XplanaZine

Updates on: public education, Brooklyn Tech, STEM and the National Science Foundation, online student statistics in Minnesota, Gatlin Education Services, Hodges University, California R-I School District and NETS

Donald Nielsen takes a critical look at the problems incurred by public education and offers solutions. “I believe public schools are the most important institutions in our society. Being educated is essential for a productive life and it is also essential for the preservation of our democracy. Failing to educate our children puts our very way of life in jeopardy. Today, as a nation, we are failing to adequately educate a majority of our children.” — The Seattle Times

Teachers at Brooklyn Tech — the largest math and science themed school in the city — are getting schooled in, well, technology. The school’s alumni recently installed a state-of-the-art technology center to bring the school’s 200-plus teachers up to speed on the latest technological advances — from the elementary (e-mail) to more-advanced techniques, like the use of so-called “SMART boards,” which allow teachers to project digital images onto enormous touch-sensitive whiteboards at the front of the classroom (cool!). — The Brooklyn Paper

In an effort to explore methods for encouraging females to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), the National Science Foundation has awarded the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE) Education Foundation an extension services grant. The grant comes through the Research on Gender in Science and Engineering Program and was awarded to implement NAPE’s five-year STEM Equity Pipeline project. –Campus Technology

Growing numbers of online students and high school students taking college courses helped boost enrollment at the 32 Minnesota State Colleges and Universities by 4.5 percent over the last year, officials said as they released enrollment figures. This fall, the state college and university system has 180,848 students, an increase of 7,832 students from last fall’s enrollment of 173,016. Last year, enrollment increased by 1.3 percent. — DL-Online

Online education providing work force skills and certification training has come to a pair of local colleges, making it more convenient than ever for region residents to get the type of education they are looking for from the convenience of their computer. The online courses are provided by Gatlin Education Services, a provider of online certificate training programs to community colleges, universities and accredited career-colleges worldwide. — NWI Times

Hodges University provides online degrees to students who have never set foot on American soil. Alen Savatic, 34, is midway through a master’s degree program. He lives in Sarajevo, in the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Hodges also has an online international student from Germany, and a British student will start virtual classes in January. — News-Press

In the era of constant upward changes in technology, California R-I School District has constantly made an effort to keep up with the trends and more recently the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) for students. — California Democrat