Florida education news: Success story, four-day school week, online education and more
Posted: February 13, 2012 at 2:00 am
OVERCOMING OBSTACLES: Pasco senior Mike Larry survives all that life throws at him — including the murder of his mother, his father and brothers being jailed — to raise his grades at an alternative center, make a football team and win a college scholarship. (Times photo, Stephen Coddington)
LET THEM ANSWER: The Pinellas Classroom Teachers Association complains that some teachers were left out of the district's annual climate survey.
FOUR-DAY WEEK: Pasco parents raise multiple concerns about a proposal to have students attend fewer, longer school days.
NO SUBSTITUTE: Online education isn't the same as a classroom experience with good teachers and classmates, Eckerd College president Donald Eastman writes in a column for the Times.
WHAT MATTERS MOST: Lake County teachers ask to be freed of extra duties so they can focus more on academics, the Orlando Sentinel reports.
UNFAIR: An Orange County principal says schools serving poor students won't get fair treatment in the state's merit pay system, WKMG-6 reports.
STRAIGHT TO STUDENTS: The Florida Department of Education studies the Lake Wales Charter Schools model of directing grant funds straight to schools, the Ledger reports.
COLLEGE CREDIT: A growing number of Miami-Dade and Broward high school students take dual enrollment college courses, the Miami Herald reports.
LIBRARY FINES: Palm Beach schools fail to collect about $2 million in lost book fees, the Palm Beach Post reports.
FOLLOW THE RULES: A finalist for Palm Beach superintendent withdraws after the School Board allows the interim superintendent, who was contractually barred from applying, to be considered for the job, the Palm Beach Post reports.
SUE YOU: Two ousted Brevard maintenance workers file a lawsuit saying their were wrongfully terminated, Florida Today reports.
PAY UP: Former Monroe superintendent Randy Acevedo, ousted and found guilty of public corruption, has yet to pay his criminal fines, the Keynoter reports.
Visit the Gradebook at noon for an interview with Monica Verra-Tirado, newly appointed director of the state's Bureau of Exceptional Education.
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Florida education news: Success story, four-day school week, online education and more
Teens need education in online privacy
Posted: at 2:00 am
OTTAWA — Many young people remain vulnerable to online predators because they are dangerously unaware that privacy on the Internet is an illusion, experts say.
And the Internet has opened so many avenues for young people that they've become blissfully ignorant it can also be used to harm them.
Teenage girls in particular tend to be easy prey because they see the Internet as part of their living space and consider — incorrectly — whatever they do online as private, said Shaheen Shariff, an associate professor of education at McGill University, who specializes in cyber-bullying and online social networking.
The reality is that the Internet has no boundaries — once an image leaves a home computer or cellphone, it becomes universally available.
What makes teenage girls who are frequently online even more vulnerable is the fact that many are at an age where they are experimenting with their sexuality, and it's easy to take advantage of them, experts add.
They say the case of a 20-year-old Ottawa man who used threats and extortion to lure young women into performing online sexual acts reinforces the need for more Internet-usage education.
"Young people today see the Internet as part of their lived space . . . and when they send photographs, or are seduced by people to do it online, they consider that to be private space," Shariff said.
"They do not understand that what they send is available to an infinite audience and the information can be permanently damaging to them."
Michael Hoechsmann, another McGill University expert in education, media and new technology, says the Internet is not to blame.
Young people have always experimented, he says, but what has changed is that the Internet offers an avenue for mass distribution, especially for images.
And since it has become such an integral part of the culture and personality for young people, abuses are inevitable. But malicious acts are seemingly becoming more the exception than the rule.
"Increasingly, young people are living virtual lives and using the Internet as a form of expression and meeting place. The fact that many young people carry cameras with them on a daily basis has made them broadcasters," Hoechsmann said.
"When people bring whatever element of their identity to that meeting place, you're going to have some that are going to express it in a hateful manner," he added.
Shariff says that while a number of incidents involving predators has created a "moral panic" in the media, making the Internet seem "bad" for girls, the contrary is true.
The Internet, she says, remains a positive instrument for young people — but the challenge is to identify those who are vulnerable, and put in measures to protect them.
She says the problem is that "the lines between public and private" are blurred for teen girls, and it is important to get them to understand the limits of online privacy.
It is a task that requires the combined effort of parents, teachers and everyone involved in teenagers' lives.
"The advent of the Internet has posed a whole new series of challenges to our society and the youth in particular," said Alex McKay, research co-ordinator of the Sex Information and Education Council of Canada.
"Clearly, there are some kids who are not aware of what can happen to their communications and images that are posted on the Internet. It is extremely important that schools as part of the education they provide, include information and skills that will help young people navigate the Internet safely."
© Copyright (c) Postmedia News
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Florida Department of Corrections Announces its Intent to Award Smart Horizons Career Online Education Contract to …
Posted: at 2:00 am
SHCOE to provide career-based high school diploma program to inmates in several Florida correctional facilities.
Pensacola, FL (PRWEB) February 09, 2012
The Florida Department of Corrections has formally announced its intent to award a contract to Smart Horizons Career Online Education (SHCOE) for the provision of online career training and high school education services to Florida inmates. According to Dr. Howard Liebman, CEO and Superintendent of SHCOE, the initial pilot program is scheduled to begin March 1 at the Madison Correctional Institution and either the Lowell Correctional Institution or the Hillsborough Correctional Institution.
