Karen Cator, U.S. Department of Education director of educational technology, will visit ACU to share her vision for America’s educational reform at the Connected Summit.

Cator works to create the best learning environments for this generation of students, according to her biography on the U.S. government website. Before working for the Department of Education, Cator directed Apple’s leadership and advocacy in education, including efforts in policy and technology research.

Cator said in an e-mail that she hopes to show summit attendees that the opportunity to learn can be powered by existing and emerging technologies.

Right now the U.S. educational system probably fails more than half of the students it serves, Cator said at a Learning Without Frontiers conference last month. The video of her speech is available at www.learningwithoutfrontiers.com/blog. Cator said at the conference that learning technology is helping educators completely rethink how they serve students, from grade school to college.

“Schools and educators need to be well-versed in how technology can transform the learning environment,” Cator said in an e-mail. “They also need a comprehensive and systematic plan in place to ensure access both in and out of the classroom.”

This systemic change includes providing students and educators with access to laptops, mobile tablets and phones, like ACU’s mobile initiative does, Cator said. Courses should be redesigned to make use of digital content both in and out of the classroom.

President Obama’s statements about education have reflected Cator’s vision, said George Saltsman, executive director of the Adams Center.

Cator said she is excited to talk about the textbook’s transition from print to digital. She said digital textbooks might do far more than printed textbooks, including having social media programs incorporated into them.

“These new digital textbooks can sport a flexible and virtual binding that can be expanded as more and better content, including video, is added,” Cator said in an e-mail. “Simulations and animations are coupled with more interesting and challenging projects.”

Cator said learning technology was especially empowering for college students, who are more likely to be self-motivated learners. Educators who understand this learning method are more likely to be effective, Cator said.

“Learners at all levels need to think of themselves as free agent learners, finding and leveraging the opportunity to learn by using content across the web, by accessing experts, by engaging with peers as well as with their teachers,” Cator said in an e-mail.