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How online learning helps students pursue their passions

eschoolnews | May 03, 2019

As a high school principal at an international school, I want students to successful and well supported if they journey into online learning. Our students in grades 11 and 12 can take online classes for the IB Diploma Program (DP), and we partner with The Virtual High School (VHS, Inc.) to prepare them for the high-stakes online DP courses, as well as to better prepare them for the online learning that they will inevitably engage in at university and/or careers.Taking online courses with VHS not only helps students get comfortable working online, but it also exposes them to opportunities we can’t offer. As a smaller international school, we cannot provide as many options as a larger institution can. VHS greatly increases the diversity and choice for our students, allowing them to pursue their individual passions.We also benefit from VHS at a pragmatic level. Enabling students to take online classes allows more flexibility in our scheduling and allows greater chances for students to get the options they want in terms of our internally taught classes. Here are five other reasons districts and schools should add online learning to their curriculum offerings.

Spotlight

Innovative Learning Solutions to Navigate Complexity: Adapting Systems Thinking to Future Classrooms

Last year, the assembly of the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization agreed to set an aspirational goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, reinforcing targets and commitments made already by both industry and individual states for the sector. While net zero provides a common goal for aviation, it comes with a recognition that this sector is likely to be one of the hardest to abate. Most stakeholders agree that meeting this challenge will require a broad approach, encompassing both operational efficiencies and changing the ways we fuel flight.

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Spotlight

Innovative Learning Solutions to Navigate Complexity: Adapting Systems Thinking to Future Classrooms

Last year, the assembly of the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organization agreed to set an aspirational goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, reinforcing targets and commitments made already by both industry and individual states for the sector. While net zero provides a common goal for aviation, it comes with a recognition that this sector is likely to be one of the hardest to abate. Most stakeholders agree that meeting this challenge will require a broad approach, encompassing both operational efficiencies and changing the ways we fuel flight.

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Entrepreneurs and Leaders

Instructure Reveals Major Product Innovations Across Four Strategic Areas

PRnewswire | August 02, 2023

Instructure, the leading learning platform and maker of Canvas, today announced enhanced and expanded Instructure Learning Platform solutions, further demonstrating the company's ongoing commitment to innovation in edtech and its mission to make teachers' work easier and improve student success. Today the company unveiled enhancements centered around core teaching and learning, advanced analytics, lifelong learning and platform integration during InstructureCon 2023, the company's annual user conference held July 26-28 in Denver. Core Teaching and Learning To better support millions of educators and learners using Canvas around the world, Instructure showcased continued innovation to their core teaching and learning solutions, all designed to save educators time, personalize learning experiences for students and simplify complex tasks for administrators. Today, AI-assisted course templating was announced, giving educators and instructional designers the power to quickly create elegant page layouts using dynamic methods, making courses both more engaging and intuitive. This latest release, soon available in beta, joins the growing list of new functionalities specifically designed to improve educator efficiency and reduce administrative tasks, such as bulk publishing for modules, enhanced Gradebook filters, Course Pacing and the ability to submit assignments on behalf of students. Students also gain a more personalized, equitable experience from Canvas solutions with tailored in-context support, like the beta AI-powered right-and-wrong answer rationale and integration of AI writing tutor Khanmigo, made available through the just-announced partnership with Khan Academy. These tools give instructors supplemental AI-powered tools to support students in and out of the classroom. "This work underscores our continued commitment to build the extensibility and advanced capabilities of Canvas products, while also promoting simplicity for both educators and learners," said Shiren Vijiasingam, Instructure's Chief Product Officer. "With the introduction of AI capabilities into our core products—both with our own innovation and that of our strategic partners found in our beta emerging AI marketplace—we aim to meet the immediate and future needs of our community with substantive improvements that help to drive best practice in pedagogy and curriculum." Advanced Analytics Building upon the rapid adoption of the new data pipeline for Canvas Data 2 and the recently released Canvas Admin Analytics, included in Canvas LMS, Instructure also showcased new advanced analytics solutions now available in beta. This allows administrators to personalize the way they see and interact with their data in a fraction of the time. Injecting conversational AI into Instructure analytics products empowers educators to ask deeper questions of their data using everyday language. This results in more timely, actionable insights to drive better outcomes for students. Lifelong Learning In response to rapidly evolving labor markets and growing demand for alternate educational paths, Instructure's new streamlined offering of Canvas LMS, Canvas Credentials and Canvas Catalog provide institutions with a turnkey solution to diversify course offerings, attract new learners and drive continued institutional growth. As an evolution of this offering, today the company previewed innovative work in credentialing and learner records. Instructure is launching a learner passport in beta designed to empower learners to carry stackable, verifiable evidence of the competencies acquired throughout their learning journey. "We believe the future requires a portable, shareable record to show the skills and achievements an individual mastered with either employers or institutions," Vijiasingam said. "We know that learners are looking for alternative paths to employment and education and this gives them the power to pursue their own unique learning journeys." Platform Integration To realize the company's mission of delivering the most comprehensive, seamless learning platform on the market, Instructure showcased new deep integration between their solutions, like Canvas LMS and assessment management system Mastery Connect, and a seamless learning experience across Canvas LMS, Canvas Catalog and Canvas Credentials. This cohesive platform experience is strengthened by a foundation of data brought to life by advanced analytics. As part of the platform, the Instructure Community, edtech's largest online community, now has PandaBot, an AI-powered chatbot available to all community members. "Whether educators and learners are using Instructure products or other educational technologies on the Instructure Learning Platform, they deserve an experience that puts teaching and learning front and center," said Steve Daly, Instructure's Chief Executive Officer. "Removing the barriers between these solutions allows everyone to navigate freely so they can focus on the content of their education and not the tech. Today we shared our vision of what a cohesive platform experience could and should look like–and our strategy to get there." ABOUT INSTRUCTURECON InstructureCon 2023, Instructure's professional learning event for educators and edtech users, with a 2023 theme of Making Moments, features prominent keynotes from Deepak Chopra, Arianna Huffington and Dr. Jordan Nguyen. With more than 130 sessions from fellow educators and inspiring thinkers, InstructureCon addresses some of the most impactful edtech insights and tips on resilience, wellness and self-care for educators. This year's InstructureCon event takes place July 25-28, at the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center in Denver. ABOUT INSTRUCTURE Instructure is an education technology company dedicated to elevating student success, amplifying the power of teaching, and inspiring everyone to learn together. Today the Instructure Learning Platform, comprised of its flagship product Canvas LMS and several products serving K-12 and higher education, supports tens of millions of educators and learners around the world.

