District CIO

This report, "The Broadband Imperative," commissioned by SETDA, recommends that all schools will need external internet connections of 100 Mbps per 1,000 students and staff by 2014-2015 and of 1 Gbps per 1,000 students and staff by 2017-2018.

Higher education is the next bubble. Facebook will replace classroom instruction. Textbooks will go away, and some colleges will, too. In other words, everything is going to change. Or, at least, that's the talk we in education and technology regularly hear these days. It sounds exciting—and, to some, scary. Is all the talk just hype? Or are we really starting to see the beginnings of major change?

Promising Practices is a series of six white papers written for the International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL). Topics are: Blended learning; using online learning for credit recovery and at-risk students; socialization in online learning; operations and management; policy and funding; and a parents' guide to online learning.

The American Association of School Librarians added to its series of Learning4Life publications with the release of “Library Spaces for 21st-Century Learners: A Planning Guide for Creating New School Library Concepts.” Written by Margaret (Peg) Sullivan, the book focuses on planning contemporary school library spaces with user-based design strategies.

Boston Public Schools Superintendent Carol R. Johnson announced the appointment of Roger Bourgeois as Assistant Superintendent for Technical/Vocational Network. Bourgeois, who currently serves as Superintendent of Essex Agricultural and Technical High School in Hathorne, will direct the district’s efforts to expand and enhance technical and vocational opportunities.

McGraw-Hill Education today announced the appointment of Stephen Laster as the company's chief digital officer. Laster will lead the company's digital initiatives, including creating compelling digital learning experiences for students and inspiring creative innovation across all aspects of the organization.

There is a widespread belief among teachers that students’ constant use of digital technology is hampering their attention spans and ability to persevere in the face of challenging tasks, according to two surveys of teachers being released on Thursday.

Assess4ed.net is a free resource open to all designed to help address the challenges and leverage the opportunities of next-generation assessment systems powered by technology to ensure readiness for next-generation computer-based assessments, improve curriculum and instruction aimed at college and career readiness, and leverage technology to achieve better results and cost-savings.

The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium offers a technology planning framework for member states preparing to implement the assessment system in the 2014-2015 school year. The framework provides minimum hardware specifications and basic bandwidth calculations that will allow schools and districts to evaluate which of their existing devices will support the administration of next-generation assessments.

School districts will now be able to use lottery funds to buy technology devices and wire schools thanks to a bill that cleared the House Education Committee Tuesday.