There are points in this article that those of us in higher education may miss. Use the technology that is available to you currently, be as creative as possible with it, and don't let the chase for the future get in the way of what needs to happen now. The article references camphones as an example of an adaptive technology that our students use today. Are we making the most creative use of that technology to enhance learning? Can we partner with what might sound like strange bedfellows to enhance education in places where our students hang out? ...and THE most important question raised in the article (at least for me): Are we brave enough to adopt a technology that may be ephemeral in nature, knowing that it will be passe' in the future?
Don't Try to be Future Proof
Today's MiamiHerald.com story, Arts Center Puts Spotlight on Technology, includes a quote by Tod Machover, who heads MIT's media lab. Machover said, "Be ahead of the curve, but don't try to be `future-proof' ''. The article explains, "Selecting technology today that will be acceptable and usable in 10 years is practically impossible to do."There are points in this article that those of us in higher education may miss. Use the technology that is available to you currently, be as creative as possible with it, and don't let the chase for the future get in the way of what needs to happen now. The article references camphones as an example of an adaptive technology that our students use today. Are we making the most creative use of that technology to enhance learning? Can we partner with what might sound like strange bedfellows to enhance education in places where our students hang out? ...and THE most important question raised in the article (at least for me): Are we brave enough to adopt a technology that may be ephemeral in nature, knowing that it will be passe' in the future?
There are points in this article that those of us in higher education may miss. Use the technology that is available to you currently, be as creative as possible with it, and don't let the chase for the future get in the way of what needs to happen now. The article references camphones as an example of an adaptive technology that our students use today. Are we making the most creative use of that technology to enhance learning? Can we partner with what might sound like strange bedfellows to enhance education in places where our students hang out? ...and THE most important question raised in the article (at least for me): Are we brave enough to adopt a technology that may be ephemeral in nature, knowing that it will be passe' in the future?