David Warlick's presentation: Inventing New Boundaries

Well - here goes - 3 weeks of thought-provoking presentations to watch and listen to in the comfort of my home from the K12 Online Conference. But the discussion doesn't have to stay there. Through blogs, twitter, wikis and chat rooms the conversation continues. That really is one of David Warlick's messages - the importance of networks for learning, building knowledge and collaborating. So spread the word to others, if you read this post.

I am now watching David Warlick's pre-conference presentation.
He is talking about the importance of side trips in education. Walls are invisible for both teachers and students and it is possible to learn any place. But this comes at a price - how do you get the interaction that happens face to face? What are the new boundaries (not classroom walls)? The traditional boundaries are going away - we need to create new kinds of boundaries to find a sense of structure in this new world.

He goes on to discuss: With the speed of change our children can no longer look to us to see their future. We can no longer describe the future - it is unpredictable. Change is happening so fast - when we talk about digital natives - which it is really about adapting to the constant change. The territory is shifting so quickly. The big difference between digital natives and digital immigrants is not being afraid of the technology and knowing where to go for help. Students know how to find networks that can help them problem solve their technology problems. They are part of a community. They are learning about the power of collaboration - through social networks, online games, text messaging. Our classrooms do not take advantage of this. Instead - we cut them off.

New literacies -
Information (find information, evaluate it, organize it into personal digital libraries)
Math (numbers now apply to full range of content - binary)
What information is competing for our attention
Can you produce an information product that competes for information attention
we can shape and reshape information to create new learning experiences. We can make students remixers of content
Many of our students know how to do this, how to publish online. Our new classrooms are flattening - students and teachers must all be learners.
3 converging conditions
Info-savvy students and tech savvy - know how to play the information, they need us to help them learn to work the information
New information landscape - information increasingly networked, digital, participatory
Unpredictable Future - preparing our students for an unpredictable future - need to teach students how to teach themselves

And I will add - teachers need to learn how to teach themselves - to be open to lifelong learning and to welcome the excitement that comes of mastering something new.