Pedagogue Blog

Matthew Lynch published in Ask An Expert, Matthew Lynch, Teachers

How Teachers Should Dress at Work

Whether it’s during your student teacher or when you’re officially on the job, how you dress in the classroom is as important as how you dress in the interview to get you there, or even the work you do while teaching. How you dress will set the tone for what you expect of yourself – and your students.

Because teachers are held to the highest standards in the community, they’re expected to dress rather conservatively. When preparing for an internship, consider the following guidelines when building a wardrobe. Some of these address comfort, practicality, and professionalism. Outward appearance often has an effect on the amount of respect given by students and other faculty/staff. 
Typically, interns should dress in business-casual attire, unless otherwise instructed. Here are a few suggestions on how to dress while attending your internship:

Hair
Neat, natural styles. No extreme colors or cuts.

Tops
Shirts should be clean and without wrinkles. Avoid tight-fitting blouses, tank tops, and t-shirts. Do not expose midriffs, undergarments, or cleavage.

Pants and Skirts
Pants should be neatly pressed, clean, and should fit comfortably. Skirts should be no higher than 1 inch above the knee. Avoid jeans and pants with rips or tears.

Shoes
Closed-toe, closed-heel shoes are recommended. Remember, teaching involves pro- longed periods of standing, so take comfort into consideration when choosing footwear.

Accessories
Makeup should be natural, and jewelry should be tasteful and kept to a minimum. There should be no visible body piercings or tattoos.

Hygiene
Appropriate grooming and bathing should be reflected in appearance.

Your appearance is a social cue that signals to everyone around you how you’re expecting to act and what kind of interactions you’re planning to have. You want to your dress to say that you expect to do the best job possible – and that you expect your students to do their best, too.

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Matthew Lynch published in Higher Education

Report: College graduates with high debt face long-term health issues

According to a new study via Gallup.com, college graduates “who took on the highest amounts of student debt, $50,000 or more, are less likely than their fellow graduates who did not borrow for college to be thriving in four of five elements of well-being: purpose, financial, community, and physical.”

In short, debt may cause negative health issues.

The survey has an area of 25-years as Gallup only polled individuals who graduated college between 1990-2014. What the study found is that graduates who are burdened with $50,000 or more in student loan debt may struggle to repay their loans, which in turn has causes them to delay making large purchases, e.g. buying a new home.

Those saddled with debt are unable to save as much as their counterparts who do not have as much debt or none at all, and Gallup’s “thriving gap,” percentages between those with $50,000 in debt less the percentage of student’s without it, shows an 11 point percentage spread between the two parties.

The study also found that more recent college graduates seem to be performing worse than those who graduated prior to 2000. Those who obtained a college degree between the years of 1990-1999 are doing better socially, physically, and in purpose.

What this inquiry portends is that the government and colleges and universities will have to seriously tackle the issue of rising tuition costs as well as student loan debt.

Because student loan debt now outweighs credit card debt and has surpassed $1 trillion, America has a full blown fiscal crisis on its hands. With wage growth still stagnant and many individuals going without full employment, this crisis will likely get worse. That will mean more health issues and many former graduates with void savings accounts as well.

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Matthew Lynch published in EdTech & Innovation, Teachers

Using EdTech to assess small group instruction

A panel discussion with the teachers of Richardson ISD in Richardson, Texas

PANELISTS:

Caroline Canessa, Merriman Park Elementary, 5th Grade Reading-Language Arts

Leah Janoe, Dover Elementary, 5th Grade Math

Ashley Scott, White Rock Elementary, 3rd Grade

Jennifer Looney, Wallace Elementary, 3rd Grade

Alyson Hollon, Dover Elementary, 6th Grade Science

 

For those who may not know, can you elaborate on what your state standards ask teachers to assess in terms of small group discussions?

Jennifer Looney: According to our third grade standards, students should be involved in teacher-led and student-led discussions.

