#we can GUESS as much as Tim&Brian guessed that the medication makes a difference but we don't Know that it does shit

[brittlebutch]

the only thing i don't like about 'Alex should have asked for help' AUs/theories is that they all seem to have the base assumption that we actually Know Anything about The Operator, and the fact of the matter is that we simply Don't.

[eddycurrents]

For the past few years, you could argue that the X-Men franchise has been working on trying to rediscover its identity. Since reality reasserted itself coming out of the Secret Wars event, they’ve been in a kind of flux. The initial relaunch set up the mutants in opposition to the ascendant Inhumans. When that was brought to a head, Marvel’s merry mutants then redefined themselves in part through nostalgic “back to basics”. In the past year and a bit, the mutants through a series of endings in “Disassembled” and Uncanny X-Men, while the Age of X-Man event traumatized them in a loveless utopia. It’s been an interesting ride.

You don’t really need to know any of that, or anything at all of recent or past history of the X-Men, in order to jump into House of X #1. This hits the reset button on the franchise and, while I expect that the past will inform some elements, it can largely be enjoyed coming in blind.

This is arguably the largest, most dramatic change to the X-Men since Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, Tim Townsend, Brian Haberlin, and Comicraft took over back in New X-Men #114. Jonathan Hickman, Pepe Larraz, Marte Gracia, Clayton Cowles, and Tom Muller kick off a new era that is firmly built on a science fiction grounding. It frames the mutant identity in a new understanding and begins a new conflict with the rest of humanity as human governments and organizations react to the new status quo.

Without going into any details in this section, I can say that House of X #1 takes many of the common themes and elements of decades of X-Men stories and gives them a new spin, both familiar and strange at the same time. All of it is brought beautifully to life through astounding artwork from Larraz and Gracia, taking it to a completely different level. It’s brought together nicely through the design work of Muller, implementing a number of text pieces yielding further information, making it decidedly feel like a Hickman comic. 

The digital edition on Comixology is also another instance of having “Director’s Cut” material, including Hickman’s redacted script for the issue, a wide array of the variant covers, and process pages of line art and coloured pages.

It’s a bold new era starting point for the X-Men and I’m excited to see what else is in store.

There will be spoilers below this image. If you do not want to be spoiled on House of X #1, do not read further.

SPOILER WARNING: Below I’ll be discussing the events, themes, and possibility of what’s going on in House of X #1 and beyond. There are HEAVY SPOILERS beyond this point. If you haven’t read the issue yet and don’t want to be spoiled, please stop reading now. You’ve been warned.

PREAMBLE | First Impressions

I had high expectations for House of X #1. 

Jonathan Hickman is easily one of my favourite writers currently working in comics. He’s full of mad ideas that you look at and wonder why no one has implemented them in quite the same arrangement before. He’s great at execution and construction for the long game. While each story usually works on a micro individual story-arc/issue level, they also build a large tapestry that tells an even larger tale. One merely needs to look at his previous outing for Marvel telling one grand story that began in Dark Reign: Fantastic Four (with elements you could say were seeded even in Secret Warriors) and ended in Secret Wars. It was wonderful.

Pepe Larraz has been wowing me with his art since Uncanny Avengers. There’s a fluidity of motion and design that evokes the spirit of Alan Davis, Neal Adams, and Bryan Hitch, while adding what feels like an even more gargantuan attention to detail and sense of design. He elevated that even further with stellar showings on Avengers: No Surrender and Extermination. He’s easily become one of Marvel’s premiere artists to me.

When you combine Hickman and Larraz, and couple it with a marketing machine hyping this as the next big thing in the X-Men evolution, expectations were huge.

House of X #1 exceeded those expectations.

This first issue feels like a sea change for the X-Men, in terms of the team’s status quo and in the approach to storytelling. This is a science fiction story with heavy political leanings. With Xavier pushing the lead, Marvel’s mutants have staked a claim on a new mutant nation on Krakoa, with tendrils through Earth and beyond.

