Aloha everyone, nice to have you here for issue #9 of my weekly newsletter on all things web3 and education. This week I will be focusing on the highly anticipated crypto report from a16z. Crypto seems to be everywhere–in the news, in commercials, and maybe even popping up in your casual dinner conversations. Are web3 and crypto the same thing? What does crypto have to do with education?These are great questions to ask. The idea around web3 is that it is a new version of the internet run on the blockchain that uses a token-based economic system. So while crypto is not synonymous with web3, it is a major part of how it will operate.As educators, it is important that we stay up to date on trends in crypto. This report lays out five key takeaways about the current state of our crypto adoption:We’re in the middle of the fourth ‘price-innovation’ cycleweb3 is much, much better for creators than web2Crypto is having a real-world impactEthereum is the clear leader, but faces competitionYes, it’s still earlyI think a key one to focus on that has broad-reaching implications for education is the second takeaway: web3 is much, much better for creators than web2.In an era of high consumption and reverence for YouTube and TikTok creators, the idea that web3 will open up new opportunities for real economic growth for creators gives me hope. I envision a future in which schools are places for rich creative expression and development that leads to fulfilling careers in the creative space. Rather than being looked upon as a secondary career that is done as a "side hustle" to support your "real job", creativity will be the go-to skill that is nurtured in our schools.This is in contrast to many implementations of blockchain in our schools around the "learn-to-earn" concept. I believe there is room for that application, but I think it is too limited. You can see the EdSurge article linked in this newsletter to learn more about an application of learn-to-earn. As a creative myself I tend to see more potential in the ability of blockchain and web3 to support our young people as creators that will use blockchain technology to solve new problems in interesting ways.In order to support the idea of our young people "becoming" during this evolution of our schools, I've included a fascinating podcast interview with Dr. Benjamin Freud and Maggie Favretti. This was a game-changing discussion for me as it digs deep into the idea that we are not human beings, but humans becoming. As we embrace these shifts in our society and economies, it is important that we embrace shifts in ourselves. This podcast includes a companion article that I recommend everyone read as well.Please enjoy all the links below, and as always your likes, Tweets, and Retweets really help spread awareness of this newsletter. Also, if you have any interesting web3 articles, news, or events feel free to share in my DMs, I am always looking to learn more about what is going on out there!
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Ed3Weekly: Issue #9 of Web3🤝Education
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Aloha everyone, nice to have you here for issue #9 of my weekly newsletter on all things web3 and education. This week I will be focusing on the highly anticipated crypto report from a16z. Crypto seems to be everywhere–in the news, in commercials, and maybe even popping up in your casual dinner conversations. Are web3 and crypto the same thing? What does crypto have to do with education?These are great questions to ask. The idea around web3 is that it is a new version of the internet run on the blockchain that uses a token-based economic system. So while crypto is not synonymous with web3, it is a major part of how it will operate.As educators, it is important that we stay up to date on trends in crypto. This report lays out five key takeaways about the current state of our crypto adoption:We’re in the middle of the fourth ‘price-innovation’ cycleweb3 is much, much better for creators than web2Crypto is having a real-world impactEthereum is the clear leader, but faces competitionYes, it’s still earlyI think a key one to focus on that has broad-reaching implications for education is the second takeaway: web3 is much, much better for creators than web2.In an era of high consumption and reverence for YouTube and TikTok creators, the idea that web3 will open up new opportunities for real economic growth for creators gives me hope. I envision a future in which schools are places for rich creative expression and development that leads to fulfilling careers in the creative space. Rather than being looked upon as a secondary career that is done as a "side hustle" to support your "real job", creativity will be the go-to skill that is nurtured in our schools.This is in contrast to many implementations of blockchain in our schools around the "learn-to-earn" concept. I believe there is room for that application, but I think it is too limited. You can see the EdSurge article linked in this newsletter to learn more about an application of learn-to-earn. As a creative myself I tend to see more potential in the ability of blockchain and web3 to support our young people as creators that will use blockchain technology to solve new problems in interesting ways.In order to support the idea of our young people "becoming" during this evolution of our schools, I've included a fascinating podcast interview with Dr. Benjamin Freud and Maggie Favretti. This was a game-changing discussion for me as it digs deep into the idea that we are not human beings, but humans becoming. As we embrace these shifts in our society and economies, it is important that we embrace shifts in ourselves. This podcast includes a companion article that I recommend everyone read as well.Please enjoy all the links below, and as always your likes, Tweets, and Retweets really help spread awareness of this newsletter. Also, if you have any interesting web3 articles, news, or events feel free to share in my DMs, I am always looking to learn more about what is going on out there!