Want to Innovate?

In the video Want to Innovate? Become a “Now-ist, Joi Ito explains the concept of being a “now-ist” and how it is important to survival in the ever-changing, unpredictable, post-Internet world. According to Ito, “now-ists” are innovators who do not subscribe to the traditional notion that, in order to successfully innovate, you need to plan everything, stock everything, and be so prepared (TED, 2014). They are independent, on-the-job learners who focus their time on being connected, always learning, fully aware, and super present (TED, 2014) in order to tackle the issues they currently face. Rather than following the traditional path of getting a degree, writing a plan, getting money from big companies, and then hiring designers and engineers to build (TED, 2014), “now-ist” create quickly, get their creations into the hands of those who will use it, and make improvements along the way (TED, 2014) without permission or assistance from big companies to push their innovations. According to Ito, you have to get the stuff into the real world for it to really count and we should be getting out there ourselves and not depending on larger institutions to do it for us (TED, 2014).

While Ito explains the importance of being a “now-ist” in his TED Talk, Monique Markoff discusses the value of blended learning in her presentation. In the video Click here-- blended learning and the future of education: Monique Markoff, Markoff clarifies that blended learning occurs when students are using computers as tools for learning for about 25% or more of their day (TEDx Talks, 2014). She argues that this style of teaching is beneficial for both students and teachers because it’s an excellent tool to help students become independent learners and helps teachers be more effective and efficient (TEDx Talks, 2014). Although blended learning has many benefits, Markoff expresses that we as teachers and educators need to change in order to use this tool (TEDx Talks, 2014). We must become flexible enough to experiment with new practices as needed, committed to providing what is necessary for effective implementation, develop a mindset that is focused on providing students with valuable learning opportunities, and willing to change our view of what the teacher’s role is (TEDx Talks, 2014).

After watching the two videos for this week, the main point I gathered is that us as educational innovators need to become “now-ists” as we implement our innovation plans and blended learning is one of the most effective plans we can choose to use. This has helped me realize precisely where I am as far as my readiness to innovate. On the positive side, previous research on blended learning has already convinced me of its value as an effective, personalized learning tool for students. Therefore, I am already willing to be flexible, committed, and focused on changing my mindset about my role as a teacher in order to ensure each student has a valuable, personalized learning experience. The idea of becoming a “now-ist”, however, will still take some getting used to. When it comes to working towards a goal I tend to be a planner. I usually like to operate with a blueprint/outline of how I will get from the beginning stages to the final product. This is probably because I have always been taught that, in order to achieve a goal, you must follow a set of certain steps in a certain order. However, as I learned in the 5302 course, having a fixed mindset does not allow for growth. And I know that this experience with becoming a “now-ist” will help me to learn how to learn (TED, 2014) while also helping my students learn how to learn. Through the trial-and-error of the experience we will both learn what works and what does not work in the implementation . So, I am willing to try one of the blended learning models discussed by Markoff (flipped learning) initially. If there are any areas that need to be improved or if the flipped model is simply not working, this is where my “now-ist” approach will come into play and I will make improvements as needed.

Sources:

TED. (2014, July7). Want to Innovate? Become a “Now-ist. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsjTVGIw4z8.

TEDx Talks. (2014, May 6). Click Here--Blended Learning and the Future of Education: Monique Markoff. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb2d8E1dZjY&feature=youtu.be.