Ed3Weekly: Issue #11 of Web3🤝Education

Last week was a big moment for this newsletter as we released the 10th issue. Our readership and subscriptions continue to grow and we are just one shy of 50 subscribers. I hope when you are reading this we have crossed that mark!

As I reflected on this milestone I thought about what are some new ways that I can evolve what I am doing. One update you will see in this issue is rather than organize the sections by type (blog, article, events, etc...) I am using a heading that is a quick topical summary of what is linked.

The reasons for this are twofold. First, we exist in a world where our media isn't so cleanly categorized. The line between an article, a blog, or a Twitter thread is being blurred–and rightfully so. Can we tell if a piece of writing is published in an online magazine or a blog? And in reality, does it really matter?

Secondly, I want to make things easy for you the reader! With the high amount of media we consume, I want you to be able to quickly scan the newsletter and identify the items that interest you. The best way to do this is to provide a quick heading that you can read and decide if it's something to click on.

One other change I am implementing is I am expanding! In addition to publishing this on Get Revue, Twitter, and directly to your inbox, I'm going to be adapting this newsletter for LinkedIn as well. As a platform LinkedIn has its own feel and ecosystem so I want to make sure it fits that platform best. But it will essentially have them same content and will run in parallel with this release.

The LinkedIn release could possibly on the same day as these issues, or maybe the day after. What it all means is that you will be able to find a supplementary version of this issue on my LinkedIn profile. If you're on there, come find me and let's connect. My profile can be found at this link.

So let's get into what I have to share with you this well. First off is a summary of the evolution of education and the internet by the great writer/thinker/buidler Scott David Meyer. I also share an article from Vogue Business magazine about the diversity problem in web3. And some final highlights are a Forbes article about web3 in higher ed and an examination of the metaverse in our K-12 classrooms.

The issue closes with something that I think needs more focus–security in web3. This is an unregulated space with lots of landmines that can have a big impact on your assets. It is a reminder to be careful in this space and if something sounds too good to be true, it is probably a scam.

Thanks again as always for reading, have a great week, and enjoy the content!

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Scott David Meyer Leads You Through the Evolution of Ed3

The Education Evolution: From Ed1 to Ed3 — www.ed3.gg

Meyer is a prolific producer of content that is all ed3 all the time. He really sees the whole scope of this work, from teaching and learning, tokenomics, the global implications of web3, equity, and more. In order to stay on top of the emerging trends in this space, you need to be familiar with his work. This recent post is a great way to engage with how the internet and education have evolved together over the past say 40 years.

Here's what I love about Meyer's writing, I always feel like I am able to exponentially grow my thinking when I read what he has to share. To take his collective knowledge and consume it in one piece is a fast way to accelerate your understanding. Enjoy the article, but I'd suggest you subscribe to his newsletter as well.

Mobile Apps to Support the Web3 Learner

SuperSkills! A Mobile App Use Case for DIDs & VCs — www.learningeconomy.io

One pushback against web3 has been "it sounds great, but what do I actually do?". That's a legit comment as a lot of web3 stuff is just talk. It is exciting to see the LEGO foundation jump in and offer an app for our younger learners that is built within the web3 ecosystem. The link below will take you right to the website in which they summarize the use and purpose behind their app.

Web3 and Diversity

Web3 has a diversity problem: Enter non-binary avatars | Vogue Business — www.voguebusiness.com

I'm including this article because even though it doesn't directly address education and web3 it is very relevant. This is because we cannot separate our educational systems from the societies they exist in. Our society has a diversity problem, our schools have a diversity problem, and as this article in Vogue talks about, web3 has a diversity problem. What is promising is that these discussions are being put right in the middle of our conversations about how we build these systems.

The use of non-binary avatars can have big implications for how young people can engage with an identity they are most comfortable with. Learning is hard enough, and when we add on the complications around supporting diverse spaces that acknowledge diverse learners it gets even more complicated. I see web3 and the metaverse as an opportunity to rethink how we manifest our identities and present a version of ourselves in order to feel safe, healthy, and happy.

Let's Talk Higher Ed

The Future Of Learning Is Radically Decentralized: What’s Next For Higher Education? — www.forbes.com

Like the Vogue article I linked to above, I enjoy seeing major publications talk web3. This Forbes opt-ed speaks to three major points about how the landscape of high ed will change as a result of this technology: how students have access to knowledge, how students learn, and how tokens, instead of credits, will be the main unit of learning.

A quick note to consider before reading is that this article is written by an institution of higher ed that describes itself as "A global academic institution driving meaningful change since 1958." This is important because as an op-ed piece it definitely has an agenda. But it still has value, especially as we examine how our legacy institutions will decide to adopt this technology.

Metaverse in Our Classrooms

The Metaverse Is Already Here, and K–12 Schools Are Using It for Education | EdTech Magazine — edtechmagazine.com

We're starting to move past the "what if" to the "when" and "how" in terms of the adoption of immersive technologies. This has allowed us as educators to address the issues at the heart of what this adoption will look like. What will the implications be to pedagogy, equity, and access? This article from EdTech Magazine addresses some of these questions head-on.

You should definitely read this if you have ethical questions about how young people will be spending time in the metaverse, to the role of large tech companies like Facebook and Roblox, or how educational organizations like ISTE will be part of this transformation.

Also one of my partners in ed3 Vriti Saraf contributes some great quotes including the following that does a good job summing up the article:

“We don’t want to spend all of our time online. So, the important thing here is that you want to use the metaverse as a supplement to your in-person activities.”

Let's Talk Security

This week's newsletter is gonna close with a thread on security. This is a real concern in the space right now. People are spending real money on NFTs, tokens, and other assets in their wallets. Information about security is sparse. The systems that web3 are built on are barely regulated to the point that they are not really regulated at all.

One key to navigating in this space is to have friends who you can trust and who understand parts of this space that you may not. Some NFT communities are better than others in creating a space where you can feel you can ask questions without being judged and that you are provided with reliable information.

I am super grateful for my FOMO MOFO NFT family. It's a small enough and highly engaged community where people look out for each other and share their knowledge openly. One such person is blackmesa.eth. He shared this Twitter thread on security with me and I suggest you check it out. I also suggest you spend some time checking out resources on common scams in the NFT space and make sure you are keeping your assets protected.

Thank you for stopping by for another issue of my web3🤝education newsletter. Please subscribe if you haven't already, and if you're on LinkedIn go check out a version of this newsletter on my LinkedIn profile and feel free to give me a follow as well.

Link to all my work by visiting www.dagan.me