Spotlight on Digital Media And Learning

7.8.10 | Want to do a better job of reaching the Facebook generation? Trying to understand wikis or mobile applications or geo-location functionalities? Never heard of any of these? Never fear. Help is on the way.

If you’re an educator, school, community group or nonprofit who needs help harnessing digital and social media to achieve your mission, you’ll be happy to learn that The Be Curious Tour 2010 is coming to a city near you this fall.

Social media gurus Christian Long, DK and Ewan McIntosh have partnered up for a nationwide tour that aims to “explore digital and social media use with a cross sector group of (curiosity-driven) clients, fields and projects.”

They will be speaking at conferences and events and are available for customized training sessions and consultations.

The tour starts in New York City in September and ends in California at the end of the month, with many cross-country stops in between. It sounds like new locations and dates can be added based on client demand – so if your city is not listed on their tour, you can still contact them here.

If you’re not a regular reader of edu.blogs.com, Ewan McIntosh is an important international voice in digital media and education. Originally a teacher, McIntosh has recently been working with investors on business development for education related startups.

Writing on his blog, McIntosh said one of the reasons he wants to embark on this tour is to bring the lessons he had “picked up from the world of digital media investment and product management back into the classroom, the school leader’s intray and policymaker’s desk.”

In addition to the U.S. tour, McIntosh has plans to travel the world over the next several months to learn from educators in New Zealand, Canada and Bahrain (through The Education Project).

McIntosh will be exploring models of innovation and success in the global education system:

It’s also an enviable chance to learn from the amazing practice in all the countries that I’ve chosen for this initial tour, places I believe there is the best in schooling, informal learning, digital media development and investment.

Christian Long is an expert in school design and technology, and DK is the founder of MediaSnackers, which advises companies and organizations on effective use of social media.

DK can be heard on his regular podcast interviewing leaders in the field of digital media and education, which is worth listening to. Recent guests have included Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia; Heather Oldani, director of public relations and co-lead on digital strategy for McDonalds USA; and Milton Chen, executive director of The George Lucas Educational Foundation. MediaSnackers also co-produced the Rezed podcast series about how virtual worlds are being used for learning with the New York City-based nonprofit Global Kids.

Don’t miss this opportunity. Contact tour organizers here.