GED in Washington To Go Online

GED® Test Centers in Washington will transition to computer-based testing (CBT) in 2013 in order to offer the new series of GED® Tests beginning in January 2014.   

 All test centers will go through a preparation phase and implementation phase to transition from paper-based testing to CBT, starting with Clark College and Centralia College on October 30, and Central Washington University the next day.

 For questions, contact your local GED® Testing center or the GED State Administrator at GEDadmin@sbctc.edu

 

5 Steps to Resolve Your Grade Dispute

Ellen Bremen, Highline Community College, in USA Today:

What will you do if you feel like a professor has done you wrong over a grade?

As a tenured faculty member and author of a student-professor communication blog with grade disputes as the number-one write-in question, I’ve found that most students want to a) go for the prof’s jugular or b) go all “Better Call Saul” (Breaking Bad, anyone?) and practically threaten legal action.

Read the full article...

Campus Emergency Preparedness Video

Here’s a nice example of a resource created for use within a campus community:

Clark College’s Emergency Preparedness video

 

 If you have questions, contact Marilyn Westlake, mwestlake@clark.edu

Assessment-related Conferences

Sent to me by Ann Fillmore, Clark College:

You told me to pass along any info regarding Assessment trainings/conferences/webinars if I found them. Well, I hit the jackpot. I hope you can pass this along :)

 http://illinois.edu/calendar/list/4144

Invitation to Part-time/Adjunct Faculty

An open invitation to join a Faculty Learning Community, specifically designed for part-time/adjunct faculty who teach for any of the Washington State Community and Technical Colleges:

 

Hello,

I’d like to invite you to participate in the state-wide Part-Time Faculty Learning Community that will begin the first full week of November and extend throughout the academic year.

Sign up for this FREE ongoing professional development opportunity to connect with other part-time and adjunct faculty across WA State community and technical colleges.  Over the 2012-2013 academic year we’ll explore a series of modules focused on teaching and learning.  Each monthly module includes self-paced readings and videos, online discussion questions, and online webinars to connect you with other colleagues.

Monthly topics are based on the Getting Results course and include:

·         November - Creating a community of learners

·         December - Planning for outcomes

·         January - Assessing teaching and learning

·         February - Active teaching and learning

·         March - Moving beyond the classroom

·         April - Teaching with technology

Share your experience and learn from others!  Sign up for the Part-Time Faculty Learning Community here:  http://goo.gl/x05WV

This initiative is hosted by Pierce College and open to all part-time faculty across the system.  If you have any questions, please contact Emily Wood at ewood@pierce.ctc.edu

U.W. Will Work With Coursera

Grantees Focused on Breakthrough Models for College Completion are developing new models for online and blended programs that significantly improve postsecondary access, persistence, completion, and affordability, without compromising the quality of learning outcomes. Applicants were eligible for awards up to $1 million.

 University of Washington (Seattle, WA; $884,000): UW will provide a transformational online undergraduate degree-completion program at a lower cost for Americans who have earned some college credits and want to complete a baccalaureate degree, initially in humanities and social sciences, but need an online format due to other life commitments. The UW will use MOOCs to deliver the courses.

 AT A GLANCE:

Program Name: University of Washington Online Undergraduate Degree Completion Program
Targeted Degree Program: Interdisciplinary bachelor’s degree
Opening Date: Fall 2013
First-Year Enrollment: 1,000
Anticipated Students Served in First Five Years: 13,488
Tuition Model: Credit hours at reduced rate of $155/credit for this program
Geographies Served: US students, with primary emphasis on the state of Washington
Targeted Students: Working young adults with some college credits who are returning to school

 DIG DEEPER:

Like other traditional research universities, the University of Washington has historically served first-time full-time undergraduates and graduate students as core constituencies. In this Next Generation Learning Challenges program, they are breaking out of that mold to offer an opportunity to working adults with some college credit who need an undergraduate degree to advance their careers. Their numbers are substantial: nearly six million people in the western states have at least one year of college but lack a degree, and many of them also lack the resources to pay tuition at the usual rates, the time to travel to campus to attend classes, or both.

UW’s program is being designed expressly to serve the needs of this target population. The specific degrees offered are being selected based on those likely to have the greatest economic impact. The degrees will be offered at a reduced cost - approximately half the per-credit-hour cost of most competitive programs - with free versions of the courses offered on Coursera, a commercial platform on which universities offer massive open online courses (MOOCs) that are available to anyone worldwide. The course will expand access to resources and learning and will also give students the opportunity to sample a course before enrolling. The credit-bearing versions of the courses, offered in Moodle, will be instructor-led and will have additional assignments, projects, papers and readings which will augment the materials on Coursera.

Since the program targets students who have some college credit already, it will focus on upper-level courses. Fulltime faculty will design and teach these courses, ensuring their depth and quality. The courses will be designed around learning outcomes, and these outcomes will be described at the beginning of each lesson to inform students explicitly of the required concepts to master and skills to develop.

Faculty who teach in the program will receive comprehensive training in online instruction to ensure their thorough familiarity with those practices which encourage retention and course completion. In addition, specialized online advisors/coaches will work with students, checking in with them at least every other week in regard to their progress in current courses and suggesting strategies for completion. Struggling students will receive particular attention.

GRANTEE RESOURCES:

Application Deck: This video offers a snapshot of this grantee’s breakthrough model in its early planning stages outlining the goals, learning environments, and business model. It was originally created as a narrated PowerPoint deck included in their application to the NGLC Breakthrough Models grant competition.

Next Generation Learning Challenges (NGLC) accelerates educational innovation through applied technology to dramatically improve college readiness and completion in the United States. This multi-year program provides investment capital to expand the use of proven and emerging learning technologies, collects and shares evidence of what works, and fosters innovation and adoption of solutions which will dramatically improve the quality of learning in the United States, particularly for low-income students and students of color. NGLC is managed by EDUCAUSE in partnership with the League for Innovation in the Community College, the Council of Chief State School Officers, and the International Association for K-12 Online Learning. Funding for Wave III was provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. (www.nextgenlearning.org)

Innovation at the University of Washington

Ignite! Sessions are a fast-moving and fun way to learn how select technologies and pedagogical strategies are improving student learning at the UW. Topics of discussion to include: Canvas, ALEKS, Tegrity, eTexts, SpaceScout, Team-Based Learning, and more. There were close to 100 people in the audience at our January Ignite! Event. The Ignite! style of presentation really makes for quite the fun and engaging event.

You can read the full story on the http://www.washington.edu/lst/news/2012/ignite-oct-2012