Obi-Wan Kenobi spoke of it. "The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together."
The world in which Jedi Knights exist is, as we all know, located "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away" and grew out of the imagination of filmmaker George Lucas. But today the creator of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia and of course the immortal Obi-Wan Kenobi, is taking steps to train our own Jedi Knights, here on Earth, in the ways of the Force. Only these Jedi Knights are called teachers and "The Force" in this instance is called education. As for how these "Knights" will use their powers...well, it is still for the good of the galaxy.
The George Lucas Educational Foundation (GLEF) was formed as a non-profit organization in 1991 and for the past 9 years has used the power of the Internet to gather, produce and distribute materials that share examples, from educators all across the country, of exciting and innovative teaching techniques that have proven themselves successful in schoolroom after schoolroom. It is the foundation's hope that each of these techniques will bring the excitement and joy of learning to our nation's children, and through that excitement help lead American schools into a renaissance of education.
George Lucas understands well the importance of redesigning antiquated educational practices. In a recent interview with The San Francisco Chronicle he related that he felt a high level of frustration over his own early school years. "I was often bored. Occasionally, I had a teacher who engaged me, who made me curious and motivated me to learn. Those were the teachers I really loved, but they were few and far between. I was disappointed that there weren't more teachers like them and wondered, 'Why can't school be interesting all of the time?'"
That question that led Lucas to form his foundation. Now, thanks to an impressive, no-nonsense website, interesting and informative video guides and books, The GLEF is pushing the envelope to help teachers in learning more interesting and innovative teaching methods. Lucas explains, "Teachers are the most important individuals in our society. Teachers need to be creative and inventive and break the mold and step out of the box of the way things are done. I know how difficult that is, because the system is built to keep everybody in the box." But thanks to The GLEF teachers across the nation are sharing their teaching techniques, and the young Jedi Knights of tomorrow are reaping the benefits.
For more information on The George Lucas Educational Foundation, check out their website. 
