12412 BB: We are All Learners: How Breaking Down Silos Keeps Us Connected
Organizers: Paula Escuadra, Mat Frenz
Presenter: Mat Frenz
Discussants: Randy Weiner, Louise Dube
How do we, as an industry or intersection of industries, make learning visible? More and more educators are using the power of digital games that provide immersive and interactive opportunities for learning. For educators and learners, however, the process for finding and using high-impact, high-quality digital games that have proven learning outcomes is difficult. The same barriers apply to edtech companies striving to create positive learning impacts but lack the infrastructure to do so. Every moment is crucial on – and off- the screen, and it’s necessary to capture those moments in a way that are measurable, accessible, and actionable. In order to truly address the needs of learners in – and out of – the classroom, it is no longer viable to continue living in silos, just as it is no longer realistic to assume that every individual learner absorbs, masters and utilizes information the same way. An intentional, collaborative effort on a systems level is necessary to engage 21st century learners. Specifically, it is necessary for such an initiative to have scale, reach, engagement, choice, and disruptive in a way that can break long-standing institutional barriers to long-term impact. In this panel, we will explore the theory and practice of creating an open and collaborative community between traditionally separate learning domains. Educators, researchers and game designers will discuss these challenges of digital games in learning spaces, and how a personalized learning assessment engine can serve to capture rich, measurable learning experiences. We will discuss exactly how they have come together in a concerted, collaborative effort to introduce game-based learning to the classroom, and what they have learned in the process.
Mat Frenz develops strategic partnerships and defines sustainability strategy for GlassLab. His focus lies in GlassLab Games Services, identifying the most innovative companies in the learning games space and collaborating with them to create a seamless pathway into classrooms for their products. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Florida.
Randy Weiner is the CEO of BrainQuake and has worked in start-ups, education and education technology for the last 20 years. Expert in agile development, Randy is also a co-founder and the Chairman of the Board at Urban Montessori Charter School in Oakland, CA — the nation’s first public Montessori, Arts Integration and Design Thinking school. A Teach For America alum, he taught for five years in Oakland and Madagascar and holds B.A.s from Middlebury College and an MA in Education from Stanford University.
Louise Dube is the Executive Director for iCivics. Prior, she was the Managing Director of Digital Learning at WGBH, helping to launch PBS LearningMedia, a platform with more than 87,000 classroom-ready digital resources reaching 1.5 million educators. Louise has also served as President of Pangea Tools, VP of Marketing at Time To Know, Vice President and General Manager of Speech Products, and President of Soliloquy Learning. She holds a law degree from McGill University and an MBA from Yale.
