Summer Book Circle at the Faculty Center
The Faculty Center, in conjunction with the School of Education, is hosting three book circles this summer. Faculty, staff and administrators are invited to join these discussions to explore each in a collaborative and peer-based space. In order to accommodate people’s schedules and ability to be on campus during the summer, discussions will be held both online and face-to-face during June, July and August.
The three books are:
Stratosphere; Integrating Technology, Pedagogy and Change Knowledge by Michael Fullan
In Stratosphere, Michael Fullan takes a close look at the fast-paced world of emerging technologies and argues that the inevitable influence of technology on teaching and learning must not be resisted, but rather embraced and applied in meaningful ways to positively impact school classrooms.
- Examines connections–and disconnections– between pedagogy, technology, and change knowledge in education
- Creates a vision for improving education by escaping the content-focused teaching of the past and embracing “the new pedagogy” of higher-order skills
- Focuses on the harnessing of fast and innovative technologies to bring about change in classrooms, districts, states, and provinces
- Identifies four critical elements that, at scale, have the ability to make large-scale change a reality– and easier!
The App Generation: How Today's Youth Navigate Identity, Intimacy, and Imagination in a Digital World, by Howard Gardner and Katie Davis
Gardner and Davis are concerned with three vital areas of adolescent life: identity, intimacy, and imagination. Through innovative research, including interviews of young people, focus groups of those who work with them, and a unique comparison of youthful artistic productions before and after the digital revolution, the authors uncover the drawbacks of apps: they may foreclose a sense of identity, encourage superficial relations with others, and stunt creative imagination. On the other hand, the benefits of apps are equally striking: they can promote a strong sense of identity, allow deep relationships, and stimulate creativity. The challenge is to venture beyond the ways that apps are designed to be used, Gardner and Davis conclude, and they suggest how the power of apps can be a springboard to greater creativity and higher aspirations.
Teaching Tech-Savvy Kids: Bringing Digital Media to the Classroom by Jessica Parker
Parker focuses on the intricate and maturing relationship between youth and their new media practices. Given that this phenomenon has primarily developed outside of school walls, educators can utilize characteristics of new media such as collaboration, creativity and peer sharing and feedback, in an effort to offer more engaged, student-centered learning opportunities within our schools. Surprisingly, it is through an understanding of how young people learn and participate in our shifting media landscape that philosophical questions regarding learning and literacy in the 21st century can be addressed and new ideas regarding pedagogy and curriculum development can emerge. Based on a three-year study of youth and their use of new media, this teacher-friendly resource provides educators with examples and concrete activities in which to engage.
How to participate:
Go to the form: http://goo.gl/YLSeol and supply your information. You will be contacted prior to the start and given meeting/participation details. Each participant is responsible for book purchases. You may join any or all of the circles and participate to whatever level is most comfortable for you.
The Faculty Center is also looking for three book circle leaders who are willing to coordinate, organize and lead the circles. Stipends will be awarded for these positions. For more information about becoming a book circle facilitator please contact Ann Steckel via email, email@example.com.