And it’s breathtaking. The artwork from Larraz and Marte Gracia is beautiful. The landscapes and vistas, the designs for the characters, the page layouts, and more, this is a visually stunning book. Larraz has truly outdone himself with the line art, but it’s taken even higher by the sheer beauty in Gracia’s colours. It’s very rich, emphasizing the beauty and wonder of this new world being birthed into existence.

There’s also an interesting choice here in Clayton Cowles’ letters, it’s mixed case. These days it’s not necessarily as unusual not to be in ALL CAPS, but it is different from what we’ve seen in Uncanny X-Men as of late and helps to foster that idea of this being something different. Similarly the text pages scattered throughout from Hickman and Muller that give this the stylistic feel of a Hickman comic and enriches the depth of this new world with more information.

ONE | X Nation

The idea of a mutant nation isn’t a new one. Magneto broached it before and attempted a kind of compound with Asteroid M. Genosha was set up as a mutant paradise for a while. The fallen remnants of Asteroid M served as the X-Men’s home repurposed as Utopia. A corner of Limbo was briefly carved out as a haven for mutants. There was that enclave with Xorn. And Jean Grey kind of set up mutantkind as an amorphous nation within nations given central home in Atlantis during X-Men Red.

More often than not the nation merely serves as a backdrop for the X-Men’s interactions in the rest of the world. I mean, when mutants had their own homeland in Utopia, more stories took place in San Francisco even before the schism that drove half of them off to the Jean Grey School of Higher Learning in New York.

What’s presented in House of X #1 feels different.

Ostensibly, the new mutant nation is headquartered on Krakoa itself, but the implication is that it’s so much broader. The X-Men have seeded Krakoa flowers all over the Earth, on the Moon, and Mars and have grown what feel like embassies and external outposts of the fledgling mutant nation. And it’s the fact that these outposts are within other nations, with the potential of moving a superpowered army unseen and seemingly instantaneously, that has the government representatives met this issue nervous.

While it is a home and a haven for mutantkind, it’s also actively being treated as a political entity. Similar to how Jean argued her case for mutantkind in X-Men: Red, we’ve got ambassadors of sorts checking in with Magneto and two of the Stepford Cuckoos. There are some intrigue elements that sync up with other aspects of the story, but the fact that it’s being used as a tour, a show of force, and an ultimate in order to broker a deal recognizing Krakoa as a nation is an interesting development. It takes it from a place of superheroes playacting at being politicians to actually being politicians. Abrupt as it may be to have Magneto as the face of the operation.

But that’s part of the genius of this play. Like with Magneto siding with Scott upon the founding of Utopia, Xavier and Krakoa is a further fulfillment of Magneto’s dream. A mutant homeland with mutants in control. Every previous time this has happened it’s come to ruin, but it’s always fun while it lasts. 

Also, it’s an impressive show of power to have Magneto as the liaison to the rest of humanity. Where Kitty Pryde or Jean Grey would likely be more diplomatic, that isn’t the intent here. Sending out not only one of the most powerful mutants as your face, but also someone who has been in direct conflict with humanity over the years, pushing a mutant independence angle, is a statement that the new mutant nation isn’t something to be trifled with.

TWO | Who are these X-Men?

With the release of titles, creative teams, and team line-ups for the forthcoming “Dawn of X” reboot following House of X and Powers of X, there have been a lot of questions about what’s going on. Characters who have died during recent issues of Uncanny X-Men are alive and well. Characters who were in different configurations and statuses seem to have been changed to more familiar versions and attitudes. So it raises the question for House of X, who are these X-Men?

This first issue doesn’t answer that. I don’t know if we’re going to get an explicit answer that, but I think we’re given a clue on the very first page.

A key element in this first issue is the utilization of the mutant island Krakoa, both as a new home for the X-Men and as refined and adapted through application as portals, habitats, and medications. But in the opening scene, we see a central tree essentially acting as a birthing matrix overseen by Xavier.

The first born being Jean and Scott, I’d guess, then maybe that’s Bobby on the second page with some others. It’s possible that the one guy is even Gabriel Summers. It could be that they’re being rejuvenated, refreshed, and refined through healing properties heretofore unrevealed of Krakoa, but it may be more sinister. There’s a reaching, a yearning towards Xavier that makes me suspect. Are they the characters that we know? Or are they something else? I don’t even know if that’s a question we’re supposed to be asking.

Other than Magneto working front and centre with the team, they’re also working with a number of other traditional villains/antagonists like Sabretooth, Mystique, and Toad. All three have had their dalliances back and forth between the sides of good and evil, but it’s interesting to see them in the fold here. One the one hand, it reinforces the idea that this initiative of Xavier’s is for all mutants and that they’ve come together. But it also raises the question further, how?

I think it’s worth noting that every X-Men character we see fully interacting in the real world has been a villain at one point. Cyclops included, since the last time the world at large saw him before his resurrection he was “Mutant Terrorist Most Wanted #1″.

With characters seemingly back from the dead, characters changed to different versions, characters rejuvenated and healed as it appears that both Cyclops and Banshee are, characters who’ve previously been at one another’s throats, there’s a lingering doubt of how Xavier achieved this. There’s also a happy Wolverine playing with kids, so just think on that for a bit.

THREE | Master of Puppets

Professor Charles Xavier died (again, but who’s keeping track?) during Avengers vs. X-Men back in 2012. Then was brought back in Astonishing X-Men, first as a disembodied psyche caught in the Shadow King’s web and then through the personality sacrifice of Fantomex, inhabiting his body. He referred to himself as “X”, as something new, despite repeatedly claiming that he is the one, true Charles Xavier. His actions, both in his initial appearances and in the subsequent Astonishing X-Men Annual wherein he reunited with the remaining original five X-Men (Cyclops was dead at this point), could be considered manipulative, possibly even evil, callous, and villainous. We’ve not seen him again until now.

With the uncertainty of the origins of the wide cast of characters on the team, whether or not they really are our X-Men we know and love, doubt is cast on Charles Xavier as well. And it’s not just because we only see part of his face. Larraz’s design for Xavier’s new large, portable Cerebro deliberately distances us from him. It’s alien and off-putting, and I believe that’s the idea. I’m unsure whether or not this was the intention, but it also evokes the memory of another villain that Hickman enjoyed using, The Maker. The visual similarities and implication of another hero turned villain can’t be missed.

Consistent with that idea is the portrayal of Jean here. From a real life perspective, there’s an argument that all of the X-Men in House of X and beyond are taking on the costumes and behaviours of their most popular incarnations. In that regard, it would kind of make more sense that Jean would be in a more Phoenix-inspired get up or something similar to her blue and yellow outfit from the ‘90s.

Instead, we get Marvel Girl. Which seems odd to me. It’s not only regressive, but it represents a time period that in-canon Jean supposedly hates. It was, however, a time where Xavier’s somewhat lustful intentions towards his student were more apparent (creepy and disturbing as they are). It further reinforces that maybe not everything is on the level with what’s going on.

FOUR | A New Religion

Religious symbolism and outright textual substance are rife throughout this issue. From the beginning of Xavier acting as a kind of god to the newly reborn mutants beneath a Tree of Life through to Magneto’s proclamation at the end of the story, this first issue is planting the seeds of a new mythology for mutantkind. It’s something that sets them apart from the rest of the superheroes on Earth, giving them an explicit framing as the overseers of the world, but with it, there’s a tie back to how this new nation feels different.

There’s a definitive feeling from House of X #1 of building an entire society. Religion as an aspect of that, both real and implied, but we also get a new language of Krakoan (the glyphs we’ve seen before and again in this issue) and the idea of a broader organizational structure to Krakoa. It’s not just a school any more.

FIVE | Dangerous Beauty

There’s an interesting dichotomy set up in this first issue as well between the mutants and humanity. Of nature versus technology. It’s one we’ve seen before in mutants being the natural evolution of mankind coming into conflict with the sentinels constructed in order to prolong mankind’s grip on power. It tends to lead to the kind of nightmare scenarios of post-apocalyptic futures as we see in Days of Future Past.

Krakoa is an inspired choice for the catalyst of mutant change in the world, delving into some of what was explored in Wolverine and the X-Men, but going steps even further. Creating pharmaceuticals, creating properties similar to Man-Thing’s ability to transport throughout the world, and the various habitats. It’s like the Weapon Plus application of The World in that everything is grown, organic, nature-based objects all ostensibly pieces of the greater Krakoa entity. I wonder if this gives Xavier and the X-Men effective “eyes” all over the world?

It’s also important to recall how dangerous Krakoa has been throughout X-Men history, acting as an antagonist that kickstarted the all-new, all-different era in Giant Size X-Men #1, built out even in Deadly Genesis with the lost team, and the problems had at the Jean Grey School with the baby Krakoa.

And then there’s the flip side.

Orchis is a new organization introduced here comprised of a number of former agents of Marvel’s intelligence community, good and bad, ranging from SHIELD to AIM. And we’re brought aboard the Forge. There’s a fearful symmetry to it, a station close to the Sun building machines to counteract whatever it is that Xavier is ultimately doing. At the Forge’s heart what appears to be a new kind of Master Mold sentinel, decked out in some of the same colour schemes that we recently saw with the golden sentinels of ONE in Uncanny X-Men.

I can only imagine that this is going to wind up well.

We’re shown a face that we’ve not seen for a while (outside of solicitation covers), since I thought she was an “ordinary” human again, in Karima Shapandar. It’s kind of sad, though, as her Omega Sentinel protocols seem to have been reactivated.

SIX | We Can Be Heroes

The presence of the X-Men within the broader Marvel Universe framework can be problematic at times. It’s one of the reasons why they’ve often been shuffled off to parts unknown, set up as a rag tag band of fugitives, and limited in number to the point where they’re culturally, socially, and politically insignificant. Because the heart of mutant existence within the Marvel Universe is one of intolerance.

Mutants are feared and hated, hunted down, enslaved, or executed. While it works extremely well as an analogy for real life racial and sexual bigotry and prejudices, it takes on a different level of problem in the face of a world filled with superheroes. For superpowered people who aren’t mutants, you wonder about a couple of things, such as why the general populace even makes a difference and why non-mutant heroes don’t seem to care about mutant prejudice.

That latter one has been approached a few times previously, as recently as this latest volume of Uncanny X-Men, and it always seems strange. It’s like the question that you see raised in Swamp Thing and Marvelman and later The Authority of the realistic application of near limitless god-like powers as a force for change; if you’ve got these powers, why don’t you do something to change the world’s ills?

It really undercuts the heroism of teams like the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, because it eliminates them as defenders of a universal justice, but merely teams that fight for the status quo. And so eventually the X-Men get shuffled off to Chandilar.

I think it’s great that House of X #1 goes straight for that jugular. Cyclops’ confrontation with the Fantastic Four beautifully displays his integration and friendliness towards the other heroes, that he’s happy for Ben’s wedding, but still at odds with them when it comes to overall mutant rights. Including those of Sabretooth, who admittedly just robbed a place and probably killed a few dozen people. So, it’s not like the Fantastic Four are in the wrong in trying to apprehend Sabretooth, but it’s reinforcing bits of the laws of the state versus possible ethical or moral concerns.

This scene also reminds us that mutants are everywhere. They can be anyone within society, anyone’s husband, wife, mother, father, friend, daughter, family, neighbour...anyone’s son, including Franklin Richards, son to Reed and Sue. It helps underline that compassion, understanding, and fighting for what’s morally right is something that really should be at the forefront here. And that Cyclops and the rest of Xavier’s new nation of Krakoa are making it known that they’re not going to accept the intolerance any more.

It’s also interesting the incorporation of the broader Marvel Universe as a catalyst for this confrontation in that Sabretooth, Mystique, and Toad were stealing information from Damage Control. It’s a neat bit of the shared universe and presents something potentially nefarious about Damage Control appropriating broken Stark and Richards tech. Though, we are left wondering, what did they steal?

SEVEN | Nothing As It Seems

One of the central themes we’re presented with in the ambassadors’ tour through Krakoa as led by Magneto is that nothing is quite as it seems. It’s even mentioned explicitly through the dialogue when the ambassadors are discussing the deal as lain out by Xavier. Worrying about the drugs, but even more about the amnesty. The terms of the amnesty aren’t actually stated here, but the gist seems to be that all mutants, criminal or otherwise, need to be set free (and presumably allowed passage to one of the gateways to Krakoa), if the country is to take part in the life-saving drug aspect.

Now, there’s an in-story payoff to the ambassadors statement, in that they’re all plants of one form or another, working for different organizations in order to gain information or surveillance on one thing or another and in Magneto’s ulterior motive for gathering them, but it feeds back into that tingling suspicion from the first page.

Something feels off. Something feels wrong. But that could well be the point. The seeds of doubt may well be planted intentionally for Xavier’s plan and the appearances of the characters. It could well be that we’re supposed to think that something hinky is going on, just to keep us in suspense. And that everything we’re seeing, everything we’re being told, really is the truth.

CONCLUSION | A More Perfect Union

As I said previously, House of X #1 exceeded my expectations.

Hickman, Larraz, Gracia, Cowles, and Muller came together to produce what is one of the most exciting and intriguing first issues that I’ve read in a very long time. Every single element from dialogue to line art, colour to letters, to cover to design gels into one massive stroke of storytelling. Every single thing within the comic adds another layer to immerse yourself into this brave new world of mutant merriment.

This is an incredible start to this new era and I am very excited to see what comes next week in Powers of X #1. Especially in how it relates back to House of X #1. These issues are apparently meant to be paired, but how exactly remains to be seen. I find that interesting, since PoX is apparently set in a different time frame.

d. emerson eddy is not an island.

[ask-marble-pasta-boys]

Becoming a Proxy

(Edited: 2/14/2018 By @ vendettaagainsttheworld)

Brian woke up, head spinning- what… what happened? All he could remember was… something about a tall faceless man and… him falling? Tim! Tim swung at him when he was trying to get out a window and-… he… he died.

“Guess you are awake,” A soft voice said. He looked over to see a little girl covered in blood. He jumped back a bit at that. She blinked once at him. He blinked twice back at her under his hood. She smiled.

“Hiya Mister Hoodie-man!” She said with an innocent smile, blood dripped down her face.

“H-” His voice crackled a bit, when did he last use it? “H-hello… can you tell me where I am?”

“At Jackie’s! He is the very best doctor ever! and he had to make all your booboos go away.” She said bouncing, using her whole body to explain what happened.

(LONG ASS POST MORE UNDER CUT)

“I…see…” Before he could get much more out the little girl started talking a mile a minute.

“Uh huh!! Jackie said that your lung was hurt and that your head was hurt and your leg and arm too! But luckily you've been asleep for a looooong time! So you are all better now! He said- said cause of you Mr. Slendyman got over his sickness! But to do that he had to make you one of his! A proxy!-”

His mind filled with a buzz… proxy… proxy…proxyproxyproxy- he had a purpose. Might not be a good one but he had one.

“Say, sweetheart,” He said softly getting the girls attention.

“Yeah Mister hoodie-man?”

“Can you take me to…this "Mr. Slendyman”?“ She grabbed onto one of his gloved hands and started to pull.

"Come on! Let’s go silly!” She practically skipped by his side. Looking around, he noted that they were in a run-down old house, medical equipment all over the place. Blood in spots too, but that could have come from this girl. He watched her for a second, there… there was something about her… she died too, didn’t she?  She took him out of the house and into the surrounding forest. He tensed and waited to see that… THING. But it never came.

“Mr. Slendyman!” She called out letting go of his hand and running ahead. It started slowly at first but he felt it… a kind of buzz in the back of his head, a calming sense… it felt oddly like a warm cup of coffee on a rainy day. Sitting with friends laughing about nothing, your first pet you promise to always protect. It felt like all that, yet none of it at the same time. It felt like being needed.

A being came out of the trees then. A being that looked just like the Operator. Brian took a step back and gasped. The being looked at him, then the little girl.

“Sally,” It’s voice ran through the air, bouncing around like the vibrations of a heavy base. This… this was not the Operator… but he was Brian’s master. The little girl ran over to him.

He bowed his head. “Sir.”

The being tilted his head. “Yes human?”

“Uh… you… you are my master?” He said suddenly confused. The being’s energy switched from calm to confused. “You uh… You made me a proxy?” He said questionably, tilting his head.

“I didn’t make any proxies.” He stated. The little girl grabbed his hand and nodded a few times.

“Did too! And Jackie was there too after, to help fix Mr. Hoodie-man all up.” She said matter of factly.

“I…see.” He said. And that was that.

----

Brian’s heart broke, his friend was in so much pain. That was something anyone can tell. The process of “Masky” and Tim becoming one was hard to watch but it had to happen.

His master stood over Tim’s screaming body, mind trying not to break but become one. He could hear the static all around but it was almost done- Tim was so close to being a Proxy. Brian didn’t have to be alone anymore.

“J҉ ҉a҉ ҉c҉ ҉k҉ ҉" A dark voice said. It was his master’s dark side. This is what they feared, it would take over but it had to happen. Eyeless Jack made his way to the other, holding an old book open. The Operator stopped, seeing what was inside the book. The air buzzed violently then went quiet. Seemed like Slenderman took over again, good.

“Jack, the page.” Jack flipped the book to a different page, Slender saw what was written, nodded once and blipped away with Tim.

“Where did they go?” Brian asked walking into the circle. It was safe now, most of the ritual was over. Jack shook his head.

“Can’t say.” Brian nodded and put his hands in his sweater pockets. They then made their way back to Jack’s workshop.

“You going to move soon? You’ve been at this hut for 4 weeks now. Better then the place I woke up in but still not the cleanest.” Brian said casually. Jack shrugged but didn’t say much more.  

Tim came stumbling out of the hut as they made it to the front, not caring Eyeless walked by him and into the hut.

“Oh! Look at that- you are back already. How you feeling buddy?” Brian said with a smile.

“I…I’ve lost it. I’ve fucking lost it!” Tim laughed a dark laugh, head being thrown back, he clawed at his face, eyes moving all over. Brian’s heart broke for the man.

“Proxy.” Was all he said. That snapped Tim’s attention back to him, eyes becoming clearer.

“You’re a proxy, man. Me and you, brothers till the end.” Brian held out a hand, he was roughly grabbed and pulled into a tight hug.

“This better not be a fucking dream, Brian. I- I- I can’t go-go on if it-it is.” He started to sob. They talked, swore at each other and let everything go. Brian explained as much as he could, Tim showed him the last few entries of “Marble Hornets." It was over… all of it was…

“We should go meet him.” Brian said looking up at the sky, hood blocking some of the light.

“Our… master?” Tim spat, hands clasped around a smoke.

“Yeah. Don’t worry, he’s not as scary as… HIM.” Tim puffed some more before nodding.

They walked in silence through the forest. Brian came to a stop as that feeling washed over him. There he was, gliding over, Sally hot on his heels.

“Hello my child.” Slender said, a tendril making its way closer to Brian but stopped. “And… Human.”

“I’m your proxy.” Tim stated head held high, ready for a fight.

“Another one. Lovely.” And that was that.

(IDEA CAME FROM @vendettaagainsttheworld Honesty check out their things! They came up with the headcanon that Slenderman never remembers making a proxy but after some time just goes along with it. This one is unedited so if you see any issues please tell me and I’ll fix them!) 

[zipgrowth]

29 Sessions to Watch During This Year's SXSW EDU

Every year in March the edtech world descends on Austin for SXSW EDU, a conference that’s become as much about classroom practice and implementation as entrepreneurship and tech innovation.

With less than a week until the storytelling-themed keynote kicks things off, we combed through the sessions, workshops and talks that will be filling our heads, and our Twitter feeds, in the days to come.

At times, it’s hard to guess who the organizers are trying to court, with sessions on fidget spinners and yoga wedged between buzzword-heavy talks on “behavioral economics” and smart cars. It’s a real mixed bag, but this year the conference is putting a big emphasis on equity and diversity as well as employability, the implications of artificial intelligence and international education, separating sessions into 25 distinct tracks.

SXSW EDU sessions are separated into 25 different tracks.

Check out our can’t-miss picks below and visit the SXSW EDU website for more on the film screenings, panels, meetups and more to help fill out your schedule.

MONDAY, MARCH 5

K-12

9:30 a.m. Stories of Schooling & Getting Schooled (Keynote): In concert with live radio and podcast platform The Moth, three teachers talk about their lives both inside and out of the classroom. Moth vets Chris De La Cruz, Crystal Duckert and Tim Manly will speak on social justice, hip-hop in learning, teachers’ feelings and more.

12:00 p.m. Can Evidence Even Keep Up with Edtech? Speakers from Newsela, New Market Venture Partners and Academic Business Advisors open up about how the lightning-fast pace of edtech development requires companies to produce evidence for schools in a shortened time frame.

1:00 p.m. The Future of Learning: Convergence of VR, AR, & AI: Treating future technologies as complementary, rather than separate, tools is the best path toward immersive learning. That’s what Maya Georgieva, director of digital learning at The New School, will argue as she explores what’s in store for education's relationship with the most buzzed-about tech.

2:00 p.m. How Educators Lead With Equity in Mind: New York City teacher, activist and founder of EduColor examines how school leaders can support equity and accessibility for all learners.

4:00 p.m. “Look at Me!” Artistically Addressing Behaviors: A trio of speakers, including James Miles from the Seattle nonprofit Art Corps, explore how environment influences student behavior, and how arts programs can inspire and change the trajectory for troubled students.

5:00 p.m. Diversity in Edtech: It’s Not a Pipeline Problem: Enough talk about the “pipeline” as the reason behind why women and people of color are underrepresented in the edtech industry. Speakers from NewSchools Venture Fund, FlyTechnista, Flocabulary and New York on Tech will explore how companies and organizations can hire and support diverse candidates.

Higher Ed

11:00 a.m. The Evolution of MOOCs: Six Years Later: Are MOOCs still around? (Yes.) Dhawal Shah, CEO and founder of Class Central, has spent the last six years tracking them. Here’s his look at the five major trends impacting these companies—and why countries are launching their own platforms.

2:00 p.m. The Invisible 34%: First-Gen College Students: How can policymakers better support first-gen college students and give them opportunities to thrive? Hear how leaders from Students for Education Reform and Michelle Obama’s Better Make Room campaign are giving voice to these oft-ignored learners.

3:30 p.m. (Un)Affordability in Higher Education: This is not a newsflash: college is expensive. But are alternative financing models helping make tuition less of an obstacle for aspiring students? A pair of entrepreneurs from a scholarship startup and an income-share agreement company join Lumina Foundation and Money Magazine to explore.

EdSurge

4:00 p.m. A Flipped Future? Lightning Talks on Teaching: EdSurge senior writer Jeff Young will facilitate a series of lightning talks on how college teaching is being transformed by trends in big data, flipped classrooms and learning sciences. Speakers include Emory Craig (College of New Rochelle), Rachel Davenport (Texas State University) and Brian Fleming (Southern New Hampshire University).

TUESDAY, MARCH 6:

K-12

11:00 a.m. Grow Your Own Teachers: When in Austin...do as the Austinites. Local educators and community activists will take to the SXSWedu stage to talk about the city’s various programs designed to support and nurture teachers—both for today and the future.

2:00 p.m. Choosing Love After Sandy Hook with SEL: The mother of a Sandy Hook victim shares a social-emotional learning program that aims to help preK-12 students develop courage, gratitude, forgiveness and compassion.

3:30 p.m. Examining Our Faith in Educational Technology: For those looking to do some soul searching about which and whether technology has a role in education, hear from Richard Culatta (CEO of ISTE and former federal edtech director), MaryEllen Elia (a commissioner at the NY state education department) and Hugh Norwood, who runs a company that helps scale edtech projects in underserved K-12 schools.

Higher Ed

9:30 a.m. WE over Me: From College to Movement (Keynote): Michael Sorrell, President of Paul Quinn College, shares what he’s learned from turning around what was once a failing HBCU—and his vision for creating a network of “Urban Work Colleges.”

3:30 p.m. Break the Mold: New Models Connecting EDU & Work: In an hourlong session (sponsored by Wells Fargo), three higher ed leaders and a handful of students will discuss the post-MOOC landscape upending existing learning models and helping graduates navigate a the post-college career world.

4:30 p.m. The Tough Love Advice Edtech Needs to Hear: Higher ed’s risk-averse culture can stifle efforts to experiment and innovate. But Bridget Burns, executive director of The University Innovation Alliance, believes the edtech industry can also be more supportive as well. Hear how companies can be smarter about engaging with school leaders.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7

K-12

11:00 a.m. Combat Bias, Interrupt Privilege, Include All: Inclusive classrooms do not happen by themselves but rather require educators to confront personal identity and bias and their impact in the classroom. This session will mix personal reflection, dialog and group discussion to help schools build more inclusive environments for students.

12:30 p.m. Media Literacy in the Era of Fake News: Helping students make sense of media may be more important now than ever. Here, two media instructors inform the debate to help educators tackle topics such as partisan sources, personal bias and the tools that will help set students up for success.

2:00 p.m. The Best Internet Filter Is Between a Child’s Ears: With so much of today’s students’ identities tied to their digital lives, educators and other adults must consider how kids learn, play and interact online outside the classroom—and how these observations can inform digital citizenship efforts that help keep students safe.

5:00 p.m. Computation & Kids: High School Digital Humanities: Computational thinking seems like the new must-have 21st century skill. Now, coding, data analytics and analysis are taking humanities subjects like history and literature in a whole new direction.

Higher Ed

11:00 a.m. NudgeU: Learning from Behavioral Economics: Can behavioral economics reveal simple steps that colleges can take to close the achievement gap? A college administrator joins experts from a think tank, a company and the radio show Marketplace to see whether the solutions to student success are as complex as the obstacles.

3:30 p.m. Strategies to Help Lower-Income Kids Go to College: In an era when a college degree is still the best path to higher earnings, many students are still being left behind. Two higher-ed leaders share how institutions can flip the script and begin enrolling and graduating more lower-income students.

EdSurge

11:00 a.m. AI: Learning Game-Changer or Something to Fear? Elon Musk says he fears artificial intelligence. But McGraw-Hill Education and Arizona State University beg to differ. Speakers from both groups will join EdSurge assistant editor, Sydney Johnson, for a conversation around what colleges must learn as artificial intelligence becomes a reality.

3:30 p.m. LOOP: A Networking Experiment Meet Up: Instructional designers and digital learning leaders in higher education are welcome to join for a networking experiment where we’ll pair participants based on their projects or research. Our goal: generate those “Aha!” moments as you share resources, challenges and perspectives on common problems.

THURSDAY, MARCH 8

K-12

9:30 a.m. The Breakthrough of Drone Education: Drones in the classroom are taking off. With an emphasis on coding, making, and problem-solving, drone education is expanding into more disciplines and subject areas than ever before.

11:00 a.m. Pandora's Headset: The Ethics of VR in Education: From virtual bullying to excessive data collection, virtual reality’s dark side may be larger than supposed. Tech/gaming expert and author Matt Sparks dives deep into the ethical considerations and what educators should know.

Higher Ed

9:30 a.m. The Adult Student Meets the Network Effect: More than 80 million U.S. adults graduated high school but never got a college degree. Goldie Blumenstyk, a journalist from The Chronicle of Higher Education, joins Hadass Sheffer from The Graduate! Network to explore why it can be a challenge for adult students who want to go back to school.

10:00 a.m. College Prepping for the Workplace: The New Deal: What’s in a degree? Or GPA, grades and test scores for that matter? This workshop will explore other measures and a framework that better align with the skills that students have—and what employers really want.

12:30 p.m. Closing Keynotes: Alaa Murabit, a medical professional and United Nations commissioner, will kick off a trio of 30-minute keynotes with a look at education, conflict and emerging global issues. That’s followed up by CZI’s education chief, Jim Shelton, who proposes broadening how we define “success” in the classroom. Finally, teacher-journalist Jessica Lahey will share keys to boosting kids’ motivation and outcomes.

29 Sessions to Watch During This Year's SXSW EDU published first on https://medium.com/@GetNewDLBusiness