Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Sibme Unveils AI Tool to Save Teachers’ Time and Strengthen Coaching Conversations

Sibme — Research reinforces the effectiveness of video coaching in education, and a  recent study from the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) noted that at least 70% of teachers that received feedback via video coaching learned specific strategies that they could use in their classrooms. In addition, almost 90% of teachers in the study said they were more reflective about their teaching as a result of the feedback they received.

“Teachers have so much on their plates—from creating lesson plans to ensuring each of their students grows and grasps important concepts and lessons,” said Dave Wakefield, Chief Executive Officer of Sibme. “When we created Sibme, we set out to make sure professional learning opportunities were based on evidence of practice and designed to save valuable time. Sibme AI does just that and takes some of the extra work off teachers’ and instructional leaders’ shoulders to analyze recorded classroom instruction—while still providing the insights teachers need to work with their instructional coaches and grow in their craft.”

Sibme AI automatically transcribes a video or audio recording and then uses data from the transcription and video to generate reports on a variety of quantitative metrics about classroom instruction. Those key metrics allow teachers to self-reflect on what’s working and not working in their classroom, collaborate with their colleagues and engage in authentic, data-focused coaching conversations. The tailored metrics provide direction and opportunities for rich discussions when teachers work with their instructional coaches one-on-one, helping them pinpoint areas for potential growth together.…Read More

Can GPT-4 and TikTok usher in a new learning frontier?

Key points:

  • Combining AI and video platforms could spur engaging and interactive content
  • Still, considerations around access and equity, along with misinformation, should be taken seriously

In recent years, the digital landscape has witnessed significant changes, and as an AI language model, I have been observing these transformations closely. One of the most prominent developments is the rise of TikTok, a short-form video-sharing platform that has become a cultural phenomenon. This rapid growth has led me to consider the potential of combining my capabilities as a language understanding and generation model with the appeal of TikTok to create a unique, engaging learning experience for students.

TikTok’s short video format makes it an ideal platform for this approach, allowing educators to deliver focused lessons that students can easily consume and remember. By integrating my AI-generated content, these lessons can be customized to each student’s learning preferences, ensuring a personalized learning experience.…Read More

DisplayNote Enables Parity for All Students by Adding Webcam and Mic Integration to their Screen Sharing Tool Broadcast

BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND (PRWEB) — Technology company  DisplayNote has released a new version of their one-to-many screen sharing tool, Broadcast.

Made for teachers and learners,  Broadcast is a web tool that allows teachers to share their computer screens directly to their students’ devices in real-time, making content more accessible and engaging.

This month, Broadcast welcomes a new webcam and mic integration, allowing teachers to share their video and voice inputs alongside their content. The feature is designed to enable parity for all learners inside and outside the classroom, regardless of where they’re sitting or their level of vision or sound.…Read More

Frontline Education and interviewstream Form Official Partnership to Strengthen K-12 Recruiting and Hiring Strategies

Malvern, Pa. and Chicago, Ill. (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Frontline Education, a leading provider of administration software purpose-built for educators in K-12, and interviewstream, a market-leading video interviewing solution, today announced a strategic partnership that will strengthen the recruiting and hiring efforts of K-12 districts. The partnership will make interviewstream Frontline’s recommended video interviewing partner providing clients early access to best-in-class integrations, functionality and features. To date, many Frontline and interviewstream clients have successfully leveraged the integrations to streamline the hiring process. Access to the joint solution will equip K-12 organizations with the right tools, data and insights to find the best candidates quickly and to make effective hiring decisions, which will ultimately contribute to greater student outcomes. 

With the Frontline Recruiting and Hiring solution, school leaders are able to proactively engage with jobseekers, increase their applicant pool and hire the best candidates efficiently and effectively. interviewstream’s platform offers live and on-demand virtual interviews via web browser and SMS/text to streamline and expedite the recruiting process. Integration of the two solutions optimizes the hiring process by expanding geographical reach and attracting candidates from anywhere; providing a more candidate-friendly interviewing process; leveraging actionable market insights; and collaborating with peer groups, all while filling open positions with qualified talent. 

“interviewstream and Frontline are like-minded and mission-driven companies that place the needs of K-12 school leaders at the center of our strategies,” said Mark Friedman, Chief Marketing Officer of Frontline Education. “Our deepened partnership with interviewstream is evidence of our strategy to provide solutions and services that help school leaders address some of the most pressing challenges facing K-12 education today, with persistent staff shortages near or at the top of the list.”…Read More

3M Young Scientist Challenge Announces 2022 National Finalists and Honorable Mentions

Today’s youth has never been more hopeful for a better, brighter, and safer world. Inspired by the desire to impact change in communities far and near, they are using the power of STEM to help drive the change they want to see. 3M ( @3M) and Discovery Education ( @DiscoveryEd) are proud to announce the top 10 finalists and four honorable mention recipients in the 2022 3M Young Scientist Challenge, the 15th year of the competition. 

