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Controlling what children see on TV, online, and in other electronic media requires a delicate balancing act between the First Amendment rights of content providers and the desire to protect kids from inappropriate material, said panelists during a Nov. 2 discussion at the Georgetown Law Center in Washington, D.C. Key words: First Amendment rights, digital media, Georgetown Law Center, Common Sense Media, educational technology

As part of its efforts to develop a National Broadband Plan, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is seeking comments about how the e-Rate program can be improved to meet the broadband needs of schools and libraries -- and how it might play a role in delivering or stimulating the adoption of broadband service within communities. Key words: FCC, broadband internet, erate, school internet, education technology

Day two of the annual EDUCAUSE higher-education technology conference in Denver, Nov. 3 through 6, saw at least two presenters speak out about the unfair application of strict copyright protections to scholarly journals -- a practice, they said, that hinders academic endeavors. Key words: educause, higher education technology, copyright law, Lawrence Lessig

School and college IT departments have until the end of the calendar year to take advantage of a new offer from automated systems management software provider Kaseya, which is providing its IT inventory software to educational institutions free of charge for a limited time. Key words: school IT management, university IT management, educational technology, IT inventory software, Kaseya

The 11th annual EDUCAUSE conference opened in Denver Nov. 4 with advice from best-selling author Jim Collins on how to take higher-education technology departments from good to great -- as well as lessons from Pepperdine University on how officials there saved nearly $18,000 with the help of virtualized computing. Key words: Educause, technology conference, Pepperdine university, Jim Collins, cost savings, education technology, virtualization technology

As I was saying last month, an avalanche of change is rumbling towards our field. I propose we call this cascading phenomenon "convergent education." Key words: convergent education, educational technology, instructional technology, digital learning opportunities

Attending this year's annual State Education Technology Directors Association (SETDA) Education Forum was like sitting through a timeline of technology integration in schools during the last few years: Participants heard about what's now the norm (interactive whiteboards, or IWBs), what's hot on everyone's list (digital textbooks), and what's on the horizon (national high school reform). Key words: education reform, educational technology, SETDA, Robert Marzano, classroom technology, interactive whiteboards, digital textbooks

Karen Cator, former director of education leadership and advocacy for Apple Inc. and a long-time education technology leader, will serve as the new director of the Office of Educational Technology (OET) for the U.S. Department of Education (ED). Key words: Karen Cator, Department of Education, Apple Inc., educational technology

Students from six universities are pitching news stories and supplementing national reports for ABC News in a high-pressure program that uses technology and video-editing software while training students for future journalism careers. Key words: ABC News on Campus, journalism education, journalism school, educational technology

As education leaders align their programs with the goals set forth by Education Secretary Arne Duncan under the Obama administration, a major point of emphasis is turning around underperforming schools and stemming the nation's dropout rate. Key words: dropout prevention, national dropout rate, Obama education, educational technology, Pearson Prevent, NGA