Introduction
According to the National Educational Technology Plan of 2010 (NETP), “[e]ducation is the key to America’s economic growth and prosperity and to our ability to compete in the global economy. It is the path to good jobs and higher earning power for Americans. It is necessary for our democracy to work. It fosters the cross-border, cross-cultural collaboration required to solve the most challenging problems of our time.”
Our ability to compete in this global economy requires us to understand and come to terms with the changes that are occurring throughout the world, in terms of not only the significant cultural, economic and demographic changes, but also the changes in education and technology. Did you know that:
China will soon be the #1 English-speaking country in the world
The 25% of India’s population with the highest IQ’s is more than the U. S. population
India has more honors students than America has students
The top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010 didn’t exist in 2004
We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist that will rely on technologies that haven’t been invented
The U. S. Dept of Labor estimates that today’s learners will have 10-14 jobs by the age of 38
1 out of 8 couples who married in 2009, met online
There are over 88 billion searches on Google each month. In 2006, it was 2.7 billion.
The first text message was sent in December, 1992. Currently, more text messages are sent and received every day than the total population of the planet.
The amount of new technical information is doubling every 2 years. For a student starting a 4-yr technical degree, this means that half of what they learn in their first year of study will be outdated by their third year of study.
By 2013, a supercomputer will be built that exceeds the computational capabilities of the human brain.
Predictions are that by 2049, a $1000 computer will exceed the computational capabilities of the entire human species.
The National Educational Technology Plan of 2010 (NETP) goes on to describe that “[j]ust as technology is at the core of virtually every aspect of our daily lives and work, we must leverage it to provide engaging and powerful learning experiences, content, and resources and assessments that measure student achievement in more complete, authentic, and meaningful ways. Technology-based learning and assessment systems will be pivotal in improving student learning and generating data that can be used to continuously improve the education system at all levels. Technology will help us execute collaborative teaching strategies combined with professional learning that better prepare and enhance educators’ competencies and expertise over the course of their careers.”
