#on the OTHER hand what if gen 3 citizen... explore what its like with the latest generation of iterators instead of an another gen 2

[spotsupstuff]

how to make plot relevant OCs, Spot's guide: Listen to tunes, slut.

that's it

[press-a-repeatedly]

Zul’s Top 9 Games of 2018

By Zul Edwards

Heyyy it’s me. I’m back! What a year! 2018 has come and gone and many awesome games have been played by everyone here at PAR. The votes were tallied, the results are in, and I am included in that bunch. However, some of the games I played and loved this year were no-shows on our list. Some AMAZING games that I think deserve a little love on our corner on the internet.  So, I thought, if you out there reading this were interested, (spoiler alert, nobody is) here is my OWN personal top nine games of 2018.

So, let’s get this thing started with my number 9!... oh yeah, I only played 9 games in 2018. heh.

9) No Man’s Sky – So I was one of those gamers who was excited for NMS when it was first announced a few years back. Thought the idea of exploring a quintillion planet was awesome. Then the game came out, I heard it sucked, and I ignored it. Enter a couple years later when it was on sale, had a ton of updates and new features: true online with friends, customizable characters, base building, and a brand-new story. However, it wasn’t enough to keep me hooked. Don’t get me wrong, I liked exploring the various galaxies and doing various side quests, engaging in dogfights with pirates and mining for space gold, but overall it just still felt so empty, so repetitious, and so… blah. I guess I still prefer quality over quantity, even if the quantity is in the quintillions.  

8) The Alliance Alive – The first on the list of “Games only Zul played this year”. The Alliance Alive is a 3DS game from the creators of the classic “Legend of Legacy”, literally a game I borrowed from Justin, played for all of 30 minutes, then promptly returned to Justin never to be spoken of again. So, to my surprise when he told me the same studio was making another game, The Alliance Alive, but it was helmed by one of the writers of the Suikoden franchise, I was cautiously optimistic. Much to my (pleasant) surprise, the game was good! A blend of classic JRPG turned based battles with flairs of modernization: skills learned through fighting, increased stats based on the location of fighters in battles, and a darker story not usually found in those classic SNES/PS1 RPGs this seems to emulate.  While the main characters fall into some pretty cliché tropes, the side characters really shine. From giant axe-wielding lizard men that remind me of my own D&D character, to a demon-dog-man butler, to a mad child genius scientist who rides a duck robot, this game has a lot of flavor. I really should go back and finish.

7) Chasm – While it’s no secret that I love Castlevania games, I think it’s fair to say I’m not really a giant fan of Metroidvania games. I prefer the simpler side-scrolling action of Castlevania, constantly moving forward towards a goal of smacking Drac in the face with a metal whip, to the backtracking and map completing chore of most Metroidvania games. With that said, something about the less intense and simpler format of Chasm kept me hooked till the end. I didn’t mind backtracking and completing the map in Chasm because it wasn’t as vast or complicated as other games in the genre. It was colorful, had great music, stellar pixel art and a fun yet challenging battle system and platforming. Overall it was a blast to play, but it just got overshadowed in a year filled with superior games.

6) God of War – “WHAT THE FUCK?” I hear you slam on your keyboards as I place the unrivaled GOTY in a paltry 6th place. Don’t get me wrong, this game is good. In fact, it’s VERY good. However, for whatever reason, I guess this game didn’t hook me like it did for everyone else. I only have a passing familiarity with the GoW series. Even though I’m a diehard SonyBoy, I only ever played GoW 1 and never beat it. Kratos and Atreus are some of the best written and best-acted characters to come out of a video game in this year or any year. Hell, if we had a “best new character” category again this year, I would struggle to not put Atreus in the top 3. The music is amazing, the writing is fantastic, the scope, cinematography and the constant one camera perspective were all stellar achievements in the medium of gaming, not to mention I’m pretty much obsessed with all things Norse… BUT. I dunno. Little things kept taking me out of it. Atreus’s sudden, jarring mood swings. The poor pacing in certain parts. The sudden introduction of major characters and/or story elements, that felt kind of brushed over and/or rushed. The lackluster side content, the padding and the empty worlds. The game is good. But it never felt great to me. Most games that I love, I think about when I’m not playing them, then I rush home from work to play them because I want to complete them, either for the story or because the gameplay is addicting, but this game felt more like a chore sometimes. I didn’t even buy it, I just borrowed it from Butch earlier in the year when it came out. I’m sorry Cory. I tried but I just didn’t love this game.

5) Moonlighter – Now here’s a game I absolutely adored. Flew under my radar and was recommended by Nick. By day you’re a humble shopkeeper, selling various wares and curios. By night, (by… MOONLIGHT) you explore dungeons ala Link to the Past style in a top-down view, into randomly generated maps. Each area has different items to collect & new materials to find, which you bring back to the shop to sell, which with the money you earn, can craft new weapons, which will get you further into dungeons, which will mean you find more items to sell which means you make more gold to spend on armor and weapons, which means you can get better materials to keep delving deeper, WHICH MEANS… ahem. Ah yes. That classic feedback loop. It sucked me in. It’s simple but effective in keeping me engaged. Coupled with a great art style, fluid beautiful pixel graphics and a surprisingly good amount of story for this type of game, Moonlighter took a nice chunk of my time early in the year.

4) Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom – Another entry in “Games only Zul played this year”, NNK2 was a surprise hit for me. I never played NNK1 and heard rather negative things about it from Nick over the years. I bought NNK2 on a whim months after it came out because it was on sale and I was craving a good JRPG, and it did not disappoint. I loved pretty much everything about this game. The music, the story, the beautiful not quite Ghibli, but practically Ghibli art style, the characters, the mechanics, the town building, the combat… it was everything I was looking for. There were certainly parts in the middle that lagged a bit, and the general “go to town > solve town’s problem > make an alliance with the town” could be considered cliché or predictable, but every town felt unique and its inhabitants all felt genuine. Recruiting citizens into your kingdom and assigning them all a role in your castle was a time sink I didn’t realize I would be so into, but I think I spent more hours on that than anything else in the game. And it also gets marks for being the other child in a video game besides Atreus, King Evan, that I didn’t want to strangle, and in fact by the time the credits rolled, he’d probably be #2 or 3 in Best Character of the Year for me.

3) Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Now as far as JRPGS go, Dragon Quest is the ultimate grand-daddy, even more so than Final Fantasy, but it was a series I never really got into. I played some previous games in the series and found passing enjoyment in a couple titles but never enough to ever want to complete a game or seek out other entries in the series. That all kind of changed when I played DQ 11. DQ has never really strayed too far from its classic turn-based JRPG roots. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” would be their mantra I assume, and I love it. In a time when the turn-based system is all but gone from genre giant Final Fantasy, DQ has instead chosen to stick with it, and fully master the dying style. It was hands down the best JRPG I’ve played all year, and probably one of the best I’ve played in several years. It has everything: a great story, compelling characters, awesome music, amazing art style, engaging combat, fun side quests, a challenging yet fair difficulty curve, and it’s actually, really funny on top of all that. While the length might scare people away, (I clocked in right around 120 hours after getting the platinum trophy for 100% completion of the game) it’s some of the best time I spent gaming in a long time. It’s a classic in a modern era. It’s weird, if you said to teenage Zul “one of your favorite JRPGs ever will be Dragon Quest 11, and one of your least favorite JRPGs will be Final Fantasy 15”, he would never have believed you… but here we are.

2) Monster Hunter World – Ah yes. The one oddball in my gaming repertoire. I think we all have one of these, right? That one game/series that for whatever reason, sits outside your normal gaming habits, yet you love it, nonetheless. Maybe you love Halo and FPS games, but you also really like Animal Crossing for some reason. Or maybe you’re a diehard Dark Souls series fan but just can’t get enough of Cooking Mama as well. Variety is the spice of life they say, and while I’m primarily a “character & story first, RPGs, video games are art” kind of dude, something about smashing Monsters in the face with a giant hammer has kept me hooked on the Monster Hunter series for nearly 10 years. I love the challenging but fair battles, the deep customization, the various weapons and armors for both male and female hunters, the varied and unique monsters that all have their own ecology, musical themes, and battle styles you must learn and adapt to if you want to survive. It’s also linking up with friends (or even strangers online) and tackling a beast as a team. For all these reasons and so much more, this series sunk its claws in me from the very first time I played it, and it hasn’t let go. Monster Hunter World is the next-gen, beautifully realized game I’ve wanted for years; and it took the story, art, gameplay, and fun I’ve come to expect from this series to another level.

1) Red Dead Redemption II – I honestly don’t know how to write about this game. I can say all the other things I’ve said up until now about how great the music is (it’s amazing), how varied and alive the characters feel (they’re amazing), how stunningly awe-inspiring the scenery is or how fluid and lifelike the character animations are (they’re amazing), how the story and personal journey of Arthur Morgan literally brought me to tears more than once (he’s #1 in Best Characters btw. And they’re amazing), how rich every side quest is, how fun the mini-games are, how great the dialogue is, or any of the other truly breath-taking aspects of the game, but I don’t think I could do them justice. Hell, I don’t even know how to put them into words myself inside my own head. To me, this is one of those games that surpasses all of that. Yea, it has flaws, every game does, everyTHING does, but to me, it’s perfect, warts and all.  I can’t give it much higher praise than that, and it is absolutely the best game I played in years. When a game can give me an extensional crisis during some of its final moments, I think it’s safe to say that It’ll stick with me and has undoubtedly set a very high bar for all future games. The team at Rockstar outdid themselves and have my thanks for bringing this game into the world.

PHEW. Well, that’s it. Top 9 games of 2018 according to Zully Boy. Another great year in gaming for me personally and here’s to another great year in 2019! Lots to look forward to, and hopefully some hidden gems that’ll surprise me along the way. Happy Gaming everyone!

[suchagiantnerd]

54 Books, 1 Year

2018 was my first full year back at work after my mat leave, and thanks to all the time I spend on the subway, my yearly reading total is back up to over 50 books!

2018 was a dark year, and I made a conscious effort to read more books from authors on the margins of society. The more those of us with privilege take the time to listen to and learn from these voices, the better we’ll be as friends, colleagues and citizens.

You’ll also notice a lot of books about witchcraft and witches in this year’s list. What can I say? Dark times call for resorting to ANYTHING that can help dig us out of our current reality, including putting a hex on Donald Trump.

Trigger Warning: Some of the books reviewed below are about mental illness, suicide, domestic violence, sexual assault, and violence against people of colour, Indigenous people and people in the LGBTQ community.

