The Center for Futurism in Education The Center for Futurism in Education


The Center for Futurism in Education >> People


Prof. Aharon (Roni) Aviram, Chair
Aharon Aviram
Educational futurist and philosopher of education, Roni Aviram's interests focus on the impact of ICT on education and society, and on forging macro and micro levels strategies for the optimization (in light of Humanistic values) of the impact of ICT on education and higher-education. Aviram has written numerous scientific papers and articles published in collective volumes and scientific journals on these subjects, as well as several books on the desired future of education and ICT-based education. He is the chair of the Center for Futurism in Education at Ben-Gurion University, and has led pioneering projects and think-groups - Israeli and European - focused on the "merger" of ICT and education, the radical change of the school and systems of education and higher education, and the formation of virtual lifelong learning environments enhancing human development and flourishing. For Aviram, the best uses of ICT in any educational or lifelong learning framework would be those enhancing personal autonomy and dialogical belonging, the two values he takes as the cornerstones of Humanism and Humanistic education.
Dr. Ariel Sarid, Head of R&D
Educated at Tel-Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University, Ariel's educational background is in philosophy, political science and history. Ariel has several years of teaching experience in various fields of thought and has occupied various positions in educational institutions. Ariel's fields of interest include:
• Theories of the self, modern identity, authenticity
• Modernity and its critics
• Contemporary political and social thought
• Social justice
Amir Winer, Project Manager
Educated at Ben-Gurion University, Amir Winer has an interdisciplinary educational background in education (PhD student), organizational psychology (MA, Cum Laude) and cognitive science (BA). Amir was VP of E-Base, a KM software company, and a senior organizational consultant for Bank Leumi's IT department, where he led numerous organizational design and change processes. Amir's fields of interest include:
• Visual representation of knowledge and discourse
• Social semiotics
• Knowledge management (automatic classification and design of large scale taxonomies)
• Organizational consultancy (change management, organizational design, group dynamics and coaching)
Dr. Joshua Idar, Project Manager
Educated at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot and at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Joshua Idar has more than two decades of experience as designer and developer of innovative e-learning and ICT systems. A senior consultant in the high-tech industry, Dr. Idar has filled leading R&D and project management roles for large international and local organizations. Dr. Idar's areas of expertise include:
• ICT design, development and evaluation methodology
• Instructional technology design and development (e-learning, WBT, CAI)
• Information system analysis and design
Dr. Igal Dotan, Project Manager
Igal Dotan joined the center as a researcher and project manager after three years in the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin, where he was engaging in several large scale research programs as a post doctoral fellow. He is now resuming his earlier vocation as educational activist aiming at a democratic reform of education systems through new forms of social and political interactions, lifelong learning programs, and technology-enhanced pedagogies. Another pivotal constituent in Dotan's R&D activity is the advancement of science education by means of intellectualist (rather than pragmatist) pedagogies and by employing innovative knowledge representations, especially question-based semantics and intelligent content architecture. Dotan's fields of interest and research include:
• Democratic education
• Democratic control of technology
• Science education
• Interactive e-learning interfaces and authoring tools that support self-regulated learning
• Autonomous intelligent agents for reducing information overload in learning
• Problem-based semantics and content architectures
Smadar Somekh, Researcher
Educated at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Smadar's educational background is in education, psychology and organizational studies. She has an extensive experience in both quantitative and qualitative evaluation research. Smadar's interests include:
• Evaluation of educational programs and processes (ICT and pedagogical)
• Quantitative analysis methods
• Critical feminist thought in organizational studies
• Postmodernism in the context of organizational consultancy
Yael Ronen, Researcher
With an educational background in computer science and research experience in education and modern history, Yael's interests include:
• Education in the context of human rights
• Support for development of individual autonomy in educational processes
• Education for critical and rational thinking
• Motivation research
Rony Dafny, Administrator
Educated at Ben-Gurion University (Middle East History, Art), Rony Dafny has gained experience in a range of administrative positions over the last decade in high-tech, the publishing industry, and academy.


Steering Committee
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