I received an audiobook version of the book through NetGalley. Thanks!

As someone who works in education, it was interesting to read about the ideas of Bushnell and what his ideas would be for the future of education. I also really liked the narrator of the audiobook.

I agree with some points in the book and some I'm not sure would ever work and it feels more like a billionaire's utopia written down. It also feels like the book has been written from only the American POV and therefore for me, it seems the authors could've done a bit more research into what already works in other countries and what not.

It did feel like I was reading a really long sales pitch and the book could've just been a booklet or a brochure.

In the end, I would rate the book 2.5 stars.

This book was very thought provoking and has great potential and brings a lot to how to meet students where they are and how to engage them. I am not sure how this gaming system would be implemented at a grand scale but do think it would be a great way to engage students who are struggling. I think this book shows how we can change the school climate and help all students get all they can out of their education. I do think that our focus should be on the students and not the curriculum and times set - some students get lost due to having to wait on the class to catch up and this system would be working at a self pace.

If you are an educator or have children give this book a read and see what you think about this approach to changing the education system. It is an eyeopener and a game changer for the future of our kids!! I look forward to seeing how the data is collected and how it will change the way education is looked at and approached. My favorite quote is “The need to make education more relevant to the individual child and more engaging the student isn't just a good idea, it is essential.”


Thanks NetGalley and Greenleaf Book Group Press for the ALC

If you want a glimpse of what education can look like in the future, this is the book for you. Being a teacher in the 21st century brings different challenges in regards to making education relevant for the students. Shaping the Future of Education provides suggestions on improving schools to create an environment where students want to attend school. Anyone involved in educational decisions needs to read this book, because our students need to be prepared to thrive in their future world.

Interesting perspective on the shift of teaching in the world of technology....as a teacher I found it eye opening and worth reading.

As a high school teacher, I am always on the hunt for books about how to "do it differently". This was a nice change of pace. The video game angle was a cool touch.

Shaping the Future of Education: The ExoDexa Manifesto
by Nolan Bushnell, Dr. Leah Hanes


This book is a very optimistic look at changes that need to happen in education, according to Nolan Bushnell, a computer tech god. His idea is to use technology which can make experiential learning that allows exporters or diverse cultural learning. Using computers and multifaceted educational opportunities to help bring interest, motivation and drive to students. The use of computers to help provide not only better test taking situations, eliminating testing anxiety.His game approach to education can allow the teacher time to focus on small groups allowing teachers to pay more attention to these groups. This spacing out learning and review to create processes for reviewing learning. Enhancing learning by extending long term memory. Learning throughout one's life. Lifelong learning. Modals can indicate while children are growing and adults. That would be able to be processed into the adult and employment world.

One on one is the best way to teach, that allows the teachers to focus on the students. The statistics of high teacher student ratio, how low numbers helps the connections. If we change the engagement to propose the students interest and curiosity Educators find the talent of students and form curriculum to their talent. Mentors need to see if children are needing attention, what kind of attention. Using ai or processes can create teachers that are any one the children choose. They can be taught by a learning module and helped by an aviator that children connect to, but the teachers are the one to provide the help.The immediate flag of problems or issues that will need to be addressed. One aspect is social emotional learning can be added into education. The idea that goals and motivation help when children share, discuss,and write their own goals. Teacher help is important, but its timing is very important, so the student doesn't lose interest.

Small group projects to start discussions. Presentation to larger groups , powerpoint Presentation help students in jobs. Small group projects to start discussions.

The pandemic has shown the flaw of the prior system of education. Building a society to nourish interest. Computer programs can individualize learning by interest, goals, and curiosity. What is the process of continuing creativity? One focus is adding movement into learning. Allowing movement in the day to develop by body and mind. Bringing after-school activities in entrepreneurs to the classroom. The idea of having projects of interest will enable understanding.
Brain research, students needs, engagement, developed by teachers for curriculum needs, and optimize the engagement. Creating an environment that allows children to choose the proper diet for their own learning. Making sure that kids have breakfast and lunch, and even food home for students and with funding for the family investigating the diet and learning process??? Other changes were nap spaces, and meals that change time to student preference. Research to sleep and diet to change the education process.
One focus was children should not be engaged by age, but by interest.no time to be bored or ashamed by the length of learning.
I see that portions of this program would be great. Yet implementation of his full idea may be impractical.

