March News RoundUP

NEWS

• Bill Would Limit Use of Student Data, NY Times: Two congressmen introduced a bill titled the Student Digital Privacy and Parental Rights Act in an effort to limit the information that edtech companies can use about K-12 students.
• Closing the Gap Between School and Work, USA Today: Schools are moving to combine rigorous college preparation with hands-on learning of various careers and professions. And experts say it’s paying off by keeping kids engaged and in school.
• Young Girls are Much Better Readers Than Boys, and Have Been for a Long Time, Huffington Post: A new report analyzes data on effectiveness of CCSS, the relationship between student engagement and academic achievement, and the gender gap in reading. The report notes that enjoyment of reading might have nothing to do with this gap; it could be a function of biology, cultural influences, or school practices.
• When Students Can’t Go Online, The Atlantic: Nearly every school in America has some form of connection to the Internet, but that alone does not mean all kids have equal access to the web.
• New Grad Rate Data Shows Gaps Closing, US DOE: New data show some positive signs in ensuring all kids have the opportunity to succeed, regardless of zip code. The gap between minority and white students is closing.
• Civil Rights Complaints to US DOE Reach Record High, Washington Post: Since 2007, attorneys and investigators in the Civil Rights office have seen their cases double. Complaints have poured in about students from kindergarten through college facing discrimination based on race, sex, and disabilities.
• Is the Biggest Learning Disability An Emotional One? Hechinger Report: In the must-read article of the week, a rationale is provided that says the biggest challenge is helping turn kids back on to school who have long struggled. One program is highlighted, which targets kids in middle school—the grades where struggling readers start running into trouble in nearly every subject.
• As CCSS Testing Is Ushered In, Parents & Students Opt Out, New York Times: An in-depth look at the movement by opponents of CCSS to have students opt out of standardized testing.

BLOGS

• What Does a School Need to Enable Learning Based on Student Competency? KQED/MindShift: The movement for personalization dovetails with blended and competency-based learning in order to achieve a more student-centered approach to schooling. But this doesn’t just mean fancy adaptive technology. Within the article is a link to a new report with insights from experts on how to create a truly personalized, competency-based approach.
• Curriculet’s Latest Partners—Random House and Simon & Schuster, Education Dive: The library available on Curriculet’s platform now exceed 30,000 online books with these new partnerships.
• Measuring Edtech Efficacy, edSurge: In the must-read guide of the month, edSurge has put together a collection of resources on how to measure the impact of educational technologies on students and teachers. Experts from LEAP, Silicon Valley Ed Foundation, Remind, and Mind Institute are tapped.
• Gamification Harnesses the Power of Games to Motivate: There’s a growing practice of applying structural elements, design patterns, and psychological insights from game design to business and education fields.
• Why Smart, Low-Income Kids Don’t Apply to Elite Schools, NPR: High-achieving students from low-income families who live outside of America’s big cities are significantly less likely to apply to tier 1 and 2 colleges & universities.
• Kickboard’s Primer on Edtech Privacy and Security Best Practices, edSurge: Kickboard has decided to lead the industry by “open sourcing” it’s policy processes and policies.
• How One District Trains Kids on 21st Century Skills, edSurge: Read up on how one school model is changing the way students learn, explore, and build relevant skills for their futures. It focuses on bringing down the walls between art, computer science, and technology education—creating a more interdisciplinary approach to school.
• Blended Learning Turns Teachers into Facilitators, Education Week Digital Directions: Blending technology with traditional classroom instruction can free up time for teachers to work one-on-one with students, and it also allows students to explore their own learning individually or in small groups. It’s changing the role of the teacher—and certainly comes with challenges, such as more planning time required—but done well, it can make a world of difference for students.

REPORTS

• The Education Trust is out with a new report on funding gaps by state. The conclusion: too many states spend far too less on the students that need the most support.
• Researchers Hunt for the Secret Sauce of Digital Learning Success: America’s Promise Alliance issued a study on the best practices of digital learning to ultimately help students succeed in the classroom.