RPP #199: Narine Hall of InSpace

• Interview with Narine Hall, Founder & CEO of Inspace. "InSpace is a socially intuitive online learning platform. By mimicking the natural flow of a classroom through proximity-based audio, we feel it's the closest you can come to teaching face-to-face in the virtual space." We discuss:
• Narine's background

  

  Narine Hall, CEO

  
  
• History of InSpace
• Replaces Zoom for classrooms
• Proximity-based audio using machine learning
• Improved student participation
• Faces in "video circles" to reduce background distraction
• Chat feature inside or outside of the classroom
• InSpace mobile app
• Synchronous and Asynchronous use
• Analytics measures quality of conversations, not quantity
• Feature set: Discussions, Rooms, Broadcast, Screen Share
• Engagement: Gesture, Tether, Invite
• LMS Integration
  
  
• Podsafe music selection
• Laura Sullivan plays "Pachelbel For The Potomac" from "Pianoscapes For The Trails Of North America"

Duration: 43:24

RPP #198: Adam Geller of Edthena

• Interview with Adam Geller, Founder and CEO of Edthena. "Edthena is the complete solution for teacher growth, leveraging classroom videos for reflection and best practices." We discuss their video-powered professional learning:
• Adams background

  

  Adam Geller, CEO

• History and founding of Edthena
• K-12 Teacher training programs
• Teacher candidates recording themselves
• Use in teaching methods and field experience
• Toolset to support evidence based approach on how to teach
• Eportfolio for sharing and assessment 
• Time-stamped comments: question, suggestion, strength or note
• Professional standards video tagging
• Performance dashboards at group and organization level
• Used in HigherEd Centers for Teaching Excellence
• Used to help recruit and retain HigherEd adjunct instructors
• Used in classroom or online (Zoom, etc.)
• Tool to blur video to mask student names or faces
• Supports school district privacy and security requirements
  
  
• Links
• Evidence of Practice: Playbook for Video-Powered Professional Learning

• Podsafe music selection
• "If Every Day Were Christmas" by Podsafe for Peace. 

Duration: 42:04

Covid-Converted Edition #7: Reshaping Curriculum Design and Attitudes about Online Learning

Interview with Amanda Smith, Chief Academic Officer, Academic Partnerships, and Maria Andersen, General Manager of Coursetune.

This special COVID-Converted Edition audio and video podcast series responds to the impact of COVID-19 on the way we live, learn, and work. Teachers all over the world have been thrown into teaching their "COVID-Converted" courses online. This series will focus on moving from this emergency remote teaching and learning to more thoughtfully prepared learning experiences. COVID is reshaping curriculum design and attitudes about online learning.

Academic Partners is "an online facilitator that assists public institutions of higher education in taking their academic programs online and recruits and retains qualified students through program completion. Coursetune helps institutions improve course and program design by focusing on mapping and assessment alignment." We discuss:

Watch on Youtube

• Amanda and Maria's background
• Overview of Coursetune, an elegant visual course planning tool
• Academic Partnerships' role
• Growth of online programs
• Need for change in curriculum design
• Release of Courseplan ("Coursetune light")
• AP Off Campus toolkit to move instruction from classroom to online
• Critical outcomes alignment and support
• Faculty training
• Role of instructional designers
• Challenge of short term vs. long term thinking
• Integration with the LMS
• New features on the way: "variation layers" 

Podsafe music selection

• Wonderful Day by Debbie Poryes Trio - Jazz Pianist, Composer, Teacher & Vocalist

Duration: 51:59

RPP #197: Melvin Hines of Upswing

Interview with Melvin Hines, CEO, and Co-Founder of Upswing. "A virtual assistant and student services platform to reach, relate to, and retain your non-traditional students." We discuss:

• Melvin's Background

  

  Melvin Hines, CEO

• History of Upswing
• Great disparities in education 
• Reach, Relate, and Retain
• Reach: answer questions via text chatbot
• Relate: connect to campus or Upswing human resources via web conferencing to provide support and tutoring on more than 400 topics
• Retain: collect analytics to identify students at greatest risk   
• Result: 15% reduction in dropouts each year
• Unique chatbot technology integrates with campus calendars to schedule web conferences with campus and Upswing staff and tutors
• Support for mental health and wellness 
• Support for faculty     
• Changes due to the Pandemic 
  
  

• Podsafe music selection
• Autumn Day by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

Duration: 37:48