Oro|oro Teacherslab | On 25, 26 and 27 January 2001 one thousand teachers from the Amsterdam University of Professional Education did take part in a unique, three-day workshop and hands-on lab in Amsterdam about the future of education. Oro|oro Teacherslab exposed participants to emerging innovations in technology, media and publishing that will determine the future of education and learning. The focus was not on the new-economy hype, but on how to use virtual environments to add value to the educational process. How could we ensure quality and a strong identity in the evolving information society? And most of all: how could teachers develop and formulate their vision and thereby inspire future educational policies?
				Each day of oro|oro featured a morning conference produced for the Amsterdam universities by Doors of Perception. It was followed by a huge, hands-on 'Practicum' in the afternoon, produced by Mediamatic. The morning conference featured innovators from around the world who explored the future of learning in three themes: Searching and Finding, Editing and Interacting, Learning and Networking. During the afternoon lab, the 1,000 teachers - in 50 groups of twenty teachers -did carry out online exercises and experiments. Students acted as mentors for those with less experience. Among the highlighted speakers were: Erwin Blom, VPRO radio and television, a specialist in youth music and culture; Andrew Chitty, director of the UK-based tv and internet company Illumina; Tilly Blyth, London School of Economics, on Fathom, the new educational browser; Lara van Druten, University of Amsterdam, Network University project; Stephen Heppell, director of Ultralab, one of Europe's most influential learning research centres; Steven Johnson, editor of Feed magazine in New York, and an innovator of new editorial tools and concepts; Larry Bouthillier of Harvard Business School Online; Sonia Livingstone, a professor at the London School of Economics who studies the media behaviour of children; Sugata Mitra, director, National Institute for Technology in India, who introduces Indian street kids to the internet; Bert Mulder, internet advisor to the Dutch Parliament; Caroline Nevejan, senior policy advisor at the Hogeschool van Amsterdam and originator of the Oro/Oro concept; Roel Pieper, Technical University Twente, on the learning economy; John Thackara, director and firstPerceptron of Doors of Perception, on new business models for learning and teaching; Willem Velthoven, director of Mediamatic, on 'Tulipmania' as a parallel for the internet boom; Jill Whalen, principal of HighRankings in Boston; and Chris Wolz, president of the US- based Online Community Report. In the 'Practicum', the university teachers used an editorial system, especially-designed by Mediamatic, that enabled them to publish directly on the Net. After three days, the oro|oro network hosted over 5000 short stories by teachers on education, their experiences, new possibilities and the future. The name oro|oro was derived from the Dutch words 'Onderwijs, Onderzoek en Ontwikkeling' (educational research and development). Oro|oro Teacherslab was organised by the Hogeschool van Amsterdam.
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