This year’s finalists and honorable mention recipients feature outstanding innovations from young scientists – fourteen students ages 12 to 14 – who submitted a one-to two-minute video communicating a solution to an everyday problem in their community or the world and the science behind their solution. A diverse group of judges, including 3M scientists and leaders in education from across the country, evaluated entries based on creativity, scientific knowledge, and communication effectiveness. The final event will take place on October 17-18, 2022, at the 3M Innovation Center in Minneapolis.  

“At 3M, we are committed to unlocking the power of our people, science, and ideas to reimagine what comes next. The ‘3M Young Scientist Challenge’ supports young innovators who have demonstrated that same passion through creative discovery and the desire to improve the world around us,” said Karina Chavez, senior vice president and chief strategy officer at 3M. “We are thrilled to welcome the latest generation of finalists and honorable mention recipients, and we are energized by a future that embraces STEM-for-all to build a better tomorrow.” …Read More

Pivot Interactives Announces New Iris™ Technology to Increase Students’ Active Phenomena-Based Learning

(May12, 2022) — Pivot Interactives introduces a new set of tools, Iris™, which make learning critical science concepts—such as heat transfer, Beer’s Law, light emission, population density, temperature (infrared and blackbody), pH, and wavelength—accessible to students regardless of classroom equipment or teaching experience. With this new patent-pending collection of color and light measuring tools, students can now take quantitative measurements of color & light for themselves directly from information encoded in a video within a web browser.

“Making measurements using light is a fundamental practice of science. From optical measurements made by microbiologists to the light gathered by powerful telescopes, light, and color-based measurements are at the heart of science at every scale,” says Peter Bohacek, CEO and Founder of Pivot Interactives. “But light- and color-based measurements are normally out of reach in the classroom, limited to expensive and complex equipment. Pivot Interactives brings the power of light- and color-based measurements to students’ fingertips. As the leader in using interactive videos for science education, we are thrilled to be the first to make the power of light- and color-based measurements available to classrooms everywhere.”

Iris technology addresses three critical issues that science classrooms face:…Read More

Creatorup Raises Additional Investment To Disrupt The Video Creation Sector

CreatorUp has raised an additional round of financing from Gaingels and JFF (Jobs for the Future) to expand its first-of-its-kind video marketplace – that helps organizations of all sizes create professional video content easily and affordably anywhere in the world – while simultaneously providing training and opportunities for its creative workforce. 

Funds will be used to expand operations of the CreatorUp marketplace, which features more than 650 proven video solutions, in a multitude of styles and formats, that give clients the ability to choose, purchase, and create bespoke media with just a click.

“Powering the production of CreatorUp’s content is a network of almost 7,000 creative professionals, who bring a wealth of diversity and creativity to our projects,” said Mike Tringe, CreatorUp’s Co-founder and CEO. “We’re thrilled to be able to offer these opportunities in this new creative landscape.”…Read More

Playing to win: The vital role of research in the future of esports

You stand, triumphant in front of a crowd cheering your name. After years of dedicated training and countless hours of practice, you’ve made it to the pinnacle of your game, the moment of enjoying the spoils of being a world-class athlete. Just a few months later, the pressure, stress, and injuries due to maintaining that top position have had a severe impact on your mental, emotional, and physical health and you’re forced to retire at 23.

While this may sound like a tragic story of a basketball or football athlete struck down as they were beginning their career, it happens for esports athletes too.

Esports–commonly accepted as “a multiplayer video game played competitively in front of spectators, by both professional and amateur gamers”–is quickly becoming a household term along with esports game titles such as Rogue Company, Call of Duty, and Rocket League. Over the last several years, schools and universities have realized that esports allows students who felt excluded from other extracurricular activities to finally find their “place” doing something they are passionate about within their scholastic environment. Research shows that students involved in an extracurricular activity are more engaged in the classroom and in their studies.…Read More

Many educators say video is more effective than text-based content

A new survey predicts that video in education will continue to grow, as a majority of educators say they believe video content is more engaging and effective than text-based content.

The State of Video in Education 2022 report from Kaltura assesses the growth and evolution of video’s impact on education over the past year and providing insights into the coming year. This is Kaltura’s eighth annual report on video in education and the first since vaccination programs for COVID-19 enabled many teachers and students to resume in-person education.

As the use of video in education has grown greatly over the past two years, the study’s goal was to provide answers to pressing questions facing educators about the long term value of video in education, namely, what are the benefits of using video for learning beyond the pandemic and how is video transforming education over the long term?…Read More