Many people believe that the education system needs some changing if it’s going to produce the leaders of tomorrow. While there are failings in today’s system, to be sure, there are many people out there already working to change, adapt and reform educational programs. Here are some lectures to help you learn about what may be in store for the students of the future and the ways in which education may be changing for the better, utilizing new technology and working with the way we learn.

General

These lectures touch on a number of topics from teaching teachers to promoting educational innovation.

1. Lost in Learning: Watch this lecture to gain an idea of how to inspire a new renaissance by looking at photos and information from the last one. [Forum Network]
2. Rural Education: Regional Challenges, Promising Solutions: This multi-speaker lecture addresses some of the biggest issues and best solutions for improving the quality of rural education. [Forum Network]
3. Blue Guitars: Arts and Aesthetics in Learning: Maxine Greene, professor emerita of philosophy and education, gives this lecture on the power of the arts to inspire students to learn. [Forum Network]
4. Michelle Obama’s plea for education: Here, Michelle Obama asks students to take their education seriously and put time and effort into their studies. [TED]
5. Patrick Awuah on educating leaders: Take a look at this lecture to get a perspective on why a liberal arts education is essential for producing the leaders of tomorrow. [TED]
6. How Kids Teach Themselves: Sugata Mitra talks about how kids taught each other in his after school program and proposes that kids have a lot to offer other kids in learning. [TED]
7. Reinventing Public Education: This lecture addresses some of the big changes that need to be made in public education and the easiest and most practical means of doing so. [Forum Network]
8. Educating Educators: Learning begins with teachers, and this lecture addresses the necessity of providing teachers with the tools and support they need to work effectively. [Forum Network]
9. Focus on Educational Innovation: Hear from these MIT panelists on how they plan on expanding the boundaries of K-12 education with new technologies and ideas. [MIT]
10. George Lucas: Sharing His Hope for Education at Dreamforce: Director and cultural icon George Lucas shares his desire for continued innovation and investment in education by businesses. [Edutopia]

Promising Programs

Take a look at these lectures to learn about some educational programs that are already making a change in the classroom and beyond.

11. Dave Eggers’ wish: Once Upon a School: Dave Eggers 826 Valencia tutoring program has been a great success, and in this lecture he expresses his hope for expanding it and inspiring similar programs across the United States. [TED]
12. Learning with Excitement: Afterschool Programs: This lecture will explain how after school programs can and are making a big difference in the academic success of many students. [Forum Network]
13. Gever Tulley Teaches life lessons through tinkering: Learn how a little tinkering, some support and the freedom to run with their imaginative ideas leads kids to new discoveries and educational experiences in this lecture. [TED]
14. Music and Dance Drive Academic Achievement: Here you can learn why infusing the arts into every curriculum can help students develop a passion for learning. [Edutopia]
15. Yoga Across the Curriculum: Yoga has the ability to do more than just make practitioners more flexible as you’ll learn from watching this lecture from a teacher who used it in her classroom. [Teachers.tv]

New Approaches to Education

These lecturers believe a change is needed, and propose new ideas, programs and setups for schools and subjects.

16. Longer Days in Better Schools: This lecture proposes extending the school day to promote well-rounded education, keep kids safe while parents are at work, and attend to health and social-emotional needs of students. [Forum Networks]
17. Whole Child, Whole Day: Here you can learn about the importance of supporting student’s mental and emotional health. [Forum Networks]
18. Disruptive Innovation and the Way We Learn: Learn just what disruptive innovation means and the way it can be applied to the field of education to make changes for the better. [Forum Networks]
19. Passionate Teacher, Passionate Learner: Getting students excited about learning starts with creating teachers who are passionate about their subject matter, as this lecture explores. [Forum Networks]
20. In Schools We Trust: Creating Communities of Learning: With standardized testing being the litmus test for a good or bad school these days, this lecture explores how to put faith back in the schools and stop looking at tests as the ultimate sign of success. [Forum Networks]
21. Arthur Benjamin’s formula for changing math education: Many students think learning math will never help them in everyday life, and this lecture explains how teachers can help make math education relevant to these students. [TED]
22. Teaching Arts and Sciences Together: The arts and sciences have traditionally been separated, but this lecturer encourages teachers to combine them to produce innovative and intuitive thinkers. [TED]
23. Around-the-Clock Learning: John Spry Community School: Learn why extending hours and offering a wide range of after school programs has helped this Chicago area school. [Edutopia]

Making Changes and Moving Forward

These lectures focus on some of the problems with education, today and in the past, and how schools are moving forward from these missteps.

