The increasing shift to online learning and collaboration has created new concerns around student privacy. Keeping data as secure in the cloud as it would be in a locked file cabinet requires communication, diligence and strong policies. “Privacy is not a new issue but it certainly has risen to the top in part because so […]
A truancy reduction bill sponsored by Sen. Aaron Ford, D-Las Vegas, became law on Jan. 1, and could keep kids from getting behind the wheel. When a student between 14 and 18 years old applies for a driver's license, they must now submit a letter from school officials stating that they have met attendance requirements. […]
The New Lenox School District 122 serves 5,400 pre-K through grade 8 students in 12 schools, and is located about 30 miles outside Chicago. The district has been noted for its high levels of achievement, with an average of 85 percent of students meeting or exceeding the Illinois Learning Standards in each of the last […]
Computing devices embedded in jewelry and glasses. Microchips tattooed into skin and sewn into clothing. In one form or another, devices that gather data without any help from the user will slowly infiltrate districts in 2015. In fact, the number of people with a wearable computing device will more than triple this year, according to […]
Better ways to use data. High-tech professional development. Differentiated instruction. Some exciting advancements are on the horizon for classrooms in 2015. While they sound technical, the biggest changes aren't going to be driven by an app, a computer program or a new kind of tabletÁ'they will come from new theories about how to engage both […]
Funding cuts since the recession have drained the accounts of rural districts, which cannot rely on a resurgence in property tax revenues as heavily as urban school systems can. Some 9.7 million students are enrolled in rural districts, representing more than 20 percent of all U.S. public school students. And rural enrollment continues to rise, […]