Opening Keynote Malcolm Gladwell Draws Capacity Crowd

Opening Keynote Malcolm Gladwell Draws Capacity Crowd

WASHINGTON, June 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Noted author and journalist Malcolm Gladwell delivered the opening keynote address to kick off the 30th annual National Educational Computing Conference (NECC). He spoke to a capacity crowd of thousands of educators at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. His presentation focused on creating meaningful learning environments and included examples from diverse disciplines such as economics, sports, and literature as well as teaching.

"When it comes to learning," Gladwell said, "what you get is a simple function of what you put in. That is the beautiful and powerful idea behind learning... Sometimes the struggle to learn something is where the actual learning lies."

He also contrasted two learning strategies: capitalization, or leveraging your strengths; and compensation, or focusing your effort on weaknesses. Gladwell contends we spend too much time capitalizing when we'd find much more success by compensating.

"It was a great speech, particularly Gladwell's comment regarding compensation learning strategy versus capitalization," said audience member Safiyah Jackson, assistant director of education at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, Ill. "It's something that's commonly overlooked in the education system."

The author of two perennial bestsellers, "The Tipping Point" and "Blink," Gladwell explores new ideas about the factor that go into success in his latest book, "Outliers." He is currently a staff writer for the New Yorker magazine.

"We've been very pleased to bring Malcolm Gladwell back to NECC audiences for an opportunity to hear his latest thinking about learning," said Leslie Conery, deputy CEO of the International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE) and NECC conference chair. "His ideas challenge us to think about the crucial role educators can play as connectors."

After the keynote address, Gladwell was interviewed by Mario Armstrong, National Public Radio's technology correspondent, and took questions live from the NECC audience and from Twitter questions in the social media back channels flourishing during the conference.

About ISTE

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) is the premier membership association for educators and education leaders engaged in improving teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in PK-12 and teacher education.

Source: International Society for Technology in Education

CONTACT: Marlene Nesary, ISTE, +1-541-731-9540 (cell); +1-541-302-3789;
Pat Walsh, The Ulum Group, +1-541-513-1236

Web Site: http://www.iste.org/

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