"Welcome to EdTechAfterDark! Our community was born out of discussions for a rich EdChat type gathering for those of us who are thinking about the digital edu-landscape long after the sun has gone down. For us night owls, when the clock strikes 10PM EST, you’ll find us on Twitter over at #edtechafterdark. All are welcome! Our discussions range from our philosophies about EdTech, digital best practices, and simply sharing our stories." --www.edtechafterdark.com
Let me throw this question out there. If we are saying let’s prep these students to be ready to the future but the jobs of tomorrow are unknown, how can we be future-ready? #EdTechAfterDark
Good evening, family and friends! Sylvia, Writing Coach @BrandonHSEagles this year! :). My favorite sandwich - pressed turkey and cheese! #EdTechAfterDark
A1 Future ready school is helping students become better problem solvers, critical & creative thinkers, communicators, and reflectors ... hopefully we all model the model of looking toward a better future. :) #EdTechAfterDark
A1 that school would not have standards that have to hit but projects that need to be solved in completed l. Some would be technical and some would be community minded. Students would build portfolios that help with career and college readiness not report cards #edtechafterdark
A1: In theory, it’s a school that effectively prepares students for what the future holds; however, in practice, this goal is an impossibly lofty one. Yes. We should strive for it. No. We should not prescribe what/how it looks #EdTechAfterDark
A1: future-ready schools recognize the change in job need and priorities, the importance of technology, innovation, and collaboration. We can find the answers now. We don’t need to memorize, we need to critically evaluate the information out there. #EdTechAfterDark
AI: #edtechafterdark : Perhaps future ready schools are crowd(student)-sourced, inquiry-based, w/ an emphasis on iterative design and accepting of failure.... and, just for good measure- continue to teach kids how to make change.
A1: future-ready means nothing if the present issues and concerns in ed & our society are not recognized,addressed, & have okansvin place to make the present better FOR the future. Time to address today : that’s future-ready. #EdTechAfterDark
A1. One that champions digital learning, promotes 1:1 technology, and champions career workforce development with intuitive projects. Wait.. I think I may already be apart of something like that 🤔. #EdTechAfterDark
A1: I prefer the terminology “future-proof.” Are we preparing kids with skills that are applicable in the long-term, or just counting beans to get scores up? #edtechafterdark
I like this clip from Jack Ma that predicts that in the future, humans will need to be...human. Sadly, much of what we do in and out of school is dulling our humanity, our connections, our artistry that can't be imitated by a machine. https://t.co/kPt2VIeOAQ#edtechafterdark
A2. It would be designed to emphasize metacognition. To prepare Ss to be successful in the future, they must know how they learn. Learning constantly changing technologies will be the key for the future. #EdTechAfterDark
A1 I think it is a school that gives you a solid foundation in thinking and learning. The future will require us to learn and relearn over and over. #EdTechAfterDark
Future ready should really just “Ready” and determined by developed matrices to adaquetly measure S preparedness for their next step in life, benchmark mastery, social emotional stability, fiscal awareness, and civic duty #EdTechAfterDark
LOVE THIS!!! Humanities, I’d argue, lies at the foundation of any successful “STEM” initiative. Only when we understand the “why” of our humanity can we utilize STEM to enhance and expose it. #EdTechAfterDark
I like this clip from Jack Ma that predicts that in the future, humans will need to be...human. Sadly, much of what we do in and out of school is dulling our humanity, our connections, our artistry that can't be imitated by a machine. https://t.co/kPt2VIeOAQ#edtechafterdark
I like this clip from Jack Ma that predicts that in the future, humans will need to be...human. Sadly, much of what we do in and out of school is dulling our humanity, our connections, our artistry that can't be imitated by a machine. https://t.co/kPt2VIeOAQ#edtechafterdark
A2 students really need to understand the process of creating an object or improving a process. The latter is more what they need to know because that is where future innovation will happen #edtechafterdark
A2 The key isn’t really the particular technology. I think outputs versus outcomes. A PowerPoint is an output while a TED talk viewed by 20million people creates outcomes. It is about helping understand how tools drive/create change in the world. #EdTechAfterDark
A1: A future ready school focuses on personalized learning. It also has leaders that are comfortable with innovation and guide that process instead of block it unnecessarily. Facilitate instead of hamper innovative culture #EdTechAfterDark
A2: we need to read more sci-fi in school! Go back & read Fahrenheit 451, then let your mind be blown when you find out it was published in 1953! Also, start giving Ss the freedom to invent their own possibilities. We don’t know the future, they are the future. #EdTechAfterDark
A2 I think EDU will always be behind in TECH b/c of the exponential pace TECH progresses. It is more imp’t to teach Sts how to solve problems using the current tools strategically ... to have the process to “make sense of a problem & persevere in solving it.” #EdTechAfterDark
Or at least it will help us get a handle on being present! Which ostensibly will help us be more human, more connected, more sense making as we navigate a future. #EdTechAfterDark
A1 I think it is a school that gives you a solid foundation in thinking and learning. The future will require us to learn and relearn over and over. #EdTechAfterDark
Hi. Debbi HS from NJ jumping in.
