Speaking

"Excellent workshop. Thom has an amazing ability to read his audience and tailor his presentations to meet their needs and level of understanding.  Informative and transformative!" Debbie Good, Director, e-Learning, Strategic Initiatives, New Brunswick Dept of Education, Canada

Edge-ucation: The next 1000 years of learning

In this presentation, Thom Markham describes the ten essential principles that can guide us into the next paradigm of education and learning. For over 500 years, the existing model has focused on a ‘sage on the stage’ approach, with one teacher lecturing to a group of students. The future looks quite different. Ina global information age, with distributed learning, group learning is essential. Learning is facilitated, not transmitted by a specialist or traditional teacher. Technology will help teachers and learners form an active partnership, but human factors will be far more important. All learners, particularly younger people, will need support in discovering their entrepreneurial spirit, motivation, personal learning styles, and strengths and challenges. Using the ten principles, Thom describes how ten new principles can help personalize learning and foster strong bonds between mentors and students.

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Incorporating the Heart into 21st Century Schools

Traditionally, the heart takes second place to the brain in education. But education can no longer be separated from developing human potential. Working in the context of the heart-mind, the unified system of heart and brain that regulates physiology and cortical functions, Thom examines the nature of creativity and mechanisms for problem solving that integrate emotions and analysis, and helps replace critical thinking with a deeper, more holistic view that better represents how people solve problems and discover creative solutions. This is an ideal introduction to learning how to integrate the new language of small, personalized schools with the principles of youth development, in the form of resiliency, character education, citizenship, and habits of mind, and integrate that language into rigorous, accountable education. 



Please contact me at thom@thommarkham.com to discuss keynote talks for your conference or meeting.