News Roundup – 6/7

Our weekly roundup of education technology, workforce technology, and venture capital news.

Making higher education more accessible for nontraditional students – There are an increasing number of nontraditional students in higher education, who often have full-time jobs, families, and other responsibilities. These students seek further education to advance their careers, increase their salary, or stay competitive in the job market. Those involved in the edtech industry would be interested in the changing definition of nontraditional students and how institutions can better support them. Providing flexibility, affordability, and personalized support is key to helping nontraditional students succeed. Additionally, it would be remiss to overlook the importance of building relationships with students and offering excellent customer service in higher education.

Does Edtech Need A Hard Reset? – An opinion piece analyzing two New York Times articles (1 & 2, paywalled) criticizing edtech. Despite preparing counter-arguments, the author assets that there were valid points made about the industry’s shortcomings in proving efficacy and responsible implementation. Believing in the transformative potential of technology in education is not enough, the edtech sector needs to take greater responsibility for outcomes and collaborate with educators and decision-makers to improve effectiveness. It’s important to hold education businesses accountable for ensuring positive results and to realize that commercial success and educational outcomes are not mutually exclusive.

The Kids That Edtech Writes Off – Edtech companies often focus on the 5% of students who excel with their products, neglecting the 95% who struggle. These students, often those in need of the most help, are excluded from studies due to arbitrary usage thresholds. Blaming the students for not engaging is not a viable solution, and instead, developers should work to support teachers who work tirelessly to check struggling students back in. By focusing on helping teachers and understanding the needs of the 95%, edtech companies can make a real impact on student learning.

Work-based youth learning programs can augment talent development strategies, report says – Businesses can benefit from offering work-based learning programs to high school students, as it can help strengthen their industry pipeline, increase diversity in their potential employee pool, and enhance their talent development strategies. This approach is not without its challenges, though. Problems such as funding for intern pay, workload management, and transportation issues can arise. However, investing in work-based learning activities and partnering with schools and organizations can help address these challenges and attract more students to participate in internship programs. Edtech investors should consider opportunities to support businesses in expanding their work-based learning initiatives to bridge the gap between education and industry and prepare students for future jobs in high-demand sectors.

Do Skills Taught in K-12 Schools Really Lead to Upward Mobility? $3 Million in Grant Money Aims to Find Out – The Urban Institute’s Student Upward Mobility Initiative is investing $3 million in innovative research to explore the connection between pre-K-12 skills and long-term success, specifically focusing on economic mobility. This initiative aims to identify the skills that are most strongly associated with upward mobility and develop new, easily collectible measures to track these skills. Potential research areas include noncognitive factors like teamwork and communication and social capital measures in schools. The goal is to provide schools with evidence-based strategies to help all students, especially those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, succeed after graduation. For the greatest impact, we need to support initiatives that focus on identifying and measuring skills that drive economic mobility in students.

Understanding the Role of EdTech Leaders in School Districts – This quick video and article discuss how edtech leaders in school districts have varying roles and responsibilities depending on the district’s size and resources. In smaller districts, the lack of dedicated edtech staff can lead to inconsistent support and slow adoption of technology. The maturity and establishment of dedicated edtech departments also vary, with some districts focusing primarily on technical support rather than strategic integration. However, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that districts that prioritize and invest in edtech leadership tend to see better integration of technology and improved student outcomes. Despite this, many districts still don’t adequately fund these roles, leading to challenges in achieving comprehensive and effective edtech integration.

The Midas List: The World’s Best Venture Capital Investors in 2024 – Forbes Midas List of the top venture capital investors, based on data-driven ranking of investors with successful exits or high private valuations in the past five years, is out now. In light of the changing landscape of venture capital, many investors have focused on the rise of AI startup valuations and recent IPOs. Sequoia partner Alfred Lin takes the top spot on the list, with investments in companies like Airbnb and Reddit. Other investors benefiting from the AI boom include Vinod Khosla and Reid Hoffman. The list also includes newcomers and returning investors, as well as an increasing number of women investors. Check out the full list of investors with the Midas touch.

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