Visions 2020.2

Student Views on Transforming Education and Training 

Through Advanced Technologies

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Department of Education

NetDay 

August 2005

NetDay PRESS RELEASE
3 

Table of Contents

Introduction......................................................................... 4 

Basic Themes....................................................................... 5 

The New Millennials............................................................... 7 

Devices............................................................................... 9 

Access................................................................................ 13 

Intelligent Tutor/Helper............................................................ 17 

How Students Want to Learn Using Technology............................... 21
4 

Introduction

Advances in both cognitive science and information technology have the potential to 

transform education and training in ways previously unimaginable. Advanced 

technologies under development by U.S. businesses, universities, and government could 

create rich and compelling learning opportunities that meet all learners’ needs, and 

provide education and training when and where they are needed, while boosting the 

productivity of learning and lowering its costs. These technologies could play a major 

role in meeting education and training challenges in the years ahead, and help make the 

U.S. workforce more competitive globally. The development and deployment of these 

technologies involve matters related to technological innovation, a mission area of the 

U.S. Department of Commerce. 

To lay the groundwork for Federal leadership in learning technology innovation, in 

September 2002, the Commerce Department published Visions 2020: Transforming 

Education and Training through Advanced Technologies. For Visions 2020, a number of 

distinguished individuals and teams from a wide range of technology and education fields 

were asked to look out into the future, and describe what technology-enabled learning 

experiences could be like. They responded with a rich collection of visions, some of 

which are excerpted in this report. Visions 2020 identified potential technologies, their 

application for learning, and how the learning environment would need to change to take 

full advantage of them. With a future vision in hand, the Commerce Department 

convened a Summit on the Use of Advanced Technologies in Education and Training. At 

the Summit, stakeholder groups identified ways to encourage technology-enabled 

transformation in U.S. education and training. 

 

To provide leadership, the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC) Working 

Group on Advanced Technologies for Education and Training was established to foster 

the development, application, and deployment of advanced technologies in education and 

training in the United States. Among its goals related to technological innovation and 

market development is strengthening links between potential users of learning 

technologies and the researchers, technology developers, and private companies that 

create and provide these technologies. One way to support this goal is amplifying the 

voice of the user; that is, highlight market potential so that researchers and technology 

providers can strive to meet that market opportunity. In addition, educators who use 

technology for teaching may benefit from a greater understanding of how users (their 

students) would like to use new technologies for learning. The U.S. Departments of 

Commerce and Education (who co-chair the NSTC Working Group) and NetDay formed 

a partnership aimed at analyzing K-12 student views about technology for learning. 

These views are analyzed in this second report, Visions 2020.2: Student Views on 

Transforming Education and Training Through Advanced Technologies. 

In October-November 2004, NetDay sponsored its “Speak-Up Day for Students” which 

offered online questionnaires, which asked K-12 students across the country about their 

use of technology. More than 160,000 students participated in answering questions; 38 

percent of these students were in grades K-6, and 62 percent were students in grades 6-

12. Public and private schools from both urban and rural areas participated and, in about 
5 

one-fifth of participating schools, underrepresented groups constituted the majority of the 

student population. Fifty-one percent of student responders were male, and 49 percent 

were female. 

The NetDay questionnaires included an open-ended question to which students were 

encouraged to supply a short reply: 

Today, you and your fellow students are important users of technology. In the 

future, you will be the inventors of new technologies. What would you like to see 

invented that you think will help kids learn in the future? 

More than 55,000 students offered a meaningful answer to this question. The Commerce 

Department reviewed 8,000 of these answers to probe for common themes and interests 

among students about how they would use technology for learning. Certain types of 

answers were excluded from the review. These include answers that: were too generic 

(e.g., I like technology), did not address learning technology-related topics (e.g., I’d 

invent a flying car), and did not discuss technology as a tool for students themselves to 

use for learning (e.g., I want a robot to do all of my homework for me). 

Many answers offered views on more than one aspect of student use of technology for 

learning. For example, a student answer might say, “I would invent a pocket computer 

that all students could take home to do all of their homework.” This hypothetical answer 

speaks to four aspects of technology for learning: a small computing device, a 1:1 ratio of 

computing devices to students, portability of the device, and the use of the computing 

device to complete all homework. 

It is important to note that neither the administration of the original NetDay 

questionnaires nor the analysis in this paper represents a statistically valid survey. 

Instead, the information in this paper is an exploration of themes and interests. 

Basic Themes 

Visions 2020.2 begins with an exploration of how today’s K-12 aged youth—the socalled New Millennials—use digital technologies. The analysis then explores four 

themes commonly touched on in the students’ answers: 

• Digital Devices 

• Access to Computers and the Internet 

• Intelligent Tutor/Helper 

• Ways to Learn and Complete School Work Using Technology 

Math and reading were often cited specifically as subjects that might benefit from the use 

of learning technologies. 
6 

Looking across these four broad themes and combining some of the most popular 

concepts in student answers paints a profile of how students may wish to use technology 

for learning. In this world: 

Every student would use a small, handheld wireless computer that is voice 

activated. The computer would offer high-speed access to a kid-friendly Internet, 

populated with websites that are safe, designed specifically for use by students, 

with no pop-up ads. Using this device, students would complete most of their inschool work and homework, as well as take online classes both at school and at 

home. Students would use the small computer to play mathematics-learning 

games and read interactive e-textbooks. In completing their schoolwork, 

students would work closely and routinely with an intelligent digital tutor, and tap 

a knowledge utility to obtain factual answers to questions they pose. In their 

history studies, students could participate in 3-D virtual reality-based historic 

reenactments. 

For each of the four themes, selected student answers to the NetDay question are 

included to add richness to the themes and to give voice to the student views.1

 In 

addition, for each theme, excerpts from the U.S. Department of Commerce publication 

Visions 2020: Transforming Education and Training Though Advanced Technologies are 

included. These vignettes envision the use of advanced technologies for learning in ways 

that are similar to those suggested by the students. 

