This post comes from Kact in New Orleans. To get an idea of the future at the University of New Orleans, just imagine Barbie, Ken and hundreds of their clones dropped into the world of “The Matrix.

It’s a virtual world, populated by perfectly proportioned people with great hair and cool clothes who strut, stroll and even fly through an airy virtual building that is UNO’s Internet home.

Whether teacher, student or administrator, each visitor to the site chooses an online alter ego _ an avatar, in computerspeak _ which is assigned a name and can even be custom-designed.

Merrill Johnson, an associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts who showed off the system earlier this month, outfitted his avatar with a bright red tie, hip glasses and a thatch of streaked blond hair.

The system, called Second Life, is tricked out with enough gimmickry to appeal to students who have grown up playing computer games. In a development reminiscent of the movie “Being John Malkovich,” users can go inside their avatars’ heads to see the world from their point of view as they stroll down virtual brick paths past lush lawns, a gazebo and stark modern buildings alongside a placid lake.

“You have flood insurance?” someone cracked during the presentation.

But there’s a sensible side to Second Life, too. If the New Orleans area should be struck by another monster storm that forces students, teachers and administrators to scatter widely for an indefinite period, Second Life will let teachers set up online classrooms overnight, Johnson said _ keeping school functions from shutting down, as they did after Hurricane Katrina, and helping them hold on to students. To read the rest of this great article click here.

This post was recommended to us by Dr. Ray Campbell of Kutztown University. This article comes from Wired Magazine. Nintendo games have made the Wii controller a satisfyingly realistic controller for pretend tennis, golf and baseball. But how about using it to practice doing surgery, applying pesticides or operating a nuclear power plant?

Real-world simulations like these are perfectly suited to Nintendo’s Wiimote, says MIT research fellow David E. Stone. In fact, he claims the motion-sensitive controller is “one of the most significant technology breakthroughs in the history of computer science.” Say what?

For Stone, the Wiimote is the key to building realistic training simulators within the virtual world of Second Life. He is helping companies and universities do that through his WorldWired consultancy. Clients include a company interested in training workers for its power plants, a manufacturer of medical devices and pest-control firm Orkin. To read the rest of this article click here.

This post comes from the American Council on Education. The Senate today unanimously passed the Higher Education Amendments of 2007 (S. 1642), taking a significant step toward reauthorizing the Higher Education Act of 1965, which has languished in Congress since it was due for renewal in September 2004.

The legislation includes some major modifications in programs important to colleges and universities, including raising the ceiling for the maximum Pell Grant to $6,300 and increasing restrictions on the relationships between lenders, guarantee agencies and institutions.To read the rest of this article click here.

This post comes from Campus Technology. YOU CAN ALMOST HEAR the sigh of relief today, as more and more students review course requirements and see that they will be learning, creating, and presenting with their iPods, as well as reading text and listening to course content with them. The Apple iPod and its related set of technologies are bringing a freshness, spontaneity, and engagement to learning experiences that we haven’t seen in a while; possibly, ever. Why are these small devices having such an impact? Click here to read the rest of this article.

This post comes from Stuff.co.nz. Internet-based teaching software is being developed to try to address a shortage of Maori language teachers in schools nationwide.

Maori Affairs Minister Parekura Horomia said he had asked the Education Ministry to investigate ways of dealing with the shortage, with a focus on early childhood and primary education.

He wanted more children to learn te reo at a young age and online teaching software was one way to make sure this happened, given the shortage of Maori language teachers.

“We all know that the younger children learn another language the better it is for them.”

Mr Horomia said he believed teachers should be given more training in te reo when they entered the profession.

Maori language commissioner Erima Henare said the online project would be rolled out within the next year. To read the rest of this article click here.

This post come from eSchoolNews. Duke University at first blamed and then subsequently exonerated Apple iPhones in statements concerning outages of the universities computer network. The reversal came only hours after the initial claims from a school technology spokesman. The university now says iPhones were not the cause of the problems.

In a swift reversal, Duke University first accused and then exonerated students’ iPhones. A problem with Duke’s wireless network caused outages at the school, Duke officials said July 20—not Apple’s new iPhone. The retraction came only hours after Bill Cannon, a university technology spokesman, said an analysis of network traffic found that iPhones had flooded parts of the university’s wireless network with access requests, freezing parts of the system for 10 minutes at a time. This analysis turned out to be faulty, according to Duke’s most recent statement. To read the rest of this post click here.

This post is from PBS. A college education in the United States can be one of the most costly in the world. For many young people, college isn’t an option because of the economic strain it represents for their families. And many older people who would like to attend classes must forego studies to make ends meet.

But thanks to the power of voluntary collaboration, technology tools and the reach of the Internet, college-level classes and learning resources are becoming more and more accessible to anyone who has the interest and an Internet connection. But can you really get an education for free online? Yes and no. I set out to try to see what I could learn from two high-profile initiatives, Wikiversity and iTunes U.

When we hear the words “online university,” many of us tend to cringe, thinking of the ads that appear incessantly online for diploma mills promising anyone a Bachelor’s degree in no time with little to no effort. But the term is also becoming used to describe the phenomenon of the open university, which allows anyone with an Internet connection to access courses, media and resources on the topic of their choice, sometimes without a fee. To read the rest of this article click here.

