If education was invented today, it would likely debut at an international consumer electronics show, perhaps like ones held annually in Las Vegas, Europe, and Asia. Hundreds of thousands of people attend each, ranging from high profile corporate executives, corporate buyers, inventors, voluntary and government sector representatives, and curious local citizens. A press release announcing the invention of education might read like this:

FOR RELEASE

AnyLearn Offers New Access to Original Content for Direct Learning

Las Vegas, NV, January 12, 2008 - OpenLearning, Inc. (OLI), PanTechnology International, Inc., (PTI), and WiseTravel, Inc. (WTI) announced their new cooperative venture, AnyLearn, today on the first day of the Global Electronics Show.

Speaking at a joint press conference following a demonstration of AnyLearn, Randolph Reads, president of OLI, identified innovation, technology, choice, and learner services as the four primary elements that drive education.

PanTechnology president Akura said he believes that AnyLearn introduces the end of an era for large semi-static groupings of learners assembling in specified geographical and architectural settings to dominate formal learning. AnyLearn offers a new generation of two-way mobile electronic platforms (2MEPs) that permit ubiquitous direct learning from primary sources about any topic, anytime, from anywhere to any criterion each learner chooses on demand.

Ima Traveler, president of WTI, said that AnyLearn serves as a launch pad to converge mobile personal computers (PCs) with television and other communication and data management products underdevelopment. This convergence allows a personalized experience for each learner. It links quickly and easily to original learning content available over the Internet and on television, DVDs, as well as in theaters.

Traveler’s appearance at the show offers further evidence of the convergence of learning with other aspects of daily life. “Learning,” she said, “is simple today because of the highly sophisticated consumer electronics used to make original content available on demand directly to anyone, any time, and in any place.”

A learner, whether enrolled in a school program or seeking information for other reasons, may download a 120 minute lesson in two minutes, including videos, charts, tables, and other data. For the first time, the platform allows each learner to find, watch, and manage original learning content in one place with one device, whether in school, at home, at an employment, and while traveling.

U.S. Department of Learning Secretary Harold Wildo led these presidents in a 20 minute question and answer session before reporters. Answers highlighted the importance of increasing public access to original content for direct learning and use of electronic procedures to guide and assess individuals’ successes with open learning. They also addressed other hot-button issues.

These presidents agreed that they plan to offer open access to original content, and to underwrite direct access to AnyLearn to children according to their learning needs.

They see AnyLearn as a supplement to other learning venues, including schooling. They also acknowledge that, with AnyLearn, an increasing percentage of children will accelerate their learning rates quickly beyond even the most academically gifted school students today.

These presidents also agreed that AnyLearn provides a way for adults to upgrade their learning to keep up with children’s learning in an economically friendly way.

For the latest information about AnyLearn, watch this website.

x X x

(All names and references are fictionalized.)

I wonder if anyone would take notice of such an announcement, because most of what’s described in this press release appears possible now or in the near future (according to electronic developers’ roadmaps)? Would news media cite it?

I’ll bet there are more parts of this vision of education in place now than I can find online. Will you tell us, Teach, what parts of this vision you are bringing to your students?

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