Online Education Space

In a message to faculty and staff, campus leaders announced the appointment of an Executive Group to guide campus efforts to design and implement online-education offerings. The text of the April 27 Cal Message, signed by George Breslauer, John Wilton, Bob Jacobsen and Christina Maslach, reads as follows:

We believe online education will become increasingly important at all levels of the educational experience, including at the undergraduate and graduate level. If Berkeley is to retain its current standards in terms of access and excellence we think it is of paramount importance that we develop an overarching campus strategy that enables and supports online innovation. We believe our Schools and Departments play an essential leadership role in the design and implementation of online offerings. However, we also want to provide guidance and support and ensure that campus goals are met, specifically ensuring that our online education efforts align with Berkeley`s mission, values and operational requirements.

To this end, we are convening an Executive Group that is charged with overseeing our efforts and accelerating implementation. The responsibilities of the group will be to provide overall direction to campus, make decisions concerning strategic priorities and allocate additional resources to help realize these…………… continues on UC Berkeley

Northern Ireland’s inaugural e-learning innovation awards have been launched at Queen’s University by minister for employment and learning Dr Stephen Farry.

He explained the commendations will acknowledge the people and institutions that are “leading the way” in the effective use and development of academic technologies.

These can support teaching and education throughout higher and further education, as well as in the training sector, the politician remarked.

He called e-learning an “area of immense and rapid growth and change”, noting innovative advances ought to be “exploited to the full”.

This will enrich the economy and enhance the academic experiences of individual students, Dr Farry added.

He also recognised the launch of the Technology in Learning Delivery qualification, stating this will “complement and support the wider strategy for education and training” within the country.

Colleges and similar organisations should be seen as “key deliverers of skills” throughout all levels, which will enable them to meet the needs of communities and employers, as well as students, the minister declared.

Industry and businesses often examine the tertiary sector to help them discover development opportunities for their workforce a…………… continues on Virtual College

SACRAMENTO, Calif., April 25, 2012 – /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – As college students increasingly embrace online courses, measuring the effectiveness of distance learning is becoming a critical necessity to protect students, taxpayers who subsidize higher education, and future employers looking for skilled graduates. But are the current gatekeepers of education quality, a complex system of institutionally funded accreditation agencies across the nation, up to the job?

The California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) will continue its examination of the policy implications of distance learning on the $ 1.5 billion Cal Grant program during a hearing on Thursday, April 26, 2012.

In his opening statement, CSAC Chair Barry Keene ties the quality of education directly to CSAC’s mandate to see that Cal Grants are used in a cost-effective manner.

“If the explosion of online learning, and the quality challenges it presents, is not our business, whose business is it? Is it the business only of those institutions to police themselves – to conduct their own oversight of themselves? We need to know what oversight exists…We do not ourselves seek to measure the quality of education delivered to students. But in line with our statutory charge, we need to ask about the reliability of those who do purport to measure that qua…………… continues on Sacramento Bee

Elearning! Magazine Nominated for Excellence by the Western Publications Association

Corona, CA (PRWEB) April 25, 2012

Elearning! Media Group, the exclusive industry trade brand serving the e-learning market, announced today the nomination of Elearning! Magazine for excellence by the Western Publications Association (WPA.) Elearning! Magazine is nominated for Best Computers, Software, Education & Programming Trade Magazine as well as Best Web Publication Blog for Trade & Consumer. These honors combine with eleven previous awards earned by Elearning! Magazine.

Computers, Software, Education & Programming/Trade

“We are excited that the Elearning! Blog, one of our newest media developments launched in 2010, has been nominated for excellence as Best Web Publication Blog, by the WPA. We are proud to see our magazine readership both online and offline, have embraced the community we’ve built around enterprise learning, ” reports Catherine Upton, Group Publisher and CEO, Elearning! Media Group.

By earning these distinctions, Elearning! magazine matches up with some very tough competition from Oracle Magazine, COTS Journal, EE Times, and others. Elearning! Blog is competing against Bryan on Scouting, Mother Jones/Tom Philpott: Food for Thought, Qmed MPMN Medtech Pulse Blog, and R…………… continues on Virtual-Strategy Magazine

Healthcare eLearning provider Care2Learn Upstairs Solutions will join 300 vendors and nearly 2,000 attendees this month in Columbus, Ohio at one of the largest gatherings of long-term care professionals in the country.

Tampa, FL (PRWEB) April 25, 2012

Care2Learn Upstairs Solutions, the leader in online continuing education and record-keeping for the post-acute care industry, will showcase its award-winning CE content and healthcare compliance training solution at the Ohio Health Care Association and Ohio Centers for Assisted Living 2012 Annual Convention & Exposition April 30–May 3 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

Following the recent merger of two healthcare eLearning leaders—Care2Learn and Upstairs Solutions—the newly combined company now offers the largest online healthcare CE library in the industry, with more than 500 fully accredited courses and over 300 inservices.