 

1

 In these quotes, errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation have been corrected for the benefit of the 

reader. Also, phrases such as ‘I would invent” and “We should have” have been excluded. 
7 

The New Millennials: Growing-up With Digital Technology 

Today’s U.S. K-12 students grew-up with digital technologies. These students are not 

merely technology-savvy; they are approaching their lives differently as they integrate 

digital technologies—such as computers, the Internet, instant messaging, cell phones, and 

e-mail—seamlessly throughout their daily activities. Time spent using digital media by 

children aged 13-17 has now surpassed the time they spend watching television.2 

Reports and surveys indicate that American students have growing access to and use of 

digital tools: 

• In 2002, 83 percent of family households reported computer ownership, with 78 

percent having Internet access. In the fall of 2002, 99 percent of public schools in 

the United States had access to the Internet, and had expanded Internet access into 

92 percent of instructional rooms. Taking advantage of these digital tools, 90 

percent of children between ages 5 and 17 use computers, and 65 percent of 

American children ages 2-17 use the Internet from home, school, or some other 

location. Internet usage is growing fast among the very young, with parents 

reporting that 35 percent of children ages 2-5 went on-line, growing from a usage 

rate of six percent just two years earlier in 2000. Seventy-eight percent of 

children between the ages of 12 and 17 go on-line.3

 

• Children are using these digital tools in support of their schoolwork. Students 

ages 6-17 who go on-line report educational activities, such as homework and 

research, among their top five daily uses of the Internet.4

 For example, 94 percent 

of children ages12-17 report that they go online to do research for school 

assignments. In the same survey, 71 percent of students report that they used 

sources found on the Internet most frequently in the last big report they wrote for 

school—by far the largest source of information. (In contrast, only a quarter 

report using books and magazines from a library).5 Twenty percent of the 

children who use the Internet at home report that they go online every day for 

educational purposes.6 More than half of the students have used a web site set up 

 

2

 Connected to the Future: A Report on Children’s Internet Use, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 

March 2003. 

3

 Connected to the Future: A Report on Children’s Internet Use, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 

March 2003; Young Children’s Access to Computers in the Home and at School in 1999 and 2000, 

National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, 2003; Internet Access in U.S. 

Public Schools and Classrooms 1994-2001, National Center for Education Statistics, September 2002; The 

Digital Disconnect, The Widening Gap Between Internet-Savvy Students and Their Schools, Pew Internet 

and American Life Project, 2002. 4

 Connected to the Future A Report on Children’s Internet Use, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 

March 2003. 

5

 Parents, Kids, and the Internet, Princeton Research Associates for the Pew Internet in American Life 

Project, June 2001. 

6

 Connected to the Future A Report on Children’s Internet Use, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 

March 2003. 
8 

by school or a class, one third have downloaded a study aid, and 17 percent have 

created a web page for a school project.7 

• Despite the availability of computers and Internet access in school, the use of 

digital tools by students is more home-based than school-based. For example, 

among students ages 12-17 that go on-line from more than one location, 83 

percent say they go on-line most frequently from home, and while only 11 percent 

say they go on-line most frequently from school.8

• Computers and the Internet are not the only digital technologies that children use 

routinely. Of those students answering the NetDay questionnaires, 81 percent in 

grades 6-12 had at least one e-mail address, and 38 percent in grades 3-5 and 19 

percent in grades K-3 had an e-mail address. Seventy-five percent in grades 6-12 

had at least one instant message screen name, as did 34 percent in grades 3-5. 

Sixty percent in grades 6-12 reported that they e-mailed or “instant messaged” 

adults such as family members, teachers or coaches on a weekly basis. Fifty-eight 

percent in grades 6-12 have a cell phone. In a survey for the Pew Internet in 

American Life Project, 41 percent of online teens say they use e-mail and instant 

messaging to contact teachers or classmates about schoolwork. 

According to a study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, students rely on 

Internet technology for school work for a number of reasons including to: complete their 

school work more quickly, to draw upon the latest knowledge and sourced information 

for papers and projects, and to better juggle school assignments and extracurricular 

activities. Students communicate on-line with other classmates to discuss school 

projects, upcoming tests and quizzes, homework shortcuts, and school assignmentpertinent websites. They also communicate on-line with teachers, tutors, and on-line 

study groups.9

The Pew Internet study reported on the metaphors students use to describe how they use 

the Internet for their schoolwork. These include: a virtual textbook and reference library 

to find source material for their school reports and projects; a virtual tutor that offers 

instruction; a platform for a virtual study group to collaborate with classmates on school 

work; a virtual guidance counselor that provides information related to their life 

decisions; and a virtual locker, backpack, and notebook to store and transport their school 

related materials, and keep track of their schedules and assignments.10 

 

7

 The Digital Disconnect, The Widening Gap Between Internet Savvy Students and Their Schools, Pew 

Internet and American Life Project, August 2002. 8

 Parents, Kids, and the Internet, Princeton Research Associates for the Pew Internet in American Life 

Project, June 2001. 

9

 The Digital Disconnect, The Widening Gap Between Internet-Savvy Students and Their Schools, Pew 

Internet and American Life Project, August 2002. 10 The Digital Disconnect, The Widening Gap Between Internet-Savvy Students and Their Schools, Pew 

Internet and American Life Project, August 2002. 
9 

Devices 

Many students responding to the NetDay “what would you like to see invented” question 

described some sort of digital device or an attribute of a digital device: 

Make It Small: Reflecting the popularity of cell phones and handheld video games (such 

as the often-mentioned Nintendo Gameboy), many students expressed interest in a small 

computer. Such a device was frequently described as being handheld or one that you 

could put in your pocket. Some students saw the small computer—used for homework 

and storage of some sort of digital textbooks—as a way to free themselves from heavy 

and cumbersome backpacks and paper textbooks. 

Other types of computing devices students suggested include: talking computer, mind 

controlled computer, cell phone computer or a cell phone with Internet access, a small 

computer that opens up to a bigger computer, and a watch computer. Some students 

suggested a more affordable computer; of these, some suggested that a more affordable 

computer would allow more students to have one for schoolwork. 

I Don’t Want to Type: Many students expressed interest in voice activated computers 

and Internet access. Some students also expressed a desire for touch screen computers. 

A few students explained that these features were needed because of their inadequate 

keyboarding skills. 

Make It Part of the Real Desk Top: Some students suggested building computers right 

into every classroom desk. A few students described how the desk computers would 

work: they would open up from inside the desk when needed, and fold back down when a 

flat desk surface was needed. This concept may partially reflect a desire for providing a 

computer for each student, in every classroom. 

Make Mine Multifunctional—the Digital Swiss Army Knife: Students expressed 

interest in having numerous kinds of functions embodied in a single digital device. These 

include: CD player, DVD player, calculator, digital camera, text and instant messaging, 

Internet access, web address book, music player, cell phone, MP3 player, TV, iPod, 

CD/DVD burner, USB port, printer, dictionary, thesaurus, atlas, watch, tape recorder, 

games, study guides, and almanac. 

Other devices students described include: an array of digital organizers, planners, and 

schedulers; digital note taking devices; computer or Internet-based video phones; 

electronic dictionaries; and some sort of functional pencil including talking pencils, and 

pencils that also serve as a dictionary, cell phone, or calculator. 

 

 
10 

What would you like to see invented that you think will help kids learn in the future? 

Student Views...Devices: 

Make it Small: 

• Cell phone that has a calculator, organizer, and a computer built in. 

• Cell phone with Internet access we can use at school to help us with schoolwork. 

