DL 370
Compounding Optimism
Welcome to Digitally Literate, issue #370. This summer has been a whirlwind with coaching my son’s volleyball team, work travel, and renovating our garage. I’ll be stepping away from the newsletter and disconnecting for the rest of the summer. See you in September!
🔖 Key Takeaways
- AI Literacy: A cross-sectional slice of new literacies and their role in education.
- Meta’s Threads: Balancing enthusiasm for new platforms with privacy concerns.
- Inquiry-Based Education: Shifting assessment practices in a post-AI classroom.
- Generative Textbooks: Exploring the future of textbooks powered by AI.
📚 This Week’s Highlights
1. AI Literacy: New Literacies in Focus
Together with Doug Belshaw and Tom Salmon, I contributed to UNESCO’s call on defining algorithm and data literacy. This project highlights the importance of AI literacy as a critical component of education.
Why this matters: Empowering individuals with AI literacy ensures informed and ethical engagement with technology.
2. Meta’s Threads & Federated Social Media
Meta’s new platform, Threads, is a competitor to Twitter that promises future compatibility with decentralized networks like Mastodon. While its popularity is growing, its ties to Meta raise questions about privacy and data security.
Why this matters: Federated systems could transform social media, but it’s crucial to balance innovation with privacy.
3. Shifting Assessment Practices in Education
Philippa Hardman explores post-AI assessment design, emphasizing inquiry-based objectives, project-based learning, and performance-based assessments. This approach fosters critical thinking and real-world problem-solving.
Why this matters: Adapting assessment practices ensures meaningful learning in an AI-driven world.
4. Generative Textbooks
David Wiley discusses how AI can create generative textbooks tailored to individual learners. These materials can evolve alongside the learner, making education more accessible and personalized.
📖 Explore generative textbooks
Why this matters: Generative textbooks could revolutionize education by addressing diverse learning needs.
5. Teaching Kids About Sexism
Children develop gender stereotypes as early as two or three years old. Teaching kids about sexism early helps them recognize and challenge bias while fostering equality and empathy.
📖 Learn how to teach about sexism
Why this matters: Early education on gender bias can create a more inclusive and equitable society.
6. Compounding Optimism
Morgan Housel highlights how small, incremental progress compounds over time, often in unseen ways. This perspective is crucial in understanding technological advancements and societal shifts.
Why this matters: Embracing optimism helps us appreciate and drive incremental progress, even in uncertain times.
🛠️ DO: Cultivate Mental Agility
Learn how to thrive in uncertainty with these strategies:
- Step outside your comfort zone: Solve hard problems and set challenging goals.
- Find multiple answers: Explore different perspectives and embrace counterintuitive approaches.
- Develop creative thinking: Question assumptions and expand your knowledge.
- Spend mental energy consciously: Focus on what you can control and take small steps forward.
- Build a growth mindset: Shift to empowering language and treat failures as opportunities to grow.
🌟 Closing Reflection
“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”
— Steve Magness
Thank you for reading Digitally Literate. Stay tuned for more insights and discussions. Connect with me at hello@digitallyliterate.net or explore Newsletter Index for all past issues.