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Education Technology

TutorMe Selected as Approved Vendor for New Jersey Department of Education High-Impact Tutoring Grant

PRnewswire | August 16, 2023

TutorMe, a one-to-one, online tutoring solution from leading digital learning company GoGuardian, today announced it has been selected by the State of New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) as a qualified vendor for their new high-impact tutoring program. The Learning Acceleration: High-Impact Tutoring initiative, launching for the 2023-24 academic school year, will provide targeted funding to local education agencies (LEAs) for high-dosage, intensive tutoring for students, with a priority of students in grades three and four. The NJDOE is supporting LEAs' efforts to respond to students' increased academic needs and the necessity to accelerate learning by launching a state-supported tutoring initiative. To apply for the program, school districts must use the Electronic Web-Enabled Grant System (EWEG) online application system on the NJDOE's Homeroom web page. Grant applications must be submitted by Sept. 20, 2023. Districts that receive the grant will then be given a list of pre-approved tutoring providers, including TutorMe, which will be available to support the tutoring services offered through the grant program. "High-dosage tutoring is proven to be an incredibly effective educational strategy for improving student learning outcomes, and we commend the State of New Jersey for implementing this critical grant program," said Luke Harris, Chief Revenue Officer at GoGuardian. "TutorMe is proud to be a part of this initiative that will not only support students, but also deliver added in-classroom support to teachers working diligently to provide personalized learning experiences." The NJDOE is the latest state education agency to partner with TutorMe for state-wide tutoring initiatives. In 2022 the Texas Education Agency included TutorMe as an approved provider for their Vetted Texas Tutoring Corps Program. TutorMe, which has completed more than one million live tutoring sessions, offers high-impact, personalized tutoring for learners across the country. TutorMe's platform allows students to connect with a tutor to collaborate in real-time during live sessions, with the option to engage face-to-face in a safe digital environment. About TutorMe TutorMe's platform is further enhanced by the company's unique RAISE Approach, which translates the learning methodologies in TutorMe's evidence-based logic model into a framework for tutors to support student engagement. The RAISE Approach is centered on the guiding principles of asking questions and providing feedback, followed by rapport-building, assessment of prior knowledge, individualized instruction, structured practice, and encouragement. This approach results in more engaged students, leading to positive learning outcomes. About GoGuardian GoGuardian aims to help all learners feel ready and inspired to solve the world's greatest challenges by combining the best in learning and science technology across every part of the learning journey. Our award-winning system of educational tools, which includes Giant Steps, Pear Deck, and GoGuardian Teacher for learning engagement; Edulastic for formative assessments; TutorMe for virtual on-demand tutoring; and GoGuardian Admin and Beacon to support student safety, is purpose-built for K-12 and trusted by school leaders to promote effective teaching and equitable engagement while empowering educators to help keep students safe.