Leah Janoe: Students should participate in small-group discussions by asking questions and answering questions appropriately, which includes answering the question thoroughly, giving enough detail, and most importantly helping the conversation build and continue through their input.

Ashley Scott: We’re also asked to determine if students can use proper verb tense and grammar through discussions with peers.

 

Why is it challenging for teachers to monitor small group discussions?

Alyson Hollon: The biggest challenge with small group discussions or team collaborations is being able to monitor each group’s discussions at once, so that any misconceptions are addressed.

Caroline Canessa: This area of teaching can be very challenging! Often times it is hard to know whether or not student conversations or focus on the task at hand, or completely off the mark. Also, students may pretend to be on task while the teacher is near, but then return to being off task as soon as the teacher leaves the area.

Jennifer Looney: Small groups are often spread out all over the class, so it is hard for a teacher to have the time to engage with all groups. It is also a challenge to talk to one group while also monitoring behavior in a group across the room.

 

RISD has found and is trying out a tool that allows teachers to monitor several discussions all at once. Can you tell us about it?

Ashley Scott: The Flexcat system comes with two teacher microphones and remotes, one large speaker, and six individual speaker pods. The microphones can be used to project your voice out of the large speaker or out of individual pods. The remote controls the volume of your voice. You can use your normal talking voice and it does a wonderful job making it louder for all students to hear. With the pods I can control which group I would like to speak to directly. The microphone comes with an earpiece, which allows for you to listen through the pod to that group. You can turn on the pod without the students knowing and listen. Students can also use the call button on their pod and speak to the teacher through their pod.

Jennifer Looney: The speaker pods allow you to have ears all over the classroom. From working with a small group at my teacher table, I can tell what a group in the hallway is discussing and talk to them directly to refocus them without interrupting precious teaching time.

 

How has the Flexcat changed the way you run your classroom?

Leah Janoe: The Flexcat allows me to hear students’ natural conversations with each other, especially when I can listen in and hear how students are explaining a concept to each other. As a math teacher, I can listen in and see what steps students are verbalizing during group work and help clear up misconceptions in that manner. With the ability to project my voice using the main speaker, I’ve noticed that my students can actually hear my from any point in the room without me having to yell while teaching.

Ashley Scott: My kids are highly motivated to share their thinking and “be the teacher” up at the front of the class wearing the microphone. I can also send a student into a breakout room with a pod to finish work or make up a test. I can pop in on the pod and make sure everything is going OK or they can call me if they have a question. There is also a place for headphones so you could send a child with a pod and headphones to another class to work and still be able to talk directly to the student. It provides so much freedom and flexibility.

 

How have students reacted to the Flexcat?

Caroline Canessa: The students think the Flexcat is a lot of fun! They always ask to use the microphone and love to push the call button.

Alyson Hollon: The students were shocked at first when they realize that I could listen to their conversations even when I wasn’t near them. This has really pushed them to remain on topic and have higher-level group discussions. It has also given students who normally don’t ask questions the opportunity to ask me direct questions, reducing their feeling of apprehension.

Leah Janoe: My students have loved using the Flexcat system because they can discreetly call me to ask for help on a problem. Students who normally would not ask for help feel more comfortable asking for help if they can do so without me having to walk over to address them.

 

Could you share an example of a time when the Flexcat allowed you to catch a student really shining that you would have otherwise missed?

Ashley Scott: This year I had a few students new to our school. Most of my class has gone to school with their peers since kindergarten, and it can be an intimidating situation to walk into. It took this student until the third week to raise her hand to share with the class. One day I called on this particular child to “be the teacher” and share her thinking with the class during math. I gave her the microphone and once she heard her voice from the back of the room, she immediately smiled and stood up straight. You could see how excited and proud she was. Without the microphone, there is no way anyone would have been able to hear her because she was so nervous about sharing with her new peers.

Jennifer Looney: I have a very intelligent student who prefers to only share a few words at a time whole group because she is so shy. When she is with her tablemates, however, she is very talkative. I am able to listen in on her responses in a more laidback situation. I know several students have anxiety about whole class answers and responding directly to a teacher. As this student was working through a table problem in math, she guided her peers to solve a multiplication problem. It was really great to witness her come out of her shell and collaborate!

