Technology

Racial stereotypes color how teachers view tech in class

Destiny Viator 22 hours ago

Schools that rely on remote learning during the pandemic are trying to ensure that all kids have the devices and internet bandwidth they need. While important, it takes more than everyone having comparable equipment and working Wi-Fi for all children to get an equal shot.

In my new book based on the sociological research I conducted at three middle schools before the COVID-19 pandemic, I explain how even if all students could get the same hardware and software, it would fail to even the academic playing field.

I saw many technologies used in unequal ways. And I observed teachers responding differently to students’ digital skills depending on the race or ethnicity and economic status of most of their students.

Learning from digital play

Previous research by a team of University of California researchers found that young people gain basic digital skills just from playing with friends online. This includes the

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Back to school an adjustment for teachers, students around state

Destiny Viator 2 days ago

After months of intensive planning for students to return to classrooms as safely as possible in the current pandemic, many schools in Maine reopened to students last week. We stopped in to see how it’s going.

Mt. Blue Middle School, Farmington, Regional School Unit 9

School librarian Sherry Wyman teaches sixth-grade students how to access the library website during language arts class at Mt. Blue Middle School in Farmington on Thursday. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

The hallways at Mt. Blue Middle School in Farmington were quiet and empty. Orange markers painted on the floor reminded students to practice social distancing and flat screen TVs mounted to the walls streamed COVID-19 notices.

Sixth grade teacher Tracy Knapp sat in front of her laptop, alone in her classroom with her head sandwiched between a model of the Earth and the sun as she lectured her online students.

The middle school

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Apex Learning Announces Collaboration with PowerSchool to Streamline Digital Curriculum Integrations for Students and Educators

Destiny Viator 3 days ago

Collaboration supports simplified access to comprehensive online learning

SEATTLE, Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Apex Learning, a recognized leader in online learning, announces a new collaboration with PowerSchool, a leading provider of K-12 education technology solutions. The collaboration will strengthen the company’s commitment to streamlined teaching and learning, enabling educators to seamlessly integrate Apex Learning digital curriculum with Schoology Learning, PowerSchool’s learning management system. Students, teachers, parents and administrators will be able to engage with one platform for communication, collaboration and to provide access to digital curriculum.

An industry leader in online education with deep expertise in digital curriculum, Apex Learning works closely with school districts across the country to provide implementation solutions that close learning gaps and increase on-time graduation rates. From struggling to accelerated, Apex Learning creates opportunities for students to succeed through virtual, hybrid and in-classroom learning options.    

“We recognize that seamless integration of digital tools

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At School or at Home, CompTIA Educational Resources Available to Aspiring Technology Professionals and Their Instructors

Destiny Viator 4 days ago

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Sept. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — With the 2020-21 academic year underway amid much uncertainty, CompTIA, the nonprofit association for the global technology industry, is providing a degree of certainty for students interested in careers in information technology (IT) and the teachers and instructors who are educating them.

CompTIA today announced the availability of a large selection of digital educational resources on IT careers to inspire students and assist teachers, whether instruction is happening in a physical classroom, via remote learning or a combination of both.

“We want students to have all the information they need to learn about the broad selection of career options available with technology companies and in technical roles in virtually every other industry,” said Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO of CompTIA. “We’re  committed to providing our partner educators and institutions with the resources and support they need in today’s classroom to

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Outlook on the AI in Education Global Market to 2025

Destiny Viator 6 days ago

DUBLIN, Sept. 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The “AI in Education Market – Forecasts from 2020 to 2025” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering.

The Artificial Intelligence in education market was valued at US$2.022 billion for the year 2019. The growing adoption of artificial intelligence in the education sector due to the ability of these solutions to enhance the learning experience is one of the key factors which is anticipated to propel its adoption across the globe for education purposes.

The proliferation of smart devices and the rapidly growing trend for digitalization across numerous sectors is also propelling the demand for artificial intelligence solutions in the education sector. Artificial intelligence majorly uses deep learning, machine learning, and advanced analytics especially for monitoring the learning process of the learner such as the marks obtained and speed of a particular individual among others. Also, these solutions offer a personalized learning experience

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Flint schools families can still get free internet access, technology for students

Destiny Viator 7 days ago

FLINT, MI — No family could prepare for what the 2020 school year would bring.

