In this episode of the Wired Educator Podcast, Kelly interviews John D. Couch, the 54th person hired at Apple, the first VP of Education at Apple, friend of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, and the author of a hot new book titled: Rewiring Education: How Technology Can Unlock Every Student’s Potential.
You can order your copy of John’s book here: Rewiring Education by John Couch.
Apple’s iconic co-founder Steve Jobs had a powerful vision for education, employing technology to make an enormous positive effect on the lives of millions of students. The man Jobs tapped to realize this vision was John D. Couch, a trusted engineer and executive who had a passion for education. Couch believed learning needed to be personal and collaborative. He argued the real purpose of education was to help children discover their uniqueness and empower them to reach beyond their perceived potential. However, changing a system that has notoriously resisted change for the past century proved to be no small task, even for an Apple vice president.
Now, though, technology is increasingly integrated into every aspect of our lives, rewiring our homes, our jobs, and even our brains. Most important, a rewiring of education is finally beginning to unlock the potential of our schools, children, and society.
In Rewiring Education, Couch shares the professional lessons he’s learned during his 50-plus years in education and technology. He takes us behind Apple’s major research study, Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT), and its follow-up (ACOT 2), highlighting the powerful effects of the Challenge-Based Learning framework. Going beyond Apple’s walls, he also introduces us to some of the most extraordinary parents, educators, and entrepreneurs from around the world who have ignored the failed promises of memorization and, instead, utilize new science-backed methods and technologies that benefit all children, from those who struggle to honor students.
Rewiring Education examines the future, looking at the most promising of the emerging technologies, and how we, as parents, teachers, and voters, can ensure our children are provided with opportunities and access to the relevant, creative, collaborative, and challenging learning environments they need to succeed both today and tomorrow.
Mentioned in this podcast:
John’s new book: Rewiring Education: How Technology Can Unlock Every Student’s Potential.
John’s Non-Profit is: BeyondSchool.com
Win a a copy of John Couch’s book, Rewiring Education by clicking here & subscribing to the Wired Educator Newsletter. One winner will be announced. Or Tweet why you follow @WiredEducator on Twitter or other social media for a chance to win.
Steve Wozniak’s Woz University: https://woz-u.com/curriculum/
Kelly Croy is an author, speaker and educator. If you’d like to learn more about Kelly, or invite him to your school or conference to speak please send him an email.
Joy Kirr’s book: 
In this episode, Kelly interviews Kevin Duncan about his work as an International Teacher and his new book 
Julie Willcott is an EdTech Consultant and Apple Distinguished Educator. She works as an advocate for innovative learning with an emphasis on STEAM (science-technology-engineering-art-math). As a high school science teacher, Julie implemented one of the nation’s first 1:1 iPad programs and developed multiple open educational resources on iTunes U and iBooks. Her current consulting work includes serving as a Professional Development Specialist and Subject Matter Expert for zSpace, a provider of immersive virtual reality technology. In addition, Julie works as a Social Media Manager for EdSurge promoting resources on how and when to use technology in K-20 education. Julie presents at national and international conferences and serves as an advisory board member for SXSWedu.