Alyson Hollon: I have this one student who really struggles working with teammates. One day I was listening to his group as they were finishing up a lab and he explained to another teammate why the chemical reaction occurred and he explained it so well. At this time I was working with my small group students and if I didn’t have the Flexcat I would never have heard his wonderful explanation.

 

What are your thoughts on education these days?

Caroline Canessa: The world of education is just as challenging and rigorous as it has always been.

Alyson Hollon: Today’s education is changing from teacher lead to student lead. Our students need “21st century skills” to be successful today which changes the role of teacher in a 21st century classroom. Students are more motivated and want to be in charge in their own learning.

Leah Janoe: In these times, I am amazed at what students are learning and how they are being taught. The methods and topics that students are using are amazing and I cannot imagine having learned with so many technology tools when I was in school.

 

What are your thoughts on technology in education? Why?

Jennifer Looney: Technology is used, in some way, for every career out there. Students must graduate knowing how to use this technology. To exclude technology from the classroom would be a great disservice to our students.

Leah Janoe: I am so excited for (and slightly jealous of) the technology opportunities my students have to integrate into their classes and learning. I’m amazed at all the tools students can use to encourage their learning.

Caroline Canessa: Technology in education is critical. It allows students access to information that they may not otherwise be able to access at home. It also readies all students for the future – which is increasingly more and more digital world.

 

Any other comments or experiences to share?

Alyson Hollon: I honestly believe with all the technology that I have in my classroom, the Flexcat is essential and necessary. A Flexcat should be in every classroom.

Ashley Scott: I would not want to go back to teaching without the Flexcat!

Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here. 

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Matthew Lynch published in Ask An Expert, Matthew Lynch, Teachers

What You Need to Know About the Teacher Application Process: Background Checks

Criminal background checks may be required before any field experience, student teaching, applying for employment, or after securing employment. The district will direct you on the process they use to gather your fingerprints, and you’ll usually be held responsible for the cost of the background check. Different states use different criminal background tests. The Massachusetts test, for instance, is called the Criminal Offender Records Information (CORI).

In many states, tests like CORI in Massachusetts are administered to protect the welfare of students. These criminal background checks are usually required of all candidates for, and current occupants of, positions that have the potential for direct and unmonitored contact with students. The tests may be administered to teachers, teacher’s aides, school nurses, counselors, coaches or other extracurricular staff or supervisors, food service employees, custodians, and transportation providers. Volunteers, interns, student teachers, or other persons regularly offering support to any school program or facility, whether paid or unpaid, may also have to take the test.

Criminal background checks are an important part of ensuring that your future students are safe. You may request to receive a copy of the report that will be sent to your prospective employer, or you may waive the option. Asking to receive a copy will not reflect negatively on you.

While it may be intimidating to have a government agency look into your past, know that the check is just a routine part of applying for a job. Take a deep breath, do the paperwork, and keep moving forward with the job-seeking process!

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Matthew Lynch published in Matthew Lynch, Policy & Reform

Year-Round Schooling: How it Affects the Economy

In this series I have been writing about different facets of the year-round schooling debate. First I looked at the effects on students and then moved to the impact on teachers. As I researched both groups, I found no distinct disadvantages to either (and some advantages) when placed on a year-round academic calendar.

Today I want to move away from the individual groups impacted and take a closer look at the overall economic effect of year-round schooling. Does this academic setup help or hurt taxpayers’ pockets?

On-campus costs and savings

Year-round school programs are based on one of two different concepts: single-track, which releases all students for breaks throughout the year together, and multi-track, which staggers student breaks and effectively keeps the school building occupied year round. Obviously on a multi-track schedule, school maintenance costs rise because the building is in full use year-round. The cost does not increase by as much as a quarter, though, because most traditional schedule school buildings do have some employees there in the summer months and most offer summer school classes for some of that time too. Still, in cold-weather climates, the cost of not having to pay for air conditioning alone can be a deal-breaker when the topic of year-round schooling is broached. There is also the added cost of transportation on more days of school, custodial staff and additional administrative staff.

