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Marc Prensky Profile

  • With keynotes in nearly 50 countries on six continents and ideas taught in universities worldwide, Prensky’s achievements underscore his global impact and make him the go-to speaker for a truly international perspective.

  • Marc’s core skill is “re-framing,” providing your audience with new perspectives and innovative approaches to challenges, fostering a culture of adaptability.

  • As a world-renowned thought leader, Prensky’s keynotes transcend borders, offering executives and leaders on every continent the tools to propel their organizations into the future.
  • Dedicated to designing a new pedagogy and curriculum for the digital generation, Marc Prensky is a world leader in the application of new technology and the Internet to the future of education. He is a visionary who wants to reinvent the learning process to bring educational and business content into the world with which young people are most engaged.

    Holding Master’s degrees from Yale University, Middlebury College and the Harvard Business School, Prensky has real-world experience in teaching right across the educational spectrum from elementary school to college. He believes in the creation of a new compact between teachers and students, believing that both need to be motivated and to work together with new technology.

    Strategy+Business magazine describes Prensky as “That rare visionary who implements.” He believes in allowing students to participate in the design of their own curricula and that teachers should discover just what it is that students are passionate about and use that as a motivator. His innovative use of technology within pedagogy is now being recognized and adopted worldwide.

    Prensky’s experiences outside education have included performing on Broadway and at the Lincoln Centre, working on Wall Street and as strategist and product development director with the Boston Consulting Group. However, education and learning always remained his passion and he now brings his unique and exciting views to audiences all round the world.

    • View Extended/Alternate Bio

      Marc Prensky is an internationally acclaimed speaker, writer, consultant, visionary and innovator in the field of education and learning. Marc’s professional focus is on reinventing the learning process, designing new pedagogy and curriculum for the digital generation, and combining the motivation of new technology, video games and other highly engaging activities with educational and business content.

      Considered one of the world’s leading experts on the connection between technology and learning, Strategy+Business magazine calls Prensky “That rare visionary who implements.” Prensky looks at education from the perspective of the receivers (i.e. the students) rather than just the providers. He focuses on how to teach and motivate today’s students, and on how to motivate and reinvigorate their teachers as well. Prensky promotes a new form of partnership between teachers and students, and, through his writings and talks, helps teachers learn to change their pedagogy to ways that
      are far more effective for 21st century students.

      Marc also focuses on how to teach future-oriented skills—including problem-solving, partnering, collaborating in online communities, video-making and programming—as an integrated part of all curricula. He is a strong partisan of teachers’ knowing and using students’ individual passions as motivators, and of students’ participation in the design of their own education.

      In his talks around the globe, Marc initiates and conducts unique student-educator dialogs about the teaching and learning process. His innovative combination of pedagogy and technology—including game technology, where he was an early pioneer—is becoming increasingly accepted and used by educators worldwide as the wave of the future.

      Marc’s background includes Master’s degrees from Yale University, Middlebury College, and The Harvard Business School with distinction. He has taught at all levels, from elementary to college, and ran a prototype charter school in East Harlem, NY.

      Marc also performed on Broadway and at Lincoln Center, worked on Wall Street, and spent six years as a corporate strategist and product development director with the prestigious Boston Consulting Group. After all that, he is thrilled to be back working in the field of education and learning.

    Marc Prensky Speaking Videos

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    Marc Prensky's Speech Descriptions

    Marc Prensky offers his insights into the way the digital generation works for both the corporate world and educators alike. He explains how the young “digital natives” have a unique way of working and how many of their employers do not recognize their unique capabilities. He shows how, utilized correctly, this generation can be an enormous asset to their companies and also warns of the dangers of ignoring their new ways of working.

    For educators, Prensky has many entertaining and thought-provoking addresses. Covering the whole span of the digital world, he shows that by incorporating games and social media into teaching, what was once thought of as a threat to learning can become central to its enhancement.

    RE-FRAMING THE FUTURE OF YOUNG PEOPLE
    New 21st century beliefs, Empowerment, Accomplishment, & Impact, Young People and A.I., Empowerment Hubs

    As we gradually change over from the world’s “Last Pre-Internet Generation”—raised almost entirely in the 20th century—to the “First Internet Generation,” raised entirely in the 21st, we need to see our young people through different lenses. First, more and more of our young people are tremendously empowered with new capabilites (capabilities that are soon comng to all.). Second, we are in a time of massive generational change in attitudes and beliefs regarding much of life, including : education, technology, privacy, property, personal relationships, security, sexuality, power, kids, violence, god, justice, money, love, government, creativity, and even time and space.

