Ed tech experts discuss how adoption of technology can improve learning

A panel of the nation’s top edtech leaders and innovators will discuss how technology can close the growing student achievement gap on Tuesday, March 27, at a free public forum from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m at Woodside High School in Woodside.

The evening’s discussion, hosted by Menlo Park-based The Peninsula College Fund (PCF), will cover such timely topics as ensuring equal student access to technology, promoting the use of digital textbooks, nurturing educational entrepreneurs, and leveraging data to customize and improve learning.

“We’ve gathered this panel of edtech luminaries to address an issue that has been central to PCF since its inception — improving access to education,” said Charles Schmuck, PCF founder.  “We are eager to facilitate a dialogue among parents, educators and edtech experts that will foster the greater adoption of technology to improve learning for all students, regardless of their income class and geographic area.”

The evening’s panel members include:

• Karen Cator – Director of the Office of Educational Technology (OET), U.S. Department of Education, and previously head of Apple’s leadership and advocacy efforts in education
• Neeru Khosla – Co-Founder and Executive Director of the CK-12 Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on reducing the cost of textbook materials for the K-12 market, both in the U.S. and worldwide
• Alan Louie – Partner, Imagine K12, who brings entrepreneurial and engineering experience from Google, Netscape, Infoseek and Shutterfly to this incubator of new high-tech companies focused on K-12 education
• David Reilly – Principal, Woodside High School who has expanded his institution’s Career Technical Education offerings in the fields of engineering, digital media arts, and computer science in an effort to harness the potential of technology in a comprehensive high school setting.
• Panel Moderator Betsy Corcoran – Co-Founder of EdSurge and previous Executive Editor for technology coverage at Forbes Media.  EdSurge is a comprehensive news source for information on innovation in educational technology.

“The Office of Educational Technology is committed to transforming education through the power of technology,” said Karen Cator.  “As head of that effort, I am delighted to be part of this important discussion and investigating ways of reaching the commendable goal of making a college degree a reality for talented, low-income students on the San Francisco Peninsula.”

In addition to being hosted by the Peninsula College Fund, the educational forum is being sponsored by Kepler’s Books of Menlo Park and Woodside High School.

Photo caption: Three PCF scholarship recipients, (left to right) Clarissa Ontiveros, Freddie Zavala and Magali Molina, enjoy their Apple laptop computers, provided to help them succeed in their college careers.