[In This Episode][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 11/13/14

How can you boost your creativity and innovative potential? How much of a difference is there between simple knowledge transfer and hands-on approaches to education in the real world? What criteria do business professionals use to seek out educational experiences? Listen in today to hear the answers to these burning questions. My guest today is Justin Lukasavige. Justin is an entrepreneur and internet marketing consultant. We asked Justin to discuss the entrepreneur’s view of education, and some of his answers may surprise you.

Guest Bio

Justin Lukasavige coaches people to do business better by using the power of their personal stories. Justin graduated from college with a degree in aviation and immediately became a commercial pilot. Knowing it wasn’t the story he wanted to live, he began coaching people to get out of debt. He grew his business so quickly (with the help of coaches and mentors) that other business owners took notice and asked for advice on doing the same. Justin is currently working with a handful of startups and non-profits in marketing and product.

More about Justin from his bio at Lukas Coaching (http://lukascoaching.com/about_us.htm)

* I considered hiring someone to write this for me to make it sound good but that’s not what I’m about. I’m just like you and I like to do business with real people.

* I don’t have a background involving classes that culminate in a degree that I use every day. I studied commercial aviation in college and immediately became an instructor and then an airline pilot.

* I agree, that’s not really useful to you, is it?

* I spent over seven years flying passengers around the US, Canada and the Caribbean before turning what I was really excited about (helping you!) into a business that would support my family. I had no clue what a coach was, but I knew that my job as an airline captain wasn’t how I wanted to help people.

* I trained with Dave Ramsey and his team early in 2006 and immediately launched Lukas Coaching. I had very little business experience but there was no way I was going to let that stand in the way of helping people.

* Lukas Coaching plateaued in growth 12 months after launching it and, after trying a few things, still couldn’t figure out how to make it grow enough to replace my income at the airline. It would have been a shame if I couldn’t make it work back then because hundreds of people wouldn’t have been able to benefit. But I hired coaches, took classes, read books…and I made it work.

* I grew so rapidly that other businesses asked me how they could do it too. Thus began my work helping people start and grow a business they really cared about. Some of them have gone on to impact the world.

* Now I spend my time doing what I love. I create audio and video for our community. I speak around the world, remotely and in person, and I’ve worked with clients around the globe .

* Above all else I’m a husband to Christine and a dad to Ava, Amanda and Brie. They’re why I do what I do and I wouldn’t trade it for ...

[In This Episode][Video Interview][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 11/06/14

How can you learn secrets directly from a great inventor? How do we take back education from the dark forces of the universe? How can we help students become who they were meant to be? Stay tuned. On the podcast today, we’re going to reveal the answers to these and other questions. Today, Linda Polin and I will talk about taking back education from the forces that have corrupted it. Some of her answers may surprise you.

Video Interview

Guest Bio

Dr. Linda Polin teaches courses in learning, technology, and design, as well as in research design. Her research interests focus on learning and knowledge sharing in online communities. Her current research interests focus on knowledge co-construction and sharing, such as learning in informal online communities. Linda (aka LindaX) is studying informal yet self-organized learning communities in massively multiplayer online gaming and literature-based role-playing communities on the Web.

She is the Davidson Professor of Education and Technology in the Education Division of the Graduate School of Education and Psychology. She has served for many years as program chair of the doctoral program in learning technologies. Currently she teaches courses in innovation and change, qualitative research methods, knowledge creation and collaboration, and the imagining futures capstone course. In 2011 she received the Howard White Teaching Award. Her research interests focus on learning and knowledge sharing in networked formal and informal communities, currently focusing on massively multiplayer online game players, and large hobby communities. In 2012 she initiated the Minecraft Challenge League, which works with three middle schools and learning technologies doctoral students to explore computational thinking and problem solving within a constructible virtual world.

Linda consults with school districts, universities, and software developers. She is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (AMC) and faculty sponsor of the Pepperdine GSEP student chapter of ACM. Polin is a member of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), Division C Learning and Instruction. She enjoys gardening, networked gaming, constructing with Legos and Arduino, and all things Studio Chibli. When she’s not wearing her “professor” hat, you might find her in a stronghold in Minecraft, battling beasts in League of Legends, or knitting a Hufflepuff scarf.