    The most important new generational beliefs, says Prensky , are “I CAN” and “WE CAN.” The consequences of these changes in beliefs and capabilities—as Prensky shows through multiple examples—are profound. Today we are already far beyond the terms “digital natives” and “digital immigrants” that Marc Prensky coined only two decades ago, headed towards a world of new “AI Natives.”

    Key takeaways include:

    • What is the best way to view young people?
    • How do beliefs differ between generations?
    • What are the implications for adults and for young people”
    • What are the best actions for us to take?

    RE-FRAMING THE FUTURE OF WORK
    From “Jobs” to “Projects” & From Employer-focused to Employee-focused

    We all know work is changing. But few have the perspective and re-framing that Marc Prensky brings. In this far-seeing keynote Marc helps audiences see the NEW AGE OF EMPOWERMENT THAT IS ARRIVING, and its far-reaching implications for human work.

    Anything that two people can do equally well will soon be replaced by a machine, as Artificial Intelligence and Automation penetrate further into our workplaces. BUT HAVE NO FEAR, Prensky says, BECAUSE WE WILL NEVER RUN OUT OF: —PEOPLE WITH DREAMS, —PROBLEMS TO FIX, and —PEOPLE WHO NEED HELP. Nor will we will run out of people who want to do those things. Those are the future of human work.

    The way we will do these things better, says Prensky, is through SYMBIOSIS WITH TECHNOLOGY. Our key 21st century challenge, in order o solve all our pressing problems—like climate change— is to BECOME SYMBIOTIC with our new technologies as rapidly as possible. This goes for people of all ages—and the young are starting faster.

    In our New Age of Empowerment, individuals will FINALLY HAVE THE MEANS TO CONTROL THEIR WORLD, starting at early ages. They will need to understand not just how to take control of their world, but how to improve it.

    Finally, work will begin to be seen not as “jobs” that people get and hold, as they do today, but as “projects” that teams of people accomplish. Says one Fortune 500 executive: “We don’t do job descriptions any more, we only do project descriptions.” More and more firms and—entire fields—are now moving to this “project”—rather than job—orientation.

    This means that an individual now requires a specialty that can enhance many teams,. They need to be continually increasing their skill at that specialty, so they can move fluidly between projects at different organizations (rather than climbing a hierarchical ladder of job promotions in any single one.) Everyone who now works in—or is considering— a so-called “permanent” job needs to understand this, and prepare for this new version of “work.”

    In this keynote, Prensky shows us why it’s important to empower ALL our people, and how to do it quickly.

    Key takeaways include:

    • Why and how work will be changing (and is already)
    • What the new models of work mean for you and your children,
    • Why empowering people is key we to the future of work, and
    • How to be successful In the new environment.

    RE-FRAMING CREATIVITY, ‘THE METAVERSE,’ AND ‘THE CLOUD’ AT WORK
    From Two Worlds to THREE WORLDS, and from 20th century beliefs to 21st CENTURY BELIEFS

    MARC PRENSKY RE-FRAMES THE WORLDS OF CREATIVITY AND IMAGINIATION FOR A NEW AGE in this forward-thinking talk. People often think there is only one world to live and work in, says Prensky, ignoring the world of imagination in each of our heads—which is where all creativity originates. Now, in the 21st century, says Prensky, we have a new third world: “The Cloud.” Whereas before people could realize their imaginations only in the real world—which is often hard, leading many to give up—‘The Cloud’ is a brand-new world in which to bring forth imagination. Infinitely huge, with many dimensions. Growing far faster than the “real-world,” The Cloud offers a new frontier in which to be creative, and huge opportunities. The ‘Metaverse,” on the other hand, currently so highly-hyped, refers mostly to the visual dimension of the Cloud, i.e., the part that, through a headset or special glasses, looks like a real world. But the Metaverse only a small part of the exponentially evolving “Cloud. ” Unlike the Cloud, which is quickly developing, the Metaverse is far slower to emerge, and is still in its earliest stages.

    In ALL the worlds, says Prensky, OUR CREATIVITY IS HIGHLY LINKED TO BELIEFS. Today, beliefs around the world are changing, radically and rapidly, between generations. This is going to soon have a huge impact on humanity, because OUR BELIEFS—embedded deep within our minds—DETERMINE ALL OUR ACTIONS. Prensky shows how Beliefs are changing generationally regarding many things—including education, technology, privacy, property, personal relationships, sexuality, race, security, power, kids, work and jobs, empathy, violence, religion, justice and injustice, money, love, government, time and space—and creativity as well. THE MOST IMPORTYANT CREATIVE 21ST CENTURY BELIEFS, SAYS PRENSKY, ARE “I CAN” AND “WE CAN.”

