Entries are now being accepted for the startups category of Jisc’s edtech competition, which supports startups and student ideas for education. With the UK’s first Edtech UK Global Summit having taken place in London earlier this month, it certainly seems that the UK edtech sector is tipped for take-off, and Jisc’s startups competition could give edtech startups the boost that they need. Winners will provide real solutions for education sector issues, and stand to bag funding of up to £20,000 and business
Classroom at ACS International (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
When your classroom is a global one, filled with well-informed online learners, they don’t cut you much slack. Hundreds of people pore over every element of your course, making well-informed and sometime acerbic comments. Academics who run Massive Open Online Courses MOOCs are finding that they can’t afford any sloppy reasoning, one-sided arguments, or narrow perspectives when teaching to a massive global audience.As academic lead at FutureLearn, a company offering free online courses from UK universities, I’ve seen that this instant feedback can be eye-opening for course designers.On a university campus, students stick around even though the teaching may be dreadful, because they need the degree qualification. In MOOCs they leave as soon as they lose interest.
This month, Yung Chou, Mitch Tulloch and I have published a new book on Hybrid Cloud Management with System Center 2012 R2 App Controller, titled Microsoft System Center: Cloud Management with App Controller. As part of a series of specialized guides on System Center, this book focuses on using App Controller to manage virtual machines and services across private and public clouds.
English: Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Microsoft Imagine Academy program prepares educators and students for industry-recognized certifications. Technology is everywhere. There is a need to provide appropriate business software and technologyskills necessary in everyday life, whether it is basic computer skills or advanced technical skills. Almost every job today requires some form of technology skills.
When I started writing, I didn’t use any tools. All I had were my laptop, notes, and head. I thought that was all you need to publish something great, which is true. That is all you need. But the time and work you invest into one post isn’t enough to become an influential writer — it actually takes many exceptional posts to build a fan base who can’t wait to read your next piece. And the best way to pump more “wow” into your post is to use the right blogging tools.
With less books, paper, and pencils and more laptops, smartphones, and tablets gracing our classrooms these days, it would be logical to say that the nature of note-taking in class has changed, too. Especially with digital tools such as Evernote, writing things down on paper seems less likely to be the #1 way of taking notes.
That said, does taking notes really help? Does the physical act of writing something down help you to remember it? What is the most effective way to take notes? How does all of this play into a more digitally based classroom? The handy infographic below takes a look at these questions and more – keep reading to find out some of the answers!
The Kindle is great for reading the occasional book, but you might not know that it’s also a fantastic tool for students. When used correctly, it can essentially operate as a portable tool to keep all your books, notes, and research in one place. Here’s how to turn a Kindle into your new best friend for school.
English: Noam Chomsky’s signature. Français : Signature autographe de Noam Chomsky. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
PhD students and professors sometimes betray a certain infatuation with the “big names” of academia. It goes beyond admiration into the realm of hero worship, and it’s a bit silly. We’re getting too old for it.
Especially by the time the dissertation has been written. Shouldn’t we expect a measured nonchalance toward the whole notion of big names and so-called great ideas? Shouldn’t routine exposure to “greatness” have a demystifying effect on PhD students and professors?
Noam Chomsky and Harold Bloom, for example, are tacked on to conversations or asked to be the editors of an impossible number of books, either because people worship them or because people know that people worship them. They function like commercial adverts instead of scholars.
It’s not to say that Chomsky and Bloom don’t have interesting ideas or important things to say – but a large number of academics have interesting and important things to say. Brilliant insights should be collected and epiphanies compiled, of course. But by the very nature of those accumulations I would anticipate less, not more, captivation over a scholar or handful of thinkers.
