This guest post is contributed by Anna Miller, who writes on the topic of online degrees. She welcomes your comments here or at her email id: anna.miller009@gmail.com

They offer a host of advantages to people who would otherwise not be able to earn a degree; even so, online degrees are more than a few rungs lower in the professional world than their traditional counterparts. It’s not because they’re all inferior; rather, it’s the general perception that gives rise to this idea. Employers have been conditioned to think that people who have earned their degrees online are not as qualified as those who’ve spent four years in a traditional brick-and-mortar institute. And even though the trend is changing to reflect a more positive view of online degrees, there’s no harm in boosting your chance for suitable employment even though you’ve studied online:

• Choose a reputable college: This factor matters not just in the world of online degrees, but even in the realm of regular colleges – the name of your institution and its reputation matter immensely. An ordinary bachelor’s degree from MIT is much more valuable to employers than a doctorate that you’re earned at your local college. So when you choose to study online, choose a school that is well-known and recognized for its high standard of education.
• Ensure that the institute and the degree are accredited: Besides offering degrees that pose challenges for serious learners, online schools must rate high on credibility if they are to be taken seriously by employers. So ensure that both the school you choose and the degree you opt to study are accredited by the right agencies and that they’re recognized as legitimate in the professional world.
• Opt for a degree that is relevant to your chosen field of work: If it’s advancement at work you’re looking for, then choose a degree that will help you achieve the same instead of going back to school just for the sake of it. You may have a master’s or even doctoral degree, but if it’s not relevant to the field you work in, it’s not going to be of any use to you in the professional world.
• Augment it with practical experience: When your degree is augmented with a few years of practical experience, it gains in value and you’re likely to be rated higher by most employers. So make the most of your choice to earn a degree online and find an opportunity to work in the field you’re interested in simultaneously.
• Impress during your interview: It’s not necessary to stress in your resume that your degree is from an online school. Just list your qualifications and achievements and hope that you’re called for an interview where you can impress your potential employer with your confidence, gift of the gab, and professional acumen. Don’t lie about your degree, just don’t mention it at the outset before you’ve had a chance to impress your interviewer. When they realize your capabilities, they’re usually willing to overlook their prejudices towards online degrees.

Don’t regret your choice to learn online; instead, make the most of it and focus on securing a job of your choice.

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

How to Boost Your Online Degree’s Chances of Acceptance

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TeachersFirst Wiki Walkthrough: The path starts with the basic What in the world is a wiki? and continues with Who uses wikis? and What is the difference between a wiki and a blog? For teachers is important to know So how do I use wikis with my class(es)? or What benefits are there from student wiki participation? Some examples can be seen on the wiki walk through some sample wikis. We can even play with some wiki tools on the Which wiki tool will you use? section. A visit to the TeachersFirst wiki is also recommended. Here we can find more ideas on how to use a wiki as a learning tool.

TeachersFirst is offering two free meetings at OK2Ask Guided Wiki Walk, today and July 29 at either 3 pm or 6 pm Eastern time both days (with a little homework in between).

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

Wiki Walkthrough: Wikis FAQs answered by TeachersFirst (with examples)

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This is a guest post by Alyssa Baldocchi. Alyssa is a writer on online courses for Guide to Online Schools.

Diploma mills, sometimes called “degree mills,” are scams; they are businesses that pose as universities or other academic institutions, and they charge individuals for transcripts, diplomas, and other mediocre services. The degrees one can receive from this school will involve very little if any actual education and will be worthless in the real world. Unfortunately, however, diploma mills can often be difficult to distinguish from online schools, as they are designed to appear – at first glance – exactly the same.

To avoid diploma mills, start your search for online education with the online learning portals of well-known, accredited institutions. When looking elsewhere, be sure to confirm the institution’s validity on the following websites:

• This U.S. Department of Education offers a search engine for accredited institutions. They also confirm the soundness of the accrediting agencies.

• Diploma Mill News: This blog covers diploma mill news. In the page’s right-hand column there are helpful lists of “known diploma mills,” “articles” about diploma mills, “known accreditation mills,” and more.

• The U.S. Federal Trade Commission: This is a handy Consumer Alert by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission that lists common slogans of diploma mills.

1. Red flags for diploma mills include:
2. An extreme use of pop-up adds
3. Names that sound similar to well-known institutions
4. A listing of fake accrediting agencies or no accrediting agencies at all
5. No professor-student interaction
6. No Federal financial aid options
7. No alumni network
8. An extremely short degree program
9. Hidden fees
10. “Life credits,” or credits given to students for previous  experience
11. A P.O. Box for the address of the college, or a constantly changing address
12. No phone numbers listed to contact the school
13. The written materials presented by the school include many grammatical errors
14. No selectivity in admissions
15. Degree requirements are incredibly vague

If you are searching for online learning, then good luck! Be sure to follow the above advice in order not to be scammed by a diploma mill.

