Innovate (www.innovateonline.info) is published bimonthly as a public
service by the Fischler School of Education and Human Services at Nova
Southeastern University and is sponsored, in part, by Microsoft.
The June/July special issue on the future of education, guest edited
by George Siemans, focuses on the changing shape of pedagogy, the
nature of knowledge itself, the future of copyright, likely patterns
of technology adoption in the future, the place of virtual worlds and
online portfolios in education, and offers a tool to assist educators
anticipate the future.
Catherine McLoughlin and Mark J. W. Lee describe the broad changes to
how individuals interact with information and each other dictate
"radical and transformative shifts in teaching and learning
practices." (See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=539&action=article)
Dave Cormier tackles the difficult theme of knowledge, using the
metaphor of the rhizome, a plant with no center and no clear boundary,
to describe the way knowledge is created in the context of Web 2.0
technologies. "Knowledge as negotiation" provides a lens through which
to view the current community-based notion of curriculum. As social
technologies move from our personal lives into academic settings,
corresponding community and social interaction around information and
knowledge will become an important part of education. (See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=539&action=article)
Stephen Marshall sees copyright, technology, and education as "worlds
in collision." Marshall argues for a rethinking of copyright in the
face of Web 2.0 technologies that do not fit into traditional
conceptualizations of copyright and suggests that, if educators do not
speak up, copyright law will be taken over by corporate forces
interested only in profit, to the detriment of educational uses of
media. (See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=528&action=article)
Bob Henshaw analyzes shifting demographics, labor markets, and
related factors in urging higher education to "redefine their
institutional culture and missions." Henshaw links technology adoption
patterns to the ability of institutions to meet the emergent needs of
learners as well as need for institutions to retain faculty. (See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=533&action=article)
In Places to Go, Stephen Downes offers the online video site YouTube
as a model and indicator of change on the Internet, arguing that the
advancement of online video offers new opportunities for educators.
(See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=633&action=article)
In the "From our Sponsor" section, Gary Brown, Nils Peterson, Adrian
Wilson, and Jim Ptaszynski connect the use of reflective e-portfolios
to increased learner control, better relationships with alumni and
employers, and increasing engagement through utilization of real life
learning tasks. (See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=559&action=synopsis)
Daniel W. Rasmus concludes this issue with a description of
Microsoft's use of scenario planning, a strategic planning tool that,
he argues, can help educational institutions "face uncertainty in
order to embrace the future." (See
http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=555&action=synopsis)
We hope that you enjoy this issue of Innovate. Please use the
discussion board within each article to raise questions or provide
additional commentary. Your comments will be sent to authors for their
response, which will become part of the record for their article.
Also, please forward this announcement to appropriate mailing lists
and to colleagues who want to use IT tools to advance their work and
ask your organizational librarian to link to Innovate in their
resource section for open-access e-journals.
If you are considering submitting a manuscript describing how you use
Microsoft technology to enhance the educational experience for
publication consideration in the "From our Sponsors" section, please
make sure that it conforms to the publication guidelines described at
the Contribute link on Innovate's navigation bar. The senior authors
of the top three papers published prior to June, 2009 will be invited
to present their paper at the Microsoft Global Exchange summit in July
2009 (with expenses covered by Microsoft).
Best.
Jim
----
James L Morrison
Editor-in-Chief, Innovate
http://www.innovateonline.info
Fischler School of Education and Human Services
Nova Southeastern University
http://www.schoolofed.nova.edu/home.htm