There are some areas where year-round schools can be long-term money saving options, though. If a particular district has more students than traditional schedules can accommodate, the capital cost of new buildings can be avoided with a multi-track schedule that allows more students to use the same building. Beyond the capital cost of a building, money can be saved through a higher amount of students using the same resources, like library books or physical education equipment. Some schools have even listed a decrease in vandalism as a financial plus of year-round occupancy.

Community cost and savings

Each individual community will feel a different economic impact when it comes to year-round schooling. A tourist community with summer attractions, for example, may feel more of a squeeze if its low-cost employee pool of high school students is suddenly in class instead. The same could be said for ski communities though that could benefit from multi-track scheduling of high school students during its busiest seasons. The summer months tend to be when most high school students earn the most money, however, because there is a significant duration of time with no school responsibilities. Without those months of a steady paycheck, students (and parents) stand to lose potential college money. Trying to work and maintain a job alongside classes can have a negative impact on grades according to most research and most employers cannot accommodate students who are only available two or three week spans at a time.

So the potential economic cost of year-round schooling is two-fold: the individual student may suffer financially, and the local businesses may have to pay out more for jobs that are better-suited for high school students who do not have the time off to work them.

Savings to the community are a little less tangible, but can be reflected in some research that says year-round schooling reduces teen crime, thus saving money for the community. At-risk students tend to perform better in year-round setups, making them more successful in their academic career which could feasibly mean a stronger economy down the road if those students avoid dropping out of high school. While the savings associated with year-round school schedules may not show up on something as straightforward as a utility bill, they still exist.

Like the impact on students and teachers, the financial ramifications for year-round schooling do not seem significantly negative. But for cash-strapped districts, any upfront costs can be a deal-breaker.

What other potential costs or savings do you associate with year-round schooling?

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Matthew Lynch published in Higher Education

Past, Present and Future: How Has Higher Ed Changed and What’s Coming Next

Note: The following guest post comes to us courtesy of Shaul Kuper, president and CEO of Destiny Solutions, a company that creates software for leading higher education institutions. Destiny Solutions helps clients successfully attract, manage and maintain their non-traditional students. Some of these institutions include Penn State World Campus, Stanford Center for Professional Development and eCornell.

Our education system was designed centuries ago. The first degree-granting institution was founded in 1088, but its roots go back millennia.

The modern university is based on the same economic model that powered the rest of the pre-industrial world. Expert craftsmen — in this case, professors — spent years apprenticing in order to master their trade. They then handcrafted products — courses and seminars — to sell locally, without much competition. Each village had one blacksmith, one baker, one university.

Then, the industrial revolution came along. Suddenly, goods could be produced en masse by workers with little specialized skill. The goods could be distributed across a vast geographic area. Instead of having a blacksmith in every village, there was now one giant factory that served numerous villages, towns and cities—and it produced goods faster and cheaper.

Almost all goods and services transitioned to this model by the early 1900’s—except for higher ed. The first real change for higher ed in over 1000 years came as a result of the Internet boom. For the first time, content could be instantly distributed to mass audiences in disparate geographic locations. Further, the institution no longer controlled the content as students could freely find information through a variety of sources including MOOCs, online journals, blogs, YouTube and search engines.

The Internet changed higher ed because it removed the institution’s monopoly on content, and it broke down the geographic barrier to competition.

We did a survey of higher ed administrators to see how they view changes in higher ed, and what they think has been the most substantial. Here’s what we found:

The number 1 change is technology. The number 2 change is an increase in responsiveness to non-traditional students. Finally, the number 3 change is declining budgets.

It’s an eclectic mix of factors that are at play. And although each of these factors are making waves, have any of them really caused a complete overhaul of the system?

