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Thursday, October 25, 2012

San Jose State U. Says Replacing Live Lectures With Videos Increased Test Scores

Forwarded from President Kimbrough...

San Jose State U. Says Replacing Live Lectures With Videos Increased Test Scores

October 17, 2012, 2:01 pm


In an effort to raise student performance in a difficult course, San Jose State University has turned to a “flipped classroom” format, requiring students to watch lecture videos produced by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and using class time for discussion. And initial data show the method is leading to higher test scores, university officials announced this week.

The class, “Engineering Electronics and Circuits,” has been “one of the most-hated courses in the college,” said David W. Parent, a professor and undergraduate coordinator in the electrical-engineering department. The course has a historically low passing rate—40 percent of students in the class received a C or lower last semester—and change was needed, said Khosrow Ghadiri, an adjunct professor who teaches the flipped-classroom version.

“We were concerned about this class,” Mr. Ghadiri said. “We wanted to revamp it in a fashion that would enable the students to pass this course and continue with their education because this is a gateway course required to continue in the major.”

Over the summer, four San Jose State professors went to MIT to work with its edX team and adjust the course to the campus’s needs. edX is a partnership of MIT, Harvard, Berkeley, and the University of Texas at Austin to offer massive open online courses, or MOOC’s.

The 85 students in the flipped course at San Jose State watched the edX lecture videos at home and attended class twice a week to practice what they had learned and ask questions. Two other sections of students took a traditional version of the course.

The midterm-examination scores of students in the flipped section were higher than those in the traditional sections, said Mr. Ghadiri. Although the midterm questions were more difficult for the flipped students, their median score was 10 to 11 points higher.

The final reckoning of whether the students have learned better through the flipped classroom will come in the class’s last week. Professors plan to give the same final exam to all of the sections. Researchers will then control the data for grade-point average and prerequisite knowledge to “prove to ourselves and fellow faculty that we didn’t stuff the classroom with dead ringers,” Mr. Parent said.

The university will also survey students’ views of their experience in the alternative format before deciding whether to develop more flipped-classroom courses. “I think, in a way, that’s more important,” said Ping Hsu, interim dean of engineering. “If students feel this is a better way to learn, then that says a lot, perhaps more than exam scores.”

Some students have complained about the fast pace of the flipped course and the demands of more-frequent quizzes, Mr. Ghadiri said.

Adam T. Allen, a senior majoring in industrial and systems engineering, was curious about the flipped-classroom method but nervous about signing up for the course because his friends had had to retake it. He likes the format but said the pace could “slow down a bit” to align with the other sections. “We do have to learn more, but I don’t mind too much,” he said.

“The flipped classroom receives a lot of resistance upfront,” Mr. Parent said. “What the students didn’t say, but were effectively saying, was that they had to learn at the rate which the classroom was going rather than letting it slide and cramming at the last moment.”

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Gates Foundation Gives $5.4-Million for Gates Foundation Gives $5.4-Million for

 

Gates Foundation Gives $5.4-Million for College Readiness and Completion

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on Wednesday announced that it had awarded $5.4-million in new grants to support 13 models of personalized technologies for improving college readiness and completion. Six grants will support postsecondary-degree programs. The winners include the University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents, the start-up company Altius Education, and the University of Washington. Washington will work with Coursera, a high-profile provider of online courses known as MOOC’s, to build a program for students who have earned some college credits but need to complete their degrees online, according to a news release.

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Innovation in Education Opportunities for Strategic Improvement in a Changing System



 
Innovation in Education 2012
 
Register now
 
Who and why attend
 
Programme
 
Dear colleague,
 
The Guardian invites you to join us at our national schools summit for a day of solution-based learning, debate and discussion. The event is designed for school senior leadership teams and addresses the opportunities for strategic improvement in a changing system. 
 
In the context of educational reform, wide-ranging policy shifts and new accountability structures we understand the necessity for schools to share innovation and best practice to help them improve. Therefore the  programme has been developed to be a mix of high level expert speaker led sessions and peer discussion groups.  Speakers include:
  • Barbara Bergström, founder and chairman of the board of directors, Internationella Engelska Skolan (IES)
  • Dr Hilary Emery, chief executive officer, National Children’s Bureau
  • Peter Hyman , head teacher, School 21
  • Professor Robert Slavin, Institute for Effective Education, University of York and director of the Center for Research and Reform in Education at Johns Hopkins University
  • Christine Gilbert, visiting professor, Institute of Education and managing director, CGA 
  • Joe Hallgarten, director of education, RSA
  • Toby Young, lead proposer, co-founder and chair of governors, West London Free School
The event covers a range of topics including a debate on curriculum reform, strategies to maintain staff morale and examining what educators can do to help close the inequality gap. 
 
