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Aneesh Chopra: Good morning, everybody.

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Audience: Good morning.

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Aneesh Chopra: Good morning!

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Audience: Good morning.

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Aneesh Chopra: My name is Aneesh Chopra.

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I have the honor and privilege of serving as the President's

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Chief Technology Officer.

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And it is extraordinarily exciting for me to be here today

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because we'll be talking about a subject that's been near and

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dear to the President's heart and a big priority for our

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office as we look to improve our learning and educational

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outcomes powered by the potential of technology

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and innovation.

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In the President's joint session to Congress,

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when he laid out the vision for the American Jobs Act,

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the President spoke broadly about the need to out-innovate,

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out-educate, and out-build the world with specific emphasis

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on opportunities for job creation in the near term.

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He emphasized the new initiative to modernize 35,000 schools,

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but made particular emphasis that when we put people back

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to work fixing roofs and windows on those schools,

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we should also install science labs and high-speed Internet in

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classrooms all across the country,

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acknowledging the importance of modernizing our educational

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infrastructure for 21st century.

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Today, we make the first down payment on the President's

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vision with the rollout of the Digital Promise Board of

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Directors and Initiative.

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And I must tell you on a personal level,

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the Board had a chance to meet with President Obama just a

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few moments ago.

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And Board, tell me if I'm wrong, did he fire you all up?

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Did he fire you up?

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He certainly did.

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He gave them some direct instructions to move this

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program forward.

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And I am so excited to get this particular event off and running

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in the spirit of the President's charge to that Board.

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To kick us off, I want to invite the godfather of the legislation

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that brought us Digital Promise, Kentucky's own

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Congressman Yarmuth.

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Please, give him a big round of applause.

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(applause)

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Thank you.

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Congressman Yarmuth: Well, thank you, Aneesh.

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Good morning, everyone.

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It is an incredible honor for me to be here today to help launch

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Digital Promise.

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This is a great day for our country and a great

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day for our future.

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I'm here as a member of Congress.

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And since we have a 13% approval rating,

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I really appreciate that applause.

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(laughter)

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We take it wherever we can get it.

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I'm also here because four and a half years ago as a freshman

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member of Congress and a new member of the House Education

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and Labor Committee, I met with Ann Murphy,

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a person who was part of an amazing group of education,

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innovation and business leaders, committed to doing nothing short

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of completely revolutionizing education and learning through

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advanced technologies, a project called Digital Promise.

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The goal was to do for education what the National Science

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Foundation does for science, what the National Institutes of

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Health does for medicine.

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I was sold.

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And I introduced a bill to create something called then the

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National Center for Learning Science and Technology.

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Now we have another name, which I will guarantee you will not

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replace Digital Promise.

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This will also be known as Digital Promise,

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the nonprofit entity that we are here today to launch.

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It was approved with a lot of help and a lot of bipartisan

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support and signed into law as part of the Higher

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Education Act.

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My role, while I am exceedingly proud of it,

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was a small part in an extraordinary initiative that

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has been more than a decade in the making.

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And it is pretty clear that with the leadership of Secretary

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Duncan and all of you here today,

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the decade of work that got us to this point will surely pale

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in comparison to what lays ahead.

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I firmly believe that today is one of those days that we will

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look back upon years from now and think,

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I knew it was going to be big, we're at the White House,

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after all, but I had no idea it would be that big;

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that we would completely change the way children learn,

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revolutionize education, and strengthen our nation.

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So no pressure at all.

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But what we all know is that with dedication,

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collaboration and sometimes most critical federal investment,

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technology can be transformative.

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In the 20th century, there was a direct correlation between

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America leading the world in education and also in

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innovation, technology and economically.

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That an increasingly globalized marketplace with other countries

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competing more successfully across the board,

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Digital Promise can ensure that this generation of American

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children is the most educated the world has ever known,

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and by extension, the next generation of American adults

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will be the best trained, most capable citizens to lead the

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world in the 21st century and beyond.

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That is what this center is all about.

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That is why I'm so proud to be here.

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And that is why I'm so proud to introduce a very

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special young man.

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Josniel Martinez is an 11-year-old 7th grader who

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attends Global Technology Preparatory School in East Harlem.

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He's already seen how digital learning can make a difference.

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When he was in the 6th grade, his school partnered with the

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city of New York to implement the New York City connected

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learning program funded by the American Recovery and

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Reinvestment Act.

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That program is a citywide initiative managed by the New

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York City Department of Information Technology and

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Telecommunications and the New York City Department of

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Education, in which CFY, a national nonprofit organization,

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is a lead partner.

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It's a perfect example of a program where a partnership

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worked together to bring digital learning into schools and

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Josniel is here to tell us how it changed his life.

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Now, just by a quirk of fate, Josniel was born at the same

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time that Digital Promise, the idea, came into being.

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So there's a little karma there, Josniel.

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Please join me in welcoming with a warm round of applause,

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Josniel Martinez.

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(applause)

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Josniel Martinez: Well, hi.

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My name is Josniel Martinez.

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And I am proud to be here today to introduce Secretary

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Arne Duncan.

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But before I do, I want to tell you a little bit about myself

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and how digital learning has changed my life forever.

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Back in 1999, my parents moved from Dominican Republic all the

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way to East Harlem.

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(laughter)

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I did pretty well in elementary school.

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It was okay.

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But it was still hard for me to accept now that I'm a 6th grader

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and have more responsibility, more homework,

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and moving to a new school called Global Tech Prep, a.k.a.

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Global Technology Preparatory in East Harlem.

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And if you didn't hear me, East Harlem.

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(laughter)

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I ended up getting a promotion in doubt letter saying that if I

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don't work hard enough, I might get left back.

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Well, just imagine this.

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Your boss sends you a letter, says,

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if you don't work hard enough, you're going to get fired.

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Now, think, wouldn't you want to roll down on the floor,

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start crying, saying, noooooo!

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(laughter)

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I did.

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(laughter)

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So I tried to do my best.

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I was determined to go to 7th grade.

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But so was my mom.

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She wasn't letting me go down.

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And I knew that some of the challenges that were going to be

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in front of me were concentrating.

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That was one of the hardest things I ever had to do.

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I thought technology could help me.

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I even picked Global Tech Prep because I knew it can help me.

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I knew that they make blogs, make videos, use PowerPoints,

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Microsoft Word, everything that we need to educate ourselves.

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But still wasn't passing, unfortunately.

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Until a nonprofit called CFY -- Google them -- came to our

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school and told us that we were going to give all the 6th

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graders a login to a site called power my learning.

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It's a site with millions, hundreds -- let's say millions

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of games, and each of those games teaches us anything we

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want, math, science, ELA, music, it doesn't matter what subject.

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It's there.

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And the good thing is we get to keep the computer they gave us.

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It was a learning device.

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Now, here's where my mom comes into this play.

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She put on a schedule for me, Josniel Martinez,

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to get on the computer three times a week and use it.

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So at least three times a week I'm prepared, I know,

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my brain is working, says I want to learn now.

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Sometimes I can wake up in the morning.

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My head is like school, school, school, watch, watch, school,

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school, school, school.

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And then my mom did something else.

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I used to watch TV all the time.

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I used to stay up late, watch Friends, That '70s Show,

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anything that was on, I used to watch all of that.

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Then my mom, she cut that in half.

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She put it on a plate and everything.

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She told me, huh-uh.

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She cut that.

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So now I'm watching maybe one hour, maybe two hours of TV.

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By most of the time, I'm either studying, reading a book,

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or doing something that can help me benefit in school.

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Now, my school helped, too.

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They cost -- they put a whole team together.

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I'm talking about my principal, my teachers, everything,

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just to help me, one student.

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And the CFY software helped a lot.

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Without them, I think I couldn't pass.

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Now, what do you think digital learning do for me,

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Josniel Martinez, the same Dominican boy from East Harlem,

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still the same person.

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Well, it brought everyone who was important to me.

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Miss Russell, who is in the crowd right now,

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some of the CFY people, they actually put some software on my

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computer to help me, they did everything for me.

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And there was no joke.

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I got a 3 on my math exam, and I have a 3 on my ELA exam,

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just perfect.

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(applause)

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And while I needed a lot of support,

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now I feel that I can do this all by myself.

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And when I mean a lot of support,

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I mean double the White House's, plus a different universe.

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That's how much.

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Now, look at me in ten years, Secretary Arne Duncan,

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because I'm going to college, maybe even work for a President,

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and maybe one day you'll be working for me.

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(laughter and applause)

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And I know now I'm supposed to introduce Secretary Arne Duncan.

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But before I do, I want to thank Miss Russell, my mom,

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my friends, my family, everybody from Global Tech Prep,

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for helping me to get up here.

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And now it's my pleasure to introduce the Secretary of

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Education, Arne Duncan.

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(applause)

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Secretary Duncan: Let's give Josniel another round of applause.

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(applause)

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I could no more have done that here in 7th grade than fly to

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the moon.

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And I will absolutely get my resume ready.

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(laughter)

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In all seriousness, though, it's a really inspiring story.

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And what it tells me is what I've -- reinforces what I've

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known all my life, is that we have great young people.

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Surround them with the right adults,

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caring adults who go beyond the call of duty,

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give them technology, give them the opportunity,

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give them the support, the world's the limit.

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And you have to not just graduate from high school.

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You have to go to college.

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You have to graduate from college.

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And you can be in this White House someday.

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You've got to really aspire to those things.

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But we all have to come together to provide those opportunities

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to every single child.

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Before I begin, I just want to thank a couple of people,

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Newt Minow, Larry Grossman and Ann Murphy.

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If you guys could please stand.

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You're the godfathers of this effort.

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(applause)

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They started this work over 12 years ago,

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a long time to get here.

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But I can't tell you how thrilled me and Karen Cade and

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Jim Shelton, my staff, are to be a part of this.

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And the opportunity you guys are providing through your

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vision is huge.

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And I feel both the pressure and the opportunity.

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We need to deliver for you.

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But appreciate so much the leadership that you

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guys have provided.

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Josniel's story is extraordinary and we have many stories like

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that around the country.

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But the honest reality, the unfortunate reality,

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is we don't have enough of that.

