Dear Commons Community,

I leave today for Orlando to attend the Annual Online Learning Consortium (formerly Sloan-C) Conference. The program and speakers are first-rate and include a keynote by John Medina (University of Washington School of Medicine) on “How Brains Learn with Technology”.   Below is a welcome and quick overview from Patsy Moskal, the Program Chair.

All of the details about the program are available at the Conference website.

Tony

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Dear Colleagues,

It is my pleasure to invite you to the 20th Annual Online Learning Consortium International Conference! The past two decades have seen many exciting innovations and changes in online education. This pattern continues today with current innovations in learning analytics, MOOCs, open and mobile learning, and many new and exciting  emerging instructional resources. The annual conference attracts worldwide experts and innovators in online teaching and learning. We would love to have you join us! This year’s tracks have changed slightly from previous years with the addition of a track devoted to Institutional Change and Innovations. We hope you take a look at the updated descriptions and also the sessions scheduled in each of the tracks. For those who can’t join us in beautiful Orlando in October, we hope you can join us virtually! Please join us as we celebrate 20 years of leading the way in online learning!

Patsy Moskal, Program Chair 20th Annual Online Learning Consortium International Conference

Dear Commons Community,

A newly hired teacher confronted the gunman and was being hailed as a hero on Saturday after the deadly shooting rampage in the cafeteria of Marysville-Pilchuck High School. First-year social studies teacher Megan Silberberger intervened in the attack Friday and probably saved lives. As reported by the Associated Press:

“The teacher intercepted the gunman as he paused, possibly to reload, student Erick Cervantes told KIRO-TV.

Teachers union president Randy Davis said:  “I’m completely amazed by her actions and I feel for her…I don’t know why she was in the cafeteria but I’m just grateful she was there.”

The attacker killed one girl on Friday and seriously wounded four others – including two of his cousins – before he died of what police said was a self-inflicted wound.

However, it wasn’t clear if the shooter committed suicide or if he accidentally shot himself in the struggle with the teacher.

A school resource officer also ran to the scene, Davis said.

The shooter was Jaylen Fryberg, a popular freshman at the school, a government official with direct knowledge of the shooting told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.”

As in other shooting tragedies in our schools, teachers sacrificed their own safety for the good of their children. We salute Ms. Silberberger!

Tony