Edtech is critical in evolving school environments

K-12 schools are facing a host of new challenges coming out of the pandemic, but many educators and school leaders believe technology holds the key to solving even the most entrenched problems, according to new data from Promethean.

The annual State of Technology in Education report, a survey of 1,700 U.S. educators, offers a snapshot of current trends, as well as a glimpse at what the future holds.

According to survey findings, educators put social-emotional learning (SEL) as one of their school’s top priorities, likely due to students still dealing with the fallout from pandemic disruptions. Two-thirds of respondents said their school is implementing SEL measures to tackle these issues, and 70 percent said technology is a good tool for providing the experiential learning and connections that students need to thrive.…Read More

New Responsible Artificial Intelligence (RAI) Course for K-12 Educators Seeks to Change How AI is Implemented in Learning

DENVER–(BUSINESS WIRE)–MindSpark Learning®, a nonprofit organization committed to elevating educators and being the direct intersection between education and industry, has launched its first Responsible Artificial Intelligence (RAI) course in a series. The RAI for Educators course is designed for K-12 and promises to revolutionize how they think of and implement artificial intelligence (AI) in the classroom. MindSpark defines RAI with the following 5 pillars – RAI is community-centric; it is monitorable and secure; ethical and fair; justifiable and accountable; as well as explainable and transparent.

“Educators need an understanding of what AI is and is not. With this exceptionally valuable resource, educators get to learn about AI, by engaging with AI in a demystified manner. The course deeply addresses the question of the ethical and responsible use of AI within our world. Thus, educators who take this course will be engaging in the conversation that AI engineers are also having,” said Jason Beyer, the Director of Educational Technology at Jesuit High School, CO.

For years, MindSpark has provided educators with outstanding AI learning experiences tailored to K-12 schools and districts’ needs. MindSpark’s experiences have transformed tens of thousands of educators, and by extension, hundreds of thousands of students. A foundational partnership with IBM enabled MindSpark to establish IBM AI Education. This program introduced AI fundamentals and crucial K-12 classroom connections. Now, to keep up with a fast-paced industry, the needs of our labor market, and students, we are adding to an already impressive library of professional development in the AI space.…Read More

 Learning Without Tears Scores Big in 2023 EdTech Awards

Cabin John MD – Early learning leader, Learning Without Tears, is now among EdTech’s best and brightest, following the announcement of this year’s EdTech “Cool Tool” Awards. The company had a particularly strong showing in the 2023 EdTech Awards, where its Phonics, Reading, and MeÔ was a finalist in the Literacy/Reading Solution category and the company’s Get Set for SchoolÒ won its category and was named the “Best Early Childhood/Kindergarten-Readiness Solution.”Adding to an already-strong showing, Learning Without Tears was also recognized as a company “Setting a Trend,” where it was named a finalist in the EdTech Trendsetter Awards.    

“We are proud that our learning solutions were recognized as among the best in EdTech,” explained Learning Without Tears CEO Terry Nealon. “Since its inception, Learning Without Tears has been an innovator, and we are proud that we continue to set the trend of more effective learning solutions technology. The most important recognition, of course, comes from teachers and students, when they see effective learning and skills development with both Get Set for School, and Phonics, Reading, and Me. We are all proud of the innovative work our development teams did to create – and continuously improve – these breakthrough learning programs.” 

Celebrating its 13th year, the US-based EdTech Awards program is the world’s largest recognition program for education technology, recognizing the strongest EdTech solutions. Finalists for The EdTech Awards 2023 have been announced to a worldwide audience of educators, technologists, students, parents, and policymakers interested in building a better future for learners and leaders in the education and workforce sectors. The annual program shines a spotlight on cool tools, inspiring leaders and innovative trendsetters across the K-12, Higher Education, and Skills and Workforce sectors. …Read More

Aperture Education Launches Annual SEL Impact Award

Charlotte N.C. – Aperture Education, the leading provider of research-based social and emotional learning (SEL) assessments for K-12 schools, debuted its SEL Impact Award program, designed to honor school systems that are taking innovative approaches to providing students and teachers with the tools they need to develop strong social and emotional skill sets that help address the anxiety and depression prevalent among both students and educators. The winner of the inaugural award is the Boerne (Texas) Independent School District, which was announced at the SEL Vision Summit in Denver on Sunday.

“Boerne ISD was an obvious choice to receive our first SEL Impact Award because their approach is unheard of in the education space – they are literally changing IEPs and behavior plans to get everyone in sync with the eight strengths included in our DESSA SEL suite and are incorporating these competencies at every level within the district,” said Aperture Education CEO Jessica Adamson.

Boerne ISD – located less than an hour north of San Antonio with 12 schools and 10,400 students – sought to implement a SEL program that would address negative student behaviors through every phase of the school day, including curriculum and Individualized Educational Plans (IEPs). As part of this program, they wanted to incorporate strength-building activities designed to prepare students for success after they graduated high school.…Read More

Brand-New Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading Program Earns Highest Rating from EdReports   

PARAMUS, NEW JERSEY — Savvas Learning Company, a K-12 next-generation learning solutions leader, is proud to announce that its Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading © 2023 supplemental literacy program has received the highest rating of “All-Green” from EdReports. The brand-new program delivers research-based, easy-to-use content and teaching tools that support and extend core literacy instruction, giving educators what they need to help students develop reading proficiency. 

