A recent editorial by Jason Ma in Forbes documents a fascinating array of experiential learning programs. While I am not against experiential learning, it concerned me that Ma made the case for...
Category: Critical PerspectivesCritical Perspectives
The Flaws of Online Course Testing
A recent New York Times article titled “Online Test-Takers Feel Anti-Cheating Software’s Uneasy Glare” features an interview with a student taking an online course. This part struck me: “a red warning band...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Digital LearningToday’s impending release of the Apple Watch, Apple’s highly-anticipated entry into wearable computing, has prompted a new round of discussion about the company’s design prowess.While the computer-maker’s design chops are universally acknowledged,...
Category: Critical PerspectivesIs the Maker Movement Equitable?
The title of the article from The Atlantic stopped me in my tracks as I was scrolling through my Twitter feed: “Why I am Not a Maker.” I was perplexed. Why would someone...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, EquityLet’s Ban Bans in The Classroom
It’s starting to seem like there is a new ritual being performed at the beginning of each new semester: debating the use of technology in the classroom. In these debates, “technology” almost...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Educational Practice, ResearchThe Technophobe’s Dilemma: Nicholas Carr’s ‘The Glass Cage’
Nicholas Carr is well-known for his work critiquing emerging technologies, particularly his argument that “Google is making us stupid.” In his new book, “The Glass Cage: Automation and Us” (W. W. Norton...
Category: Critical PerspectivesDon't get me wrong. I love badges, digital badges for learning. And I don't mean just for some hoped-for potential to transform the learning landscape. I mean I love them for what...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, EdtechiFiasco in LA’s Schools: Why Technology Alone Is Never the Answer
The opening sentence to a recent Los Angeles Times article says it all: It took exactly one week for nearly 300 students at Roosevelt High School to hack through security so they could...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Educational PracticeHow Computers Can Impede Spaces of Learning
As a technophile, I’ll be the first to admit it: sometimes computers get in the way of learning.Hopefully that can be something we all agree on, right?I’ve mentioned before that one of...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Educational PracticeIt’s obviously summer because my news alerts are no longer steadily reporting concerns about education, our children’s future, the problems with teachers, etc. Perhaps now, then, is the perfect time to address...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Educational Practice‘Making’ and Education Reform: Learning to Ride the Wave
At this moment in time, on both sides of the Atlantic, digital making and the maker movement is enjoying its time in the sun. A combination of policy concerns, technological developments, learning...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Educational PracticeRemembering Aaron Swartz, Taking Up the Fight
I encountered the Aaron Swartz memorial the other day that helps ‘liberate’ a randomly selected article from JSTOR, as an act of civil disobedience, to commemorate both the legacy that Swartz leaves...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Equity‘Imagine A World Where You Only Have To Go To School Because You Truly Want To’
Lately, I’ve been pleased with the ways digital tools are allowing me to engage and collaborate with the media producers that most challenge my thinking. I had intended to blog about how...
Category: Critical PerspectivesGeorge Couros: Why School Administrators Should Embrace the Social Web
By encouraging administrators to become learner-leaders, to use social media to connect with each other, share best practices and experiment, Canadian school principal George Couros is leading by example, exhortation, and instigation...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Digital CitizenshipThinking about Failure: Ways to Tell New Stories about Public Education
Maybe it's because progress reports at my high school were recently given to students, but lately I've been thinking about the role of failure in schools. The F-word, here and its corresponding...
Categories: Critical Perspectives, Educational Practice
