IAE believes that every person is a lifelong learner and a teacher. Each person spends a lifetime helping him or her self and others to learn. The IAE Newsletter is specifically oriented toward educators, parents, and others who are seriously interested in improving the world’s education systems.

David Moursund is providing funding for this project. Initially, this free Newsletter will be published approximately every two weeks. All people on David Moursund’s personal mailing list are being automatically subscribed to this Newsletter. The "Manage your Subscription" link at the bottom of the Newsletter allows you to change your subscription information, or have your name removed from the mailing list.

Information Age Education (IAE) is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving education for learners of all ages throughout the world. IAE is a project of the Science Factory, a 501(c)(3) science and technology museum located in Eugene, Oregon. Current vehicles being used in this project include a Wiki with addresses http://IAE-pedia.org, a Website containing free books and articles at http://I-A-E.org, and this free newsletter.

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What is the Information Age?

In 1956 in the United States, some researchers noticed that the number of people holding "white collar" jobs had just exceeded the number of people holding "blue collar" jobs. Aha, they said. This is a big change. We are no longer in the Industrial Age. Let's call this new situation the Information Age.

Eventually, Information and Communication Technology (ICT)—computers, computerized machinery, fiber optics, telecommunication satellites, Internet, and other ICT tools—became a significant part of our economy. Microcomputers were developed, and many business and industries were greatly changed by ICT. http://iae-pedia.org/Information_Age

In the early days of electronic digital computers, such machines were often referred to as "brains" or "electronic brains." A much more accurate description for such early computers is "automated calculating machines." These early computers were designed to rapidly and accurately carry out a specified sequence of arithmetic calculations. One such computer could do the work of more than a hundred people equipped with the best calculators of that time.

Since mass production of computers first began in the very early 1950s, they have become about 10 billion times as cost effective as they were initially. Large numbers of computer programs have been written that solve a wide range of problems in many different disciplines. Artificial Intelligence has become a productive component of the field of Computer and Information Science. A good Information Age Education helps students to learn the capabilities and limitations of their own brains and computer brains as an aid to solving problems.

Becoming More Responsible for your Education

Moursund, David (2008). Becoming more responsible for your education. Eugene, Oregon: Information Age Education. This free 96-page book and other free books can be downloaded in PDF and Microsoft Word formats at http://i-a-e.org/ebooks/cat_view/37-free-ebooks-by-dave-moursund.html.

This free 2008 book was specifically written for people who are in their early teens. However, it is also of use to parents and to preservice and inservice educators in all disciplines. Children in their early teens are beginning to have the mental maturity needed to take substantial responsibility for their future informal and formal education. One of the book’s unifying themes is gaining an increasing level of expertise in areas of one’s own choice and in areas being emphasized by other people. Such expertise typically depends on building on human's collected knowledge and tools. The Internet (including the Web) and other aspects of Information and Communication Technology have opened up new aids to learning and to using one’s knowledge and skills.