OLDaily

Want students to thrive? Build them a learning ecosystem
Melissa Rayworth, Remake Learning, 2020/06/09

I think there is in general a lot to recommend this approach. The article describes learning ecosystem projects in the  Pittsburgh region through CMU. The ecosystem concept "doesn’t come with specific prescriptions about which types of organizations should be involved or how collaborative learning should unfold. It’s a flexible approach that can develop in unique and authentic ways in any community... there are huge benefits to breaking down the silos that have long separated formal education from the rest of daily life. As resources are shared and people from a range of organizations collaborate, opportunities for students multiply."

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Projecting the potential impacts of COVID-19 school closures on academic achievement
Megan Kuhfeld, James Soland, Beth Tarasawa, Angela Johnson, Erik Ruzek, Jing Liu, Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University, 2020/06/09

I think everyone is expecting that students returning to school in the fall (or later) will not have kept pace with projected educational achievement. A New York Times article summarizes several studies confirming this. What's interesting (to me, at least) is that they give us a glimpse into a world of educational achievement metrics. This study (57 page PDF) opens a window to things like MAP® Growth™ (sic) assessments and projects the expected impact on growth by comparing it to similar impacts found as a result of absenteeism and summer vacation. Another study estimates impacts based on student progress using Zearn, a math training app (we can't actually read this study). Third, a study from McKinsey looks at the impacts of projected learning loss on marginalized groups based on a Credo study of online charter schools and on student use of i-Ready software. What I note is that, first, these are all examples of what is considered 'evidence-based' research on student achievement, but second, the evidentiary base is flimsy and unrepresentative. That doesn't mean their predictions are wrong, only that the evidence for them is insufficient. And, I think, the easy prediction here is being used to justify the method, rather than the other way around.

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IBM CEO’s Letter to Congress on Racial Justice Reform
Arvind Krishna, IBM, 2020/06/09

IBM has decided to 'sunset' its general purpose facial recognition and analysis software development. This is the letter CEO Arvind Krishna  sent to Congress about their decision. " IBM firmly opposes and will not condone uses of any technology, including facial recognition technology offered by other vendors, for mass surveillance, racial profiling, violations of basic human rights and freedoms." The other topic addressed in the letter - significantly - is education. "We need to create more open and equitable pathways for all Americans to acquire marketable skills and training, and the need is particularly acute in communities of color." It's hard to imagine more than a few colleges and universities taking such a stance.

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June 2020 Projects
Future Skills Centre, 2020/06/09

Canada's Future Skills Centre has announced 30 new projects "to fill employers’ skills gaps and help workers gain in-demand skills in this post-pandemic period." The projects touch every region in Canada and are focused on diverse needs, raging from energy sector workers to unionized construction workers to Indigenous youth in northern Manitoba to artists to vulnerable women. My first reaction to the announcement is favourable; maybe there will be cause for complaint later on, but the program seems to be targeting specific innovations in specific areas and (significant) not trying a 'one size fits all' approach. The list is in addition to 17 previuous projects already announced, for a total of 47 projects.

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16 Ways to Own Your Professional Learning
John Spencer, 2020/06/09

Teachers and others keeping up with their professional development need to do far more than take the occasional class. And John Spencer writes here, "teachers all over the world are meeting in small groups, doing book studies to refine their practice. Without prompting from a district or a principal, they are are taking ownership of their learning. They own their learning." Listing a number of personal professional development (PPD) activities, this post is similar to professional learning framework in the last post. Here's the large version of his diagram.

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