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

How to Spot and Avoid a Diploma Mill

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Students as Web 2.0 authors: Implications for assessment design and conduct by Kathleen Gray, Celia Thompson, Judithe Sheard, Rosemary Clerehan, Margaret Hamilton, Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, Vol. 26, 105-122 (2010). Abstract: Students now have at their disposal a range of Web 2.0 authoring forms such as audio and video podcasting, blogging, social bookmarking, social networking, virtual world activities and wiki writing. Many university educators are interested in enabling students to demonstrate their learning by creating content in these forms. However, the design and conduct of assessment for such student-created content is not straightforward. Based upon a review of current literature and examples in the public domain, this paper identifies key challenges for academic assessment that arise from students’ use of Web 2.0 authoring forms. We describe and analyse selected cases where academics have set assessable student Web 2.0 activities in a range of fields of study, noting especially the inter-relationship of learning objectives, assessment tasks and marking criteria. We make recommendations for practice, research and understanding to strengthen educational quality and academic integrity in the use of Web 2.0 authoring forms for assessable student learning.

From the conclusion: Advancing the assessment of student Web 2.0 authoring requires a degree of collegial consensus and a level of academic peer review that are not yet in place. Attempts at assessing student Web 2.0 authoring in higher education may founder if they merely replicate existing practices in new forms. Suggestions for using specific Web 2.0 authoring forms innovatively for assessment purposes are scattered too widely across refereed and ephemeral literature, and may be tied too closely to an individual educator’s style or experience, to be helpful to an academic community or institution trying to achieve system-wide improvements. A project currently in progress aims to address this situation by sharing academics’ approaches to educational effectiveness and principled conduct in this area of assessment. Continue reading this interesting article.

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

Assessment of Students Web 2.0 Authoring

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Ready or Not: Next-Gen Students’ Technology Expectations Surpass Students’ Today, Annual CDW-G Survey Finds. Campus IT Professionals Highlight Need for Infrastructure Upgrades to Support “Always On” Access. From the press release: CDW Government LLC (CDW-G), a leading source of Information Technology (IT) solutions to educators and government, today announced the results of its third annual 21st-Century Campus Report, a national survey of more than 1,000 college students, faculty and IT staff members. The 2010 survey found that many institutions have increased their campus technology offerings to meet the demands of college students today – and tomorrow. Campus IT professionals noted that back-end infrastructure must continue to evolve to support increasing demands for 21st-century learning tools.

Sixty-three percent of today’s college students said technology was important in their college selection criteria and, as an indication of the ever-increasing importance of technology among younger generations, 93 percent of current high school students said it is important, according to the recently released 21st-Century Classroom Report, which examined technology use at the high school level.

Anticipating future students’ technology needs, many campuses are successfully integrating new technology tools, including digital content (70 percent), virtual learning (61 percent) and online collaboration software (58 percent), CDW-G found. Three-quarters of college students reported that their institutions understand how they want to use technology as a learning tool.

College students are using social media – including Facebook, Twitter, blogs and wikis – as a learning tool. Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of students use social media to connect with classmates to study or work on class assignments. Even more high-school students (76 percent) use social media as an educational tool. Read the full press release here.

21st-Century Campus Report: Campus 2.0. Now in its third year, the CDW-G 21st-Century Campus Report examines the role of technology in higher education. CDW-G surveyed more than 1,000 college students, faculty and IT staff to understand their perceptions of campus technology.

While the 2008 report provided a baseline for campus technology use, and the 2009 study examined how student needs are changing, the 2010 report focuses on what colleges are getting right, and how they are incorporating new tools into interactive learning experiences.

21st-Century Classroom Report: Preparing Students for the Future or the Past? The 21st-century classroom leverages technology to engage and empower teachers and students. To understand how close we are to that goal, CDW-G surveyed more than 1,000 high school students, high school faculty and district IT staff members from around the country – representing rural, suburban and urban schools of all sizes – about how technology is used in their schools.

[To download these reports and the respective assessment tools a (free) registration is needed]

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

Two Interesting Reports from CDW-G: 21st-Century Campus Report and 21st-Century Classroom Report

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OECD Observer: A new digital divide?: According to European Union data, around 20% of jobs in Europe are either in the information and communication technology sector or require skills in that field. How prepared are today’s students for living and working in a digital world? The OECD’s New Millennium Learners project explores what drives students to use computers, and how computer use affects education performance. Its study, Are the New Millennium Learners Making the Grade? Technology Use and Educational Performance in PISA, shows that there is not a simple correlation between using computers and doing well in school. Rather, there is evidence of a second “digital divide” emerging–not between students who do and don’t have computers, but between those students who have the skills to benefit from computer use and those who don’t.