Booking your place is quick and simple
There are still places available at this year's Innovation in Education, to book yours please click here.
 
We hope you can join us for what promises to be a challenging, inspirational and informative day. 
 
Kind regards,
 
Gaby Disandolo
Event production manager
 
Innovation in Education

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CUR Dialogues 2013


 

 

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Thursday, February 21, 2013 4:00 PM  -  Saturday, February 23, 2013 12:00 PM
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WHERE
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14th & K Street N.W., Washington, District of Columbia 20005 USA
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Friday, February 8, 2013
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DILLARD Today: A Monthly E-Newsletter From Dillard University - October 2012



 

Dillard Today Logo PNG
A Monthly E-Newsletter From Dillard University

October 2012
________________ 
 
Quick Links
 
Alumni Links
 
Prospective Students!
OPEN HOUSE

Nov. 10 
10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Tours, Food and Fun 
Meet Students & Faculty 
________________ 
 
Calendar of Events

10/27 -- QuickBooks Workshop,
PSB Room 389, 1-3 p.m.

10/30 -- Bleu Pride Rising Tour Kickoff, Georges Auditorium, 6 p.m.

10/31 -- Message In the Middle w/ Rev. Olu Brown, Lawless Chapel, 12-1 p.m.

11/3 -- Tom Dent Literary Festival,
PSB Room 115, All Day

11/9-11/18 -- DU Theatre Presents "Two Trains Running," Cook Theatre

11/10 -- Fall Open House, PSB,
10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

11/10 -- Homecoming Parade, Gentilly Community, 10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

11/10 -- National Alumni Association Luncheon, Kearny West, 12:30 p.m.

11/10 -- National Alumni Association Mtg., Georges Auditorium, 4:30 p.m.

11/10 -- Alumni/Pre-Alumni Tailgate, Kabacoff Plaza, 1-6 p.m.

11/10 -- Pan-Hellenic Probate Show, Dent Hall, 8 p.m.

11/10 -- QuickBooks Workshop,
PSB Room 389, 1-3 p.m.

11/11 -- Founders' Day Convocation, Lawless Chapel, 3:30 p.m.

11/11 -- Nursing Scholarship Gala: Celebrating 70 Years, PSB, 5 p.m.

11/14 -- Message In the Middle w/ Melech Thomas, Lawless, 12-1 p.m.

11/16 -- Coronation Ball, Dent Hall,
8 p.m.

11/17 -- Homecoming Basketball Games, Dent Hall

11/28 -- Ortique Lecture on Law and Society w/ Michelle Alexander, Georges Auditorium, 7-10 p.m.

Click here for more events.
________________
 
 

________________
 
Join Us Online
 
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Visit Our Social Media Page ________________
 
Contact Us
 
Dillard Today
2601 Gentilly Boulevard
New Orleans, LA 70122
dillardtoday@dillard.edu
________________
 
 
Welcome to the October 2012 edition of the Dillard Today E-Newsletter. Homecoming is just around the corner! That means Founders' Day, Coronation Ball, and a slew of other great Dillard traditions will soon be here. This month, we give you all the information on these events and more. We hope you can make it out to campus to take part in the festivities! Also, we have our Fall Open House on Saturday, Nov. 10, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This is an important recruitment event to help boost enrollment and usher in the next generation of Dillard students. If you know someone who could benefit from a Dillard education, encourage them to come learn what we're all about. It could change their life forever. Ex fide fortis!
Sincerely,
Mona Duffel Jones
Senior Director, University Communications
 
Founders' Day and Homecoming 2012
 
On Sunday, Nov. 11, Dillard will host its annual Founders' Day Convocation at 3:30 p.m. in Lawless Memorial Chapel. Dr. Cheryl Taylor, '77, (pictured) interim dean of Southern University and A&M College School of Nursing, will give the keynote address. This year's convocation will celebrate the 70th anniversary of Dillard's School of Nursing.

Founders' Day is one of the highlights in an exciting slate of Homecoming Week events. On Saturday, Nov. 10, Dillard's Homecoming Parade will roll through the Gentilly community from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. That afternoon, from 1-6 p.m., there will be an Alumni & Pre-Alumni Tailgate in Kabacoff Plaza on Dillard's campus (click here for tailgate rules). The following Saturday, Nov. 17, the Dillard Bleu Devils men's and women's basketball teams will host their homecoming doubleheader in Dent Hall Gymnasium. Those games will also be preceded by a tailgate in Kabacoff Plaza from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. We hope you'll join us for Founders' Day and more Homecoming Week festivities!
 
