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When One Teaches, Two Learn: Meet Codecademy’s Community

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When One Teaches, Two Learn: Meet Codecademy’s Community

Codecademy believes that “When one teaches, two learn,” a quote attributed to Robert Heinlein. To turn that belief into a reality for people learning to code, Codecademy hosts an online community with tens of thousands of members.

Across the globe, people meet and connect on their learning journeys, helping to motivate one another, celebrate accomplishments, and debug code. The forums and our Facebook group are open to all, and we host an exclusive community for Pro members.

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But here’s the really amazing part—

Contrary to what many believe, a healthy peer-to-peer community always has a system of governance. Codecademy’s community certainly does. Our moderators are current and former Codecademy learners that have risen through the ranks of the Codecademy community by being helpful, supportive, and uber committed to our mission.

Because Codecademy is where so many people start learning to code, our moderators are expert beginners— they understand the experience of beginning to learn better than just about anyone on the web, and are driven to build a safe space for coding n00bs, so no one ever needs to be afraid to ask questions. What a relief!

Who are the Codecademy Mods?

Oh, and did we mention that the moderators are 100% volunteer? These knights in digital armor come from all walks of life, all corners of the globe, and all levels of experience. What brings them together—and makes them so important to the learning experience on Codecademy—is the belief that teaching someone else helps everyone learn, including themselves! A cycle of learning is created.

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To quote Micheal Bragg, a Codecademy Moderator, the community runs like a “take a penny, give a penny” jar; it only works when the people getting help come back to give help. Thanks to our Mods’ support, we see people coming back to help all the time. Each person who learns here will come back to teach someone else, making everyone stronger.

How to get involved

Find the platform that meets your needs

If you’re still wondering if coding is for you, join the Codecademy Facebook group to connect with others asking the same question. Pros and beginners gather here to explore all possible paths and help one another find the right direction for them. We currently have 5 moderators in this space, but there’s always room for more leadership with great ideas.

For those already working through courses on Codecademy, the forums are a great place to get and give help with Codecademy curriculum. The forums have a fun and “gamified” system for gaining clout and becoming a leader. The Mods of this space do incredible work giving feedback and even creating challenges for learners to test their skills. Check out this page on badges you can earn for participating that help guide you toward becoming a leader.

For learners ready to commit to gaining technical skills for a better job, there’s an Exclusive community for Pro members. We’re always welcoming new members, joining live events, and sharing our successes. In this space, Moderators serve 6-month terms. We’re taking applications now! Join us and apply today.

Summer Reading Contest Winner, Week 2: On ‘When My Mother Forgot Me’

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Summer Reading Contest Winner, Week 2: On ‘When My Mother Forgot Me’

Thank you to the 527 teenagers who participated in the second week of our 10-week Summer Reading Contest, and congratulations to Chungjune Park, our winner, as well as to our many runners-up and honorable mentions.

Scroll down to take a look at the variety of topics — from the fight against gender stereotypes, to Hong Kong protests, to rising seas along US coastlines, to the new U.S. poet laureate — that caught the eyes of our participants this week.

And please remember to always check the top of our contest announcement to find the right place to participate, any week from now until Aug. 23.

Chungjune Park from New Jersey chose a Ties essay entitled “When My Mother Forgot Me” and wrote:

When Einstein proposed that time is relative, he was speaking of the physical world. Yet, as I read Kate Neuman’s “When My Mother Forgot Me,” I was reminded of how 5 minutes can feel long and yet cause a lifetime of regret.

As Ms. Neuman recounted the moment in which her mother had forgotten her because of Alzheimer’s disease, I thought about my grandmother. I can still remember my last phone conversation with my grandmother. She had called just to see how I was doing, but I was in a rush that day. I hurried the conversation along, thinking that we would have time later. What I did not know was that 30 minutes after that 3 minute conversation, she would pass away from a heart attack.

I have often been angry at myself. Why didn’t I talk longer? For all that she has done for me in my 17 years, why did I wasted those precious minutes with her on the phone?

