Looking for inspiration for the new year? Check out these nine edtech thought leaders to get advice on how to engage your students, create more opportunities in and out of the classroom, integrate technology into your curriculum, and stay up-to-date on edtech trends.
Image source: Remake Learning
1. Michelle King
We were first introduced to Michelle King at the 2018 Connected Learning Summit where she gave the featured plenary. Michelle is a middle school teacher, learning instigator, love activist, and transformer. She strives to make learning enjoyable and relevant for all students by connecting it to their own lives.
To engage her classroom and other educators, Michelle uses game-based learning, design, restorative justice, equity, social justice, and teacher empowerment to shape how students experience learning. Michelle also curates and publishes content on education, business, science, arts and entertainment, and more through her paper.li “newspaper.”
Follow her on Twitter: @LrningInstigatr
Check out her TED Talk
Image source: Angela Maiers website
2. Angela Maiers
Angela Maiers is a distinguished writer, entrepreneur, speaker, and educator. She aims to be a leader, visionary, entrepreneur, disruptor, and change maker in education and enterprise through her message on the importance of mattering.
Angela’s mission is to unleash the genius in all of us by encouraging people to embrace their value and potential contribution. She founded Choose2Matter to encourage collaboration among students to develop new and creative solutions to social problems. The organization has since grown to also support parents, educators, and employees internationally.
Follow her on Twitter: @angelamaiers
Check out her initiatives
Image source: Tom Vander Ark Twitter
3. Tom Vander Ark
Tom Vander Ark, Chief Executive Officer of Getting Smart and co-founder of Learn Capital, advises and invests in impact organizations and learning institutions in order to support innovations in learning.
Tom has co-authored over fifty books, chapters, and white papers. He has also published thousands of articles on platforms such as GettingSmart.com, LinkedIn, Education Week, and Forbes. Outside of his work with Getting Smart and his work as an author, Tom regularly presents at various national and international conferences, including ASU/GSV, SXSW EDU, The World Bank, Bett Show, and The Digital Education Show Middle East.
Follow him on Twitter: @tvanderark
Check out a list of his publications
Image source: Medium article
4. George Couros
George Couros, an “Innovative Teaching, Learning, and Leadership” consultant and author of The Innovator’s Mindset, encourages educators to inspire their students to follow their passions, which in turn inspires others to do the same. A learner, educator, and consultant, George believes that education must focus on collaboration in order to meet the needs of all children.
With over 17 years of experience as an educator, Couros uses first-hand experience from teaching and working with teachers to support educators who are trying to help students find and excel in their own paths. He also works with schools to adapt curriculum to better serve students’ needs in the present and for their futures.
Follow him on Twitter: @gcouros
Learn more about his educational leadership philosophy
Image source: ISTE 2017 keynote
5. Jennie Magiera
Jennie Magiera, Chief Program Officer at EdTechTeam and co-founder of Student Voice Foundation, empowers educators to create new and innovative opportunities for students. Much of her work focuses on recognizing problems in the classroom and discovering different ways to navigate and address them through effective use of technology and “edventures”: student-centered, passion-based experiential learning.
A Corwin best-selling author, White House Champion for Change, TEDx Speaker, and former Chicago Public Schools teacher, among other roles, Jennie is committed to reimagining professional learning in order to address teacher support that feels more relevant to educators and students.
Follow her on Twitter: @MsMagiera
Check out her book: Courageous Edventures
Image source: Nebraska Educational Technology Society
6. Eric Curts
Eric Curts, an Authorized Google Education Trainer and Google Certified Innovator, provides training and consulting to schools and organizations in educational technology, with a focus on Google Apps.
In his blog Control Alt Achieve, Eric details how to integrate Google Apps into curriculum in order to transform education in a positive way. He also provides tutorials, guides, presentations, and other resources for educators or organization employees to make full use of the tools available.
Follow him on Twitter: @ericcurts
Check out his services
Image source: The Cool Cat Teacher Blog
7. Vicki Davis
Vicki Davis, a full-time teacher and IT Director in Georgia, provides advice and resources to fellow educators on how to reach all children, especially those who learn differently or who struggle with learning. Her blog, The Cool Cat Teacher Blog, inspires educators to approach teaching with patience, resilience, and positivity. It also amplifies educator voices by offering a platform for them to share their stories with an online community.
Vicki also highlights tools and technologies that can benefit classrooms, such as digital film, augmented reality, virtual reality, and many more. A blogger, podcaster, Global Collaborative Project Inventor, author, and speaker, Vicki uses her expertise and love of education to fulfill her mission of helping you become a better teacher.
Follow her on Twitter: @coolcatteacher
Check out her podcast: 10-Minute Teacher
Image source: Eric Sheninger Twitter
8. Eric Sheninger
Eric Sheninger is a Senior Fellow and Thought Leader on Digital Leadership with the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE), as well as a former award-winning principal at New Milford High School. Using his experience implementing various sustainable change initiatives that reshaped how teachers taught and students learned at his school, Eric created the Pillars of Digital Leadership, a framework for all educators to create similar change and transformations in their own school cultures.
A best-selling author and in-demand speaker, Eric pays particular attention to how educators can successfully integrate technology into their curricula to increase professional development opportunities, enhance student learning, and transform learning spaces. He also details how technology can help schools and organizations better communicate with stakeholders and the larger public in order to increase brand presence.
Follow him on Twitter: @E_Sheninger
Check out his publications and blog
Image source: School Library Journal Flickr
9. The Reynolds Brothers
If this name seems familiar, that’s because they’re two of our FableVision co-founders! Peter H. Reynolds and his twin brother Paul A. Reynolds are both advocates of creativity and lifelong learning. Peter is a best-selling children's book author (The Dot, Ish, Sky Color, Someday), illustrator (Judy Moody, The Water Princess), bookshop owner, and advocate for children, parents, teachers, and caregivers to “make their mark” in learning, expressing their creativity, and solving social issues. Paul is a storyteller, educator, award-winning author, and passionate supporter of using the power of storytelling and media to create engaging and authentic educational experiences for learners of all ages.
Peter and Paul also support and empower educators and students through FableVision Learning, FableVision’s K-12 educational publisher and distributor of creative software, the nonprofit Reynolds Center for Teaching, Learning, and Creativity dedicated to innovative teaching practices, and (of course) FableVision Studios, our media production studio that shares "stories that matter, stories that move" in an effort to move the world to a better place.
Upcoming events:
Paul is participating in a workshop titled “Make to Learn: An Easy, Affordable Onramp to STEAM” and signing books as a part of the “Meet the Authors” booth at the Future of Education Technology Conference in Orlando, Florida on January 28th.
Peter is speaking on creativity and the power of the individual teacher at Bett in London on January 25th.
Follow them on Twitter: @peterhreynolds and @fablepaul
Check out Peter’s FableFriday and Paul’s FableFriday
