About the Center
The Marshall McLuhan Center on Global Communications
Marshall McLuhan, eminent teacher, international scholar, social critic, futurist and author may best be known for his prediction that technology such as the Internet would bring us closer together, creating a “Global Village.” As the Marshall McLuhan Center on Global Communications celebrates its 26th Anniversary this year, we honor the vision of Marshall McLuhan, and over two decades of interconnectedness via the Internet in education. The purpose of the McLuhan Center is to promote understanding and progress amongst all peoples of the world through the communication of knowledge.
The Center’s mission statement is twofold: to support educators in the use of modern methods that sys¬tematically build a foundation for a transformed, reinvigorated educational system; and to support innova¬tive strategies that facilitate learning in school, at home, and at work.
The inspiration for the “Marshall McLuhan Awards for Excellent Teaching” program originated with Walter Cronkite, the legendary broadcaster and Advisory Board member. The program was developed and implemented by the Honorable Shirley M. Hufstedler and Mary McLuhan in Los Angeles in 1984.To date more than 425 teachers have been honored. Mrs. Shirley M. Hufstedler is former U.S. Secretary of Education under President Carter and is Senior Counsel at Morrison & Foerster in Los Angeles.
“Marshall McLuhan furnished us with a new way of examining our world and our society. His seminal work on mass media explored the ramifications of how modes of communication have brought the era of the Global Village upon us. His writing spawned a lexicon of new terms and has become a constant undercurrent for those visionary teachers who are preparing their students for the 21st century. Although best known as a critic and theorist, Marshall McLuhan was also himself a renowned teacher, who encouraged independence of mind and creativity of thought in all of his students.”
- US Secretary of Education, Dr. Richard Riley
“The Marshall McLuhan Distinguished Teacher Awards” is a fitting tribute to those educators whose careers have evolved from the blackboard to the multimedia visual environments of the modern classroom…”
- Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
The McLuhan Center has received the endorsements of President Bill Clinton, Vice-President Al Gore, former US Secretary of Education, Dr. Richard Riley; former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and former Prime Minister Jean Chretien; the American Federation of Teachers, the California Teachers Association (CTA), and the California Governor’s Office to include: Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger former Governor Edmond G. Brown, Jr., former Governor Gray Davis; and former U.S. Secretary of Education, the Honorable Shirley M. Hufstedler among others.
Former Mayor of Los Angeles, Mayor Tom Bradley received the first “Marshall McLuhan Global Village Award’ in 1994 for his dedication in expanding educational programs across the Asia-Pacific region by enhancing better communication between Los Angeles County students, their teachers, and teachers linked globally via the Internet.
 |
The Marshall McLuhan Center honored musician and artist Peter Gabriel with the “Marshall McLuhan Global Village Award” in Los Angeles at the 1998 Interactive Multimedia Festival. Such an honor was bestowed upon Peter Gabriel for his work with the WOMAD Foundation in “promoting, maintaining, improving and advancing education in world cultures and multicultural education.” The WOMAD Foundation runs educational workshops in schools, colleges and community centers all over the country, laying the foundation for a more compassionate and fluid understanding of the world beyond the classroom. |
The companion program to the “Marshall McLuhan Awards for Excellent Teaching” is “The Marshall McLuhan Global Village Forum.” After being recognized with the “Marshall McLuhan Awards for Excellent Teaching,” McLuhan recipients participated in “The 2002 Marshall McLuhan Global Village Forum” which took place in Toronto, Canada. Teachers and students across Canada shared their unique methods of teaching via the Internet with other former McLuhan recipients across New York State and California This year, the Forum will be hosted by the “Marshall McLuhan Global Village Forum” on the McLuhan Center website at http://www.marshallmcluhanmedia.org/ and will build on the unique strengths of past and present Marshall McLuhan recipients highlighting best practices in addressing online education in an interactive learning environment. The Forum will take place in March, 2005, location yet to be determined. Communicating their methods through effective participation via Cyberspace in the classroom will effectively demonstrate the technocreative chain: teachers teaching teachers teaching students teaching teachers.
The Marshall McLuhan Awards for Excellent Teaching have been introduced across Canada, the State of California, and New York State. California regions included Los Angeles, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and San Diego. The Canada-wide program includes Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Alberta, Yukon Territory, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories.
Mary McLuhan is a former member of the California State Board of Education, appointed by Governor Edmond G. Brown, Jr. in 1979. She served a five-year term on the California State Board of Education. She received her formal education at the University of Windsor, Canada; USC Annenberg School of Communications; and Western State University Law School. Mary McLuhan is Chair and Founder of the Marshall McLuhan Center On Global Communications. She is currently serving as Executive Director of the “Marshall McLuhan Awards for Excellent Teaching” addressing Online Education nationally.
“One of the most important responsibilities of the McLuhan Center is to promote the use of communication technologies in the teaching-learning environment. Our children need the insight and guidance of excellent teachers to become fluent in the language of the cyberinformation age. Marshall McLuhan, best known as a critic and theorist, was also a renowned teacher and visionary who encouraged independence of mind and creativity of thought in his students. To this end, the McLuhan Center has rewarded more than 425 teachers in their pursuit of innovative applications of communication technologies in the teaching-learning environment. The presentation of the ‘Marshall McLuhan Award for Excellent Teaching,’ program offers an occasion to acknowledge the precedent-setting work of dedicated teachers throughout the world and to encourage others towards similar achievement.”
- Mary Corinne McLuhan
|