While I still have regret and a profound sadness over my grandmother’s passing, Neuman’s words gave me some solace. Like Ms. Neuman’s mother, my grandmother was indeed a mirror. Every time I looked into my grandmother’s eyes, filled with love, she was a mirror that showed me my strengths, highlighted my deficiencies, and inspired me to be a better person.

What I have discovered is that when it comes to those whom we love, there is never enough time. So let us not waste any minute, any second we have with them. Let us live in the moment, and in doing so, make seconds last a lifetime by not having any regrets.

Swetha Berana on “What Makes a Leader”

Cody Busch-Weiss on “The Land Where the Internet Ends”

Robert DiChiara on “For Megan Rapinoe, Boldness in the Spotlight Is Nothing New”

A Complete List of SWAYAM Free Online Courses and MOOCs (2019)

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A Complete List of SWAYAM Free Online Courses and MOOCs (2019)

SWAYAM is India’s national MOOC platform, designed to achieve the three cardinal principles of India’s Education Policy: access, equity and quality.

Class Central has been keeping track of SWAYAM’s progress since it was first announced back in August 2014.  Since it beta launched in July 2017, it has seen over 10 million learners. At the rate it’s growing, in a few years, SWAYAM could become the world’s largest MOOC provider offering courses in a wide variety of disciplines from prestigious Indian institutions such as IITs and Central Universities.

In July 2019, the SWAYAM homepage and course catalog were revamped, notably to include all courses offered by NPTEL, a group comprising some of India’s most prominent engineering institutions. All these courses can be taken for free. Students can also choose to pay a small fee (about $15) to sit a proctored exam in an examination center in India to earn a certificate of completion.

Certificates may, in turn, be used by students enrolled in India’s higher education to earn academic credit for completing SWAYAM courses earmarked as credit-eligible by their universities. If you’d like to know more about how India is leveraging SWAYAM at the university level, head to our previous article: In India, MOOCs Are Now Part of the Education System.

I personally completed several courses on SWAYAM, including a SWAYAM-NPTEL course that was part of the last semester of my master’s degree in computer science (specialization in AI) at the Central University of Rajasthan, India. I paid a small extra fee (less than $2) to receive the certificate (embedded below) by mail. Paper certificates have since been discontinued, but students can still obtain virtual certificates that afford the same privileges.

Suparn NPTEL certificate

I joined the Class Central engineering team in April 2019, and part of my job is to maintain make sure that Class Central’s catalog is up-to-date. This means I maintain as well as write new scrapers that collect the course information from different providers.

And I am happy to say that we now list all SWAYAM courses. There are more than 500+ free online courses starting in July and August 2019. If you want to be notified about these courses, please use the follow button and Class Central will keep you in the loop.

Besides SWAYAM, platforms such as FutureLearn allow you to take courses and earn certificates for free: 17 FutureLearn Courses That Still Offer Free Certificates.

Below is a list of all SWAYAM courses categorized by subject. Click on the subject in the index below to directly jump to that section.

Computer Science (36)

Programming (14)

Engineering (137)

Science (93)

Social Sciences (44)

Humanities (31)

Art & Design (17)

Health & Medicine (8)

Business (58)

Data Science (8)

Mathematics (25)

Personal Development (9)

Education & Teaching (16)

The top 10 tax mistakes students make

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The top 10 tax mistakes students make

Studying part time while working makes for a busy life, one where personal administration can be low on your list of priorities—including taxes. That said, making sure you file them on time is important to make the most of your return and reduce your risk of fines or interest charges.

We chatted to Ashley Debenham, tax expert at Etax.com.au and asked her about the common mistakes they see part time students make, and how to avoid them.

1. Including dodgy deductions

The most common incorrectly claimed items come from students who are studying in one field but working in another, Debenham says.

“Students often mistakenly think they can claim self-education expenses like course fees, laptops, or travel.”

“However, for a self-education expense to be eligible, the course you are studying must be directly related to your current employment. It can’t be to get you a new job or a promotion,” she says.