• Handheld interactive thing that has textbooks in it, and all you do is download it from the 

computer and start studying! 

• Small computer that can be held in your palm. 

• Small computer that has the Internet and fits in your pocket. 

• Small handheld computer-like things that quiz you for tests and stuff with multiple-choice 

answers. 

• Palm Pilot that had all the school textbooks downloaded into it, with Internet access and school 

schedules, so you could do your homework on it and that would be all you had to carry around. 

• Palm Pilot that has the Internet, and kids can use them in school instead of textbooks. 

• A pocket computer would be cool. 

• Pocket size computer. 

• Portable computer about the size of a cell phone. 

• Computer that would expand big when we need it big and then it would scrunch down to fit in our 

pockets. 

• Minicomputers that we carry around so we can store our homework in that way, so we don’t have 

to carry backpacks and stuff, also so we don’t lose our papers and books. 

• Mini palms to plug into the school system to download homework, update calendars, and 

interactive web. 

• Computer that's smaller and could be almost as big as a textbook and it wouldn't weigh so much. 

A foldable keyboard would also be handy. I would make a computer with no wires or plugs, so all 

you would have to do is turn on the computer. 

• Students should be able to have a rather small computer that can be stored in a small backpack or 

can be carried easily with them throughout the school day. 

• Little hand held devices that can be plugged into a desk. It would write down all of your 

homework and notes so you wouldn't have to carry a big backpack to school. 

• Laptop that could fit in your pocket, and when you use them you could just push a button and they 

would be their regular size and accessible to use. 

• Smaller laptop computers for students. Textbooks are out of style and they put a lot of weight on 

a student’s back. Students will grow up with a hunch on their backs and they would be slouching 

for the rest of their lives. 

• Talking computers so they can talk and explain as you work. 

• Computers that talk back to us. 

I Don’t Want to Type 

• Talking to the computer for kids who can't type, like a disability. 

• Voice activated computers. Instead of typing everything you want to say, why not just say what 

you want and it will search for it automatically. 

Put It on The Real Desk Top: 

• Desk that can flip over and become a computer. 

• Computers built into our desks, so we could close them to do paper work. 

• Desk that kids can sit in and when they want to use a computer, they don't have to go to the 

computer lab, and they would have one built right in their desks. Also, it will not get in their way 

because you can always flip the desk. 
11 

Make Mine Multifunctional: 

• Phone/computer/camera so kids could study nature while writing and maybe call someone to tell 

them about what you found. 

• Palm pilot/dictionary/textbook/thesaurus put altogether. 

• Phone/computer/email/games device. 

• Supercomputer that links a computer, a TV, a video game, a fax machine, and a GPS system. 

Other: 

• Pencil that will repeat what the teacher said if you forget what he or she said. 

• Pencil with a built in calculator. 

 

 
12 

In the words of the Visions 2020 authors: 

They (students) each place a copy of today’s work file in their digital backpack, a rugged 

mobile personal computer and communications console “checked out” by each student at 

the beginning of the school year, the way textbooks used to be issued. Malia’s 

“digipack” allows her to spend some more time on her volcanoes project later in the 

afternoon after walking a few blocks to her father’s office. 

Mailia and two of her classmates, Sahar and Osvaldo, are seated in comfortable task 

chairs at a multimedia production and communications station. Facing them is a highresolution luminescent display screen, viewable from front and back, where combinations 

of images, text, and digital video can be summoned by voice command. “Give us our 

team project on volcanoes,” Osvaldo asks the school’s server, enabling the team to 

review its progress during the previous week. 

Later that night at home, Malia is practicing her Chinese in the family room. She hopes 

to visit China one day and has been using an online language learning system to gain 

proficiency in basic Chinese conversation, reading, and writing. Her younger sister, 

Sonia, likes to look on...They both hold handheld digital devices serving as ChineseEnglish dictionaries for looking up words and phrases in both languages, in text and 

audio. They can also store their own spoken phrases. 

 Milton Chen and Stephen Arnold 

 

Alec and Arielle strolled through Harvard Yard on their way to the museum, to collect 

data for their class assignment. Each carried a handheld device that softly pulsed every 

time they walked past a building in the Yard. The vibration signaled that the building 

would share information about its architecture, history, purpose, and inhabitants, using 

interactive wireless data transfer. 

 Chris Dede 

 

In 20 years, handheld (or wearable) computers will be able to calculate 10,000 times 

faster than they can today, and will thus begin to rival the data processing capability of 

the human brain. They will be the hubs of digital assistants that could store more textual 

information than a human could read in 10 lifetimes. Such assistants will combine the 

present functions of telephones, web browsers, and recorders and players of both audio 

and video. Through wireless web access, they will be able to download far more video 

information than a human could watch in a lifetime. 

 Stan Williams 
13 

ACCESS 

Many students expressed ideas and views concerning their access to computers, the 

Internet, and telecommunications, as well as their thoughts on the qualities of that access: 

A Computer for Every Student: Students registered high interest in the notion that every 

student should have a computer for his or her personal use in school and to take home for 

doing homework. Only the concept of “intelligent tutor/helper” drew more interest than 

the idea that all students should have a computer. A laptop was frequently cited as the 

type of computer that all students should have. 

The Need for Speed: Perhaps reflecting lack of high-speed Internet access or an aging 

stock of computers, many students expressed a desire for faster computers and faster 

Internet access. Only the “intelligent tutor/helper” and “computer for every student” 

concepts drew greater interest than the need for speed. 

I Want It Wireless: Many students expressed an interest in wireless technologies, 

especially wireless computers and Internet access. In addition, students mentioned 

wireless keyboards, speakers, radio, CD player, walkman, and headphones. Wireless 

attributes were closely linked to the mobility of computers and Internet access with a 

significant number of students citing a desire for mobile, portable, or any place 

computing and Internet access. 

Make it Safe and Easy to Use: Many student responders described attributes of a kidfriendly Internet. This includes a safe Internet where there are no “bad” websites, 

viruses, pop-up ads, spyware, or hackers. A kid-friendly Internet was also described as 

one that was age-appropriate, including kid-friendly search engines and information on 

websites presented at a level that students can understand. Some students expressed 

interest in search engines that produce more fine-tuned responses to inquiries, as well as 

websites that did not contain factual errors. 

24-7 Access: Some students expressed interest in having access to computers and the 

Internet at any time—day and night. This included access to school networks from home. 

Work With Me: Students cited a desire for access to digital platforms for collaborating 

with others on schoolwork and homework. These include chat rooms, instant messaging, 

and e-mail. Collaboration included peer-to-peer, student-to-teacher, and student-toparent. 
14 

What would you like to see invented that you think will help kids learn in the future? 

