Blog Archive

0

Program helps get student households connected | The Learning Key

PHLConnectED will connect up to 35,000 K–12 student households with internet service and laptops. The program, which focuses on School District of Philadelphia and charter school students, will also provide digital skills training and support.

Eligible households will receive up to two years of internet service. Participants will not pay any out-of-pocket expenses or installation fees.

There are three core components of PHLConnectED:

• Wired, high-speed, reliable internet to the home from Comcast’s Internet Essentials program, or a high-speed mobile hotspot from T-Mobile for families who are housing-insecure.

• Distribution of devices, such as Chromebooks, tablets, or computers.

• Digital skills training and tech support.

PHLConnectED is possible thanks to collaboration among business and civic leaders who came together to support Philadelphia students.

The PHLConnectED program prioritizes families with the greatest need for internet service. We will focus on connecting K–12 families who:

• Do not have any internet access.

… Read More
Programming
0

13 new learning centers will open up Monday

The district said this is not like reopening schools. These centers are for vulnerable children who cannot learn at home due to lack of internet.

GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. — Guilford County Schools will be opening learning centers in 13 schools for students who lack internet access.

Starting Monday, August 31, the centers will open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. weekdays during remote learning. 

RELATED: ‘If you can open up a learning center, why can’t you open up Guilford County schools?’

Students at the centers can use the district’s high-speed internet capabilities to access digital content and complete assignments. After Labor Day, students at the center will be able to access live, online instruction provided by their teachers.

While the service is free, advanced registration is required.

“It’s on a first come, first serve basis but preference is given to students who do not have broadband connectivity at home,” Chief

… Read More
Application
0

These online learning tips will help parents prepare for a successful school year, even if it is virtual.

Many of the nation’s largest school districts plan to begin the fall semester online-only. As schools consider reopening, children face a future in which online courses will probably be part of the curriculum. To make the best of this situation, here are some tips to help your child adapt to learning from home.

Studies show that in online learning, parents often take on the role of a teacher. Making school a priority will help keep kids from treating online learning as a vacation.

Research suggests that some types of parental participation have a greater impact on children’s academic achievement than others. One analysis showed that schoolchildren benefit from discussions about learning and school-related issues with their parents and from joint readings.

Reduce distractions

A report in 2016 found that students spent about one-fifth of class time on laptops, smartphones and tablets, knowing that doing so could harm their grades. They

… Read More
Computer
0

How to improve distance learning for our youngest students

Younger students struggle with distance learning for an obvious reason — they have shorter attention spans. <span class="copyright">(Halfpoint — stock.adobe.com)</span>
Younger students struggle with distance learning for an obvious reason — they have shorter attention spans. (Halfpoint — stock.adobe.com)

Many teachers, students and their families can agree on one thing after experiencing the unexpected hurricane that was distance learning this spring: It must improve — especially in the earliest grades, transitional kindergarten through second grade.

Our youngest students, from ages 4 to 9, need more supervision throughout the day and help with the technology that enables learning. They are developmentally different from their older peers in ways that significantly impact how they best learn. Distance-learning practices must reflect that reality.

As educational researchers, we learned from conversations with teachers, school leaders, parents and early-education experts what strategies were effective for initiating and sustaining student engagement in the spring. Anyone responsible for supporting young students in distance learning could benefit from employing these approaches.

Obviously, distance instruction is not the same

… Read More
Technology
0

Schools seeking alternative to remote learning move classes outside

DETROIT — With just days to go before the start of the new academic year, schools around the country are rushing to gather materials they never thought they would need: plexiglass dividers, piles of masks and internet hot spots to connect with students remotely.

And then there are schools that have an even more unusual list.

The Detroit Waldorf School in Michigan is buying carriage bolts, berry bushes and 8,000 square feet of cedar wood.

The San Francisco Unified School District has been busy gathering tree stumps.

And the Five Town Community School District in Maine is buying tents, yurts and enough all-weather snowsuits for each of its elementary school students.

