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Panel Detail:
Monday, April 27, 2009
4:00 PM - 5:15 PM
Infusing Technology into Education for Economic Competitiveness
Speakers:
L. Michael Golden,
Corporate Vice President, Education Products Group, Microsoft Corp.
Glenn Kleiman,
Executive Director, Friday Institute for Educational Innovation; Professor, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, North Carolina State University
Keith Krueger,
CEO, Consortium on School Networking
Bette Manchester,
Executive Director, Maine International Center for Digital Learning; former Director of Special Projects, Maine Learning Technology Initiative
Moderator:
Jim Goodnight, CEO, SAS
The nation must change how it views education and put technology at the forefront, panelists said. True systematic change is the only way to assure that children are getting the best education possible.
Glenn Kleiman discussed the importance of a new model for education. He made many audience members smile with two pictures of American classrooms. One was taken in 1907 and one in 2002, but they were eerily similar. "About 100 years have passed, and while some changes have occurred, we still have a classroom that is still designed with Industrial Age ideas," Kleiman said.
Bette Manchester said a program she helped design in Maine gave middle school students access to laptops around the clock. "We made sure that we had equity and access for all students and all teachers in the state," she said. The program tried to build a culture of innovation with the work of parents, students, and teachers. By building a culture of innovation, they were also able to tackle the issue of teacher isolation, she said.
Educators need to view students as customers, Keith Krueger said, and tailor learning to meet their needs. "Even our best students are bored," he said. The technology kids use at home is banned from school, whether it be iPods, laptops or cell phones. Krueger said students are clear about what they want; educators need to make sure those needs are being met to keep students engaged and competitive.
L. Michael Golden said amazing things are in fact happening in education such as Microsoft’s Imagine Cup, but it is important to improve and build on such programs.
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