“Savvas understands the importance of developing strong readers at an early age, and teaching children to read by focusing on foundational elements can help accelerate their mastery of key reading skills,” said Bethlam Forsa, CEO of Savvas Learning Company. “What makes Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading so impactful is that it provides teachers with high-quality, standards-aligned resources to confidently deliver explicit foundational-skills instruction while engaging and supporting young students in learning to read. We appreciate EdReports for recognizing Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading as the exceptional supplemental literacy solution that it is.”

EdReports gave Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading an “All-Green” rating, or “meets expectations” — the highest tier within its ratings scale for standards alignment and usability. The highly regarded, independent nonprofit seeks to improve education by providing reviews of K-12 instructional materials and applying evidence-based analysis in evaluating programs. Savvas Essentials: Foundational Reading earned EdReports’ highest rating for each of its “gateway” review criteria: “Alignment to Standards and Research-Based Practices for Foundational Skills Instruction” and “Implementation, Support Materials & Assessment.”…Read More

Turnitin Turns On AI Writing Detection Capabilities for Educators and Institutions

OAKLAND, Calif. – Starting tomorrow, Turnitin – a leading provider of academic integrity solutions globally – will activate its AI writing detection capabilities. The technology identifies the use of AI writing tools including ChatGPT, with 98 percent confidence, enabling educators to analyze and review the authenticity of academic work.

Turnitin began working on detection capabilities for GPT3, the underlying technology on which many AI writing applications are based, nearly two years prior to the release of ChatGPT. Built to help educators and academic institutions identify AI-generated text in student-written submissions, Turnitin’s AI writing detection capabilities are integrated into existing Turnitin systems and accessible through learning management systems, and does not require additional steps for current Turnitin educator users to access. Over 10,700 institutions and more than 2.1 million educators will be able to quickly and easily evaluate a submission for the presence of AI-generated text and provide feedback to students in their current Turnitin workflows.

Turnitin’s AI detector provides an evaluative measure of how many sentences in a written submission may have been generated by artificial intelligence, which educators can use to determine if further review, inquiry or discussion with the student is needed. Turnitin’s AI writing detection capabilities are available within existing products and solutions, including: Turnitin Feedback Studio (TFS), TFS with Originality, Turnitin Originality, Turnitin Similarity, Simcheck, Originality Check and Originality Check+.…Read More

The 21st century learning mantra is played out

The world is changing in remarkable ways, and the pace of this change is only accelerating. Thanks to unprecedented advances in technology, society continues to evolve at an exponential rate. The rapidity of change has led to dramatic shifts in all aspects of life, from how people communicate and collaborate to how they solve problems, create projects, and consume content (Sheninger, 2019).

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is upon us, and it is drastically different from the previous three, with the hallmark of this period being the momentous evolution of digital technology. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is defined as “a fusion of technologies that is blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and biological spheres.” Rapid advances in artificial intelligence, robotics, the internet of things, and biotechnology characterize this revolution.

This high-speed evolution of technology has drastically changed the way we communicate. Social media platforms have revolutionized how people interact, allowing them to connect with each other no matter where they are in the world. People can now instantly share their thoughts and experiences with people worldwide, creating a truly global community. This phenomenon has enabled people to collaborate on a global scale, working together to solve complex problems and create far-reaching projects that would have been impossible in the past.…Read More

Students need freedom to develop critical skills with edtech

Key points:

After decades of working with educational technology, I’ve come to the realization that technology will have its greatest impact in the classroom when educators allow learners to use digital technology as a self-directed learning tool. This means not just providing students with laptops and online resources, but ensuring they have the necessary skills to find, validate, apply, and curate the vast amount of information now available to them.

More importantly, they must be given control of when and how these digital tools are used. Think about how adults use their smartphones; they use them whenever they need to. No one is dictating when they can use it, how they can use it, or where they can use it–why don’t we allow learners to do the same?…Read More

7 Mindsets Announces Formation of 7m Cares

ROSWELL, Ga. — 7 Mindsets, the leader in PreK-12 mindsets-based learning and well-being solutions, today announced the formation of 7M Cares, an initiative that will expand the company’s philanthropic impact. 7M Cares will offer support to charitable organizations and causes that embrace mindset-based youth empowerment.

At launch, 7M Cares will exclusively support the Magic Wand Foundation (MWF), an organization co-founded by Scott Shickler and Jeff Waller, co-founders of 7 Mindsets. The Magic Wand Foundation has a mission of spreading mindset-based empowerment globally to help young people live extraordinary lives and positively impact the world. Founded in 2008, the MWF accomplishes this through directly empowering young people and equipping youth organizations with mindsets-based training and resources to help them transform the lives of the youth they serve.

“The 7M Cares initiative fully embraces the Live to Give Mindset, which teaches us to inspire and serve others,” said Mark Belles, CEO of 7 Mindsets. “We look forward to growing 7M Cares and supporting organizations that share our mission of helping young people live lives filled with passion, purpose and meaning.”…Read More