Education

ISTE 2012 to Showcase Ed. Tech.'s Expanding Horizons

By Ian Quillen — June 21, 2012 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

As the curtain rises on ISTE 2012 this Sunday in San Diego, its “Expanding Horizons” theme suggests we are only at the beginning of our journey into the modernization and reformation of K-12 education.

Technology adoption has become a more widespread and popular priority for educators than ever before, thanks in part to advocates who have successfully re-framed technology as a potential cost-saver rather than a potential cost drain. Add a younger and more diverse teaching force that has adopted tablet computers and other mobile devices at astonishing rates, and increasing political support (if not funding) for technology in education from both sides of the aisle, and it would appear the limit is the line where the Pacific Ocean meets the sky.

But how exactly do you get to a boundary that, by definition, is unreachable? That’s perhaps the most important question at the International Society for Technology in Education’s signature event and the nation’s largest K-12 ed-tech conference. Having finally secured widespread support to create new educational models using technology, the next step is to figure out just what those models look like.

The writers of this blog will be at ISTE 2012 June 24-27 as nearly 20,000 educators and ed-tech leaders try to, in one form or another, figure out what those models look like and how to make them work to improve teaching and learning. Check in regularly here at the Digital Education Blog for the latest insights from keynotes, panels, meetings, and exhibits. We probably won’t get to the horizon, but we’ll at least dip our toes in the water.

A version of this news article first appeared in the Digital Education blog.