Spotlight on Digital Media And Learning

3.22.11 | If you’re in the Chicago area March 31, you won’t want to miss a panel discussion and demonstration showcasing how new media is helping today’s educators re-think learning environments.

Re-Imagining Learning, will take place at the Spertus Institute, Feinberg Theater (610 S. Michigan Avenue), starting at 5:30 p.m. The event is supported by the Macarthur Foundation and the Pearson Foundation. Speakers include:

• Karen Cator, director of the office of Educational Technology, U.S. Department of Education (invited)
• Robert Gallucci, president of the MacArthur Foundation
• Mary Dempsey, Chicago Public Library commissioner
• Mark Nieker, president of the Pearson Foundation
• Nichole Pinkard, visiting associate professor, DePaul University, and founder of the Digital Youth Network
• Katie Salen, professor at Parsons the New School for Design
• Shani Edmunds, founding student, Digital Youth Network
• Connie Yowell, education director at the MacArthur Foundation

Following the panel discussion, representatives from two Chicago-area organizations that work directly with youth will demonstrate their work. The Digital Youth Network (DYN) is a Chicago-based digital literacy program that takes place both in and outside of school. Its hybrid model aims to develop youth’s new media literacies and to create meaningful opportunities for kids to use new media in their daily lives.

YOUmedia, the Chicago public library’s digital space for teens, blends cutting-edge digital media with traditional media along with strong mentoring to help teens become media creators, not just consumers. The program is expanding both in Chicago and nationally. The MacArthur Foundation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services are supporting the creation of 30 new youth learning labs in libraries and museums nationwide.

In addition, attendees will also learn more about Quest to Learn School, a New York City public charter school based on game design principles. The school’s curriculum uses these principles to create immersive, game-like learning experiences for students. A similar games-based charter school is set to open in Chicago in the fall of 2011.

Clips from “Digital Media: New Learners of the 21st Century,” a new PBS documentary, will be shown, and a reception will follow the demonstrations.

Attendance is free, but RSVP is required. Email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to reserve your spot.

Plus: For a preview, you can watch Katie Salen talk with fellow game designer Nichole Pinkard about the philosophy behind Quest to Learn and how game design can be applied to learning in the classroom.