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And far too often, America's classrooms have failed to

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harness technology's potential to transform students' lives and

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create a new world of opportunity for them.

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With technology, teachers and parents can deeply engage

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students in learning.

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They can personalize instruction in ways that folks previously

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thought were impossible, and they can solve the inequities,

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both in our communities and in our schools,

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by providing all children, not some,

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but all children with access to world-class resources anytime

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and anywhere.

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And that's obviously why all of us are here today and obviously

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this is the choir here today.

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We understand that technology provides the opportunity to make

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rapid progress in advancing equity and excellence in our

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education system so that these kinds of stories become the

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norm, rather than the exception.

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And my simple message to all of you today is that we need to act

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and we need to act now to lead the digital transformation of

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education and training both for our children and for adults

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looking to retrain and retool.

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We have yet to unleash technology's full potential to

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transform both teaching and learning.

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Technology can help provide all students with access to a

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world-class curriculum.

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It's a tool that can provide equitable access to high quality

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learning opportunities for low-income students and

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struggling schools, be they inner city urban,

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rural or remote.

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This work is especially important today because the

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truth is, other countries are ahead of us here in

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the United States.

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And in tough economic times like these, we can't just do more.

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We have to be smart enough to do more with less.

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A couple of examples of what the competition looks like as you

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look across the globe.

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South Korea has committed to phasing out all textbooks and

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replacing them with digital products by 2015.

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And they're going to make that happen.

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Uruguay, maybe not a country we all think about every single

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day, Uruguay now, today, has given every single student a

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computer, every single one.

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And we're faced with one fundamental basic question: Will

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the United States lead in this effort or will we be a laggard,

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will we follow?

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And despite the real challenges, I am absolutely optimistic that

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the United States can and will lead the digital transformation.

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And today marks, I think, a critically important

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turning point.

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Through the unique public/private partnership of

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Digital Promise, we are rallying the full forces of the federal

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government, academia, entrepreneurs,

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the technology sector and researchers.

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And the level of talent in this room today is

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pretty extraordinary.

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You represent creative entrepreneurs,

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generous philanthropists, smart investors.

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You are innovative leaders who are committed to this work and

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committed to making difference.

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We have a tremendous, tremendous opportunity to pull together and

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solve the complex problems of educating every child and every

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adult in this country.

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I especially want to thank Congressman Yarmuth for his

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tremendous leadership.

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Along with Senator Dodd, Representative Yarmuth worked

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to authorize Digital Promise and the Higher

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Education Opportunity Act.

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And that's the reason we're all here today.

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Please give him another round of applause.

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Thank you so much.

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(applause)

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President Obama has repeatedly said that winning the future

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will require investments in education,

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innovation and infrastructure.

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He fundamentally understands that transforming the use of

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educational technology will require significant research

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and development.

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And he also understands that our nation's schools and classrooms

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are in serious need of modernization.

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In far too many places, today's school buildings simply aren't

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ready to support digital learning.

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And last week, I went on a whirlwind six-state,

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three-day bus tour across the Great Lakes region.

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And I never, ever asked or want the red carpet treatment.

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But when I visit schools, it's not uncommon for them to clean

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up, tidy up a little bit.

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But it was really clear that no amount of fresh paint was going

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to cover up the fact that many of these schools simply aren't

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prepared to lead the digital revolution in education.

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And the American Jobs Act, President Obama is proposing

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a $25 billion investment to modernize at least 35,000 of

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our nation's schools, especially schools that

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serve the neediest students, with facilities in the most

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need of repair.

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The President has committed to passing the jobs bill that

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includes money to create school buildings that can give students

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a 21st century education.

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The Administration's commitment goes far beyond renovating and

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modernizing schools.

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Our goal is to become an engine of innovation that provides

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leadership and support for reform.

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The National Education Technology Plan we released last

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year lays out an ambitious vision to leverage the full

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power of technology to support compelling and personalized

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learning environments for all children, regardless of race,

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ethnicity, ability or disability or zip code.

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We understand that technology is a critical,

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critical ingredient in our work to make education the great

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equalizer it must be.

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But this is clearly not a task for government alone.

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We can work to create an environment for innovation.

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But experts in school, schools, research labs, entrepreneurs,

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whether big or small, they will do the difficult work of

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developing new technologies and getting them into homes and

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schools and districts across the country.

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Digital Promise will aid that work by bringing together people

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from business, education, the research community,

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to advance the education technology field.

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Even as we're launching this new effort,

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a group of school districts has already stepped forward to lead

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this transformation and we're calling them the League of

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Innovative Schools.

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Researchers at the University of Chicago will also organize a new

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alliance of more than 35 of America's top education

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researchers dedicated to identifying policies and

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practices that improve education outcomes for America's most

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disadvantaged children.

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A leading gaming company is committed to bringing their

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creativity and expertise to this important effort.

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Digital Promise will be a truly collaborative effort

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across all sectors.

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Working together, the collaboration can help

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lead America in providing a world-class education for

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millions of students using technology.

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We all know, we all recognize that there are no silver bullets

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in education.

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But I absolutely do believe that we must use every tool at our

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disposal, including the extraordinary creativity of

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entrepreneurs, who are committed to producing the game changing

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technologies we need.

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The goal of all this work is admittedly ambitious.

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We want to fundamentally reimagine learning.

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And fortunately, we have examples of schools and

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inspiring stories to tell like we already heard this morning.

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Take another story, that of Daniel Mendez,

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when he enrolled in San Diego's High Tech High,

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he was repeating 10th grade.

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Not too dissimilar to the challenges you were facing.

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Like most disadvantaged children,

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he faced some real significant obstacles.

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With a long commute, family responsibilities,

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and few educational resources at home,

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he struggled to complete homework.

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Unfortunately, that's the type of child that far too often is

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simply written off.

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Folks think they can't make it.

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But things turned around for him when High Tech High issued him a

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netbook with high speed Internet access.

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His grades improved immediately.

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Teachers noticed that he was doing extra reading

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to dive deeper.

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He passed all of his courses.

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And today he's a senior, thriving academically and

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planning to go to college this fall.

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Across the country, in rural South Carolina,

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00:19:26,567 --> 00:19:29,934
technology helped Nicholas Huther be a full participant

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00:19:29,934 --> 00:19:32,633
in school, even when he was homebound because of

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00:19:32,633 --> 00:19:34,133
cancer treatment.

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As a fourth grader, Nicholas used a laptop and a webcam to

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00:19:37,734 --> 00:19:41,500
participate in his class at Plainview Elementary School.

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With the help of technology, he engaged in class discussions and

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asked questions, almost as if he was actually in the room.

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With the creative use of technology,

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he had access to his teachers, and to his classmates and to so

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00:19:54,500 --> 00:19:56,834
many learning opportunities that would have been unavailable to

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00:19:56,834 --> 00:19:57,967
him otherwise.

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And today, Nicholas attends middle school.

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In rural Tennessee, the Niswonger foundation,

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one of our I3 winners, is using technology to give high-need

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students access to AB classes and language classes that

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otherwise they would not have the opportunity to take

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advantage of.

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And there are so many stories, so many stories like these,

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that demonstrate what technology can do and the potential for

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technology to help engage students and

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to make learning fun.

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No matter where students are or what obstacles they face,

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a digital education can offer them a personalized plan to

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engage them and support their ongoing learning and success.

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00:20:33,734 --> 00:20:36,633
We have a long, long way to go before America becomes a leader

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00:20:36,633 --> 00:20:38,133
in digital learning.

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But we know what's possible and we know what's at stake both for

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our children and for our nation.

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America has always, always been a technological leader.

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Our country pioneered manned space travel and the creation

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of the Internet.

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00:20:51,033 --> 00:20:54,200
And yet today, our country is lagging behind other countries

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in leveraging the power of technology in our classrooms.

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It's time for us collectively to keep the digital promise to

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America's children and provide all of them with a personalized

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00:21:04,100 --> 00:21:06,867
instruction that both raises the bar and levels

468
00:21:06,867 --> 00:21:08,533
the playing field.

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Thank you so much for your collective leadership,

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00:21:10,567 --> 00:21:13,934
commitment and collaboration in helping us keep that promise.

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Thank you.

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00:21:14,533 --> 00:21:30,767
(applause)

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00:21:30,767 --> 00:21:32,100
Tom Kalil: Good morning. My name's Tom Kalil.

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I'm the deputy director of the White House Office of Science

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00:21:35,000 --> 00:21:36,400
and Technology Policy.

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I'm going to be moderating the next panel.

477
00:21:38,400 --> 00:21:43,433
But before I do that, I want to welcome two leaders from the

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00:21:43,433 --> 00:21:46,233
National Science Foundation who are going to be making an

479
00:21:46,233 --> 00:21:49,100
important announcement about cyber learning.

480
00:21:49,100 --> 00:21:52,233
NSF, as you know, has played a critical role in the development

481
00:21:52,233 --> 00:21:53,100
of technology.

482
00:21:53,100 --> 00:21:57,700
They funded the NSF net, which played a very important role in

483
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the emergence of the Internet.

484
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They funded the development of the first graphical web browser,

485
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which really helped the Internet take off.

486
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They funded a project of two Stanford kids that turned out to

487
00:22:11,734 --> 00:22:14,233
be Google, which was a pretty good investment.

488
00:22:14,233 --> 00:22:18,700
And they're going to be making some exciting announcements

489
00:22:18,700 --> 00:22:22,700
about the investments that NSF is going to be making in the

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00:22:22,700 --> 00:22:25,033
area of cyber learning.

491
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So today we're fortunate to have Joan Ferrini-Mundy,

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00:22:28,734 --> 00:22:32,767
who leads NSF's efforts in education and human resources,

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00:22:32,767 --> 00:22:37,300
and Farnam Jahanian, who leads NSF efforts in computer science.

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So come on up.

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00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:44,400
(applause)

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At this time, I'm also going to ask our fantastic panel to

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00:22:48,633 --> 00:22:50,967
please come up and be seated.

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This morning we've got Mark Edwards,

499
00:22:53,333 --> 00:22:57,934
who is the superintendent of Morrisville Graded School District.

500
00:22:57,934 --> 00:23:03,000
Dave Weiner, who is the Deputy Chancellor of New York City.

