Envisioning Educational Technology of the Future

Educational Technology of the Future [Click to Enlarge]
(Source: http://www.teachthought.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/envisioning-the-future-of-education.png)

Michell Zappa and colleagues at Envisioningtech.com created a mindmap to visualize how educational technology might develop over the next 30+ years (See above).

In the visual there are three distinct domains/learning spaces: Classroom, Studio, and Virtual.

Within these domains are 6 sub-domains that represent both areas of growth and characteristics of how learning might change when fused with emerging technologies.

1. Digitized Classrooms: Rather than considering IT a standalone tool or skill, digitization tends to disperse throughout every facet of the classroom.
Examples: tablets, electronic screens, interactive whiteboards, data projectors, 

2. Tangible Computing: Embedding computation to the physical via intelligent objects, the internet of things, and connectivity with a profound impact on learning mechanisms.

Examples: reactive materials, reactive furniture, 3D printers, digitally intermediated field trips

3. Gamification: Billed as an evolution in grading mechanisms, gamification brings instant feedback to acquired knowledge through achievements and points systems.

Examples: student developed apps, educational games, educational programming tools, achievement badges, self-paced learning

4. Virtual/Physical Studios: Bridging the online–offline gap, these future technologies offer a potential future where embodiment is secondary to information access.

Examples: eyewear/HUDs, retinal screens, holography, neuroinfomatics, immersive virtual reality

5. Disintermediation: Undoing the traditional teacher-student model, these technologies offer a scenario where AI handles personalization while teachers focus on teaching

Examples: telepresence, algo-generated lessons, mobile learning platforms, task-assignment algorithms, S2S teaching platforms, assessment algorithms, student-designed learning mechanics

6. Opening of Information: Dissemination of information outside the physical silos of schools and classrooms, offering feedback and assessment to students anywhere.

[The text above is a reprint from: http://www.teachthought.com/technology/6-characteristics-of-tomorrows-classroom-technology/]