Curriculum

Calif. Department of Ed. Now on iTunes U

By Canan Tasci, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Calif. (MCT) — November 15, 2010 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The California Department of Education is following in the footsteps of Texas by launching an official presence on iTunes U, a dedicated area within Apple Inc.’s iTunes store that offers free downloads of lectures, lab demos, and access to educational content from state agencies and nonprofit groups.

With districts and schools under tremendous pressure to make every dollar count, California teachers can now download top-rated content from the site at no charge, said state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell.

“Whether accessed through a desktop, laptop, or smartphone, [California Department of Education] on iTunes U will be an important tool for the continued professional development of our community of education professionals,” Mr. O’Connell said. “Educators now have more opportunities to access relevant information whenever and wherever it is convenient for them.”

In August, Texas Gov. Rick Perry launched a similar iTunes U channel, saying it would help teachers across his state gain a new vehicle for sharing professional-development materials and course information. Most iTunes U content comes from postsecondary institutions, but Mr. Perry, a Republican, expressed confidence that the content pushed into the K-12-geared Texas education channel would be substantive and sizable.

The California and Texas channels follow the 2008 creation of a K-12 iTunes U destination that pulled resources from several state education agencies, as well as the State Educational Technology Directors Association. The Arizona, Florida, Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Utah education agencies have all contributed to that venture, as have museums and other education-oriented organizations.

State Criteria

Available content for the California channel meets the state education department’s criteria, which include high-quality video, audio recordings, presentations, PDF documents, and other education-related information.

California schools will be able to offer educators free professional-development resources that are produced primarily by districts and private education institutions in the state, Mr. O’Connell said.

More than 200 media files are available on iTunes U, some of which have been contributed by California school districts and charter schools.

Additional content will be unveiled in the near future, but for now the state education department is asking districts to contribute material.

“School districts have contributed, and we’re also working with various organizations for additional content,” said Tom Adams, the California department’s director of standards, curriculum frameworks, and instructional resources.

Mr. Adams said the content will continue to grow as long as people continue to contribute information. For instance, information on the academic standards of the Common Core State Standards Initiative is set to be in iTunes U in the near future. The standards are intended to provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them.

The California department has a number of tools up for educators, including information about how to help them successfully implement a standards-based education for California’s adolescents, as well as information on how to encourage students to bond with their schools.

“Going forward, we expect more contributions,” said Jim Long, an education programs consultant for the department. “But right now we’re looking for existing material.”

Staff Writer Ian Quillen of Education Week contributed to this article.

Copyright © 2010, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Ontario, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
A version of this article appeared in the November 17, 2010 edition of Education Week as California Ed. Department Establishes Presence on iTunes U

Events

Federal Webinar The Trump Budget and Schools: Subscriber Exclusive Quick Hit
EdWeek subscribers, join this 30-minute webinar to find out what the latest federal policy changes mean for K-12 education.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Curriculum Webinar
End Student Boredom: K-12 Publisher's Guide to 70% Engagement Boost
Calling all K-12 Publishers! Student engagement flatlining? Learn how to boost it by up to 70%.
Content provided by KITABOO
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management
Moving the Needle on Attendance: What’s Working NOW
See how family engagement is improving attendance, and how to put it to work in schools.
Content provided by TalkingPoints

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Curriculum Video These Two Key Questions Form the Heart of Digital Literacy Instruction
Crucial lessons around digital literacy and digital safety can be framed around these two questions.
1 min read
Curriculum Opinion This State Is Achieving Impressive Reading Gains. Why?
How content-rich curricula is fueling a rise in reading scores.
7 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Curriculum Teaching Personal Finance to Teens in the Age of Online Gambling
Teenagers have more spending power than ever before. States are pushing schools to teach them how to be responsible with their spending.
5 min read
boy likely a teenager, sitting in a dimly lit room, holding a credit card and looking at a tablet screen
Nadzeya Haroshka/iStock
Curriculum How to Teach Tariffs: 8 Resources and Lessons
Wondering how to broach tariffs with your students? Check out these resources and lesson plans we've gathered.
2 min read
Image of shipping boxes from different countries.
iStock/Getty