Additional Notes

* Twitter: @LindaX

* Site: https://sites.google.com/site/lindapolin/

* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindapolin

* YouTube Audio of this episode (with captions): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEqtTVxVr8E

[In This Episode][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 10/29/14

In this week’s episode, we talk with John Westrum, VP of Operations at Afinia. Table Top Inventing has been working with Afinia 3D printers since the beginning and we have been happy to recommend them to other educators. We approached John because we were interested in his views both of Maker Education as well as his perspective on our core question, “What is the purpose of an education?”.

Guest Bio

John Westrum is the Vice President of Operations at Afinia, a division of Microboards Technology, LLC. John has been instrumental in introducing the Afinia 3D printer into the US market, and has a long-term view on products and sales with his 20+ year tenure as a VP at Microboards. John knows his business inside and out including the marketing and sales, the support and engineering, as well as the purchasing side.

Over the last two years, John has seen the interest and demand for desktop 3D printers grow into education from what had predominantly been commercial and hobbyist applications. As education demands have increased, John’s interest involvement in the workshop focuses on working with individuals and organizations to develop curriculum to support STEM initiatives utilizing 3D printers. Although John does not have a background in Education/Academics, he is impassioned with a belief that STEM is a critical part to student learning.

Additional Notes

* Afinia website: http://www.afinia.com

* Afinia on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Afinia3DPrint

* Afinia on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Afinia3DPrint

Text Transcript

Steve: Alright, so we are speaking today with John Westrum from ‘AFINIA’. He is well acquainted with 3D printing and we’re going to ask him some questions today about educational… we’re going to jump right in.

Steve: Can you tell us a little bit about what you do as a professional?

John: Sure, well I’ve been with ‘AFINIA’ which is a division of micro boards technology and I’ve been with the company now this is my 21st year. Primarily we were doing CD and DVD duplication, printing, and publishing equipment for commercial purposes, and also a little bit with education. We decided we needed to broad our product base so a couple of years ago, 3 years ago, we got into 3D printing. In doing so, we quickly learned that educators were purchasing this at a pretty high rate. And as we explored it a bit more, we found out that there was beyond a university wage which was primary the beginning of this that education at high school level and the middle school level really was a growing demand for 3D printing. So, we started really going after and seeing what we can do to support that area more.

Steve: So, what prompted you to look at 3D printing?

John: So, we have done some research in regards to what are some high growth areas. Of course, being in business,

[In This Episode][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 10/23/14

Our guest today is Dan Miller.  Dan is the author of “Forty-eight Days to the Work You Love Preparing for the New Normal”.  He regularly advises professionals who have lost their way on the road to career fulfillment. Dan is on my community of 48 days.net now has over 14,000 members and is innovate in “Coaching with Excellence” has been always sold out. His Forty-eight Days Podcast, which by the way I have listened to for over two years now, is listed in the top most popular business Podcasts on iTunes. Today we will be discussing the changing job market and how that impacts the education students will need to succeed in this new economy.

Guest Bio

Dan Miller, President of 48 Days LLC, specializes in creative thinking for increased personal and business success. He believes that meaningful work blends our natural skills and abilities, our unique personality traits and our dreams and passions. Dan is active in helping individuals redirect careers, evaluate new income sources, and achieve balanced living. He believes that a clear sense of direction can help us become all that God designed us to be.

Dan is the author of the New York Times best-selling 48 Days To The Work You Love, No More Dreaded Mondays, and

[In This Episode][Video Interview][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 10/16/14

This summer, Table Top Inventing brought our Inventor’s Bootcamp to Chattanooga, TN. We had to swing by the famous Chattanooga Library 4th Floor Makerspace, of course! Listen in as Steve chats with Meg and Geoff about the changing role of libraries, the impact of maker technology on education, and the SnoriCam, invented by two guys with the last name of Snori who weren’t related to each other!

Video Interview

Guest Bio

Meg Backus earned her Masters of Library Science from and has taught in Syracuse University’s School of Information. For the past two years she has worked as the Systems Administrator and Chief Maker at the Chattanooga Public Library where she lead the The 4th Floor project, a public laboratory and educational facility with a focus on information, design, technology, and the applied arts. She has 5 years of library experience, having developed innovative, civic-minded library projects featured in Wired, on NPR, and in the Whitney Biennial. Meg explores and tests various service models for creative, open-ended public spaces–models which leverage community expertise, allow for growth and flexibility, and evolve according to local needs in ways that align with fundamental library values like inclusiveness, access, and cooperation. She thinks of libraries as active testing grounds for building the society that should exist.

