Mover+23

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 * Mover Name:** John Falk

John Falk earned a joint doctorate in biology and education from the university of California, Berkeley. He worked at the Smithsonian Institution for fourteen years where he also was a researcher and writer. He is the author of over ninety scholarly articles in the areas of biology, psychology and education. Some examples of his work are (1) The Museum Experience, Learning from Museums: Visitor experiences and the making of meaning (2) Lessons without Limit: How free-choice learning is transforming education, (3) Free-Choice Science Education: How we learn science outside of school. He is also author/editor of numerous science educational materials and books. His research focuses on the study of learning in free-choice learning settings (museums), the long-term impact of free-choice educational institutions on individuals and communities, and investigating new business models for museums and other cultural institutions.
 * Basic Work:**

Coined the term “free choice” learning as a better way to describe the learning that an individual chooses. He co founded the Institute for Learning Innovation, which is a non profit organization that is devoted to advocating free choice learning as a model for lifelong learning. The institute collaborates with other institutes and organizations to encourage the use of free choice learning in informal settings such as museums, libraries and community settings. His book Lessons Without Limits was a way to get the idea out to the public so they can embrace the idea and learn about the opportunities and rewards that are available to those who choose an informal education.
 * Key Work:**

Lynn Dierking- Associate Director of Institute for learning innovation Sea Grant program at OSU
 * Key Personnel:**

He is a mover because his idea of “free choice learning” is based on the idea that what is learned in formal education is an important part of what some one knows but 90 percent of a person’s life is spent outside of school and informal learning makes up a much larger share of what people know. Informal settings have received little attention in academia but John is working to change this. At OSU (Oregon state university) they have been working on a partnership between the Institute for Learning Innovation and the Sea Grant organization to create a program in free choice learning. Their goal is to create an internationally prominent center for the facilitation and study of free choice learning. The big picture idea is that through the adoption of free-choice learning, education in the United States can be transformed and extended throughout life. Their goal is to create a "learning society" where informal learning takes place continuously and continually. In his book on Lessons without Limits the final section is about transforming education in America. The authors use this chapter to communicate their Free-Choice Learner’s Bill of Rights and their recommendations for developing the learning society that they envision.
 * Why/How a mover?**

http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/makingadifference/stories/Free_ChoiceSoA.pdf
 * Links:**

http://www.lib.msu.edu/corby/reviews/posted/falk.htm

http://www.ilinet.org/abouttheInstitute.html