2. Failing to claim what you can

Conversely, many part time students don’t claim the expenses that they can. Debenham says if you’re:

  • Improving your academic qualifications for the job you already have during your studies
  • Improving your knowledge or skills for your current job
  • A trainee and your self-education course is part of the traineeship
  • Can show that your course, qualification or degree can lead to an increase in income within your current employment

Then you are eligible to claim a range of expenses related to your study including course fees, stationery and textbooks, student service, union and amenity fees, equipment depreciation and repairs and possibly car expenses.

“If you’re working, you may also be able to claim uniforms if they have a company logo, or travel for work-related reasons,” she says.

3. Being afraid to catch up on skipped tax returns

It can be easier to stick your head in the sand If you’ve skipped a tax return in the past, for fear of fines or interest charges. 

However, Debenham says it’s best to get caught up—and you may even be surprised with a bonus tax return!

4. Buying up on ‘instant tax deductions’ at tax time

“For a deduction to be claimable it must be directly connected to your work. If, for example, you wish to claim office supplies, you must need to purchase your own office supplies to do your job,” Debenham says.

It’s also important to note items over $300 can’t be claimed in full and must instead be depreciated over the ‘effective life’ of the item, which is usually several years.

Using credit card online

5. Not keeping adequate records

It’s essential to have documentation of anything you plan to claim, so take the time to create a box or file to quickly stash any receipts you may be able to use to claim a deduction come tax time. If you’re planning on claiming travel costs, keep a log in your car and ensure you fill it in thoroughly (and regularly). 

6. Not understanding that Austudy is considered income for tax purposes

If you receive Austudy, it’s a good idea to look at your tax situation at the beginning of the financial year, rather than waiting for tax time, says Debenham.

Why? You might be stung with a tax bill. You can contact Centrelink to ensure this doesn’t happen.

7. Failing to file a return because you’re under the tax-free threshold or haven’t paid tax

While those earning under the tax-free threshold who haven’t paid tax probably don’t need to file a return, Debenham says you do need to notify the Australian Tax Office regardless with a non-lodgement advice. 

The good news is, much like catching up on late returns, if you have paid tax, you may net yourself a bonus return cheque!

8. Failing to clarify if you need to pay tax as an international student.

If you are a student studying in Australia and you’re earning income from working, chances are you will need to do a tax return, Debenham says.

Depending on how long you’ve been in Australia, you may be regarded as a resident or non-resident for tax purposes, and in each case different tax rates do apply. 

If you’re unsure, Debenham recommends getting in touch with a skilled tax agent for individual advice.

9. Not timing your voluntary HECS/ HELP repayments to your best advantage

If you plan to pay off some of your debt in advance, Debenham says the ATO applies a yearly interest indexation on your loan amount on the first of June each year. 

“If you make a voluntary repayment prior to 1 June—with enough notice that they can process it before 1 June, the amount of interest that is added to your loan will not include the amount you just paid off, saving you money,” she says.

10. Trying to DIY a complex tax return

It’s a tax agent’s job to ensure you get the best possible refund and to ensure you avoid ATO trouble, says Debenham. 

“Tax agent fees can be claimed as a deduction on your next tax return and for online services such as Etax, fees are generally less than $100 and can be deducted out of your refund so you’re not out of pocket for anything up front,” says Debenham.

With this information at hand, you’ve got all the knowledge you need to tackle your tax return head-on, and avoid the mistakes other students might be making.

Updates to the Web Development Path

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Updates to the Web Development Path

Good news! We’re making several changes to the Web Development Path.

Why?

Everything can always improve! We took a look at our Web Development path to find ways to make the content even better and set our learners up for greater success!

We’re adding several lessons, projects, and quizzes to introduce and scaffold important concepts in web development. We also know how important practice is in cementing learning, so we’ve added several new challenging projects to the path. You’ll learn how to develop applications locally, and work on real-world style projects which tie everything you’ve learned together.

How does this impact you?

If you’ve already started or completed the Web Development Path, you will see some new content added to the Path.