Meg loves to read and perhaps above all else is committed to remaining open to new experiences. She is just as interested in promoting opportunities to learn traditional crafts like weaving as she is in facilitating classes using Arduino and 3D printers.

Geoff Millener was born in New Zealand, raised in Tennessee, and educated in Massachusetts. He attended Amherst College, where he spent a great deal of time reading, writing and being cold; he has since returned to Chattanooga, where he’s employed by the Mozilla Foundation working to bridge the digital divide through coordinating the Gigabit Community Fund projects and building a Hive Learning Community. He also teaches an introductory class on 3-D printing for the Chattanooga Public Library’s 4th Floor, which he’s actually vaguely qualified to do.

Additional Notes

Meg

* @MegBackus

* @4thFloorChatt

* http://chattlibrary.org/4th-floor

Geoff

* @gmillener

* @MozillaGigabit

General

* Making Room for Innovation – LibraryJournal

* Why Your Library May Soon Have Laser Cutters and 3D Printers – Wired

[In This Episode][Video Interview][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 10/09/14

Gary Stager is one of the world’s leading experts and advocates for computer programming, robotics and learning-by-doing in classrooms. In 1990, Dr. Stager led professional development in the world’s first laptop schools and played a major role in the early days of online education. In addition to being a popular keynote speaker at some of the world’s most prestigious education conferences, Gary is a journalist, educator, consultant, professor, and software developer.

Sylvia Martinez works in schools around the world to bring the power of authentic learning into classrooms, particularly in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math subjects. Sylvia speaks, writes, and advocates for student-centered, project-based learning, gender equity in technology, computer programming, and life-long learning.  For the past ten years, Sylvia was President of Generation YES, a non-profit working to empower young people to improve their schools and communities with modern technology.

Together this dynamic duo has written a fantastic book titled, “Invent to Learn”. Steve sat down with them in Atlanta at the ISTE conference to chat about education around the world and the shifting tide that maker education is bringing to schools in this country.

Video Interview

Guest Bio

Sylvia Martinez works in schools around the world to bring the power of authentic learning into classrooms, particularly in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) subjects. Sylvia speaks, writes, and advocates for student-centered, project-based learning, gender equity in technology, computer programming, and life-long learning. For the past ten years, Sylvia was President of Generation YES, a non-profit with a mission of empowering young people to improve their schools and communities with modern technology. Previous to Generation YES, Sylvia was in charge of product development at several software publishers, designing and creating video games and educational software. Sylvia also had a career in aerospace engineering as a senior scientist on the GPS navigational satellite system research and development. She holds a masters in educational technology and a bachelors in electrical engineering.

Contact Sylvia at: sylvia (at) inventtolearn (dot) com

@smartinez

Gary Stager is one of the world’s leading experts and advocates for computer programming, robotics and learning-by-doing in classrooms. In 1990, Dr. Stager led professional development in the world’s first laptop schools and played a major role in the early days of online education. In addition to being a popular keynote speaker at some of the world’s most prestigious education conferences, Gary is a journalist, teacher educator, consultant, professor, software developer, and school STEM. Director. An elementary teacher by training, he has taught students from preschool through doctoral studies. Gary is the founder of the Constructing Modern Knowledge summer institute for educators.

Contact Gary at: gary (at) stager (dot) org

[In This Episode][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 10/02/14

 Today on our podcast we will be talking with Alex Huthmacher. Alex is the Manager of Network Infrastructure at 21st Century Fox where he Manages projects, configures network devices, firewalls, switches, load balancers, etc. Before working at FOX Alex was network engineer at Sandia National Laboratories where he focused on security in network integration. Alex has also worked at the Xerox data center in San Diego where he helped them migrate the infrastructure to Texas. We like to tease Alex that he can’t keep a job for longer than a year… but the reality is that with his skills, he is constantly in demand for increasingly complex positions requiring his level of expertise. With all this experience you might expect a much older man, but Alex’s determination, hands-on experience, and insatiable curiosity have served him well at his young age. 

