It's About Learning

Ereaders, the iPad—Is That All There Is?

Dwayne Harapnuik — March 26, 2010 — Leave a comment

http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6723753.html?desc=topstory

Ereaders, the iPad—Is That All There Is? – 3/25/2010 – School Library Journal via kwout

R. David Lankes, director of the Information Institute of Syracuse, NY, laments over the fact that today’s batch of ereaders are limited gadgets that do very little to enhance the reading experience. He does acknowledge that he enjoys and readily uses ereaders of various sorts but is hopping for much more. He also points to the fact that collobration with the author other readers and other information is really where the future of ereaders should be.

We are on the cusp of something significant and perhaps with the release of the iPad we will start to scratch the potential of the future of reading and perhaps learning. We do have a long way to go but you have to start somewhere…

Read the full article…

In 21st century learning, ebook digital books, ebook, ereader, Learning, reading

Learning to Change-Changing to Learn

Dwayne Harapnuik — March 25, 2010 — Leave a comment

21st Century learning requires a very different educational environment. 21st Century literacies are very different that what we see in our traditional model…

It is the death of education but its the dawn of learning

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In 21st century learning, Video - Wednesday Watchlist 21st century learning, Innovation, Learning

Pay Attention – Wednesday Watchlist

Dwayne Harapnuik — March 24, 2010 — Leave a comment

Since most of today’s students can appropriately be labeled as “Digital Learners”, why do so many teachers refuse to enter the digital age with their teaching practices?

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In Video - Wednesday Watchlist digital learners, digital natives, Learning

Optimal Learning Environments

Dwayne Harapnuik — March 19, 2010 — Leave a comment

Dr. John Medina, the author of Brain Rules, is a developmental molecular biologist focused on the genes involved in human brain development and the genetics of psychiatric disorders. In Brain Rules Medina shares his lifelong interest in how the brain sciences might influence the way we teach our children and the way we work.

In the following Youtube video at about 4:15 minutes in Medina explains that:

the brain has appears to be have been designed to solve problems related to surviving in an unstable outdoor environment and to do so in near constant motion…If you wanted to design a learning environment that was directly opposed to what the brain was really good at doing you would design something like a modern classroom.

Medina also asserts that if we really want to re-engineer learning environments we are going to have to tear down a few things and start over.

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Medina has an excellent site called “brain rules“that provides and overview of his book. The video clips and related resources are much more polished that the above youtube clip but you have to see Medina in a lecture to appreciate his passion and character.

In 21st century learning, Innovation brain, brain rules, cognition, Learning

The future of learning is DIY

Dwayne Harapnuik — February 26, 2010 — Leave a comment

In the blog post The future of learning is DIY Harold Jarche states:

With Google you can find most information that you need. YouTube is a quick and easy way to get “learning objects” to the world. Apple gives the essential tools for knowledge workers, and in a nice package. Wikipedia has shown that the wisdom of crowds is just as good as the wisdom of elites. Starbucks gives free-agents and road warriors a place to meet and work. These top brands provide the equivalent of the interstate highway system for the creative age. Jarche argues that the instead of trying to

He concludes with:

If you’re in the learning business, don’t try to build another LMS or portal. Instead, figure out ways that enable DIY. Believe it or not, learners can, and will, do the rest. They already are.

DIY learning is more commonly referred to as informal learning and there are some theorists who argue that over 80% of learning happens informally. Is this something that we as educators should concern ourselves about?

Consider the impact of the following:

There are billions of searches performed on Google each month (and this number is growing)—to whom were these questions addressed B.G. (Before Google)?

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In 21st century learning, Uncategorized future, Learning