The Evidence on Online Education
submitted by Paul Kreider
article from Inside Higher Ed - News
WASHINGTON — Online learning has definite advantages over face-to-face instruction when it comes to teaching and learning, according to a new meta-analysis released Friday by the U.S. Department of Education.
The study found that students who took all or part of their instruction online performed better, on average, than those taking the same course through face-to-face instruction. Further, those who took “blended” courses — those that combine elements of online learning and face-to-face instruction — appeared to do best of all. That finding could be significant as many colleges report that blended instruction is among the fastest-growing types of enrollment.
Continue reading…… Inside HigherEd
Brigham Young U. Suspends Kindle-Lending Program
submitted by Teresa Koltzenburg
article from The Wired Campus
Brigham Young U. Suspends Kindle-Lending Program
Brigham Young University’s library will no longer let professors check out books on Kindles — at least, not until it receives written permission from Amazon, the company that makes the e-book readers.
To meet the high demand for popular new books, the library had purchased Kindles and used them to lend out digital copies. Campus officials said the university had received verbal consent from Amazon, but Brigham Young decided to put the program on hold until it received written consent.
Continue reading…… The Wired Campus
Duke U Library Digital Collections iPhone App
submitted by Sean Cordes
article from Mobile Libraries
Treasures Move From Library Shelves to the iPhone With New DukeMobile Applications
New applications offer a range of university materials, services
Durham, NC — Scholars and students who once had to travel to museums or libraries to view collections of historic images can now do so by clicking on their mobile device instead.
With the launch of DukeMobile 1.1, the Duke University Libraries now offers the most comprehensive university digital image collection specifically formatted for an iPhone or iTouch device. It includes thousands of photos and other artifacts that range from early beer advertisements to materials on San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury scene in the 1960s.
Continue reading…… Mobile Libraries
Participatory Sensing with Cell Phones
submitted by Dawn Sweet
Interesting YouTube video on participatory sensing. I thought this would be nice to show to faculty or others interested in some of the new age things that can be done with cell phones, geolocation,and available mapping tools.
To watch the movie on YouTube… Participatory Sensing
COLLEGE 2.0 6 Lessons One Campus Learned About E-Textbooks
The Chronicle of Higher Education - Information Technology
By JEFFREY R. YOUNG
Submitted by Chad Dennis
Northwest Missouri State University nearly became the first public university to deliver all of its textbooks electronically. Last year the institution’s tech-happy president, Dean L. Hubbard, bought a Kindle, Amazon’s e-book reading device, and liked it so much that he wanted to give every incoming student one. The university already runs an unusual textbook-rental program that buys thousands of printed books for students who pay a flat, per-credit fee. Mr. Hubbard saw in the gadget a way to drastically cut the rental program’s annual $800,000 price tag, since e-books generally cost half the price of printed textbooks.
Then the university ran a pilot study with the Sony Reader, a device much like the Kindle (Sony was more responsive to the university’s calls than Amazon was). University officials learned some sobering lessons about electronic books. Students who got the machines quickly asked for their printed books back because it was so awkward to navigate inside the e-books (though a newer version of the device works more gracefully).
- Judge e-books by their covers.
- Learning curves ahead.
- Professors are eager students.
- Long live batteries.
- Subjects are not equally e-friendly.
- Environmental impact matters.
Continue reading… The Chronical of Higer Education
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