Keynote Address
Adrian Sannier, Vice President of Product at Pearson eCollege
If not now, when?
The challenges facing American education are formidable, and seem to call for change more radical than incremental. For more than two decades technology has been “on the verge” of transforming education, yet from P-20 for the most part school has remained unchanged. Is it possible that the force that has continually improved nearly every other facet of modern life will ultimately have no fundamental impact on education? Or are we finally at the brink of real change? In his talk, Dr. Sannier will explore the unfulfilled expectations for technology in education and consider whether conditions are finally right for major change?
1. Problems of Eduction are daunting
2. We are used to technology solving our hardest problems
3. We’ve expected for a long time for technology to contribute to education, but it hasn’t
4. Maybe it’s because it can’t
5. Or maybe it’s been delayed by a combination of technical and cultural factors that are on the verge of being overcome by the software storm.
6. Get ready for the Four Beyonds
Only 9% of Arizona students graduate from a 4 year program (or higher). To help Social Security, up those numbers so those 9 aren’t footing the bill for the 91.
-Adrian Sannier, SOL Summit
-Education is the economic problem of our time,
the country that out-educates us today will out compete us tomorrow
- we are used to solving problems with technology
in a world where machines do the work there is NO place for a person who can’t think or use technology
Watson winning Jeopardy- if you had done that in the 1800s, you’d be burned as a witch
-in 5 years, Watson will be on your ipod
writing, schooling, and printing – first great tech advances in education Eric Ashby
For choice education is a cottage industry (small scale, run by a few)
Can’t have a technological revolution one person at a time.
3 superpowers of tech
-because we know the superpowers, we treat them as normal powers and haven’t harnessed them.
- “Telepathy”- communicate with anyone, instantly
- Eidetic memory
- Total Recall
“If I’m gone too far from it [iphone] too long, part of my brain is missing.”
“If we’re so smart, why aren’t the kids we’re teaching rich?”
It isn’t that it won’t work, we won’t allow it to work.
Software storms, e.g. digital media
typewriters, napster- it happens fast, not incrementally
If technology can improve student success to 70%+, academic freedom may not be the most important concept in the room.
Instead of getting the 33%, academic freedom/practice becomes about the remaining 30%.
Arizona State upgraded Bb and was down 15 days. Did they close the school? No. Why? It passes out the paper and collects it at the end.
Why expect individual faculty to reinvent and produce “Call of Duty” when their skill and time might create “Tic Tac Toe”? Starting to sound like a big sales pitch.
What’s the biggest, fastest growing and worst university in the US? Phoenix. But people choose them every day even though they cost more.
