Just listened to a David Puttnam speech from October 2008.
In Brisbane November 22 2010
Very appealing to me as he is into sustainability as well as the connoisseur use of technology in teaching and learning.
The thesis would be that his vision of good educators are those who take digital learning technologies, contextualise and modify them to suit the learning needs of their digital native students. Central to this notion is kids pursuing their own interests, collaborative learning across many geographical sites and obviously the skillful use of the tools to do so. I particularly liked the way he said to just pirate stuff until the business model gets its act together to allow the free use of knowledge for learning. (Well that’s my paraphrase)
Seems to be embedded in the notion of digital natives (which is not exclusive ie: my children are hills natives not beach natives or city natives or Italian natives or vegetarian natives) Grounding a student in the singular concept of a mono nativeness seems a bit narrow. Also expects that kids know what their interests are. This too, particularly in the primary setting is a little too much to expect especially when considering Autism Spectrum Disorders and the impact of mental health issues on families. A huge part of primary education is in fact the transmogrification of students into selves that have a sense of what they like. Student experiences inform that process.
More futurelab
Media Scapes WOW! This is exactly what I have been trying to do for years with PowerPoint and Photo Story – LET ME AT IT!
Also FIZZEES awesome idea for keeping kids fit.
Key idea: Mobile learning is about the student being mobile and learning in the process. Technologies are therefore designed to afford such learning. “Learning in location and at the moment.” Using technologies to enhance ‘learner voice’.
Future Laps newsletter
Wow, whoever would have guessed that I’ve gone from a Google search on school building design to ‘Futurelabs’ whose passion is good teaching and learning. Lucky me.
Media Scapes:
- Developed as an ‘app’ that can be downloaded onto portable devices. Think of museums that give you an ipod to walk around with as a virtual guide. Now imagine having Department of Education App (or school or local community based) that as you come into an area the GPS on your hand held (iphone / android device) triggers the commentary and imagery. For example, next years grade sixers will be the last in my school as it exists now. Imagine their year book being a guided tour with media of the old school buildings and examples of their learning in those sites. It remotely situates the narrative of their learning by virtue of your presence.
- Puffing BIlly could approach students to develop a series of historical events that are triggered as the train moves along the track.
- Students can give sustainability tours around the school in the same manner.
- Weed and light audits can be conducted in the same way.
- Kids identifying issues in their community can develop media scapes a tool for giving voice for social change.