These are some of the organisations, centres, labs that operate in the domain of education, technologies, cognition that we often visit in search for ideas, documents, projects and trends to share through our blog.
FRANCE
Ministère Français de l’Education
Le ministère de l’Éducation nationale mène depuis de nombreuses années une politique d’impulsion en faveur de l’usage des technologies de l’information et de la communication dans l’enseignement (TICE).
Voir à ce sujet les “Discours et conférences de presse ministériels” consacrés aux TICE dans la rubrique : “Textes de référence”.
Au sein de l’Éducation nationale, la Sous-direction des TICE (SDTICE) a pour mission de traduire cette politique et de généraliser l’usage de l’internet et des technologies de l’information et de la communication (TIC) de la maternelle à l’université.
Plus d’une soixantaine de projets sont portés ou impulsés annuellement par la sous-direction, soit qu’elle en assure la réalisation, soit qu’elle intervienne en tant que maître d’ouvrage.
SCEREN Centre national de la documentation pédagogique
Le CNDP, à la tête du réseau SCÉRÉN, propose un site de ressources pédagogiques et documentaires à destination de la communauté éducative, en faveur de la réussite des élèves.
INSTITUT NATIONAL DE RECHERCHE PEDAGOGIQUE
L’INRP a pour mission générale :
• de conduire ou de piloter des recherches en éducation, particulièrement sur les méthodes éducatives concernant les différents niveaux d’enseignement en formation initiale et continue, au bénéfice de la communauté éducative ; il effectue notamment des travaux de recherche en associant les personnels éducatifs. Par ses partenariats scientifiques nationaux et internationaux, il remplit un rôle d’animation et de mobilisation de la communauté scientifique en matière de recherche en éducation.
• d’appuyer le pilotage national et académique de l’enseignement scolaire en matière de réformes pédagogiques, de pratiques nouvelles, d’innovation et d’expérimentation, par le transfert des résultats de la recherche en éducation au profit de la communauté éducative.
A cet effet, l’INRP développe en particulier :
• une mission de conseil et d’expertise pour le compte du ministère de l’éducation nationale, appuyée sur la réalisation ou la coordination de travaux d’étude et de recherche portant sur des points de politique éducative et sur les effets des pratiques et méthodes d’enseignement ;
• une mission de transfert et de diffusion des résultats de la recherche portant prioritairement sur la formation des formateurs, aux niveaux national et académique ;
• une mission d’information scientifique, de veille scientifique et documentaire, de production et de diffusion de ressources, en matière de méthodes pédagogiques, de didactique, de dispositifs et de politiques d’éducation et de formation, notamment pour la formation des formateurs et pour les cadres du système éducatif
• une mission d’observation des pratiques, par la création d’observatoires nouveaux et la définition d’axes d’observation pour améliorer la connaissance des disciplines, de leurs méthodes d’apprentissage et de leur transmissionune mission de conservation, de développement et de valorisation de collections muséographiques et bibliographiques en matière de recherche en éducation, à travers sa bibliothèque et son Musée national de l’éducation.
EducTice est une équipe de recherche de l’INRP dont les travaux sont guidés par l’évolution des usages des TICE et veulent répondre aux défis posés par ces technologies aux acteurs de l’éducation. En s’appuyant sur les pratiques de terrain, comme sur les laboratoires universitaires experts du domaine, l’équipe EducTice s’intéresse plus spécifiquement aux didactiques des disciplines scientifiques dans leurs liens aux usages des TIC et à la conception et aux usages de scénarios d’apprentissage dans les environnements numériques.
UMR Éducation et politiques constitue un nouveau laboratoire de sciences sociales spécialisé sur l’éducation qui privilégie les approches constructivistes. L’évolution de la conjoncture politique appelle le développement d’observation des politiques d’éducation et de formation qui prennent en compte les différentes échelles régionales, nationales, européennes et internationales. L’unité s’engage dans une démarche prospective qui vise la mise en forme des questions émergentes. Elle contribue à inscrire l’INRP dans une dynamique de recherche internationale.