24. Brown v. Board: Looking Back, Looking Forward: This lecture series celebrates the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of schools and touches on areas where race is still proving to be an obstacle to education in present-day schools. [Harvard]
25. Transforming Cape Town: The Role of Education Activists: Learn what it took to transform the educational system from one of apartheid and what changes are still being made. [Forum Network]
26. Language Police: Restricting What We Learn: This lecture will expose how the censorship of textbook publishers may be limiting what kids are learning in schools, and discover what changes must be made to fight it. [Forum Network]
27. Schools Kill Creativity: Listen to this lecture to learn how schools need to create an educational system that nurtures creativity rather than stifles it. [TED]
28. Yes We Can: Closing the Achievement Gaps: In many places, there is still a gap in educational quality and performance based on race, so learn about the steps needed to close these gaps. [Forum Network]
29. Liberal and Conservative Theories on Urban School Change: Hear from both sides of the political fence on how urban education needs to be changed and adapted. [Forum Network]
30. Many Children Left Behind: The No Child Left Behind program was intended to help students, but as this lecture discusses, it may do more harm than good. [Forum Network]

Higher Education

Those with an interest in college-level education can watch these valuable lectures on the future of higher ed.

31. The Process of Curricular Review: Learn how even well-regarded universities like Harvard have to review their curricula and make big changes to keep up with the times. [Harvard]
32. The College Experience: A Blueprint for Success: Take a listen to this multi-part lecture to gain a better understanding of what needs to happen to ensure students get the most out of their college education. [Harvard]
33. Mirages of Equality: Progress of Women in Science at MIT, 1971-2009: Women haven’t always had an easy time working in the scientific fields, and this lecture explores how today many face obstacles, even at institutions like MIT. [Princeton]
34. Does College Really Matter? The History of Undergraduate Education, Why It’s in Trouble, and What to Do About It: This lecture is Part 1 of 3 in a series that explores some of the shortcomings of the current higher education system and the ways things need to change in the future. [Princeton]
35. Liz Coleman’s call to reinvent liberal arts education: Here you’ll learn why instead of specialization, cross-disciplinary education may be the best move for liberal arts education programs. [TED]

Technology

Few things will shape the future of education like technology. These lectures acknowledge that and propose new ways to use technology, teach, learn and get kids excited about school.

36. Human Systems Explorer: The development of this groundbreaking tool allows students in medicine to better study pathophysiology. Learn more about it, and the opportunities it may afford other learning programs, from this lecture. [Harvard]
37. The Race between Education and Technology: As technology has advanced, the need for more educated workers has grown, but now more people have higher educations than are needed in the workforce. Learn about the implications this has had and what it means for the future from this lecture. [Forum Network]
38. Technology as a Force for Education Reform: Milton Chen, executive director of the George Lucas Educational Foundation, discusses how technology is affording change in many K-12 classrooms. [Forum Network]
39. One Laptop per Child: Check out this lecture to learn how $100 laptops are changing the education of students in some of the poorest places around the world. [TED]
40. Ray Kurzweil: A university for the coming singularity: Singularity University, designed to study oncoming tech and guide it to benefit humanity, is the solution this lecturer has to adapt to the ever growing technology market. [TED]
41. Blogging in the Classroom: This lecture will teach you how blogging just might have an essential place in the classroom. [YouTube]
42. Using GPS and Geocaching in Education: If you want to know how these new technologies and hobbies can be used in education, check out this lecture. [VodPod]
43. The Virtual Classroom: Online Learning: Here you can learn what opportunities online educational programs can offer students. [Edutopia]
44. The Power of the Network to Change the Way We Work, Live, Play, and Learn: Listen to lecturer John Chambers describe how the omnipresence of the Internet and other networks play in changing teaching, learning and working.[MIT]
45. New Media and Learning Innovations: Gain a better understanding of how new media–like the web, computers, television and more–is changing how learning is done. [videolectures.com]
46. Educational Uses of Technology: Technology isn’t just for fun or work. This lecture explains some of the ways it’s being used to add flexibility, depth and excitement to educational programs. [MIT]

Learning Outside of School

The classroom isn’t the only place where people can learn and expand their minds, and these lectures focus on the future of libraries, museums and community programs.

47. Keeping Hope Alive: A New Era of Youth Civic Engagement: Check out this lecture to learn why getting students involved in the community is something that should be fostered and maintained, and how it may help them emerged more well-rounded and empowered. [Forum Network]
48. Museums in the 21st Century: What will museums be like in the coming century? This lecture explores the changes and innovations happening at museums around the world. [NPR]
49. Brewster Kahle Builds a Free Digital Library: Learn about this free online library and the implications it might have for sharing data and learning. [TED]
50. Philip Rosedale on Second Life: This lecture will explore the many uses of Second Life, including as a learning tool and virtual classroom, and the possibilities it holds for community and creativity. [TED]