Dot Learnt

TED has always had a knack for capturing learning on the edge, exposing the world to game-changing ideas and speakers. Their latest initiative, TED-Ed, is an online video-lecture site meant to amplify the voices of brilliant educators across the world.

Working in a partnership with Youtube, top-notch educators will sync up with talented animators to craft a collection of question-inducing videos. These recorded lesson plans will explore a wide range of topics, enabling life-long learners around the world. (more…)

The new year is a time for reflection on both past and future. As the Bon team prepares our Dot Learnt editorial calendar for 2012, here are some of our favorite posts from 2011 that we’d like to remember

We’ve talked about:

Open Education Resources: Hop on over to Stanford University for some free technology courses & with MIT OpenCourseWare celebrating it’s 10^th year in free education, there are no limits to who can receive an Ivy education.

Game Based Learning:  In Learning Hard and Playing Hard we took a look at the evolution of play with ChicagoQuest, the newest addition to the realm of gamed-up curriculums. The school is now open, with hundreds of children currently enrolled in the interactive curriculum. We also hosted Tim Hydari, Practitioner of Development and Therapeutic Play, who delved into the importance of gaming and Play Therapy.

Social Media in the Classroom: After chatting with Yasmin Fodil on how Social Media Can Technically Fix all Your Problems, the CEO and Principal Consultant at BYO Consulting shed some light on integrating social media tools from governments to the classroom.  While in Mohammed and Five of Your Friends Just ‘Checked-In’ To… School? you’ll find hard-hitting examples of what the latest Facebook apps can do for schools in emerging markets.

And some other random emerging market extras: (more…)

Edtechistas and Edtechers – back again for your global education technology fix. Dig in for this month’s most talked about topics unearthing across the globe:

Too Cool for School

These days it is all about mobility. School in a Box brings the very concept of portability and convenience to the notion of schooling. The new non-profit initiative providesaccess to education ICTs in rural populations throughout India and sub-Saharan Africa. Weighing in at 11 KG, the $1600 boxes will set up teched out schools. Each box contains an iPad, solar panel, projector and speakers. Looks like officials in Zimbabwe are liking what they see…

Samsung Africa is shedding some light on education. The new Solar Powered Internet School in Boksburg, South Africa is one of the first of its kind. The Internet accessbile and solar-powered school grants students more accessibility to education, especially throughout areas that lack connectivity.  Shine on Africa!

Spreading that Tech Love

Looking for free Wi-Fi can be tough, but when it comes to emerging markets, finding any Wi-Fi can be a challenge. Last month, the Global Education Challenge, a competition to find original ideas that can improve student outcomes across the globe, announced their annual winners. Prizewinner Neil Dsouza introduced Education Hotspots, a program that provides mobile hotspots and free educational courseware to emerging communities lacking Internet connection. Neil’s in good company – check out the other GEC winners, here. (more…)

I recently had the honor of participating in a conference with Sal Khan, the founder of the Khan Academy, a free education service providing over 2,700 videos on topics ranging from calculus to sentence structure and used by over 3.5 million students across the globe.

Walking away from my morning session with Sal, I could not help but reflect on the web platform I was working on for the Peer to Peer University (P2PU).  In much the same way that Sal is impacting the world of education by speaking directly to the students, P2PU hopes to impact the world of education by supporting and connecting teachers and administrators.

With over 1,300 posts on its platform, P2PU is on a trajectory to deliver as many open educational materials to professional-level students as the Khan Academy now provides to school-age children. Bon Education has been a part of P2PU’s expansion, offering new courses aimed at providing high quality training to teachers across the globe. (more…)

The Ivy League is the crème de la crème of universities. Prestigious and world renowned for their academic rigor and their ability to prepare students for what is becoming an even more competitive job market, these schools entice students from all over the world. Recently, Stanford University has knocked down the walls of the classroom and pushed aside the admissions office. They’re providing high-quality education to anyone in the world, for free.

With a focus on the most common and talked about topics in technology today, the three courses including Machine Learning, Introduction to Artificial Intelligence and Introduction to Databases will take students on a self-paced exploration of what a typical Stanford student would see. Students partaking in the semester long course will be expected to devote time to reading course materials, completing assignments and taking exams and quizzes.

So the walls of the university have been knocked down – come one, come all! Similar programs such as Massachusetts’ Institute of Technology OpenCourseWare or Open Yale Courses all seek to unlock the world of knowledge and empower the minds of students, both in America and abroad.

Sebastian Thrun, a Stanford research professor teaching the artificial intelligence course explains that the current times have called for this academic shift. “Technology has progressed, connectivity has progressed and video has progressed,” it is time to take the “Stanford education out into the world to people who cannot afford it or who do not have access.”

Who would have thought that the day would come where anyone regardless of SAT scores, GPA, teacher recommendations or work experience could get an Ivy education? The degree though, that still comes with hefty tuition bill (for now at least).

Keep Calm and Learn On,

Nora

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