The Malibu Library hosts an informative and critical thinking workshop in its latest Speaker Series
This month’s Malibu Library Speaker Series featured Co-founder and Director of Infosavvy21 Dr. Ian Jukes. He discussed the core learning attributes of digital learners, reinventing ourselves and embracing change.
“Until now, many schools haven’t been able to keep up with our rapidly changing world, the problem is that in this day of constant disruption that we live right now, I believe we are running out of time, and the decisions we’ll make in the next few decades will shape the future of life itself,” Jukes said.
Some topics Jukes addressed were what type of thinking skills students will require and how we shift instruction to ensure we are equipping them with these skills. Some of his books provide a practical look at how we can teach effectively in a time when emergent technologies cascade onto the new digital landscape.
Jukes has been a classroom teacher, teaching every grade from kindergarten to Grade 12; written or co-written 27 books and education series. His most recent books include: “Literacy is Still Not Enough,” “Learner Voice, Learner Choice,” “LeaderShift 2020,” “A Brief History of the Future of Education,” and the award-winning “Reinventing Learning for the Always-On Generation” that looks at the modern world, examines the new entry skills students will need to be successful in digitally infused working environments, and provides a comprehensive profile of 10 core learning attributes of digital learners.
“If this is where things are right now, what should we be teaching our students,” Jukes asked.
Jukes is a writer, an international consultant, a university professor, and a keynote speaker, and focuses on restructuring our educational institutions, so they become relevant to the current and future needs of the digital generations and prepare learners for the future, not just society’s past.
“To keep up with this world in 2050, we’ll need to do more to develop new ideas and products, and above all, were going to need to constantly and repeatedly reinvent ourselves at the same time, learning how to let go of old ways of thinking and acting,” Jukes said. “That’s because the pace of change increases, not just the economy, but what it means to be a human is already beginning to mutate.”
Jukes and Nicky Mohan co-founded the Infosavvy21 organization as a means to engage and work with educators who are passionate about continually improving learning environments, instructional practices, and assessment approaches that help prepare kids for an ever-changing world.
“Whatever future awaits us, it is inevitable that profound and sweeping changes will transform the basics structures of life, making it uncertain,” Jukes said.
Jukes also mentioned how by the age of 50, many people don’t like change and prefer stability and certainty.
“You’ve invested so much time in developing your skills and your career and your identity, and your world view, and you just don’t want to start all over again,” Jukes said. “The harder you worked in building something and becoming somebody, the more difficult it is to let go of your long-standing way of life to make room for something new.”
Jukes emphasized the importance of letting go, constantly learning, re-learning, and reinventing ourselves to keep up economically, socially, and culturally.
“As the 21st century advances, no one is going to be able to maintain stability, to maintain an identity, and if you try to hold on to some stable identity, you’re running the risk of getting left behind as the world flies by,” Jukes said.
Pepperdine University Adjunct Professor Dr. John White was among the guest that attended the speaker event.
“I thought the information was very illuminating of the future that we are going into,” White said.
In collaboration with Pepperdine University, the next Malibu Library Speaker Series will feature Dr. Britt Wray on Thursday, April 6, at 5 p.m.
Wray is a ground-breaking researcher and storyteller, and a growing voice around the mental health effects of climate change. She draws on rigorous investigation and insightful interviews with therapists, activists, and researchers to make the scientific case for embracing our climate crisis emotions — especially the ones we’d prefer to ignore.