Here are this year’s mini reviews:

1.       The Lottery and Other Stories / Shirley Jackson

Jackson’s short stories were published in the late forties and fifties, but their slow-burning creep factor holds up today. The stories involve normal people doing normal things until something small gives, and we realize something is really wrong here. As you read through the collection, take note of the mysterious man in blue. He appears in about half of the stories, always in the margins of the action. Who is he? I read him as a bit of a trickster figure, bringing chaos and mayhem with him wherever he goes. Other people have read him as the devil himself. Let me know what you think!

2.       The Ship / Antonia Honeywell

I was excited to read this YA novel about a giant cruise ship-turned-ark, designed and captained by the protagonist Lalla’s father in a dystopic near future. The premise of the book is great and brings up lots of juicy questions – where is the ship going? How long can the passengers survive together in a confined space? How did Lalla’s father choose who got to board the ship? But the author’s execution was a disappointment and focused far too much on Lalla’s inner turmoil and immaturity.

3.       The Hot One: A Memoir of Friendship, Sex and Murder / Carolyn Murnick

My book club read this true crime memoir detailing the intense, adolescent friendship between Carolyn, the author, and Ashley, who was murdered in her home in her early 20s a few years after the girls’ friendship fizzled. Murnick is understandably destroyed by the murder and obsessed with the killer’s trial. The narrative loops back and forth between the trial and the girls’ paths, which diverged sharply after Ashley moved away in high school. Murnick (the self-proclaimed nerdy one) muses on the intricacies of female friendship, growing up under the microscope of the male gaze, and the last weekend she ever spent with Ashley (the hot one). This is an emotional, detailed account of a woman trying her best to bear witness to her friend’s horrific death and to honour who she was in life.

4.       The Break / Katherena Vermette

Somebody is brutally attacked on a cold winter night in Winnipeg, and Stella, a young Métis woman and tired new mother is the only witness – and even she isn’t sure what she saw. The police investigation into the attack puts a series of events in motion that make long-buried emotions bubble to the surface and ripple outwards to touch a number of people in the community, including an Indigenous teenager recently released from a youth detention center, one of the investigating officers (a Métis man walking a fine line between two worlds), and an artist. This is a tough read, especially in the era of #MMIW and #MeToo, but all the more important because of it.

5.       So You Want to Talk About Race / Ijeoma Oluo

Probably the most important book I read this year, I will never stop recommending this read to anyone and everyone. This is your Allyship 101 syllabus right here, folks. Do you really want to do better and be better as an ally? Then you need to read every chapter closely and start implementing the lessons learned right away. This book will teach you about tone policing, microaggressions and privilege, and how all of those things are harmful to people of colour and other marginalized communities.

6.       The Accusation / Bandi

This is a collection of short stories by a North Korean man (written under a pseudonym for his protection as he still lives there). The stories were actually smuggled out of the country for publication by a family friend. The characters in these stories are regular people living regular lives (as much as that is possible in North Korea). What really comes across is the fine line between laughter and tears while living under the scrutiny of a dangerous regime. There are several scenes where people laugh uncontrollably because they can’t cry, and where people start to cry because they can’t laugh. This book offers a rare perspective into a hidden world.

7.       Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen / Jazz Jennings

Some of you will be familiar with Jazz via the TLC show about her and her family, “I Am Jazz”. I’d never seen it but was inspired to read the book to gain a better understanding about what coming out as trans as a child is like. Jazz came out to her family at 5 years old (!) and her parents and siblings have had her back from the beginning. If you are still having a tough time understanding that trans women are women, full stop, this book will help get you there.

8.       A Field Guide to Getting Lost / Rebecca Solnit

When it comes to the books that gave me “all the feels”, this one tops the 2018 list. Solnit is everything - historian, writer, philosopher, culture lover, explorer. Her mind is always making connections and as you follow her through her labyrinthine thoughts you start to feel connected too. Her words on loss, nostalgia and missing a person/place/time actually made me cry, they were so true. For me, an agnostic leaning towards atheism, she illuminated the magic in the everyday that made me feel more spiritually rooted to life than I have in a long time.

9.       I Found You / Lisa Jewell

Lots of weird and bad things seem to happen in British seaside towns, don’t they? This is another psychological thriller, à la “The Girl on the Train” and “Gone Girl”. One woman finds a man sitting on the beach one morning. He has no idea who he is or how he got there. Miles away, another woman wakes up one morning to find her husband has vanished. Is the mystery man on the beach the missing husband? Dive into this page-turner and find out!

10.   The Midnight Sun / Cecilia Ekbäck

This novel is the sequel to a historical Swedish noir book I read a few years ago. Though it’s not so much a sequel, as it is a novel taking place in the same setting – Blackasen Mountain in Lapland. This story actually takes place about a hundred years after the first novel does, so it can be read on its own. Ekbäck’s stories dive into the effect of place on people – whether it’s the isolation of a harsh and long winter or the mental havoc caused by the midnight sun on sleep patterns, the people on Blackasen Mountain are always strained and ready to explode. (Oh, and there’s also a bit of the supernatural happening on this mountain too – but just a bit!)

11.   After the Bloom / Leslie Shimotakahara

Strained mother-daughter relationships. The PTSD caused by immigration and then being detained in camps in your new home. Fraught romances. Shimotakahara’s novel tackles all of this and more. Taking place in two times – 1980s Toronto and a WWII Japanese internment camp in the California desert – this story of loss, hardship, betrayal and family is both tragic and hopeful.

12.   Company Town / Madeline Ashby

In this Canadian dystopian tale, thousands of people live in little cities built on the oil rigs off the coast of Newfoundland. Hwa works as a bodyguard for the family that owns the rigs and is simultaneously trying to protect the family’s youngest child from threats, find out who is killing her sex-worker friends, mourn her brother (who died in a rig explosion), and work through her own self-esteem issues. Phew! If it sounds like too much, it is. I really did like this book, but I think it needed tighter editing and focus.

13.   The Power / Naomi Alderman

In the near-future, women and girls all over the world develop the ability to send electrical shocks out of their hands. With this newfound power, society’s gender power imbalance starts to flip. The U.S. military scrambles to try and work this to their advantage. A new religious movement starts to grow. And Tunde, a Nigerian photographer (and a dude!) travels the world, trying to document it all. This is an exciting novel that seriously asks, “what if?” in which many of the key characters cross paths.

14.   Milk and Honey / Rupi Kaur

Everyone’s reading it, so I had to too! Kaur’s poems are refreshing and healing, and definitely accessible. This is poetry for the people, for women, for daughters, mothers and sisters. These are poems about how women make themselves small and quiet, about our inner anger, about sacrifice, longing and love.

15.   Tell It to the Trees / Anita Rau Badami

In the dead of winter in small-town B.C., the body of big-city writer Anu is found outside of the Dharmas’ house, frozen to death. Anu had been renting their renovated shed, working on a novel in seclusion. As we get to know the Dharmas – angry and controlling Vikram, his quiet and frightened wife Suman, the two children, and the ghost of Vikram’s first wife, Helen, we feel more and more uneasy. Was Anu’s death just a tragic accident, or something else entirely? There is a touch of “The Good Son” in this novel…

16.   You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life / Jen Sincero

This book was huge last year and my curiosity got the better of me. But I can’t, I just can’t subscribe to this advice! All of this stuff about manifesting whatever you want reeks of privilege and is just “The Secret” repackaged for millennials and Gen-Z. Thank u, next!

17.   All the Things We Never Knew: Chasing the Chaos of Mental Illness / Sheila Hamilton

Shortly after a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, Hamilton’s husband, David, took his own life after years of little signs and indicators that something wasn’t right. Her memoir, in the aftermath of his death, is a reckoning, a tribute, and a warning to others. In it, she details the fairy tale beginning of their relationship (but even then, there were signs), the birth of their only child, and the rocky path that led to his final choice. Hamilton’s story doesn’t feel exploitative to me. It’s an important piece in the global conversation about mental health and includes lots of facts and statistics too.

18.   This Is How It Always Is / Laurie Frankel

This is a beautiful novel about loving your family members for who they are and about the tough choices parents have to make when it comes to protecting their children. Rosie and Penn have five boys (that this modern couple has five children is the most unbelievable part of the plot, frankly), but at five years old, their youngest, Claude, tells the family that he is a girl. Claude changes her name to Poppy, and Rosie and Penn decide to move the whole family to more inclusive Seattle to give Poppy a fresh start in life. Of course, the move has consequences on the other four children as well, and we follow everybody’s ups and downs over the years as they adjust and adapt to their new reality.

19.   Dumplin’ / Julie Murphy

While I didn’t love the writing or any of the characters, I do need to acknowledge the importance of this YA novel in showing a fat teenager as happy and confident in who she is. Willowdean Dickson has a job, a best friend and a passion for Dolly Parton. She also catches the attention of cute new kid, Bo, and a sweet summer romance develops between the two (with all of the miscommunications and misunderstandings you’d expect in a YA plot). This is an important book in the #RepresentationMatters movement, and is now a Netflix film if you want to skip the read!

20.   Kintu / Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi

This was touted as “the great Ugandan novel” and it did not disappoint! The first part of the novel takes place in 1754, as Kintu Kidda, leader of a clan, travels to the capital of Buganda (modern day Kampala) with his entourage to pledge allegiance to the new Kabaka. During the journey, tragedy strikes, unleashing a curse on Kintu’s descendants. The rest of the novel follows five modern-day Ugandans who are descended from Kintu’s bloodline and find themselves invited to a massive family reunion. As their paths cross and family histories unfold, will the curse be broken?

21.   The Child Finder / Rene Denfeld

I bought this at the airport as a quick and thrilling travel read, and that’s exactly what it was. Naomi is a private investigator with a knack for finding missing and kidnapped children. This is because she was once a kidnapped child herself. The plot moves back and forth in time between Naomi’s current case and her own escape and recovery. There was nothing exceptional about this book, but it’s definitely a page-turner.

22.   Difficult Women / Roxane Gay

Are the women in Gay’s short stories actually difficult? Or has a sexist, racist world made things difficult for them? I think you know what my answer is. The stories are at times beautiful - like the fairy tale about a woman made of glass, and at times violent and visceral – like a number of stories about hunting and butchering. Women are everything and more.

23.   My Education / Susan Choi

I suggested this novel to my book club and I will always regret it. This was my least favourite read of the year. I thought it was going to be about a sexy and inappropriate threesome or love triangle between a student, her professor, and his wife. Instead it had a few very unsexy sex scenes and hundreds and hundreds of pages about the minutiae of academic life. I can’t see anyone enjoying this book except English professors and grad students.

24.   Hope in the Dark: Untold Histories, Wild Possibilities / Rebecca Solnit

This series of essays was a balm to my soul after Ford won the provincial election. It reminded me that history is full of steps forward and steps back, and though things look bleak right now, there are millions of us around the world trying to make positive changes in big and little ways as we speak.

