Thursday, October 4, 2012

Learning at the Speed of Technology - David Jakes

Notes from David Jakes Keynote
Fall 2012 TCEA TECSIG Meeting
October 4, 2012
Austin, Texas
All resources posted at davidjakes.me

Question: Are we taking brand new disruptive technologies and trying to force them into old models?

The emerging model in business today is BYO3 - Bring Your Own Laptop/Tablet/Phone

We are coming to a price point where schools can provide small tablets and allow students to bring their own devices for learning as well.

We are still on the grid model - classrooms with desks in rows. Even when we put technology into the classroom. We are putting new technologies into old classroom models.

Students may have tons of devices, but don't know how to use them deeply beyond texting and recording. How do teachers manage the multiple platforms.

Regarding student use of technology, Mimi Ito says, "Students engage in friendship and interest-based activities. They need academic intervention..." For example, students are engaged in social activities an passion based research (if they love photography, they look for photography info).

Richard Halverson: "Digital media provides a path to personalizing and customizing learning...this has meant that digitally literate young people have come to understand that there are at least two living channels for learning 1. an institutional channel, and 2. a peer-driven, interest-driven, and unregulated digital media channel.

How can we help students build the skills they need to learn on their own if we are not providing digital teaching and learning spaces (online spaces)?

DIGITAL = DISRUPTIVE

Mission vs Vision - What's the difference?

Our mission has not changed: Help kids learn. Our vision for how that occurs should change over time as new technologies emerge.

Do we live and breathe our mission and vision every day in what we do and how we act?

What do you want learning to look like?

What do you want your school to be?

Unifying Theme: The Ecology of Things
is represented by the sum of the connections between people, information, ideas, and technology and are manifested through the interactions that occur in the physical and digital spaces of the school.

Things: apps, cloud-based programs that allow us to share and collaborate on projects. (Example: WeVideo for Google Drive.)

Unifying Theme: Transliteracy
is the ability to read, write, and interact across a range of platforms, tools, and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and film, to digital social networks.

Kids have to exhibit an ability to negotiate across a range of modalities from face-to-face to world-wide virtual connections.

Unifying Theme: Content, Skills, Habits of the Mind, Dispositions and Experiences

In education, we tend to cover content, skills, habits of mind, and dispositions well. Are we providing the range of experiences needed to successfully cover all of the contemporary skills, habits, etc that modern students need? Or is their primary experience sitting in rows??

What If? School As Studio

School as studio - spaces that inspire, spaces that support remix and creation, spaces that together contribute to the "ecology of things" Spaces where boundaries for learning do not exist. Spaces that support the timeless value of teacher-student interaction.

Do we have these kinds of spaces in our schools? Spaces with room to move, inviting colors, comfortable furniture? Where do kids hang out in your school and why?

There are models out there. Blue School is an example. How can spaces in your school be re-designed?

What If? School as App

School as portal School on demand. School as node with 24/7 connections.

mySchool app?
myINSERTYOURSCHOOLNAMEHERE

How have you positioned your school for anywhere, anytime, any device learning? Are you designing for mobile?

Are you providing digital learning spaces where students have ownership of their content? Where it is not locked in a learning management system? (Ex: Google Apps accounts).

What If? School as Network

Learning is now independent of time, space, and place. Schools serv to link learniers.

Network as School

Anyone can be a teacher, anyone can be a learner. Learning not limited to a class roster.

Standford MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) - Introduction to Artificial Intelligence - 180,00 enrolled; 6,000 have completed

mobiMOOC - Course where participants self-organize based on their interests in mobile learning.

M.I.T. - Has been offering open online courses for 10 years. Is now launching MITx where instructor is involved. More students have successfully completed a course on circut design since it's been online than in the 40 years of face-to-face only prior to that.

Skill Share, Hour School - people who voluntarily organize around learning experiences.

What If? School as Canvas

The school canvas paints a picture of the capabilities of the human beings associated with school. The school canvas illuminates their presence and ideas locally and globally to create a conversation aobut the learning taking place, and about the passions being explored.

Make it OK for kids to publish their work with their names to create a positive digital footprint.

Youmedia YOUmedia is an innovative, 21st century teen learning space housed at the Chicago Public Library's downtown Harold Washington Library Center. YOUmedia was created to connect young adults, books, media, mentors, and institutions throughout the city of Chicago in one dynamic space designed to inspire collaboration and creativity.

What If? School as Third Place

Part of the connective ecosystem, part of being transliterate, is to be able to step away from technology and have the face-to-face conversation, the quiet reflection experience, and time away from technology.

Schools need informal spaces for learning. Think Starbucks, Barnes & Noble coffee shop...


Update October 21, 2012 - A recording of David's presentation has been posted online. If my notes left you wanting more (they should have!), you can now view the whole thing for yourself!