This article comes from DLib Magazine. To help faculty, researchers, and students in the life sciences discover common interests and make connections, the Cornell University Library has created a virtual life sciences community that uses an entity-relationship ontology model to organize and present information on people, research, and education activities. This single point of access for scholarly activity in the life sciences at Cornell – VIVO (http://vivo.library.cornell.edu) – transcends campus, college and department structure to provide Cornell faculty, students, and administrative and service officials, prospective faculty and students, external sponsors, and the public an integrated view of the life sciences at Cornell. At the request of university administration, the VIVO database is currently being augmented to provide similar content for the social sciences, engineering, physical sciences, international activities, and potentially other areas at Cornell. To read the rest of this article click here.

This story is the success story of a recent Gatlin Education Services Pharmacy Technician student.

From motherhood to medicine: student thrives in new career after graduating from online pharmacy technician program. Laura Weaver, 37 year-old mother of four, recently faced uncertainty of starting a new career after being a stay-at-home mom for 16 years. With no prior professional experience, not only did she need to complete a formal education program, but she’d have to do it between carpools and diaper changes.

Ms. Weaver became interested in becoming a pharmacy technician after researching about the position and comparing it to other jobs. The career would offer her versatility of hours and a comfortable work environment, but knowing she needed a comprehensive education in order to be successful, she became apprehensive about fitting school into her busy life as a mom.

“I wanted to have an actual career, make better money and be able to move up, but it would have been extremely difficult to attend any classes.”

Luckily, her mom knew that a local university, California State San Bernardino, offers online courses through Gatlin Education Services, giving her a home-based learning alternative. She decided to enroll in Gatlin’s online pharmacy technician program, a course that teaches students the skills and knowledge that will enable them to qualify for positions in pharmacies as well as prepare for the mandated national certification.

Were it not for the availability of the online courses, Ms. Weaver said she would have encountered trouble completing a program held in a traditional classroom because her kids are all different ages with different schedules.

“With the online class, I could get up at 5 a.m. and start studying, or I could do it when my two-year-old was taking a nap. The fact that I didn’t have to drive and didn’t have to find a sitter was appealing.”

In addition, Ms. Weaver participated in on-the-job training the course offers through Gatlin’s partnership with Walgreens. The 40-hour externship not only gave Ms. Weaver practice assisting pharmacists with prescriptions, but it also provided her with the job she has today.

“It helped because I knew I could get my foot in the door with some hands-on experience,” she said. “I don’t think I would have been hired if I would have just taken the course without the Walgreens externship.”

Because all of Gatlin’s online programs are self-paced and instructor-supported, Ms. Weaver had the peace of mind that she’d made the right decision. And most of all, she gained the confidence she needed to find her place in the professional world.

“The course gave me a very good knowledge base. Everything was covered, so when I went into my externship or work, I felt fine,” Ms. Weaver said. “I would definitely recommend going through the program.”

About Gatlin Education Services

Established in 1989 by Stephen Gatlin, Gatlin Education Services is the largest provider of Web-based, instructor-supported training to community colleges and universities. Gatlin’s courses are open enrollment, allowing interested students to start their desired training immediately. Gatlin’s online career training courses are designed to provide the skills necessary to acquire professional caliber positions for many in-demand occupations.

About the Pharmacy Technician course

Offered solely in partnership with major accredited colleges and universities, the Pharmacy Technician course teaches the skills needed to gain employment as a Pharmacy Technician in either a hospital or retail setting. The objective of the program is to provide graduates with the skills and knowledge that will enable them to qualify for entry-level positions in pharmacies as well as prepare for national certification. This online program pairs students with an instructor for one-on-one assistance and includes a forty-hour externship. To enroll through a college or university near you, visit www.gatlineducation.com.

About Walgreens Co.:

Walgreens Co. is the nation’s largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2005 sales of $42.2 billion. The company operates more than 5,250 stores in 46 states and Puerto Rico. Walgreens also provides additional services to pharmacy patients and prescription drug and medical plans through Walgreens Health Services, its managed care division, which includes Walgreens Health Initiatives Inc. (a pharmacy benefits manager), Walgreens Mail Service Inc., Walgreens Home Care Inc. and Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy.

This post comes from eSchoolNews. Employers across the nation are finding it increasingly difficult to fill information technology (IT) positions, mainly because of a shortage of qualified entry-level and advanced employees, according to industry experts.

Contrary to what many people believe–that available IT jobs are on the decline–businesses throughout the United States say the IT sector offers more job opportunities than ever, and they’re struggling to find employees to fill these many openings.

Industry insiders point to a few reasons for the shortage, including the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) education law and lingering perceptions from the dot-com bust that occurred earlier this decade. Now, experts are trying to change these perceptions–and they’re looking to schools for help.

Part of the reason many people think the IT field holds little promise is they don’t understand things have changed since 2000 and 2001, when the IT field took a hit, said Gene Longo, senior manager of U.S. field operations for Cisco Systems’ Networking Academy program.

“In 2000 and 2001, when the dot-com bust happened, and then [immediately after] September 11, we saw lots of layoffs in the IT and tech industries,” Longo said, adding that many students and professionals shied away from the IT field when they saw jobs were scarce. Click here to read the rest of this article.