Wow. What a disappointment. The first half of this book seems like an extremely long introduction, providing completely valid but incomplete ideas and questions that I thought would be revisited, but which it never ended up doing. I understand this audiobook is short, but there was definitely opportunity to add more diverse ideas and concepts than what they managed to drag out in this work.

This work offers ideas that I largely agreed with, but it lacked depth and originality.
One significant downside was its heavy reliance on references, which made it feel more like a collection of cited works rather than the author's original thoughts. This repetition became quite frustrating, the phrase “Noaln says”, “Nolan describes”, “Nolan points out”, etc, was repeated so often that I started to get sick of it, especially due to the fact I was listening to the audiobook. Was there no way, at the beginning of the book perhaps, to explain that lots of inspiration of this book came from Nolan, so you don’t have to keep mentioning the name? The name is on the cover anyway.

Additionally, the book overlooks critical issues in diverse societies and disregards the disparities in access to education resources, such as internet connectivity and physical schooling, assuming a level playing field that doesn't exist for many students. The book's strong Western focus ignores alternative educational systems globally, failing to consider non-formal education or different ways of learning that can be observed all over the world. Its insistence on a formal education system as the only societal foundation feels limited and disregards the potential value of diverse educational philosophies worldwide. It doesn’t consider multilingual societies where children are having to be schooled in their second, third, or maybe fourth language, due to there being no textbooks or teachers that teach in their native languages. It barely takes into account children who can’t go to school due to caring responsibilities or disabilities. It’s so disappointing.

It smells of privilege and ignorance to the struggles that real people face, as the authors are more concerned about how the education system can be used to improve children’s working prospects and productivity, rather than their health, or how children learn about cleaning, childcare, kindness, history, arts, cooking, or culture- skills that that people use everyday, inside and outside of work. It completely ignores the fact that education is being used as a tool to maintain the social order and class system that rules us, and how some schools get disproportionate funding to other schools, the systemic racism, the impossible standards and low pay teachers have to make-do with.

While it might serve as a good starting point for teachers, I wouldn't recommend it for those seeking more profound insights into education development and politics, unless you were absolute beginners. I’m not sure that you would learn anything new or of great value if you’ve thought or read about the general western education systems before.

(2/5 stars) Another reviewer put this on blast as "If Elon Musk did education" and... I mean it's not completely wrong?? 😬

When I saw this book, I was excited to read it because I recall multiple conversations in my Contemporary Pedagogy class in grad school about video games as a tool for learning. Now HEAR ME OUT here, my low rating is not because I disagree with the idea of updating pedagogy to reflect a changing world, especially through the incorporation of games and software into the classroom. My low rating is more because this book felt more like a sales pitch of a single long-term program that doesn't actually reflect the reality of the current education system or the vast gap between where we are and where the ExoDexa programs suggests that we should be. Perhaps I should have inferred that from the title (The ExoDexa Manifesto seems more clear from this point of view, but hindsight is 20/20).

What I really didn't jive with was their chapter on testimonials, since all the testimonials were fabricated and were essentially "this is what we think testimonials would be if we could do what we say we're already doing". Has this been tested? Or is this just a pie in the sky "wouldn't it be nice if we could do this?" Furthermore, there seemed like there was so much anecdotal evidence in this book - especially Bushnell talking about his own children without acknowledging the privilege being the child of the Father of Video Games entails - instead of citing the work of many educational researchers. An literature review re: the actual issues in education today would have been helpful to demonstrate how the ExoDexa program fills in gaps. I admit I did listen to this one on audiobook so perhaps I missed citations, but it didn't seem like there were many. I'm also a bit skeptical of their claim that this would be $7,000 per student per year (perhaps I read that wrong or misunderstood), because the recommendation to not only teach but also house students and provide meals for 5/7 days of the week surely would cost more than that per year to build the infrastructure needed to support essentially turning all of our schools into boarding schools.

