Implications

=Implications=

toc

1. Where to in the future?
There are a wide range of recommendations contained in these pages and links but what if these recommendations are not implemented? This video presents the consequences of inaction - a dumbed down generation [|http://www.dumbestgeneration.com/]

media type="youtube" key="gKaUL2mtAqA" width="425" height="350" A 2 min video from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKaUL2mtAqA

The world is changing rapidly. Can we see the implications for educators and learners? Are we ready to help children meet the challenges of the 21st Century effectively? This video presents the significance of change.

media type="youtube" key="pMcfrLYDm2U&hl=en" height="355" width="425" An 8:19 min video - Shift Happens: Did You Know? from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMcfrLYDm2U Recorded June 2007 (version 2) as a school presentation: http://shifthappens.wikispaces.com/. The wiki is designed to give more information on the Did You Know? video above. This wiki also has resources in regard to the shifts that are occurring in the world and their implications for K-12 and higher education.

**2. Implementing recommendations**
The whole school community needs to incorporate 21st Century learning as shown in the 1 min video below from [|http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=7f89ddbebc2ac9128303]

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A new pedagogy is needed - 2 min video from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l72UFXqa8ZU

media type="youtube" key="l72UFXqa8ZU&hl=en" height="355" width="425"

The following is a slideshow looking specifically at the implications of Web 2.0 - from http://www.slideshare.net/heyjudeonline/creative-web-20-learning/

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**3. Information and communication technology**
If explanation, interpretation, empathy and self knowledge are some of the key indicators of understanding, then the effective use of contemporary tools must enhance this. While there may be a place for whole class skill inputs in technology usage, the most effective way to deepen a students' understanding in any given content through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) must be in an authentic, flexible manner that challenges students at that 'critical' and 'self reflective' level (O'Rourke 2001). Students need to have access to contemporary tools at point of need within the learning process. Students need choice and flexibility. More importantly, they need to be able to articulate why a particular tool at any given point of time will deepen understanding. This of course, will have huge implications for resourcing and budgeting in schools.While we strive to personalize learning and teaching in the current context we too must personalize the use of ICT to suit the individual needs of the learner.

**4. Practical issues**

 * See the Vodcast below for a summary of implications on the following issues:**
 * Financial Issues
 * Professional Development
 * Infrastructure
 * Online safety and security
 * The Digital Divide

media type="custom" key="824657" A 2:39 min video from Keri-Lee Beasley

**5. The need to change**

 * 'We can not solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.' Albert Einstein**

Education systems need to change in order to stay relevant and effective as society navigates through the 21st century. 'The skills required for living in the future do not seem to depend on what has been done in the past, it now demands an imaginative leap into the future' (Leask 2001, p. 192, 193). Educators are part of the solution, as 'teachers are no longer dispensers of knowledge but rather proactive facilitators who promote collaborative knowledge building and guide students to learn in a variety of environments, to navigate within and process a multitude of information resources, and to use these resources in solving problems and making decisions on their own' (UNESCO 2008).

'Teaching is a process of helping learners to construct their own meaning from the experiences they have by providing those experiences and guiding the meaning-making process' (Jonassen H, Peck K L, & Wilson B G 1999, p. 3). Education needs to empower learners to fulfill their creative potential and contribution to society. This will encourage personal growth, initiative, independence, self management and awareness of others, leading to a creative learning environment that will open the doors of the world!