Massachusetts Charter Public School Association’s Post

This is a good post-ESSER read via Education Next from former Amplify colleague Laurence Holt. It goes along with the point I made in a recent "Doug's Digest" - if edtech investors are pouring bajillions of $$ into these platforms and districts can only manage to get 5% of kids to use them, we have to ask if these solutions really make sense for system-wide implementations. Imagine if these products were workshopped by superintendents? Imagine if investors ran their investment theses by district leaders who know kids and classrooms and can assess the feasibility? Or, imagine if we invested bajillions into teacher pay and improving working conditions for educators, so we have more adults in classrooms building more relationships with kids? What if the best "tech" we have is more adults making more connections and spreading more joy?

The thing about information processing theory, learning, and the brain is that it doesn't operate in a vacuum separate from the other brain-based & embodied processes that make us human. It's ONE way to understand learning, it's not THE way. Which is why it's always hard not to be cynical when stuff like this is finally "confirmed" or "validated" through the lens of cognitive load theory: https://lnkd.in/gV7wayJC Or when results find that a culture of belonging, positive relationships with parents, and strong positive communication is a key to successful schools: https://lnkd.in/gacCuEMj Well yeah, because interest, perceived difficulty, belonging, relationships, and communication are all fundamental to the human experience. You can't just isolate and treat learning in schools as a purely cognitive, information processing task and call it a day because that's not how *humans* work! I think the 5E model referenced in the piece is a pretty brilliant way to properly contextualize brain-based models within fully situated, embodied human learning. It's all of these things, all at once, all the time! To try to say it's just happening to the brain, or just part of the brain - or that we are just in the business of managing memory in school - is bananas.

By modeling curiosity, encouraging exploration, and balancing technology use, parents can create a positive learning environment that nurtures a child’s growth in all dimensions—academic, emotional, and intellectual. https://lnkd.in/gpYU3ztb 

Maths: Smart learning software helps children during lockdowns -- and beyond . Intelligent tutoring systems for math problems helped pupils remain or even increase their performance during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new study. Researchers analyzed data from five million exercises done by around 2,700 pupils in Germany over a period of five years. The study found that particularly lower-performing children benefit if they use the software regularly. #ScienceDailynews #InnovativeResearch #NextGenScience #ExploringFrontiers

Technology is transforming education, offering new levels of flexibility and autonomy for students and educators alike. Building virtual academic programs can help address many of today's challenges that school districts continue to face—like teacher shortages and budget cuts—providing innovative ways to deliver top-notch education. Hear from some of the top virtual academy experts as they discuss the impact that virtual academics has had in their districts --> https://lnkd.in/gA5nZAPs hashtag #EdTech hashtag #VirtualLearning hashtag #EducationInnovation

Today, the University of Chicago Education Lab released results from a new study of a high-dosage tutoring model–what we call “Saga Technology”–which found that substituting some tutor time with educational technology can reduce costs by one-third and halve the number of tutors needed without compromising effectiveness. This study builds on previous research of high-dosage tutoring shown to double or triple what students learn in a year. This is great news for the field given that a reduction in cost usually means a reduction in the effectiveness of an intervention. The evidence from this tutoring model designed by Saga Education provides a pathway or “recipe” that school districts might follow to scale up high-dosage tutoring so that more students can benefit from it. With this evidence that the Saga Technology tutoring model can accelerate learning at a lower cost, the Education Lab is now exploring how to scale it. Lessons learned from this study inspired the Personalized Learning Initiative (PLI), the Education Lab’s current initiative to overcome learning loss for students nationwide. Preliminary results from the first year of PLI of approximately 2,000 students show that in-school high-dosage tutoring can work–even when delivered in the aftermath of the pandemic and in diverse academic settings–especially in math. Later this year, we will be able to understand the impact of tutoring on 15,000+ more students from SY2023-24 to give us even more clarity on which models work best for which students. Learn more about the study of Saga Technology and read the paper: https://lnkd.in/eRk-xFWa #EdTech #HighDosageTutoring #PersonalizedLearning #PandemicRecovery #LearningLoss The Education Lab is grateful for generous support from the AbbVie Foundation, Arnold Ventures, Griffin Catalyst, and Overdeck Family Foundation.

Learning is non-linear. Learning is individual. Learning and schooling can be enhanced by making human connections throughout the day.

Did you know that just 5-7 minutes of targeted instruction can make a huge difference in learning and retention? It's not about the time, but the quality of the practice. Here are three key factors that can make a difference: 1. Targeted instruction: when you only have 5 minutes you can’t jump around from topic to topic. It needs to be focused. 2. Spaced practice: by having the tutoring at one time and paired practice later in the day or the next day, that targeted practice was naturally spaced. 3. Immediate feedback: by having the practice with an app/game, students could apply and get feedback right away. While the quality of instructional materials matter, research shows that the overall learning experience design, or #lxd, plays a crucial role in learning and retention. So, let's focus on creating effective learning experiences that can truly make a difference. #edtech #learningscience #k12education #sor

In our latest Invention Notebook article, Lemelson Foundation Executive Director Robert Schneider and Senior Program Officer David Coronado explore the role of invention education in rethinking how we prepare our students for a rapidly developing future: “By nurturing creativity and innovation in the classroom, we empower students to not just adapt to a changing world, but actively shape it through their ideas and ingenuity.” They share how invention education can integrate into school curriculum and achieve transformative results, including:     ✅ Better engaging K-12 students, educators, and administrators     ✅ Inspiring more STEM learners from all backgrounds     ✅ Helping to create the next generation of inventors and problem-solvers Read more on our Invention Notebook on Medium: https://bit.ly/3TT7ypf #InventionEducation #STEM #STEMlearning #STEMeducation #K12 #Innovation #Invention

Exciting news in education! 📚🎉 A new study from the University of Chicago Education Lab shows promise for scaling high-dose tutoring effectively and affordably. Our research demonstrates that a hybrid model combining in-person tutoring with computer-assisted learning can yield significant math gains for 9th graders, comparable to full in-person tutoring, while cutting costs by 30% and staffing needs by half. I was quoted in today’s CommonWealth Beacon article about the study: “The two main issues with high-dosage tutoring are costs and staffing issues, so this intervention is trying to get at both of these at the same time. This is a potential recipe for scaling up the right mix of technology and in-person tutoring.” This approach could be a game-changer in addressing pandemic-related learning loss and improving math education at scale. Read more about our findings and their implications for the future of education: https://lnkd.in/guH85Kgf For more details on the study and results: https://lnkd.in/gJrG6wEZ #EducationInnovation #Tutoring #EdTech #LearningGains