As the coronavirus continues to close schools across the country, educators are scrambling to move classes online and help their students stay on track.
For the last decade, Betty Chandy, Catalyst @ Penn GSE’s director for online learning, has prepared educators and schools for virtual and blended learning.
Chandy offers advice for middle and high school teachers who are teaching online for the first time. While these tips can work with any digital learning platform—even an improvised one—they are designed for schools where every student has access to a computer and an internet connection. Her suggestions include scaling down lectures, providing more support and being open and honest with students about how you are measuring progress and participation.
On the move: Water quality and antimicrobial resistance testing goes mobile
Penn researchers have developed a mobile field laboratory allowing them to test water quality and track antimicrobial resistance in and around San Cristóbal in the Galápagos.
Penn researchers Vanessa and Alexis North are studying one of the largest collections of Egyptian blue objects ever found in the ancient Near East, shedding new light on how the world’s first synthetic pigment may have traveled far beyond Egypt.
A new role for dental providers? Rethinking where vaccines are given
Vaccinations have traditionally been administered in primary care settings or pharmacies. However, for about a decade, some states have authorized dentists to administer vaccines, and many others did so during the COVID-19 pandemic. The effectiveness of this approach has led some countries and states to expand or consider expanding the role of dental providers in delivering routine vaccines, including those against COVID-19 and the human papillomavirus (HPV), and in providing vaccine education.
Penn student develops a way for computer chips to run more efficiently
Fluid Silicon, a platform from President’s Sustainability Prize winner Nhlanhla Mavuso, allows computer chips to continuously monitor their health and self-tune as their characteristics change. The technology has the potential to reduce energy usage in data centers and improve reliability in mission-critical applications.