It seems to me that instead of rethinking and reconstructing the tuition-revenue model from the 1600s, we simply keep repaving the surface while ignoring the underpinning foundations.

Perhaps it is time to reimagine our educational system altogether? What if we were a start up nation, without any outdated infrastructure or preconceived ideas on how an educational system is “supposed” to work. Suppose we simply started again from scratch. What would higher education look like then?

For the most part, we’ve gone through this minor repaving process so many times already that we have now hit definite cross roads, presenting two options. For those who believe everything is business as usual, they had better grab the steering wheel tightly, as the road is only going to get bumpier. For those who choose to evolve, it’s an opportunity to get on the freeway and pursue a whole new vision. This is no trivial matter and requires complete alignment in concept, in funding and in execution, all the way from the highest offices down to today’s learner.

 

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Matthew Lynch published in Ask An Expert, Matthew Lynch, Teachers

New Teacher Tip: Handling Teacher Fatigue

The weeks before the December holiday season are fun-filled times for everyone. It seems that each and every person is having a blast shopping, buying gifts, wrapping them and putting them in nice packages—everyone that is, except teachers. You may feel that you are stuck between grades, report cards, gifts and organizing the holiday party too. Don’t fret! Remind yourself of how much you have accomplished over the last several months, and that the holidays are just around the corner.
Typical stress points for teachers around this time of the year and strategies for handling them are discussed below.

1. Empty planning book for the New Year—Many teachers start planning the details of the academic year in the fall, but never find the time to get beyond December. A great idea is to look at the year-end goals you have set for the class and work backwards to create a schedule for the New Year.

2. Holiday party—If you are worried because state tests are just around the corner, and you believe that you cannot afford to throw a holiday party for the kids, then think again. You don’t have to organize a traditional type of party. You can always organize something that may help you cover an area of the curriculum instead. Opt for a reading theme party or an afternoon in the park or at a museum.

3. Report cards—They are the bane of the teaching profession, and you may feel that talking directly to the parents is far easier than writing the narrative in a report card. However, grading has to be done and the reports have to be written. Try completing 4–5 report cards every night. This will help keep fatigue at bay.

4. Loss of contact with friends—Some of the most peeved friends are those who have teachers as friends because the best laid vacation plans are postponed or reduced to a lunch on one December afternoon. Keep in touch with friends and make up for a cancelled vacation by doing something personal. Bake cookies for friends if you enjoy baking or help them with decorations.

5. Holiday crafts—As much as you would like to do it, there just does not seem to be enough time for the holiday crafts you wanted to create. You may also feel like you are at your wits end thinking about what you can do while other teachers seem to be creating beautiful and aromatic wax candles with their students. Try doing something different! Have your students write a poem and recite it. Record the recitation of each student’s poem and place it on a CD. Students will have a holiday gift for their parents that they will never forget.

While you use these strategies to fight fatigue, remember that it is important that you remind yourself of the things you have accomplished. This is something that can keep you motivated and your spirits high.

 

 

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Matthew Lynch published in Ask An Expert, First Year Teachers, Matthew Lynch, Teachers

Finding Support in Your First Year of Teaching

In any profession you’ll find professional groups and networks to support and encourage new professionals, as well as groups of experienced professionals seeking to advance in their profession. This 
is known in the corporate world as networking. The teaching profession has several support groups 
that provide information, consultation, and much-needed encouragement for the new teacher. Especially during your first year of teaching, it’s incredibly important to have an adequate support network. Good people to incorporate into your network include:

1. Counselors

Students often have to cope with difficulties, such as death, divorce, and mental and physical abuse, which can affect their academic performance. When a teacher notices signs indicating that a student is suffering from any difficulty, whether personal or physiological, it’s wise to consult with a school nurse or a school counselor who can assist in uncovering the underlying problem in a sensitive and appropriate way. Teachers normally receive plenty of support when dealing with various student problems.

