Big Thinkers on Education

Some of the most compelling visionaries in the world -- from Sir Ken Robinson to Jane Goodall to Martin Scorsese -- are focusing their attention on how to improve education. From innovative classroom concepts to suggestions on how to foster creativity and collaboration, they share their valuable insights for teaching and learning and illuminate new solutions to old problems. Get inspired by their big ideas.

• Credit: Edutopia Barnett Berry

  The president and CEO of the advocacy organization Center for Teaching Quality

  • Barnett Berry on Education Reform
  • Teacher Preparation: Learn from the Masters
• Credit: Edutopia Linda Darling-Hammond

  Stanford University education professor and adviser to the U.S. Department of Education

  • The Collaborative Classroom: Linda Darling-Hammond on SEL
  • Linda Darling-Hammond on Becoming Internationally Competitive
• Credit: Edutopia Arne Duncan

  The former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, now secretary of education for President Obama

  • An Interview with Arne Duncan
  • Reform Starts Now: Obama Picks Arne Duncan
• Credit: Mobile Digital Arts Elyse Eidman-Aadahl

  Co-director of the National Writing Project Elyse Eidman-Aadahl describes how the craft of storytelling is evolving, as new digital tools and communications technologies enable connections for content creators around the globe.

  • Elyse Eidman-Aadahl on Writing in the Digital Age
• Credit: Edutopia Howard Gardner

  Harvard University professor and author of twenty books, best known for his theory of multiple intelligences

  • Q&A: An Interview with the Father of Multiple Intelligences
  • Howard Gardner on Multiple Intelligences
• Credit: Edutopia James Paul Gee

  Professor of literacy studies at Arizona State University and author of What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy

  • On Learning with Video Games
  • On Grading with Games
• Credit: Edutopia Daniel Goleman

  Psychologist, journalist, and the best-selling author of Emotional Intelligence and other books

  • Daniel Goleman on Social Emotional Learning
  • George Lucas and Daniel Goleman: Educating Hearts and Minds
• Credit: David S. Holloway/APIX Jane Goodall

  Groundbreaking primate researcher and founder of the Jane Goodall Institute

  • Kid Power: The Roots & Shoots Program
• Credit: Edutopia Mimi Ito

  Cultural anthropologist studying new media use, particularly among young people in Japan and the United States

  • Mimi Ito on Learning in Social Media Spaces
• Credit: Mobile Digital Arts Henry Jenkins

  Media scholar Henry Jenkins describes how to boost kids' civic engagement by tapping their interests

  • Henry Jenkins on Participatory Culture and Media Education
• Credit: Zachary Fink Salman Khan

  The founder of the Khan Academy, a free educational video library that features over two thousand titles

  • Salman Khan on Liberating the Classroom for Creativity
  • Khan Academy Explores Hands-On Learning
• Credit: Edutopia George Lucas

  Maker of the Star Wars and Indiana Jones films and founder and chairman of the George Lucas Educational Foundation

  • George Lucas at Dreamforce: Sharing His Hope for Education
  • Life on the Screen: Visual Literacy in Education
• Credit: Keith Major. All rights reserved. Wynton Marsalis

  Artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center and winner of a Pulitzer Prize in music for his work Blood on the Fields

  • Keeping Time: Music Is a Core Subject
• Credit: Edutopia Randy Nelson

  Former Dean of Pixar University, which provides employees of the animation company a broad fine-arts education

  • Learning and Working in the Collaborative Age: A New Model for the Workplace
• Credit: Mobile Digital Arts Nichole Pinkard

  New media professor and founder of Chicago's Digital Youth Network

  • Nichole Pinkard on Digital Literacy
  • Digital Media Empower Youth
• Credit: Edutopia Diana Rhoten

  Digital learning expert Diana Rhoten describes how out-of-school learning environments tap into kids' interests

  • Diana Rhoten on Sparking Student Interests with Informal Learning
• Credit: Edutopia Sir Ken Robinson

  International leader in creativity, innovation, and educational reform and the author of Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative

  • Sir Ken Robinson on the Power of the Imaginative Mind
  • Schools Must Validate Artistic Expression
• Credit: Edutopia Katie Salen

  Executive Director of the Institute of Play

  • Katie Salen on the Power of Game-Based Learning
• Credit: Edutopia Martin Scorsese

  Academy Award-winning director of Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, the Departed, and many other films

  • Martin Scorsese on the Importance of Visual Literacy
  • Teaching Visual Literacy
• Credit: Mobile Digital Arts John Seely Brown

  Innovative thinker, known for his ideas on merging digital culture and education

  • John Seely Brown on Motivating Learners
• Credit: Mobile Digital Arts Constance Steinkuehler

  Game-based learning scholar talks about her research on online role-playing video games and literacy

  • Constance Steinkuehler on Interest-Driven Learning
• Credit: Mobile Digital Arts Kurt Squire

  Game-based learning scholar explores young people's interest in gaming can create deeper connections to civic and political life

  • Kurt Squire on Civic Engagement Through Digital Games
• Credit: Zac Fink David Thornburg

  Award-winning futurist, author, and founder and Director of Global Operations for the Thornburg Center.

  • David Thornburg on the Evolving Classroom
  • David Thornburg on Open-Source Textbooks
• Credit: This image is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic License Alvin Toffler

  Futurist and co-author, with his wife, Heidi, of Future Shock and The Third Wave

  • Reshaping Learning from the Ground Up
• Credit: Thomas Heinser Alice Waters

  The founder of the Chez Panisse Foundation, which promotes healthy school-lunch programs and runs the Edible Schoolyard projects.

  • Learning Curves: Alice Waters
  • The Edible Schoolyard Yields Seed-to-Table Learning
• Credit: Edutopia Judy Willis

  Neurologist turned educator with the University of California, Santa Barbara's graduate school of education

  • Judy Willis on the Science of Learning
  • Judy Willis' Blog for Edutopia