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Talent Development

California’s Southwestern Law School Selects YuJa Panorama Digital Accessibility Platform

Businesswire | July 20, 2023

YuJa, Inc., a leader in ed-tech solutions, announces that Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles has selected the YuJa Panorama Digital Accessibility Platform to help increase the accessibility of digital media and course content campuswide. YuJa integrates directly into Canvas, the institution’s learning management system. YuJa Panorama is one product in YuJa’s suite of high-impact media solutions that help institutions deliver accessible, engaging video and media content to users. The accessibility solution provides an accessibility gauge and enables content creators to pinpoint and correct issues as content is created. In addition, instructors will benefit from the automatic generation of accessible versions of all uploaded documents, comprehensive reports at the course, instructor, and institution levels, and other tools that help build accessibility into course creation. YuJa Panorama also provides users with an LTI app and customized website accessibility profiles that can be applied to both internal and external web pages. “Accessibility is a growing concern in higher education, and it’s YuJa’s mission to provide the ed-tech tools necessary for institutions to meet the learning needs of all students,” said Nathan Arora, Chief Business Officer at YuJa, Inc. “Southwestern Law School is committed to creating an inclusive, equitable, accessible educational environment, and we’re excited for them to use YuJa Panorama to help meet their accessibility goals.” ABOUT YUJA, INC. YuJa is a leader in ed-tech solutions. Our platforms provide organizations of all sizes with the tools to educate, engage, inspire and collaborate. We serve learning enterprises within all sectors, including higher-ed, K-12, government, healthcare, non-profit and corporate. We have legal headquarters in Delaware with primary U.S. offices in Silicon Valley, California, and Canadian offices in Toronto. ABOUT SOUTHWESTERN LAW SCHOOL Founded in 1911 as an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian institution, Southwestern is fully approved by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. It is the only law school to offer four J.D. courses of study that differ in scheduling and instructional approach, including traditional full- and part-time programs as well as a unique two-year accelerated curriculum (SCALE). Southwestern also offers a concurrent J.D./M.B.A. program with The Drucker Graduate School of Management; a J.D./M.A. program in Negotiation with California State University, Dominguez Hills; a public policy certificate program with the Pardee RAND Graduate School; a bioscience industry certificate program with the Keck Graduate Institute; and LL.M. programs in entertainment and media law and general studies.

