“When technology works, it’s invisible… No matter how good our computing technologies become, they will never write humans out of the picture altogether.”— p.280 You would be interested in this book if… You are an educator or school leader navigating the rise of generative AI, and want a broader perspective. You want to understand not…
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A dark future worth looking at “Their knowledge was more in the realm of knowing how to ask machines to do things than in knowing how to do things themselves.” I picked up Ken Liu’s All That We See or Seem on the recommendation of Anand Mahadevan, Executive Director of CAIS. He suggested it as…
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“In truth, research findings about technology are almost always more nuanced. Admittedly, nuanced findings don’t make for the snappiest headlines.” (p.17) Few topics in education generate more passionate opinions than teenagers and technology – specifically ‘screen time’ and ‘GenAI’. This book focuses on screen time, but much can be applied to our current conversations…
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“The argument over whether Elon Musk is a genius is really an argument about what our society values and what it is prepared to tolerate. A suite of behaviors that would otherwise be inexcusable are forgiven when they are the price of greatness.”— Helen Lewis, p.3 Helen Lewis opens The Genius Myth not with a…
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Book Review: Free Agent Learning by Julie A. Evans Why Student Agency Should Reshape the Way We Structure School “School is no longer the sole repository of knowledge. Students increasingly have the agency and the means to adopt new self-directed, interest-driven behaviours outside of school.”— Julie A. Evans, p.1 “The voyage of discovery is not…
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In the epic tale, Jason lashed himself to the mast of his ship, commanded his crew of Argonauts to put wax in their ears, all to avoid crashing upon the rocks of the Sirens. But why didn’t Circe recommend wax in his own ears? Why was he yelling at his crew to change course? How…
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“When kids feel that their worth is contingent on their performance … they feel they only matter … if they are successful.” ~Jennifer Breheny Wallace I picked up Never Enough on the recommendation from a few educators. I expected it to be non-surprising and “preaching to the choir”; however, as I turned the pages, I…
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Book Review: How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell Jenny Odell’s How to Do Nothing is not a guide to idleness but a thought-provoking exploration of how we can reclaim our attention and agency in a world that constantly demands our productivity. For educators, this book offers an essential critique of the attention economy and…
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Who knew it has been 25 years since the publication of Gladwell’s The Tipping Point! This new book, where he revisits key points of Tipping Points and updates examples and brings to life the pressures, forces and mores that make a movement tip, is an excellent read. The book explores the pivotal moments when ideas, trends, or…
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How might we understand the confluence of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), Synthetic Biology, and conceive of a habitable future, with ethical considerations of what it means to be human – this books sets out to answer this ambitious question. The coming wave is defined by two core technologies: GAI and synthetic biology. Together they will…
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