Reports on Future Learners

This week in class we were provided several reports that have important information for anyone who is invested in a child growing up in school today, from parents to district leaders. It is clear that future learners are going to be majorly impacted by technology, and I am eager to see what innovators are able to come up with in the future. Australian social research company McCrindle's Gen Z reports support this, and had some other words/facts that caught me off-guard:

• People falling in the Gen Z generation experience over 10 hours of tech a day
• 1 in 2 will be university educated
• KIPPERS is a lifestage that falls after young adult. What is a KIPPER? (Kids in Parents’ Pockets Eroding Retirement Savings)
• 78% of Gen Z males, and 62% of Gen Z females will be obese!

I highlight other interesting facts from different reports below.

Project Tomorrow's Speak Up

"Teachers who have experienced online and blended classes for their own professional learning demonstrate advanced uses of technology with their own students, have stronger valuations on the role of technology within learning, and higher aspirations for leveraging technology to support transformed learning environments." - 2017 Digital Learning Report from Blackboard and Speak Up

      This hit home for me as I reflect on my college courses that forced me to use technology. I had a great professor, Dr. Cullen, that taught Geometry by using Geometer's Sketchpad. I learned through discovery by using this dynamic geometry program, and it made me value using technology like this in my classroom. I now use Geogebra and Desmos any time I can to create the same A-ha! moments for my students.


"From our latest findings, 60% of school principals now say that their school has adopted a 1:1 mobile device program for in-school usage, an increase of 9 percentage points in just one year." -
The Educational Equity Imperative:Leveraging Technology to Empower Learning for All

      Clearly it is a great benefit for a student to have access to their own learning device, and I am happy to see that there has been a 9% increase in the past year. I expect this trend to continue.

NMC/CoSN Horizon Report   

If you think about the way most classrooms looked 10 years ago compared to now in terms of the use of technology, it is hard to imagine the possibilities of what educational technology will look like 10-20 years form now. I thought the NMC Horizon Report had some fascinating ideas on what they expect for technology in the classroom. Artifical Intelligence is something that really makes my head spin when I think of all of the different ways it can impact our society, and I hadn't really imagined it in a classroom until I read this report.

Image Source

On thing it did point out is AI can't replace the relationships and the emotions tied to human interaction between teachers and students. In the report they stated "...current iterations of AI in education are not yet equipped to supplant teachers' roles in building complex skills including critical thinking, empathy, and creativity." For this reason alone I am confident that the teaching profession is not one that will be threatened by automation. The report did point out some intriguing ways that AI could greatly benefit a classroom. "AI can extend teachers' abilities to foster collaborative learning environments; a report from education company Pearson and University College London describes the possibilities of virtual agents facilitating and moderating students' small-group discussions." Reading this quote, I laugh thinking about teachers complaining about switching from Outlook to Gmail, and can only hope that I am able to keep up with technology throughout my career.