Read More

Entrepreneurs and Leaders

Instructure Reveals Major Product Innovations Across Four Strategic Areas

PRnewswire | August 02, 2023

Instructure, the leading learning platform and maker of Canvas, today announced enhanced and expanded Instructure Learning Platform solutions, further demonstrating the company's ongoing commitment to innovation in edtech and its mission to make teachers' work easier and improve student success. Today the company unveiled enhancements centered around core teaching and learning, advanced analytics, lifelong learning and platform integration during InstructureCon 2023, the company's annual user conference held July 26-28 in Denver. Core Teaching and Learning To better support millions of educators and learners using Canvas around the world, Instructure showcased continued innovation to their core teaching and learning solutions, all designed to save educators time, personalize learning experiences for students and simplify complex tasks for administrators. Today, AI-assisted course templating was announced, giving educators and instructional designers the power to quickly create elegant page layouts using dynamic methods, making courses both more engaging and intuitive. This latest release, soon available in beta, joins the growing list of new functionalities specifically designed to improve educator efficiency and reduce administrative tasks, such as bulk publishing for modules, enhanced Gradebook filters, Course Pacing and the ability to submit assignments on behalf of students. Students also gain a more personalized, equitable experience from Canvas solutions with tailored in-context support, like the beta AI-powered right-and-wrong answer rationale and integration of AI writing tutor Khanmigo, made available through the just-announced partnership with Khan Academy. These tools give instructors supplemental AI-powered tools to support students in and out of the classroom. "This work underscores our continued commitment to build the extensibility and advanced capabilities of Canvas products, while also promoting simplicity for both educators and learners," said Shiren Vijiasingam, Instructure's Chief Product Officer. "With the introduction of AI capabilities into our core products—both with our own innovation and that of our strategic partners found in our beta emerging AI marketplace—we aim to meet the immediate and future needs of our community with substantive improvements that help to drive best practice in pedagogy and curriculum." Advanced Analytics Building upon the rapid adoption of the new data pipeline for Canvas Data 2 and the recently released Canvas Admin Analytics, included in Canvas LMS, Instructure also showcased new advanced analytics solutions now available in beta. This allows administrators to personalize the way they see and interact with their data in a fraction of the time. Injecting conversational AI into Instructure analytics products empowers educators to ask deeper questions of their data using everyday language. This results in more timely, actionable insights to drive better outcomes for students. Lifelong Learning In response to rapidly evolving labor markets and growing demand for alternate educational paths, Instructure's new streamlined offering of Canvas LMS, Canvas Credentials and Canvas Catalog provide institutions with a turnkey solution to diversify course offerings, attract new learners and drive continued institutional growth. As an evolution of this offering, today the company previewed innovative work in credentialing and learner records. Instructure is launching a learner passport in beta designed to empower learners to carry stackable, verifiable evidence of the competencies acquired throughout their learning journey. "We believe the future requires a portable, shareable record to show the skills and achievements an individual mastered with either employers or institutions," Vijiasingam said. "We know that learners are looking for alternative paths to employment and education and this gives them the power to pursue their own unique learning journeys." Platform Integration To realize the company's mission of delivering the most comprehensive, seamless learning platform on the market, Instructure showcased new deep integration between their solutions, like Canvas LMS and assessment management system Mastery Connect, and a seamless learning experience across Canvas LMS, Canvas Catalog and Canvas Credentials. This cohesive platform experience is strengthened by a foundation of data brought to life by advanced analytics. As part of the platform, the Instructure Community, edtech's largest online community, now has PandaBot, an AI-powered chatbot available to all community members. "Whether educators and learners are using Instructure products or other educational technologies on the Instructure Learning Platform, they deserve an experience that puts teaching and learning front and center," said Steve Daly, Instructure's Chief Executive Officer. "Removing the barriers between these solutions allows everyone to navigate freely so they can focus on the content of their education and not the tech. Today we shared our vision of what a cohesive platform experience could and should look like–and our strategy to get there." ABOUT INSTRUCTURECON InstructureCon 2023, Instructure's professional learning event for educators and edtech users, with a 2023 theme of Making Moments, features prominent keynotes from Deepak Chopra, Arianna Huffington and Dr. Jordan Nguyen. With more than 130 sessions from fellow educators and inspiring thinkers, InstructureCon addresses some of the most impactful edtech insights and tips on resilience, wellness and self-care for educators. This year's InstructureCon event takes place July 25-28, at the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center in Denver. ABOUT INSTRUCTURE Instructure is an education technology company dedicated to elevating student success, amplifying the power of teaching, and inspiring everyone to learn together. Today the Instructure Learning Platform, comprised of its flagship product Canvas LMS and several products serving K-12 and higher education, supports tens of millions of educators and learners around the world.

Read More

Education Technology

TutorMe Selected as Approved Vendor for New Jersey Department of Education High-Impact Tutoring Grant

