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GREAT Act Introduced Before House and Senate

Imagine your favorite teacher. Most likely this was someone who challenged the class and made learning fun. We all know well the arguments that teacher preparation organizations are simply not producing enough teachers of this ilk. Through our Learning to Teach Fund, we’re deeply engaged in fostering innovation that will lead to a new norm for teacher preparation, one in which teachers are well prepared for the demands of the classroom from day one. To build this market, we need to change the policies that exist today. That’s why we, along with over 90 leaders from across the education field, support the Growing Excellent Achievement Training Academies for Teachers and Principals (GREAT) Act, introduced in the Senate and the House today. Notably, in an era of hyper partisanship, GREAT has bipartisan support. Read more

Building a Digital Depository

These are exciting times for education entrepreneurship, technology, and the policy ecosystem that surrounds them both. Whether gauged by new school “startup weekends,” venture capital interest, or simply taking note of educators embracing digital tools, there is no question we are in a special moment. We may be on the verge of transformation that will radically redefine our instructional practices and improve learning outcomes – and make the education field one that […] Read more

Summit 2013 Session Videos

We are happy to make recordings of all the Summit 2013 sessions available to you. We will be adding content through out the week so be sure to check back soon for additional sessions. You can also check Our Vimeo Page where the sessions live. Read more

Live from Summit 2013– Hour of Power One

Welcome to Summit 2013′s first Hour of Power networking session. As conference participants power network over a cup of coffee sharing business cards and discussing the ideas of “frustrated optimist” Thomas Friedman, we were privileged to visit with some of the innovative individuals, organizations and companies helping to usher in the next generation of education technology.Combining gaming with instruction, Sifteo provides a portable platform – the Sifteo cube – and new hands-on […] Read more

Live from Summit 2013: Opening Plenary

Ted Mitchell kicked off Summit 2013 this morning at the opening plenary. After welcoming all of the attendees, Ted was joined by Thomas Friedman, author and columnist for the The New York Times, who has been “calling consistently for the change that drives our work…and sets the national dialogue about who we are as a country.” Read more

Fat SOTUesday: Benjamin Riley’s Take on the SOTU Address

I have a confession to make. I did not watch the President’s State of the Union speech last night. I have not even read the transcript. Am I a bad policy director? Yes, yes I am. On the other hand, it’s not my fault that the President inconveniently scheduled his big speech laying out his domestic policy agenda for 2013 the same night as Fat Tuesday. Read more

Edu-implications of the Election

I came into work this morning to find a note on my monitor that reads, “4 More Years!! :).” That nicely sums up the predominant sentiment in the nation’s capital, which celebrated last night in truly spectacular fashion. Congratulations, President Obama – may your next four years be slightly less eventful than the first.I also tip my proverbial hat to Mitt Romney, who in my opinion ran a very good campaign. He […] Read more

Who said it? Teachers Union Leader or Ed Tech Entrepreneur?

Even a handful of years ago, the scene would have been improbable: the leaders of the two major teachers unions sitting down to a serious conversation with education technology entrepreneurs about innovation and reform in the shadow of the Democratic National Convention.Yet that was what happened yesterday, at an event in Charlotte, NC organized by Democrats for Education Reform. (NewSchools is a nonpartisan organization.) The event reprised one at the Democratic convention […] Read more