Guest Bio

Alex Huthmacher is an IT Professional who specializes in Networking who has taken a somewhat unconventional path towards success. He began college classes at the age of 16 and quickly identified areas of strengths and interests. Those interests led him to self-study an IT certification sequence (CCIE, CCNP, CCDP, CCNA: Security, CCNA: Voice, CCDA, JNCIS-SP, JNCIA, COMPTIA: Secutiy+, Ciena Carrier Ethernet, Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist, Microsoft Certified Professional) that has been the backbone of his educational experience. He has been exposed to many environments, making him experienced with a vast array of technologies. Alex has led multiple projects from conception to implementation. This experience has allowed him to master the skills of managing people, tasks, deadlines, and technical constraints. He proves myself through constant studying, sharing knowledge, and consistent leadership. He sets himself apart from the typical engineer with strong interpersonal skills, and extreme patience with customers. 

Additional Notes

* LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/alexhuthmacher

* Website: http://netstatman.com/

Text Transcript

Intro: Do you dream of a classroom where learning is natural? Can we inspire students to lifelong learning? What exactly is the purpose of an education? Inspiring students to be curious, independent, creative, innovative, deep-thinking, confident, pro-active, collaborative, determined, educated. Rise to the challenge of changing the world. This is teaching, this learning, this is who we are. Welcome to the Table Top Inventing podcast.

Steve: Today in our podcast we will be talking with Alex Huthmacher. Alex is the Manager of Network Infrastructure at 21st Century Fox, where he manages projects, figures network devices, firewalls, switches, load balancers etc. Before working at Fox, Alex was a network engineer at Sandia National Laboratories where he focused on security and network integration. Alex has also worked at the Xerox Data Center in San Diego where he helped them migrate the infrastructure to Texas.

[In This Episode][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 09/25/14

Dr. Thornburg has worked in the field of educational technology since the early 1980’s.  His focus is on STEM education, and he is a strong proponent of tinkering as a pathway to helping children learn about engineering.  He is the co-author of the book “The Invent to Learn Guide to 3D Printing in the Classroom” which is aligned to both the Next Generation Science Standards and the Common Core Math standards. Listen in as Steve and David talk the advantages of inquiry-driven, project based learning and what education means in a modern world.

Guest Bio

David Thornburg is an award-winning futurist, author and consultant whose clients range across the public and private sector across the planet. His razor-sharp focus on the fast-paced world of modern computing and communication media, project-based learning, 21st century skills, and open source software has placed him in constant demand as a keynote speaker and workshop leader for schools, foundations, and governments.  His current work on new learning spaces resulted in the creationg of the Educational Holodeck – and immersive, interactive, learning environment suited for interdisciplinary exploration of academic topics through realistic simulations.

As a child of the October Sky, David was strongly influenced by the early work in space exploration, and was the beneficiary of changes in the US educational system that promoted and developed interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills.  He now is engaged in helping a new generation of students and their teachers infuse these skills through the mechanism of inquiry-driven project-based learning.

His educational philosophy is based on the idea that students learn best when they are constructors of their own knowledge. He also believes that students who are taught in ways that honor their learning styles and dominant intelligences retain the native engagement with learning with which they entered school. A central theme of his work is that we must prepare students for their future, not for our past.

In addition to his work with technology, David also consults on the relationship between classroom design and learning.  In this capacity he is Senior Consultant to the architecture firm, Fielding Nair, and is currently writing a new book, From the Campfire to the Holodeck: How Place Matters in Education.

David splits his time between the United States and Brazil. His work in Brazil also is focused on education, and he has spoken at conferences and consulted for firms and educational institutions throughout that country.

Additional Notes

* Dr. Thornburg’s Book (co-authored with Norma Thornburg and Sarah Armstrong):  http://www.inventtolearn.com/3d-printing-in-the-classroom/

* 3D Printing news/community link: http://www.3ders.org/

* The Thornburg Center – http://www.tcpd.org/

[In This Episode][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 09/18/14

My guest today is Eric Sheninger. Eric is a Senior Fellow and Thought Leader on Digital Leadership with the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE). He began his career in education as a high school Science Teacher, but realizing that his true passion was leadership, he went on to the district level and ultimately became the principal of New Milford High School. He has distinguished himself as a thought leader in education and won many awards. As a writer, Eric has an award winning blog, a great new book called “Digital Leadership”, and almost 70,000 followers on Twitter.