LABORATOIRE DES SCIENCES DE L’EDUCATION DE GRENOBLE
Programmes de recherche:
Systèmes de formation et apprentissages: évaluation et modélisation
Perspectives socio-cognitives, apprentissage et conduites sociales
Technologisation, formation, activités professionnelles.
COGNISCIENCES, UNIVERSITE DE GRENOBLE
L’activité de l’équipe Cognisciences porte sur l’étude des processus d’apprentissage. Notre approche s’appuie sur la neuropsychologie cognitive et la clinique du fonctionnement normal, des difficultés et des troubles d’apprentissage (dysphasies, dyslexies, dyspraxies, dyscalculies, troubles de l’attention).
UFR DE PSYCHOLOGIE, SCIENCES DE L’EDUCATION
Costech est une équipe d’accueil regroupant des chercheurs en sciences humaines et sociales dans des disciplines très variées. Sa particularité est d’être centrée sur la question des relations entre Homme, Technique et Société : conditions techniques de la constitution des connaissances, de l’expérience vécue et des valeurs ; usages et nouvelles pratiques sociales autour des supports numériques ; modélisation et management de l’innovation et des mutations dans les organisations.
Costech combine une recherche conceptuelle ambitieuse et non conventionnelle avec le souci de mise à l’épreuve dans des réalisations techniques, organisationnelles et sociales.
LE CUBE Centre de création numérique
Ouvert en 2001, Le Cube est un lieu précurseur et emblématique à plus d’un titre. Premier centre de création entièrement dédié au numérique, Le Cube est une expérience unique en son genre en France. Créé à l’initiative de la Ville d’Issy-les-Moulineaux, Le Cube est un espace de la Communauté d’Agglomération Arc de Seine. Il est géré et animé par l’association ART3000, qui mène depuis 1988 ses activités dans le domaine des arts numériques.
Le Cube a imposé son nom dans ce secteur en pleine effervescence et doit son succès à la richesse des nouvelles formes d’expression qu’il soutient, à son ouverture sur tous les publics et aux nombreuses activités innovantes qu’il propose : ateliers et initiations multimédias tous niveaux, activités pour le jeune public dès 2 ans, centre de documentation spécialisé « cultures numériques», soutien à la production, Atelier de création, expositions, concerts, performances, rencontres, conférences, séminaires, etc.
Le Cube forme ainsi les publics aux pratiques artistiques et culturelles du numérique, valorise la richesse et la diversité des arts multimédias, soutient des productions artistiques de haut niveau et favorise les échanges entre les acteurs de l’écosystème «création - recherche - innovation».
La troupe des Atomes Crochus est une association loi 1901 créée en 2002 par trois universitaires passionnés de communication scientifique : un physicien-pédagogue, un clown-chimiste et une musicienne-didacticienne des sciences.
Née d’un spectacle inédit de clown de science, la troupe a rapidemment diversifiée ses activités en s’adjoignant les compétences éclectiques d’autres passionné-e-s : une directrice artistique conteuse et metteur en scène, un doctorant en écologie préoccupé par les questions de société, une maîtresse d’école amoureuse des sciences, une agrégée de biologie spécialiste de communication scientifique, une administratrice énergique, un photographe enthousiaste, une graphiste imaginative, puis d’autres comédiens, étudiants, musiciens…
A travers une large palette d’activités de médiation scientifique dans les domaines des sciences expérimentales et du développement durable, tentant d’allier toutes les formes artistiques et pédagogiques possibles, elle s’est rapidement muée en un véritable laboratoire d’innovations de la culture scientifique, en conjuguant les compétences et la créativité de plusieurs dizaines de membres, ainsi que les conseils de ses Membres d’Honneur, personnalités éminentes de la science, des arts et de la culturel.
Ses activités s’adressent aussi bien au grand public qu’aux élèves et enseignants de tous niveaux scolaires et universitaires. Elle intervient en France et à l’étranger, dans les écoles, universités, médiathèques, centres culturels et scientifiques, fêtes de sciences…
Les activités des Atomes Crochus visent des objectifs ambitieux : éveiller la curiosité, susciter le goût d’apprendre, entretenir le plaisir de découvrir et de regarder différemment le monde. Pour ce faire, elle s’appuient sur des recherches récentes développées en sciences de l’éducation et en sciences cognitives, et inspirent les formations à la communication scientifique et au développement durable conduites au sein du groupe TRACES de l’Ecole normale supérieure.
