Next Generation of Makers

This cartoon by @howtoons exemplifies the kind of curiosity and desire to create that can empower students and make them the "life-long learners" we always hear about. When students take ownership of their learning, the game changes. They become passionate about learning.

The image also speaks to the idea that students are learning more on YouTube and elsewhere than inside a classroom. As Diana Laufenberg mentions in her TED Talk, content we used to passs on to students can be obtained elsewhere. We must be curators and guides as we empower our students to create and use their knowledge to be solve problems that matter to them and their community.

If we provide our students the opportunity to be curious and create, we are giving them the best education they could ever receive from us.

P.S. If you're interested in buying a print of the cartoon, you can find it here.

Photo credit: Howtoons

Why didn't I think of that?

When it comes to learning and design, the first hurdle is simply looking around and asking yourself, "how could this be better?"

For instance, someone applied the design process to a traditional watering can and came up with something much better.

So it stands, rather than asking 'Why didn't I think of that?", we should frame the way we approach learning with this question, "How can we make this better?"

This idea comes from the Cooper Hewitt Museum.

New rules

When I was growing up there were simple rules I was to follow.

1. Be a good person

2. Brush your teeth after you eat

3. Don't hit your sister

In a world that has been forever altered by the age of the Interwebs, these rules are still very much relevant (especially the one about not hitting your sister) but there are some very important rules that we must also understand.

We are no longer dependent on media monopolies for our information and the ability to access information from a number of different sources has never been easier. In turn, we must learn a new set of rules when it comes to media.

On the website for his book, Mediactive, Dan Gilmor states these "principles":

We are now not only consumers but creators of media. With this, comes responsibility. More often than not the information we receive is not exactly accurate.

So, as you go out and become a consumer or creator of media, which we all do in one way or another, be careful and follow Dan Gilmor's rules:

For Media “Consumers”

Even those of us who are creating a variety of media are still–and always will be–more consumers than creators. For all of us in this category, the principles come mostly from common sense. They include skepticism, judgment, reporting, expanding one’s own vision and understanding how it all works. More specifically:

1. Be skeptical of absolutely everything.

2. Don’t be equally skeptical of everything.

3. Go outside your personal comfort zone.

4. Ask more questions.

5. Understand and learn media techniques.

For Media Creators

All of the principles for consumers are part of the toolkit of every responsible journalist or information provider. So are the following. The first four — thoroughness, accuracy, fairness and independence — are standard for journalists of all kinds, and are widely accepted inside of traditional news organizations. The fifth — transparency — is somewhat new and considerably more controversial, and even more critical in a distributed media age.

1. Do your homework, and then do some more.

2. Get it right, every time.

3. Be fair to everyone.

4. Think independently, especially of your own biases.

5. Practice and demand transparency.

Photo credit: Kevin Lim

Three Ways of Learning

Diana Laufenberg, a friend and teacher at Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, PA, gave a great TED Talk that speaks directly to what learning is and what it is not.

Specifically, Diana mentions that schools should not be repositories of information but rather opportunities for students to learn in the three ways mentioned above.

Design as a mindset. Design as a methodology.

I recently joined the Be Playful team. After a year of transition, I have found an opportunity where I will help others understand the process of Design Thinking in order to engage our students and help them solve problems.

The concept of Design Thinking is something that is not necessarily new, rather it is a mindset that enable students to solve problems. When faced with a world where students, for the most part, are disconnected from school and are not engaged in the learning process, Design Thinking offers an alternative methodology that will transform any learning environment.

Below, David Kelly, the Founder and Chairman of IDEO, explains Design Thinking and how it can empower our students.



As an educator, I have seen students who came to school and went through the routine because it is what they are "required" to do in order to get to the next step in their lives. For those students, learning was not the goal, personal fulfillment was not the goal. A curriculum based around the principles of passion and problem solving changes that.

I am extremely excited about this next step in my career as it will enable me to help schools, and more importantly, students engage in their learning. This path will help students become active learners and problem solvers rather than passive recipients of information.

To learn more about Design Thinking, download this bootcamp provided by the Stanford d.school.

Photo credit: Think Public

Just publish

I found the Do Lectures today. Similar to TED, these talks highlight great ideas and bring them to the public via the use of video. Unlike TED, each speaker is required to issue a "Do" statement, requesting that the audience take action.

In his "Do" Talk, which can be found below, Craig Mod, focuses on how digital media is giving the publishing world a new life rather than destroying it.

Mod wrote Kickstartup, which documents how he used Kickstarter to get his book Art Space Tokyo published after it had been out of print. He states that this model can be recreated by anyone in order to re-think what it means to publish in a digital world.

In his talk, Mod's request or "Do" was that everyone:

1. Read digital artifacts


2. Publish

In a world where text can now become interactive and the restrictions that prevent publishing have become almost zero, the value of publishing as an educational pathway has never been more evident.

But I don't mean having students writing a blog for grade and for the blog to have no meaning. Good writing does not come from pressure to preform for a grade, good writing starts with a passion.

If students engage in something that matters to them, are given a voice, and develop an audience, learning WILL happen.

If the passion is there, it will be nurtured and fed. If the passion is there, a community will develop. If the passion is there, the student will become an AUTHOR.

If every student published a blog that was driven by their passion, learning will happen not because it was required by the teacher for a grade but because the student cared. Learning is not something you force. It is something that grows. If we give students a platform for a passion, it will can become the perfect vehicle for learning while also providing them a sense of self worth and pride.

So, do me a favor and have each of your students grant Mod's request - Just Publish

Thirty Conversations on Design

"Thirty Conversations on Design" documents what some of the most creative professionals think of design. While there were a number of great talks, and I suggest you take a look, there were a few that stood out to me

This included a talk by Emily Pilloton, who describes how learning can be reshaped by using design principles. She runs Project H Design, which is dedicated to "the re-thinking of environments, products, experiences, and curricula for K-12 education institutions in the US."

Another education related talk was Dan Pink, who discusses using design to reshape systems.  In particular, he focuses on how we should not be optimizing current systems, which has been the traditional practice but rather use design thinking to create new approaches to solving our biggest problems within education and other systems like health care.

If you believe we must rethink how we approach what, how and where students learn, I challenge you to take a deeper look into design thinking and how it can be a catalyst for actual reform within systems like education.

To learn more, visit

K-12 Lab @ Standford's d.school

Project H Design

Nueva School