Special offer from the University of Phoenix

This just in from the University of Phoenix … click on any of the U of P links on the sidebars or below to order application and information materials.

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Start Today at the University of Phoenix and Save up to $150
For a limited time, we'll waive your $85 dollar Application Fee and buy the
textbooks for your first course. That's a potential savings of up to $150!
Applications must be received by noon PST on May 19th and you must start
class by May 27th.
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University of Phoenix …

Single courses in Health Care.

Single courses in Criminal Justice.

U of P Online certificate courses.

U of P Online graduate programs.

U of P bachelor program.

University of Phoenix single business courses.

U of P Online single technology courses.

Single continuing education courses.

Elective courses international program.

Single courses education program.

Saving up for college

From the Motley Fool … an article on saving on education costs.

So you haven't saved enough to pay for your kid's college education? Well, if it's any consolation, you're not alone. A study by Sallie Mae, the country's largest source of funds for higher education, found that parents of high schoolers applying for college had saved less than half of what they needed to cover their expected expenses. What's more, one in five hadn't saved anything at all.

So what's a Foolish mom and dad to do? Well, it's never too late to get smart.

E-learning jumps in popularity

From VNU Net …

E-learning is fast becoming as popular as traditional methods of acquiring skills, according to a survey of human resources (HR) professionals.

From a survey of more than 100 HR Directors and training managers in late February, online learning consultancy and publisher Echelon found that interactive multimedia training has overtaken both books and video as the preferred way of gaining new skills.

Studying Cyber Warfare at West Point

Saw this interesting item from Educause …

Cadets at West Point engage in an annual cyber warfare exercise against a team of would-be hackers from the National Security Agency. The four-day exercise tests students' ability to defend military computer networks against attacks not unlike those launched against corporate networks every day. Certain actions are prohibited in the competition, such as students' using so-called "hackback" techniques to attack the attackers, or the use of zombie machines to launch denial-of-service attacks. Cadets use many of the same applications to defend against the cyber attacks that are used by network administrators in the civilian world. During the exercise, cadets are still required to be in bed at the usual time, though the attackers can stay up all night, taking
advantage of network vulnerabilities.
CNET, 22 April 2004
http://news.com.com/2100-7355_3-5197492.html
From the University of Phoenix. Click the link above or any of the U of P links on the sides for access to pre-application materials.

***Start Today and Save up to $150
For a limited time, we'll waive your $85 dollar Application Fee and buy the
textbooks for your first course. That's a potential savings of up to $150!
Applications must be received by noon PST on May 19th and you must start
class by May 27th.

Distance learning for the hearing impaired

At Distance Educator low-tech computer applications for learners with disabilities.

These hour-long, interactive, online Web conferences present information about free or low cost computer software to help learners with disabilities take part in the information age.

Low Tech Clinic 3 Applications for Learners with Mobility Impairments

Privatization Welfare for Religious and Private Virtual Schools

From the Palm Beach Post …

TALLAHASSEE — Private and religious Internet-based schools could be paid for with tax dollars under a plan being pushed by voucher-opponent Sen. Debbie Wasserman Schultz at the request of her children's private school.

But she said her plan — which would allow private Internet-based schools to take public money by franchising with the public Florida Virtual School — differs from the state's three current voucher programs because it requires some academic and fiscal accountability.Maybe Wasserman Schultz has some points here for combining the public Florida Virtual Schools with private Internet-based schools, and at least it isn't direct funding of private and religious education companies, but I still think this is a slippery slope that will only lead to the further privatization of the public school system. Academic and fiscal accountability is certainly an important issues, but the larger issue is actually ideology.

Now if these people would find some money for U.S. public schools instead of trying to siphon off tax dollars to private and religious schools, our public education system could take a leap into the online learning revolution. Most of the people who support these types of vouchers are the same ones who talk about getting rid of state subsidies in other places and are intent on breaking the backs of the teachers unions so they won't have to deal with them. They say they want to 'privatize' everything, but then turn around and fund religious and private schools, which is just a different form of welfare than the ones they harp against.