25.   The Woman in Cabin 10 / Ruth Ware

Another novel in the vein of “The Woman on the Train”, that is, a book featuring a young, female, unreliable narrator. Lo knows what she saw – or does she? There was a woman in the now empty Cabin 10 – or was there? And also, Lo hasn’t been eating or sleeping. But she’s been drinking a lot and not taking her medication. I’m kind of done with this genre – anyone else?

26.   My Brilliant Friend / Elena Ferrante

After hearing many intelligent women praise this novel (the first in a four-part series), my book club decided to give it a try. I didn’t fall in love with it, but I was sufficiently intrigued by the intense and passionate friendship between Lila and Lenu, two young girls growing up in post-war Naples, that I will likely read the whole series. Many claim that no writer has managed to capture the intricacy of female friendship the way that Ferrante has.

27.   The Turquoise Table: Finding Community and Connection in Your Own Front Yard / Kristin Schell

This is Schell’s non-fiction account of how she started Austin’s turquoise table movement (which has now spread further into other communities). Schell was feeling disconnected from her immediate community, so she painted an old picnic table a bright turquoise, moved it into her front yard, and started sitting out there some mornings, evenings and weekends - sometimes alone, and sometimes with her family. Neighbours started to gather for chats, snacks, card games, and more. People got to know each other on a deeper level and friendships bloomed. This book is a nice reminder that small actions matter. A small warning though – Schell is an evangelical Christian, and I didn’t know this before diving in. There is a focus on Christianity in the book, and though it’s not quite preachy, it’s very in-your-face.

28.   Sing, Unburied, Sing / Jesmyn Ward

This was hands-down my favourite novel of the year. It’s a lingering and haunting look at the generational trauma carried by the descendants of those who were enslaved and lived during the Jim Crow era. One part road trip novel, one part ghost story, the plot follows a fractured, multi-racial family as they head into the broken heart of Mississippi to pick up the protagonist’s father, who has just been released from prison.

29.   Full Disclosure / Beverley McLachlin

This is the first novel by Canada’s former Chief Justice, Beverley McLachlin. As someone who works in the legal industry and has heard her speak, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this. But, with all due respect to one of the queens, the book was very ‘meh’. The plot was a little over the top, the characters weren’t sufficiently fleshed out, and I felt that the backdrop of the Robert Pickton murders was somewhat exploitative and not done respectfully. Am I being more critical of this novel than I might otherwise be because the author is so intelligent? Likely yes, so you can take this review with a grain of salt.

30.   The Long Way Home / Louise Penny

This is the 10th novel in Penny’s Inspector Gamache mystery series. As ever, I fell in love with her descriptions of Quebec’s beauty, the small town of Three Pines, and the delicious food the characters are always eating. Penny’s books are the definition of cozy.

31.   In the Skin of a Lion / Michael Ondaatje

Ondaatje has the gift of writing novels that read like poetry, and this story is no exception. Taking place in Toronto during construction of the Don Valley bridge and the RC Harris water treatment plant, the plot follows a construction worker, a young nun, an explosives expert, a business magnate and an actress as they maneuver making a life for themselves in the big city and changing ideas about class and gender.

32.   The Story of a New Name / Elena Ferrante

This is the second novel in Ferrante’s four-part series about the complicated life-long friendship between Lila and Lenu. In this installment, the women navigate first love, marriage, post-secondary education, first jobs and new motherhood.

33.   The Happiness Project / Gretchen Rubin

In this memoir / self-help book, Rubin studies the concept of happiness and implements a new action or practice each month of the year that is designed to increase her happiness levels. Examples include practicing gratitude, going to bed earlier, making time for fun and learning something new. Her journey inspired me to make a few tweaks to my life during a difficult time, and I do think they’ve made me more appreciative of what I have (which I think is a form of happiness?)

34.   The Virgin Suicides / Jeffrey Eugenides

I loved the film adaptation of this novel when I was a teenager, but I’d never actually read it until my book club selected it. Eugenides paints a glimmering, ethereal portrait of the five teenaged Lisbon sisters living a suffocating half-life at the hands of their overly protective and religious parents. The story is told through the eyes of the neighbourhood boys who longed for them from a distance and learned about who they were through snatched telephone calls, passed notes and one tragic suburban basement party.

35.   Time’s Convert / Deborah Harkness

This is a supernatural fantasy novel that takes place in the same universe of witches, vampires and daemons as Harkness’ All Souls trilogy. The plot follows the romance between centuries-old vampire Marcus, who came of age during the American Civil War, and human Phoebe, who begins her own transformation into a vampire so that she and Marcus can be together forever.

36.   The Saturday Night Ghost Club / Craig Davidson

Were you a fan of the TV show “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” If yes, this novel is for you. Davidson explores the blurred line between real-life tragedy and ghost story over the course of one summer in 1980s Niagara Falls. A coming-of-age novel that’s somehow sweet, funny and sad all at once, this story delves into the aftershocks of trauma and the way we heal the cracks in families.

37.   Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right / Jamie Glowacki

I hoped this was the book for us, but I don’t think it was. Some of the tips were great, but others really didn’t work for us. The other issue is that the technique in this book is much better suited to kids staying at home with a caregiver, not kids in daycare.

38.   The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One / Amanda Lovelace

This is a collection of poetry about women’s anger, women’s long memories and strength in sisterhood. It’s accessible, emotional and a bit of a feminist rallying cry. As someone who is obsessed with the Salem witch trials, I also loved the historical backdrop to the poems.

39.   The Rules of Magic / Alice Hoffman

I love to read seasonally, and this prequel to “Practical Magic” was a perfect October book. Remember Jet and Franny, the old, quirky aunts from the movie? This novel describes their upbringing, along with that of their brother Vincent, as the three siblings discover their powers and try to out-maneuver the Owens family curse.

40.   Witch: Unleased. Untamed. Unapologetic. / Lisa Lister

This book has a very sleek, appealing cover. Holding it made me feel magical. Reading it really disappointed me. From Lister’s almost outright transphobia to her unedited, repetitive style, this was a huge disappointment and I don’t recommend it.

41.   The Death of Mrs. Westaway / Ruth Ware

I liked this novel a lot more than Ware’s other novel, “The Woman in Cabin 10”. Crumbling English manor homes, long-buried family evils and people trapped together by snowstorms are my jam.

42.   Weirdo / Cathi Unsworth

Another British seaside town, another grisly murder. Jumping back and forth between a modern-day private investigation and the parental panic around cults and Satanism in the 1980s, Unsworth unpacks the darkness lurking within a small community and the way society’s outcasts are often used as scapegoats. The creep factor grows as the story unfolds.

43.   Mabon: Rituals, Recipes and Lore for the Autumn Equinox / Diana Rajchel

And so begins my witchy education. I have to admit, I really liked learning about the historical pagan celebrations and superstitions surrounding harvest time. I also liked reading about spells and incantations… ooooOOOOoooo!

44.   From Here to Eternity: Travelling the World to Find the Good Death / Caitlin Doughty

In North America, we are so removed from death that we are unequipped to process it when someone close to us dies. But this doesn’t have to be the case. In this non-fiction account, Doughty, a mortician based in L.A., travels the world learning about the business of death, the cultural customs around mortality, and the rituals of care and compassion for the deceased in ten different places. It seems that the closer we are to death, the less we’ll fear it, and the better-equipped we’ll be to process loss and grief in healthy ways.

45.   Samhain: Rituals, Recipes and Lore for Halloween / Diana Rajchel

Did you know that Samhain is actually pronounced “Sow-en”? I didn’t until I read this book, and felt very intelligent indeed, when later, while watching “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” on Netflix, the head witch pronounced the word as “Sam-hain”, destroying the writers’ credibility in one instant. I am a witch now.

46.   See What I Have Done / Sarah Schmidt

This novel is a retelling of the Lizzie Borden murders, illuminated through four characters – Lizzie herself, the Borden’s maid Bridget, Lizzie’s sister, and a mysterious man hired the day before the murders by Lizzie’s uncle to intimidate Mr. Borden (one of the murder victims). I knew very little about the murders before reading this book, but this version of the tale strongly suggests that Lizzie really is the murderer. Unhinged, childlike, selfish and manipulative, I hated her so much and felt awful for everyone that had to live in her orbit.

47.   The Nature of the Beast / Louise Penny

In the 11th installment of Penny’s Inspector Gamache mystery series, she sets the story up with a parallel to the boy who cried wolf and introduces us to her first killer without a soul. Crimes of passion and greed abound in Penny’s universe, but a crime of pure, cold evil? This is a first.

48.   How Are You Going to Save Yourself? / J.M. Holmes

This is a powerful collection of short stories about what it’s like to be a Black man in America right now. It’s about Black male friendship, fathers and sons, outright racism and dealing with a lifetime of microaggressions. Holmes makes some risky and bold decisions with his characters, even playing into some of the harmful stereotypes about Black men while subverting some of the others. This book really stayed with me. One disturbing story in particular I kept turning around and around in my mind for days afterward.

49.   Split Tooth / Tanya Tagaq

This is a beautiful story about a young Inuit girl growing up in Nunavut in the 1970s, combining gritty anecdotes about bullying, friendship, family and addiction with Inuit myth, legend, and the magic of the Arctic. The most evocative and otherworldly scenes in the novel took place under the Northern Lights and left me kind of mesmerized.

50.   Motherhood / Sheila Heti

Heti’s book is a work of fiction styled as a memoir, during which the protagonist, nearing her 40s, weighs the pros and cons of having a baby. I’ve maybe never felt so “seen” by an author before. I agonized over the decision about whether to have a baby for years before finally making a decision. The unsatisfying, but freeing conclusion that both the author and I came to is that for many of us there is no right choice (but no wrong choice either).

51.   The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories / P.D. James

This is a short collection of James’ four “Christmas-y” mysteries published over the course of a number of years. It was a perfect cozy read to welcome the holiday season.

52.   The Christmas Sisters / Sarah Morgan

Morgan’s story is a Hallmark holiday movie in book form. A family experiencing emotional turmoil at Christmas? Check. Predictable romances, old and new? Check. A beautiful, festive setting? Check. (In this case, it’s a rustic inn nestled in the Scottish Highlands). This novel is fluff, but the most delightful kind.

53.   Jonny Appleseed / Joshua Whitehead

Jonny is a Two-Spirit Ojibway-Cree person who leaves the reservation in his early 20s to escape his community’s homophobia and make it in the city. Making ends meet as a cybersex worker, the action begins when he has to scrape together enough cash to make it home to the “rez” (and all the loose ends he left behind there) for a funeral. The emotional heart of the novel are Jonny’s relationships with his kokum (grandmother) and his best friend / part-time lover Tias.

