relevant at all. That's why this description of an after-school coding club appeals to me. Drawing on Mitch Resnick's book Lifelong Kindergarten as a guide, Angela Brown describes how her coding sessions sometimes stay on topic and sometimes stray far from the original idea. More...

Open Educational Practices and Micro-Credentialing: A pilot project
Justin Mason, Open Pedagogy Notebook, 2018/04/18
What caught my eye was this description of "a competency-based micro-credentialing program called the University Learning Store (ULS).... conceived of as an online store for learning, where students can purchase mini-courses both to acquire and to be assessed on discreet competencies." Offered by the University of Wisconsin Extension's Continuing Education, Outreach and E-learning (CEOEL) it's (to me) a natural locus for experimentation. More...

Google's latest do-it-yourself AI kits include everything you need
Jon Fingas, EdGadget, 2018/04/17
When I was a kid the prototypical DIY kit was a build-it-yourself crystal radio (for the princely sum of $24, well beyond my means at the time). Today's equivalent is DIY Artificial intelligence (AIY). "Google has released updated AIY Vision and AIY Voice kits that include what you need to get started. More...

OECD Releases Report on Automation and the Workforce
Susan Gentz, ConVerge, 2018/04/17
The OECD has released a new report on automation, skills use and training (125 page web-based document). It asserts, essentially, that automation is on the increase and that therefore governments should consider allocating more resources to computer science training. More...