Guest Bio

Eric Sheninger is a Senior Fellow and Thought Leader on Digital Leadership with the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE)and Scholastic Achievement Partners (SAP).  He also maintains a presence as a practitioner by serving as the K-12 Director of Technology and Innovation in the Spotswood School District (NJ).  Prior to this he was the award-winning Principal at New Milford High School.  Under his leadership his school became a globally recognized model for innovative practices.  Eric oversaw the successful implementation of several sustainable change initiatives that radically transformed the learning culture at his school while increasing achievement.  

His work focuses on leading and learning in the digital age as a model for moving schools and districts forward. This has led to the formation of the Pillars of Digital Leadership, a framework for all educators to initiate sustainable change to transform school cultures.  As a result Eric has emerged as an innovative leader, best selling author, and sought after speaker.  His main focus is the use of social media and web 2.0 technology as tools to facilitate student learning, improve communications with stakeholders, enhance public relations, create a positive brand presence, discover opportunity, transform learning spaces, and help educators grow professionally.

Eric is a CDE Top 30 award receipient (2014), Bammy Award winner (2013), NASSP Digital Principal Award winner (2012), PDK Emerging Leader Award recipient (2012), winner of Learning Forward’s Excellence in Professional Practice Award (2012), Google Certified Teacher,

[In This Episode][Video Interview][Guest Bio][Additional Notes][Text Transcript]

In This Episode – 09/11/14

We are excited to share the thoughts of a fantastic K-5 educator. Clark Barnett has been an educator for 13 years in grades K-5. During this tenure he has spent the majority of his time teaching 4th grade. Clark earned his Master’s of Education Technology from Pepperdine University in 2005, and in addition to teaching 4th grade, he has been an adjunct professor at Pepperdine University since 2006. Over the past 4 years he has been teaching with iPads in the classroom and is currently piloting the only 1-to-1 tablet classroom in the Conejo Valley USD.

Video Interview

The video has additional pieces that we could not fit into our 30 minute podcast format.

Guest Bio

Welcome to the Table Top Inventing Podcast! This is our first podcast. We are excited to share the thoughts of a fantastic K-5 educator. Clark Barnett has been an educator for 13 years in grades K-5. During this tenure he has spent the majority of his time teaching 4th grade. Clark earned his Master’s of Education Technology from Pepperdine University in 2005 and has been effectively integrating and using a variety of technology in his classroom.

Clark Barnett has over a decade of experience in education technology and in the classroom setting. Clark has taught K-5th grade at Lang Ranch Elementary since 2002. During this time he has developed a unique approach to teaching the core curriculum using technology. Clark is also an adjunct professor at Pepperdine University in the education department. He is able to use technology to teach his university students and in doing so he has been able to impact hundreds of young students through his student teachers.

Clark has a BA from Pepperdine University as well as a Master’s Degree in Education Technology from Pepperdine University. He is the web designer for Lang Ranch Elementary and is a leader in Conejo Valley Unified School District with regard to technology in the classroom. Clark is a well-loved teacher by parents and students and colleagues.

Clark’s blog is an opportunity for him to share his expertise with using cutting edge technology that will help prepare students for an ever changing future. Not only will topics center around how students can get their hands on the latest technology, rarely available to young students, but they will also shed light on how students can be engaged in real life problem solving, develop skills needed to think critically, and how to persevere through challenges. Clark is looking forward to sharing his classroom adventures with technology and his students’ creativity.

Clark began teaching at Pepperdine University in 2006 as an adjunct professor where he has been able to stay informed on the most recent trends in education while working with young teachers. He has been teaching with iPads in the classroom for the last 4 years and is currently piloting the only 1to1 tablet classroom in Conejo Valley USD. Clark has been using a 3D printer in his classroom for the past year and led a technology camp for kids using 3D technology this summer. Clark lives in Thousand Oaks, CA with his wife, Tami, and their two children, Colton (6) and Keilani (4).