Research | News Research: Education Could Use More 'Connected
Learning' - By Dian Schaffhauser The possibilities inherent in
digital learning won't in and of themselves flatten the global
playing field for students, according to new research, unless we
first give attention to the idea of creating "connected learning
environments." These are learning environments in which everyone
can participate, learning happens by doing, cultivation of
interests is paramount, and everything is interconnected. What
gets in the way is a down economy with a struggling labor
market, a growing gap in access to educational opportunities
based on how much a family is able to spend on its children for
"out-of-school enrichment activities," and the impact that a
rapidly evolving and highly commercialized media separated from
academic purpose is having on young people. A group of American
and British researchers have put together a report that
advocates for a design for learning that is "peer supported,"
"interest-powered," and "acad