501
00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:06,333
Gabe Newell, who is President and Founder of Valve,

502
00:23:06,333 --> 00:23:08,100
a leading video game company.

503
00:23:08,100 --> 00:23:11,200
And Shirley Malcolm, who is on the Board of the Digital Promise

504
00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:14,734
and also leads the efforts in Education and Human Resources at

505
00:23:14,734 --> 00:23:15,800
the AAAS.

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00:23:15,800 --> 00:23:17,166
So come on up.

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00:23:17,166 --> 00:23:26,467
(applause)

508
00:23:26,467 --> 00:23:29,834
Joan Ferrini-Mundy: Good morning, everyone.

509
00:23:29,834 --> 00:23:32,834
It's a great pleasure for us today to join Secretary Duncan,

510
00:23:32,834 --> 00:23:36,066
Chief Technology Officer Chopra, the Digital Promise Board of

511
00:23:36,066 --> 00:23:39,200
Directors, Congressman Yarmuth, and all of you,

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00:23:39,200 --> 00:23:41,533
to discuss the potential and the promise of learning

513
00:23:41,533 --> 00:23:44,934
technologies, especially cyber enabled learning technologies.

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00:23:44,934 --> 00:23:47,734
For several decades, the National Science Foundation has

515
00:23:47,734 --> 00:23:50,500
invested in the development of innovative learning tools for

516
00:23:50,500 --> 00:23:53,700
science, technology, engineering and mathematics education.

517
00:23:53,700 --> 00:23:57,867
From cognitive tutors to Lego mind storms to scratch,

518
00:23:57,867 --> 00:23:59,967
NSF has been a long-time supporter of learning

519
00:23:59,967 --> 00:24:03,600
technologies that can be used at all education levels in all

520
00:24:03,600 --> 00:24:06,066
settings across a wide range of disciplines

521
00:24:06,066 --> 00:24:07,900
and for all learners.

522
00:24:07,900 --> 00:24:10,767
As technology advances at a rapid pace,

523
00:24:10,767 --> 00:24:13,467
realizing the potential of the new learning technologies

524
00:24:13,467 --> 00:24:17,533
depends on more than inventing exciting tools and resources.

525
00:24:17,533 --> 00:24:20,900
Success also depends on designing ways that innovative

526
00:24:20,900 --> 00:24:23,800
tools can be effectively integrated into learning,

527
00:24:23,800 --> 00:24:26,300
on understanding their impact on learning,

528
00:24:26,300 --> 00:24:29,467
and on supporting and engaging teachers with the resources to

529
00:24:29,467 --> 00:24:30,967
use them well.

530
00:24:30,967 --> 00:24:34,700
So we are very excited about the potential of Digital Promise to

531
00:24:34,700 --> 00:24:37,467
help bring innovative learning technologies from labs into

532
00:24:37,467 --> 00:24:40,100
schools and to other educational venues.

533
00:24:40,100 --> 00:24:42,533
We look forward to ongoing collaboration with the U.S.

534
00:24:42,533 --> 00:24:45,867
Department of Education, the Digital Promise endeavor,

535
00:24:45,867 --> 00:24:48,767
federal agencies, and all who are committed to improving

536
00:24:48,767 --> 00:24:51,133
learning opportunities for the nation's students,

537
00:24:51,133 --> 00:24:52,667
teachers and public.

538
00:24:52,667 --> 00:24:56,633
Today, we announce a portfolio of new awards in our NSF-wide

539
00:24:56,633 --> 00:25:00,233
program, Cyber Learning Transforming Education.

540
00:25:00,233 --> 00:25:03,467
The program aims to improve learning by integrating emerging

541
00:25:03,467 --> 00:25:07,400
technologies with knowledge from research about how people learn.

542
00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:09,967
We are confident that the learning technologies that are

543
00:25:09,967 --> 00:25:13,367
being developed through this program will enhance our ability

544
00:25:13,367 --> 00:25:16,700
to collect and manage data, to give personalized realtime

545
00:25:16,700 --> 00:25:20,166
feedback, and to promote better learning overall.

546
00:25:20,166 --> 00:25:22,834
This group of funded projects has the potential to transform

547
00:25:22,834 --> 00:25:26,300
learning, anytime, anywhere, and for anybody.

548
00:25:26,300 --> 00:25:29,367
I now invite my colleague, Farnam Jahanian to talk more

549
00:25:29,367 --> 00:25:32,967
about this exciting portfolio.

550
00:25:32,967 --> 00:25:34,166
Farnam Jahanian: Good morning.

551
00:25:34,166 --> 00:25:35,867
Josniel, I think in about 15 years,

552
00:25:35,867 --> 00:25:37,500
we're all going to be working for you.

553
00:25:37,500 --> 00:25:39,667
(laughter)

554
00:25:39,667 --> 00:25:43,233
I am pleased to announce that NSF's cyber learning program

555
00:25:43,233 --> 00:25:46,633
has just awarded approximately $15 million

556
00:25:46,633 --> 00:25:49,033
to more than 30 institutions.

557
00:25:49,033 --> 00:25:52,967
These projects cover a wide range of areas and show deep

558
00:25:52,967 --> 00:25:55,834
creativity from the research community.

559
00:25:55,834 --> 00:25:59,166
This investment is part of a commitment of more than

560
00:25:59,166 --> 00:26:03,600
$40 million across NSF in merit-reviewed cyber

561
00:26:03,600 --> 00:26:05,633
learning projects.

562
00:26:05,633 --> 00:26:09,233
Awardee institutions include community colleges,

563
00:26:09,233 --> 00:26:13,800
universities, and nonprofit organizations and companies.

564
00:26:13,800 --> 00:26:17,700
These projects address learning across a broad variety of

565
00:26:17,700 --> 00:26:20,834
context, elementary schools through high schools,

566
00:26:20,834 --> 00:26:23,533
post secondary education institutions,

567
00:26:23,533 --> 00:26:27,367
and informal learning environments such as museums,

568
00:26:27,367 --> 00:26:31,266
libraries, and of course cyber space.

569
00:26:31,266 --> 00:26:36,033
Several of the projects explore the use of large-scale data to

570
00:26:36,033 --> 00:26:38,233
solve complex problems.

571
00:26:38,233 --> 00:26:41,633
For example, researchers at the Ohio State University are

572
00:26:41,633 --> 00:26:47,066
developing a virtual simulation workbench which uses geospatial

573
00:26:47,066 --> 00:26:51,834
technologies and social networks to create online

574
00:26:51,834 --> 00:26:53,900
interactive maps.

575
00:26:53,900 --> 00:26:58,166
High school and college students can navigate the globe and use

576
00:26:58,166 --> 00:27:03,400
graphical, cultural and economic data to solve real world

577
00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:08,533
problems related to transportation, agriculture,

578
00:27:08,533 --> 00:27:11,500
urban planning and emergency response.

579
00:27:11,500 --> 00:27:14,000
In another large-scale data project,

580
00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:17,834
researchers at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell,

581
00:27:17,834 --> 00:27:22,200
have joined forces with Machine Sciences Incorporated to build

582
00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:26,367
software that will allow middle and high school students in

583
00:27:26,367 --> 00:27:28,967
different parts of the country to share,

584
00:27:28,967 --> 00:27:33,467
analyze and dynamically visualize data.

585
00:27:33,467 --> 00:27:37,433
The cyber learning research portfolio also include projects

586
00:27:37,433 --> 00:27:41,567
that focus on learners with special needs.

587
00:27:41,567 --> 00:27:45,066
Researchers from Brigham Young University will investigate the

588
00:27:45,066 --> 00:27:49,867
use of augmented reality to improve learning by deaf and

589
00:27:49,867 --> 00:27:54,367
hearing-impaired children in planetariums and other venues

590
00:27:54,367 --> 00:27:57,900
where learners are challenged to continuously move their

591
00:27:57,900 --> 00:28:02,967
attention between a signing interpreter and a demonstration.

592
00:28:02,967 --> 00:28:05,133
There are also projects that will develop learning

593
00:28:05,133 --> 00:28:08,066
technologies for learning language skills,

594
00:28:08,066 --> 00:28:11,867
such as one awarded to researchers at Harvard,

595
00:28:11,867 --> 00:28:15,667
MIT and Northeastern University, to investigate the use of

596
00:28:15,667 --> 00:28:20,800
interactive robots to help preschoolers develop vocabulary.

597
00:28:20,800 --> 00:28:24,567
This project leverages emerging technologies in robotics with

598
00:28:24,567 --> 00:28:27,700
recent findings from social, developmental

599
00:28:27,700 --> 00:28:29,700
and cognitive psychology.

600
00:28:29,700 --> 00:28:33,500
And along with supporting the design of new technologies,

601
00:28:33,500 --> 00:28:37,166
the cyber learning program funded projects from Arizona

602
00:28:37,166 --> 00:28:39,967
State University, Carnegie Mellon University,

603
00:28:39,967 --> 00:28:43,367
and the University of Pittsburgh that focus on developing a new

604
00:28:43,367 --> 00:28:48,200
generation of intelligent tutoring system.

605
00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:53,066
To conclude, the projects within the NSF cyber learning portfolio

606
00:28:53,066 --> 00:28:56,934
stand to demonstrate the promise of learning technologies to

607
00:28:56,934 --> 00:29:00,500
transform our schools and to enhance our lives.

608
00:29:00,500 --> 00:29:01,467
Thank you very much.

609
00:29:01,467 --> 00:29:10,867
(applause)

610
00:29:10,867 --> 00:29:12,000
Tom Kalil: Thank you.

611
00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:14,633
So before we start with the panel,

612
00:29:14,633 --> 00:29:18,934
I want to recognize a couple of the other individuals and

613
00:29:18,934 --> 00:29:21,800
organizations that have made commitments to help launch the

614
00:29:21,800 --> 00:29:24,367
Digital Promise initiative.

615
00:29:24,367 --> 00:29:27,800
A number of organizations have come together to support the

616
00:29:27,800 --> 00:29:30,900
2012 National Stem Video Game Competition,

617
00:29:30,900 --> 00:29:36,734
including the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at the Sesame workshop,

618
00:29:36,734 --> 00:29:41,834
Eli Media, and this is a video game competition to identify

619
00:29:41,834 --> 00:29:45,333
new ways to use video games to support stem teaching

620
00:29:45,333 --> 00:29:46,367
and learning.

