I have a radical idea for you. What if you flipped the whole thing on its head and ran at least 3 of the 5 days as a Scenario Planning exercise (See the GBN folks – I mean a specific process here), then use the last 2 days for reflection, synthesis and planning. Upend the traditional analytical approach.

(Btw, the striped background on the blog on my screen is a bit vertigo inducing… why not all blue? Be kind to migraine prone people!)

We hear so much about the great benefits of technology but there is alot of fear around these tools and the effect they will have on people’s careers and lifestyles. In his book, The Singularity is Near, Ray Kurzweil predicts human and technology will be merging very soon in some form. I don’t anticipate Cylons emerging in the next few decades, but the thought of it sets off many emotions.

Change is an important topic in this area. I’d have the students look for best practices or case studies on the successful integration of technology in education (internationally) and discuss the change component.

I also love Chris Dede’s article, “Neomillennial” Learning Styles: Implications for Investments in Technology-http://bit.ly/cDMM0E, which gives a great overview on how the learning styles of the current and future generations require new educational approaches.

I think taking a serious look at current trends and technologies can be worthwhile, but only if we look at how current technology is actually being implemented in schools (both mainstream and alternative forms). Then we can analyze how (or whether) specific uses benefit student learning, see how they change teacher-student and student-student relationships, and why some technologies have gained more traction than others. I think those questions are more practical to ask, not only in terms of our ability to answer them, but also in terms of the applicability of our answers.

I apologize if I’ve misread or if I’m just missing something. That’s certainly possible! I’d love to hear others’ thoughts on this.