You won’t lose progress on the coursework that you’ve already completed; however, you may notice that your overall progress percentage has decreased, as there is a greater amount of content included in the Path.

When?

The lessons will be updated beginning at 1:00 PM EST on Friday, July 12, 2019. We expect the updates to be finalized by 7:00 PM EST the same day.

Take a look below to get an overview of the updates.

Changes to The Web Development Path

New content covering:

Plus several challenging cumulative projects:

  • Jamming
  • Boss Machine
  • Gold Medal Metrics
  • Codestrips
  • X-Press Publishing
  • Expresso

We’ve also decided to remove our jQuery curriculum from the Web Development Path. Though this content is a great introduction for anyone interested in learning jQuery, with all the improvements made to JavaScript over the last few years, jQuery is no longer an essential skill for every web developer to have in their skill set.

We’ve decided to remove this content from the path so that you can focus on the most important concepts. If you’re curious about jQuery or you encounter an older codebase that still uses it, head over to our Learn jQuery course!

TL/DR:

We’re updating our Web Development Path so that it’s an even better learning experience. It now covers additional important topics, doesn’t cover some less important ones, and reinforces all of that learning with engaging cumulative projects!

Summer Reading Contest, Week 4: What Interested You Most in The Times This Week?

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Summer Reading Contest, Week 4: What Interested You Most in The Times This Week?

Welcome to Week Four of our Tenth Annual Summer Reading Contest.

To participate, just post a comment here by 9 a.m. Eastern on July 12 that answers the questions “What interested you most in The Times this week? Why?”

What should you choose? Well, as you know from the rules we’ve posted, you can pick anything published on NYTimes.com in 2019, including articles, essays, Op-Eds, videos, photos, podcasts or infographics.

So what did you read, watch or listen to this week?

We hope you’ll click around NYTimes.com and find your own great articles, features and multimedia, but we know that not everyone who participates has a Times subscription. Because all links to Times content from the student features on our site are free, every week we’ll try to help by posting interesting pieces from a variety of sections.

What Free College Really Means

San Francisco Will Spend $600,000 to Erase History

I Shouldn’t Be Forced to Give Birth to a Baby Who Won’t Live

A Revolution in Happiness

_________

Whatever caught your eye, tell us about it in the comments.

Need more details? The contest rules are all here, and you can read the work of last year’s winners here. A quick overview, though:

• You can choose from anything published in the print paper or on NYTimes.com in 2019, including videos, graphics and photographs. (In your response, please include the URL or headline of the piece you pick.)

• We’ll post this question each Friday from today through Aug. 16, and you’ll have until the next Friday morning to respond with your picks. Then we’ll close that post and open a new one with the same question.

• We’ll choose at least one favorite answer to feature on our site each week. Winners from this week will be announced on July 23.

• Feel free to participate each week, but we allow only one submission per person per week.

• New for 2019: Students in the United States and the United Kingdom must be between 13 to 19 years old to participate. However, if you are submitting from anywhere else in the world, you must be between 16 to 19 years old. Please see The New York Times’s terms of service for more details.

_________

While this is the only Student Opinion question we’ll be asking this summer, here is our section that features hundreds of writing prompts still open to comment.

Bringing drama to the classroom

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Bringing drama to the classroom

With
an impressive performing arts resume behind him, teacher-in-training Tim is quashing
the idea that ‘those who can’t do, teach’.

Tim
grew up with musical theatre, with a talent for singing, dancing and acting.
Like many aspiring performers with big dreams, Tim moved over to the US to
pursue a career in the arts. Over time, he landed himself roles in Broadway and
off-Broadway plays, and worked for iconic brands like Disney. It was in Utah
that he met the woman he now calls his wife, and so the two of them settled down
to raise a family.

Tim on placement at Riverton High School in Utah

Years passed, and the pair made a plan to move back to Australia, which got Tim thinking about a new career path to pursue while there. With the plan to step back from performing anyway, Tim warmed to the idea of teaching, which he’d always had a curiosity for. He already had a Bachelor of Arts up his sleeve, but needed to re-train quickly with minimal impact on his income stream. Online study suited him perfectly, allowing him to study while performing in shows. He enrolled in a Master of Teaching (Secondary Education) with Curtin University, online through OUA.