621
00:29:46,367 --> 00:29:48,867
It's being supported by the AMD Foundation,

622
00:29:48,867 --> 00:29:53,300
the Entertainment Software Association, Microsoft Xbox,

623
00:29:53,300 --> 00:29:56,400
CPB and PBS Ready to Learn Initiative.

624
00:29:56,400 --> 00:29:59,066
So please join me in welcoming and supporting that.

625
00:29:59,066 --> 00:30:04,800
(applause)

626
00:30:04,800 --> 00:30:09,900
The Morgridge Family Foundation is providing a $2 million gift

627
00:30:09,900 --> 00:30:12,967
to the Nature Conservancy to support the development of

628
00:30:12,967 --> 00:30:17,800
digital content that is based on conservation science.

629
00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:20,667
And John, so -- is in the audience,

630
00:30:20,667 --> 00:30:24,900
so please join me in welcoming John and the

631
00:30:24,900 --> 00:30:26,500
Morgridge Family Foundation.

632
00:30:26,500 --> 00:30:30,800
(applause)

633
00:30:30,800 --> 00:30:34,800
A number of organizations in the technology community,

634
00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:39,000
the Tech America Foundation, the Information Technology Industry

635
00:30:39,000 --> 00:30:42,633
Council, the Software and Information Industry Association

636
00:30:42,633 --> 00:30:45,834
are all working together to build industry support for the

637
00:30:45,834 --> 00:30:46,934
Digital Promise.

638
00:30:46,934 --> 00:30:49,233
So if you are in the house, please stand up.

639
00:30:49,233 --> 00:30:56,734
(applause)

640
00:30:56,734 --> 00:31:02,367
And last, but not least, a number of foundations have

641
00:31:02,367 --> 00:31:04,734
stepped forward to help launch the Digital Promise,

642
00:31:04,734 --> 00:31:08,133
including the Carnegie Corporation and the

643
00:31:08,133 --> 00:31:09,100
Hewlett Foundation.

644
00:31:09,100 --> 00:31:12,066
So please join me in welcoming them and thanking them.

645
00:31:12,066 --> 00:31:17,700
(applause)

646
00:31:17,700 --> 00:31:25,800
So we have a terrific panel and let's get started.

647
00:31:25,800 --> 00:31:30,066
Mark, you're the Superintendent of the Moorseville Graded School

648
00:31:30,066 --> 00:31:34,500
District and you've recently been using technology to support

649
00:31:34,500 --> 00:31:38,433
both challenge learning, real world problem-solving and

650
00:31:38,433 --> 00:31:41,734
improving the graduation rate in your school district.

651
00:31:41,734 --> 00:31:43,700
How have you been doing that?

652
00:31:43,700 --> 00:31:46,200
Mark Edwards: Well, it's an honor to be here and thank you.

653
00:31:46,200 --> 00:31:48,934
We've provided all students in Mooresville, North Carolina,

654
00:31:48,934 --> 00:31:52,266
it's a small district north of Charlotte, 5,600 students,

655
00:31:52,266 --> 00:31:54,767
we've provided all students 3rd through 12th grade with

656
00:31:54,767 --> 00:31:56,300
a laptop computer.

657
00:31:56,300 --> 00:32:01,200
We ranked 99th in the state in funding out of 115 districts and

658
00:32:01,200 --> 00:32:05,333
we've been able to move forward using digital resources as our

659
00:32:05,333 --> 00:32:07,800
primary curriculum model.

660
00:32:07,800 --> 00:32:12,133
Our graduation rate has gone from 64% to 91% during the last

661
00:32:12,133 --> 00:32:13,767
four years.

662
00:32:13,767 --> 00:32:17,734
We've also increased our composite academic performance

663
00:32:17,734 --> 00:32:22,100
from 68 to 88% and we're currently 3rd in the state.

664
00:32:22,100 --> 00:32:23,934
We have also --

665
00:32:23,934 --> 00:32:25,734
(applause)

666
00:32:25,734 --> 00:32:28,200
Thank you.

667
00:32:28,200 --> 00:32:31,200
During that same time our poverty ratio has gone up

668
00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:35,500
by 25% so we have felt the effects of the economy.

669
00:32:35,500 --> 00:32:38,066
But our performance in biology, in which every student has to

670
00:32:38,066 --> 00:32:43,333
pass as a state exam, has gone from 68% to 93%.

671
00:32:43,333 --> 00:32:45,200
Another area that we're particularly proud of is at the

672
00:32:45,200 --> 00:32:50,300
3rd grade level our composite pass rate for reading is 94%;

673
00:32:50,300 --> 00:32:55,200
92% for African-Americans, 91% for Hispanic students.

674
00:32:55,200 --> 00:32:59,066
We've also been able, last year we made 100% of our AYP goals,

675
00:32:59,066 --> 00:33:01,400
this year we dropped to 92%.

676
00:33:01,400 --> 00:33:03,667
There's some more stringent requirements.

677
00:33:03,667 --> 00:33:06,433
But I think the real key to that has been leveraging

678
00:33:06,433 --> 00:33:07,700
digital resources.

679
00:33:07,700 --> 00:33:12,033
Our motto was "Every Child Every Day" and we have used the

680
00:33:12,033 --> 00:33:15,266
relevance and the engagement in using technology.

681
00:33:15,266 --> 00:33:18,967
We've been able to leverage the use of digital data to

682
00:33:18,967 --> 00:33:21,500
inform teachers and to expedite and to bring

683
00:33:21,500 --> 00:33:23,567
precision with intervention.

684
00:33:23,567 --> 00:33:26,433
And we've also been able to build collaboration and a

685
00:33:26,433 --> 00:33:28,567
convergence of teachers, students,

686
00:33:28,567 --> 00:33:32,400
family and community working together which students feel

687
00:33:32,400 --> 00:33:33,433
every day.

688
00:33:33,433 --> 00:33:37,367
I really do believe that the key to this has been a sense of

689
00:33:37,367 --> 00:33:42,800
spirit of working together to make a difference and laptops

690
00:33:42,800 --> 00:33:45,333
are huge; digital resources are huge.

691
00:33:45,333 --> 00:33:49,200
But the community sense of obligation/responsibility for

692
00:33:49,200 --> 00:33:51,900
Every Child Every Day has been a key to it.

693
00:33:51,900 --> 00:33:54,333
We've had hundreds of visitors from 42 states

694
00:33:54,333 --> 00:33:55,867
in the last three years.

695
00:33:55,867 --> 00:33:59,033
And I don't think anybody walks away saying anything dramatic

696
00:33:59,033 --> 00:34:02,734
other than the fact that we've provided resources,

697
00:34:02,734 --> 00:34:06,400
we're using 24th century digital resources and I do believe that

698
00:34:06,400 --> 00:34:10,066
there's great opportunity and "may the promise be with us!"

699
00:34:10,066 --> 00:34:10,633
(laughter)

700
00:34:10,633 --> 00:34:11,266
Thank you.

701
00:34:11,266 --> 00:34:16,734
(applause)

702
00:34:16,734 --> 00:34:21,600
Tom Kalil: The President's Council of Economic Advisors has developed

703
00:34:21,600 --> 00:34:25,066
a report that is looking at the market for learning technology

704
00:34:25,066 --> 00:34:28,066
and we're fortunate this morning to have both Katharine Abraham

705
00:34:28,066 --> 00:34:32,800
and two of the folks, Ben Jones, and Ronnie Chatterji,

706
00:34:32,800 --> 00:34:35,133
who helped out on the report.

707
00:34:35,133 --> 00:34:39,533
And one of the things that they identified as a challenge to

708
00:34:39,533 --> 00:34:41,900
using technology to transform learning was

709
00:34:41,900 --> 00:34:43,367
the nature of the marketplace.

710
00:34:43,367 --> 00:34:45,934
You have 15,000 different school districts.

711
00:34:45,934 --> 00:34:47,767
You've got lengthy adoption cycles.

712
00:34:47,767 --> 00:34:52,433
It's difficult for schools to make evidence-based decisions

713
00:34:52,433 --> 00:34:54,433
about what to buy.

714
00:34:54,433 --> 00:34:57,066
A lot of school districts don't spend a whole lot of money on

715
00:34:57,066 --> 00:34:59,533
educational software.

716
00:34:59,533 --> 00:35:03,166
So what do you think are some of the things that a large school

717
00:35:03,166 --> 00:35:07,367
district look New York City could do to help drive more

718
00:35:07,367 --> 00:35:11,767
innovation in learning technologies?

719
00:35:11,767 --> 00:35:13,900
David Weiner: Sure, thank you very much.

720
00:35:13,900 --> 00:35:16,033
My name is Dave Weiner, I am a Deputy Chancellor in New York

721
00:35:16,033 --> 00:35:18,700
City and one of the areas that I oversee is called

722
00:35:18,700 --> 00:35:20,567
our Innovation Zone.

723
00:35:20,567 --> 00:35:23,367
The Innovation Zone was started about three years ago.

724
00:35:23,367 --> 00:35:25,667
Chancellor Joel Klein was there and he basically brought

725
00:35:25,667 --> 00:35:29,900
together private partners, federal funds and local funds

726
00:35:29,900 --> 00:35:34,500
to actually build what we call the iZone now.

727
00:35:34,500 --> 00:35:37,533
Within the iZone this past year we had about 40 schools in it

728
00:35:37,533 --> 00:35:40,300
and we actually, this school year that just started a few

729
00:35:40,300 --> 00:35:44,166
weeks ago, we now have 185 schools in the iZone.

730
00:35:44,166 --> 00:35:47,800
These schools are basically using technology to personalize

731
00:35:47,800 --> 00:35:52,333
learning for students so we have lots of examples of schools that

732
00:35:52,333 --> 00:35:55,567
are basically, one example a school we called "School of One"

733
00:35:55,567 --> 00:36:00,667
which basically uses technology to individualize instruction for

734
00:36:00,667 --> 00:36:03,100
every single student in the class and actually every single

735
00:36:03,100 --> 00:36:05,233
student in school in math.