The study finds that students’ performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) surveys improves with the length of time students have used a computer. Although the data do not prove a causal connection between familiarity with computers and performance, they show that better-performing students are more familiar with computers. Interestingly, however, frequency of computer use at home makes more of a difference in performance on the PISA tests than frequency of computer use at school. Internet chatting, searching the web for information, even playing online games builds confidence in using computers, but more skills are needed to take full advantage of a technology-rich world. Continue reading the OECD Observer article A new digital divide?

Educational Research and Innovation: Are the New Millennium Learners Making the Grade?: Technology Use and Educational Performance in PISA 2006. From the Executive Summary: What is the relationship between technology use and educational performance in science? The OECD PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) provides a source of evidence for the analysis of this relationship. This report presents the main findings and policy implications of this analysis. This work was carried out under the umbrella of CERI ’s New Millennium Learners project. The work presented here updates the findings of a previous report (OECD, 2006) and seeks to go deeper into the determinants of technology use, both in frequency and in purpose, and into the impact on educational performance.

This report presents results based on PISA 2006 and continues the work initiated at the OECD in 2005 which presented an initial picture of the role of ICT in education based on PISA 2003 data (OECD, 2006). It continues the investigation of how equitable the access is to computers across countries, how familiar students are with ICT, how often and where they use computers, for how long they have been using them, how confident they feel, for which tasks they use them and, finally, what the relation is between these characteristics and students’ performance.

See also the report Assessing the Effects of ICT in Education: Indicators, Criteria and Benchmarks for International Comparisons: Despite the fact that education systems have been heavily investing in technology since the early 1980s, international indicators on technology uptake and use in education are missing. This book aims to provide a basis for the design of frameworks, the identification of indicators and existing data sources, as well as gaps in areas needing further research.
The contributions stem from an international expert meeting in April 2009 organised by the Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning, in co-operation with OECD (CERI), on benchmarking technology use and effects in education. The contributions clearly demonstrate the need to develop a consensus around approaches, indicators and methodologies.

The book is organised around four blocks: contexts of ICT impact assessment in education, state-of-the-art ICT impact assessment, conceptual frameworks and case studies.

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

To Have the Skills or Not: A New Digital Divide?

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This is a guest post by John Michals. John is from Selftest Engine which is an Online Exam Preparation Tool for IT Certifications such as A+ Certification.

The vast use of web along with modern technologies has allowed e-learning programs to gain lot of popularity these days. These programs have far-reaching broadband accessibility and provide strong communication to initiate an effective educational model worldwide. In simpler words, e-learning programs are premium educational tools that enhance the knowledge of students as well as individuals by using sophisticated technologies.

e-Learning programs are different from the traditional ones as they don’t require a physical classroom or face to face interactions with teachers or mentors. Everything is done virtually.

No doubt that still majority of the students all over the world gain education through traditional schools, still you will find a large student population opting for various e-learning programs.This is the age of information and technology and this is a major reason more preference is being given to e-learning programs. Due to the growing demand of online medias as a source of information, people are seeking online assistance to acquire customized relevant data. There are many benefits of enrolling in an e-learning program including:

Flexibility

You have the full liberty to develop your own time-table and exercise flexibility. You can work according to your needs. Since you are not time bound when you opt for these programs, thus you can adjust your time accordingly.

Comfort

e-Learning programs offer you a lot of comfort. You can easily learn by just sitting at home. You will just need a good internet connection and PC to work and you are ready for the e-learning program.

Accessibility of study materials

You will find plenty of study material and e-books on the web. You can easily access them and study them that too, free of cost. Not only you will be exposed to a wide range of study material but also you will be able to access the study material in various languages.

Online tests

Since tests are available online, you need not go to an examination center to give your exams. The convenience that comes into play when you opt for e-learning programs will impress you to a great extent.

Round the clock help

You will find availability of experts round-the-clock to help you out.

There are many benefits of online learning programs. Apart from these major benefits, there are also various added benefits of online learning programs.

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

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E-Learning 2010: Assessing the Agenda for Change: This 16-pages special report from Education Week Digital Directions team aims to highlight the progress made in the e-learning arena, as well as the administrative, funding, and policy barriers that some experts say are slowing the growth of this form of education. This report covers topics like e-learning delivery, sustainable funding, accreditation, the various models of virtual learning and e-curriculum development. You can also download the E-Learning 2010 report in PDF format.

