One of the most exciting — and perhaps the most frustrating — aspects of life in the digital age is the pace of change. New innovations seem to be emerging at an exponential rate, which is a great thing for the world. But it does call on us to keep up with a constantly shifting educational and technological landscape. For both educators and their students, this requires flexible thinking — a skill that can be difficult to master — and a drive to learn.

ISTE members, at least, seem up to the challenge. Motivated by their desire to find out about the hottest new topics in ed tech, they lined up around the convention center for Saturday’s Opening Ignite session, a rapid-fire event where multiple presenters get just five minutes and 20 slides each to inspire audience members to attend their full sessions later in the week. The Opening Ignite line-up starred an impressive cast of connected educators, including ISTE 2013 Outstanding Teacher of the Year Nick Provenzano, and covered a wide range of topics, from digital citizenship to the Genius Hour to puppets.  Despite the variety, they all seemed to share a common thread: passion.

Igniting a student’s passion, these educators insist, is the key to awakening that part of the brain that can’t stop learning. This deep engagement is necessary to keep our kids focused in a world full of distractions, and it’s necessary to motivate them to become lifelong learners.

The good news is, this type of passion is contagious. Just as the Ignite presenters’ infectious excitement for their topics inspired their audience to learn more, educators can light a fire for learning in their students.One of the most exciting — and perhaps the most frustrating — aspects of life in the digital age is the pace of change. New innovations seem to be emerging at an exponential rate, which is a great thing for the world. But it does call on us to keep up with a constantly shifting educational and technological landscape. For both educators and their students, this requires flexible thinking — a skill that can be difficult to master — and a drive to learn.