736
00:36:05,233 --> 00:36:07,500
Students come in, they are working literally on a computer,

737
00:36:07,500 --> 00:36:09,233
there actually is a teacher facilitating as well,

738
00:36:09,233 --> 00:36:12,700
and every single student could be at a different place.

739
00:36:12,700 --> 00:36:15,100
But it's personalized to each child so that they're growing

740
00:36:15,100 --> 00:36:17,567
and it's not, you know, teaching to the middle where some kids

741
00:36:17,567 --> 00:36:19,266
are at the top, some kids at the bottom don't get taught,

742
00:36:19,266 --> 00:36:21,633
but every single child has an individualized plan for them

743
00:36:21,633 --> 00:36:26,367
which is regularly assessed to make sure it continues.

744
00:36:26,367 --> 00:36:28,333
So we've have lots and lots of examples.

745
00:36:28,333 --> 00:36:33,433
Josiah School is one of the schools that's in our iZone.

746
00:36:33,433 --> 00:36:35,867
And we're kind of launching the next stage of it.

747
00:36:35,867 --> 00:36:38,100
It directly relates to the question that was asked.

748
00:36:38,100 --> 00:36:41,433
We've created what we call an education ecosystem.

749
00:36:41,433 --> 00:36:44,467
We started this about a month or two ago.

750
00:36:44,467 --> 00:36:46,500
Actually, a little longer now, probably about three or four

751
00:36:46,500 --> 00:36:50,066
months ago, and largely what we believe is that within the

752
00:36:50,066 --> 00:36:53,567
district we cannot innovate fast enough and so we have to look to

753
00:36:53,567 --> 00:36:55,400
outside partners to come in.

754
00:36:55,400 --> 00:36:58,734
But in order to do that we've got to define exactly what needs

755
00:36:58,734 --> 00:36:59,867
we have.

756
00:36:59,867 --> 00:37:03,100
What areas we need support and help in.

757
00:37:03,100 --> 00:37:05,467
And we need to be able to pilot some of these programs to be

758
00:37:05,467 --> 00:37:07,900
able to see how well they can grow.

759
00:37:07,900 --> 00:37:09,100
And then programs that don't work we're going

760
00:37:09,100 --> 00:37:10,166
to shut down quickly.

761
00:37:10,166 --> 00:37:13,033
And programs that do work, like School of One we're going to

762
00:37:13,033 --> 00:37:14,367
expand pretty rapidly.

763
00:37:14,367 --> 00:37:18,066
And we really see the school district as being the nexus of

764
00:37:18,066 --> 00:37:22,000
that connection between outside entrepreneurs, developers,

765
00:37:22,000 --> 00:37:24,066
funders that want to come together to try out these

766
00:37:24,066 --> 00:37:26,400
different types of options.

767
00:37:26,400 --> 00:37:30,500
One thing that, I've been to quite a few of our iZone schools

768
00:37:30,500 --> 00:37:32,834
and the only one thing that, you know,

769
00:37:32,834 --> 00:37:35,066
puts them together into one bucket is that they are all

770
00:37:35,066 --> 00:37:36,333
completely different.

771
00:37:36,333 --> 00:37:37,767
And that's kind of something that we

772
00:37:37,767 --> 00:37:39,100
really feel is important.

773
00:37:39,100 --> 00:37:41,834
That what might work for Josiah in East Harlem,

774
00:37:41,834 --> 00:37:45,200
may not necessarily work for a kid in Statton Island and the

775
00:37:45,200 --> 00:37:48,600
way the technology is being used in The Bronx may look different

776
00:37:48,600 --> 00:37:50,367
than the way it's being used in Brooklyn.

777
00:37:50,367 --> 00:37:54,000
But using technology to personalize instruction is

778
00:37:54,000 --> 00:37:58,000
really the main theme that kind of goes throughout it.

779
00:37:58,000 --> 00:38:00,300
Tom Kalil: And what are some of the ways in which you think you could

780
00:38:00,300 --> 00:38:05,533
leverage the purchasing power of New York City potentially even

781
00:38:05,533 --> 00:38:08,867
working with other school districts to help drive the

782
00:38:08,867 --> 00:38:11,000
evolution of the market?

783
00:38:11,000 --> 00:38:12,967
David Weiner: So we're hoping that through Digital Promise and through

784
00:38:12,967 --> 00:38:16,266
Educational Ecosystem we're basically able to come together

785
00:38:16,266 --> 00:38:18,467
with different urban districts, Newark, Baltimore,

786
00:38:18,467 --> 00:38:22,333
D.C., Philadelphia, to be able to say there are some common

787
00:38:22,333 --> 00:38:23,700
themes that we're having.

788
00:38:23,700 --> 00:38:26,867
Supporting students getting through 9th grade with enough

789
00:38:26,867 --> 00:38:29,633
credits, actually, to be 10th graders has been a struggle for

790
00:38:29,633 --> 00:38:32,033
us and some of our other large urban districts.

791
00:38:32,033 --> 00:38:35,500
And by being able to define these challenges and problems

792
00:38:35,500 --> 00:38:39,467
that we're having we hope to go to the marketplace and be able

793
00:38:39,467 --> 00:38:41,667
to say these are the challenges and we need your help in

794
00:38:41,667 --> 00:38:44,033
creating technologies to actually be able to innovate

795
00:38:44,033 --> 00:38:44,900
and improve that.

796
00:38:44,900 --> 00:38:48,066
So almost a buyer's consortium of school districts and

797
00:38:48,066 --> 00:38:50,400
organizations that can come together to outline the

798
00:38:50,400 --> 00:38:53,433
challenges we have and look to the outside marketplace to help

799
00:38:53,433 --> 00:38:56,567
us figure out how to improve on those challenges.

800
00:38:56,567 --> 00:38:57,934
Tom Kalil: Great.

801
00:38:57,934 --> 00:39:01,233
As I mentioned early, Gabe Newell is the President and

802
00:39:01,233 --> 00:39:03,900
founder of Valve, which is an incredibly successful

803
00:39:03,900 --> 00:39:06,200
video game company.

804
00:39:06,200 --> 00:39:10,433
Clearly the video game industry knows a lot about how to grab

805
00:39:10,433 --> 00:39:13,367
and maintain the very high levels of attentive time on

806
00:39:13,367 --> 00:39:17,033
task, both young people and grownups.

807
00:39:17,033 --> 00:39:20,633
What role do you think there could be for your company and

808
00:39:20,633 --> 00:39:25,166
for the video game industry more broadly in terms of transforming

809
00:39:25,166 --> 00:39:27,533
teaching and learning?

810
00:39:27,533 --> 00:39:31,133
Gabe Newell: Well, we got here because of our customers.

811
00:39:31,133 --> 00:39:34,300
We've been successful as a video game company,

812
00:39:34,300 --> 00:39:38,734
as an entertainment company because we watch exactly what

813
00:39:38,734 --> 00:39:40,633
our customers are doing.

814
00:39:40,633 --> 00:39:45,533
And what started to happen was that teachers and students

815
00:39:45,533 --> 00:39:49,400
started to bring our games into an educational setting and

816
00:39:49,400 --> 00:39:52,533
we're, like, aren't we enemies; right?

817
00:39:52,533 --> 00:39:53,233
(laughter)

818
00:39:53,233 --> 00:39:56,100
I mean, aren't we entertainment?

819
00:39:56,100 --> 00:40:00,166
And isn't that, you know, in opposition to education?

820
00:40:00,166 --> 00:40:03,166
So we started talking to the teachers and we started talking

821
00:40:03,166 --> 00:40:08,100
to researchers and the more we looked at it it seems like the

822
00:40:08,100 --> 00:40:10,133
technology, the engineering, the design,

823
00:40:10,133 --> 00:40:15,734
the science behind what we do is the same as the science and the

824
00:40:15,734 --> 00:40:19,100
technology that shows so much opportunity in

825
00:40:19,100 --> 00:40:21,000
the educational field.

826
00:40:21,000 --> 00:40:25,066
So we decided, well, if that's true,

827
00:40:25,066 --> 00:40:29,400
then teachers should be good video designers and,

828
00:40:29,400 --> 00:40:33,333
video game designers, and we should be able to build

829
00:40:33,333 --> 00:40:35,800
compelling, engaging curriculum.

830
00:40:35,800 --> 00:40:37,667
So we decided to go ahead and try to do that,

831
00:40:37,667 --> 00:40:39,633
so we're in the process of building some middle

832
00:40:39,633 --> 00:40:42,767
school curriculum.

833
00:40:42,767 --> 00:40:44,000
We're building new tools.

834
00:40:44,000 --> 00:40:46,967
We're building new distribution technology to give teachers and

835
00:40:46,967 --> 00:40:49,400
students the ability to have access to that.

836
00:40:49,400 --> 00:40:51,533
And then we're going to give those tools themselves to the

837
00:40:51,533 --> 00:40:53,200
teachers and students.

838
00:40:53,200 --> 00:40:54,900
So we're going to learn a lot about that.

839
00:40:54,900 --> 00:41:00,266
We're going to learn, you know, how these technologies

840
00:41:00,266 --> 00:41:01,767
are converging.

841
00:41:01,767 --> 00:41:04,433
And I also think that we're going to show other video

842
00:41:04,433 --> 00:41:07,433
game developers what the opportunity is,

843
00:41:07,433 --> 00:41:10,300
how they can be contributing, how everything that we've been

844
00:41:10,300 --> 00:41:15,333
learning in our industry to engage and excite children,

845
00:41:15,333 --> 00:41:19,100
is very applicable in an educational environment as well.

846
00:41:19,100 --> 00:41:21,967
And we're very excited working with teachers to figure out how

847
00:41:21,967 --> 00:41:27,300
what we do can be a tool to them rather than a distraction.

848
00:41:27,300 --> 00:41:28,000
Tom Kalil: Right.

849
00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:32,233
It seems one of the things that a great video game does

850
00:41:32,233 --> 00:41:36,834
is continually keep you on the knife edge between a challenge

851
00:41:36,834 --> 00:41:41,400
being just too hard in which case you give up in frustration,

852
00:41:41,400 --> 00:41:44,734
and being too easy in which case you get bored.

