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FREE EBOOK
ONE FOOTIN THE FUTURE
New frameworks, tools, and lenses to help educators imagine what comes next.
In this free ebook, Will Richardson introduces educators and others to new concepts like "Schoolpunk," Design Fiction, Regenerative Design, and more that can reframe the way we think about schools and education moving forward. "One Foot in the Future" will reboot your imagination and replenish your hope as we confront a fast-change and uncertain world.
ONE BIG QUESTION:
How can school communities understand and shape the future more effectively for the children they serve?
Just in the last few months, new technologies and global shifts have pushed traditional definitions of education and schooling even further into question. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney are disrupting how we think about literacy and creativity. The impacts of climate change, political upheaval, and economic uncertainty are challenging the very missions and visions of schools. And concerns about equity and wellness that were amplified by the pandemic continue to grow.
EDUCATION IS AT A CROSSROADS.
Given this incredibly complex moment, schools can no longer meet the future as it arrives.
In this powerful and engaging ebook, Big Questions Institute Co-Founder Will Richardson offers a new and unique perspective on how school communities might keep "One Foot in the Future" as they navigate the complexities of the present.
Educators can no longer "wait and see" what happens next. Instead, we must now see and feel the future we want beforehand and create it with imagination and hope.
"One Foot in the Future" will motivate you to take actions in your personal as well as professional life.
"ONE FOOT IN THE FUTURE"
This provocative new ebook will:
Help you understand more clearly the current challenges to education and schooling
Clarify a path forward to creating an aspirational future for your schools
Introduce you to "Design Fiction" as a tool for interrogating the future
Invite you to become part of a "Schoolpunk" movement to connect to other futures-oriented educators and communities
Help you develop a lens of "regenerative design" through which you can create a more compelling and relevant mission and vision for the moment we all find ourselves in.
Share ways in which schools around the world are building capacity for this work.
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING
IN "ONE FOOT IN THE FUTURE" YOU'LL LEARN ABOUT:
Regenerative Design
Designing an experience that considers all of the living things that are impacted by our (schools’) existence.
"Schoolpunk"
Framing a compelling vision for a new way of thinking about education and schooling that we can begin to build together.
Design Fiction
Imagining, creating, and interrogating artifacts that might be found in the future, making us “archeologists of the future” in a practical sense.
ChatGPT
The ways in which ChatGPT is disrupting the education world and the implications for teachers and students.
Impact of AI
Generative AI programs that create artworks, music, and more can be powerful tools to impact our creativity and our imaginations in schools and beyond.
Fearless Inquiry
Ways to develop the disposition of asking "big" questions about our current practices and our future path and being willing to embrace the truths that might surface.
Imagination Infrastructures
New ways to develop our ability to imagine a better future, as individuals, as school cultures, and entire school communities.
Futures Advisory Councils
A framework for ongoing conversations about the present and the future, driven by a diverse group of teachers, students, parents, leaders, and community members
Our "Epic Design Challenges"
How the speed and existential nature of change is creating an urgent need to fundamentally rethink the structures, systems, and purposes of schools.
FIRST STEP: A FUTURES ADVISORY COUNCIL
An opportunity for school communities that want to learn about, think about, and play more effectively in the future
At BQI, we're addressing the big questions about the future of education is by supporting schools to create their own “Futures Advisory Council” (FAC) to navigate the challenges the world is throwing at them.
A FAC is a diverse group of teachers, students, parents, leaders, and community members who meet regularly to learn about, think about, and play in the future.
We're helping schools streamline the process for creating and sustaining a working FAC by overseeing the planning and outreach, identifying members, providing structure for team meetings, assisting with onboarding, and providing coaching.
We'd love to work with your school community to build greater capacity for the future. Learn more about our FAC programs.
DOWNLOAD THE FREE EBOOK
Why wait? Download "One Foot in the Future" and start thinking differently about your path forward!
We guarantee that "One Foot in the Future" will change the way you approach your work as an educator and also impact the way your see yourself as a person grappling with an increasingly uncertain future.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Will Richardson
Co-Founder of the Big Questions Institute with Homa Tavangar, Will is a former public school educator of 22 years who has spent the last 20 years developing an international reputation as a leading thinker and writer about the intersection of social online learning networks, education, and systemic change.
In addition to his focus and expertise on classroom pedagogies, learning theory, and emerging technologies and trends, his current interests include the use of Design Fiction, Speculative Design, and Regenerative Design to help schools and districts envision potential futures.
Contact Us
Questions? You can email us and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Big Questions Institute
+1.908.824.0050