Depuis 1962, Planète Sciences et ses délégations régionales proposent aux jeunes des activités scientifiques et techniques expérimentales, dans le cadre des loisirs et du temps scolaire, avec le soutien de grands organismes scientifiques et industriels.
50 000 jeunes sont sensibilisés chaque année, avec le concours de 500 clubs scientifiques et la participation de 1000 animateurs et formateurs spécialisés dans l’encadrement de centres de vacances, d’ateliers, de Projets d’Actions Educatives, d’expositions… Guidé par la volonté de développer la culture scientifique et technique auprès des jeunes, Planète Sciences :
- stimule et organise les loisirs scientifiques et techniques en France et à l’étranger,
- collabore avec l’enseignement pour la réalisation de travaux à caractère expérimental,
- prépare les animateurs et formateurs à l’animation scientifique,
- contribue à la formation pré-professionnelle des jeunes,
- favorise les échanges entre ces derniers et le milieu de la recherche et de l’industrie.
Le LUTIN (Lab. des Usages en Technologies Numériques) est une plateforme CNRS visant à étudier les usages des nouvelles technologies dans le cadre de recherches académiques et industrielles.
Parmi les projets Lutin:
L’Observatoire des Usages des Espaces Numériques de Travail (ENT) a été créé dans le but d’optimiser la mise en place des nouvelles technologies dans le système éducatif futur et ceci en prenant en compte les recommandations et besoins de tous les types d’utilisateurs.
OBSERVUS a pour vocation l’observation des usages des ENT (Espace Numériques de Travail) dans le domaine de l’enseignement pour en faciliter l’utilisation et la conception de services et logiciels adaptés. Les Objectifs d’Observus : * Décrire les usages des ENT, * Analyser les pratiques, apprécier les nouveaux usages des nouvelles technologies e …
L’association Sésamath a pour vocation essentielle de mettre à disposition de tous des ressources pédagogiques et des outils professionnels utilisés pour l’enseignement des Mathématiques via Internet. Inscrite délibérément dans une démarche de service public, l’association est attachée aux valeurs de la gratuité d’utilisation des ressources et du logiciel libre :
elle favorise donc, dans la mesure du possible, des licences libres pour les documents et logiciels mis en ligne ainsi que des formats ouverts ;
elle recommande à ses membres et contributeurs leur utilisation pour la communication, la production de documents et de ressources pédagogiques.
Dans l’exacte continuité de son rôle de diffuseur, Sésamath tente :
de simplifier (pour ses utilisateurs) l’accès à une multitude de ressources.
de promouvoir les échanges autour des pratiques pédagogiques (listes, forums…).
d’informer les utilisateurs inscrits de toutes les nouveautés, mises à jour de ressources…
de promouvoir tout type de synergie et de mutualisation interne ou externe à l’association : en particulier, Sésamath favorise les rapprochements et les imbrications d’entités existantes, plutôt que d’en faire une simple juxtaposition sous forme “d’anneau de sites”.
Projetice est une association qui cherche à promouvoir l’intégration des TIC dans les pratiques pédagogiques des enseignants. Originale dans le paysage associatif français, rassemblant des personnes d’horizons très variées, elle intervient directement sur le terrain en posant comme principe que la mutualisation des pratiques, la formation et l’accompagnement de projets pédagogiques au plus près des besoins, sont les dispositifs indispensables pour généraliser les usages.
