KPI_Library Bookmarks's List: Newsfeed_041310

The headline is an April Fools joke. nuPOLIS is "the Internet presence of the Innovation Network for Communities (INC)" and a favorite site of Susan and Diana. However, their 15-month start-up grant is coming to an end, and this organization that concentrates on social innovation must decide how -- and if -- they will move forward. Stay tuned to see what happens.

By Rosemary Luckin, published by Routledge (UK), April 2010. Luckin is Professor of Learner-Centred Design at the London Knowledge Lab. This book has just been released in the UK, and may not yet be available in US markets or libraries.

By Joshua Kim of the blog BlogU, part of Inside Higher Ed, March 29, 2010. Kim reflects on the more successful online learning experiences that he's taken part in, and points to three attributes that made these experiences successful. The comments section also provides some interesting links.

By Tara Siler on All Things Considered, NPR, March 31, 2010. Siler reports that students miss out on financial aid, particularly in community colleges, because they don't understand the system. Pell Grants can be particularly useful to low income students, if they understand how, when, and why to apply.

By Alan Greenblatt on NPR, March 29 2010. Greenblatt reports that there was initially great promise for community colleges in the health care reconciliation bill that was passed at the end of March. However, "Congress ultimately took a pass on restructuring the mission of the nation's community colleges." The $12 billion American Graduation Initiative recognized the important role that community colleges could play in producing more college graduates, but the initiative was not included in the final law.

By Simon Mackie of GigaOM, in the New York Times, April 2, 2010. Here are 10 great tricks to try when searching in Google.

By Andrea Fuller in the Government section of The Chronicle of Higher Education, March 20, 2010. At North Virginia Community College, President Obama signs legislation that ends the bank-based lending system for student loans. The savings from ending this program will be used to provide spending on education. The president also announces that Jill Biden will lead a community-college summit at the White House in the fall.