future of learning
DIY: Raising Money
Raising money is a function of delivering the right pitch to the right person. That's true for impact seeking investments from foundations and return seeing investments from private equity investors.
21st Century Learning, At All Levels
Last Friday, Mark Edmundson, an English professor at The University of Virginia, wrote a scathing critique of online learning in The New York Times. Mr. Edmundson's understanding of his subject lacked an in-depth intellectual or practical study of the myriad diverse programs available to students from grade school to graduate school.
Staff Picks: LPS, Innovation, Documentaries, Global Learning
This week's staff picks focus on politics of innovation, Leadership Public Schools, documentaries as learning experiences and global low cost private schools.
NRC Report Highlights Importance of Deeper Learning
While the NRC definition of deeper learning purportedly shifts from "21st century skills" to broader "21st century competencies" including skills, knowledge, and expertise, the definition seems accurate - but a bit shallow.
The Difference Between Improvement and Innovation
Improvement is doing things better. Innovation is doing things differently. Well-deployed technology enables both. Two bloggers missed these important distinctions this week.
Curriculum Associates: Leveraging For-profit Power With a Nonprofit Purpose
For-profit giants are often viewed with skepticism in education. Nonprofits generally focus on impact but move at a slower pace and struggle to raise donations to fund growth. Is there there a better model?
Q&A: Tim Knowles on Making Education an Evidence-Based Profession
It was a shocker when Tony Bryk announced that he was leaving University of Chicago for Stanford almost a decade ago. Bryk ran the best research shop the country--one known for making local observations with such clarity that they were always of national importance. UC turned to Tim Knowles, another guy that raises the average IQ in the room when he attends a meeting.
Impact investing: Where Money & Meaning Meet
Josh Cohen, co-author of white paper on impact investing and founder of City Light Capital, and I share a narrow definition of impact investing as seeking both high return and high impact. Cohen thinks it's entirely possible to have high expectations in both regards across education, safety and security, and energy and environment.
Why Aren’t There Any Next Gen Learning Platforms?
The education sector is in the early stages of transitioning from learning management systems (LMS) to learning platform ecosystems. In fact, a lot of U.S. schools will skip the LMS phase and go straight from print to platform.
What I Believe Right Now
Some opinion writers are critics. I’m an advocate. I’m less interested in stale reform debates and more interested in the potential of innovation. Like other sectors (energy, health care) new technology allows us to reframe gnarly old problems.