Mark Milliron is well known by many WCET members for his engaging and thought-provoking speeches to audiences of educators, policy makers, and corporate leaders on issues of leadership, technology and learning, and the behavioral, social and economic factors that influence technology adoption. Milliron, whose career spans the academic, nonprofit, and private consulting sectors, recently joined the Gates Foundation to lead the foundation's Postsecondary Success Initiative. Join us as Mark addresses the future of student success in US Postsecondary education.

The image of higher education in the U.S. has long been a complex mix of private, public, charitable, and commercial concerns. Today's exploding demand for access, coupled with the constraints and conservatism of traditional colleges and universities, has set the stage for a sea change in higher education. Between 1995 and 2010, for profit instititions increased their share of the U.S. higher education market from 3% to 8%. So where do for-profit educators fit in higher education's changing landscape? What role do private non-profit institutions play? How are publicly funded institutions responding to the competition? IS American higher education ready to respond to the changing demands of and on ALL of its current stakeholders?

Begun in 2009, the Managing Online Education Survey is a national study of the instructional, organizational, managerial, and technology challenges that confront online education programs. The survey, sponsored by The Campus Computing Project and WCET, “brings data” to the campus and public discussions about online education in higher education. This plenary session at the WCET conference will be the first public presentation of the data from the 2010 survey.

The recipients of the 2010 WCET Outstanding Work (WOW) Award and WCET's Richard Jonsen Award for an individual's outstanding contribution to the educational technology community will be honored.

Pecha Kucha Smackdown!

Are you a big thinker that has something to say about accelerating the adoption of learning technology innovation in post-secondary education? Can you say it with 20 slides and 20 seconds per slide? If so, we invite you to participate in the first annual WCET Pecha Kucha Smackdown!

What is Pecha Kucha? According to Wikipedia, usually pronounced in three syllables as "pe-chak-cha", is the onomatopoeic Japanese word for the sound of conversation. The equivalent term in English is "chit-chat". Pecha Kucha events were originally conceived as a venue through which young designers could meet, show their work, exchange ideas, and network. They usually consist of around a dozen presentations, each presenter having 20 slides, each shown for 20 seconds. Each presenter has just 6 minutes 40 seconds to explain their ideas before the next presenter takes the stage. The format keeps presentations concise, fast-paced and entertaining. In 2004 PK events began running in a few cities in Europe, and has since spread virally since has become a worldwide phenomenon, now running in more than 260 cities all over the world.

In the last decade, eLearning has been transformed by the advent of ever more sophisticated technologies. However, there are many promises that have not been fulfilled. Learners have improved access, but it is still not ubiquitous. Differentiation is possible, but far from being fully exploited. Multimedia is a buzzword we consistently hear, but an overwhelming amount of online content is still presented in a text-and-next format. ROI has improved for some institutions, but financial difficulties abound. In her keynote address, Ellen Wagner will review where we have traveled and the distance that remains for practitioners, researchers and institutions. Contrasting the promise with reality will provide a dynamic and provocative vision for what needs to be done to catalyze the next generation of eLearning.

As Executive Director of WCET, Ellen has re-energized the focus on research and policy for informed decision-making. The new WCET is about:

INFORMING the community about news, trends and initiatives that are changing the ways we learn.
CONNECTING with peers, colleagues and partners dedicated to learning technologies excellence.
ADVANCING excellence in education by accelerating the adoption of learning innovations that work.
Find out more about the new WCET which will be unveiled during the closing session of the conference.