Steve Kinney

There has been a lot of talk about change lately. Robert Scoble wrote up a post about how blogs and social networking have transformed how business is done in Washington, D.C. Guy Kawasaki interviewed Ariane de Bonvoisi, author of The First 30 Days: Your Guide to Any Change (and Loving Your Life More).

Change, for better or for worse, has a tendency to come whether you want it to or not. The educational landscape is going to change a lot over the next few years; whether or not you consider this to be a good thing or not all depends on your perspective. How will you deal with change? Will you resist it? Or, will you embrace it and bring it into your classroom?

The burgeoning use of technology in the classroom is likely to have its growing pains. Early adopters will not have the luxury of tried and true teaching methods to consult when trying to implement Second Life into their classrooms. Things will break when you need them most; imagine how early adopters of the copy machine must have felt or how you feel now when your beloved Xerox machine kicks the bucket. There will be a number of awkward conversations about appropriateness on the web (remember, the web never forgets).

The return on investment will be worth the effort. DimensionM is already having a substantial impact on student achievement and teachers are finding exciting ways integrate Second Life in ways are academically rigorous. Be the change you want to see.

P.S. I resisted the urge to use a certain Bob Dylan song for the title of this post. You’re welcome. Also, the photo is courtesy of HVX Silverstar on Flickr.

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