Review of "How People Learn" (Chapter 9) and "Minds on Fire" Articles

Chapter 9 of the book How People Learn (http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=6160&page=194discusses) outlines five ways that new technologies can be used in education:

1. New curricula regarding real-world problems
2. Providing tools to enhance learning
3. Giving teachers and students more opportunities for feedback and revision
4. Building local and global communities that include all stakeholders in education
5. Expanding opportunities for teacher learning

Although all topics were interesting, the idea of using technology to develop new curricula to solve real world problems was most appealing to me. As Americans, we have also looked to education to solve the biggest challenges in our country. We certainly face our fair share of problems today in the 21st Century, and once more we are looking to education for the answers.

The authors outline many interesting projects throughout the chapter. The first one of its kind was dubbed "Voyage of the Mimi" which allowed students to "go to sea" and solve problems in the whale and Mayan cultures of the Yucatan. A banking program was even developed that allows students to assume the role and responsibilities of President or Vice President of a bank to better learn real-word skills in that particular field. Other programs like Global Lab and Project GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment) allow students to work directly with real scientists and directly gather real research in their local communities.

All of these programs sound very similar to the types described by Brown and Adler in the article Minds on Fire (http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume43/MindsonFireOpenEducationtheLon/162420). This article suggests that these types of technology-based learning programs have not only upgraded the wed to "Web 2.0," but have also upgraded learning to "Learning 2.0." This new type of learning is a more of a social view where "we participate, therefore we are." I strongly agree this new type of learning should be more real-world based and directly address problems society faces today. I also agree that social networking and constant embracing of new technologies in the field of education will get us there.

Map Affecting Future Forces of Education - Healthy Shopping

"The Map Affecting Future Forces of Education" attempts to lay out all forces that will be affecting education in the next decade. The map is very interesting and I recommend a visit:

http://www.kwfdn.org/map/map.aspx

I was particularly interested in the topic of healthy shopping. We have all been bombarded with the green revolution and eating organic to stay healthy. I had never considered the impacts on education. The idea of "shopping healthy," whether it be organic foods or environmentally-friendly products, is driving our economy to produce more individually-specified products. The result in education is a "much more personalized world" which will need to be fostered in education.

I see this as a major driving force in education in the years to come. "Going green" is not just a buzz phrase anymore. Corporations and governments all around the world have taken great strides to join the movement. America's response is debatable, but I agree with the map. This will be a major impact on the education of American students in the future. For supporting links on the subject, check out the following link:

http://www.kwfdn.org/map/node/healthy_shopping.aspx

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I will be posting reviews of Instructional Tech Integration material on this blog throughout the coming fall. Please check back periodically to see what's posted :-)