NMC and Member News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 9, 2010

Contact:
Jennifer McLennan
(202) 296-2296 x 121
jennifer [at] arl [dot] org

OPEN UP! VIDEO CONTEST TO SHOWCASE STUDENTS’ CALL FOR OPEN ACCESS
Entries invited for the 4th Annual Sparky Awards

Washington, DC – The importance of the student stake in opening up access to scholarly research will be highlighted in Open Up! – the fourth installment of the annual Sparky Awards student video contest, announced today. Calling on students to articulate their views in a two-minute video, the contest has been embraced by campuses all over the world and has inspired imaginative expressions of student support for the potential of Open Access to foster creativity, innovation, and problem solving.

This week marks the release of the 2010 Horizon Report: Iberoamerican Edition, a joint project of the eLearn Center at the UOC and the New Media Consortium (NMC). The report, which is the result of intensive work by an advisory board of 44 international experts, presents a uniquely focused edition of the NMC's annual series of describing trends and emerging technologies in higher education.

 The results of our latest Two Minute Survey about what will be your next smartphone and why is now available for viewing.   Thanks to all who participated!

Smartphones have been a part of our lives for several years. In 2007, when Apple released the first iPhone, the image of the smartphone changed: touch screens, third-party apps, and sensors of location and movement transformed the device from a phone with a keyboard into something wholly new. Now, touchscreen smartphones are available from a number of manufacturers. New operating systems for smartphones, like the Android platform from Google, are opening the market up in some very interesting ways. Recent developments like HP's acquisition of Palm and its WebOS, and Microsoft's emerging Phone 7 platform continue to draw attention to the smartphone market, which is growing year by year as more consumers choose these devices over other mobile phones.

2010 NMC Symposium for the Future – Call for Proposals Is Open

Proposals for presentations for the 2010 NMC Symposium for the Future, a special 3-day, live online event to be held October 19 - 21, 2010, are being solicited through Sunday, September 15. 

The Symposium, the sixteenth in the NMC’s Series of Virtual Symposia, will explore actual and potential applications of technology that could impact issues of global importance over the next five years and beyond. The applicability of technology — whether established or emerging — to the social, environmental, and educational challenges we face today is a central theme of the Symposium. Projects that test the applicability of new ideas, research into new solutions for global problems, and demonstrations of cutting-edge tools are all part of this exploration of the future. 

See http://www.nmc.org/2010-future-symposium for full details. 

Smartphones have been a part of our lives for several years. In 2007, when Apple released the first iPhone, the image of the smartphone changed: touch screens, third-party apps, and sensors of location and movement transformed the device from a phone with a keyboard into something wholly new. Now, touchscreen smartphones are available from a number of manufacturers. Where do you stand on the topic of smartphones? Do you have one and like it? Want a new or different one? Prefer not to carry one? If you had the choice of any mobile on the market, what would it be and why? We would love to hear your thoughts on smartphones in our Two Minute Survey. You can find it here:  http://www.nmc.org/2minute-survey/next_smartphone

In collaboration with national arts organizations, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21) has charted how arts education promotes key 21st-century skills in a map released earlier this month. The 21st Century Skills Map: The Arts is the fifth in a series of core content maps from P21, and was cosponsored by the NMC. The map illustrates how the “four Cs” of critical thinking and problem solving, communication, creativity and innovation, and collaboration can be integrated into the arts, including dance, music, theater, and the visual and media arts.

The most recent Two Minute Survey results for Virtual Conferences have been tallied and posted online at http://www.nmc.org/2minute-survey/virtual-conferences

During these times of fiscal belt tightening, virtual conferences offer the chance for people to connect, collaborate, present and share their work without the costs and time constraints of physical conferences. While they don't substitute for face to face networking they do seem to be more commonplace as a way for educators to engage in professional growth both in terms of learning from colleagues and in sharing their own work.

Flickr creative commons licensed photo by HVX Silverstar - http://flic.kr/p/4x4JA7 

cc licensed flickr photo shared by G.Chris Clark

Since the close our most recent NMC Summer Conference in Anaheim, we've been compiling media archives and summarizing the social media activity that surrounded this year's conference. Whether you were there or not, we have much to share. 

cc licensed flickr photo shared by Rachel Smith

 We have a new 2 minute survey posted about virtual conferences.  Please take two minutes of your time to answer three questions about your experiences with online virtual conferences.   Thanks for your time! The results will be posted within a week at the following link. More information and the link to full survey can be found at http://www.nmc.org/2minute-survey/virtual-conferences.