A2. You teach students how to learn. How to think, and how to problem solve 1st, then focus on the tech at hand all while reminding Ss that the tech will always change.
#EdTechAfterDark
A2 the skills my high school debate teacher 👨🏫 taught me 30 years ago I still use today. The power to think 🤔 and research is timeless. #EdTechAfterDark
A2: It’s not so much the tool that matters. Teaching Ss to be adaptive, creative, and risk takers with he tools they have is important. Tech should be considered their skills not so much the tools. #EdTechAfterDark
A2 did you know that japan is in need of ninjas? So future ready for Japan would be developing those skills. This is a serious thing. I saw it on the news. #edtechafterdark
A few more Qs What age students are we “prepping” 4 their future jobs? Why are we rushing adult realities & acts into so many learning environments? What is wrong with kids learning where they are? Why can’t kids be kids from 0-16 yrs old (at least)? #EdTechAfterDark#dtk12chat
A2 The technology will change but the skills related to appropriate and effective use of tech will remain. If we prepare our students to use tech effectively (and ethically?) they should be able to cope with whatever the future holds. #Edtechafterdark
Why do we have to accept that schools will not keep up? My junior high kids are on the cutting edge compared to the high school they will attend #EdTechAfterDark
A2: some skills transcend the technologies we currently have and we can forecast them into the future. For instance, being digitally literate, providing guidance for Ss while they navigate digital spaces, etc #edtechafterdark
My only pushback would be that education could position itself to be ahead of the curve by harnessing the students’ innovation to beta-test technologies they create in real time. It’s possible. Students at the Plato Academy in Clearwater do this very thing! #EdTechAfterDark
A2 I think EDU will always be behind in TECH b/c of the exponential pace TECH progresses. It is more imp’t to teach Sts how to solve problems using the current tools strategically ... to have the process to “make sense of a problem & persevere in solving it.” #EdTechAfterDark
A2: keep Ss open 2underlying fundamentals that tech will bbuilt on-not make them dependent on any specific type of tech...which is hard when tech is not equitable.There is tech inequity&”tech insecurity” which makes it hard...all Ss should b exposed 2equal tech. #EdTechAfterDark
A2 The technology will change but the skills related to appropriate and effective use of tech will remain. If we prepare our students to use tech effectively (and ethically?) they should be able to cope with whatever the future holds. #Edtechafterdark
A2 The technology will change but the skills related to appropriate and effective use of tech will remain. If we prepare our students to use tech effectively (and ethically?) they should be able to cope with whatever the future holds. #Edtechafterdark
Hi. Debbi HS from NJ jumping in.
A2. You teach students how to learn. How to think, and how to problem solve 1st, then focus on the tech at hand all while reminding Ss that the tech will always change.
