Teaching with Emerging Technologies

I am attending a workshop on teaching with emerging technologies at Nobles in Dedham, MA. This has been a useful workshop. At its core, the workshop is placing the dissemination of information above the use of technology. Technology becomes the conduit for the spread of information.

Alan November gave a very good presentation on how to promote critical thinking, global communication skills, and self directed learning. He discussed the importance of incorporating simple and free technologies that will enable the students to become complete learners. Some of theses free tools include:

Skype – a tool for communication
ePals – to be connected to classrooms around the world
podcasts
blogs

More to come as the day progresses.

Shift Happens

The following video discusses how the world is changing. As technologies arrive and students prepare for an ever changing world, this video puts the future into perspective.

Innovation and Collaboration

This TED presentation by Charles Leadbeater discusses the idea of innovation and collaboration. Leadbeater states that the idea of consumer innovation is the way of the future. The domain of creativity is expanding and allowing every day people have a voice and assist in the production of innovative ideas.

As educators, if we can promote this idea among our students, to get them to see themselves as innovators and understand the usefulness of collaboration, they will be well prepared for the “real world”.