“My Master’s degree is providing me with the skills, the attributes and the knowledge to know how to better manage a classroom,” says Tim “and to know how to better differentiate my teaching styles to meet my students’ needs.” He’s loved the course so far, and despite its online delivery, he still gets the opportunity to go on teaching placements. Riverton High School in Utah welcomed him onboard for a placement focused on musical theatre. He plans to specialise in drama teaching, as well as become qualified to teach physical education and social sciences.

“I love connecting with people, I love energising people as well” Tim smiles. Working with young people in particular brings back memories of his positive experiences throughout high school. Tim hopes to instil confidence in his students, and allow them to cherish their formative years as much as he did.

A career that evolves with you

There’s no need to feel locked into your initial career path – desires and interests change, and so should your work life. With the ability to study online with a leading Australian university, you’ve got the freedom to make change, without dropping everything in the process.

To express your interest in this course, or any that we offer – fill out the form on this page, and we’ll put you in touch with a friendly student advisor. If you’re keen to explore on your own, simply head over to our website to browse the extensive catalogue of courses from universities across Australia.

Related courses through OUA:

Bachelor of Education (Secondary Education)– Curtin University

Graduate Certificate in Training and Development – Griffith University

Master of Education – Griffith University

Master of Educational Leadership – Australian Catholic University

See more

Putting the B(ee) in Business

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Putting the B(ee) in Business

Deborah Mburu’s mother started selling honey to her friends for fun, but her daughter saw a way to turn this hobby into a thriving business.  After learning more about entrepreneurship through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women online course on Coursera, Deborah is driving towards becoming the leading supplier of high-quality natural products in Africa and beyond. In her own words, here is her story:

Hello, I am Deborah Mburu, CEO of Dees Natural Products Limited, based in Nairobi, Kenya. I have been running my business for over a year and I’m passionate about what I do. With the skills and knowledge I’ve learned through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women course, I have a clearer sense of how I can grow my business to reach more customers and expand our product lines.

My mother used to source natural honey from rural Kenya and sell it to family friends, church members, and neighbors. She had a lot of repeat customers, but always told me she was selling the honey as a hobby, not as a business. I saw so much potential for growth in what she was doing – and I knew that with proper structures, marketing, packaging, and planning we could make this a sustainable and viable business. 

I formally registered a company in order to sell honey in a more efficient and scalable way.  My next step was to enroll in the Grow Your Business with Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women course. Thanks to the skills and networks I’ve gained from the course, I now have a vision for the future of my business.  

The 10,000 Women program really opened my eyes to the world of business. 

Thanks to modules like Assessing Your Business Growth Potential and Evaluating Your Opportunity, I am better able to critically assess opportunities and pursue the ones that generate value for my business.

In a little over a year, I have expanded my product range from natural honey to other product lines. I now employ ten staff members and distribute to 3 counties in Kenya, where my clients include 5-star hotels and major restaurants.

I’m also more open to ideas which I hadn’t thought were possible in the past, such as taking on loans to finance growth. With the confidence I’ve gained from these new insights, I’m better able to achieve long-term milestones––for example, I’ve pursued official organic certification for my products to further build the brand’s credibility.

I love being part of a global network of women entrepreneurs.  

I realized first-hand the benefits of global collaboration that the course encourages. For instance, through a connection with a Pakistani graphic designer, I was able to redesign my packaging and identify a supplier in China to manufacture the new packaging. I’m continuing to develop my business while staying in touch with other participants from Mexico, Vietnam, Nigeria and beyond through the course discussion forums. Sharing experiences and getting advice are crucial aspects of this invaluable support network which help me continue learning even after completing the program.

Working in collaboration with like-minded entrepreneurs across the globe reminds me every day of the power of a strong support network and the incredible things we can accomplish when we work together. 