La main à la pâte a été lancée en 1996, à l’initiative de Georges Charpak, prix Nobel de physique 1992, Pierre Léna, Yves Quéré et de l’Académie des sciences dans le but de rénover l’enseignement des sciences et de la technologie à l’école primaire en favorisant un enseignement fondé sur une démarche d’investigation scientifique. La démarche préconisée par La main à la pâte s’appuie sur dix principes et articule apprentissages scientifiques, maîtrise des langages et éducation à la citoyenneté. Pour cela, les enseignants soumettent à la curiosité de leurs élèves des objets et des phénomènes du monde qui les entoure, suscitant le questionnement scientifique. Celui-ci conduit à la formulation d’hypothèses destinées à être testées par l’expérimentation ou vérifiées par une recherche documentaire. Ainsi, les élèves s’approprient progressivement concepts scientifiques et techniques opératoires et consolident leur expression orale et écrite. De nombreux acteurs, enseignants, formateurs, conseillers pédagogiques, inspecteurs, ingénieurs, scientifiques, étudiants en sciences, etc. participent aux différents dispositifs d’accompagnement mis en œuvre par La main à la pâte.
EUROPE
Insight, Observatory for new technologies in education
European Schoolnet (EUN) is a network of 31 Ministries of Education in Europe and beyond. EUN was created more than 10 years ago with the aim to bring about innovation in teaching and learning to its key stakeholders: Ministries of Education, schools, teachers and researchers.
European Schoolnet’s activities are divided among three strands of work:
o Policy, research and innovation
o Schools services
o Learning resource exchange and interoperability.
Becta leads the national (UK) drive to inspire and lead the effective and innovative use of technology throughout learning. It’s our ambition to create a more exciting, rewarding and successful experience for learners of all ages and abilities enabling them to achieve their potential.
The London Knowledge Lab is a unique collaboration between two of the UK’s most prominent centres of world-class research – the Institute of Education and Birkbeck. The Lab brings together computer and social scientists from a very broad range of fields, including:
• education, sociology, culture and media, semiotics, data mining, information management, personalisation and ubiquitous technologies.
This means that issues can be tackled from many different perspectives, and this is reflected in our mission, to
• Understand the place of digital technologies and media in our cultural, social and educational relationships with knowledge – finding, acquiring, creating, and sharing it;
• Design, build and evaluate systems, processes and interfaces that enhance learning, both formal and informal, throughout life; and
• Examine critically the assumptions about knowledge and learning that underlie the increasingly wide range of applications of digital technologies.
Futurelab is passionate about transforming the way people learn. Tapping into the huge potential offered by digital and other technologies, we develop innovative resources and practices that support new approaches to learning for the 21st century. A not-for-profit organisation, we work in partnership with others to:
• incubate new ideas, taking them from the lab to the classroom
• share hard evidence and practical advice to support the design and use of innovative learning tools
• communicate the latest thinking and practice in educational ICT
• provide the space for experimentation and the exchange of ideas between the creative, technology and education sectors.
The LSN Centre for Innovation in Learning is an independent think tank committed to making learning work. We generate and share ideas along with practical solutions to inform the future of learning.
Our extended network of experts works at the forefront of change and innovation in education and learning. And our powerful body of research and 25 years’ experience of delivering programmes into learning organisations underpins our work.
We provide a fertile and exciting space for innovative thinking. Join us, get involved and help shape the future.
LTRI Learning technology research institute
The LTRI conducts research into the application of information and communication technologies to augment, support and transform learning. There are three major research themes. More in research
Learning objects & learning design concerns the design, development and use of reusable resources and designs. We lead the CETL in Reusable Learning Objects (RLO-CETL) [www.rlo-cetl.ac.uk]
Learning interaction & dialogue design concerns the nature of effective learning dialogue and interaction with an emphasis on the development of supportive software tools and dialogue games.
Designing for informal & lifelong learning develops models that describe how people perform learning activities using resources, and how these can be coordinated using adaptive computer-based software agents.
The Institute’s research is supported by a range of funded research projects
WORLD
CENTER FOR FUTURISM IN EDUCATION
Education has become the object of many scientific disciplines in our postmodern era. From developmental psychology, pedagogics and learning theories, to organizational theory, computer science and economics - it seems that almost any branch of research has something to say about how education system should be designed, why they operate as they do, and what can be done to improve them.
But beyond the scientific approach towards education lies a fundamental layer that should be made explicit, before any operationalization is made possible. Postmodernity has brought many changes that pose a challenge to any attempt to fundamentally approach the question of education:
Where should education aim at?
The ever growing availability of information and knowledge, the globalization of society, and at the same time the growing diversity and regionalization of states, the free market economy and ever expending privatization of once-universal or national assets - all these factors and many more call for re-approaching the question of the aims of education.
