Author Archives: Jeff Horton, Duluth

Recently I received an invitation to speak at an upcoming global education summit in Beijing. The organizers asked me to give a presentation on the two topics that have dominated my work for the last 30 years: Project Based Learning and 21st Century Skills. At the Buck Institute for Education (now PBLWorks) I created theContinue reading “Redefining Creativity in the Age of AI”

I recently visited the National Museum of African-American History and Culture In Washington, D.C. As I walked through the Afrofuturism exhibit, it was inspiring to see how out-of-this-world thinking has allowed Black visionaries to create new futures for Black children. Writer Greg Tate said, “Being Black in America is a science fiction experience.” Through theContinue reading “Afrofuturism as Liberation and Design with Ingrid LaFleur”

By: Shannon Murtagh  In 2021, deep in the midst of COVID, we surveyed Chief Innovation Officers (CIOs) working in public school districts across the country about the skills, core work, and mindsets that were most important to innovate for equity. These CIOs identified research and development (R&D) as the most important skill and the missingContinue reading “Community-Centered Research & Development in Education”

By: Dr. Tyler Thigpen A buddy of mine, Paul, works for a major airline headquartered in Atlanta. The airline deploys him to examine new technologies. He assesses whether integrating them will improve plane flights and, if so, what the ripple effects are. Money, time, and lives are at stake. What a responsibility! As an educationContinue reading “AI in Education: Leading a Paradigm Shift”

After a two-year investigation including hundreds of interviews, Kim Smith and Jen Holleran published a landscape of innovation in US K-12 education. What they found was a lot of confusion because there is not a single unified landscape. There are multiple systems are operating simultaneously often in the same geography:  Traditional Efficiency: schools organized inContinue reading “Why We Need More New Schools (Even with Enrollments Down and Closures Ahead)”

At Getting Smart, we partner with organizations that help collectively reach our mission of actively building the future of learning by designing, accelerating and amplifying equitable innovations that empower all people to thrive and lead in a complex world.  Within our learning design work, we spend a lot of time writing about, supporting and implementingContinue reading “Here are our design principles. What do you think?”

By: History Co:Lab “What would a map of every opportunity in Pittsburgh where young people feel powerful and seen look like?” On June 25th, at the Civic Learning Ecosystem’s Youth Design Day, youth leaders, educators, civic organizers, and community members from southwestern Pennsylvania gathered in the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh’s SLB Youth Media Center toContinue reading “Youth Design Day: Mapping Civic Learning Across Pittsburgh”

At Getting Smart, we are passionate about driving innovation in education. This year, we’ve submitted three exciting session proposals for SXSW 2025, and we need your support to bring these important conversations to the forefront. By voting for our sessions, you are actively contributing to advancing innovative education strategies that can significantly impact the futureContinue reading “Help Us Shape the Future of Education: Vote for Our SXSW 2025 Sessions!”

By: Alice Waldron As educators, it can feel like a new AI tool is introduced daily and there is pressure to use new tools just to keep up with the times. What if, instead, we made technology decisions based on ethical considerations and our students’ needs? AI has potential to support student learning, educator development,Continue reading “5 easy steps for responsibly piloting AI and tech in education”

Why do we award grades? Do they really improve learning? Research shows that in the short term, grades do indeed improve learning outcomes…on standardized tests. But when it comes to retaining information, thinking critically, recalling concepts later on, and applying + transferring learning to new contexts, grades are proven to be very ineffectual.  There’s aContinue reading “Fostering Student-Centered Environments: From Teacher Assessed through Grades to Self, Peer, Expert Feedback and Critique”