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GUEST POST: An Interview with a physician who created an app that employs evidence-based learning principles

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GUEST POST: An Interview with a physician who created an app that employs evidence-based learning principles

David Handel, MD, Co-founder iDoRecall.com, a web application that helps students achieve academic success by leveraging evidence-based learning science strategies. David is a retired MD who was a mediocre K-12 student but graduated #1 in his college and medical school classes by using cognitive psychology learning techniques to completely redesign his approach to learning.

David is currently looking to partner with a select group of educators who are interested in free access to iDoRecall so that they can bring evidence-based learning techniques into the classroom and help their students use the tools that underlie iDoRecall to accelerate their academic success. Write david@iDoRecall.com for details.

How did you get started with using learning science techniques in your own academic life?

I spent my K-12 years as a fairly mediocre student. I graduated at around the 50th percentile in my high school class. After my freshman year of college, I discovered the power of retrieval practice, spacing, interleaving, and metacognition. I used flashcards extensively for retrieval practice and made the spacing of my retrieval practices a habit. It was all quite by accident as I wasn’t familiar at the time with the research that backed up these strategies. But personally, I knew that I was onto something. After I made the switch, I got straight A’s the remainder of college and then attended medical school where I graduated #1 in my class. I fully describe what I did and how I did it in this article in Better Humans.

I understand that you are a serial entrepreneur. How does that play into the story of iDoRecall?

While doing my residency in Radiology at Duke University in the 1980s, I started a software company that quickly grew to 30 employees. Years later, I yearned to get back into the startup world, and in particular software and technology because I find that entrepreneurship is an exhilarating experience. Creating and building new things is one of the great joys in my life. In 2009, while still practicing radiology, I co-founded AYTM, a market research technology company. AYTM has been very successful and even today, with over 60 employees, I serve as its Chief Operating Officer. But I have a particular passion for learning and more particularly for learning how to learn. I find it exasperating that little to no attention is given to teaching kids how to learn and too much energy is focused to teaching them what to learn. Realizing that there was an opportunity to use technology to support learning while using science-backed best practices, I set out in 2012 to build what has become iDoRecall (or, iDR for short). In the beginning, I was coding the app myself. But, because of the lack of having enough time and my inability to focus all of my energy on the engineering of the app, I decided to hire a team of software developers in 2017 and accelerate bringing iDR to life. My mission with iDR is to help as many students achieve their academic potential as I possibly can. But each individual success story is a huge personal win for me.

How does iDoRecall enable students to go about learning using techniques that are backed by science?

iDR is a knowledge maintenance system in a world where we’ve been increasingly outsourcing our mental skills to a burgeoning array of neuroprostheses. Our abilities to perform math, spelling, exercise proper grammar, navigate the world, find and remember information have been diminished over recent decades because of our dependence on technology and the outsourcing of our capabilities. iDR opposes this trend and helps students build the skills to remember what they learn.

With iDR, you add your learning materials to your personal library in the app. You can add your class notes, handouts, professor’s PowerPoints, screen grabs, images and lecture videos. Then you consume and study this content in the app. As you read, watch and listen, if you come upon a concept (that you grasp) or a fact that you want to remember, pause to create a spaced-repetition flashcard that will be linked to that nugget of knowledge. The iDR spaced-repetition algorithm will schedule which of your flashcards should be practiced each day. During retrieval practice, if you struggle with an answer, you can click a link to open the original source learning material at the exact place where you learned it. Quickly refresh your memory and then get back to your retrieval practice session.

Besides retrieval practice (the testing effect) and spacing, what other learning best practices does iDR leverage?

iDR encourages elaboration and we promote the idea that students should create flashcards in their own words that express their understanding. iDR uses interleaving because, during retrieval practice sessions, there is a randomized presentation of flashcards from a student’s various subjects. There is also the opportunity for dual coding with the ability to include images in the questions and answers along with text.