"All media is educational... We don't need to demonstrate that video games can teach - they already do. All media teaches. The question is, of course, what does it teach? Is it valuable to the kids, the future, and society?"

NetGalley provided this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

*Rating is based on structure of the book and not on the potential of the product.

Nolan Bushnell is arguably the father of modern gaming that affected so many of our childhoods. His idea is to nationalize a gaming education software that allows for educators to meet students where they are and foster independent learning in areas that students are passionate in rather than just the new educational standards. He and Dr. Leah Hanes bring and support clear barriers to student's learning experience including food scarcity, lack of motivation, missed student objectives from previous years such as reading can impact the student experience and increase drop out rates and unsuccessful standardized testing. His idea is to gamify the education experience for students to stay engaged and learning the material.

Overall, the callouts to the current education practices are incredibly valid and supported by both Dr. Leah's experience and data. I, however, don't see the reasonable logistics of nationwide implementation and utilization in public schools with minimal or no funding. The structure of the day and technology deficits in public schools are not explored and he presents a school structure that works best with boarding, charter, or private schools. Would be interested in the long term effect of this school structure in the workforce or even into a more structured higher education if students pursue those paths.

Overall, only one chapter made me stop and think it's not for everyone which gave testimonies to student experience. The structure of this chapter made it seem made-up and not actual experiences which left me questioning the validity of the 60,000 students ExoDexa has supposedly been tested on and where the students are coming from. Would love to jump back in and see if those are real testimonies or falsified.

Agree changes are needed, but not sure the ExoDexa method is for everyone of affordable for the common schools to implement.

I was looking forward to reading this book because of my education background.

Well, I absolutely agree with some of the points, I overall didn’t really enjoy it. I don’t believe/video games belong in the classroom. I absolutely don’t think that’s a way of learning.

Call me old fashion, but I just don’t love it. Overall, the book was OK just not for me.

As someone who has questioned the traditional educational system for quite some time, I was drawn to this audiobook. Unfortunately, while the book presents some interesting ideas, it didn’t succeed in capturing my attention. The writing style was nothing special, and overall, I found it to be too repetitive and bland. That is the reason why I DNF'd the book.

The author suggests replacing the old-fashioned educational model that focuses on memorization with a more interactive and engaging one, particularly through the development of educational games.

The book emphasizes the crucial need to encourage creativity, problem-solving, and critical thinking in students, as well as ensuring they are familiar with the importance of physical activity and the health benefits of proper nutrition, etc.

The book also suggests more personalized approaches based on the fact that every student is different and has their own interests and personality, etc.

While I wholeheartedly agree with the content of the book, I believe the message could be conveyed with fewer words. Despite this fact, I encourage you to give it a try and form your own opinion – you might find it more to your liking.

Was hoping for a greater discussion of gamifying education. Authors discuss the need for creativity in school. Then, seem to shift to a pitch in buying their system. All answers seem to be their program without specifics for replication.

Shaping The Future of Education by Nolan Bushnell and Dr. Leah Hanes

This is going to be a long one, so buckle up. TLDR: If Elon Musk did education.

Before I begin, you probably need to know a little about me. My mom began her career as a second-grade teacher. It was where she met my dad, a high school physics and chemistry teacher. I grew up in public schools. My childhood was spent in the company of teachers, even on nights and weekends. My parents' friends were teachers. The woman who taught me piano was a special education teacher. The person who inspired my love of the Spanish language was an amazing woman who taught Spanish at the high school and let me hang out in her classroom while my dad graded papers and set up labs. Education, especially public education, is very close to my heart. Which is why this book sent me into paroxysms of anger.

Let's start with the positives because there aren't many. The person who narrated the audiobook I listened to did an excellent job. She spoke very clearly and enunciated an appropriate amount.

The book starts out with a bold statement: This is the authors' manifesto. This is also a lie. This book is a business plan and a sales pitch. The underlying philosophy of their plan to revolutionize education is founded entirely on making our nation's children better employees for corporations. Despite what they might claim to the contrary, neither author truly understands the purpose of a K-12 education.

