Oser Communications Group

FETC18.Jan24

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EdTech Show Daily 1 1 Wednesday, January 24, 2018 Coming Soon: W3C Standards for Virtual Reality on the Web By Dominique Hazael-Massieux, W3C Community Management Virtual Reality (VR) is the next frontier for immersive entertainment experiences that let you physically interact with con- tent on the web. As witnessed by the commercial push during this past year's holiday shopping season, the entertain- ment industry has been an early adopter of VR, with proprietary solutions offered by a number of leading brands. As the Virtual Reality ecosystem expands, so too does the demand for VR to leverage standard web technologies such as HTML5, and to provide common ways to define, build and interact with 3D content on different devices. In the same way we advanced web standards for the mobile web and web and television, the World Wide Consortium (W3C) – the global stan- dards body for web technologies – con- tinues work to enable Virtual Reality solutions to use the Open Web Platform as a full-fledged development environ- ment. With standards, there will be inter- operability to avoid fragmentation and duplicated effort, which in turn lowers development costs. In order for VR technology to be fur- ther defined and integrated into the Open Web Platform, the W3C held a 2017 workshop dedicated to bringing together WebVR stakeholders to identify unex- ploited opportunities as well as technical gaps in WebVR authoring, and will plan a broad AR workshop in 2018. We will consider the path for formal standardiza- tion based on Community Group incuba- tion after our December workshop. For more information about W3C's WebVR activities, email w3t-pr@w3.org. Lux by Bracketron: Breaking the Phone Mount Mold Forever Today's smartphones have more and more applications for daily use such as GPS, music and Bluetooth hands-free calling. Smartphone holders have become a must-have accessory for peo- ple to be able to use their phones safely in their vehicles. In some states, it's illegal to hold your phone while you're driving. Most manufacturers of smartphone mounts have solely focused on function and features to sell their products in the market. The Lux line of smartphone holders not only works great, but looks great. It complements the sleek design of smartphones and car interiors alike. Lux mounts are made with high quality zinc alloy materials, soft touch rubber accents with smartly designed accessories to complete the experience of using a Lux mount in your car or home. All mounts come with a dash and vent option to fit anyone's needs. Lux phone holders work with almost all smart- phones, including popular models like iPhone X, 8, Samsung Galaxy S8, Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and Google Pixel 2. Keep your Lux, even when you're ready to upgrade your phone, making it truly universal. For more information, visit www.bracke tron.com or call 952.746.7775. Classroom Collaboration with ELMO's Huddle Space Technology is more present in the class- room than ever before. K-12 schools across the country are moving towards 1:1 learning models with all kinds of hands-on learning devices being used, many of which are brought by students from home. Schools are then tasked with adapting to the evolution of education technology without worrying about stretching their budgets. ELMO's Huddle Space Collaboration Hub was designed with these ever-changing technology needs in mind. The Huddle Space is an education- al teamwork tool that fosters a collabora- tive classroom environment, provides new learning opportunities and ensures that every student has the chance to par- ticipate and share his or her ideas. The Huddle Space is a simple 8 HDMI input connection source that allows users to switch seamlessly between plugged-in devices and share their screens with the rest of the group, so students can effortlessly work together on projects and group discussions. Switching from one device to another is as simple as pressing a button – no plug- ging and unplugging is necessary. Huddle Space is perfect for schools with tight budgets, stressed AV departments and limited WiFi bandwidth. Huddle Space doesn't require any software installation or internet connection, and it connects to any HDMI compatible device – iPad, Chromebook, Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android, even your favorite ELMO Document Camera – making it the perfect solution for 1:1 and BYOD classrooms. Capture lessons through Huddle Space's built in conferencing microphone and recording capabili- ties. Huddle Space will record audio and video input and create a file that can be played back as a video at any time. This gives teachers additional insight into how the students are working together and the ability to review the work process later. Teachers can even record lessons for the students to review before exams and assignments. In 2017, ELMO launched the Pilot School Program as a way of offering K-12 schools across the country the chance to experience the Huddle Space Collaboration Hub and discover its impact on classroom learning. Thirty schools were selected to receive a free 30 day trial of ELMO's Huddle Space G2 and utilize it in the classroom however they want. ELMO is excited to announce that, as an exclusive to FETC, it will be open- ing up applications for the 2018 Pilot School Program. Like last year's pro- gram, Pilot Schools will be given a free 30 day trial of the Huddle Space. At the conclusion of the program, those schools will be eli- gible to purchase their trial unit for a highly discounted price as well as discounted pricing on ELMO's entire product line. To see the Huddle Space Collaboration Hub in action, stop by booth #723. Learn more at www.elmousa.com or by calling 516.401.1400. Using Innovative Assessment to Drive Multimetric Accountability By Nikki Eatchel, Chief Assessment Officer, Scantron Corporation The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015 provides exceptional opportuni- ties to develop a coherent, unified and innovative assessment approach. By aligning the goals of formative, interim and summative tests, states and districts can reduce testing while increasing the utility of the results. But how can educational leaders avoid the trap of continuing to walk the safe, familiar path? By taking advantage of ESSA's funding provisions for innova- tive testing. Pilot programs allow states, districts and schools to experiment with very different ways of measuring student proficiency. One example is ESSA's acceptance of growth as a valid measure. Educators are no longer restricted to a single, on- grade snapshot of student performance. Instead, they can look at a student's growth over the course of the year. Even if he or she is not yet on grade, how much closer did the student get? Being able to show consistent progress toward aggressive achievement gap clo- sure is an effective way to more indi- vidually measure school performance – and to celebrate student and school suc- cesses. For on-grade proficiency (still a valid measure that should be part of innovative programs), might a segment- ed, or cumulative approach be effective? For example, multiple tests can be creat- ed for administration through- out the year that evaluate profi- ciency of what the student has been taught by that point in time based on curriculum pacing guides (versus creating an envi- ronment that encourages teach- ing to the test). Individual assessment results can then build toward an end-of- year score. This turns the traditional approach on its head by using multiple data points to measure student profi- ciency in alignment with their exposure to the curriculum. This approach could provide more accurate and well-rounded depictions of student proficiency as well as providing valuable feedback to edu- cators throughout the school year to drive educational decisions – while there is still time to change course if necessary. And what happens when we then enable classroom teachers to create formative tests that provide immediate validation or course correction as they drive towards these incremen- tal tests? An innovative approach could allow teachers flexibility to personalize instruction for students performing differently and yet maintain their attention on the grade-level pacing and sequencing guides. Combine this approach with growth measures where teachers are no longer penalized for inheriting below- grade students, and you can begin to see the possibilities. Perhaps such a system could change the educational assess- ment culture away from a punitive envi- ronment and toward one in which valu- able assessment data can be used to assist our educators and to inspire our students to truly meet their full poten- tial. For more information, go to www .scantron.com, call 858.349.9488 or stop by booth #2352.

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