853
00:41:44,734 --> 00:41:49,367
What are some other things that the video game industry has

854
00:41:49,367 --> 00:41:55,633
figured out how to do that you think are broadly applicable to

855
00:41:55,633 --> 00:41:58,333
great teaching and learning.

856
00:41:58,333 --> 00:42:00,867
Gabe Newell: You know, we have to think about progression,

857
00:42:00,867 --> 00:42:03,133
we have to think about pacing, we have to think about

858
00:42:03,133 --> 00:42:05,333
appropriate levels of frustration.

859
00:42:05,333 --> 00:42:08,600
Our best -- well, you have to be challenged; right?

860
00:42:08,600 --> 00:42:09,400
Tom Kalil: Right.

861
00:42:09,400 --> 00:42:12,533
Gabe Newell: And you can't be too challenged or you walk away from the task.

862
00:42:12,533 --> 00:42:14,000
Tom Kalil: It has to be hard fun.

863
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:19,900
Gabe Newell: It has to be, yeah, it has to be hard fun is a good way to do it.

864
00:42:19,900 --> 00:42:23,266
I think one of the biggest steps forward we came to recently is

865
00:42:23,266 --> 00:42:27,700
when we started using biometric information to directly measure

866
00:42:27,700 --> 00:42:30,633
sort of frustration and engagement levels among game

867
00:42:30,633 --> 00:42:37,000
players and it taught us a lot about everybody has a different

868
00:42:37,000 --> 00:42:39,967
optimal pathway through an experience,

869
00:42:39,967 --> 00:42:42,200
and we think that those are the kinds of lessons that are going

870
00:42:42,200 --> 00:42:47,467
to be very applicable, just as applicable in the classroom as

871
00:42:47,467 --> 00:42:50,834
they are in people's dens.

872
00:42:50,834 --> 00:42:53,133
Tom Kalil: Great.

873
00:42:53,133 --> 00:42:57,266
Shirley, one of the points that Secretary Duncan made is that we

874
00:42:57,266 --> 00:43:00,100
really have to harness these technologies in ways that are

875
00:43:00,100 --> 00:43:03,000
not only going to promote excellence, but equity.

876
00:43:03,000 --> 00:43:06,033
What do you think are some of both the challenges and

877
00:43:06,033 --> 00:43:13,233
opportunities in using digital learning to promote equity and

878
00:43:13,233 --> 00:43:16,233
to expand the circle of opportunity?

879
00:43:16,233 --> 00:43:18,734
Shirley Malcolm: One of the things that really excited me about the first

880
00:43:18,734 --> 00:43:23,867
presentation was that when called upon to talk about

881
00:43:23,867 --> 00:43:26,934
performance of different groups, that there was the opportunity

882
00:43:26,934 --> 00:43:30,834
to see that in fact that it had made a difference for all kids.

883
00:43:30,834 --> 00:43:36,233
And I think that that is the real opportunity that is there.

884
00:43:36,233 --> 00:43:42,166
Obviously the real challenge is to make sure that the tools that

885
00:43:42,166 --> 00:43:45,867
are needed are going to be available.

886
00:43:45,867 --> 00:43:50,700
I think that these, the stubborn performance gap,

887
00:43:50,700 --> 00:43:54,900
and I will say it in all honesty,

888
00:43:54,900 --> 00:43:59,934
that this is an unusual situation to be able to report

889
00:43:59,934 --> 00:44:04,200
data such as Mooresville has reported.

890
00:44:04,200 --> 00:44:06,834
In most cases, that's not what we're seeing.

891
00:44:06,834 --> 00:44:11,633
We're seeing a gap that persists and that just does not move.

892
00:44:11,633 --> 00:44:14,800
And so the question is why is that.

893
00:44:14,800 --> 00:44:18,900
In part it is because we have thought about learning really as

894
00:44:18,900 --> 00:44:23,767
only something that in fact happens in school all too often.

895
00:44:23,767 --> 00:44:28,266
When in fact it happens or should happen everywhere.

896
00:44:28,266 --> 00:44:31,533
Being able to have the technology allows you to do that

897
00:44:31,533 --> 00:44:36,467
everywhere, you know, anywhere any time with the students.

898
00:44:36,467 --> 00:44:40,033
And I think that that is a real promise and

899
00:44:40,033 --> 00:44:42,533
it's a real opportunity.

900
00:44:42,533 --> 00:44:47,433
Making sure that we in fact have the access that is available and

901
00:44:47,433 --> 00:44:52,667
not differential expectations for students is really going to

902
00:44:52,667 --> 00:44:55,333
be a challenge.

903
00:44:55,333 --> 00:45:01,500
I was happy to hear that in the cyber learning grants were

904
00:45:01,500 --> 00:45:04,500
included some which addressed issues related

905
00:45:04,500 --> 00:45:06,767
to students with disabilities.

906
00:45:06,767 --> 00:45:10,767
And I think that that's another access issue of a different

907
00:45:10,767 --> 00:45:15,066
kind, but it is in fact an access issue and very happy

908
00:45:15,066 --> 00:45:21,233
to see that these kinds of things are being attended to.

909
00:45:21,233 --> 00:45:23,767
Tom Kalil: What do you think are the opportunities around

910
00:45:23,767 --> 00:45:27,100
professional development, particularly in STEM,

911
00:45:27,100 --> 00:45:28,834
science technology, engineering and math?

912
00:45:28,834 --> 00:45:31,967
As you know this is a major priority for the President to

913
00:45:31,967 --> 00:45:34,433
move the United States from the middle to the top of the pack

914
00:45:34,433 --> 00:45:38,200
over the next decade and certainly teacher quality

915
00:45:38,200 --> 00:45:40,567
is a major challenge in the STEM area.

916
00:45:40,567 --> 00:45:44,800
So what are some opportunities to harness technology in the

917
00:45:44,800 --> 00:45:48,100
area of professional development?

918
00:45:48,100 --> 00:45:53,066
Shirley Malcolm: I think that especially for teachers who are seeking

919
00:45:53,066 --> 00:45:55,700
professional education and professional experiences,

920
00:45:55,700 --> 00:45:58,934
while at the same time they're in the classroom,

921
00:45:58,934 --> 00:46:05,200
they need a place to be able to go and grab and get and learn

922
00:46:05,200 --> 00:46:07,734
and update their content.

923
00:46:07,734 --> 00:46:11,200
They need to be able to have access to hybrid learning

924
00:46:11,200 --> 00:46:13,633
opportunities, not just ones that depend on

925
00:46:13,633 --> 00:46:15,533
face-to-face contact.

926
00:46:15,533 --> 00:46:19,200
And they need to be able, I think just as many of the rest

927
00:46:19,200 --> 00:46:22,633
of us, if they don't understand it the first time around to be

928
00:46:22,633 --> 00:46:25,633
able to go and revisit it time and time again until

929
00:46:25,633 --> 00:46:27,100
they do understand it.

930
00:46:27,100 --> 00:46:29,567
And I think that's one of the things that the technology can

931
00:46:29,567 --> 00:46:31,500
actually allow.

932
00:46:31,500 --> 00:46:35,567
We did a small experiment basically driven by necessity

933
00:46:35,567 --> 00:46:38,633
by the fact that some of the teachers in a program that we

934
00:46:38,633 --> 00:46:41,700
were running this summer could not, in fact,

935
00:46:41,700 --> 00:46:45,133
all of them couldn't be there at the same time,

936
00:46:45,133 --> 00:46:50,700
that we were able to incorporate a digital component with that

937
00:46:50,700 --> 00:46:54,900
face-to-face in-the-lab kind of aspect.

938
00:46:54,900 --> 00:46:58,467
And I think that those kinds of opportunities that we really

939
00:46:58,467 --> 00:47:03,900
have to explore how we're going to be able to move that and to

940
00:47:03,900 --> 00:47:10,033
use that in ways that are thoughtful to help teachers

941
00:47:10,033 --> 00:47:14,433
have the tools that they need to address their learning and

942
00:47:14,433 --> 00:47:16,533
their improvement.

943
00:47:16,533 --> 00:47:17,867
Tom Kalil: Great.

944
00:47:17,867 --> 00:47:22,166
Gabe, one of the things that Valve is doing is making your

945
00:47:22,166 --> 00:47:25,100
level editors available so that's going to really

946
00:47:25,100 --> 00:47:30,734
democratize both teachers and students being able to develop

947
00:47:30,734 --> 00:47:32,834
games for learning.

948
00:47:32,834 --> 00:47:36,266
What are some of the other things that you think the video

949
00:47:36,266 --> 00:47:43,133
game industry can and should do to support games as a powerful

950
00:47:43,133 --> 00:47:45,033
tool for learning?

951
00:47:45,033 --> 00:47:47,400
Gabe Newell: Well, one of the things that we're doing is providing support

952
00:47:47,400 --> 00:47:49,300
materials for teachers.

953
00:47:49,300 --> 00:47:53,300
So there is a website that we've put up called "learning with

954
00:47:53,300 --> 00:48:00,333
portals.com" that will give teachers guides to how to use

955
00:48:00,333 --> 00:48:08,166
in an educational situation the physics curricula and the tools

956
00:48:08,166 --> 00:48:10,500
that we're creating.

957
00:48:10,500 --> 00:48:13,033
You know, just recognizing that you're part of that community

958
00:48:13,033 --> 00:48:19,467
and connecting with giving them the ability to create -- you

959
00:48:19,467 --> 00:48:22,667
know, we're all used to social networking, well, but, you know,

960
00:48:22,667 --> 00:48:24,433
and most of the social networking environments there's

961
00:48:24,433 --> 00:48:26,633
not this notion of a class, there's not this notion of

962
00:48:26,633 --> 00:48:28,333
a teacher.

963
00:48:28,333 --> 00:48:31,500
And those are easy things for us to add, you know, whether it's,

964
00:48:31,500 --> 00:48:38,367
you know, an origin for EA or it's a battle net at blizzard,

965
00:48:38,367 --> 00:48:42,767
and it would be very helpful as we explore ways that

966
00:48:42,767 --> 00:48:45,166
entertainment software is complementary to educational

967
00:48:45,166 --> 00:48:50,900
experiences for other game developers to embed those

968
00:48:50,900 --> 00:48:54,967
kinds of notions into their social networking systems.