PRnewswire | August 16, 2023

TutorMe, a one-to-one, online tutoring solution from leading digital learning company GoGuardian, today announced it has been selected by the State of New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) as a qualified vendor for their new high-impact tutoring program. The Learning Acceleration: High-Impact Tutoring initiative, launching for the 2023-24 academic school year, will provide targeted funding to local education agencies (LEAs) for high-dosage, intensive tutoring for students, with a priority of students in grades three and four. The NJDOE is supporting LEAs' efforts to respond to students' increased academic needs and the necessity to accelerate learning by launching a state-supported tutoring initiative. To apply for the program, school districts must use the Electronic Web-Enabled Grant System (EWEG) online application system on the NJDOE's Homeroom web page. Grant applications must be submitted by Sept. 20, 2023. Districts that receive the grant will then be given a list of pre-approved tutoring providers, including TutorMe, which will be available to support the tutoring services offered through the grant program. "High-dosage tutoring is proven to be an incredibly effective educational strategy for improving student learning outcomes, and we commend the State of New Jersey for implementing this critical grant program," said Luke Harris, Chief Revenue Officer at GoGuardian. "TutorMe is proud to be a part of this initiative that will not only support students, but also deliver added in-classroom support to teachers working diligently to provide personalized learning experiences." The NJDOE is the latest state education agency to partner with TutorMe for state-wide tutoring initiatives. In 2022 the Texas Education Agency included TutorMe as an approved provider for their Vetted Texas Tutoring Corps Program. TutorMe, which has completed more than one million live tutoring sessions, offers high-impact, personalized tutoring for learners across the country. TutorMe's platform allows students to connect with a tutor to collaborate in real-time during live sessions, with the option to engage face-to-face in a safe digital environment. About TutorMe TutorMe's platform is further enhanced by the company's unique RAISE Approach, which translates the learning methodologies in TutorMe's evidence-based logic model into a framework for tutors to support student engagement. The RAISE Approach is centered on the guiding principles of asking questions and providing feedback, followed by rapport-building, assessment of prior knowledge, individualized instruction, structured practice, and encouragement. This approach results in more engaged students, leading to positive learning outcomes. About GoGuardian GoGuardian aims to help all learners feel ready and inspired to solve the world's greatest challenges by combining the best in learning and science technology across every part of the learning journey. Our award-winning system of educational tools, which includes Giant Steps, Pear Deck, and GoGuardian Teacher for learning engagement; Edulastic for formative assessments; TutorMe for virtual on-demand tutoring; and GoGuardian Admin and Beacon to support student safety, is purpose-built for K-12 and trusted by school leaders to promote effective teaching and equitable engagement while empowering educators to help keep students safe.

Read More

Talent Development

California’s Southwestern Law School Selects YuJa Panorama Digital Accessibility Platform

Businesswire | July 20, 2023

YuJa, Inc., a leader in ed-tech solutions, announces that Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles has selected the YuJa Panorama Digital Accessibility Platform to help increase the accessibility of digital media and course content campuswide. YuJa integrates directly into Canvas, the institution’s learning management system. YuJa Panorama is one product in YuJa’s suite of high-impact media solutions that help institutions deliver accessible, engaging video and media content to users. The accessibility solution provides an accessibility gauge and enables content creators to pinpoint and correct issues as content is created. In addition, instructors will benefit from the automatic generation of accessible versions of all uploaded documents, comprehensive reports at the course, instructor, and institution levels, and other tools that help build accessibility into course creation. YuJa Panorama also provides users with an LTI app and customized website accessibility profiles that can be applied to both internal and external web pages. “Accessibility is a growing concern in higher education, and it’s YuJa’s mission to provide the ed-tech tools necessary for institutions to meet the learning needs of all students,” said Nathan Arora, Chief Business Officer at YuJa, Inc. “Southwestern Law School is committed to creating an inclusive, equitable, accessible educational environment, and we’re excited for them to use YuJa Panorama to help meet their accessibility goals.” ABOUT YUJA, INC. YuJa is a leader in ed-tech solutions. Our platforms provide organizations of all sizes with the tools to educate, engage, inspire and collaborate. We serve learning enterprises within all sectors, including higher-ed, K-12, government, healthcare, non-profit and corporate. We have legal headquarters in Delaware with primary U.S. offices in Silicon Valley, California, and Canadian offices in Toronto. ABOUT SOUTHWESTERN LAW SCHOOL Founded in 1911 as an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian institution, Southwestern is fully approved by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. It is the only law school to offer four J.D. courses of study that differ in scheduling and instructional approach, including traditional full- and part-time programs as well as a unique two-year accelerated curriculum (SCALE). Southwestern also offers a concurrent J.D./M.B.A. program with The Drucker Graduate School of Management; a J.D./M.A. program in Negotiation with California State University, Dominguez Hills; a public policy certificate program with the Pardee RAND Graduate School; a bioscience industry certificate program with the Keck Graduate Institute; and LL.M. programs in entertainment and media law and general studies.

Read More

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