Mobile strategy or moving target — from CampusTechnology.com by Toni Fuhrman
In developing a mobile strategy, schools must navigate a technology field that is evolving at tremendous speed. CT looks at the key questions facing colleges and universities.
Gartner identifies the Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2012
Analysts Examine Latest Industry Trends During Gartner Symposium/ITxpo
Excerpt:
The top 10 strategic technologies for 2012 include:
In this funny, eye-opening, and inspiring film,
director Tiffany Shlain takes audiences on an
exhilarating rollercoaster ride to discover what it
means to be connected in the 21st century.
From DSC:
My thanks to Mr. Joseph Byerwalter for this resource.
From DSC:
Immediately below is a presentation that I did for the Title II Conference at Calvin College back on August 11, 2011
It is aimed at K-12 audiences.
From DSC:
Immediately below is a presentation that I did today for the Calvin College Fall 2011 Conference.
It is aimed at higher education audiences.
Note from DSC:
There is a great deal of overlap here, as many of the same technologies are (or will be) hitting the K-12 and higher ed spaces at the same time. However, there are some differences in the two presentations and what I stressed depended upon my audience.
Pending time, I may put some audio to accompany these presentations so that folks can hear a bit more about what I was trying to relay within these two presentations.
From DSC:
I want to post a thank you note to Mr. Steven P. Jobs, whom you most likely have heard has resigned as Apple’s CEO. Some articles are listed below, but I want to say thank you to Steve and to the employees of Apple who worked at Apple while he was CEO:
Thanks again all!
Some numbers from App Store turns 3 years old [tipb.com by Rene Ritchie]
But how do you move forward with such an innovation, when there isn’t definitive proof that it will work? That is the key question educators and policymakers are grappling with.
Under the education priorities of President George W. Bush’s administration, the catchphrase “research base” was drilled into educators” heads when it came to new programs and initiatives. If it wasn’t research-based, it wasn’t worth adopting.
But technology innovations occur so rapidly that it’s often impossible to do scientifically based trials proving effectiveness before schools embrace new approaches. Think of social-networking tools, iPads, and e-readers. And what other new digital-learning tools might also emerge well before scientifically based research can justify their use in classrooms?
Also see:
From DSC:
From my 20+ years of experience with working with a variety of technologies, while there is an element of risk taking to implementing technologies, there are also enormous payoffs if organizations implement the appropriate technologies.
But how can we select and implement the most effective technologies? This is where we need to rely on our technologists out there and keep them growing in the knowledge of “the business”, not just the technologies. Tell them what you are trying to achieve, and they can greatly assist. No one can hit 100% — but good technologists can get you into the right game and into the right ballpark (if not exactly lining up the exact right players, which may change or take some tweaking).
NOTE:
Don’t rely on technologists who only see their jobs as keeping the systems running. Though we need technologists who keep the infrastructures up and running, at this juncture what organizations really need are visionaries who are knowledgeable about the needs of the business (as well as the technologies), and those who are willing to explore, experiment, and take some risks…i.e. to lead….to be instrumental in forming strategies and visions. The areas outside IT need to be aware of how critical technologies are becoming in their core strategies and plans. It’s not the same ball-game as it was. Those who use technologies strategically will survive and thrive.
It should be noted that there have been risks inherent in maintaining the status quo — a 20%-30% dropout rate (in K-12) across the United States is pretty risky too, at least in my mind.
20 Forecasts for 2011-2025 — from the World Future Society
Trends and breakthroughs likely to affect your work, your investments, and your family
From DSC:
The following portion of the text really jumped out at me, and loyal followers of this blog will recognize the graphics (below) that I occasionally post re: this accelerating pace of change:
The rate of change is accelerating.
…
Today, it’s as if we’re driving 200 miles an hour and only looking out of the rear-view mirror.
or perhaps this one…
From DSC:
First, a word of caution. Due to the content of some of the stations available herein, I would recommend that only those people who are 18 or older visit this site.
Schooling past “sell-by” date says Education Fast Forward — from agent4change.net by (emphasis below from DSC)
Bill Hicks sat in on the second gathering of Promethean’s influential global education think tank
Jean-Yves Charlier
It was billed as a debate on “Productivity in Education”, but the second Education Fast Forward global forum ended with near-consensus on a radical proposition: that, when it comes to maximising the potential of students, schooling as we know it is well past its sell-by date.
The conclusions of the 32 distinguished innovators taking part in the live online debate from 19 locations across six continents, differed only in the degree to which they would change or replace existing structures.
Introducing the event, Promethean’s CEO Jean-Yves Charlier underlined the urgency of the issue: “It’s obvious the world has profoundly changed with the recession,” he said, “and while governments race ahead to fix problems created in the short term, I think we all agree that education has to be a fundamental pillar for economic growth in future. So this debate about the effectiveness and efficiency of education systems is a very important one.”
…
“In the past perhaps it was OK for education to move slowly… but the world is changing more quickly than education itself,” he said. The recession made change all the more crucial – but at the same time it would be more difficult to convince the decision-makers in government to invest in change: “Yet unless we get that magic way forward, people will say we can’t afford it. I’m worried we don’t get to the point where we can convince people this is achievable.”
From DSC:
Netflix reinvents itself — to its own benefit and to Blockbuster’s downfall. By the way, note how quickly this happened! There’s a lesson in this for higher ed (though perhaps the speed of such changes may be different in higher ed).
Some items on this:
