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Innovate (www.innovateonline.info) is published bimonthly as a public service by the Fischler School of Education and Human Services at Nova Southeastern University and is sponsored, in part, by Microsoft. The June/July special issue on the future of education, guest edited by George Siemans, focuses on the changing shape of pedagogy, the nature of knowledge itself, the future of copyright, likely patterns of technology adoption in the future, the place of virtual worlds and online portfolios in education, and offers a tool to assist educators anticipate the future. Catherine McLoughlin and Mark J. W. Lee describe the broad changes to how individuals interact with information and each other dictate "radical and transformative shifts in teaching and learning practices." (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=539&action=article) Dave Cormier tackles the difficult theme of knowledge, using the metaphor of the rhizome, a plant with no center and no clear boundary, to describe the way knowledge is created in the context of Web 2.0 technologies. "Knowledge as negotiation" provides a lens through which to view the current community-based notion of curriculum. As social technologies move from our personal lives into academic settings, corresponding community and social interaction around information and knowledge will become an important part of education. (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=539&action=article) Stephen Marshall sees copyright, technology, and education as "worlds in collision." Marshall argues for a rethinking of copyright in the face of Web 2.0 technologies that do not fit into traditional conceptualizations of copyright and suggests that, if educators do not speak up, copyright law will be taken over by corporate forces interested only in profit, to the detriment of educational uses of media. (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=528&action=article) Bob Henshaw analyzes shifting demographics, labor markets, and related factors in urging higher education to "redefine their institutional culture and missions." Henshaw links technology adoption patterns to the ability of institutions to meet the emergent needs of learners as well as need for institutions to retain faculty. (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=533&action=article) In Places to Go, Stephen Downes offers the online video site YouTube as a model and indicator of change on the Internet, arguing that the advancement of online video offers new opportunities for educators. (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=633&action=article) In the "From our Sponsor" section, Gary Brown, Nils Peterson, Adrian Wilson, and Jim Ptaszynski connect the use of reflective e-portfolios to increased learner control, better relationships with alumni and employers, and increasing engagement through utilization of real life learning tasks. (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=559&action=synopsis) Daniel W. Rasmus concludes this issue with a description of Microsoft's use of scenario planning, a strategic planning tool that, he argues, can help educational institutions "face uncertainty in order to embrace the future." (See http://innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=555&action=synopsis) We hope that you enjoy this issue of Innovate. Please use the discussion board within each article to raise questions or provide additional commentary. Your comments will be sent to authors for their response, which will become part of the record for their article. Also, please forward this announcement to appropriate mailing lists and to colleagues who want to use IT tools to advance their work and ask your organizational librarian to link to Innovate in their resource section for open-access e-journals. If you are considering submitting a manuscript describing how you use Microsoft technology to enhance the educational experience for publication consideration in the "From our Sponsors" section, please make sure that it conforms to the publication guidelines described at the Contribute link on Innovate's navigation bar. The senior authors of the top three papers published prior to June, 2009 will be invited to present their paper at the Microsoft Global Exchange summit in July 2009 (with expenses covered by Microsoft). Best. Jim ---- James L Morrison Editor-in-Chief, Innovate http://www.innovateonline.info Fischler School of Education and Human Services Nova Southeastern University http://www.schoolofed.nova.edu/home.htm