Academic integrity, copyright in K-12 schools

 569 school library practitioners in 85 countries participated in a study to investigate the current landscape of academic integrity and copyright literacy policies and instruction in K–12 schools. The researchers identified challenges and opportunities in this crucial domain, underscoring the urgent need for a comprehensive approach to teaching academic integrity and copyright literacy regardless of the specific curriculum followed by each school. The study found that many K-12 schools lack policies on academic integrity and copyright, with variability in teaching practices, highlighting the need for improved education and collaboration between school library professionals and teachers. 

Hossain, Z., Celik, O., & Hertel, C. (2024).  Academic integrity and copyright literacy policy and instruction in k-12 schools: a global study from the perspective of school library professionals. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 4, article no. 4.

https://edintegrity.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1007/s40979-024-00150-x

2023 conditions of US education report

This federal report  draws on data from multiple studies to offer a look at current trends in K-12 education, including the ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic on students, educators and schools. The trends highlighted include data showing that more than two-thirds of schools reported an increase in 2022 of students seeking mental health support, while slightly more than half of schools reported being capable of providing such support.

Conditiions of Education 2023. (2023). National Center for Education Statistics. 

https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2023144#:~:text=The%20Condition%20of%20Education%202023,the%20public%20monitor%20educational%20progress

Benefits of Technology in Education

A study by Walden University found that the more that K–12 teachers use technology, the more they recognize and value its strong positive effects on student learning and engagement and its connection to 21st century skills. This report is addressed to teachers, school administrators, higher education institutions and policymakers at the local, state and national levels. The report includes insights from school administrators and teachers and excerpts from extensive interviews with educational experts.

Walden University (2010). The Educators, technology and 21st century skills: Dispelling five myths – A study on the connection between K–12 technology use and 21st century skills. Bethesda, MD: Grunwald Associates LLC. http://grunwald.com/pdfs/Educators_Technology_21stCentury-Skills_GRUNWALD-WALDEN_Report.pdf

OpenEd Assesses 'Most Effective' Online Learning Resources

Animated flashcards and sub-two-minute videos turn out to be the most effective online resources for K-12 against all other common options. That's the finding determined by OpenEd, which recently studied the data generated from the results of assessments given to students who used its free online resources for educational purposes. The company examined the average "effectiveness" of its online instructional resources. That was defined by how well students performed on an assessment covering the same subject or standard category after viewing the resource.

Schaffhauser, D. (2015, September 23). OpenEd Assesses 'Most Effective' Online Learning Resources. The Journal. Retrieved from https://thejournal.com/articles/2015/09/23/opened-assesses-most-effective-online-learning-resources.aspx


Paper cited can be accessed at https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/9002954/ResourceEffectiveness.pdf

Report Cracking the Competency Code

The report sets a policy framework for advancing performance-based learning and builds on recommendations made during the 2011 Competency-Based Learning Summit convened by iNACOL and CCSSO earlier this year. The report recommends that states begin to transform policies from "rigid compliance" to "enabling policies," by offering seat-time waivers or "credit flex" policies that allow for the flexibility to offer competency-based learning in K-12. The policy development is multi-stage -- building towards a "comprehensive policy redesign" that would require school districts to offer competency-based credits; provide proper training and information systems; establish quality-control; support individual growth models for accountability; and align higher education with K-12 competency-based efforts.
Patrick and Sturgis, International Association for K-12 Online Learning, 2011
http://www.inacol.org/research/docs/iNACOL_CrackingCode_full_report.pdf

Online Schools turn to Hybrid Instruction

In just one decade, virtual learning has exploded, with two massive statewide full-time virtual schools in Florida and North Carolina, and more on the way. As online learning is taking off, new research is finding that it may not be the most effective way to teach children, and virtual companies have begun to see that a purely virtual approach has its limits. A key report put out by the U.S. Department of Education in September 2010 demonstrated that a blend of face-to-face instruction and online learning produced the greatest academic gains. Now, not only are traditional schools looking for more online options, but virtual schools in turn are adding bits of brick and mortar to their offerings. Once purely virtual schools—sometimes referred to as 'clicks'—are adding bricks in a variety of ways, Horn says. Some have added check-in centers where students can come by once a week to meet with peers and teachers. Others are moving to a type of hybrid model, with some online instruction with virtual teachers coupled with mentors and in-person teachers who rotate through a building, pulling students out for small group instruction, remediation, or acceleration.
BRIGID SCHULTE, Harvard Education Letter, 2011
http://www.hepg.org/hel/article/506

Web 2.0 Usage Increasing in K-12 Schools report

The use of Web 2.0 is increasing in K-12 schools. But, according to a new report, more widespread adoption is being hampered at least in part by teachers' lack of knowledge of how to use the technologies.

For the report, researchers surveyed 388 K-12 technology directors, leaders, and staffers across the country in an effort to gauge attitudes toward and adoption of social and collaborative Web 2.0 technologies, including student-generated content, teacher-generated content, social networking in an educational context, gaming, virtual learning environments, digital media, and communications technologies.

What the researchers found was that acceptance of Web 2.0 has increased since 2009--the first year of the survey--but that there are still some barriers to adoption, including some lingering perceptions of student "safety" risks, lack of technical support (including technical personnel), and lack of knowledge on the part of teachers of the effective use of Web 2.0 technologies. This last was, according to the researchers, "the most frequently cited human-related barrier to adoption."

On the positive side, more schools are reporting that significant portions of their teaching staff are creating their own content online. For the latest survey, 76 percent of districts reported that at least a quarter of all teachers create content online. This compared with 64 percent from the 2009 survey. Also up was the use of student-generated content by teachers, with 45 percent reporting that at least 25 percent of teachers use student-generated online work, compared with 32 percent in 2009.

Interactive Educational Systems Design on behalf of ed tech developers Atomic Learning, Lightspeed Systems, and netTrekker, 2011, http://www.digitaldistrictsurvey.com/pages/digital-districts