Student Views...Access: 

A Computer for Every Student: 

• I would like to have all high schools required to loan laptops to the students for four years, and 

place all of the textbooks and tests online so as for the sick people, they won't miss any kind of 

class. 

• Laptop that didn't sell for much so that every student could have one on their desk. 

• We already have laptops, but to see every student with an updated laptop to use with software that 

will aid them in their schoolwork will be nice. This could lessen the strain on students because the 

computers can be used to ask commonly asked questions. 

• I think that everyone should have a computer beside them so, if they need to look up something 

right then and there, then they could look up what they need to. 

• We all should have hand held computers with all of our books and notes that we took. That would 

be a good invention because carrying around all of those books is just a big waste of energy. 

• Laptop computers should be given as a school supply to every student in the future. 

• Laptop computers for each student to use while they are listening to the teacher and, that way, they 

can look up information if they don't understand what the teacher is teaching. 

• Faster computers and a computer for everyone. It would be a laptop and it could be everything for 

a student—his text books, his papers, encyclopedia, and online research. 

• It would be awesome if we could one day provide each and every student with a laptop computer. 

They could use it for taking notes, researching data, and personal tutoring. 

The Need for Speed: 

• Faster modems would help the kids in the future. It would make things a lot easier for them, and 

they wouldn't have to worry about not getting stuff done because of the time it takes for everything 

to load. 

• We need new, faster computers. 

I Want It Wireless: 

• Make computers everywhere, even on the playground, so you could use them whenever you 

wanted, wherever you wanted. 

• Wireless Internet everywhere: in the park, at home, hospitals, and everywhere else. That way there 

will be wireless, trouble-free Internet wherever you go. That will give the child a chance to learn 

wherever he is. 

• Laptop computers that are built into every wall, so that you could always have technology no 

matter where you are. 

Make It Safe and Easy to Use: 

• Easier version of the Internet for the younger people. 

• Something should be invented that filters out incorrect information on any website. It is very 

misleading and confusing to find different facts on different websites, so it would be very helpful 

if there were a way to filter out wrong information. 

• Something that blocked all viruses/spam/pop-ups that makes it harder to get to websites. 

• Better ways to use technology without all of the bad pop-ups and viruses to protect the 

information we have on our computers every day. 

• Firewall that will not limit students to what they research. But I would like them to block out 

adult sites, game sites, and anything to download or buy. 

• Search engine made just for kids that allows them to select sites by subjects. 

• More websites that make it easier to do research by having texts in more simple language. Often, 

when doing research, I find it difficult to understand text that could help my cause and I'd like to 

see that made a bit more user-friendly. 
15 

• Separate Internet service for kids, so we can't get into anything that we aren't supposed to be in. 

Also, so when we get homework, we can get the information we need and not have to look in such 

a broad area of the Internet. 

• Better search engine because, now a days, when you search just on Google you get a ton of 

unnecessary things that you don't need, or even want to see! 

24-7 Access: 

• Access your school’s network from online at your own home. 

• Access to the school websites and information from our houses, because it would help a lot with 

school projects and homework. 

Work With Me: 

• Internet that lets us IM people within the school so that, if we needed help on a project, we could 

ask a fellow student or teacher. 

• Special network for all schools across the country that allows students from all different schools to 

talk and discuss with each other their assignments should be made. 

• Computer that lets you talk to other students about work. I think we should have IM on school 

computers and, if a student can’t get up to ask a question or talk, you can just IM someone! 

 

 
16 

In the words of the VISIONS 2020 authors: 

Wireless workstations allow students into a range of virtual environments to assemble 

research teams, collaborate, mentor and teach each other. 

 Vinton Cerf and Caleb Shutz 

 

Malia’s “digipack” allows her to spend some more time on her volcanoes project later in 

the afternoon after walking a few blocks to her father’s office. As she waits for him to 

finish his work, she uses it to connect to the school’s library information systems and the 

now-widely-available wireless network. 

 Milton Chen and Steven Arnold 

 

Alec and Arielle strolled through Harvard Yard on their way to the museum, to collect 

data for their class assignment. Each carried a handheld device (HD) that softly pulsed 

every time they walked past a building in the Yard. The vibration signaled that the 

building would share information about its architecture, history, purpose, and inhabitants, 

using interactive wireless data transfer. Sometimes Alec would stop and use his HD to 

ask questions about an interesting looking location. 

 Chris Dede 

 

Eddy has a team deliverable due to be presented in his first class period. He will review 

the presentation with his team through his two-way video tablet on the way to school. 

(Riding the bus) Eddy has been in constant communication with his team going over last 

minute details for the presentation and they’re good to go. 

 Randy Hinrichs 

 

The ability to send video and audio in real time, from one place to another, means that 

students will develop a cultural notion of telepresence, where when something interesting 

is happening, a student will instantaneously broadcast it to his/her peer group. This will 

move the learning experience to be “anytime, anywhere,” as opposed to the 8-3 M-F 

notion. 

 Randy Pausch 

 

Mr. Parsons shows Melissa’s parents how 24-hour wireless access to the technology and 

materials (for physics class) lets Melissa revisit concepts at a time and pace that best suit 

her. 

 John Wilson 
17 

INTELLIGENT TUTOR/HELPER 

No concept drew greater interest from the student responders than some sort of an 

intelligent tutor/helper. Math was the most often mentioned subject for which tutoring 

help was needed. Many students desired such a tutor or helper for use in school and at 

home. In addition, there was significant interest in a single, all-knowing information 

resource: 

Help, I Need Somebody: While many students referred generically to a tutor or helper, 

others were more specific, describing: a live tutor at a web site or just a tutoring web site, 

on-line tutor or counselor, a holographic or virtual tutor, on-line experts, and the ever 

popular robot tutor. 

Help Me With My Homework: Some students expressed interest specifically in a device 

that would help them with their homework, including the homework robot, homework 

helper, homework help website, homework checker, and the on-line study buddy. 

The Oracle: Many students expressed interest in an “answer machine,” through which a 

student could pose a specific question and the machine would respond with an answer. 

Similarly, some students described a sort of knowledge utility. Through a computer or an 

Internet web site, students could access all of the world’s knowledge from any location. 
18 

What would you like to see invented that you think will help kids learn in the future? 

Student Views...Tutor/Helper: 

Help, I Need Somebody: 

• Robots to help us to do our schoolwork. 

• Talk into a speaker and say what you need help with, then it will bring up a website that tells about 

that subject. 

• Tutoring system that can help children at home. It should be something that can adapt to a child’s 

learning speed and that can help a child when parents are at work or when they need to be prepped 

for subjects at school. 

• Personal computer tutors. It would be like a tape recorder that you let play during class then, from 

that, it would create questions to help you study based on everything talked about in that particular 

class. 

• Robot that would live in your house and tutor the kids. 