2. Administrative Staff

The principal of a school often provides wonderful support and assistance to teachers, especially when disciplining misbehaving children in middle grades and high school. The principal also guides a teacher in getting to know the support staff through formal or informal meetings.

3. School Secretary

The school secretary helps the new teacher understand the school policies and assists in getting to know the rules concerning photocopying, borrowing LCD or overhead projectors, knowing where to get school supplies, and maintaining attendance records.

4. Colleagues

Fellow teachers are an important part of the support network and are very important to the new teacher. They provide mentoring, counsel, and general information about classroom management, and they help familiarize the new teacher with the rules of the school. They also help new teachers locate teaching resources in the school.

5. Professional and Specialty Organizations

Apart from school support staff, the new teacher can benefit from the many professional and specialty organizations that support the teaching profession. Professional organizations provide information, networking opportunities, and research. Specialty organizations are those that represent specific areas of interest within the profession. For example, the Association for Childhood Education International is a forum for elementary and middle-grade teachers. The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages and the American Association of Physics Teachers are examples of excellent forums for teachers at the secondary level.

6. International Organizations

Several international organizations serve the field of education. Phi Delta Kappa International (PDK), for example, publishes professional materials, such as research reports and results of surveys and newsletters, and also sponsors workshops and educational meetings that enhance the entire field of education.

Just like with interviews, it may take practice to figure out how to best approach people you wish to incorporate into your personal and professional network. Be polite, be proactive, and you’ll populate your support group in no time!

Check out all our posts for First Year Teachers here. 

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Matthew Lynch published in Policy & Reform

ESSA to boost music education nationwide

Music education will receive a boost due to the rewrite of a major federal education law.

Signed into law by President Obama earlier in December, the Every Student Succeeds Act lists music as a portion of a well-rounded education and gives it more support than previous policies when it comes to access and funding.

The law also means federal grant funding is opened for states and local school districts to support music education programs and further train music teachers.

The growing emphasis on music education is great news in places like Nashville where the Music Makes Us program recently hit a record high of students enrolled in music education programs. Music Makes Us is a public-private partnership that has received support from the Country Music Association, including $10 million for new instruments.

According to a report by Music Makes Us, more than 48,700 Metro Nashville public school students take part in music education classes. The report also says the program has increased access to music education for students across every subgroup, and shares that students enrolled in music education have shown better attitudes toward school and increased academic results over time.

It’s no secret that students who study music excel in other areas as well. Unfortunately the direct effect of music is not always noted. Hopefully the updated ESSA will mean more access for all students to music education, and a stronger learning base as a result.

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Matthew Lynch published in Ask An Expert, Matthew Lynch, Teachers

How to Secure a Teaching Position

In order to secure a teaching position in a public school, you must be licensed and certified to do so. There are different types of teaching licenses, including provisional, emergency, and permanent. A license authorizes you to teach, whereas a certification is an indication of what you are qualified to teach. You may also have more than one certification attached to your teaching license.

Each state sets its own requirements regarding tests and minimum passing scores to achieve state certification/licensure, although alternate paths to certification do exist. The tests are typically designed to evaluate teacher candidates’ basic academic skills, subject knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and in some cases, classroom performance.

1. Basic Skills Examination

Typically, in the first step of the process, teachers must pass basic skills examinations before they are admitted to teacher education programs or enroll in upper-level courses (those taken in the junior and senior year) at colleges and universities. The basic skills tests measure reading, writing, and mathematics skills.

2. Subject Area Tests

In the second step, educators who have graduated with a teaching degree must pass subject-area tests as part of the certification/licensure process in their state of employment. Subject assessments measure candidates’ knowledge of the academic subjects they will teach, as well as domain-specific pedagogy skills (how to best teach these particular subjects).

Many states use the Praxis system for license and certification testing. However, some states, such as Alabama, Florida, Oklahoma, and Texas, use their own testing service for certification purposes. You’ll need to check the requirements for your state.

