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by Zach Miners
In his 2010 annual letter, recently posted to the
It is a fact that "online learning," "educational technology," and "distance education" are buzzwords that are practically ubiquitous among today's teachers, education gurus, and even high-profile business executives. The buzz right now centers on the learning implications of Apple's new iPad tablet; last summer, former
There certainly is no shortage of content. Many colleges and universities are posting free videos of their lectures online (many of these courses can be found on the website Academic Earth), and a special channel within Apple's iTunes software, called iTunes U, offers a plethora of digital lessons from colleges nationwide. However, Gates says that so far, technology has hardly changed formal education and that online learning should be more than just lectures. His thinking is that it should use of lessons tailored to individual students' learning needs, and that there needs to be a way to take all of the educational content that's online and organize it and then rate it in context. "If you search online for a video on photosynthesis, you get tens of thousands of results, including a lot of student projects," he writes.
Other educational technology experts agree with Gates, but they say his proposals barely scratch the surface of how online
learning can benefit students. "I think this is the right direction, but I would take it even further," says
Eileen Lento, an education and government strategist for
Michael Horn, the executive director of education for the nonprofit think tank
The recent extraordinarily hyped unveiling of the iPad by Apple CEO Steve Jobs holds significance for online learning in schools, experts say. The presence of other tablet PCs and supercompact "netbook" computers has been growing in schools, but Lento says the enhanced reading features and multimedia capabilities of the iPad might make it a powerful teaching and learning tool.
Horn says that if the iPad is able to capture and store pen strokes rather than just keystrokes, teachers would be able to gather much richer data on students' learning progress. But he doesn't think the answer to our educational problems is a piece of hardware. "The question is what kind of system the technology is used in," he says, "and if it allows for students to individualize their learning and to follow different paths."
© U.S. News & World Report
Education: Online Learning Gets High Praise From Bill Gates | Zach Miners
© U.S. News & World Report