Working At The Edge

Make School Different: Digital leadership & Transformation

#23 of 60: Does the idea of strategic foresight seem overwhelming considering your current role in education?🤔

By

So far in this challenge we have shared several posts on taking the longview — thinking about the future and taking action to create that future, not simply have it happen to 

You’re a teacher. You’re a leader. Do you have to become a futurist as wel

Fortunate for us, there are people and organizations already doing the heavy lifting for us.

KnowledgeWorks has been carrying out strategic foresight specifically in the field of education for over 20 years. Their first comprehensive forecast came out in 2006. (Take a look at it here.)

Since that first forecast, they have published four additional forecasts including the most recent, and most comprehensive, Forecast 5.0: Navigating the Future of Learning.

KnowledgeWorks has made it easy to access the resources it has created to fuel conversations about change in our schools and districts. 

Each of these resources deserves a post (and will get one), but in this post I would like to focus on the Drivers of Chang

Created using strategic foresight methodology, the Forecast 5.0 Drivers of Change are the answer to the question: What major societal shifts will impact education over the next decade?

  • Automating Choices: Artificial intelligence and algorithms are automating many aspects of our lives
  • Civic Superpowers: Engaged citizens and civic organizations are seeking to rebalance power
  • Accelerating Brains: People have increasing access to tools and insights that are reshaping our brains in intended and unintended ways
  • Toxic Narratives: Outdated and misaligned systems and metrics of success are contributing to chronic health issues, including rising rates of mental illness among children
  • Remaking Geographies: Communities are working to remake themselves in the face of deep transitions

Do educators need to become futurists? Not necessarily, and we have access to the work of futurists specifically in the field of education.

—–

âť“ Provocations:

We mentioned in earlier posts the importance of changing systemic structures and human mindsets. Looking at the Drivers of Change, what structures and mindsets should we be considering for change? Do the Drivers give us a glimpse into the future OS (operating system) of education?

đź’Ž Resources:

Podcast conversation with Jason Swanson on Forecast 5.0

🧠 Mindset:

Resourcefulness

đź’ˇ Area:

Longview (strategic foresight)

📣 Drop your thoughts in the comments, or in the Facebook group, and feel free to share resources. 🔥🔥🔥

Randy Ziegenfuss
Follow me
Latest posts by Randy Ziegenfuss (see all)