• Tutoring systems that really know how a child thinks and how he or she will best absorb the 

information. 

• Helpers like tutors online 24-7 for your school, so that they can help you with your assignments 

when you need it. The tutors should be from your school so that they know what you’re talking 

about so that they can help you get it. 

• Tutoring systems that really know how a child thinks and how he or she will best absorb the 

information. 

• Helpers like tutors online 24-7 for your school, so that they can help you with your assignments 

when you need it. The tutors should be from your school so that they know what you’re talking 

about so that they can help you get it. 

• Simulator after-school tutor that has the latest education knowledge that will help you with your 

homework, studying, and/or to help us relearn what we learned in school. Oh, and also that it is 

available 24/7. 

• An instant tutor should be on at all times for students who need help at that exact moment. 

• Website that has suggestions from Stanford students on how to get better on your worst subjects. 

• Human-like robot that can study and test us over materials that we are learning. 

• Robot in every house or school. They will make the kid do the work and then make the 

corrections so that the kid will know how to go step-by-step through every problem properly. 

• Program that would enable you to talk to your teachers during the afternoon hours on the 

computer for help on assignments. 

• Reading helper books to assist with difficult words. 

• Math website that would allow you to type in any math problem, and it gives you the answer and 

shows you how it is done, step-by-step. 

• Home hologram teacher, so you can ask it questions or re-teach a thing that you didn't get at 

school. 

• Invention that would help kids study for tests. 

Help Me With My Homework: 

• Educational sites that will help students on homework lessons after school and during weekends 

when teachers are not available. 

• Hologram of your teacher that you can access when working at home. 

• Robot that can answer questions when doing homework. 

• Site that could help us with our homework. Sometimes our teachers explain it to us but we still 

don't get it. 

• Computer robot to help kids with homework and ways to get around in life. 

• Device that helps kids with homework. It will help them but not give them the answer. It will help 

them review. It would be perfect for kids who don’t see their parents a lot. 

• Homework checking machine. The reason I would like a homework-checking machine is to make 

sure I get them right. It would help every kid in the universe. 
19 

• Homework helper, because some kids don’t have parents or anyone else at home to help them and, 

if they don’t understand it, then they deserve help. 

• The Homework Helper. It will be an online website that you can go to and ask any question. It 

will definitely help people keep their grades up, and it will explain the answer so that they will 

understand it. 

• Hologram that’s a teacher that, when you need it, it comes out and helps the kids with homework 

and it’s at your house so everyone can have one. 

• Homework helper. If a kid is stuck on something they can ask the homework helper and it will 

help you. 

• Homework helpers. They would be used only if students did not understand. 

• Robot to help them on their homework, explaining anything if they don’t get it. 

• Robot to help us with our homework and give us hints about what we are learning. 

The Oracle: 

• Device that can help children learn by explaining answers. 

• 24-hour computer that could answer oral and typed questions immediately and could teach you 

anything you wanted to know about. It would be kind of like a 24-hour teacher. 

• Type of technology that has answers about almost anything. You can just type in a question and it 

gives you one simple answer. 

• Website that acts as a huge encyclopedia. That would help out a lot of kids. 

• Webpage with the world’s information! 

• Program that enables us to find whatever we want on any type of subject. 

• One super site with information about everything on it. 

• Program about all answers, theories, and ideas about the world. A lot of people will learn a lot. 

Everyone will be happy. 

• Computer system that will give the answer to any question the student asks, and then give them 

the reason for that answer. 
20 

In the words of the Visions 2020 authors: 

Each child has his or her own virtual mentor that can be accessed anytime. The mentor follows the 

children’s activities on-line, suggesting new ideas and dialoguing interactively to understand the student’s 

emotions and competencies. On-line content is filtered by the virtual mentor, who constantly reports 

noteworthy events to the parents, teachers, and other interested parties 

If the student is struggling with a concept, the intelligent tutoring services turn on automatically.... If the 

student is having difficulty with complex processes or principles either assisted or augmented reality is 

initiated and the student jumps into a virtual world scenario that gives them an enhanced perspective of the 

problem and allows them to play the actor solving problems. 

Eddy begins a dialogue with plant specialists whom he encountered over the Internet. The software 

recognizes that Eddy struggles with some terminology, as his interaction rate seems too low. His questions 

don’t seem to map directly to the content. His virtual mentor immediately provides support resources and 

appears on his screen ready to show and tell. The virtual mentor asks Eddy some questions and explains 

some of the concepts that he is having trouble with. 

As the team leader moves from one key concept to the next, a Q&A session appears on the screen to check 

to see if Sumi understands the concepts. The video session pauses as Sumi answers the questions, 

messaging to her co-workers for clarification. Sumi is struggling with one concept and her virtual mentor 

appears with more detail and a short video that was served up on the topic. The virtual mentor knows that 

Sumi is a visual learner and responds better to video with examples. After further explanation and followup questions, Sumi is still struggling with the topic, so a teaching assistant is notified and automatically 

schedules a meeting to help Sumi understand the material. 

 Randy Hinrichs 

Teachers and learners will be able to call on a variety of human tutors, counselors and experts and summon 

a variety of automated help systems for addressing routine questions. Learners will work face-to-face with 

teachers and tutors and be able to call on a worldwide network of subject-matter experts and other 

specialists when interesting questions arise. Sophisticated tools will help diagnose sources of confusion 

and suggest new learning strategies based on analysis of the experience of large numbers of learners facing 

similar situations. 

 Learning Federation 

By a combination of infinite patience and a model of what the individual student’s difficulties are, the 

software can tailor problems and explanations of solutions to address the current conceptions (and 

misconceptions), much as an experienced teacher would. 

 Randy Pausch 

The transformation of the Internet into a system for rich experiences will bring about the creation of 

massive distributed on-line archives of past lectures, interactive presentations, simulations, proficiency 

testing, and problem presentations. This new content, designed specifically for these new technologies, 

will replace current textbooks and workbooks with a national resource of high-production and content 

quality materials, cross-indexed and customized for individuals or classes. Once created, the archives will 

be updated and further improved by continuous contributions and links from teachers, production groups, 

and authors anywhere. 

 Ulrich Neumann and Chris Kyriakakis
21 

How Students Want to Learn Using Technology 

Students responding to the NetDay “what would you like to see invented” question 

described a wide range of uses of technology for learning. Many described some sort of 

hardware/software-enabled learning process, while others described certain kinds of 

capabilities or attributes that technology could bring to learning. 

Make it a Game: Many students expressed interest in learning games, with some 

commenting that these games would make learning fun, or reduce boredom at school. 

Math, especially, and science were identified as subjects that might be easier to learn by 

using learning games. 