These schools and districts are all laying the groundwork to move at least some instruction to outdoor classrooms. They’re making a bet that the lower risk of disease transmission in the open air, and the extra space outside for

… Read More
Internet
0

Rowan College To Offer In-Person, Remote Learning This Fall

BURLINGTON COUNTY, NJ — Rowan College at Burlington County will offer a limited number of on-campus courses this fall as the college prepares to reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic.

At the same time, the college said it will offer new types of online courses to increase engagement in the course while reducing the number of people on campus. For those who are on campus, measures will be in place to reduce the risk of spreading the coronavirus, according to the college’s website.

The college submitted a plan to the state on July 7 so that it could reopen its labs for summer courses. Officials said many of the details for the fall reopening plan were included in the submission, but those plans could change as they hear from the community and the pandemic evolves.

New Jersey Coronavirus Updates: Don’t miss local and statewide announcements about novel coronavirus precautions. Sign up

… Read More
Application
0

Remote learning turns kids into zombies because we’re doing it all wrong

“Hey mom! There’s someone leaving a garbage bag on our front porch,” shouts my sixth grader from his makeshift home office in the living room. Scooping the lopsided bag off the porch I notice both fourth and sixth grade kiddos are now hovering around me as if I’m Indiana Jones unearthing the Holy Grail. That small things are so gripping during this time never ceases to surprise me.

Both kids watch in anticipation as I open the bag and slowly realize what I’m unpacking. Five composition notebooks, three-quarters used. A bag of highlighters, markers and pencils with plenty of life left. And the kicker: the magnetic locker organizer. My son’s first year in middle school meant his first time having a locker. He was so proud of this small milestone on the path towards independence with the opportunity to organize his own learning in some small way. And so, the

… Read More
Computer
0

How to get your remote learning act together for fall

Kids aren’t the only ones dreading another semester of online classes.

Parents have pretty much been struggling with adjusting to the “new normal” of online school during the pandemic era. While you’re on a conference call for work in your dining room, your kids are engaging in a 30-person Zoom session in the next room. Are you prepared for the next few months of chaos? Probably not, but we’re here to help you through round two.

USA TODAY consulted with four homeschooling experts to help parents transform their home into a more ideal classroom environment. What can you buy to optimize your kid’s academic performance? How can you help them through this experience? Scroll through to see what tips and tricks can help you get your remote learning act together for kids of all ages.

Back to school: How to salvage special back-to-school moments amid a pandemic

Reviewed: Considering homeschooling?

… Read More
Computer
0

Connecticut launches $43.5M initiative to boost access to internet and technology as schools prepare for possibility of continued online learning

As Connecticut school districts prepare for the possibility of reopening this fall with online and hybrid learning programs, Gov. Ned Lamont Tuesday announced a $43.5 million initiative to boost access to internet and technology for students and families in need.

“To me this is the Brown v. Board of Education of our generation,” Lamont said at a news conference in Waterbury, referencing the landmark case in which the Supreme Court ruled against racial segregation in public schools. “Separate but equal back in the ’50s is the digital divide of the 21st century.”

The state will will draw the money from its portion of the federal CARES Act, the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund and the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund. Twenty-two million will be used to purchase 50,000 laptops, $15 million will be used to improve home internet connectivity for 60,000 students and $4.5 million will go towards

… Read More
Internet
0

Embarking on a Python journey? Then ‘Hands-on Machine Learning’ is a must read

Writing an all-encompassing book on Python machine learning is difficult, given how expansive the field is. But reviewing one is not an easy feat either, especially when it’s a highly acclaimed title such as Hands-On Machine Learning with Scikit-Learn, Keras, and TensorFlow: Concepts, Tools, and Techniques to Build Intelligent Systems, 2nd Edition.

The book is a best-seller on Amazon, and the author, Aurélien Géron, is arguably one of the most talented writers on Python machine learning.

And after reading Hands-on Machine Learning, I must say that Geron does not disappoint, and the second edition is an excellent resource for Python machine learning. Geron has managed to cover more topics than you’ll find in most other general books on Python machine learning, including a comprehensive section on deep learning.

But there are some caveats, and unless you come prepared, you won’t be able to appreciate everything Hands-on Machine

… Read More
Computer