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Last week I was in Barcelona participating on EduLearn 2010. The main objective of this conference is to promote and disseminate the experiences in new educational technologies and e-learning applied to Education in all fields and disciplines.

EduLearn 2010 was a gigantic conference with six parallel sessions. The conference main topics included some interesting issues like:

• e-Learning (Blended Learning, Mobile Learning , Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs), Managed Learning Environments (MLEs), Learning Management Systems (LMS), Online/Virtual Laboratories, eLearning Standards (SCORM), Online Assessment)
• Computer Supported Collaborative Work (Collaborative Virtual Environments (CVEs), Web 2.0 and Social Networking: Blogs, Wikis, etc, Web 3D Applications and Virtual Reality)
• Emerging Technologies in Education (Technology-Enhanced Learning, Web Classroom Applications, Mobile/Wireless Technologies)
• Educational Software & Serious Games (Computer Software on Education, Educational/Serious Games, Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, Animation and 3D Systems, Videos for Learning)
• E-content Management and Development (Knowledge Management, Digital Libraries and Repositories, ePortfolios)
• Experiences in Education (Educational Trends and Best Practice Contributions, Lifelong Learning, Curriculum Design and Development, Quality Assurance/Standards and Accreditation)
• Pedagogical Innovations in Education (Learning and Teaching Methodologies, Evaluation and Assessment of Student Learning, New Learning/Teaching Models, Language Learning Innovations, Collaborative and Problem-based Learning, Tutoring and Coaching)
• Experiences in Research (Academic Research Projects, Research Methodologies)
• International Projects (New Experiences for the International Cooperation, University Networks, Exchange Programmes and Erasmus Experiences)

My first note is that EduLearn 2010 was very well organized. Everything went smoothly: registration, documentation, information to the participants, coffee breaks, lunches and conference rooms were close to perfection. Even the six parallel sessions’ schedule was almost fulfilled.

There were very interesting talks and discussions. I was more interested on the Technology in Education issues. Here, the most relevant trends, as far I could see, were virtual learning (Second Life and virtual laboratories), collaborative learning, connectivism, evaluation and online assessment, and lectures recording. Lecture recording was one of the strongest topics (I suppose I must start thinking in recording my lectures).

On the downsides, I expected to hear more about the use of Twitter, and other social networks, in Education (try to search, for instance, “edulearn” on twitter and see the results). Maybe I have missed some important talks on these subjects. One of the things that impressed me more was the large number of presenters that read the slides or their notes instead of making a real presentation. I would prefer a little less focus on technology and a little more on the message delivery style. In fifteen minutes that wouldn’t be difficult, I guess.

In short, EduLearn 2010 was a rich, fruitful and very well organized conference. I am willing to participate in EduLearn 2011. See you there.

Recommended: Selected Science News and Resources

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

My View on EduLearn 2010

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This is a guest post by John Michals. John is from Selftest Engine which is an Online Exam Preparation Tool for IT Certifications such as A+ Certification.

Online learning has been around since quite some time now. Ever since the birth of the internet, the number of websites is growing day by day. Internet has proved to be a great platform for information sharing. Using internet as a mechanism to transfer knowledge is a natural development.

There are many contributing factors that have facilitated the high growth of e-learning businesses.

• First is the infrastructure of the internet. Web is one of the fastest and the largest growing trend on this planet. The high usage and penetration rate of internet are the main factors behind the exponential growth of e learning businesses. With internet users population doubling every five years, countries are trying their best to build a solid infrastructure so that they are able to catch up with a changing pace of technology.
• The advancement of hardware and software technology has made information sharing extremely convenient and effective. Also, it has reduced cost considerably. The sharing of audios and videos online has ensured that there is a high level of interactivity. This is one of the major reasons why more and more people are opting for e learning businesses.
• Globalization is another major reason behind soaring popularity of e-learning business. It has changed the work nature and lifestyle of mankind. Workforce is moving from one country to another. Also, the demand for more creative ideas and knowledge is there by companies since e learning business gives you access to plenty of information and allows you to work from anywhere, it is considered as the best.
• Workers worldwide need to continually upgrade their knowledge and skills. E learning business score high in these areas and ensures that you get access to net most of the times.
• You will find a gigantic range of e learning businesses thronging the net. If you want to earn some big money online then make sure that you have got the right kind of e learning business. You should research on various e learning businesses to find out what make them the best. Read articles, e books, journals to acquire more knowledge on this subject.
• When it comes to e learning businesses then you must adopt the policy of earn while you learn.

Due to wide reach and easy accessibility, e-learning businesses are here to stay. These have turned into highly popular and profitable ventures and you should seriously consider opting for these businesses.

This is a post from Learning Online Info, a blog with quick links to the world of e-learning and educational technology.

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