One of the features that I’m most excited about that we’re currently working on will prompt learners to exercise metacognition and reflection as they study and create flashcards. These prompts will encourage the student to dig deeper and reflect on how, why and where new ideas fit within their existing knowledge (infusing even more elaboration, too).

iDR also has some practical tools to assist students with time management and the never-ending battle with procrastination. Examples include a built-in Pomodoro timer for enabling focused periods of uninterrupted study and providing optional daily reminder emails.

How does iDoRecall fit in the classroom?

iDR is a few weeks away from a major release that will enable educators to create classes within the app and invite their students into these classes. Within a class, a teacher can upload learning materials into the class’s library such as Word, PowerPoint, PDF and image files. The teacher can add videos that are hosted on services such as YouTube and Vimeo. Additionally, the teacher can create for their class a set of spaced-repetition flashcards linked to the concepts and facts that they want their students to remember in the uploaded files and videos. When the students perform retrieval practice with the flashcards, if they struggle with an answer, they are just one click away from viewing the exact source location in the linked learning content. Teachers can control whether students are permitted to contribute to the class’s library and flashcards. Teachers can curate contributed content if they allow collaboration and can see metrics of each student’s activity in the class.

Alternatively, students will also be able to create their own study groups, invite fellow students to these groups and collaborate by sharing learning materials and flashcards.

iDR will continue to evolve and deliver tools that enable students to use the best learning practices proven by research. It has always been a challenge to deliver the best practices in learning from the laboratory to the classroom and into students’ daily lives. iDoRecall is on a mission to make that happen.

David is currently looking to partner with a select group of educators who are interested in free access to iDoRecall and want to use proven learning science principles to help their students accelerate their academic success. Write david@iDoRecall.com for details.

EduTech Sydney 2019: A summary of FutureLearn’s learnings

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EduTech Sydney 2019: A summary of FutureLearn’s learnings

Author: Fiona Reay, Development Partnership Lead at FutureLearn

Highlights of the EduTech conference included Sir Ken Robinson advocating for a further shift of the education system to no longer teach purely knowledge and subjects in schools, rather disciplines and competencies like team work, communication, resilience, creativity, etc. 

Josh Nester (Education Director at SEEK and board member at FutureLearn) spoke on a panel of EdTech investors about how the future of degrees and microcredentials amongst universities could potentially be like airline alliances, allowing students to pick and choose their courses from around the world. He thought further investigation into the value chain of the learning experience would be useful (ie student services), and career readiness training like soft skills would help with career impact and more return on investment for learners.

UNSW global ambitions to help the student experience

Ian Jacobs VC Professor from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) spoke of the need to invest more in public education programmes, particularly with the growing need for education in sub-saharan Africa. He spoke of their investment in African campuses and how they set fees at the local market rate, alongside looking to produce digital content that’s high audio quality (rather than video) for better accessibility. 

Rachel Abel, General Manager of Student Experience at UNSW launched the movement #belongisbetter for communities within universities to improve the learner experience. With a focus on international students – it’s tailored like a new soft skills program to help with interpersonal skills. Her research shows the formula is: time spent + proximity to the student x emotional intensity = belonging

A new way for first-year study – a series of sprints

Victoria University (VU) explained how they revolutionised their first year of undergraduate study by mimicking more of the modern workplace working environment using the “block model” providing “sprints” of courses each semester (a 4-week block each with assessment). They got rid of ‘exam period’ entirely.  The new delivery model took 8 months of preparation before student rollout, and once launched “The VU Way” went viral with a 12% increase in applications for the new kind of “first year uni”. VU teach core competencies like how to write a report, exam prep, numeracy, career development in “complementary stream” alongside the ‘one course at a time’ model. 

Acting VC of VU, Marcia Devlin, explained by stripping things back to the essentials only, they now have the happiest students they’ve ever had and reduced the failure rate from 26% to 13% – a good rating for their western suburbs of Melbourne demographic. VU’s staff are now organised in multidisciplinary teams and not via subject – reducing “cliques” forming – and they have a randomised allocation of line management.

To learn more about the conference visit EduTech Sydney

 

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Research insights

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