Take Me There: Many students said that a time machine or some sort of virtual world 

should be invented. The time machine would allow students to witness and experience 

historic events first-hand. In a similar notion, the teleporter or transporter would take 

students to other places, for example, to study a foreign culture or land. 

On-line Classes: Many students expressed an interest in taking on-line or computer 

classes, and many expressed interest in taking on-line or virtual classes from their homes. 

Some mentioned that this would be a way to keep up or go to class when sick. A few 

described a virtual classroom where students would come together virtually rather than 

physically, or an individual cyber classroom that would come to you. 

Working Digitally: Strong interest was expressed in doing school work on the computer 

or on-line. This includes, generically, doing some or all work at school on the computer 

or on-line, as well as doing homework on a computer, on-line, or at a web site. Specific 

work or functions singled-out for computer or on-line performance include: taking notes 

using a computer; using on-line tests, quizzes, and worksheets; taking on-line practice 

tests, and quizzes; as well as having access to on-going assessment of student learning 

performance. Some students expressed a desire for a web site specifically related to the 

work they are doing, or the subjects and textbooks they are studying in school. Others 

proposed on-line study tools and guides, and project guides. Some students had interest 

in using e-mail or instant messaging as a way to receive school assignments, to get help 

from the teacher, or to turn in homework. Some students saw instant messaging and chat 

groups as tools for collaborating on schoolwork and homework. A few students were 

interested in a personal web-based work site for scheduling, and for following their 

assignments and grades on-line. 

A Different Kind of Teacher: Some students expressed interest in some sort of a digital 

teacher. Descriptions include: on-line teacher, computer/virtual/electronic teacher, robot 

teacher, and holographic teacher. A few students wanted a robot or holographic teacher 

for the home. 
22 

A Different Kind of Book: Many students expressed interest in using some sort of ebook or on-line textbook. A few students expressed interest in talking books and books 

one could interact with. Some students cited benefits of these e-books such as freedom 

from carrying heavy backpacks and never having to worry about losing your textbook. 

Attributes of the Learning Process: Some students suggested that learning be 

personalized based on how an individual learns best. Tailored learning was also 

suggested as being beneficial for those students with disabilities. Using virtual reality, 3-

D, or some kind of visualization was suggested as a way to present material in a way that 

some students could better understand. Some students suggested that simulations or a 

simulated laboratory would aid in learning. Interactivity was cited as an attribute needed 

in learning, as was the need for digital tools to provide step-by-step instruction or 

problem-solving, even repeatedly in case the student didn’t master the material in the first 

few attempts. 

Give It To Me Straight Up: A significant number of students described physical 

interfaces with some device, product, or process or some thing that would automatically 

transfer knowledge directly into the brain. These include: hat, helmet, pill, brain 

transplant or implant, chewing gum, port or plug in one’s head for downloading 

information to the brain, injection, implanted microchip, laser beam, eye patch, mask, 

thinking cap, holographic projection into brain, baseball cap with learning waves, some 

sort of transmission while sleeping, brainwaves sent from robot, virtual reality headset, 

and transfer from teacher via a helmet. 
23 

What would you like to see invented that you think will help kids learn in the future? 

Student Views...How We Want to Learn Using Technology: 

Make It A Game: 

• A way kids could have fun doing their homework. Someone could invent videogame homework. 

I don't really like homework so that would be a good idea. 

• Something disguised to be a game so they don't know they're learning. But they really are! 

• Better computer games to help students learn more. 

• Animal learning games, sorting games, and more math and reading games. 

• Video games that help us have fun and help us learn at the same time 

• Video games that reenact historic events or scientific experiments. People love video games, and 

what better way to learn than through telling the story, while being able to reenact it. 

Take Me There: 

• Time machine so we can go back into the past so we can do our colonist projects easier. 

• Teleport machine that would let kids go to the dark, depths of the ocean, or maybe rain forests to 

study. 

• Transporter so you can go into the past and meet all the other presidents, and people like Albert 

Einstein. 

• New simulations on historic battles where you see the battle where generals wish they had the 

view. 

• I would like a more interactive type of learning. Maybe you could put on a helmet and it would 

transfer you to a holographic place that you need to learn about. 

• How about a time machine. It would help to learn if you could see it first hand. 

• Things like virtual reality careers we could do. We would be able to work in an environment in 

which we would have to work in the future without actually being there, but still be able to explore 

and see what it would be like. 

• 3-D simulators would help kids learn about stuff. For example, I think kids would remember the 

crossing of the Delaware River if they actually experienced it through 3-D software! 

• Time machines would help us because we can experience history first-hand. 

• TIME TRAVEL ALL THE WAY, BABY!!! Then, students could meet the people they always 

studied. Then, social studies wouldn't be so BORING! Students could give the person they give a 

report on a face, a character, a real live human being, not just a painting. 

• 3-D simulators to reenact historic events. 

• Computer that has a virtual tour on it so, when looking up a country, you can go onto the computer 

and get a tour of it. 

• Virtual reality textbooks which you place the disk in the goggles and then you learn by actually 

being in the lesson. 

• Virtual reality classrooms where if you are studying the moon, you can make it seem as though 

you are on the moon, and if you are studying an important historical event, you can make it seem 

as though you are in that event. 

On-Line Classes: 

• Computer with a built in school system so you can learn at home without going to school. 

• If I was sick there would be a camera and I could push a button and connect to the school. 

• Computers that talk back to us. When you are sick, you can get online and your teacher is online 

so it is like you are at school. 

• Virtual class room, where kids can stay at home and learn. The teacher could be on the computer 

or on a T.V. screen with a video camera or a web cam. This way, no one would have to miss a 

day of school if they were sick. 

• Special place to go to school. I think that every new home should have a room in it with a robot 

teacher. That would be their own individual school. 
24 

• Being able to be at school yet in your house, and be able to look at the computer and see the 

classroom filled with people, yet nobody is in the classroom. Everybody is at home like you are. 

You could learn at your own pace. 

• Hologram teacher so when the student is sick he or she would still learn the same thing he or she 

would learn in class and not fall behind. 

Working Digitally: 

• Hologram Homework Helmet. Instead of carrying three or more textbooks and dozens of folders 

with you in your backpack, just take a HHH (Hologram Homework Helmet). It's lightweight and 

easy to carry. Just put it on and, presto!, your homework is right in front of you. 

• Talking computers so they can talk and explain as you work. 

• IM on school computers and, if a student can’t get up to ask a question or talk, you can just IM 

someone! 

• Website with different subjects and teachers there to teach students different subjects. That way, 

we can go to school anytime we want and we wouldn't have to wake up so early in the morning to 

catch the bus. 

• Site for every school with all the homework and a description of the assignment each day would 

be great. 

• Before the marking period closes, students can see their grades online to see what work and 

assignments they’re missing or if they failed on an assignment they can improve it. 