54.   Yule: Rituals, Recipes and Lore for the Winter Solstice / Susan Pesznecker

Do you folks believe that I’m a witch now? I am, okay? I even spoke an incantation to Old Mother Winter while staring into the flame of a candle after reading this book.

55.   Half Spent Was the Night: A Witches’ Yuletide / Ami McKay

Old-timey witches? At Christmas time? At an elaborate New Year’s Eve masked ball? Be still my heart. This novella was just what I wanted to read in those lost days between Christmas and New Year’s. You’ll appreciate it even more if you’ve already read Ami McKay’s previous novel “The Witches of New York”, as it features the same characters.

[ddbdiariesindia]

Comics, Connection and Commentary

An exploratory take on the changing nature of humour in our comic strips, from funny to relatable to a parodic brand of all that’s not funny.

For anyone growing up in 90s India, access to comic books was limited at best, and mostly restricted to newspapers or railway station magazine stands. Adults and children alike, treasured their desi Tinkles, Champaks and Chacha Chaudharys and waited patiently for their turn with the Sunday newspaper to catch up on global comic shenanigans. The content stayed firmly ensconced in the moralistic, educational and humorous genres and parents were happy to let their children partake of it. Which is of course very much in sync with the fact that comics were originally seen as a casual, off-handed form of entertainment. 

Circa 2018, it’s evident that the appeal of comics continues to endure. A large fandom thrives on collecting comic books, stacking issue after issue or looking for rare volumes on the seedy underbelly of the internet. And for newer audiences, comic strips have recently gained prominence thanks to webcomics and a growing crop of artists who find that the internet is an accessible stage for self expression. While everyday comics a few years back might have been categorized by the typical funny, dolt-headed characters, today they seem to be hitting nuanced notes that are much closer to home. 

Webcomics in particular exemplify the comic world’s emerging ethos. Artists creating on the internet often struggle with recognition, and were perhaps quick to realize that their cultural references weren’t necessarily globally relevant. To make it big on the internet’s vast, multi-dimensional stage, they needed to enact a more universal humour. Thus, ‘relatable’ was born. 

Whether it is the instances from Sarah Andersen’s Sarah’s Scribbles, the misadventures of The Heart and The Brain in The Awkward Yeti or the hilariously captured trials and tribulations of mental health on Hyperbole and a Half, everyone is exploring interesting ways to tell the tales of everyday joys and woes. While these artists are also occasionally topical, today’s most popular webcomics amass strong fan bases for their relatable content, with their followers often quipping “Hey, that’s me!” in the comment threads. 

So, has relatable gone ahead and replaced funny? Well, not exactly.

The best comics are still funny, while adequately emulating their readers.

But maybe what is perceived as fodder for humour is transient. Maybe humour offers exactly what we need it to, during any given time. This would explain a lot. Like why funny ruled the punchlines in the decades when people took themselves too seriously. The typical American Baby Boomers born in the ‘50s spent their lives building a respectable lifestyle for themselves and their children, working at the same job for years and coming home with an attaché just to plop down in front of the TV or behind the newspaper as a form of escape. Funny equalled escape and therefore the comics of the time, delivered accordingly.

Today, however, Millennials and Gen Z respond to a different kind of humour. Millennials are the relational generation, growing older and a tad disillusioned; distracted by endless stimuli that keep them hopping around on multiple tabs and apps on their devices. On the other hand Gen Z, aka ‘digital natives’, are still finding their feet in the world. Unanchored but resilient, this generation has something to prove.Given their behaviours and deep-rooted universal desires, they take comfort from gentle reminders that others are also in the same boat. That’s the vital role webcomics play in their world – giving them a sense of connection to a larger community that’s trying to make sense of the same anxieties & doubts.

Another view, a more pessimistic one perhaps, is that these readers are relatively narcissistic, constantly looking for self-representation in all avenues of art and culture. This hypothetically ties back to a deeply entrenched insecurity manifesting itself in a need to overcompensate for one’s perception of their own inferiority. Thus, further validating the theory that relatable comics are picking up momentum because there’s an increased need to feel like one’s a part of a community, to feel that one’s not alone.

The need for relatability is one thing. We must also pause and reflect on the possibility of another shift in humour, one that’s dictated by our rapidly changing lifestyles, one that might be in the making. Showing its presence already is a branch of humour that borrows from the satirical nature of early newspaper comic strips and stems from the current need for a coping mechanism – parody. The reality and absurdity of our times begs for recognition and documentation in some form. Be it ridiculous political reforms, incompetent leaders, skewed mentalities or needless activism, there is a lot that today’s concerned citizens feel they must fight to change. However, even as the fight for change is waged on the battlefield (digital or otherwise), comic artists are putting pen to paper to find clarity through satire. 

And given the nature of our lives, comics no longer just exist in the classic 3-panel format. This means that newer formats like memes and video (that were originally meant for silly enjoyment and to poke fun at loved ones), are also slowly but surely taking a turn towards the dark side bringing, forth examples of human helplessness and absurdity that we scramble desperately to hide. 

Is it possible that these current format-agnostic comics have in fact, moved past humour? For all intents and purposes they are now actually exercises in anti-humour – a wake up call to readers signalling that what should pass for a joke, is unfortunately, reality in our society. But what does it mean when contemporary life and the news cycle take us so far away from the simply funny? What does it mean when peals of laughter transform into restrained smirks and abstract exercises in morbidity? Have we let go of the simply humorous without even realising it? Or is it ‘funny’ that has already let go of us?

Somdatta Roychowdhuri

Somdatta works in our Mumbai office as a Strategist. A 90s kid at heart, she’s a self-proclaimed curator of all things nostalgic. When she’s not lurking in libraries or boisterously cheating at Uno she can be found engaging in spirited debates on why Bollywood can never be written off… preferably over a cup of anxiety-inducing coffee.

Editor’s Note

All our blog posts draw on and add back to DDB Signbank, a proprietary repository of thousands of signs collected over time from across the world. These signs, when looked at collectively, point us in the direction of significant shifts in culture and consumer behaviour. Follow @DDBSigns on Twitter, or drop us a line at diariesindia@ddbmudragroup.com to learn more

[edivupage]

106 Experts Share Their Thoughts on the Future of Education, Part 1: PreK-12

“The future of education is digital. We live in an increasingly digital world, where technology is a part of our lives in so many ways. Now more than ever, it is crucial that we incorporate digital technology into education. To prepare students for higher education and future jobs, we must ensure that they are familiar with technology. Administrators who want to prepare their K-12 school for the future of education should look at the ways they use technology in the classroom. Schools that are future-ready are those that blend technology with learning seamlessly and include technology in nearly every lesson.”

I just shared my thoughts on the future of education, but what do my peers think? To find out, we decided to produce an expert roundup on the topic of the future of education. We asked 106 education experts to answer one question: “What are your thoughts on the future of education?” In part 1 of this series, we will focus on the future of K-12.

  K-12

*Numbering is for organizational purposes only and does not denote a participants rank or level of influence.

  1. Tacy Towbridge

Global Lead, Education Programs, Adobe

“As students prepare for a rapidly changing world, Adobe’s global Gen Z study reveals an increasing need for students to have opportunities to make and create. In support of this trend, we found that nine of ten Gen Z teachers see creativity as central to future careers and 93 percent of Gen Z students view technology as key to their career preparedness. We can expect to see creativity playing a central role in the classroom as educators tackle updating curriculum to align with the 21st century skills students need for future success in tomorrow’s workforce.”

  Twitter: @tacytrow

  2. Glenn Wiebe

Education Consultant, Essdack

“Viewing the future of education through my lens of social studies and civic engagement, it’s clear that we’ve failed a generation by ignoring the importance of a robust K-20 social studies curriculum. We must be more intentional about creating students who are engaged, informed, and knowledgeable citizens. This will require cross-curricular problem-based learning, cross-grade level interaction, the integration of web-centric and mobile tech tools, and opportunities to address authentic local, state, and national issues.”

  Twitter: @glennw98

  3. Kathy Schrock, Educational Technologist

“As education moves ahead, I am hoping to see a more personalized educational program for each student, allowing them to use the content they are required to learn in the context of pursuing their passions. If students can solve problems and create projects and products that use their passion as the basis for the assessments, I feel students will gain the love of learning we want them all to have!”

Twitter: @kathyschrock

  4. Dr. Marilyn Price-Mitchell

Developmental Psychologist

Founder, Roots of Action

“I’m optimistic about the future of education. Why? Because each day I see new signs that teachers are applying the principles of positive youth development in their classrooms. From helping students analyze novels based on a character’s internal strengths, like integrity, curiosity, empathy, and resilience, to promoting the attributes of good citizenship, teachers are showing an increasing awareness of how cognitive, social, emotional, and physical learning are intricately intertwined. This is great news for students and for their ability to thrive in school and life.”

Twitter: @DrPriceMitchell

    5. Kelly Keena, PhD.

Education Consultant, UL Xplorlabs

“In STEM education, our efforts in schooling are to draw distinct lines from classroom experiences to what is happening in the real world. Not only does this give students a preview of future career possibilities, but it also gives the learning purpose and answers the “so what?” It’s not enough to say that we need scientists and engineers, we must show students the path and what it’s made of. This direct effort by educators will continue to make STEM learning more tangible to students.”

      6. Dr. Spike Cook, Principal

Lakeside Middle School, Millville, NJ

“The future of education is changing rapidly. There are indications and trends that lead me to believe that we will be creating more individualized learning opportunities for students through technology as well as real world experiences. When students in the future arrive at school it is going to look drastically different than today. Students will be on a course of action as they explore the many possibilities regarding their passion. Teachers will be assisting students on this journey as mentors, references, experts, and facilitators of knowledge. Although students will spend quite a bit of their day in front of screens, they will also be working collaboratively to solve problems to further their understanding of their passion.”

Twitter: @drspikecook

  7. Kathi Kersznowski

Technology Integration Specialist

Washington Township Public Schools

“I am profoundly enthusiastic about the future of education!  I believe that our next greatest shift will emphasize what I call “facilitated choice”.  Knowledgeable, future-ready teachers will craft diverse, structured and purposeful digital pathways to learning mastery. Students will be empowered to choose the resources, modalities, and strategies to learn and to demonstrate their own proficiency.  As we design pedagogically sound playlists or well-planned learning menus, the teaching and learning will become more and more individualized. Gifting our students with learning options will drive self-directed learning and opportunities for creative self-expression!  I’m so joyful and fortunate to be a ‘tech edvocate’ in such exciting, transformative times!”

