Frankly, I'm Bored With The Future
Educational leadership in cyberspace

Program Description:

Educators need to embrace the role of the computers and the Internet in the intellectual and creative lives of children. We will explore how schools should respond sensitively to the expectations of high-tech kids and how technology can make the learning process more personal, expressive, constructive, imaginative and collaborative than traditional school settings. Participants will help close the imagination gap through exploration of powerful technology-rich learning opportunities that exist today, yet may be overlooked.

Session Description:

Educational computing pioneer Gary Stager returns to share his experience and advice for school leaders trying to make sense of the digital age. Gary helped design Pepperdine University's groundbreaking Online Master of Arts in Educational Technology degree program and has been teaching online for several years. For the past year he has worked with Seymour Papert in the creation of high-tech alternative learning environment for at-risk learners in a state prison for teens. Gary has written extensively on the role of computers in education and has spent a decade consulting with Australian schools and has worked in more "laptop schools" for more time than perhaps any other educator.

This provocative session will help educators assess the role of the Internet in the intellectual and creative lives of children. We will explore how schools should respond sensitively to the expectations of high-tech kids and how digital communications technology can make the learning process more social, more personal and more collaborative than traditional school settings.

Author Thomas Friedman recently wrote that, "the Internet is everything and it's opposite." The "net" challenges educators by undermining their monopoly on information delivery, while potentially liberating the school-day from that which is no longer necessary or can be done outside of school. The Internet requires educational leaders to clarify their institution's educational mission and understand the technology at a deeper level than many do today.

This session will:

redefine our concept of educational leader for the 21st century through examples, not rhetoric

discuss the educational promise of online learning

share examples of online innovation

describe online learning environments and the tools for creating them

redefine teaching and educational leadership in the digital age

explain the costs, both financial and intellectual, of over-regulation

suggest what every educational leader should know about the Internet

share strategies for reducing networking costs and provide greater service to students

define the appropriate role for school non-instructional computing personnel

consider the advantages of outsourcing

provide a list of resources for further learning

Presentation type...	general session
Audience................	all
Duration.................	1 hour
Handouts................	no

Mr. Stager will gladly tailor any presentation to your specific needs.