• Homework website where you can go there and get information on a report, and get ideas on how 

to start. 

• Something that looks like a GPS but has world maps on it, globes, and other things that teachers 

would ask students to get out in the middle of the day. 

• CDs that have every word from in your textbooks and all the assignments that would be taken 

home by the students. 

A Different Kind of Teacher: 

• Hologram of your teacher that you can access when working at home. 

• Very good software where we can just talk to a teacher online because after school we might have 

a question that your mom or dad can’t answer. 

• Computer that is like a personal teacher that has a lot of patience and that can speak. 

• Teacher for every student, but not real teachers. They should be holograms and they should know 

everything possible 

• Holographic teacher to take home so it could help you. 

• Private interactive teachers online would help kids learning in the future 

• Real teachers online 

• Robotic teachers so we could learn more stuff and not get yelled at as often. 

• Every kid should get their own teacher robot. 

• Kids should have a holograph teacher for their own. They could always be able to help the kids. 

• Robot teacher. 

• Holographic teachers that can give you a three dimensional image of whatever you are learning 

about. 

• On-line teacher than can talk to you and answer your questions in an easy, simple way. 

• Personal AI teacher for every student. 

A Different Kind of Book: 

• Every time you have trouble with a word the book would tell you the word. 

• All of our textbooks on CD or DVD. 

• We could invent reading helper books to assist with difficult words. 

• Electronic books would be cool. Maybe have books that you can read but, if you click parts that 

you don’t understand, it explains it more. 
25 

• All our textbooks on laptops. That way, we don’t have to worry about forgetting any thing. 

• Digital books that read the lesson to you, and teach you specific things. The thing would be voicesensitive so you could read, and it would correct your reading. 

• Dictionary that talks. So when kids find a word they can't pronounce, they listen to the dictionary 

pronounce it for them. 

• Basic books should be made online with visuals, demonstrations, and also with text to help people 

who learn differently still be able to learn at the same rate as other students. 

• Electronic books that not only have words to read in it but, in the back, it has a screen with little 

demonstrations for all different types of learners. 

Attributes of the Learning Process: 

• Talking computer so that the computer could help to teach students one on one. 

• Computers that can produce realistic images of any subject. For example, the operation of 

machines or human organs. 

• It would be helpful, since I'm an auditory learner, if we had special kinds of notebooks that we 

could write notes in, and we could have a little recorder in it so we could record the lesson and 

play it back to help us learn and understand our lesson! 

• Type of personal computer to help many different people on different learning levels without 

rushing them. 

• Personal computer (or program) that would adapt to the knowledge of the user. With the 

knowledge the computer has about the user’s strengths and weaknesses in a certain area, it will be 

able to know what techniques to use to teach. 

• 3-D simulations in classes such as science because often materials needed are not safe or available. 

• Piece of technology that was set to the kid’s specific needs (i.e., it would help this person with 

10th grade math while another person with 5th grade math; same for all subjects). 

• Advancements in simulation technology, which would be useful for teaching anything 

complicated. 

Give It To Me Straight Up 

• Mind helmets—helmets that will transmit information directly to the student's brain.

• I would like to see all technological learning to be in a shot form that you get when you turn 5. 

Then POOF!!, you know everything you need to know for school. 

 
26 

In the words of the Visions 2020 authors: 

The most advanced and most desirable technology is the creation of a teleimmersive environment for 

teaching and learning. This is a three dimensional virtual space, which mimics the real space visually, 

aurally, and tactually. It is one in which both the student/apprentice and teacher/master can meet and 

interact. This technology does not exist yet but it is very feasible from what we know today. The 

advantages of such as environment are many. First, the students and teachers do not have to be physically 

co-located. Secondly, the teacher can advise/coach several students and yet the student would feel that 

he/she is the only one getting the teacher’s full attention. 

 Ruzena Bajcsy 

Asynchronous learning, or self-paced online learning now allows students to do most of their work outside 

of a standard, shortened lecture or presentation. Once equipped and capable to use core math and science 

principles, students were free to explore their world. This allows me to spend more time interacting with 

students individually to cover particular strengths and weaknesses. 

 Vinton Cerf and Caleb Schutz 

Yesterday, donning special virtual reality headgear, they had gone on a simulated trip to the lava fields, 

giving them an on-the-ground sensation of hiking across acres of older lava formations to arrive at a scene 

of bright orange lava flowing towards the sea. “How cool was that,” Malia grins. “You could hear the lava 

crackling.” Last night, from their homes, they had brainstormed some questions in preparation for an 

interview with a volcano expert, scheduled for today. 

 Milton Chen and Stephen Arnold 

Alec’s favorite exhibits were those augmented by virtual environments. For example, at a panorama 

showing the bones found at a tar pit, Alec’s HD (handheld device) depicted a virtual reconstruction of the 

dinosaurs that were trapped at that prehistoric location. In the virtual environment, he could assume the 

perspective of each species and walk or fly or swim through its typical habitat. Other types of exhibitlinked virtual environments enabled “time travel” to show how a particular spot on the earth’s surface had 

changed over the eons. For each epoch, Alec used virtual probes on his HD to collect data about 

temperature, air pressure, elevation, and pollutants. 

 Chris Dede 

Alicia likes animals a great deal and the group is going to experience how elephant families are similar to 

their own. Upon entering the virtual safari, she immediately experiences the size and weight of the 

elephants as they are presented in a 3-D environment where she feels as if she could reach out and touch 

them. During the safari, the virtual mentor points out how elephants are similar to our families and how 

important the mother is to the survival of the babies. 

Students work in sophisticated visual environments deconstructing and constructing objects on the screen 

allowing them to question why things work the way they do. Imagine students using intelligent reusable 

visual components to build a plane that flies, a bridge that spans a ravine, or an electronic device that can 

actually be built by another team. As students work in simulated environments with smart objects, they 

begin to understand the underlying scientific principles... 

Today in science, Eddy is completing his personalized learning project. This project was designed 

especially for Eddy’s learning style and allows him to use an observation-based instructional process. 

While outside, Eddy works on the effects of light on plants, using his virtual biosphere to experiment. 

 Randy Hinrichs 
27 

Coursework could include being turned loose in a virtual representation of Renaissance Venice and asked 

to find the secret behind the legendary blue coloring of their glass, engineering and building a (virtual) 

bridge over a (virtual) Mississippi River, navigating the interior of a (virtual) pancreatic cell to determine 

why signals reaching it do not stimulate insulin, or being given a broken (virtual) avionics system from a 

Boeing 777 and asked to repair it. 