  Twitter: @kerszi

  8. Alejandra Guzman

Secondary Science Strategist Los Fresnos CISD

“Education where teachers lecture a homogeneous classroom is a memory of the past.  Technology is rapidly evolving and educators must step up to transform education.  Students have access to information at their fingertips.  Instead of spending time teaching concepts that can be Googled, we should focus instead on meaningful lessons that will strengthen student soft skills including collaboration, problem solving, and critical

Twitter: @aguzmanscience

Blog: http://ift.tt/2l9TkRl

  9. Maya Ajmera

President and CEO of Society for Science & the Public

“We are at a significant crossroads in education: we are finding talented young people everywhere, but high-quality educational opportunities are not readily available. As we look to the future, education must provide all students with meaningful personalized learning experiences where students are taught by educators and mentors who enable them to think critically and become collaborative innovators. At the Society for Science & the Public, we believe science literacy and research, often accomplished via project-based learning, will play a more central role in education and preparing our students to find solutions to our world’s most pressing challenges.”

Twitter: @MayaAjmera

  10. Dr. Rick L. Robins

Juab School District Superintendent

Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools

“The future of education will rest largely in our ability to meet the economic demands of our modern global society. The education system as we know it was in large part constructed for the early Industrial Age. This meant providing a factory model of education that prepared the mass majority of our students for the assembly line. We are still struggling today to break free from this antiquated model even when we know that all industry has moved ahead in the Information Age. The future of education is found in the often referenced big four: collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and communication. The latter skill being the most critical. To attain these outcomes for students at high levels, our best chance is to build and develop highly adaptable, flexible, and nimble models focused on personalized student pathways to success. Now more than ever, our students our counting on us to provide deep enriching relationships, networks, and the learning tools to go hand in hand.”

Twitter: @juabwasp1

  11. Marcela Gómez

Mechanical Engineer, STEAM Teacher, Coach and Consultant. Teacherpreneur. Independent Researcher.

English Teacher for Middle School at Colegio de la Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. Medellín, Colombia.

“When I think on the future of Education, I think about movement, questions, projects and debates related to the way we are going on as a society and part of Nature. In other words, the future of Education involves the settlement of learning communities, based on competencies and impact on upcoming generations. To do so, I cannot imagine a steady state on a learning community, but lots of convective questions and possibilities that make people’s minds boil and show up brilliant, creative insights. That made me create the concept of #STEAMCulture, where all of us can rebuild new mindsets and habits, oriented to learning and improvement.”

Twitter: @MarcelaSTEM

  12. Dr. Brad Gustafson

Elementary Principal and author of “Renegade Leadership”

“The future of education belongs to the learner. I foresee a systemic pivot towards practices that promote educator agency and amplify student-voice. School accountability will no longer compete with student learning. Our tolerance for allowing hyper-testing to crowd out the preexisting talent each and every learner possesses will diminish. We will start seeing greatness in all its forms, and teaching the whole child will take on a new meaning.”

Twitter: @GustafsonBrad

    13. Eric Cantor

CEO, New Mountain Learning

“The future of education lies in creating innovative, engaging and real-world learning environments that address the gaps in college and career readiness. One example is to leverage emerging technologies to help students build the language, computer and financial literacy skills they need to succeed in whatever path they choose to take.”

Twitter: @emcschool

    14. Jason Glass

Jeffco Public Schools

Superintendent & Chief Learner

“This is the most exciting time to be a learner and to work in the field of education. While challenges of equity certainly still exist – never have the opportunities to learn, collaborate, share, create, and publish been democratized to so many. The challenge for our education systems is to adapt to this new reality. We must be flexible with our thinking around how we define things such as teaching, learning, school, and education. And, we must consciously work not to confine this new era to our past conceptions, but instead to embrace it with the same sense of curiosity and wonder we hope for in our learners.”

Twitter: @COJasonGlass

  15. Dr. Ellen Weber

Mita International Brain Center

“When education looks to learner potential rather than traditional practices, it lights a focused way for all to grow wonder and curiosity. We’ll activate hidden and unused intelligences, with the question, What if every student here was a genius? Interactive and brain-friendly tools enable us to hold a crown patiently over learners’ head, while they grow into unique pinnacles where they find delightful meaning.

This depends on breaking from tools and traditions that fail to fit new neural discoveries. It opens minds to the mental possibilities within all learners, so teachers also learn at times, while students also teach at times.”

Twitter: @ellenfweber

  16. Sarah-Jane Thomas

Educator

“The future of education is bright. Although there are many challenges that we are navigating, I see hope in that educators are reclaiming their voices and sharing through the power of connection. I am looking forward to seeing this increase, as the practice continues to spread and evolve.”

Twitter: @sarahdateechur

    17. Matt Harris, Ed.D.

International Educational Technology Consultant

“The future of education will pivot from content area knowledge towards skills development and personalization of learning. We will move away from high stakes assessment that information retention to tasks and collaboration. Students will learn how to learn, where to find relevant information, and attain practical experience through long term assignments. We will no longer quiz kids on cellular biology when they are becoming accountants, rather we will give tools to complete large and complex projects.”

Twitter: @mattharrisedd

  18. Todd Brekhus, President of myON

“The future of education is exciting. The next wave of products and solutions will move from “drill and kill” products labeled as personalized learning to what I call the “curiosity creation wave.” Future products will be exciting and innovative, have the ability to meet the needs of students with a variety of learning styles, give students the freedom to consume content in new ways, and provide supports to ensure learning is understood. I also look at a global education model where learning is tied to not only current events but historical and cultural realities as well. I am further excited by the idea of personalization of teaching. Teachers will curate innovative streams of rich teaching models personalized to their style and their students’ needs.”

Twitter: @ToddBrekhus

  19. Jacqui Murray

Adjunct Professor/Mentor/Teacher/Author

“The future of education is empowering students to think for themselves. We have everything we need today to turn students into critical thinkers and problem-solvers who can take on the world’s toughest problems. The only change required is in our mindset. Preparing for the future is not about collaboration or paper-free or the perfect textbook or who has the best technology. It’s about recognizing the questions and knowing how to find paths to the solution.”

Twitter: @askatechteacher

    20. Jill McEldowney and Cathy Henry

Co-Founders & Creators at The Curriculum Corner

Curriculum Resource Consultants

“We are very hopeful about the future of education!  Educators these days have such easy and abundant access to research and resources to help them with planning and daily instruction.  Teachers understand now more than ever how important it is to inspire lifelong learning and a nation of students who are thinkers and know how to solve real-world problems.  It is an exciting time to be in education!”

Twitter: @curriculumcornr

  21. Joël McLean

Principal and Leadership Coach

Pedagogical Leader at CFORP (currently)

“What will education look like in 5, 10, 20 years? In a recent post by Christopher Dede in Education Week, he states that “…our children and students face a future of multiple careers, not just jobs.” This is very true. People are living longer, and as a result are working many more years during the course of their lives. For our kids today, this probably equates to having to get ready for multiple careers in their lifetime. I guess we can call it a «career of reinventing oneself. So what does that mean for our schools and the way we need to educate our kids? Here are what I think are some non-negotiables in helping our students prepare for what awaits them in the future:

Competency based learning, not content based learning

Developing transferable skills

Globalization, artificial intelligence (AI), digital and media (communication)

Deep learning (project-based learning – authentic learning opportunities)”

Twitter: @jprofNB

  22. Marina Umaschi Bers, PhD.

Professor at the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development at Tufts University and Co-Founder and Chief Scientist at KinderLab Robotics

“The future of education depends on engaging our youngest learners as creators with technology. When young children develop technological fluency—an ability to express themselves with technology—they gain problem-solving strategies and cognitive skills that represent a fundamental literacy of the 21st century. Learning computational thinking and sequencing skills at this young age is a predictor for academic success in literacy and reading as well as mathematics and other STEM fields. Introducing playful learning, collaboration, and coding in education allows children to see themselves as producers rather than consumers in today’s technology-driven world.”

Twitter: @marinabers

  23. Richard Lawson

Mitsui Professor of Data, Systems, and Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

“The future of education: (1) It will be lifelong, not constrained to early years of life; (2) It will be more conceptual, emphasizing critical thinking skills, with less emphasis on facts (which are all on Google); (3) It will be offered by new tiered organizational structures of teachers and teaching, with many human-resources concepts borrowed from health care services; (4) It will NOT be all computer-based, especially for young learners who need extensive human mentorship; (5) It will be constantly evolving and always exciting!”

    24. Matt Guyan

Solutions Developer at B Online Learning

“Education in the future will deliver learning to people wherever they are and be available when needed and easily accessed. Education will be personalised and tailored to the current and future needs of the learner. Education won’t just be about completing courses, it will also involve collaboration and openly sharing experience so that people can learn from each other.”

Twitter: @MattGuyan

      25. Dr. Stephen G. Peters

Superintendent/Author/Speaker

“Our education system directly affects our society, as our society affects our education system. The present status of both agencies demand change now, however, change requires us to transform, think and react differently, when it’s easier to remain the same. While some observers state, “our schools are broken,” they aren’t broken, they are operating as designed. Moreover, the organizational structures of our school systems and schools are no longer aligned to the realities our students face daily.

Leaders and teachers who share the moral imperative to replace the traditional classroom with a modern or personalized learning environment must turn away from single-point solutions; instead employ long-term, systemic solutions that help answer society’s call to produce graduates with skills to compete in the industries of our time. The future of education is in the hands of those who have the sustainable will and skill to fight the turbulent, unpredictable storm we face in our world of public education.  My last breath will be spent fighting for our children to be educated at the highest levels possible.”

Twitter: @stephengpeters

  26. Shantell Thaxton Berrett

Lead Professional Development and Dyslexia Specialist for Reading Horizons

“In 2015, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services created a policy identifying dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia as specific language disabilities. Today, 39 states have statewide dyslexia laws, and many others have handbooks or resource guides. For teachers to support dyslexic students, they need in-depth professional development on teaching core reading skills, including phonological awareness, decoding, an understanding of structured language, and literacy in general. With the recognition of dyslexia as a language disability, I believe we will see more schools providing professional development in this area.”

