Leadership Blog

Vander Ark on Innovation

This blog was written by Tom Vander Ark (@tvanderark), an education advocate, adviser, and author of Getting Smart: How Personal Digital Learning is Changing the World. Tom is Founder and Executive Editor of Getting Smart and a partner in Learn Capital. This blog is no longer being updated.

Classroom Technology Opinion Nexus Lansing: A New High School Experience
Nexus Academy, supported by Connections Learning, is a personalized competency-based environment--a great example of a flex blend with lots of extra features. It's worth a visit.
Tom Vander Ark, May 1, 2013
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3 min read
Education Opinion What's All The Buzz About Detroit?
Hey, how about some good news from Detroit? As noted recently, education in Detroit is coming out of the tailspin. There are some very good schools serving high need populations and it rivals the Bay Area for innovations in blended learning.
Tom Vander Ark, April 29, 2013
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6 min read
Education Opinion Pondering Urban High School Improvement
"We want people to be perplexed--to embrace the paradox of starting new schools," said Larry Rosenstock in the opening to the A+ Urban High School Summit in Denver Wednesday.
Tom Vander Ark, April 26, 2013
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5 min read
Classroom Technology Opinion The High School Challenge: Improvement vs. Innovation
How to help more students graduate ready for college and careers? We're exploring the perennial question at the A+ Urban High School Summit in Denver.
Tom Vander Ark, April 24, 2013
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5 min read
Education Opinion Phoenix: Smart City or Wild West?
Sprawling across a desert valley, Phoenix is the opposite of Boston in many ways--the streets are straight, just about everything was built in the last generation, and there are not a handful of storied institutions of higher learning.
Tom Vander Ark, April 22, 2013
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6 min read
Education Opinion 30 Years Coming, The Revolution is Here
It took 30 years from the first shots of the American revolution to an operating constitution of these United States. Michael Moe, in his keynote at ASU/GSV Education Innovation Summit, noted that it has been 30 years since A Nation at Risk--and a lot has
Tom Vander Ark, April 17, 2013
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4 min read
School & District Management Opinion Funding Students, Options & Achievement
Money matters. The way districts and states fund schools influences leadership behaviors. We need to create funding systems that encourage innovation, power options, and promote achievement.
Tom Vander Ark, April 16, 2013
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2 min read
Education Opinion Mind Trust Develops The Smart Cities Formula
Bart Peterson took office as mayor of Indianapolis in 2000 and quickly won the right to authorize charter schools--the first mayor in the country with that authority. That caught my attention in 2001, so I visited the mayor and his talented aides David Harris and Ellen Quigley.
Tom Vander Ark, April 15, 2013
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7 min read
Education Opinion Powering Lifelong Learning Relationships
A good LLR would help you learn three things: How do I do my job better today? What do I need to learn for my next job? What do I need to know and be able to do for my 5 year career goal?
Tom Vander Ark, April 10, 2013
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3 min read
Education Opinion Smart Cities: Early Observations
We're more than 20 cities into this weekly series examining education in American cities--a few things are becoming clear. I launched the series because everybody is talking about innovation (inside and outside of education) but I don't think we know much about where it happens or how it spreads--or why it doesn't.
Tom Vander Ark, April 8, 2013
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7 min read
Classroom Technology Opinion What Sort of Research Should We Be Doing on Blended Learning?
A foundation advisor asked, "Is there a smart approach donors might take with blended learning research?" Following are seven areas that could use some attention.
Tom Vander Ark, April 5, 2013
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6 min read
Education Opinion A Short Guide to EdTech Investing
A foundation officer called last week to discuss investing in edtech. After a decade of neglect, it's a growth category reflecting the mobile inflection and the transition to digital learning.
Tom Vander Ark, April 3, 2013
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3 min read
Education Opinion Smart Cities: Raleigh/Durham
Despite one of the most significant confluence of innovators on the planet, there are relatively few education innovators in the capital region but there are a handful of cool schools and a group of nationally important impact organizations profiled below.
Tom Vander Ark, April 1, 2013
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7 min read
Education Opinion Striving and Springing to College
Two remarkable young men realized in college that they had been fortunate in their college preparation, selection, and attendance. The both decided to do something about it. They organized nonprofits and stepped into the CEO role when the graduated.
Tom Vander Ark, March 29, 2013
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1 min read
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