3. “Highly Qualified”

Separate from certification, highly qualified is a status given to teachers in content areas after completing course work and/or passing a Praxis exam or equivalent. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires teachers to be highly qualified in their content area. Teachers may become highly qualified in multiple areas. A teacher highly qualified in elementary education may teach all subjects in grades kindergarten through sixth. After sixth grade, however, teachers must be highly qualified in each subject area they teach. For example, passing the science Praxis test makes you highly qualified in science, so you can teach this subject to students in grades 6 through 12. If you also pass the social studies Praxis, then you may teach both science and social studies.

Be aware that higher paying school districts that are known for positive teacher morale and educationally supportive communities are more competitive. This may make it more difficult for you to secure employment in one of these schools, because you’ll compete against a greater number of applicants. Take your time investigating and selecting appropriate schools to make sure that you can come up with concrete and valid reasons, sometimes other than simply high pay, that would make you willing to work in one of these schools. An additional factor to consider is that you’ll be applying along with “alternative route” teachers, who’ve already had career experience in other work forces. Taking time to identify applicants that you might be up against during the selection process will assist you in determining where your best chances lie of securing employment.

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Matthew Lynch published in EdTech & Innovation, Higher Education

What do American college students look like?

**The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding a P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

A guest post by Jan Costenbader

Before I enter the classroom each quarter (sometimes virtually), I always wonder about what my class looks like. Sometimes there are more women than men, sometimes it is a very diverse group, sometimes there are adult students, but one thing is certain, every year the incoming freshmen look younger and younger. Certainly, this is not because of my own advancing age, but seeing their youthful faces embarking on a new journey in today’s technological age, leaves me with the question, “what do they look like technically?” As more and more of our courses rely on online components, you have to ask yourself, “are our students prepared to deal with the challenges of D2L, online quizzes, and video captured lectures?”

Every year, the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA conducts a nationwide study of incoming college freshmen. The study conducted by UCLA [1] includes survey responses from almost 166,000 freshmen representing 234 institutions. For the first time in 2013, the survey added two questions about the respondents’ use of Open Educational Resources (OER) such as Khan Academy, MIT’s OpenCourseware and other MOOC’s. These two questions were in addition to the recurring questions about using the Internet for research, social media use, video games. So, what does the incoming freshman class look like technically? How prepared are they to use the online tools? I found some of the results quite surprising.

First of all, what about using the Internet for research? Interestingly, the responses for ‘frequently’ was the only category reported. 81.8% of all students attending Baccalaureate institutions used the Internet for research or homework. The results were similar across all types of institutions with only Historically Black Colleges and Universities being slightly lower at 76.0%. So, one can, perhaps, conclude that these incoming students speak Google. Whether or not they can use the tools effectively or the research is valid is yet another story. I do know that some faculty instruct their students on the proper use of Internet search tools and how to determine if research is credible. Searching and researching strategies on the Internet may make a good introductory course for our Liberal Studies Program.

Online social networks like Facebook and Twitter have high participation rates with only 5.6% of the respondents saying that they never use these sites. On the other hand, 50% of the respondents spent between 1 to 5 hours per week on the sites and, of course, that means that roughly 43% spent more than 5 hours per week.

Anecdotally, the teen usage of Facebook has declined by 25% over the past three years. [2] Twitter and Instagram are becoming increasingly popular destinations for the younger generations. This is dramatically illustrated by this graphic from Piper Jaffray which portrays the decline in Facebook and the fairly dramatic increase in Instagram usage.

“Friends and the Internet dominate teen influences and combine in social media environments. Instagram and Twitter are the two most used social media sites, implying teens are increasingly visual and sound bite communicators.” [3]

Increasingly, faculty and various department and organizations are establishing a presence on these social media sites. For example, the College of Science and Health Advising Office is very active on Twitter @CSHAdvising with 397 followers, as is @DePaul Chemistry with 466 followers. Some faculty post a Twitter feed on their D2L homepage and regularly tweet course news and information. Of course, you are limited to 140 characters, but as indicated above, teens are sound bite communicators. This may lead me to establishing a Twitter or Instagram feed for my own Math 100 course, as I am finding that students don’t always seem to read or even get emails that I send to them.