    In this highly engaging talk, Prensky shows both WHY re-framing our beliefs is key, and HOW to go beyond our old 20th c. beliefs so that we don’t hold humanity back on our journey to the future. Marc Prensky highlights the creative opportunities of today—which are enormous— and opens people’s eyes to what is coming—far faster than many think.

    Key takeaways include:

    • An understanding of how t be creative in the 21st century
    • New, 21st century beliefs
    • Ways to determine what “The Cloud” merans for you and youer business, and what to expect from the Metaverse—and when.
    • New keys to success in he 21st century.

    RE-FRAMING DIVERSITY AND TRUST AT WORK
    From a “you must have” to an “I wouldn’t want to NOT have”

    It is time, says Marc Prensky, to re-frame both “diversity” and “trust” in the workplace,. Most of us think we are both trusting and trustworthy, and that we support diversity. The reality is that most of our workplaces are less diverse than many might like, and sorely lacking in trust. In this eye-opening talk, Prensky helps audiences see diversity and trust in new ways.

    “What makes us each unique,” says Prensky, “are the individual projects we each choose to do and be part of.” Prensky shows how when we are each working on things we actually care deeply about, diversity and trust become not only easier, but desirable and necessary. Prensky helps us see how the right kind of diversity and trusting each other leads to far greater outcomes and satisfaction. He asks difficult questions, like: “If a team had members of every race, religion, gender and nationality, and yet they all thought similarly about the problem at hand—how much diversity would there be?” and “What happens when someone you trust lets you down?”

    In this unusual keynote, Marc Prensky brings his famous “re-framing lens” to the issues of diversity and trust, showing audiences how to see those issues from a new and different perspective.

    Key takeaways include

    • How to create situations where people NEED and DEMAND diversity and trust.
    • How to promote diversity of THINKING—and use that to our advantage.
    • How to measure diversity of thought?
    • How to build higher performance through trust, diversity of thinking, and projects.
    • How to increase trust in the workplace.

    RE-FRAMING COMMUNITY IN THE NEW AGE OF EMPOWERMENT
    From “People who live and work near you” to “Global People Like You”

    People thrive in communities, but communties are changing, says Marc Prensky. An under-noticed and under-appreciated trend in the NEW AGE OF EMPOWERMENT we are entering, says Prensky, is that the meaning of “community” is shifting radically and importantly.

    Prior to the Internet, communities were almost all local, based on where you lived. You went to school, typically through high school, where you lived, You lived, typically, near where you worked. “Community” meant mostly small and local. If your local community included few people like you, you were pretty isolated. Some larger communities did exist, but they typically took much work and much coordination to set up and maintain and often to join.

    All that is now changing, says Prensky. We live in a world where, In the words of one professor, “Every person can find on the Internet the worldwide group in which they are in the top 10 percent.” What has quickly begun to emerge are “affinity” or “shared interest” communities that are NOT local or location-based. Almost all communities are—or have the potential to be—fully or partially global. While some are now partly local, other communities exist only in The Cloud, and come together physically only periodically. It is also harder , in our new world, to put “gates” around a community and keep others out. We are just starting to learn how to manage and participate in these new types of communities. Their implications are profound, and the surface has hardly been scratched

    In this unique keynote, Marc Prensky explores the new definition of community, showing categories, examples and re-framing the new possibilities for communities that this brings to people and the world.

    Key takeaways include:

    • What differentiates virtual, globa communities from local, physical communities?
    • What are the advantages of each? Can they be combined effectively?
    • What kinds of comunities can go global? which should? Are there any that can’t, oir shouldn’t?
    • What does this imply for businesses, and for other adult and young people communities?

    RE-FRAMING HUMANITY IN AN AGE OF A.I.
    From “People with Tools” to “SYMBIOTIC EMPOWERED HUMANS”

    Many believe that as technology develops, we remain “the same people”— just with more powerful tools. In this controversial keynote Prensky re-frames this thinking to seeing humans as becoming “symbiotic empowered hybrids” with all the powerful new technologies we have created.

    Marc believes technologies have effectively given humans new, helpful body parts—much like our having grown a new, useful tail—and we must learn to use these new body parts wisely and well.

    This highly re-framing keynote explores the idea of symbiosis—first proposed in the 1970s— and how 21st century humans are becoming SYMBIOTIC HUMAN HYBRIDS.

    The “new symbiosis” with technology IS NOT “addiction,” says Prensky. Rather it is the process of getting to know what we can do that is positive with our new capabilities. Figuring this out, says Prensky, is probably our most pressing 21st century task as humans—because it will help us solve all our other problems.