Based in Pensacola, Florida, SHCOE is the world’s first AdvancED/SACS accredited online school district. SHCOE offers an instructional program that enables students returning to the education process to earn an 18-credit high school diploma while also completing coursework for a credentialed career certificate. SHCOE forms strategic alliances with school districts, post-secondary institutions, community organizations and non-profit foundations in an ongoing effort to reach an ever-widening circle of adult learners.
“We are excited that the Department of Corrections will use SHCOE’s online academic program to provide inmates with an innovative career-based online high school education,” Dr. Liebman said. “We have specifically developed a career online education and training model for the corrections industry that is flexible, cost-effective and readily adaptable to prison populations.”
According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice statistics, approximately 75 percent of America’s state prison inmates are high school dropouts. “Equally telling is the fact that only 20 percent of adults who have been in prison education programs are re-incarcerated as compared to a 49 percent rate of re-incarceration for adults who did not participate in those programs,” said Dr. Liebman. “SHCOE offers the State of Florida an ideal means of lowering recidivism rates, reducing costs, and preparing prison inmates for careers in various occupational areas.”
According to Florida Department of Corrections data, the state’s current prison population exceeds 100,000 individuals.
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Smart Horizons Career Online Education, founded in 2009 and located in Pensacola, Florida, is a private, AdvancED/SACS accredited online school district. AdvancED/SACS District accreditation signifies that SHCOE and all of its schools are fully accredited and that SHCOE is recognized across the nation as a quality school system. Smart Horizons Career Online Education offers 18–credit, career–based high school diploma programs that are designed to prepare students for entrance into the workplace. Career certificate offerings include Childcare Education, Office Management, Protection Services, Homeland Security, Healthcare (coming soon), Transportation Services, and Professional Skills.
For more information, visit our website at http://www.shcoe.org, call our office at 855–777–4265 or email us at info(at)smarthorizonsonline(dot)org
Contact: Dr. Howard Liebman, Smart Horizons Career Online Education, CEO & Superintendent, 305–962–6489 or hliebman(at)smarthorizonsonline(dot)org
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Howard Liebman
Smart Horizons Career Online Education
305-962-6489
Email Information
First Google hire leaving for online academy
Posted: at 2:00 am
The first person hired by Google's founders is leaving the Internet giant to devote himself to an innovative online education website called Khan Academy.
Google on Thursday confirmed that Craig Silverstein is departing the California company he helped Larry Page and Sergey Brin build into the world's most popular search engine.
"Craig's been with Google since the early days," Google said in an emailed response to an AFP inquiry.
"He was instrumental in the development of search and made numerous contributions to Google over the years.
"We wish him all the best at the Khan academy and know that he will do great things to help them promote education around the world," Google said.
Silverstein was "Googler number 3," joining graduate students Brin and Page about 14 years ago after they launched the service in a Stanford University dorm room.
The engineer planned to join Salman Khan at the nonprofit Khan Academy, which provides online video classes. Google and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are listed among the academy backers.
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Why I Chose Online Education: Bridget Baldwin
Posted: at 2:00 am
Bridget Baldwin is working toward her online bachelor's in business management from Champlain College.
College education takes all sorts of shapes these days, as students more often choose nontraditional routes to a degree. Many people of different ages, backgrounds, and career goals are now looking to online education programs. Here's why one person chose an online degree.
Bridget Baldwin has had quite the relationship with Champlain College, a small, private school in Vermont. She graduated high school, and then earned her associate degree in retailing and fashion merchandising at Champlain in 1992. After a few jobs, she circled back to her alma mater, where she's worked for the last dozen years, first in alumni affairs, and then in the Division of Continuing Professional Studies, where she is now the director of enrollment management.
About a decade ago, Baldwin began working toward a bachelor's degree from Champlain, by taking part-time evening classes when she could. Though Baldwin spent a lot of time at her job in the Division of Continuing Professional Studies talking adult learners into taking online classes, Baldwin admits that she was skeptical of the idea. She finally gave in and figured she ought to try the learning method she promotes, so, six years ago, Baldwin started taking online classes from Champlain and hasn't looked back. She says that if she hadn't switched from on-campus to online learning, she probably wouldn't have completed her degree.
Age: 39
Online program: Champlain College
Degree pursuing and graduation year: B.S. in business management, expected May 2012 (20 years to the day after earning her associate degree)
Why an online degree: "It really came down to time management around my family and quality time with them," says Baldwin. She was already spending more than 40 hours per week on campus for work, Baldwin says, and she didn't want to spend any more time away from her two children and husband. Instead of attending class on campus for three hours around dinner time, Baldwin says she now studies early in the morning before her kids awake, and late at night after they go to bed.
Degree impact: Baldwin has just been promoted in her job at Champlain College because of her nearing degree completion. She says, too, that she has more "drive" to learn than ever before, thanks to fighting negative thoughts. "As an adult learner, I think there can be a lot of things in life that tell you can't: not enough time, not enough money, not enough confidence," says Baldwin. "But you get that confidence as you learn." She adds that, "you start to become part of this community of adult learners that is really engaging and motivating."
Biggest challenge of earning an online degree: Baldwin, who spent a decade earning her degree (the first four years on campus, and the last six online), cites time as her most daunting struggle. "That's a big commitment, not just by me, but by my family."
Advice for future online students: "Be open to online [education]," says Baldwin. "You can do it. There are ways to manage everything in life and make that commitment to yourself."
Searching for an online program? Get our complete rankings of Top Online Education Programs.
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Why I Chose Online Education: Bridget Baldwin
Weight loss Vlog – Week 1 – Intro to Diet Plan
Posted: February 12, 2012 at 8:53 pm
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June-Marie Raw Food and Fitness Health woods 013 – Video
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