But, before we get into the nuts and bolts, I have to say something about the writing style of this book. Nolan Bushnell is the top credited author on the cover. However, nearly every 5th sentence began "Nolan says", which is poor writing, to start. It also implies that Nolan didn't have a part in actually writing the book. I have no evidence of this, but I imagine he ranted at Dr. Hanes for several hours and she coalesced that into the book.

Bushnell and Hanes's vision for the future of education is bleak and dystopian, to my mind. They want students in individual cubicles with noise-cancelling headsets and microphones, being monitored by video cameras. Everything they need to learn is a video game, which they somehow both understand is how they're learning but also the lesson is buried so deceptively in the game that they don't realize it. The modules, as they're called, are developed by teachers and older students for money in a horrific commission-based model that prioritizes completion time and student enjoyment over academic merit. Students pick what they are interested in and study only what engages them. To chat with friends for free (because everything has a price in this model), they have to incorporate that week's vocabulary words. Resources are both limited and unlimited; no expensive robot kits but all of the individual pieces one might need to build a robot. Students can go to the fashion district for fabric but have to buy leisure time. And when you've finished some undetermined amount of modules (or when the eBay business you've set up is churning out enough money), you graduate. Employers will hire you based on skills and a coded number system that tells them how many thousands of modules you completed in what the authors consider the core curriculum areas.

Oh, and the school day? Yeah, the students get to decide when they do their coursework. No math at 8:30am! But if you do your Chinese module while running on the track you can get bonus multitasking points to spend on sleep pods later in the day! Doesn't that sound super rad?

The whole system is Montessori but digitized. However, in 6 hours of audiobook never once was the word Montessori used. It was like they had no idea that method had already been tried, to mixed reviews. And the type of student this system caters to is already somewhat self-motivated and would excel even in a traditional classroom.

That leads me to the problem I have with this whole concept: it won't work on a large scale because it doesn't account for students who need any amount of accommodation. Vision or hearing impaired? Colorblind? Tremors or motor skill issues? Migraines or motion sickness triggered by screens? Then you're out of luck. What about special education students who might struggle to follow a narrative or problem-solving video game? Too bad. Overstimulated by the colors and noises of the game? No education for you.

The entire premise seems to hinge on the idea that EVERY. SINGLE. CHILD. is totally and completely enthralled by video games. Now, I don't have data to back up my assertion that this is not the case. I know my own history of being quickly bored with video games. I have friends who have never owned an Xbox, Playstation, or Wii. What do you do with a child who would much rather read than play a video game? Or one who just wants to draw all day? Sure, these things are taken care of in their non-module time. But I think I would struggle to get through the gaming portion of my day and would then lose out on opportunities to create and socialize.

And that's where this educational system fails most spectacularly. The authors assert that there is too much wasted time in current classrooms. A motivated student could finish a semester's coursework in a few weeks on their own! But often the history lesson isn't just about Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo. It's about following rules, both explicit and implied, in a classroom. It's about collaborating with a team and interacting with the students around you. It's about following a class schedule and strategizing when to go to your locker to swap out your textbooks. It's about small freedoms, like hall passes and study halls. And personal responsibility; turning in homework on time, and asking for help when you need it. None of this is included in the syllabus, nor declared in state-mandated learning objectives. And yet it is part and parcel with the way our education system functions.

There are so (so, so,) many things about this concept (and this book) that I have objections to, but there are two more I want to cover: residential schools and exploitation.

The authors clearly identify ways in which students come to school unprepared to learn. Food insecurity, housing insecurity, and neighborhood violence are at the top of my list. They list parents who work too much and divorcing parents, but tomato/tomahto. What is there solution to this unstable home life? Residential schools. Specifically in the inner cities, because those are the only students who struggle with such things. Students would come Monday morning and get their DNA-specific meal (don't even get me started) and would then stay at the school until the end of the day on Friday. The authors assure us that the cost for this would not be incrementally more. Which is, honestly, not the problem I have with it. I dislike the idea of targeting "inner city", which I'm taking to mean poor and minority, students and taking them away from their families and communities for the majority of the week. Throw uniforms on them and enforce English as the only language in the building and I've seen this show before. It doesn't end well for the students. But don't worry! Poor kids are much more resilient than their wealthy cohorts, Nolan says.

