jason ohler

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Dr. Jason Ohler is a speaker, writer, teacher, researcher, and lifelong digital humanist who is well known for the passion, insight, and humor he brings to his presentations, projects and writings. He has worked both online and in classrooms at home and internationally for over a quarter century helping students develop the new media literacies they need to be successful in the digital age.

Jason created one of the first educational technology master's degrees for teachers in direct response to the desktop computer revolution, and had already worked with over a thousand online students before the Internet was available to the public. He is a passionate promoter of "Art the Fourth R" and of combining innovation, creativity and digital know-how to help reinvent teaching and learning. He focuses on helping students and teachers create media using the tools and time on-hand, so they can shift from text-centricism to new media literacies. In the process, they develop an understanding of media literacy, the language of the media they are so immersed in - from TV to YouTube - and the power of using story in content areas. He is also deeply committed to helping educators and students in becoming "detechtives" so they can understand the impacts of technology on relationships, society and environment, and pursue digital citizenship with awareness and humanity.

He has won numerous awards for his work and is author of many books, articles, and online resources. His first book, Taming the Beast: Choice and Control in the Electronic Jungle, explored many of the issues that are key to understanding digital citizenship today. His next book, due out in late 2009, is titled Digital Citizenship and the ReImagination of Education, and will explore theoretical and practical applications of helping students become the kind of capable and concerned citizens that the digital world demands. His current book, Digital Storytelling in the Classroom: New Media Pathways to Literacy, Learning and Creativity, reminds us that he is first and foremost a storyteller, telling tales of the future that are grounded in the past.

"The goal is the effective, creative, and wise use of technology . . . to bring together technology, community, and learning in ways that work. And while we are at it, to have fun."