#EdTechAfterDark
A2: Great question. Crazy to think the iPhone X my 3-year-old loves to play with is the crappiest piece of tech she’ll use in her lifetime. This is where “soft skills” come in. Developing creativity and ingenuity is what will ensure she’s prepared. #EdTechAfterDark
A2. This is related to my A1. Response. We have to teach Ss how to learn/how they learn. Metacognition because we don’t know the specific tech we need to teach. It constantly changes. #EdTechAfterDark
Great point, Blake! :) I guess I am just considering my own experience with tech ... I’m comfortable with discomfort yet often find that the tech we have in our homes is often more advanced than the tech I see in our high schools? :) #EdTechAfterDark
Why do we have to accept that schools will not keep up? My junior high kids are on the cutting edge compared to the high school they will attend #EdTechAfterDark
Our conceptions of "technology" might often be conflated w gadgets or apps. But critical thinking, communication, + the 2 other Cs I can't think of right now are some hardcore technology that we too rarely use now. #oldschool#EdTechAfterDark
Good pt. IMO, that is an excellent use of resources - financial & student! :) #EdTechAfterDark Money solves all problems, but I admit that while Tech is not always available, it isn’t always the answer. I had no cell phone in HS, yet I use my own successfully. #EdTechAfterDark
My only pushback would be that education could position itself to be ahead of the curve by harnessing the students’ innovation to beta-test technologies they create in real time. It’s possible. Students at the Plato Academy in Clearwater do this very thing! #EdTechAfterDark
A2 I think EDU will always be behind in TECH b/c of the exponential pace TECH progresses. It is more imp’t to teach Sts how to solve problems using the current tools strategically ... to have the process to “make sense of a problem & persevere in solving it.” #EdTechAfterDark
A3 I think this is were most districts fall short. It takes planning, time, and money to keep up with tech. This is not a skill set that educators learn in college. Iterate often because otherwise districts/schools get paralyzed. #EdTechAfterDark
A3: I go back and forth on this one. On the one hand, Obama is right. On the other, we’ve got Silicon Valley tech titans sending their kids to tech-less schools. I’m looking forward to hearing what folks here think https://t.co/YdxuI8X5s4#EdTechAfterDark
A2: Perhaps an answer lies in teaching transferable concepts BUT also as asap as possible invite students to drive through deliverable creation-(i.e. intro apps/use apps/ students create apps), classes in minecraft, internships, portfolios, AR @edorble worlds #edtechafterdark
A3: The great theologian @bobdylan once said, “It may be the devil, and it may be the lord; but you’re gonna have to serve somebody.” Until education stops serving the standardized testing machine, we are ill-equipped to serve a better tomorrow. #EdTechAfterDark
Instead of saying jumping the gun...it’s important 2see that a lot of the fundamentals don’t rely on tech..mathematics, statistics, LOGIC...so much tech becomes so obsolete that schools become money mills instead of homes of knowledge for what preps kids 4tech.! #EdTechAfterDark
A3 I think future ready can mean many things. Not necessarily focused on future generation but could be more of the Ss future and what they are going to do. More individual future, not society future. #edtechafterdark
A3. Due to how schools are funded (property tax), only the affluent Ss will be future ready. The less affluent schools are struggling just to prepare Ss for the here & now due to less resources & a more challenging Ss pop. #EdTechAfterDark
A3 Our intentions are pure ... the greatest battle to “future-ready” is the mindsets that come with socia-economic status — sts from poverty struggle with future-thinking, much less future-ready. :) #EdTechAfterDark
A3 The haves should be advocating for the have-nots. Technology makes advocacy easier. We can’t move forward, solving greater issues without involving those in poor educational environments. #EdTechAfterDark
A3: Absolutely Not! We must push forward and keep innovating. Show students that change is the only thing that is constant. Keep them creating. #edtechafterdark
Wow! Thanks for sharing. I don’t even let my own children have cell phones until they understand responsibility - age 18. :). I want them to be able to be resourceful without tech so that tech can help them solve the problems as A tool not the tool. :) #EdTechAfterDark
It’s happening. A recent article (pissed I can’t find it at the moment) saw that pushing teachers for school grades brought less results...leading mucky mucks to look at testing in a different light. A glimmer of hope... #edtechafterdark
Instead of saying jumping the gun...it’s important 2see that a lot of the fundamentals don’t rely on tech..mathematics, statistics, LOGIC...so much tech becomes so obsolete that schools become money mills instead of homes of knowledge for what preps kids 4tech.! #EdTechAfterDark