Twitter: @ReadingHorizons

  27. Jason Stricker, CEO, Insight Education Group

“In the U.S., 46% of districts have fewer than 1,000 students and one-third of all public schools are located in rural areas. While many of these smaller school districts face the same challenges as larger school systems, they often lack the infrastructure and supports of larger districts. Educators in these districts often experience “professional isolation” making it hard to gain traction with the greatest school-related influencers on student achievement: the recruitment, development, and retention of teachers, teacher leaders, and principals. At Insight, we believe that the future of education lies in networked improvement communities whereby teachers and school leaders, especially in small districts and rural areas, can participate in “cross-school collaboration” with a broader network of peers for meaningful, job-specific collaboration for school improvement. These networks offer the promise of providing the professional support and growth educators need and want“

Twitter: @StricktlyJason

  28. Greg Firn, Chief Operating Officer at RoboKind

“The future of education is summed up in two words, “renaissance” and “coherence.” Education will experience a renaissance, a “rebirth” of the “love of learning” underpinned by authentic access and opportunity for each learner to construct, apply, and demonstrate their learning that is meaningful, relevant, and timely—not according to antiquated instructional calendars or age-based grade configurations. The process and the product of learning will be equals in import, value, and worth. This unprecedented coherence of education will benefit individuals, communities, and states—and our nation will benefit, at last, from the promises and best hopes of “an educated citizenry.”

  29. Michael Moody

Founder and CEO of Insight ADVANCE

“The future of education depends upon supporting teachers to ensure they’re at the top of their game. Rather than pretending that the status quo is working, we must engage in more effective support practices, such as instructional coaching, to empower teachers to reflect upon their practice and make the improvements needed to ensure that all students are achieving. Leaders should be considering how they are designing and implementing systems that will actually improve practice. This means not only supporting teachers, but also focusing on developing those in support positions, such as school leaders and instructional coaches. Despite the many initiatives aimed at improving outcomes, nothing will ever replace the impact of a great teacher.”

Twitter: @DrMichaelMoody

  30. Tara Garcia Mathewson

Staff Writer, The Hechinger Report

“The future of education will be defined by schools’ increased responsibility. While schools long got a pass for properly educating only a sliver of the population, they are now widely expected to succeed with all students and prepare everyone for both college and middle-class careers. In response, schools will continue finding innovative ways to accomplish a much more ambitious mission. Among them: offering holistic supports to meet the non-academic needs of students, personalizing instruction to address achievement gaps, forging external partnerships to get students early college and career experience and using technology to create new efficiencies in teaching and learning.”

Twitter: @TaraGarciaM

  31. Heath Morrison

President of McGraw-Hill Education’s School Group

“As we look at the future of education and how we can make a positive, meaningful impact for students, we have to address equity in education. It is imperative that we create the right conditions that will lead to equitable learning outcomes for all students – regardless of income, race or other factors. Across the education industry, we need to work together to create more partnerships and develop multi-faceted strategies that will remove barriers to success, improve struggling schools and help educators provide students with the opportunities and resources that they need to succeed, both in and out of the classroom.”

Twitter: @mheducation

  32. Michael Cohen; The Tech Rabbi

Innovate Learning Consultant and Speaker

“I see education, as the last industry to avoid disruption and evolution at the hands of the internet and technology. The internet has completely democratized access to knowledge, resources, and most of all to people. While education continues to focus on rote memorization and standardized assessments, anyone with an internet connection can take an online course, connect with experts, and develop valuable skills for the #FutureofWork. While many are excited about AR, VR, AI and other emerging technologies, I am fascinated at how students can leverage the internet and social media to succeed in professions they’re passionate about.”

Twitter: @TheTechRabbi

  33. Meredith May

Director of Marketing, Turnitin 

“Today’s cultural climate has revealed that conducting oneself with honor and integrity is more important–and visible–than ever before. Integrity is a learned virtue, and schools of the future will be responsible for teaching it. Tools and policies that support education with integrity will be essential components of preparing students to be contributing members of society in school and beyond.”

Twitter: @Turnitin

  34. Douglas A. Levin

President, EdTech Strategies, LLC.

“For those with the motivation and means, the future of learning will be more open, more authentic, and more collaborative than ever. For those who are marginalized, the future is less certain. One key will be how technology is used to advance learning in and out of school. Will it empower students to think critically about their place in the world and how they can contribute? Or, will it be used to control their attention, behavior, and interests? The collective voice of educators has never been more important in determining which future of education we are creating and for whom.”

Twitter: @douglevin

  35. Caroline Fahmy

President and CEO of Educational Data Systems

“If I were to put my money on the future of education, I would put it all on supporting the quality of people—school leaders and teachers. New technologies, artificial intelligence, assessment for accountability, data dashboards, charter schools, and other developments are important to the educational machine.

But, students will need school leaders who are capable of managing, evaluating, and supporting staff and who uphold effective pedagogy. And, they will need teachers who mentor other teachers and collaborate; who can effectively manage a classroom; and who have enthusiasm and interest in making sure all students receive everything they need to be successful.”

  36. Michele L. Haiken, Ed.D., Educator and Author

Rye Middle School & Manhattanville College

“Personalized learning experiences for teachers and students continues in the near future for education. Helping all students succeed and reach excellence is our mission. What we define as success and excellence continues to evolve so that our students are critical thinkers, problem solvers, collaborators, and active learners. As schools are rethinking the idea of space and the learning landscape of education, the physical space of schools will take on new shapes and forms. Technology and digital literacy is embedded throughout blended learning experiences to help students and teachers work smarter.”

Twitter: @teachingfactor

  37. Bryan Bigari, Fractus Learning

“We can’t keep teaching students to prepare them for a 20th century world that has long-gone by.  If you believe as I do that education’s true purpose is to prepare students to be happy, productive fulfilled adults – then our curriculum and teaching styles need to reflect that reality. I doubt very few would design the current education system if given a black slate and told to prepare students to build and work in the world of 2025 or 2030.

We finally have the ability using technology to reach each child at their individual skill level, learning speed, and learning style.  We should do that.  I’m not saying it’s easy, and it’ll take a lot of trust and work by all players.  The reality is though, it’s too important not to try.”

Twitter: @fractuslearning

  38. Dr. Alfred Boyd

Professor of Education and Edtech Entrepreneur

“The future of edcation in America is accelerated.  There will be universal preschool, and it will be accelerated.  Preschool students will move beyond learning colors and numbers will to learning number operations and algebraic concepts– from learning to write their names to learning to write narratives. This Universal Preschool will allow students in Elementary school to complete some objectives of students who are in middle school in 2017. By the time that students in the future have completed 9th grade, they will have completed most of their major high school coursework. Which will allow high school students to choose a diploma track, i.e., STEM, vocational, or postsecondary, with a 12th-grade apprenticeship. The majority of high school curriculum will be based on diploma track that the students have chosen. Thereby, giving the USA a pool of workers who are ready, willing, and trained to work.”

Twitter: @DR_SIPPI

  39. Kaliris Y. Salas-Ramirez, PhD

Assistant Medical Professor

The Sophie Davis Program of Biomedical Education, CUNY School of Medicine Department of Cellular, Molecular and Biomedical Science

“As a parent, activist, and educator, I am frightened about the future of education from kindergarten through higher education. Although everyday I witness extraordinary educators and the amazing work being done in classrooms to provide all students with a holistic educational experience, most institutions compromise socioemotional and culturally competent practices in classrooms for what are considered “standards”. Educators psychologists, scientists and physicians should come together to develop curricula and policies that support all students. We need to stop selling students off to the biggest corporate bidder! We must replace archaic assessments and standards with humanity, democracy and equity for progress.”

Twitter: @SaveCPE1

  40. Ai Zhang, Ph.D

Associate Professor at Stockton University, New Jersey, US; and independent digital pedagogy consultant

“I envision the future of education as one hyper-connected classroom that prioritizes open-sharing and collaborative learning. Teachers become facilitators of knowledge and co-creators of content together with the students and the broader academic and professional communities. This classroom has no walls that separate classes or subjects from one another— students work together holistically on projects, exercising self-agency, self-directed and self-paced learning; and collaborating with teachers and industry professionals to solve problems across a wide range of disciplines and skills. This open classroom leverages the power of technology to amplify one teacher or class’ voice to a national and global level.”

Twitter: @AiAddysonZhang

  41. Elisabeth Bostwick, Teacher and Speaker

“Imagine learners jubilantly bounding into school to greet their peers and learning coaches. Perhaps upon arrival, they engage in an exploration of their choice, based on their passions and are immersed in the wonder and awe of natural phenomena. For example, there may be options that include maker education, art exploration, research opportunities, the continuation of projects being created to demonstrate learning, and more! As teachers craft opportunities for students to be self-initiated learners, student agency will develop. I envision that in the future of education, educators will become increasingly intentional about developing a deep sense of community, where stakeholders actively engage in the school setting by bridging the connection between school and work opportunities. The goal of this would be to support learners in identifying their passions which in turn, will empower them to recognize and follow their calling, leading to a lifetime of fulfillment. I believe that the future of education will place a greater emphasis on fostering divergent over convergent thinking by providing opportunities for students to imagine, ask questions, construct prototypes, retool, and share to an authentic audience. Together, let’s ignite a culture of innovation as we move forward to the future of education!”

Twitter: @ElisaBostwick

  42. Randy Ziegenfuss, Ed.D.

Superintendent, Salisbury Township School District (PA)

“It is a very exciting time to be in K12 education! It’s also a bit frightening to think about the world that our youngest learners will be entering in the decade of the 2030s. Are we focusing on the “right things”? While nobody has a crystal ball and can predict what will be, we can shift our ways of thinking about school and education from a paradigm that is school-centered to one that is learner-centered, reflecting the hyper-personalized world we live in. If we can provide our learners with the ability to be expert learners for life, we will have done our work well. The future of education is promising, and the exciting work of today is helping stakeholders, educators and learners understand the need for change now that will prepare the way for a future of constant learning.”

Twitter: @ziegeran

  43. Dr. Shelly Vohra (Instructional Coach and Online Instructor)

“The future of education will see students learning in a blended self-paced format, where learning is personalized with no formal curriculum. Learners will be able to work in different places at different times, making connections globally, and working collaboratively to meet their goals and at the same time developing their human literacy skills. Assessment and evaluation will consist of field experiences, internships, and collaborative projects so that students can develop skills related to their career aspirations. Educators will serve as mentors and guides, providing students with face to face opportunities in which to discuss and consolidate their learning.”

Twitter: @raspberryberet3

  44. Bashaer Mohammed Al Kilani

Lecturer, Author, Speaker

“The rise of the innovation era has redefined the key skills that individuals nowadays need to be productive contributors to the society and the economy. To begin with, individuals, in an innovative context, need to have the aptitude to gain knowledge and the competence to develop new skills throughout their lives. Secondly, schools should radically transform their curricula, instruction, and assessment to become innovation learning hubs; this can be made easier with the aid of technology, which would be a major altering factor in this transformation. Embracing a decentralized curriculum will encourage creativity in schools; also, it will aid in the building of a dynamic personalized learning plan for each learner.

