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Constructing Modern Knowledge 2023 is committed to making connections between child-centered learning theories and the creative construction of knowledge with computers. In addition to providing a rich sandbox where educators enjoy the luxury of time to work on personally rewarding projects, there are opportunities to interact with some of the greatest educational minds of our time.
We want CMK participants to return home able to say, “I spent time with one of my heroes,” or “My favorite education author helped with my project,” rather than “I heard X speak.”
See the impressive list of past CMK guest speakers here.
Charlie Rosen is an American musician, composer, arranger, orchestrator, musical director, and producer. At only 32 years of age, he is already the recipient of a Tony, Grammy, and Obie Award. In addition to his work performing in the pit of countless musicals, Charlie Rosen is the orchestrator or co-orchestrator for recent Broadway productions, including Be More Chill, Moulin Rouge, A Strange Loop, and the current hit, Some Like it Hot. His film compositions include Billy Crystal’s Here Today and the HBO documentary, Listening to Kenny G.
Charlie’s YouTube videos featuring the 8-Bit Big Band, one-man ensembles, and other assorted projects have enjoyed tens of millions of views. The New York Times profiled Charlie Rosen in the article, The Modern Music Man: He Plays Every Instrument. Almost.
This inflection point for education seems ripe for a frank conversation about where we’ve been over the past half century and where we should focus our energies for the future. Each of these longtime CMK faculty members have made remarkable contributions to educational computing, progressive education, and constructionism. Join them and other invited guests in an intimate setting to help make sense of the future.
Learn more about these legends…
More speakers will be announced soon…
Gary S. Stager, Ph.D.
Founder & Host: Constructing Modern Knowledge
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, publisher, 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.
Dr. Stager is co-author of Invent To Learn – Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom, called the “bible of the maker movement in schools,” by Larry Magid of CBS and The San Jose Mercury News. Invent To Learn has been translated into nine languages. Dr. Stager’s most recent book is Twenty Things to Do with a Computer Forward 50: Future Visions of Education Inspired by Seymour Papert and Cynthia Solomon’s Seminal Work.
He earned a Ph.D. in Science and Mathematics Education and was part of a project that won a Grammy Award. Recently, Gary has been invited to speak and teach in Reggio Emilia, Italy by Fondazione Reggio Children.
Gary is also on the advisory board of the NSF-funded project, BJC4NYC: Bringing a Rigorous Computer Science Principles Course to the Largest School System in the US.
Read bios of previous guest speakers