The dark side of education research: widespread bias
Johns Hopkins study finds that insider research shows 70 percent more benefits to students than independent research
https://hechingerreport.org/the-dark-side-of-education-research-widespread-bias/
The study, “Do Developer-Commissioned Evaluations Inflate Effect Sizes?”
There are a number of reasons for why developer studies tend to show stronger results, according to Wolf, whose full time work is to evaluate educational programs. The first is that a company is unlikely to publish unfavorable results. Wolf speculates that developers are more likely to “brand a failed trial a ‘pilot’ and file it away.”
This isn’t the first study to detect bias in education research. The problem of hiding unfavorable results from publication was documented as far back as 1995. In 2016, one of Wolf’s co-authors, Robert Slavin, wrote about the positive results that researchers get when they devise their own measures to prove that their inventions work.
Is SAMR Dead?
https://www.techlearning.com/news/is-samr-dead
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more on SAMR in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=samr
Temple’s business school sees virtual reality as future of online learning
https://www.inquirer.com/business/remote-learning-vr-mba-20210423.html
a finance professor at Temple University and academic director of its online MBA, has tested that belief since March 2020, when he launched the class Fintech, Blockchain and Digital Disruption in a virtual reality, or VR, program.
It took 18 months to research the technology and build the course at a cost upward of $100,000. The finished product was completed with the help of Glimpse Group, a New York-based virtual reality and augmented reality company.
“When I teach classes on Zoom, there’s a disconnect,” Ozkan said. “When we asked students last year to compare their VR experience to Zoom, almost all of them said [VR] is better or much better. Which is why we decided to offer it again this year.”
When the 18 students enrolled in the seven-week accelerated course this semester put on their VR headsets, they entered one of two lecture halls modeled after actual rooms on the Temple campus. Students customize their avatars before the semester.
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more on immersive in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=immersive
https://lompocrecord.com/opinion/columnists/jennifer-brown-and-christopher-lynch-quality-online-education-for-higher-ed-requires-public-investment/article_512e95ce-fae0-5d0b-917c-3a2f9232ad74.html
Online coursework must not be considered an inferior or cheaper option. Getting online right requires a significant investment in course development guided by professional course designers who focus on achieving and assessing learning outcomes. Best practices show that developing a quality online course takes about 10 weeks to build with the faculty member working closely alongside an instructional/course designer, and research has shown that in-person instruction improves after working with instructional designers.
An online lecture requires more lecture preparation, continuous monitoring of student progress, increased use of assessment tools, extensive electronic interaction with the students and online office hoursAdditional instructor and teaching assistant support is also needed, as well as technical support.
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more on online education in this ISM blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=%22online+education%22
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more on VR in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=virtual+reality
Digital Humanities for Librarians
By: Emma Annette Wilson
Digital Humanities For Librarians. Some librarians are born to digital humanities; some aspire to digital humanities; and some have digital humanities thrust upon them. Digital Humanities For Librarians is a one-stop resource for librarians and LIS students working in this growing new area of academic librarianship. The book begins by introducing digital humanities, addressing key questions such as, “What is it?”, “Who does it?”, “How do they do it?”, “Why do they do it?”, and “How can I do it?”. This broad overview is followed by a series of practical chapters answering those questions with step-by-step approaches to both the digital and the human elements of digital humanities librarianship. Digital Humanities For Librarians covers a wide range of technologies currently used in the field, from creating digital exhibits, archives, and databases, to digital mapping, text encoding, and computational text analysis (big data for the humanities). However, the book never loses sight of the all-important human component to digital humanities work, and culminates in a series of chapters on management and personnel strategies in this area. These chapters walk readers through approaches to project management, effective collaboration, outreach, the reference interview for digital humanities, sustainability, and data management, making this a valuable resource for administrators as well as librarians directly involved in digital humanities work. There is also a consideration of budgeting questions, including strategies for supporting digital humanities work on a shoestring. Special features include: Case studies of a wide range of projects and management issues Digital instructional documents guiding readers through specific digital technologies and techniques An accompanying website featuring digital humanities tools and resources and digital interviews with librarians and scholars leading the way in digital humanities work across North America, from a range of larger and smaller institutionsWhether you are a librarian primarily working in digital humanities for the first time, a student hoping to do so, or a librarian in a cognate area newly-charged with these responsibilities, Digital Humanities For Librarians will be with you every step of the way, drawing on the author’s experiences and those of a network of librarians and scholars to give you the practical support and guidance needed to bring your digital humanities initiatives to life.
What is leadership, and who is a leader?
With so many definitions of leadership, each organization needs to have a clear definition of what leadership is and what it means to be a leader within their company. The definition can evolve over time, but having even a basic, agile definition is better than no definition at all.
Leadership filters ensure the company has a consistent definition of leadership and that the people who best represent the culture and values are promoted to leadership positions. A leader focused solely on raising profits and earning more money wouldn’t fare well in a company focused on developing empathetic leaders. Leadership filters help promote the right people and maintain a cohesive work environment.
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more about leadership in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=leadership
https://www.edsurge.com/news/2021-04-06-how-interactive-3d-is-transforming-the-way-we-learn-and-work
EdSurge recently talked with Linda Sellheim, Education Lead at Epic Games
Interactive 3D is the ability to interact with the digital world the same way you do with the real world. These experiences can take many forms, from dynamic web-based content to immersive VR, AR or MR experiences. You know those realistic simulations of storms you see on the Weather Channel? That’s interactive 3D.
Burning Glass to identify the types of 3D skills needed in the workplace. They found that jobs requiring real-time 3D skills are growing 601 percent faster than the job market overall, and pay 57 percent above the average advertised salary
Imagine building a history museum in Unreal Engine and having students populate the displays. That’s what some classes are doing.
this blog post that includes the new Creator’s Field Guide to Emerging Careers in Interactive 3D.
all educators to check out resources such as Unreal Engine’s Secondary Education Lesson Plans and Games For Change.
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more on 3D in this IMS blog
https://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims?s=3D
https://www.freetech4teachers.com/2021/04/tour-creator-is-closing-here-are-some.html
Story Spheres is a neat tool for adding audio recordings to 360 imagery.
CoSpaces is a platform that offers students the ability to create their own small virtual worlds.
