It takes people with big ideas -- and smart ways to implement them -- to make any progress. And that's the point of the Big Ideas Fest, held December 4-7 in Half Moon Bay, Calif., a gathering of leaders and innovators who will share their thoughts and tactics with educators and all those interested in education innovation.
Check out the stellar lineup of speakers, including, among many others:
- Lee LeFever, founder and principal of Common Craft. Have you seen Common Craft's excellent explainer videos? Take a look at this one about augmented reality.
- Gerald Richards, Chief Executive Officer of 826 National, the highly respected tutoring and publishing nonprofit that focuses on helping students with expository and creative writing.
- Martha Kanter, Under Secretary, U.S. Department of Education, who reports to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and oversees policies, programs, and activities related to almost everything.
- Neeru Khosla, Co-Founder and Executive Director of CK-12 Foundation, a non-profit organization that offers customizable digital content for K-12.
Big Ideas is organized by ISKME, the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education, which is also behind Open Educational Resources (OER).
KQED Education will be there, as well, offering tips on Twitter and other digital media advice. And like last year, I will be there representing MindShift and covering the event.
Last year's event was a phenomenal experience, full of high-concept and practical big ideas.