A conversation with education strategist Holly Clark
This interview was originally published on edCircuit
Holly Clark is the Director of Innovative Learning at Oakhill Academy, as well as an author and education strategist from San Diego, California. As her job title suggests, Clark is interested in innovations, and particularly those that focus on student learning first and foremost. She is excited to be presenting at the 2020 Future of Education Technology Conference (FETC), taking place in Miami this coming January.
Clark’s first book, The Google Infused Classroom, co-authored with Tanya Avrith, examines the importance of technology-infused learning for students. As she proposes, “It’s not about the technology; it’s about the learning. My whole brand is infused learning because you need to think about pedagogy first. What are the outcomes that you would like in your classroom? It’s understanding by design but adding technology.”
As she detailed in her TED Talk in 2016, there is a great deal to learn by getting into the minds of what kids are thinking, but sadly, not enough progress is taking place. Students are still filling out multiple-choice questions, even when modern research suggests it’s not the right approach.
According to Clark, it starts with the pedagogy, “If I could stand [and shout] from the rooftop and people would listen, I would say no more technology directors; no more technology coaches. This is about learning. Technology is just a tool like a pencil or a textbook for learning. It’s a more powerful tool than those, but that’s what I want to talk about. I want to talk about learning.”
Clark’s next book, Chromebook Infused Classroom, will be coming out sometime this fall. FETC is going to be the first place where the books will be displayed and she’s enthusiastic about the opportunity to share and discuss its ideas. “I’m super thrilled it’s going to launch at [this year’s] FETC,” she cheerfully exclaims.
About Holly Clark
Holly Clark is an Education Strategist from San Diego, California. She is a Google Certified Innovator, National Board Certified Teacher, and holds an MA in Technology in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She has been working with technology integration and 1:1 environments since the year 2000.
Presently she consults with schools internationally on building both the culture and strategy to support and inspire innovative teaching – including powerful technology integration and design thinking protocols. Holly has taught in both independent and public schools and is the co-founder of #CaEdChat. She authors a popular education blog: hollyclark.org and gives keynotes to audiences worldwide.
In 2017, Holly published her first book The Google Infused Classroom which is available on Amazon. Her next book, Chromebook Infused Classroom will become available this fall.
Follow Holly Clark on Twitter