Distance Learning Awards

From the USDLA …

The United States Distance Learning association (USDLA) Announces 2004 Call
for Prestigious Distance Learning Awards.

Awards are presented in three areas, which include Excellence in Distance Learning Teaching; Excellence in Distance Learning Programming; and Most Outstanding Achievements by an Individual. Categories include PreK-12, Corporate, Government, Higher Education and Telehealth.

More education weblogs …

Here's another nice weblog on e-learning, The E-Learning Post.

Here's one post from March 2nd on some factors necessary in implementing successful training initiatives, and also applicable to e-learning.

Main problem: No one learns anything when they're bored or unconscious
Don't assume old models work
Know your audience and engage them early
Give them a reason to stay show up and a reason to stay
You can't please everyone
Think of the best experience
Support different learning styles
Remove barriers to interaction
Remove barriers to interaction
Collect feedback and use it with care

Distance education and business training

From Insurance and Technology Online …

More companies are turning to online courses for training their employees, especially those out in the field or at locations far from the home office.

Like many U.S. organizations, the Novato, Calif.-based Fireman's Fund Insurance Company's (FFIC, $12.4 billion in assets) response to less than optimal economic conditions was organizational change. So when the carrier's training and development department began to feel a pinch on its resources, the struggling group turned to technology for a lesson in efficiency.

"We did a decent job of maintaining basic [training] programs in our home office, but we struggled to get training in the field to remote locations," explains Rand Libberton, management development and business skills consultant, FFIC. "Resource-wise, FFIC couldn't send one person to a location for the training of just two or three."

After the training and development group decided to "travel" to students via the technological route, Libberton set out to uncover a solution in late 2002. Armed with requirements for an online training system that had growth potential, Libberton's initial objective was to find a system that could be used for training managers. But once he met with AthenaOnline (Oakland, Calif.) and reviewed its online learning solution, it became clear that all of FFIC's employees could benefit from the solution.

The advantages of this type of education are clear. Not only can companies coordinate their training, and thus keep the focus of the message, the brand and the corporate culture intact, but they can also do it more efficiently with less reliance on trainers. This not only cuts the costs of training, but also in paying the trainers. Also, there is the time saved.

Say you have five regional offices and everyone needs to be updated on a new system, or a new direction in marketing, production or otherwise. The home office may have to dispatch trainers to all five regional offices, and if not done correctly there could be miscommunication or counterproductive relaying of the training information that comes along with the interpretation of the materials by those individual trainers in each of their workshops. If you have a designed training program already developed when the concept for whatever production or innovation had been developed, instituting that training is much easier and more focused with the use of an online course where people at the regional offices could interact with trainers at the home office.

That was a bit long and convoluted, but I think you get the picture. There should be a greater need in coming years for programmers and educators who can develop these types of courses on demand, quickly and professionally, directly to businesses. If you're interested in courses in programming or education, browse around some of the links here. It also doesn't hurt to contact any of the schools you may be interested in and request the types of combined programs which may further your attraction to potential employers. That is one thing about online education that could be better developed: the felxibility to design specific programs tailored to your needs. With traditional education, much of the structure is quite rigid and often you can't get the classes you need one semester, and the next semester you can't take them because your courseload is already full. It is your money, and your education. Demand more.

Financial Aid for Online Education

Get Educated has a few very good resources I'd like to point out. First there is the section on financial aid and online graduate programs, complete with FAQs and easy to navigate.

This was interesting. I'd not been aware (these are 2000 stats) about the average earnings of Master's Degree holders. Man, I really need a raise here …

According to 2000 statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau a person with a master's degree can expect to earn $55,300 per year. Those whose education stops at the bachelor's level can expect to earn $46,300 per year. Holding a master's degree may, on average, raise your income $225,000 over a 25-year career. Clearly, spending between $18,000 and $21,000 on a distance master's degree, in return for $225,000 more in lifetime income, makes a master's degree a good investment.They also have pages with good articles on accreditation and the usefulness of online degree programs.