Twitter: @bashaierk

  45. Samantha-Kaye Johnston

Curtin University and Founder of Project Capability

“Globally, 103 million children lack efficient reading skills. Dyslexia, which affects approximately 10 % of the population, is a primary cause of inefficient reading. The 2030 Sustainability Agenda explains that greater steps should be taken to heighten the presence, participation, and achievement of marginalized groups within the education system. Broadly, the current education system is failing to provide such equality for children with dyslexia. Consequently, the future of education requires a re-evaluation of its teaching and assessment strategies. Additionally, greater priority needs to be placed on funding more robust reading research aimed at identifying interventions for the problem of disordered reading.”

Twitter: @IAMSAMKJ

  46. Jon Samuelson

Innovation Strategist, Beaverton School District

“We need site and district based leaders that are willing to make bold changes in education, not go with the status quo. Education is too dependent on test scores to prove how students are learning, or to measure teacher success. Leaders that allow teachers, and students, to be creative are rare. Teachers need to have freedom to allow student choice and different types of assessment. Students need to collaborate on projects that involve soft skills like creativity, critical thinking, and global awareness to be successful. Leaders need to take the focus off test scores and focus on facilitating learning outcomes.”

Twitter: @jonsamuelson

  47. Marlena Gross-Taylor, Founder EduGladiators

“What if there’s a place, a secret place where nothing is impossible? A miraculous place where you could actually change the world. You wanna go?” ~Tomorrowland, 2015

“A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of watching a movie that continues to inspire me – Tomorrowland.  When I think about the quote from the movie, the answer is crystal clear. To me, this wonderful, secret place isn’t such a secret. Isn’t this the purpose of school?

The shift of education must return wholeheartedly to authentic learning for students and meaningful professional development for teachers and leaders supporting innovation and creativity.  The workforce our students will be entering will consist of jobs that haven’t been created yet. We must align our lessons, resources & vision on preparing our students for the 21st century?

As educators, we must recommit ourselves & embrace a new era of leadership, engagement & advocacy focused on what is best for students and create experiences that foster a love for learning and ingenuity. Classrooms are the perfect forum to develop future game-changers, a growth mindset & understanding that mistakes are just an opportunity for continuous growth. School most remain a viable experience for students in a modern world…in a new era.”

Twitter: @mgrosstaylor

  48. Christopher J. Hall

Interim President, Denmark Technical College (Denmark, South Carolina)

“Education is a crossroads. Those who are responsible for moving formal education forward will determine its future. These educators have some directions from which to choose. One path is to continue with traditional lecturing, where the teacher stands before the class and spouts knowledge. The next path is embracing technology and using it deliver knowledge to the students. Though technology has continued to grow and evolve, its use in education has not kept pace.

The future of education is rooted in how knowledge will be delivered to the learner. For Education to have a viable future, technology has to be integrated from the creation to the dissemination of knowledge. “

Twitter: @ChrisJHallSC

  49. Michele Pitman, founder and CEO of intelliVOL, developers of x2VOL

“Community service is going to become a quantitative measure just like a student’s GPA. It is also going to become a category of the “Best” school measures of the major news publications that rank schools around the country. Community service and other forms of internships will become so fundamental to the way we teach (and increasingly critical measures for getting into college) that these publications will have to start ranking schools for the amount of opportunities they offer and student participation. – Michele Pitman, founder and CEO of intelliVOL, developers of x2VOL.”

Twitter: @x2VOL

    50. Dr. Courtney Pepe

Kean University

“The future of education will be influenced by curriculum, assessment data, and educational technology.  We must consider the frameworks of Charlotte Danielson, Les Vygotsky, Ben Bloom, and Dr. Ruben Puentedura as we curate unique learning experiences for Generation Z.  We must always remember the needs of our population sub-groups (special education and bilingual learners) when we design 21st century learning experiences.  We must analyze data to make future educational decisions.  In this analysis, it is important to measure: the power of perseverance, cognitive engagement, and student growth both qualitatively and quantitatively.”

  51. Philip D. Lanoue, Ph.D.

PDL Consultants

“Let’s start with the new beliefs which are the core of change if schools are going to prepare ALL students to be successful in their world, tomorrow. We will make the changes necessary when the adults realize digital learning environments:

Close the achievement gap through 24/7 digital access;

Place students at the center of learning to make it personal;

Expand traditional school boundaries using digital space;

Change instructional design to support the new core skills of collaboration, communication, problem solving, synthesis, and research.

Are you ready to engage in the conversations needed to embrace these new beliefs and changes?”

Twitter: @pdlconsultants

  52. Jerry Burch

Deputy Superintendent, Woodward Public Schools

“I have great concern about the future of public education. It seems that we are under attack from several that see public education as a failure. It seems to me that our democracy is also under that same attack. Our democracy is founded on and will only continue if we have a well informed and educated populous. We have been engaged in school improvement and accountability for more than two decades.”

Twitter: @jeburch1

      53. Peter Hostrawser

Founder & Chairman – OPRF School of Business

Blogger – Disrupt Edcation

“The future of education will be geared towards progressive learning. Curriculum will be aligned to fit the needs of its community and region. My belief is that current secondary schools are overly reliable on standardized tests and systematic inhibitors. Content areas will be more integrated and student centered. Education will build on what students thrive in rather than “fixing” their deficiencies. School buildings will cease to be “prison like” buildings and become more open to flexible learning. Technology will allow students to do the important work of becoming productive problem solvers and ultimately productive citizens within their communities.”

Twitter: @peterhostrawser

  54. Michael K. Barbour

Associate Professor of Instructional Design for the College of Education and Health Services

Touro University California

“I am often asked this question and tend to have two responses.  From a structural standpoint, I fear the privatization of public education.  The continued push for school choice and free market initiatives simply create two education systems: one for families with economic, political, and/or social capital and a second, inferior, system for everyone else.  Optimistically, I see schools like ones we had 100 years ago.  Teachers and local communities deciding what students should learn.  Classrooms where students were challenged, material was customized to them, and students support each other – like the old one room schools, just with more technology.”

Twitter: @mkbtuc

  55. Ryan McCarty, PhD

National Louis University, Chicago, Illinois

“In the future, educational research approaches that test and refine interventions in the crucible of real classrooms, such as design-based research, will gain influence.  Teachers and teacher teams will seek greater autonomy to innovate, resulting in creative solutions to persistent educational problems.  Online reasoning will become a central focus as educators respond to the “fake news” controversies and emphasize these skills as essential for civic engagement.  Schools will empower students to become not only consumers but producers of multimodal online arguments, with an emphasis on inquiry into real-world issues. Disciplinary literacy will remain an essential part of this work.”

Twitter: @RyanP_McCarty

  56. Fanuel Muindi, Ph.D.

Co-Founder/Director, THE STEM ADVOCACY INSTITUTE

“I see the future of education focusing almost exclusively on inquiry based approaches across the entire system. Inquiry based learning teaches students a critical skill in constructing questions or problems. The current system focuses too much on having students identify the right answer. However, I think students that are able to find important questions have an advantage. Such a skill is critical across fields. It is an ability that needs to be cultivated from a young age. Students need opportunities (e.g., doing research based projects) to develop such an important skill. I see the future focusing extensively on this skill through project based learning. New universities such as Station1 are moving in the right direction by challenging the current model.”

Twitter (Personal): @fanuelmuindi

Twitter (Organization): @stemadvocacy

  57. Sarah​ ​Giddings,​ ​NBCT Teacher​ ​Leader​ ​&​ ​Advisor WAVE​ ​Program​ ​-​ ​Washtenaw​ ​Educational​ ​Options​ ​Consortium National​ ​Teacher-Powered​ ​Ambassador

“In​ ​the​ ​future​ ​of​ ​education​ ​in​ ​America​ ​having​ ​a​ ​well-defined​ ​education​ ​​ ​will​ ​be​ ​highly​ ​valued, coveted,​ ​and​ ​cherished.​ ​In​ ​the​ ​future,​ ​the​ ​national​ ​and​ ​state​ ​trajectory​ ​will​ ​be​ ​to​ ​invest​ ​money, time,​ ​and​ ​support​ ​with​ ​tightly​ ​interlinked​ ​P-20​ ​partnerships​ ​that​ ​support​ ​and​ ​nurture​ ​a​ ​highly skilled​ ​educator​ ​workforce,​ ​highly​ ​skilled​ ​student​ ​population,​ ​and​ ​equitable​ ​resources.

Schools​ ​will​ ​be​ ​teacher-powered​ ​and​ ​student-centered.​ ​They​ ​will​ ​be​ ​collaboratively​ ​designed​ ​by community​ ​members,​ ​parents,​ ​educators,​ ​and​ ​students.​ ​The​ ​role​ ​of​ ​educator​ ​will​ ​be​ ​expanded to​ ​account​ ​for​ ​hybrid​ ​leadership​ ​roles.​ ​Students​ ​will​ ​have​ ​a​ ​broad​ ​foundation​ ​in​ ​curiosity,​ ​play, critical​ ​thinking,​ ​and​ ​diverse​ ​perspectives.”

Twitter: @sarahyogidds

  58. Dr. Myrrha Satow

Founder/President Performance Academies

“The future of education rests on our commitment and belief that all children can learn and all children can achieve at high levels. In particular, raising awareness and demanding academic rigor for students with disabilities in traditional public and public charter schools alike is key to the future success of education. Well planned lessons with edtech used creatively and purposefully shows promise in increasing and supporting academic achievement for all kids, regardless of their current levels of achievement. It will be critical for students with disabilities to have access to these tools and to be provided consistent supports while using them.”

Twitter: @myrrhapandora

    59. Preston Green

Professor of Education and Law

University of Connecticut

“Supporters of charter schools and private-school choice programs will continue to defend these sectors vigorously against claims that they lead to increased racial segregation. By contrast, these advocates will remain relatively silent in the face of mounting evidence that they are insufficiently financially regulated.”

Twitter: @DrPrestonGreen

  60. Ross Morrison McGill

Most Followed Educator on Twitter in the U.K

“I would lead government policy, tackling the workload issue sooner rather than later, using a systematic and current classroom teacher’s perspective. This would revolutionize the way teaching is currently structured and transform the profession overnight. It may not happen in my career as a teacher, but I remain optimistic that one–day, teachers will be free to plan and mark during their normal timetabled day. Plus, redefine our school system as we know it, which is not sophisticated or well-advanced enough to support the most vulnerable students in our society if they continue to be measured by a linear model of examinations or shoe-horned into studying ‘certain’ subjects.”