Any such attempt to address this question must stem from a deep understanding of prevailing practices – and among them, first and foremost that of ICT.
Any such attempt should furthermore be critical in its approach, investigative in spirit, and strategic in scope.
And at last, any such attempt should be guided by a clear conception of individuals’ wellbeing and societies prosperity as means for enabling their citizens’ wellbeing.
This is where our activities, at the Center for Futurism in Education (CFE), start. We bring forward a set of Humanistic values and set them as the guiding principles of our attempt to re-approach the question of the aims of education. We tackle the question through design of innovative educational concepts that strive to reflect these values, and through their implementation in today’s reality - mainly via ICT - and their validation.
We are committed to the design of an educational future that will be sustainable and stemming from existing practices. And at the same time, we are committed to the design of a framework for evaluating the realization of this future, in light of Humanistic values.
The International Literacy Institute (ILI) was officially established in 1994 by UNESCO and the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. The mission of the ILI is to provide leadership in research, development, and training in the broad field of international literacy and development, with an emphasis on developing countries. The ILI organizes regional and international conferences, disseminates the ILI newsletter, Literacy Innovations, and is involved in a number of significant research, development, training, and networking activities around the world.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding Science of Learning Centers (SLCs) in order to extend the frontiers of knowledge on learning of all types and create the intellectual, organizational, and physical infrastructure needed for the long-term advancement of learning research. The Learning in Informal and Formal Environments (LIFE) Center was one of the first four Science of Learning Centers to be funded in the Fall of 2004. LIFE is an interdisciplinary collaboration between learning scientists at the University of Washington, Stanford University, SRI International, and other institutions across the country.
THE LIFE LEADERSHIP TEAM consists of Brigid Barron, Philip Bell, John Bransford, Patricia Kuhl, Andrew Meltzoff, Na’ilah Suad Nasir, Roy Pea, Byron Reeves, William Penuel, Nora Sabelli, Dan Schwartz, Reed Stevens, and Nancy Vye. They are joined by an exceptional group of graduate students, post-doctoral scholars, faculty researchers, and staff in LIFE Center activities.
THE PURPOSE OF THE LIFE CENTER IS to develop and test principles about the social foundations of human learning in informal and formal environments, including how people learn to innovate in contemporary society, with the goal of enhancing human learning from infancy to adulthood.
Our selection of ‘the social foundations of learning’ as LIFE’s Purpose derived from four factors: (a) Center-wide LIFE discussions of our findings with the goal of identifying common principles across diverse settings, domains, and ages, (b) identification of learning features in both informal and formal settings, (c) new advances in related fields, (d) a consensus among LIFE’s scientists that the role of ‘social’ in learning is underrepresented in current thinking about the science of learning.
The Lifelong Kindergarten group is fortunate to be located within the MIT Media Lab, a hotbed of creative activity. In one corner of the Media Lab, students are designing new musical instruments. In another corner, students are designing new social-networking software. This type of activity makes the Media Lab not just a good research lab, but a good place for learning, since people learn a great deal when they are actively engaged in designing, creating, and inventing things.
Unfortunately, most children don’t get the opportunity to engage in these types of creative activities. In school, they learn specific facts and skills, but rarely get the opportunity to design things — or to learn about the process of designing things. Outside school, they interact with electronic toys and games, but they don’t learn how to invent new ones.
In the Lifelong Kindergarten group, we’re trying to change that. We believe that it is critically important for all children, from all backgrounds, to grow up knowing how to design, create, and express themselves. We are inspired by the ways children learn in kindergarten: when they create pictures with finger paint, they learn how colors mix together; when they create castles with wooden blocks, they learn about structures and stability. We want to extend this kindergarten style of learning, so that learners of all ages continue to learn through a process of designing, creating, experimenting, and exploring.
Our ultimate goal is a world full of playfully creative people who are constantly inventing new opportunities for themselves and their communities.
