Dan Ryder
Success & Innovation Center Education Director
idea wrangler, design thinker, improviser, author, and award winning educator
Apple Distinguished educator
NEA Foundation’s 2018 Horace Mann Award for Teaching Excellence
Co-founder of education consultancy, Wicked Decent Learning
Follow @WickedDecent
www.danryder207.com
Mapping the Future with Empathy, Equity and Intention
As the role of public education expands, how might we better identify the needs of our students, colleagues, and communities moving forward? And how might we better address the biases — both conscious and unconscious — that threaten our ability to meet those needs? During this interactive keynote, we’ll explore the principles of design thinking — empathy fueled, human centered problem solving — and how we might apply that mindset to more mindful tech-oriented solutions.
Dan will also be offering the following workshops at VermontFest 2019
Human Centered Design Thinking Workshop – Empathy and Equity
Critical Creativity & Rigorous Whimsy: Integrating Creative Expression into the K-12 Classroom
No More Dumpster Projects: Amplifying Project Based Learning by Design Workshop
Dan Ryder has taught for 20 years at Mt. Blue Campus in Farmington, Maine. He is the co-author 2017’s Intention: Critical Creativity in the Classroom (EdTechTeam Press). Dan has presented his work on critical creativity, empathy fueled problem solving, and the improviser’s mindset at numerous conferences and workshops, including SXSWedu and Stanford d.School’s K12 Summit.
His recent work for the Office of English Language Programs in the US Department of State’s Bureau of Exchange and Cultural Affairs includes writing Panels & Perspectives, a comic book to help educators use comic creation as a tool for critical thinking and language acquisition, advising on maker ed and design thinking pedagogies, and integrating educational technology into OER resources for English language instructors.
He lives with his brilliant & beautiful librarian wife and their two hilarious kids in western Maine.