Should schools and educators be held accountable for developing creative, innovative thinkers? Do we need to create an "innovation corps" that would develop and deliver rich tasks and experiences that reflect the kinds of skills, thinking, and experiences that are most likely to exist among our next crop of amazing young people who change the world? If so, what would such an organization look like? How would it operate? Would it be connected to the education system? If so, how? If not, what kind of credential or opportunity would it give to students?Right now I have a blank page in my notebook waiting for ideas, but, as is often the case, I came back to my desk and found a relevant news story that suggests part of the answer. The item in the Wall Street Journal was about a program a Giant Campus, which offer camps (both virtual and actual) to "inspire kids and teens with technology while engaging them in 21st century skills such as creativity, problem solving, communication and collaboration."
Today's item was about a new project called Project CEO. According to the media release, "participants start with their own business idea and work with a team of peers and instructors on refining the idea while creating support materials with cutting-edge technologies. At closing ceremonies, camp attendees present their business where guests have a chance to invest in the company using Giant Campus bucks. Teens go home with business materials such as a company logo, business cards, a Web site and a presentation to share."
Giant Campus also offer camps for kids who want to develop computer games and make films.
These camps are not affordable for many students, but it would be well worth making such opportunities more widely available for a broader range of areas. It also might be valuable to develop connections between projects. This is a challenge that could not only develop skills students need but also bring together adults with creative minds in a new way.
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