Nursing Scholarship Gala: Sunday, Nov. 11

On Sunday, Nov. 11 at 5 p.m., following the Founders' Day Convocation, Dillard's School of Nursing will host a Scholarship Gala to celebrate its 70th anniversary. The gala, which will be held in the Professional Schools and Sciences Building, will feature a wine reception, dinner, live music from pianist Lucian Zidaru, and an address from Dr. Mackie Harper Norris, '60.

Throughout 2012, Dillard has celebrated the Year of the Nurse. There have been roundtables and panel discussions to enrich the education of today's nursing students, and commemorative banners have been hung across campus and on Gentilly Boulevard. Founded in 1942, Dillard's program was the first accredited nursing school in the state of Louisiana. To learn more about the history of the program, please click here. To purchase gala tickets ($70), please visit the cashier's office on the first floor of Rosenwald Hall during business hours (M-F, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) or contact Travis Chase at (504) 816-4713 or tchase@dillard.edu. Thank you for supporting Dillard's School of Nursing!
 
Bleu Pride Rising Tour Kicks Off Oct. 30

New Orleans Alumni! You're invited to meet Walter M. Kimbrough, the seventh president of Dillard University, at the kickoff of his nationwide Bleu Pride Rising Tour. Dr. Kimbrough is heading out across the country to meet with local alumni chapters. Now you can be among the first to learn about his vision for Fair Dillard. The Bleu Pride Rising Kickoff will be held on Oct. 30 at 6 p.m. in the Georges Auditorium in the PSB. To RSVP, contact Kathy Ancar at (504) 816-4304 or kancar@dillard.edu, or Brenda Reynolds at (504) 816-4423 or breynolds@dillard.edu.

National Alumni! Stay tuned for more information about the Bleu Pride Rising tour. It may be coming to your town soon!

Show your spirit. Bleu pride is rising!
 
DU Hosts Cultural Exchange w/ Matsue, Japan

Dillard University hosted a cultural exchange ceremony between New Orleans and its Japanese sister city, Matsue, on Oct. 19. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu welcomed to campus a group of Japanese delegates representing higher education and commerce. The delegates received a gift of okra seeds, while bestowing fig trees to New Orleans.

Those trees will be nurtured in Dillard's greenhouse by Dillard undergrads and students from nearby Langston Hughes Academy (LHA) as part of the From Seed To Table program, which brings LHA students to Dillard to garden, learn about nutrition, and work with DU students in a mentoring program.

To learn more about the cultural exchange with Matsue, and to view photos from the event, please
click here.
 
 
Hollywood Filmmakers Speak at Dillard
A pair of renowned Hollywood filmmakers spoke at Dillard this month. Kerwin DeVonish, who has served as Spike Lee's cinematographer on films such as the recent "Red Hook Summer" and the forthcoming Michael Jackson documentary "Bad 25," spoke on Oct. 5. Sharon Seymour, who has served as production designer on films such as Ben Affleck's "Argo" and George Clooney's "The Ides of March,"spoke on Oct. 10. Both sessions were free and held in the Georges Auditorium in the PSB.
 
Each session included three parts: an interview conducted by Keith Alan Morris, assistant professor of mass communication at Dillard; clips from the artists' films and accompanying discussion; and an audience Q&A. Both DeVonish and Seymour have recently worked on Spike Lee's remake of the 2003 Korean film "Oldboy," which has been shooting locally and is scheduled for release in 2013. To learn more about the lectures, and film at Dillard, click here.
 
 
Legal Eagles: Alumni Stewart, Jones Honored
Judge Carl E. Stewart, '71, became the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which hears appeals from federal courts in Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi, on Oct. 1. Stewart, a resident of Shreveport, is the second African-American appointed to the Fifth Circuit and the first to serve as Chief Judge. President William Clinton appointed him as U.S. Circuit Judge in 1994. As Chief Judge of the Circuit, Stewart will sit on the Judicial Conference of the United States, which establishes policies for federal courts nationwide. Stewart gave the Ortique Lecture on Law and Society at Dillard's Founders' Day Convocation in 2011.
 
Michael D. Jones, '82, a partner in the D.C. office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP and a member of Dillard's board of trustees, has been officially installed as co-chair of the board of trustees for the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. As co-chair with Jane C. Sherburne, he will lead an influential board of over 200 members. His term officially began on Sept. 1 and a welcome reception was held in his honor on Sept. 18. Jones serves as co-chair of the university's Advantage Dillard! capital campaign.
 



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