NCLB and the proft motive

eSchool News reports that the Supplemental Educational Services market associated with NCLB is worth approximately $2 billion annually. Supplemental educational services are tutoring options that must be offered to students from underperforming schools.

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) also has set up a division to monitor SES programs and provide guidance to parents and teachers. Tutors for Kids

15 total views

eZedia Sold

With HyperStudio fading as a tool for student multimedia authoring, we have been exploring and somewhat promoting the products of a Canadian company eZedia. Selecting products to serve as example is important for us because we use these products as examples in our writing activities. The publication delay (perhaps 9 months), the run of an book edition (3 years), and the volatility of the software industry, make such selections both challenging and important. The 4th edition of our book used HyperStudio as a major example even though this product was no longer being supported.

We identified eZedia as a company offering products we felt would become widely used in K-12 classrooms. Now, we learn that eZedia has been sold to Safari Video Networks (see simple announcement on the eZedia web site). Our contacts at eZedia are encouraged by the focus of the new parent company on video instruction and the niche their products fill within this focus.

We will see how this goes and whether student authoring is promoted or fades as this integration plays out.

10 total views

Broadcast Flag Rejected

Sometimes an issue you are interested in gets decided before you even know the issue exists. eSchool News reports that the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has rejected a proposed “broadcast flag” for digital video. Such a marker would be attached to broadcast digital video content and prevent anyone from storing and sharing video content. Educators have some opportunity to make limited use of such content under the TEACH Act. While there is obviously opportunity for abuse and it would be naive to claim that some educators have not abused opportunities to tape television programs for classroom use, this ruling appears to come down on the side of assuming certain users will use digital content appropriately.

If this issue does not make sense to you, I understand it in comparison to how Apple protects music downloaded from the Apple Music store. When I purchase a CD, as the owner of that CD I can “rip” and legally copy the music to my computer. In a way, I own my copy of that music. However, with iTunes, a song I downloaded is protected. I can actually share it with myself within limits, but there are limits. As an owner of the song, I am legally prevented from attempting to circumvent the copy protection attached to the file. In a way, I have a right to copy a resource I own for my own use (as in the case of the songs on a CD), but I do not have a legal right to defeat copy protection attached to the original (I think this is an accurate representation of the situation). I am no way advocating stealing of music. However, I purchase a great deal of music as downloads and on CD and I am frustrated by legal measures that seem to assume I will attempt to do something illegal with the music I download.

So – the legal decision here would seem to declare copy protection schemes designed to prevent the acceptable use of broadcast digital video illegal. I can’t believe this will be the end of this issue.

11 total views