My last point, mostly because I feel like this review is already as long as the book itself was, is that there is so much of this that is ripe for exploitation. Students setting up corporations and paying their peers as employees. Taking these goods and services outside the school in the form of catering or product distribution. One-on-one video chats with mentors, teachers, etc. Economies within the school which can be used for privileges and resources. Software that compiles massive quantities of data on each student including interests and skillsets. All of it could, and likely would, be exploited. Who is monitoring to make sure students aren't being asked to work 12 hour days for their catering business? Who is making sure appropriate sales and income taxes are being paid? How are the mentors and teachers from around the world vetted? Are the one-on-one calls monitored or recorded to make sure students are being groomed or abused? How will you stop a black market of school currency from forming? None of this is answered by the authors.

I cannot in good conscience give this book anything higher than 1 out of 5 stars. To paraphrase The American President, "We have serious educational problems to solve, and we need serious people to solve them. And whatever your school's problem is, I promise you, Nolan Bushnell is not the least bit interested in solving it." This book is highly problematic and I don't recommend it to anyone.

Disclosure: I listened to this audiobook as an advance reader copy through NetGalley.

As a veteran teacher, I am all for some of the ideas in this book. The introductory scenario with Sam is the ideal; however, the majority of the text was idealistic. Although some of this would be great to incorporate into the educational system, the overhaul would be practically impossible. It was definitely worth listening to, and would be interesting to read for group discussion.

* I received this as a free ARC for my honest review.
Is it me or did some of the book sound like in came straight out of the movie The Island?
This book was written in the post-pandemic era with the American school system in mind. It feels like a knee jerk reaction. 
I feel the authors write from a complete bias of gaming due to the link Nolan Bushnell has (he is the founder of Atari), and completely over simplifies the issues that confront teachers and educators on a daily basis. Although some of the ideas are good I feel it is very much take a couple of ideas, introduce them to your practice and leave the rest. Overall not a fan!

This is a very thought provoking book regarding new ideas to improve the educational system. Although I agree with most of the ideas, I believe some would be very difficult to implement, especially on public schools. Overall it was an interesting book on this subject and the very good narrator made it very enjoyable to listen to.

*****I received this as a free audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

As a teacher myself I was instantly drawn to the title and description of this book. I absolutely LOVED the ideas and concepts of the EXODEXA program. I would love to have this available for my children and my students!

If you are an educator, are a part of education, are a parent or just want to consider a change in our children this book is for you! I highly recommend it!!

While the intentions of the authors are good, they oversimplify the issues with education, the process of learning, and teaching in a post-isolation era. New teachers and parents wanting to homeschool their kids will enjoy this, but highly-qualified veteran teachers may feel this as a slap in the face. The authors fail to acknowledge research on best practices in teaching and the learning process, in favor of the findings from their own bias observations.

Interesting Ideas

Some really interesting and groundbreaking ideas for how to improve education.

Really inspiring book.

A glimpse into the future, and it's bright!

Especially important read for those in education.

A note that a lot of the book's recommendations and ideas are mostly theories & thoughts and may have not been tested or implemented successfully in trials. All this being said, some pretty disruptive and encouraging recommendations if they were to work successfully!

Highly recommended.

4.6/5

As an educator, I’m always looking for ways to engage my students. I listened to this book as an early review for NetGalley and enjoyed the narrator.

The book was very thought provoking at times and at the end had me researching Exo Dexa. The book was broken down into the why and then sprinkled with various testimonials from students.

It was a good read for teachers.

Favorite Quotes:
“Those who conform to the cookie-cutter, often leave behind their creativity.”

“The need to make education more relevant to the individual child and more engaging the student isn't just a good idea, it is essential.”

“The only real failure is the one you fail to learn from” -Henry Ford

“To fail means you are trying new things and moving out of you comfort zone.”