School Of Everything Wins New Statesman New Media Award

School Of Everything, the London-based social tools start-up where I serve on the advisory board, won a New Statesman New Media award:

[from New Media Awards 2008 - Winners]

Inform and Educate Winner: School of Everything

http://www.schoolofeverything.com

Great teaching is all about inspiring someone and for that, there's nothing quite like face-to-face communication. School of Everything is all about facilitating this kind of offline interaction using online tools to draw on the long tail of teaching talent that exists out there.

But School of Everything isn't just about connecting people, it's also about changing the way we learn and how we think about education. Traditionally, education has been a top-down affair. Teachers talk; pupils listen, whilst the system decides what it is they should know, how they should prove they know it and what they will get out of knowing it. School of Everything turns this on its head: everyone has something to teach - whether you're a professional tutor, a committed hobbyist or simply someone with something interesting to share. Learning is all about pursuing what you're passionate about, meeting new people and having fun - it's an end in itself, not just a means to an end.

The team has just secured their first round of investment and they're working away building a strong community of users, with support from the likes of the Young Foundation and Channel 4 Education.

Congratulations to Paul Miller, Andy Gibson, and the whole SOE team!