North Miami Beach, FL (USA), June 2008 - Innovate is an open-access, bimonthly, peer-reviewed online periodical published by the Fischler School of Education and Human Services at Nova Southeastern University. The journal focuses on the creative use of information technology (IT) to enhance educational processes in academic, commercial, and governmental settings. It is sponsored, in part, by Microsoft.
The June/July special issue on the future of education, guest-edited by George Siemens, focuses on the changing shape of pedagogy, the nature of knowledge itself, the future of copyright, likely patterns of technology adoption in the future, the place of virtual worlds and online portfolios in education, and offers a tool to assist educators anticipate the future.
Catherine McLoughlin and Mark J. W. Lee describe the broad changes to how individuals interact with information and each other dictate "radical and transformative shifts in teaching and learning practices."
Dave Cormier tackles the difficult theme of knowledge, using the metaphor of the rhizome, a plant with no center and no clear boundary, to describe the way knowledge is created in the context of Web 2.0 technologies. "Knowledge as negotiation" provides a lens through which to view the current community-based notion of curriculum. As social technologies move from our personal lives into academic settings, corresponding community and social interaction around information and knowledge will become an important part of education.
Stephen Marshall sees copyright, technology, and education as 'worlds in collision'. Marshall argues for a rethinking of copyright in the face of Web 2.0 technologies, which do not fit into traditional conceptualizations of copyright. He believes that if educators do not speak up, copyright law will be taken over by corporate forces interested only in profit, to the detriment of educational uses of media.
Bob Henshaw analyzes shifting demographics, labor markets, and related factors in urging higher education to "redefine its institutional culture and missions." Henshaw links technology adoption patterns to the ability of institutions to meet the emergent needs of learners, as well as need for institutions to retain faculty.
In Places to Go, Stephen Downes offers the online video site YouTube as a model and indicator of change on the Internet, arguing that the advancement of online video offers new opportunities for educators.
In the "From our Sponsor" section, Gary Brown, Nils Peterson, Adrian Wilson, and Jim Ptaszynski connect the use of reflective e-portfolios to increased learner control, better relationships with alumni and employers, and increasing engagement through utilization of real-life learning tasks.
Daniel W. Rasmus concludes this issue with a description of Microsoft's use of scenario planning, a strategic planning tool that, he argues, can help educational institutions "face uncertainty in order to embrace the future".