969
00:48:54,967 --> 00:49:03,166
Tom Kalil: And are there ways in which you think that the industry could be

970
00:49:03,166 --> 00:49:07,400
incented to do these types of things from a commercial point

971
00:49:07,400 --> 00:49:09,333
of view as opposed to just a, you know,

972
00:49:09,333 --> 00:49:11,133
corporate social responsibility or

973
00:49:11,133 --> 00:49:12,400
philanthropical point of view?

974
00:49:12,400 --> 00:49:13,033
Gabe Newell: Well, absolutely.

975
00:49:13,033 --> 00:49:15,667
I mean, I'd sit down with Bobby Kodak at Activision or John

976
00:49:15,667 --> 00:49:18,900
Riccitiello at Electronic Arts and just walk them through our

977
00:49:18,900 --> 00:49:22,233
experiences and what we've been learning, you know.

978
00:49:22,233 --> 00:49:25,000
I think there are tremendous opportunities to, you know,

979
00:49:25,000 --> 00:49:27,200
not just commercial opportunities,

980
00:49:27,200 --> 00:49:29,367
but I think to better understand the businesses

981
00:49:29,367 --> 00:49:30,633
that we're already in.

982
00:49:30,633 --> 00:49:32,500
And, I mean, these are convergent problems.

983
00:49:32,500 --> 00:49:33,100
Tom Kalil: Right.

984
00:49:33,100 --> 00:49:37,233
Gabe Newell: If they learn how to help a student in a middle school

985
00:49:37,233 --> 00:49:39,934
understand fractions, they're probably going to find that

986
00:49:39,934 --> 00:49:43,900
they're better across the board at everything else that they're

987
00:49:43,900 --> 00:49:44,734
trying to do.

988
00:49:44,734 --> 00:49:47,400
I think, you know, being better at this will help their bottom

989
00:49:47,400 --> 00:49:51,100
line in a very ongoing basis.

990
00:49:51,100 --> 00:49:52,600
Tom Kalil: Great. That's terrific.

991
00:49:52,600 --> 00:49:57,900
So, David, as you have worked on developing an innovation

992
00:49:57,900 --> 00:50:04,400
ecosystem, what are some of the challenges that smaller

993
00:50:04,400 --> 00:50:07,500
companies, which is where a lot of the innovation occurs,

994
00:50:07,500 --> 00:50:12,834
have reported to you as challenges associated with

995
00:50:12,834 --> 00:50:16,500
addressing the educational market and what are some of the

996
00:50:16,500 --> 00:50:19,467
things that you think school districts could do to help

997
00:50:19,467 --> 00:50:21,266
address those barriers?

998
00:50:21,266 --> 00:50:24,033
David Weiner: One of the biggest barriers that we've heard people say

999
00:50:24,033 --> 00:50:25,734
is simply access.

1000
00:50:25,734 --> 00:50:28,800
People don't know how to access the marketplace of schools.

1001
00:50:28,800 --> 00:50:30,333
It's very difficult to get in.

1002
00:50:30,333 --> 00:50:31,800
If you can make a connection you may be able to get into

1003
00:50:31,800 --> 00:50:32,767
one school or two schools.

1004
00:50:32,767 --> 00:50:38,567
But it's really hard to actually be able to get access.

1005
00:50:38,567 --> 00:50:41,433
The second thing is is this idea of piloting programs or having,

1006
00:50:41,433 --> 00:50:44,166
you know, some degree of research and design.

1007
00:50:44,166 --> 00:50:47,767
In education it's, you know, it's the "do no harm."

1008
00:50:47,767 --> 00:50:50,500
There's a nervousness that if we try something new it might

1009
00:50:50,500 --> 00:50:52,000
be worse than what we currently have.

1010
00:50:52,000 --> 00:50:54,266
And although what we currently have is not great,

1011
00:50:54,266 --> 00:50:56,834
we're a little nervous it's going to go down.

1012
00:50:56,834 --> 00:51:00,133
And we feel like that that actually is our responsibility

1013
00:51:00,133 --> 00:51:01,834
as the district to actually, first of all,

1014
00:51:01,834 --> 00:51:05,033
open up our environment to smaller developers,

1015
00:51:05,033 --> 00:51:08,633
new people that want to get in, but also to pilot.

1016
00:51:08,633 --> 00:51:12,667
One of the things I think we recognize most clearly is we

1017
00:51:12,667 --> 00:51:16,300
have about 185 schools that are now in our iZone and we're going

1018
00:51:16,300 --> 00:51:19,066
up to 400 in two years, that some of the models that we

1019
00:51:19,066 --> 00:51:21,133
create are not going to work.

1020
00:51:21,133 --> 00:51:21,734
Tom Kalil: Right.

1021
00:51:21,734 --> 00:51:24,033
David Weiner: They may be fine, and they may not, you know,

1022
00:51:24,033 --> 00:51:26,433
they may not harm students, but they're not going to be those

1023
00:51:26,433 --> 00:51:30,467
groundbreaking leaps forward that we actually need.

1024
00:51:30,467 --> 00:51:34,433
But our hope is that of the 400 schools that are trying out lots

1025
00:51:34,433 --> 00:51:37,333
of different technologies, and partnering with outside smaller

1026
00:51:37,333 --> 00:51:41,867
and larger entrepreneurs, that we will find enough in that to

1027
00:51:41,867 --> 00:51:43,300
dramatically be able to grow.

1028
00:51:43,300 --> 00:51:46,100
School of One is a great example again because it's something

1029
00:51:46,100 --> 00:51:47,266
that has worked well.

1030
00:51:47,266 --> 00:51:49,433
It's at a school in Brooklyn right now.

1031
00:51:49,433 --> 00:51:53,000
We're expanding to five new Schools of One sites in January

1032
00:51:53,000 --> 00:51:55,166
and actually seven additional ones in September.

1033
00:51:55,166 --> 00:51:59,900
So data that shows that some of these entrepreneurial,

1034
00:51:59,900 --> 00:52:03,000
these different types of ideas that are actually working,

1035
00:52:03,000 --> 00:52:05,333
we want to expand quickly and that ideas that aren't going to

1036
00:52:05,333 --> 00:52:07,633
work we're going to close down as fast as we can.

1037
00:52:07,633 --> 00:52:10,834
And allowing smaller businesses, smaller groups to actually

1038
00:52:10,834 --> 00:52:12,633
access and come into the schools,

1039
00:52:12,633 --> 00:52:15,934
be able to try things out and pilot things is really where we

1040
00:52:15,934 --> 00:52:19,800
feel like we can have a lot of support and influence.

1041
00:52:19,800 --> 00:52:24,200
Tom Kalil: So it seems like one of the ways in which large school districts

1042
00:52:24,200 --> 00:52:27,500
could help drive the market is to define, as you said,

1043
00:52:27,500 --> 00:52:30,667
some specific learning outcomes or specific problems that you're

1044
00:52:30,667 --> 00:52:32,500
facing and saying, you know, if you could develop

1045
00:52:32,500 --> 00:52:36,333
a technology-enabled solution that would deliver the following

1046
00:52:36,333 --> 00:52:40,433
results, and here is how we'd measure it,

1047
00:52:40,433 --> 00:52:42,100
then we would buy it.

1048
00:52:42,100 --> 00:52:47,300
So by being a more proactive voice of the customer,

1049
00:52:47,300 --> 00:52:49,133
you might be in a position of saying, you know,

1050
00:52:49,133 --> 00:52:52,667
we don't want to just go out and buy a lot of technology for the

1051
00:52:52,667 --> 00:52:55,233
sake of technology, but we want to use it to solve a

1052
00:52:55,233 --> 00:52:56,567
particular problem.

1053
00:52:56,567 --> 00:53:01,166
Are there things like that that come to mind that could serve as

1054
00:53:01,166 --> 00:53:06,066
the basis for a pilot for how procurement could drive

1055
00:53:06,066 --> 00:53:12,900
innovation to solve a particular learning challenge?

1056
00:53:12,900 --> 00:53:15,200
David Weiner: Yeah, I mean, one of the challenges I think school

1057
00:53:15,200 --> 00:53:18,166
districts, and New York City, I would say, is one of them,

1058
00:53:18,166 --> 00:53:20,100
has really been defining what those challenges are.

1059
00:53:20,100 --> 00:53:21,467
We've done a bad job of saying, hey,

1060
00:53:21,467 --> 00:53:23,433
this is the challenge we're facing,

1061
00:53:23,433 --> 00:53:25,300
whether it's the achievement gap or supporting students with

1062
00:53:25,300 --> 00:53:28,333
disabilities or allowing students to access more

1063
00:53:28,333 --> 00:53:31,166
curricula, we've done a poor job of doing that.

1064
00:53:31,166 --> 00:53:34,633
The innovation ecosystem, and again kind of coupled with

1065
00:53:34,633 --> 00:53:37,900
Digital Promise, we hope, will allow us to be able to say these

1066
00:53:37,900 --> 00:53:39,567
are some of the challenges we're facing.

1067
00:53:39,567 --> 00:53:42,767
What's really important also is that we looked at all of

1068
00:53:42,767 --> 00:53:45,100
our different schools and some of our schools have

1069
00:53:45,100 --> 00:53:47,400
different challenges.

1070
00:53:47,400 --> 00:53:49,533
One of the schools in the iZone right now is a school called

1071
00:53:49,533 --> 00:53:53,767
Brooklyn Tech, it's one of our, one of our exam schools that is

1072
00:53:53,767 --> 00:53:54,800
a really high functioning school,

1073
00:53:54,800 --> 00:53:57,233
it's a Steiverson-type school so it really has

1074
00:53:57,233 --> 00:53:58,667
a top-level student.

1075
00:53:58,667 --> 00:54:01,033
Well, one of the challenges that we heard from their community

1076
00:54:01,033 --> 00:54:04,633
and their parents were that -- it sounds crazy -- but juniors

1077
00:54:04,633 --> 00:54:07,033
and seniors in their schools, their schedules were so tight

1078
00:54:07,033 --> 00:54:09,233
they weren't able to access enough AP classes.