Care2Learn Upstairs Solutions will be located at Booth 114, where visitors can preview what the company has to offer—including an industry-leading healthcare Learning Management System featuring the latest eLearning technology plus enhanced record-keeping tools, full reporting, and live client support available seven days a week.

In addition to exclusive giveaways, visitors will receive a free online he…………… continues on Virtual-Strategy Magazine

MINNEAPOLIS

Capella Education saw a 23 percent decline in first quarter profits because of fa…………… continues on BusinessWeek

From the office of Senator Bob Huff:

Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) will host an Education Summit this Thursday on the campus of California State University, Fullerton. The summit, which will feature a number of guest speakers, will focus on the subject of Online Education.

The Education Summit will be held at the Titan Theatre in the Student Union at CSU Fullerton, located at 800 N. State College Blvd. The summit will run from 6 p.m. to 7:30 PM. Members of the public are encouraged to attend. 

“Numbers show that online education is growing in popularity and will better serve the needs and interests of all California students,” said Huff, who represents Walnut. “Online education is a tool that can be used to help greater numbers of students accomplish their educational goals, and this summit is one way of finding out what works and what doesn’t.”

A 2009 study produced by the Sloan Consortium, titled “Learning on Demand: Online Education in the United States,” reached the following conclusions:

1. In the fall of 2008, more than 4.6 million students took at least one online distance course, a 17% increase over the previous year.
2. More than a quarter of all higher education students now take at least one online course accredited by a legitimate co…………… continues on Patch.com

MINNEAPOLIS

Capella Education saw a 23 percent decline in first quarter profits because of fa…………… continues on BusinessWeek

From the office of Senator Bob Huff:

Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) will host an Education Summit this Thursday on the campus of California State University, Fullerton. The summit, which will feature a number of guest speakers, will focus on the subject of Online Education.

The Education Summit will be held at the Titan Theatre in the Student Union at CSU Fullerton, located at 800 N. State College Blvd. The summit will run from 6 p.m. to 7:30 PM. Members of the public are encouraged to attend. 

“Numbers show that online education is growing in popularity and will better serve the needs and interests of all California students,” said Huff, who represents Walnut. “Online education is a tool that can be used to help greater numbers of students accomplish their educational goals, and this summit is one way of finding out what works and what doesn’t.”

A 2009 study produced by the Sloan Consortium, titled “Learning on Demand: Online Education in the United States,” reached the following conclusions:

1. In the fall of 2008, more than 4.6 million students took at least one online distance course, a 17% increase over the previous year.
2. More than a quarter of all higher education students now take at least one online course accredited by a legitimate co…………… continues on Patch.com

From the office of Senator Bob Huff:

Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) will host an Education Summit this Thursday on the campus of California State University, Fullerton. The summit, which will feature a number of guest speakers, will focus on the subject of Online Education.

The Education Summit will be held at the Titan Theatre in the Student Union at CSU Fullerton, located at 800 N. State College Blvd. The summit will run from 6 p.m. to 7:30 PM. Members of the public are encouraged to attend. 

“Numbers show that online education is growing in popularity and will better serve the needs and interests of all California students,” said Huff. “Online education is a tool that can be used to help greater numbers of students accomplish their educational goals, and this summit is one way of finding out what works and what doesn’t.”

A 2009 study produced by the Sloan Consortium, titled “Learning on Demand: Online Education in the United States,” reached the following conclusions:

1. In the fall of 2008, more than 4.6 million students took at least one online distance course, a 17% increase over the previous year.
2. More than a quarter of all higher education students now take at least one online course accredited by a legitimate college or university. continues on Patch.com

The online education company said that it expects revenue to fall between 1 percent and 2 percent during the current quarter as enrollment declines between 6 percent and 7 percent. Shares fell 9 percent in afternoon trading.

For-profit colleges have come under intense scrutiny regarding graduation rates, especially for students that take out huge loans in hopes of landing higher paying jobs.

Last week, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Kay Hagan, D-N.C., introduced a bill to try to check advertising from such schools, which has particularly targeted Iraq and Afghanistan veterans for the benefits they receive under the new GI Bill.

New enrollments have been sinking at other for-profit schools as well, such as Apollo Group Inc.’s University of Phoenix and DeVry Inc. since last year. Several companies say that bad publicity about the industry has scared off students. Steps the companies have taken to improve quality and comply with new, stricter government rules have curbed enrollments, which drive profits in the sector.

Capella reported Tuesday that during the quarter ended March 31, it had net income of $ 11.3 million, or 82 cents per share, down from $ 14.6 million 90 cents per share, in the same period last year.

<…………… continues on CBS News