A4: The potential is certainly there, especially when it comes to teacher training in affluent vs. impoverished communities. https://t.co/NBKV3zHyk5#EdTechAfterDark
A3: If educators believe that technology is future ready then they need to find a way to make it a priority regardless of the the situation at their school. What example are we setting for Ss if we make excuses as to why we aren’t trying? #EdTechAfterDark
A4: the pen is mightier than the sword. Always has been. It is what we do with our technology that matters. Which means it’s about time we add character education standards to our required curriculum. #EdTechAfterDark
Though I'm sure the teachers in those Silicon Valley schools have full access to resources that help them bring lessons and content to life in ways that make rich connections for Ss. So Obama AND the titans can both be right? #EdTechAfterDark
A4: I disagree. What we teach students to do with the tech that they do have is the issue. Are you allowing them to play games in your class or create games? #EdTechAfterDark
A4: In short, yes. Technology in & of itself is neutral. It’s what we do with the technology that creates good and/or evil. Therefore, the technology of today & tomorrow can, in theory, deepen the divides that currently plague our nation. It’s our job to do good. #EdTechAfterDark
It’s happening. A recent article (pissed I can’t find it at the moment) saw that pushing teachers for school grades brought less results...leading mucky mucks to look at testing in a different light. A glimmer of hope... #edtechafterdark
A4 Poor kids do digital worksheets, rich kids create. There is this fear of giving disadvantaged kids access to same creative tools that better off peers. #EdTechAfterDark
A4. Tech is like wealth, there is a great divide between the haves & the have nots. Those who do not have access to tech will be working for those who do & those jobs will be more physically demanding than mentally demanding. #EdTechAfterDark
A4: Society has global parameters. Sensitivity must accompany discussions- hardware/software, social media access, gender sensitivity to access, even non-censored internet- all must receive consideration. #edtechafterdark
A4: the pen is mightier than the sword. Always has been. It is what we do with our technology that matters. Which means it’s about time we add character education standards to our required curriculum. #EdTechAfterDark
A5 I teach health and don’t use a textbook. Our teaching is based on youth risk behavior survey data. We tailor our content to the specific needs of our students. The teaching of health skills remains but the content changes to best serve our students. #EdTechAfterDark
A5:Reputable sources of info using standards not stand-in BigCorpTexasPublishing Companies.Know those brown papertowels in schools?Havent change since 1965,why? Gazillion yr Contracts.Textbooks r the same.Once Districts take a stand&break contracts,future happens #EdTechAfterDark
A5. I think digital textbooks with hyperlinks to current events, YouTube videos, etc. will work. Most of my son’s texts are digital located on his chrome book. #EdTechAfterDark
A4: Definitely potential for this. It isn’t exclusive to just this topic however. Affluent schools often enjoy advantages that impoverished schools do not. But, technology is becoming more affordable by the minute. If it’s a priority, schools will make it happen #EdTechAfterDark
A5:Reputable sources of info using standards not stand-in BigCorpTexasPublishing Companies.Know those brown papertowels in schools?Havent change since 1965,why? Gazillion yr Contracts.Textbooks r the same.Once Districts take a stand&break contracts,future happens #EdTechAfterDark
A5: Tailoring content to Ss interests and needs is a great place to start. The internet provides ample opportunities for learning resources as well as to learn from others. Info in textbooks is contained to that book. Info on web is limitless. Utilize it! #EdTechAfterDark
A6: I try new things when presented to me—whether by colleagues, students, twitter chats...I open myself up to trying new things and learning new things and introducing new things. It’s fun. #EdTechAfterDark
A6: A PLN is a great place to start. Most educators hopefully have a natural thirst for knowledge. With social media, we can learn so much from everyone around us if we just look and ask! #EdTechAfterDark
What about role of parents & community in navigating "future ready." Many parents are liable to freak out in textbookless world. It's not all just district leaders stuck in old paradigms/conventions. Do you find communities lean toward or away from futury stuff? #EdTechAfterDark
A6: #edtechafterdark I like to "catch" my learners being insightfully awesome and I like for them to "catch" me making mistakes- right in front of them (well, virtually since we're online)...see me making mistakes, doing a re-beta and living to tell the tale!
Before we officially end our time together tonight, I just wanted to thank you all for finding this conversation worthwhile. Until next week... #EdTechAfterDark
A6 @twitter Chats has taken my learning to another level. Where else can you learn with educators all over the world 🌎 in your jammies. #EdTechAfterDark