With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to plague the country, most students in Genesee County are learning remotely.

Flint is no exception.

Flint Community Schools Superintendent Anita Steward is asking families still in need of access to technology or internet to contact their child’s school building. The district is able to provide Chromebooks and hotspots to all families who have requested them.

The district has also learned that Comcast will continue to provide 60 days of free Internet service to new, eligible customers through the end of 2020, Steward said. The Internet Essentials from Comcast program provides low-income families free internet for 60 days and a reduced price after the free trial. Details on the program can be found here.

“Flint Community Schools is committed to a high-quality learning experience for all students,” Steward said.

Educators

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Book finds digital expectations for students impacted by race, class

Destiny Viator 1 week ago

Matt Rafalow, a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley, recently published a book describing how race and class impact teachers’ digital expectations for their students. 

For “Digital Divisions: How Schools Create Inequality in the Tech Era,” Rafalow researched three middle schools in California, each equipped with similar technological infrastructure but composed of different demographic makeups.

While the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has recently given rise to conversations about digital learning in many communities, Rafalow’s research was conducted many years prior, during the 2013-2014 academic year.

Technological use, even video games and social media, was viewed by teachers at a school largely composed of wealthy, white students as being “essential to learning,” Rafalow said in an email.

According to Rafalow, at a middle-class, predominantly Asian American school, teachers viewed their students’ use of technology as “threatening” to learning.

Lastly, at a school where Latino students from mainly working-class families made

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On first day of online school, Olathe system shuts down

Destiny Viator 1 week ago

At 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, thousands of Olathe students sat at their computers, ready to start the first day of school and meet their new teachers via a Zoom video chat.

But within a few minutes, many realized they had been blocked from doing so.

“At first I thought that maybe the internet wasn’t working in our whole neighborhood, since everyone was trying to get online. But then we figured out that (the district system) must have crashed,” said Cassie Collar, who has a middle schooler and high schooler in the Olathe district.

District spokesman Cody Kennedy said 50,000 people were attempting to log in to the online portal StudentVue on the first day of school. But the system was designed to accommodate about 30,000 users. It soon crashed.

In an email to parents, district officials said there were more than 160,000 attempts made at logging into the system.

“We know

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SRP celebrates Page and St. Johns teachers by awarding teacher learning grants | Education

Destiny Viator 2 weeks ago

PHOENIX — The new school year means more money for teachers and students in the Page and St. Johns areas. They have new tools to help them learn more about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) thanks to SRP Learning Grants for Teachers. The grant program provides funding for teachers to develop programs that give students cutting-edge, hands-on learning tools and experiences in STEM-related fields.

Salt River Project annually contributes more than $1.3 million to education initiatives, grants and partnerships and provides free training and resources to educators throughout the state. To learn more about SRP Grants for Teachers and get grant-writing tips, visit www.srpnet.com/education.

Page Unified School District $12,500

The Page Unified School District is filled with bright-minded learners. The district now has a gifted program that will put brand new educational materials to good use. Teachers will use SRP funding for computer science curriculum that teaches students robotic’s

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An eventful first day of classes, quarantines for ACPS students and teachers | Covid-19

Destiny Viator 2 weeks ago



First day Avery

Avery, 7, sits at her laptop. Her mom said Avery was in tears at one point.





First day of school pictures look a little different this year.

After weeks of back-and-forth, schools officially opened today. Students across Alachua County began learning in the classroom for the first time since COVID-19 shuttered schools in March. Others started the school year at home. 

Students attended school in person while wearing masks, some logged-in to Alachua Digital Academy, a live, online option, and others started in Alachua eSchool, a self-paced, digital learning platform. 

The day was eventful.

One class at Lake Forest Elementary had to quarantine after a parent called to say their child, who was in the brick-and-mortar classroom, had a COVID-19 test that came back positive, said Jackie Johnson, Alachua County Public Schools spokesperson 

Johnson said the child shouldn’t have been brought to school.

“We sent

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