1079
00:54:09,233 --> 00:54:11,633
So I'm not sure any student wants to take seven or eight AP

1080
00:54:11,633 --> 00:54:14,100
classes as a high school student but if there is a child that

1081
00:54:14,100 --> 00:54:15,967
does it's going to be at Brooklyn Tech.

1082
00:54:15,967 --> 00:54:18,467
So what we actually did is we actually built a digital

1083
00:54:18,467 --> 00:54:21,567
platform to actually allow blended learning.

1084
00:54:21,567 --> 00:54:23,433
So students are now actually getting some of the learning

1085
00:54:23,433 --> 00:54:25,400
in the classroom about half the time.

1086
00:54:25,400 --> 00:54:27,400
And then half the time they're required to do it at home as

1087
00:54:27,400 --> 00:54:29,900
part of, you know, homework and extended day.

1088
00:54:29,900 --> 00:54:33,133
This almost reminds me when I was in college and I had to do

1089
00:54:33,133 --> 00:54:35,133
some online work but we're really allowing our high school

1090
00:54:35,133 --> 00:54:35,967
students to do it.

1091
00:54:35,967 --> 00:54:39,667
So whereas last year Brooklyn Tech seniors could only take

1092
00:54:39,667 --> 00:54:41,667
five AP classes, they can now take seven.

1093
00:54:41,667 --> 00:54:43,600
(laughter)

1094
00:54:43,600 --> 00:54:45,567
Not that again that I would encourage anyone to do that

1095
00:54:45,567 --> 00:54:47,934
if they didn't want to, but that's something they could do.

1096
00:54:47,934 --> 00:54:49,567
On the other end of the spectrum --

1097
00:54:49,567 --> 00:54:50,967
Tom Kalil: That's a high class problem.

1098
00:54:50,967 --> 00:54:53,467
David Weiner: Yes, yes, yes, but it is a problem that we're hoping to

1099
00:54:53,467 --> 00:54:55,333
solve and that marketplace does.

1100
00:54:55,333 --> 00:54:58,166
And on the other end of the spectrum we have schools that

1101
00:54:58,166 --> 00:54:59,834
are called transfer schools.

1102
00:54:59,834 --> 00:55:02,133
And these schools are for students who have actually

1103
00:55:02,133 --> 00:55:04,667
dropped out of a traditional high school and they're trying

1104
00:55:04,667 --> 00:55:06,367
to get reengaged.

1105
00:55:06,367 --> 00:55:08,834
What we find is these kids come to us at 16, 17,

1106
00:55:08,834 --> 00:55:12,166
18 years old with two credits, three credits, so, you know,

1107
00:55:12,166 --> 00:55:14,133
it's going to take them four, almost five more years to

1108
00:55:14,133 --> 00:55:16,533
actually get through high school.

1109
00:55:16,533 --> 00:55:18,934
Traditionally we have been unable to provide more than

1110
00:55:18,934 --> 00:55:21,066
about five or six classes a year.

1111
00:55:21,066 --> 00:55:24,734
With our online platform now we are actually able to double and

1112
00:55:24,734 --> 00:55:26,667
actually almost triple the number of classes a student

1113
00:55:26,667 --> 00:55:27,834
would be able to take in a year.

1114
00:55:27,834 --> 00:55:29,967
So if you're 17 years old and you have the credits of a 9th

1115
00:55:29,967 --> 00:55:32,166
grader you can actually get through high school in two years

1116
00:55:32,166 --> 00:55:34,734
as long as you're committed and able to do learning inside the

1117
00:55:34,734 --> 00:55:36,266
school day and outside of it.

1118
00:55:36,266 --> 00:55:38,333
It allows you to meet students who have

1119
00:55:38,333 --> 00:55:39,934
nontraditional schedules.

1120
00:55:39,934 --> 00:55:42,166
Students that have to work or raising a child,

1121
00:55:42,166 --> 00:55:44,667
that we can actually work around their schedule.

1122
00:55:44,667 --> 00:55:47,533
Tom Kalil: So you're trying to move towards competency-based assessment as

1123
00:55:47,533 --> 00:55:50,000
opposed to how many hours were you in class?

1124
00:55:50,000 --> 00:55:51,533
David Weiner: That's exactly right. That's exactly right.

1125
00:55:51,533 --> 00:55:53,300
And we see it basically for all of our students.

1126
00:55:53,300 --> 00:55:54,500
Students, some of our top students,

1127
00:55:54,500 --> 00:55:56,200
some of our students that are struggling the most,

1128
00:55:56,200 --> 00:55:57,300
and all over the board.

1129
00:55:57,300 --> 00:56:00,367
So we have defined these challenges and we have worked

1130
00:56:00,367 --> 00:56:03,200
with groups like SYSCO and Google and Apple to say these

1131
00:56:03,200 --> 00:56:06,266
are some of our challenges; we need to get credit accumulation

1132
00:56:06,266 --> 00:56:09,433
faster in a competency-based manner and we need your help in

1133
00:56:09,433 --> 00:56:10,667
figuring out how we can do that.

1134
00:56:10,667 --> 00:56:12,400
That's really where we've been able to innovate.

1135
00:56:12,400 --> 00:56:13,133
Tom Kalil: Right.

1136
00:56:13,133 --> 00:56:16,967
Now, Mark, you cited some really extraordinary figures in terms

1137
00:56:16,967 --> 00:56:20,734
of the improvements that you've been able to make in student

1138
00:56:20,734 --> 00:56:22,133
learning outcomes.

1139
00:56:22,133 --> 00:56:25,767
And obviously, you know, there were probably a lot of things

1140
00:56:25,767 --> 00:56:28,867
that went into that, you know, leadership, parental engagement,

1141
00:56:28,867 --> 00:56:31,700
you know, teacher professional development.

1142
00:56:31,700 --> 00:56:35,066
But what do you think were some of the key wins in terms of the

1143
00:56:35,066 --> 00:56:38,266
role that technology-enabled learning played in that?

1144
00:56:38,266 --> 00:56:40,900
Mark Edwards: Well, you know, one of the real exciting outcomes,

1145
00:56:40,900 --> 00:56:44,433
it was kind of an unintended, is the level of collaboration that

1146
00:56:44,433 --> 00:56:48,266
goes on after school, that goes on with teachers in the evening

1147
00:56:48,266 --> 00:56:50,600
and on the weekends and from state to state and

1148
00:56:50,600 --> 00:56:51,967
region to region.

1149
00:56:51,967 --> 00:56:55,433
And there is this sense of a collaborative hum that occurs.

1150
00:56:55,433 --> 00:56:58,333
And there's this same type of excitement that is occurring

1151
00:56:58,333 --> 00:57:00,500
with teachers that we see with students.

1152
00:57:00,500 --> 00:57:03,667
And I think the relevance, the fact that it's relevant to the

1153
00:57:03,667 --> 00:57:06,600
future rather than part of the past,

1154
00:57:06,600 --> 00:57:09,633
is driving our new teachers' energy and excitement.

1155
00:57:09,633 --> 00:57:13,000
And I also think that when parents see this opportunity

1156
00:57:13,000 --> 00:57:16,600
for children, that they're more inclined to be part of it.

1157
00:57:16,600 --> 00:57:20,166
We're seeing in the evenings our teachers will engage with

1158
00:57:20,166 --> 00:57:22,300
students on online discussion boards.

1159
00:57:22,300 --> 00:57:26,200
Last winter we were out for snow and we had semester

1160
00:57:26,200 --> 00:57:27,367
exams coming up.

1161
00:57:27,367 --> 00:57:29,934
And we were on a time -- we had to move ahead.

1162
00:57:29,934 --> 00:57:32,767
But our teachers sent e-mails and we had hundreds of students

1163
00:57:32,767 --> 00:57:35,800
online in the evening connecting with each other,

1164
00:57:35,800 --> 00:57:39,533
connecting with their teachers preparing for this opportunity.

1165
00:57:39,533 --> 00:57:41,834
So I think that there are huge dividends.

1166
00:57:41,834 --> 00:57:45,266
And I think with the Lead Innovative Schools, Terry Grier,

1167
00:57:45,266 --> 00:57:47,100
the Superintendent of Houston ISD,

1168
00:57:47,100 --> 00:57:49,467
a good friend and colleague, we talk regularly.

1169
00:57:49,467 --> 00:57:52,200
Now, he's a district of 200,000 plus students,

1170
00:57:52,200 --> 00:57:56,834
but the opportunity to connect locally across the nation,

1171
00:57:56,834 --> 00:58:00,467
across the world, I think brings a level of excitement to the

1172
00:58:00,467 --> 00:58:04,333
classroom that there's a new sense of opportunity for all.

1173
00:58:04,333 --> 00:58:07,600
For teachers and for students.

1174
00:58:07,600 --> 00:58:10,066
Tom Kalil: Well, please join me in thanking what has been

1175
00:58:10,066 --> 00:58:11,500
an absolutely terrific panel.

1176
00:58:11,500 --> 00:58:19,266
(applause)

1177
00:58:19,266 --> 00:58:23,500
So we're going to go to the next phase of the program.

1178
00:58:23,500 --> 00:58:27,934
There are going to be three breakout sessions.

1179
00:58:27,934 --> 00:58:30,934
Everyone should know which breakout session they're

1180
00:58:30,934 --> 00:58:36,333
supposed to go to and there will be people with signs telling you

1181
00:58:36,333 --> 00:58:38,033
where to go.

1182
00:58:38,033 --> 00:58:42,066
I also want to introduce Adam Frankel who is -- Adam,

1183
00:58:42,066 --> 00:58:43,400
stand up.

1184
00:58:43,400 --> 00:58:44,667
Please join me in thanking Adam.

1185
00:58:44,667 --> 00:58:47,800
(applause)

1186
00:58:47,800 --> 00:58:52,000
And this is really going to require an all-hands-on-deck

1187
00:58:52,000 --> 00:58:56,867
effort, so please talk to Adam if you're interested in talking

1188
00:58:56,867 --> 00:58:59,500
about how you can get involved, how your organization can get

1189
00:58:59,500 --> 00:59:03,400
involved in making the Digital Promise a reality.

1190
00:59:03,400 --> 99:59:59,999
Thank you!