    Key takeaways include:

    • Why we require a better way to look at humans and technology
    • What being a “symbiotic empowered hybrid” means
    • Why that is positive for all of us

    What People are Saying about Seeing Marc Speak

    Rating Entries

    “Such a creative thinker, Marc Prensky has always been ahead of his time.”
    Michael Fullan, Canadian Author

    “Digital culture has revolutionary implications that too few people grasp. Marc Prensky understands them better than anyone I know. His insights and clarity shine a powerful light on the deficiencies the present and illuminate the extraordinary possibilities of the future.”
    Sir Ken Robinson, Speaker

      Feedback from Organizers:

      “Once again, thank you for inspiring us. I have heard nothing but positive remarks!! I can assure you your comments will have lasting impressions.”
      (Conference Organizer, 6/10)

      “[Your keynote] was inspirational and thought provoking, and delivered with great energy.”
      (Conference Organizer, 4/09)

      “Thank you so much for the wonderful presentation!”
      (Conference Organizer / ISD Technology Coordinator 2/09)

      “We have heard a lot of wonderful feedback from your presentation.”
      (Conference Organizer / PD Specialist 1/09)

      “I had so many people coming up to me telling me how much they enjoyed your presentation and how it had ′made them think.′”
      (Conference Organizer 10/07)

      “Thanks again for a most stimulating start for our [conference]. “The ‘buzz’ is still buzzing.”
      (Conference Organizer, 10/07)

      Feedback from Audience Members:

      “Your presentation this week was truly outstanding! … my sincere compliments to you on both your material and your superb presentation skills.”
      (Audience Member / Business COO 9/10)

      “Wanted to thank you for your presentation at the above event – I was really impressed by the use you made of the 30 minutes both in terms of style and content.”
      (Audience Member / Business Development manager 9/10)

      “I attended your lecture on Monday and found it very interesting. I′ve been talking to my colleagues about it all week and would dearly love to share your slides with them.”
      (Audience Member / Head Teacher, UK 9/10)

      “We attended your presentation today. It was awesome!!!!!!”
      (Audience Members / College Professors 5/09)

      “Your thought-provoking, inspiring, and very entertaining plenary … has echoed in my mind ever since.”
      (Audience member / College Faculty 4/09)

      “I really enjoyed your talk which was interesting, thought-provoking and funny!”
      (Audience member / College Faculty 4/09)

      “Greatly appreciated your talk and student panel discussion here, and it has been the catalyst for some interesting discussion in our ranks.”
      (Audience Member / College Faculty, 3/09)

      “Your presentation was very revealing and expressed exactly where we are at in teaching.”
      (Audience member / College Faculty 4/09)

      “You have certainly twisted my head around—in a good way!”
      (Audience member / Assistant Professor of Education 2/09)

      Client List:

      1st Chicago Trust
      ABN-AMRO
      American Express
      Avon
      Bank of America
      Bank of Montreal
      Bankers Trust
      Blue Cross of Michigan
      Cap Gemini Ernst & Young
      Charles Schwab
      CIBC
      DARPA
      Ernst & Young
      Estee Lauder
      Fidelity Investments
      Ford
      GE
      IBM
      JP Morgan Chase
      Kraft Foods
      LAUSD
      Nokia
      Nortel
      Palm Pilot
      Pearson
      Pfizer
      Providian Financial
      Reuters
      Springhouse Publishing
      Stern Stewart
      think3
      TIAA-CREF
      Toronto-Dominion
      The Harvard Business School
      U.S Department of Defense

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    Books by Marc Prensky:

    Education to Better Their World: Unleashing the Power of 21st-Century Kids

    In his seventh and most visionary book, internationally renowned educator and futurist Marc Prensky presents a compelling alternative—based on applying students’ passion to real, world-improving projects—to how and what we teach our children. What education should be about, says Prensky, is improving the world and having individuals improve in the process. He argues that a routinely taught combination of math, language arts, science, and social studies (“The MESS”) increasingly leaves the bulk of our students woefully unprepared for the future. Drawing on emerging world trends, Prensky elaborates a comprehensive vision for K–12 education that includes new goals, new means, a new curriculum, a new kind of teaching, and a new use of technology. This is a book, ultimately, about developing young people’s capacity to accomplish things that will make their world a better place, using means never before available. It offers an innovative and achievable vision for a Global Future Education that will better prepare students from all backgrounds. Visit the book’s website at bettertheirworld.org.

      Teaching Digital Natives: Partnering for Real Learning

      Prensky presents a model for 21st-century teaching and learning, in which students become learners and creators of knowledge through technology while teachers guide and assess student learning.

      Order Here




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