Charles Taylor Kerchner

Historically, education technology has over-promised and under-delivered. Investments in new technologies have consistently yielded disappointing returns. But this time, many say, it’s different. They describe the internet as a fundamentally disruptive technology, one that promises a “new arc of learning.” Throughout California start-up companies, state agencies, and pioneering teachers and school districts are making use of on-line resources to change the way learning is produced, putting the learner at the center of things via curricular flexibility, personalization, and on-demand help and support.

In this seminar Charles Kerchner will discuss technology policy as a potential solution to three difficult, expensive educational problems in California: helping English Learners to achieve fluency in English, providing remediation for students at all levels of the education system, and increasing the number of students who successfully transition from high school to college. He argues that modest, achievable gains in these areas could reduce costs for the state while increasing student success.