T&L Advisor Guest post — Carl Hooker, Director of Instructional Technology, Eanes I.S.D., and author of the Mobile Mindset series: I’m always pumped about being a part of a SchoolCIO summit hosted by Tech and Learning. The summit offers unique opportunities for collaboration between K-12 leaders as well as EdTech industry leaders to discuss some of the challenges we face in modern learning. One of the primary focuses to this weekend’s event is looking more deeply into blended learning. While the phrase “blended learning” dates back to the 20th century, the methods and modalities have changed quite a bit over the years. This recent Pew Internet report shows the digital divide closing largely to an influx of smartphones, tablets, Chromebooks, and low-cost laptops. In some ways I feel like we are just now seeing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to blended learning. With public education seemingly under fire with our transitional government, leveraging our influx of devices with a blended model might be necessary for survival. The recently released 2017 NMC Horizon Report for Higher Ed even lists Blended Learning Designs as a short-term trend that is driving EdTech adoption across our higher ed institutions. One question I hope to get answered at the summit is, if the future of learning is blended, what is the next step? You can follow the conversation at www.techlearning.com/tltechlive/.
