Digital Resources

Colleges that were forced to recruit digitally on the fly this past year can now provide a broader picture of possibilities for high-school students, says Angel Perez, CEO of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. Admissions officials are eager to resume making face-to-face connections with potential students, but schools are looking at ways to keep some of the technology-based approaches, including live streaming,  for recruiting as well, says Worcester Polytechnic Institute enrollment official Andrew Palumbo.

The College Board is offering unprecedented flexibility in how students take Advanced Placement exams amid the coronavirus pandemic. Trevor Packer, a senior vice president who leads the AP program, says these options, such as allowing students to take digital exams from home, are not expected to be available long term.

Education-technology experts expect President Joe Biden's administration to prioritize expanding Internet access for students -- many who continue to learn at home amid the coronavirus pandemic. Biden already has signaled his commitment via an executive order to increase connectivity for students and by appointing an acting Federal Communications Commission commissioner, who has advocated for the issue and the expansion of E-rate.

Many high-school students are balancing online classes with work to help support their families during the economic downturn related to the coronavirus pandemic. Some students say they can make time for classes while earning a paycheck, while others, such as 11th-grader Carlos Martinez, says it is challenging to work full time and keep up with his studies, adding that his teachers help him catch up during his off-hours.

Nickelodeon's network for preschoolers, Noggin, has some of the most popular programs for kids with shows including Paw Patrol and Dora the Explorer, but they have not focused on much beyond the entertainment value of that media. Now, after acquiring Sparkler, an early childhood learning platform, the network is launching a “massive transformation” aimed at infusing its entertainment offerings with more educational content and helping kids’ reach specific learning goals. The shift also includes a focus on encouraging children to engage and participate in the content.

A clip of a Cartoon Network public service announcement that features Pearl from the "Steven Universe" show talking about the effect of systemic racism on the teaching of history has gone viral on social, attracting millions of views across Twitter and TikTok. "These textbooks are incomplete," says Pearl in the video, "There were Black Roman warriors, Black medieval knights, Black classical musicians, Black cowboys, Black fighter pilots. Where are they?"

Facebook is partnering with the Smithsonian Institution, Le Grand Palais and the Palace of Versailles to let Instagram users virtually explore museum collections using augmented reality. Augmented Reality will enable Instagram users to spin the works of art 360 degrees and zoom in closer than would be possible at the actual museums.

Both students and teachers report that the shift to remote instruction during the coronavirus pandemic has affected their mental health, with teachers who participated in a survey saying they feel anxious and fearful. Rachel Prince, a high-school teacher in Arizona, says virtual instruction began with some level of excitement but shifted to a constant effort to make students feel better. Students on the other hand have reported constant feelings of missing out.

Ninety percent of 13- to 17-year-olds play video games, data shows -- a trend that some schools are using to build student interest in computer science and STEM. In a Texas school district, students hone their skills by developing an "edutainment game," and teachers also use video games to teach soft skills as well as to further equity and inclusion goals.

Nakia Smith, 22, is using TikTok videos to teach Black American Sign Language (developed during the era of segregated schools) to viewers, and is attracting millions of views. Smith, whose family has deaf people across several generations, is part of a movement that has attracted interest in how Black deaf people communicate and the differences between BASL and American Sign Language.