From the just released 2009 Horizon Report:
Information technologies are having a significant impact on how people work, play, gain information, and collaborate. Increasingly, those who use technology in ways that expand their global connections are more likely to advance, while those who do not will find themselves on the sidelines. With the growing availability of tools to connect learners and scholars all over the world — online collaborative workspaces, social networking tools, mobiles, voice-over-IP, and more — teaching and scholarship are transcending traditional borders more and more all the time. (Emphasis mine.)
Another pebble for the pile…
I love to see this idea get recognition. Yes, information technology is a toolset that should be evaluated alongside traditional tools, but it’s such a phenomenal toolset that people who don’t take advantage of it can’t keep up with people who do.
My concern is what this quote doesn’t say: “And for those without access, we say to you…good night and good luck.”
Absolutely right, Chris.
“Increasingly, those who use technology in ways that expand their global connections are more likely to advance, while those who do not will find themselves on the sidelines”
Global connections? That sounds a bit waffley. I think a very small number of people will advance this way. Far more people will continue to advance in the usual way – by forging strong connections with the people they work or live close to.
I would like to rephrase that:
“Increasingly, those who use technology in ways that expand their global connections… …are more likely to advance, while those who do not will find themselves on the sidelines… .
Sorry… I used some fancy tags and my additions got left off. Let’s try that again:
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I would like to rephrase that:
“Increasingly, those who use technology in ways that expand their global connections, …solve relevant problems, collaborate in powerful ways, and harness vast knowledge pools and expertise… …are more likely to advance, while those who do not will find themselves on the sidelines… wasting precious time on frivolous online activity or not being connected at all to powerful global learning communities.
Am am glad this was restated. The internet, web access, blogging, twitter, global communities, and wikis are not the solutions to good education. They are merely the tools that are in vogue with students at the moment. They, too, will pass. Teachers need to be willing to change methods,to shift paradigms, to reach their audience. Those who are not willing, who think “what was good when I grew up…” will be the broken wheel that hinders education.
80 years ago, the phrase “information technologies” could be replaced with “energy resources,” and the statement would be just as valid.
It will be interesting to see how the future plays out for access-issues.
This quote expresses why it is so important for teachers to utilize and implement blogs, wikis, and other technology in their classrooms. We have to prepare our students to stay ahead of the pack. They may have the interest in some form of technology already, but we need to guide them and model how to be responsible for the information they present.
I went back to the 2006 Horizon Report to get some idea about how effective their crystal ball reading was and this is a sample of their prognostication:
“Dynamic knowledge creation and social computing tools and processes are becoming more widespread and accepted. No longer in their infancy, tools for working collaboratively at a distance are easier to use and more commonly available than in previous years. It is no longer unusual to attend a conference online or to contribute to a project wiki.”
Not bad for three years ago, but I also think that there is a considerable vagueness about the future much like Madam reading your palm. And when they get specific (wikis and online conferences no longer unusual) I think they have missed it for normal users if not for early adopters.
I would not spend any serious money based upon these “horizons”. The purpose of these is not for basing budgets upon yet I wonder that people might use these as in any way predictive.
Thanks for this, great for proposal writing, which I am knee deep in!
Thank you for yet another pebble.
I was just catching up on my Google Reader and this post and your previous post on prezi.com (the content you talked about) fall perfectly in to a session I am doing next week on the foundation to a classroom with no walls starts with a teacher who is connected.
What a great quote. Technology in education abounds, limited only by our visions, dreams and budgets. Those who embrace will excel, but what of those who don’t or won’t. As I see it, it is our job to spread the word and engage them!
Wonderful quote – I love the part … “the growing availability of tools to connect learners and scholars all over the world”. One of the challenges that we are facing in making this a reality is Africa is that the teachers are the major barriers to learners benifiting in this way. A lot of work needs to be done to help them to make the shift in thinking, so that learners can gain access.