Marie Bjerede

Marie Bjerede is a writer, speaker, and champion for education transformation. She believes people acting as independent agents can collaborate to get more done and live happier lives. She's seen, first-hand, how technology co-evolves with that model. She thinks a lot about how students, citizens, and employees can take ownership of their work and create force multipliers for productivity, creativity, and happiness. Marie has spent a quarter century in the wireless communication industry working in many roles -- from embedded software coder to leadership geek to education advocate. From this front-row seat to the wireless revolution, she's seen mobile broadband bring the transformative potential of the Internet to industries and communities. But she's also watched as schools have been left behind. With her wireless communication background, she's now challenging technical, economic, social, and systemic obstacles.

Helping educators find the right stuff

Helping educators find the right stuff

The Learning Registry looks to crack the education resource discovery problem.

by  | @mbjerede  | +Marie Bjerede | 15 November 2011

There are countless repositories of high-quality content available to teachers, but it is still nearly impossible to find content to use with a particular lesson plan for a particular grade aligned to particular standards. That's where the Department of Education's new Learning Registry comes in.

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Three game characteristics that can be applied to education

A tech-focused look at how "leveling up," collaboration, and play can be woven into learning experiences.

by  | @mbjerede  | +Marie Bjerede |  7 November 2011

Cloud technologies and thoughtful roadmapping of digital technology can ensure that authenticity, social interaction, and play remain central components of education.

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World of Warcraft and Minecraft: Models for our educational system?

World of Warcraft and Minecraft: Models for our educational system?

How two games can help student engagement.

by  | @mbjerede  | +Marie Bjerede |  4 November 2011

Massively multiplayer games like World of Warcraft can teach communication and the higher-order skills needed to achieve collective goals. Simple, rule-based games, such as Minecraft, showcase the value of preservation and exploration.

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Tinkering with technology education

Tinkering with technology education

The maker movement's many entry points create a welcoming environment for tech education.

by  | @mbjerede  | +Marie Bjerede |  6 June 2011

The maker movement offers an appealing invitation to technology for a broad audience that includes both women and men, seniors and children, technologists and artists.

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Making cell phones useful for school

Making cell phones useful for school

Much of the tech to support school-ready cell phones already exists. Now we need the devices.

by  | @mbjerede  | +Marie Bjerede | 24 February 2011

A variation on the monitoring technology that allows educators to safely use computers in the classroom is also available for cell phones. But there's a hitch: phone manufacturers and chip suppliers will need to create phones that are kid-safe and school-ready.

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Can standardization and innovation coexist in education?

Can standardization and innovation coexist in education?

Education needs standardized platforms and technical innovation. One framework might serve both.

by  | @mbjerede  | +Marie Bjerede | 21 December 2010

The goal of an educational platform is to standardize at a level that encourages broad adoption of technologies while also allowing new innovations to flourish. Choosing the wrong level can undermine your best intentions.

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