HITL Humain Interface Technology Laboratory
“Through the decade just ended, the Institute for Learning Technologies (ILT) has directed several large projects integrating new media into the practice of elementary and secondary education. These projects are permitting ILT to create a body of emergent experience with the educational potential of digital technologies. We are learning some lessons, which are simultaneously sobering and hopeful.
In 1986, the Trustees of Teachers College established the Institute for Learning Technologies with the mission of using digital technologies as means to effect humane reform in education. During ILT’s first years, we developed initial ideas about the potential for networked multimedia as transformative forces in educational practice. At the time, these ideas struck most funders as too visionary and impracticable. We struggled to find implementation opportunities, prototyping some possibilities on a small scale internally and at the Dalton School. By 1990 we were ready to test the power of networked multimedia as an agent of change in education in the arena of institutional practice. Over the past ten years, these explorations have been ILT’s primary activity.”
INSTITUTE FOR LEARNING AND BRAIN SCIENCES
The Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences is an interdisciplinary center dedicated to discovering the fundamental principles of human learning that will enable all children to achieve their full potential. Our goal is to become the world’s foremost research generator on early learning and development. We will translate and disseminate cutting-edge research discoveries to global constituents in order to help unify the science of learning and the practice of learning.
We believe that scientific study of the developing mind and brain is the next great research frontier and that discoveries in the next decade will be comparable to those in genetics, biotechnology, and informatics. Our goal is to make Seattle and the Institute the nexus of 21st century research on the science of early learning. We seek to quicken the pace of discoveries that make a difference to theory and practice. By conducting innovative research and disseminating this knowledge to international audiences, we will advance the understanding and appreciation of the importance of learning throughout the lifespan.
The Dana Foundation is a private philanthropy with principal interests in brain science, immunology, and arts education. Charles A. Dana, a New York State legislator, industrialist and philanthropist, was president of the Dana Foundation from 1950 to 1966 and actively shaped its programs and principles until his death in 1975.
Dana Foundation has offices in New York and Washington, DC.
Dana.org serves as a gateway to brain information you can rely on. Visit the BrainWeb section to find general information about the brain and current brain research, as well as links to validated sites related to more than 25 brain disorders. Brainy Kids Online offers children, teens, parents and teachers links to games, labs, excellent education resources and lesson plans. Brain Resources for Seniors provides older adults and their caretakers with links to sites related to brain health, education and general information. Our Arts Education pages support the training of in-school arts specialists. Our News & Publication section, books page and journals Cerebrum and BrainWork offer breaking news and analysis.
Dana also sponsors many public events, including lectures and forums featuring experts on timely topics in science, the arts and in education. Many of the events are available as podcasts, along with interviews, radio programs and other media resources.
IEARN International Education and Resource Network
“iEARN (International Education and Resource Network) is a non-profit organization made up of over 27,000 schools and youth organizations in more than 125 countries. iEARN empowers teachers and young people to work together online using the Internet and other new communications technologies. Over 2,000,000 students each day are engaged in collaborative project work worldwide.
Since 1988, iEARN has pioneered on-line school linkages to enable students to engage in meaningful educational projects with peers in their countries and around the world.
There are over 300 projects in iEARN all designed and facilitated by teachers and students to fit their curriculum and classroom needs and schedules. In addition to connecting students’ learning with local issues and meeting specific curriculum needs, every project proposed by teachers and students in iEARN has to answer the question, “How will this project improve the quality of life on the planet?” This vision and purpose is the glue that holds iEARN together, enabling participants to become global citizens who make a difference by collaborating with their peers around the world.
The Collaboration Center is an innovative platform for student and teacher interaction. It takes advantage of a variety of powerful online software tools designed to build an interactive global community to exchange ideas and media, and build cultural awareness and peace. Our intention is to add additional tools as they become available. We would like to acknowledge the lead role played by Adobe Systems in the development of this Collaboration Center, as part of their signature project.”
France
“iEARN works with the EthnoKids Program and individual schools in France, some of which participate in Learning Circles, as well as with schools which participate in listserves sponsored by the French Ministry of Education.”
“Rethinking Schools began as a local effort to address problems such as basal readers, standardized testing, and textbook-dominated curriculum. Since its founding in 1986, it has grown into a nationally prominent publisher of educational materials, with subscribers in all 50 states, all 10 Canadian provinces, and many other countries.