One of the most interesting aspects of the UCLA study was the use of Open Educational Resources (OER) by incoming freshmen. Two new questions were added to the survey, asking how often students have “used an online instructional website (e.g., Khan Academy, Coursera): as assigned for a class, or to learn something on your own” in the past year.

“About four out of ten (41.8%) incoming students ‘frequently’ or ‘occasionally’ used an online instructional website as assigned for a class in the past year. Students were, however, much more likely to utilize these resources independently—almost seven out of ten (69.2%) incoming first-year students have used such sites ‘frequently’ or ‘occasionally’ to learn something on their own.” [4]

What was most surprising about the results was that freshmen bound for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) exceeded the averages significantly with 53.4% using these sites for assignments and a whopping 87.5% using the sites on their own. This speaks well to the abilities and interests of our incoming freshmen when it comes to preparedness to use online resources in coursework.

Finally, there was an additional piece of data regarding college choice. The students were asked about the reasons for making a college choice that were “Very important”. Of course, the academic reputation of the college was the top response. However, only 3.8% of the students would rate the ability to take an online course as “Very Important”. This does not say that students don’t want to take an online course, but it is not a factor in choosing a college. This, most likely, doesn’t bode well for those fully online institutions.

So then, our incoming freshmen are really digital natives. They not only look really young, but they are well versed in all things digital. Come to think of it, the World Wide Web went public on August 9, 1991! None of the incoming freshmen class were even born then. Perhaps, just perhaps, we need to meet them where they are.

[1] Eagan, K., Lozano, J. B., Hurtado, S., & Case, M. H. (2013). The American freshman: National norms fall 2013. Los Angeles: Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA. http://www.heri.ucla.edu/monographs/TheAmericanFreshman2013.pdf
[2] http://istrategylabs.com/2014/01/3-million-teens-leave-facebook-in-3-years-the-2014-facebook-demographic-report/
[3] http://www.piperjaffray.com/2col.aspx?id=287&releaseid=1975435
[4] Eagan, K., Lozano, J. B., Hurtado, S., & Case, M. H. (2013). The American freshman: National norms fall 2013. Los Angeles: Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA. Pg 8
 
This post originally appeared on Iddblog, and was republished with permission.
 
Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here. 
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Jan Costenbader came to DePaul from California State University, Chico in November of 2010. There, he taught Mathematics and developed an online hybrid Mathematics course for General Education Mathematics. He also assisted faculty in course design as an instructional designer. Currently, he provides instructional design consultation to the College of Science and Health, the Quantitative Reasoning program and several departments within the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. In addition, he teaches fully online developmental Mathematics and blended Quantitive Reasoning courses.
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Matthew Lynch published in Policy & Reform

Maryland to improve education of immigrant students

There are more than 65,000 English language learners who attend public schools in Maryland and one in every 10 students in elementary school is a a first-or second-generation immigrant, according to the Baltimore Sun.

To better assist those students, the state has commissioned a panel to try to amend the educational environment for immigrant kids.

According to paper, many teachers in the state’s public school system aren’t properly prepared to deal with these students. Because of that, many of those students end up dropping out of school completely.

Maryland public school officials are attempting to change the culture surrounding how immigrate students are taught. One of the ways the panel is exploring is by allowing students “to learn at their own pace.”

But the potential problem with that approach is that it may segregate immigrant students from the rest of the student body. In addition, two international schools have opened in Prince George’s County to better assist students who have immigrated from foreign lands.

Many of those students are from “war-torn lands, speaking dozens of languages.”

The state is at least attempting to make strides in making the transition easier for students who just happen to be immigrants. Some may be away from their families and struggling with transitioning to a new environment.

Hopefully this panel strikes the right tone and develops programs that will help new immigrant students long-term but doesn’t keep them completely separate from mainstream American students who could also benefit from learning alongside their immigrant peers.

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