A combination of automated monitoring tools, tutors and other specialists will make it possible to 

continuously adjust the pace, nature and style of the learning process to ensure a learning experience 

optimized for each learner. Instead of being forced to move all learners forward at a uniform rate, teachers 

will be able to move each individual forward at a rate consistent with his or her measured performance in 

each area. No one will be forced forward before demonstrating comfort and confidence in the concepts 

being learned. 

 Learning Federation 

Imagine a group of students from around the nation in the science classroom of the future as they embark 

on a mission of exploration. The room is transformed into a fully immersive aural and visual environment 

that makes them feel like they are really in the same place together.... Together they begin to travel through 

a human cell. As they move through this beautiful yet unfamiliar landscape of curious objects, the 

immersive environment entices them to ask questions of each other and their teacher, to explore 

fundamental principles, and to form robust models of complex processes. 

The term interactivity will be transformed from mouse-clicking and instant messaging to realistic, life-sized 

representations of teachers and classmates sitting next to you and talking. Imagine students interacting 

with avatars of James Watson and Francis Crick tutoring and guiding them on the discovery of the DNA 

structure. Imagine students immersed in a role playing experience at the Continental Congress during the 

Revolutionary War era. 

 Ulrich Neumann and Chris Kyriakakis 

Ms. Fuentes and Mr. Jackson are debriefing her students on their virtual participation in historical events. 

In Ms. Fuentes’ class, Joshua and Alice have just finished participating in the Founding Fathers’ debate 

over the approach to states’ rights in the founding of the Constitution. The opportunity to question 

Jefferson and Hamilton has given them much to contemplate on how to develop national unity and which 

decisions are best made at the state versus the national level. 

Ms. Alfonso is spending her daily two hours of planning time reviewing the regular digital diagnostic 

assessment from each of her student’s work and crafting approaches to help each of them. Her feedback 

tools indicate that a new approach is helping Darren understand multiplication better, but exponents still 

seem to be a problem. Ms. Alfonso is working with colleagues to identify the best way to help Darren with 

this lingering problem. The feedback also shows that the program allowing students to virtually build and 

touch three-dimensional objects appears to be helping Jennifer’s understanding of geometry, and allowing 

her to study solid geometry at a relatively young age. 

Mr. Monopolis is finishing up a conversation with Jessica’s mother. He has noticed that Jessica appears 

distracted in class and her work shows a lack of concentration. Jessica’s grandmother is ill, and the family 

may have to travel to a neighboring state to see her. Jessica is worried about her grandmother, as well as 

about falling behind in schoolwork and not seeing her friends. Mr. Monopolis is outlining for Jessica’s 

mom how she can attend school through wireless video conferencing while she is away, and even visit with 

her classmates during lunch break. The materials already online describe what the class is studying this 

semester, and Jessica’s parents plan to review it in more depth so they can monitor Jessica’s work while 

they are out of town. They also plan to communicate regularly with her teachers. 

 John Wilson 
28 

As she clicks through the footnotes she comes across a website showing the evolution of ship design 

through the centuries. She is immediately taken with the style and design of the Viking long ship. A 

footnote there brings her to a game where she gets to control a Viking colony. After playing the game for a 

while she decides to order a book, a fictional account of Viking culture that was noted during part of the 

game. 

 Will Wright 

Their research using the Global Learning Network has led them to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park 

website, where they have witnessed several hours of video footage of volcanic eruptions, observed 

volcanologists at work tracking and measuring lava flows, and watched interviews with them. The site 

included a 3-D time-lapse hologram of the1983 Mount Kilauea eruption on the Big Island. Through the 

time compression of time-lapse photography, they were able to witness lava flows over the past 40 years. 

Malia asks, “A few weeks ago, we had a small earthquake here. We felt it but it didn’t damage anything. 

How are earthquakes related to volcanoes?” On another screen, Ranger Levitt calls up a simulation of plate 

tectonics and shows them cross-sections of the Earth, as well as aerial satellite photos from different 

elevations, with overlaid graphics indicating earthquake fault zones in the Bay Area and then San 

Francisco.” 

 Milton Chen and Stephen Arnold 

As students work on building a motor, large screen displays coordinate visualizations for them to work 

together. They see visual designs on their devices and they build the motor from graphical components that 

simulate what they’ll be doing in the laboratory. All their notes, their conversations with other students, 

their workflow, their graphics and video captured during their research period are all recorded and stored 

for student review. 

So many automated processes have been built in for them: inquiry style, learning style, personalized 

activity selection, multimedia preferences, physical requirements, and favorite hardware devices. If the 

student is in research mode, natural dialogue inquiry and social filtering tools configure a working 

environment for asking questions and validating hypotheses. If students like rich multimedia and are 

working in astronomy, they automatically are connected to the Sky Server which accesses all the telescopic 

pictures of the stars, introduces an on-line expert talking about the individual constellations, and pulls up a 

chatting environment with other students who are looking at the same environment. 

 Randy Hinrichs 

In 20 years, we’ll have eyeglass displays that will be able to project virtual or recorded images that the 

wearer will perceive as immersive three-dimensional reality. Such glasses will be able to overlay or blend 

telemetry, virtual images and the real world almost seamlessly. A person will be able to see someone 

seated across a table, and—in the next “seat”—another person physically located halfway around the globe. 

 Stan Williams 
29 

Visions 2020 Authors Cited: 

Ruzena Bajcsy 

Director 

Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society 

University of California at Berkeley 

Vinton Cert 

Vice President for Internet Architecture and Technology 

WorldCom 

Caleb Schutz 

President, Marco Polo Foundation 

President, WorldCom Foundation 

Vice President, WorldCom 

Milton Chen, Executive Director 

Stephen D. Arnold, Vice Chair 

George Lucas Foundation 

Chris Dede 

Wirth Professor of Learning Technologies 

Harvard Graduate School of Education 

Randy Hinrichs 

Research Manager for Learning Science and Technology 

Microsoft Research Group 

The Learning Federation 

Ulrich Neumann 

Chris Kyriakakis 

Integrated Media Systems Center 

University of Southern California 

Randy Pausch 

Co-Director 

Entertainment Technology Center 

Carnegie Mellon University 

R. Stanley Williams 

H-P Fellow 

Hewlett-Packard Laboratories 

John I. Wilson, Executive Director 

National Education Association 

Will Wright 

Chief-Designer and Co-Founder 

Maxis 
30 

Acknowledgements 

The efforts of everyone who contributed to this report and the original vision are deeply 

appreciated. Special thanks goes to Julie Evans and Irene Spero for continuing to address 

empowering students in their roles for developing policy and shaping the future of 

education. 

This report was made possible by the vision and support of Phil Bond, Carol Ann 

Meares, Susan Patrick, Jennifer Stolp and numerous others critical in the development of 

the National Education Technology Plan. Doug Levin, John Bailey and Tim Magner also 

helped develop the ideas behind understanding today's students and how we can move 

toward a digital environment.