While the scope and influence of Rethinking Schools has changed, its basic orientation has not. Most importantly, it remains firmly committed to equity and to the vision that public education is central to the creation of a humane, caring, multiracial democracy. While writing for a broad audience, Rethinking Schools emphasizes problems facing urban schools, particularly issues of race.
Throughout its history, Rethinking Schools has tried to balance classroom practice and educational theory. It is an activist publication, with articles written by and for teachers, parents, and students. Yet it also addresses key policy issues, such as vouchers and marketplace-oriented reforms, funding equity, and school-to-work.
Schools are integral not only to preparing all children to be full participants in society, but also to be full participants in this country’s ever-tenuous experiment in democracy. That this vision has yet to be fully realized does not mean it should be abandoned.”
Edutopia. The George Lucas Educational Foundation
“Kids today — no previous generation has experienced anything like the current pace of transformational societal change. Yet, in light of extraordinary advancements in how we interact with each other and the world, our system of education has been frustratingly slow to adapt.
The George Lucas Educational Foundation was created to address this issue. Our vision is of a new world of learning. A place where kids and parents, teachers and administrators, policy makers and the people they serve, all are empowered to change education for the better. A place where schools have access to the same invaluable technology as businesses and universities — where innovation is the rule, not the exception. A place where children become lifelong learners and develop the technical, cultural, and interpersonal skills to succeed in the twenty-first century. A place of inspiration, aspiration, and an urgent belief that improving education improves the world we live in.
We call this place Edutopia. And we provide not just the vision for this new world of learning but also the leading-edge interactive tools and resources to help make it a reality.
Edutopia is the tangible embodiment of our vision. Through the Edutopia.org Web site, Edutopiamagazine, and Edutopia video, we spread the word about ideal, interactive learning environments and enable others to adapt these successes locally. Edutopia.org contains a deep archive of continually updated best practices, from classroom tips to recommendations for districtwide change. Allied with a dedicated audience that actively contributes success stories from the field, our mission relies on input and participation from schools and communities.
The diverse and innovative media resources available from The George Lucas Educational Foundation are designed to connect and inspire positive change in all areas of education.
- Edutopia.org: An in-depth and interactive resource, Edutopia.org offers practical, hands-on advice, real-world examples, lively contributions from practitioners, and invaluable tips and tools.
- Edutopia magazine: The preeminent publication for promoting positive change in education,Edutopia magazine presents a continual flow of fresh ideas and inspiring success stories.
- Edutopia video: Through an extensive offering of documentaries, Edutopia video is a catalyst for innovation by helping educators and parents, as well as business and community leaders, see and understand pioneering best practices.”
LEGO® Education provides complete learning solutions which cover important curriculum areas while stimulating creativity, problem-solving and team-working skills. More than 25 years of experience has taught us the effectiveness of learning by making. Our solutions are based on a hands-on learning approach that actively involves students in their own learning process. Our sets meet the goals for early childcare practitioners and are highly relevant in schools and after-school environments.
lettera27 is a non profit foundation, born in July 2006. Its mission is to support the right to literacy, to education, and the access to knowledge and information, all over the world and especially in the most deprived areas. lettera27 is the 27th letter, the missing letter, the letter that is not yet, the hybrid letter, the empty box, the link between oral and written words, the connection to the future, the intersection of analog and digital.
The foundation raises funds to support—in various ways, including through direct financial contributions—hands-on projects devoted to education at all levels, and to the creation of areas for research, relying upon the resources, the organizations and the movements present in each territory, which is the focus of each specific programme. We intend the financial support involved to be used to increase such resources, in recognition of their independent and diverse values and intertwining, with the various cultural and social options, reciprocally effective interaction and dialogue. An integral part of our mission is the search for projects with the previous characteristics. The foundation performs research, gathers documentation, provides organization, information and debate communication, related to the experiences and works in favor of literacy right and knowledge accessibility. It thus intends to provide tools for the analysis and further in-depth study needed for the encouragement of an informed and active attitude, especially in the spheres of public opinion and in the institutions of the wealthiest nations.