Twitter: @TeacherToolkit

  61. Dr. Andre D. Spencer

Superintendent of Schools, Harrison School District 2

“As a superintendent, I wholeheartedly believe that the future of public education in America will continue to come under major scrutiny.  Some people in our country want a private-public school system, which has proven to be racially and socio-economically bias.  Public School Educators must continue to fight to ensure that all public schools are held to high expectations of accountability, while meeting the needs of diverse learners from multiple cultures in our communities.  This will represent a true human microcosm of America. What do you want from public education?”

Twitter: @hsd2Supt

    Conclusion

We would like to thank all our experts for contributing to this roundup. How is your school or organization working to prepare for the future? Let us know what’s worked and what hasn’t worked.

Click here to access all the parts of this roundup series.

      The post 106 Experts Share Their Thoughts on the Future of Education, Part 1: PreK-12 appeared first on The Edvocate.

106 Experts Share Their Thoughts on the Future of Education, Part 1: PreK-12 published first on http://ift.tt/2zIjNih

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Forever Homes: The 10 Best Places in America to Age in Place

AngelMcNallphotography/iStock

The math is inescapable: There are about 75 million baby boomers growing a little older every day. They’re the largest generation ever to retire, whenever they get around to it. And following right behind are 65 million Gen-Xers, the oldest of whom are already well into their 50s. (Yikes!) They’re all going to need places to live as they age. But where?

Their children may not have the space, because their grandkids refuse to move out. (Damn millennials!) Housing prices are continuing to rise in desirable areas, making it difficult to downsize on a fixed income. And sending the boomers out on ice floes might seem like an attractive solution—until little Humbert asks where grandpa is going. The ice caps are melting anyway, so room may be limited.

But boomers changed the world—and now they’re changing the concept of getting older, too. They’re popularizing the idea of “aging in place”: buying homes for the long haul, and modifying them as time goes on, so they can continue to live independently for as long as possible. So-called “universal designs” allow such flexibility, and owners are adding bathroom rails, hands-free faucets, and downstairs den-into-bedroom conversions when they need them. And everyone, it seems, is on the prowl for places to live that can fit the bill from middle age all the way to the bitter end. Or darn close to it.

That’s where realtor.com®’s data team comes in. We figured out the best metros for middle-agers who may just be starting to slow down—or, now that the kids are gone, just starting to rev up. “Our current generation of boomers don’t want to do those for-old people things,” says Jana Lynott, senior policy adviser on livable communities for AARP. “We encourage [people to consider] neighborhoods where you can walk to a variety of services you access on a daily basis, like banks, public transportation, shopping, restaurants.”

To determine the best places to age in place, we took the 300 largest metros and evaluated them for affordability and health services, and then made sure these were locations people would really want to spend their golden years. To ensure geographic diversity, we limited the list to one per state. Here are our final criteria:

Number of homes already adapted for seniors, looking at realtor.com listings with keywords like “universal design,” “ground-floor master suite,” “senior-friendly,” and “no-step entry”

Percentage of residents older than 65*

Low cost of living*

Number of home health aides per senior*

Number of hospitals per capita*

Number of senior centers per capita*

Number of singles 55 and up*

Number of sunny days*

Number of golf courses per capita*

One shocker: Florida did not come out on top. Miami—once known as “God’s Waiting Room,” for its preponderance of elderly residents—ranked only as the 113th best U.S. city to age in place. The very worst to age in place is Burlington, VT. But we didn’t make access to Ben & Jerry’s ice cream one of our criteria. Our bad.

Best metros to age in place

Want to know more? Put on the designer spectacles and keep reading.

1. Florence, SC

Median home list price: $165,200

Michael Miller, head of Florence’s Chamber of Commerce, concedes that this city was once known as the “Denture Capital of the World.” But don’t be put off: This has become a lively and diverse place. Since 2010, the city has been hard at work on redeveloping its downtown area, which now boasts an $18 million library and a new art, science, and history museum—just the thing for folks with increasing amounts of time on their hands. The area is also a regional medical hub, with one of the nation’s highest concentrations of hospitals and home health aides. And more than 22,000 of its housing units have been designed or modified to accommodate older residents. This may be why several of local realtor® Laraine Stevens‘ clients in their 50s have relocated to the area from the oh-so-much-more-expensive Northeast. More of her buyers are seeking single-story homes or residences with ground-floor master suites.

“The cost of living is very affordable, and our taxes are lower compared to bigger cities,” says Stevens, of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services. “You have a more temperate climate. You’re not fighting the snow and the blizzards.”

2. Macon, GA

Median home list price: $156,600

Charming Macon, GA

SeanPavonePhoto/iStock

Maybe it’s the Southern hospitality that lands Macon—and other metros below the Mason-Dixon Line—on our list. But the lower expenses and steamier weather probably play an even larger part. Macon is experiencing an economic upswing that has filled once-empty storefronts with restaurants, shops, and even a few upscale markets.

Proximity to Mercer University gives the region a nice cultural boost, and there’s even a thriving museum district that includes the new Tubman Museum, devoted to African-American history.

But most importantly for lonely divorcées and widowers, Macon is one of the best places in the United States for single seniors. Almost half of its residents older than 50 are unattached. Let the hijinks begin!

3. Lake Havasu City, AZ

Median home list price: $254,900

The famous London Bridge in Lake Havasu.

Jerry Moorman/iStock

The metro near the junction of the California, Nevada, and Arizona borders is a tourist-friendly spot known as the home of the original London Bridge—yep, the one in the song, moved from the United Kingdom to Lake Havasu in 1968. But the real attraction here is the 290 days of sun a year, making the place a magnet for spring breakers and older Americans alike. In fact, Lake Havasu City boasts one of the highest percentages of senior citizens in the nation.

“It’s an active community,” says local real estate broker Liz Miller of Keller Williams Arizona Living Realty. She’s seeing more and more California refugees move in due to the year-round recreational activities. “Anything you want to do with water, you can do it here. And right now is an exciting time here.”

4. Vero Beach, FL

Median home list price: $299,500

Aerial view of Vero Beach, FL

CG-Photos/iStock

Finally, Florida shows up on our list.

The Sunshine State has long been a destination for seasonal refugees who trade high taxes and snow (a four-letter word for many older Americans) for no income tax and plenty of rounds at the golf course (which frequently involve more four-letter words). And indeed, Vero Beach’s impressive number of golf courses is what earned it a spot here. The city, located about halfway down the state’s Atlantic coast, has at least 16 golf courses, or one for every 9,500 residents. Plus, about half of its residents are older than 50. Put it all together, and you’ve got one heck of a lot of seniors hitting the links. Better reserve those tee times early. Fore!

5. Texarkana, TX

Median home list price: $159,500

The affordably priced metro, which straddles the border of Texas and Arkansas, has one of the highest percentages of residences adapted for those seeking to age in place. But that doesn’t mean folks here are housebound. Far from it! The city is home to Spring Lake Park, which offers disc golfing, fishing, and a primo walking and biking trail. And the local schools, Texarkana College and Texas A&M-Texarkana, offer a slew of free lectures and programs.

Oh, and there’s a ton of interesting/weird stuff to check out here, too. The Draughon-Moore Ace of Clubs House is a popular museum featuring furnishings going back to the early 1700s. The State Line Post Office is the only federal building in the U.S. that sits between two states. And the Texarkana Municipal Auditorium, site of some of Elvis’ best-known early concerts, is still going strong. Keep it real, Texarkana!

6. Saginaw, MI

Median home list price: $114,400

Looking for a bargain? Move to Saginaw. Those on a fixed income love this area’s low, low home prices. The metro, which was heavily dependent upon the automobile industry, fell on hard times when the American manufacturing economy began its slow collapse in the early 1980s. But it’s been aggressively coming back in recent years.

It now has a thriving downtown arts scene that includes a Japanese cultural center, tea house, and garden. Those seeking a bit more of an escape can explore the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge and participate in the many 5,000-meter runs held there.

The area is also a regional center for health care, boasting one of the highest ratios of home health aides in the U.S.

7. Redding, CA

Median home list price: $317,500

Shasta Lake, a popular location for Redding, CA, residents

4kodiak/iStock

The largest metro in northern California is also the highest-priced on our list. But the cost may be worth it for the most adventurous of boomers. The area is known for its abundance of outdoor recreational opportunities. Whether it’s rafting down the Sacramento River, touring the 300-acre Turtle Bay Exploration Park, or admiring the Sundial Bridge, which stretches across the Sacramento River, Redding has remade itself, from a sleepy logging town to a genuine destination.

Did we mention nearly nine out of 10 days in the California city are sunny? That may be why the region has a reputation as a cyclist’s haven. The League of American Wheelmen began weekly rides in the city way back in 1896.

8. Dothan, AL

Median Home List Price: $156,400

The Dothan area has emerged as the “Peanut Capital of the World” and is the home of a peanut festival that draws 120,000 visitors annually. Good luck beating those bragging rights.

On a slightly more pertinent note, Dothan has also emerged as a regional hub for health care and a way station for snowbirds traveling between the upper Midwest and Florida. It ranks high for its senior-friendly housing stock: More than 5% of its homes, or roughly 20,000 housing units, have been modified or built with aging-in-place features. These include perks like ground-floor master suites, wide hallways and doorways, and wheelchair ramps.

9. Shreveport, LA

Median home list price: $186,700

Tulip lights at Riverfront Park in Shreveport, LA

Beka_C/iStock

You don’t have to be a riverboat gambler to enjoy the Shreveport area. But it might just help pass the time. There are no fewer than a half-dozen casinos in the area, as well as Louisiana Downs, one of only three horse-racing tracks in the state.

Although Shreveport’s biggest employer is Barksdale Air Force Base, the city on the banks of the Red River has emerged as a regional center for health care. Shreveport also boasts the sixth-highest percentage of single people older than 50, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Local Realtor Jessica McGee wanted to give those singles something to do. She helped start up a singles group for locals in their 40s, 50s, and 60s. The group does movie nights, Mardi Gras cruises, and wine tastings. And McGee plans to organize a trip to a local escape room, where participants must find clues to unlock the door to a room and “escape.”

“There are a lot of activities here,” she says. “And you can get way more for your money here than you can in most states.”

10. Hickory, NC

Median home list price: $217,500

This furniture manufacturing hub may not spring immediately to mind when folks are thinking about places to retire. But hey, why not?

The city is a three-time winner of the National Civic League’s “All-American City Award,” an honor bestowed on places that attempt to solve the most important issues in their communities. There’s plenty to do here, including the requisite golf outings, the cool and inviting bars and restaurants, the Zumba classes. But we’ll focus on the awesome Furniture Mart, a sprawling year-round showcase where local artisans show off their craft. And you can buy the stuff! Can 500,000 visitors a year be wrong?

* Data comes from the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, GolfNow Course Directory, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

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