Several things stand out for me as highlights of NECC 2008, the first was being able to attend EduBloggerCon, I missed the one last year in Atlanta. I had the opportunity to participate in a conversation with some highly regarded educational leaders, centering on professional development and the different opportunities that exist today for people to learn anytime, anywhere.

One of the sessions I enjoyed most at the conference was Konrad Glogowski and his presentation on Blogging Communities in the Classroom. He speaks of his transformation as a teacher, through the blogging communities created with his students. If you ever have the chance to hear him, do yourself a favor and listen to how to grow a blog.

Another was Chris Lehmann’s presentation on School 2.0, Progressive Pedagogy and 21st Century Learning. Visit his blog to read his thoughts and view the presentation.

One of the best moments on this first day was finally meeting Darren Draper. We have taught OpenPD three times in the past year, presented together at conferences in PA and Utah, and met face to face for the first time at NECC. Because of our online interactions I felt as though I was meeting an old friend, for the first time, definitely a highlight for me. Being able to say hello, in person, will help to enhance my online connections, adding the human element made the conference extremely enjoyable for me.

Image Sources Flickr users derrallg, teachandlearn, rellis

As I sit in the airport to return home I finally have a chance to think about the past few days. I was very excited to attend NECC08 this year, to meet many face to face, and also to attend EduBloggerCon which I have been hearing so much about, especially after last year in Atlanta.

I would like to thank Steve Hargadon for working with ISTE to arrange both the space for EduBloggerCon on Saturday and the Bloggers Cafe during the conference. If not for your efforts neither would have been possible or available to all of us.

I thought the conversations on Saturday offered a variety of topics for many to participate in. Not having attended the Saturday event last year I had no prior knowledge or frame of reference in terms of what to expect, I still felt an excitement to be part of conversations with people whose thoughts and opinions I respect, being together to speak with one another and share ideas. Even though I didn’t know what I was missing this year, I felt an underlying current of unspoken dissatisfaction and I believe it was a deterrent to the day. I wish the day had played out differently, and that we had felt comfortable enough to discuss the underlying discontent. We talk of being a community, are we really? Wikipedia defines community here.

If we cannot discuss issues we feel are truly important, at the one time of year when we have the largest cross section of our community together, face to face, from different areas of the world, then when can we? I am the first to admit I do not like uncomfortable situations or confrontation, but if we truly believe we are a community, and want to be a functioning viable one, we have to discuss openly our growing pains face to face, to come some understanding of what we are looking for from each other.

I agree with Kelly Dumont’s and Vicki Davis’s posts, we are all trying make a difference for children, education, and those we work with day in and day out. There is another conversation going on at Scott McLeod’s blog about FB, NYFB and LR’s, we do have to figure this is all out, hopefully before NECC 2009 and EduBloggerCon09 we will be able to drop the the titles discussed in this post in particular, for the good of the community. Each of us, in our own way are trying to use our voices to the best of our ability. It was wonderful for me to meet so many people this year at NECC who have been part of my personal learning network and as a result, now having had this personal time, I know our online conversations will be richer indeed. Thank you all for a memorable few days, I look forward to next year and hope as we move through the year ahead we will be able to work together in a more participatory way to make EduBloggerCon 09 something we will all be proud of.

Image Source Flickr user oshuchi

Viral Professional Development is emerging in education as a viable method of increasing teacher engagement and learning. Using tools such as Twitter, rss readers, blogs, educational networks, and wikis, educators are collaborating on a grassroots level. This year at NECC, a panel discussion of educators on July 2nd at 1:30 pm CDT will be discussing and live Ustreaming a session to discuss viral professional development.

How did this panel discussion originate?

On Monday, September 17, 2007, Google launched the Google Presentation web application to their suite of services. News of this new service spread quickly through the blogosphere and Twitter and soon more than fifty different people made over 500 edits in a twenty-four hour period to one Google presentation. Since introduced, this presentation has been used by hundreds of people to begin conversations centered on free online tools used to weave a web of connections between people around the world.

As a result of this transformational experience, educators begin discussing the importance of sharing the changing nature of professional development and documentation of best practices in VIRAL professional development. The proposal was written in Google docs and since acceptance, an expanded group of educators around the world has used a wiki, elluminate, and a variety of tools to bring a collaborative, immersive viral PD experience to NECC and to people around the world.

Presenters
Vicki Davis, moderator
Darren Draper
Kelly Dumont
Kristen Hokanson
Robin Ellis
Ryan Bretag
Beth Ritter-Guth
Carolyn Foote

Backchannel Presenters/ Moderators
John Maklary
Stephanie Sandifer

How can you participate?

At 1:30pm CDT on July 2, we will be participating in a NECC panel discussion that centers on the power of the network. During our presentation we hope to demonstrate to all those attending our session in person (and virtually), just how powerful global collaboration can be. Hence, we are asking for your participation in our presentation as well.

1) Join our Ustream

We will be streaming the presentation live on the Open PD Ustream channel at 1:30 pm CDT on July 2nd. You may watch here and participate in the conversation (and even ask the panelists questions).

2) Leave a comment on our voicethread

One way that you can participate now is by adding your voice to the VoiceThread below. Please take a few minutes and add your thoughts about the different tools depicted through images in the thread. We would truly like as many voices possible, offering a wide range of thought on the usefulness of the common tools we all use in our collaborations.

How do you use these tools? How are they important to your professional development? Please add your voice.

3) Join the conversation on the NECC Educational networking site

We’ve created a discussion thread to converse on this panel discussion at the NECC educational networking site.

Follow our most recent announcements.

All announcements and events pertaining to this session will be announced at the Walls Came Down wiki.

Throughout the year I have worked with Ms. Stubits, and her third grade class. We have done a variety of projects throughout the year, but I must say I believe the one we are working on now will probably be the one the children remember most. Ms. Stubits has been sharing a story with her students, a friend of hers has a daughter who had been diagnosed with cancer in 2006, her name is Lily Oetjen and the students have been writing letters to Lily and following her treatment through a blog her mother keeps on CaringBridge. CaringBridge provides free, personalized websites that support and connect loved ones during critical illness, treatment and recovery.

As part of their social studies curriculum the children study government, citizenship, economics, manufacturing, products, and advertising. As a culminating activity they have to make and sell a product, identify their market, estimate quantities they may be able to sell advertise and determine a goal.

This year the children as a class decided they would make bracelets, HOPE bracelets to be exact, and the money they make will be donated to CaringBridge in Lily’s name. For the past several weeks they have been making bracelets, writing persuasive advertisements to post around school for their sale to classmates and the school community. Ms. Stubits has been able to create an environment in her classroom for students to truly tie the unit of study into something tangible in their lives. The conversations surrounding citizenship, being a good citizen in their community as well as their classroom and school helped lead them to doing something for someone else. They have worked hard, are very excited about the sale, feel good about helping someone else their own age that has had some difficult issues to deal with in her young life. I commend Ms. Stubits for involving her students in an effort to make a difference and think outside the box in terms of connecting government and economics for 8 year olds into an experience I believe they will remember for a long time to come.

We hope to be able to have Lily meet this group of third graders through a Skype video chat, Lily lives in Nebraska too far for a field trip from Pennsylvania, but through the use of so many collaborative technologies available today we believe we can make it happen. Visit the links above leave a message for Lily.

]]> http://connectedtalk.wordpress.com/2008/05/20/hope/feed/ http://connectedtalk.wordpress.com/2008/05/12/outside-the-echo-chamber/ http://connectedtalk.wordpress.com/2008/05/12/outside-the-echo-chamber/#comments Tue, 13 May 2008 00:39:01 +0000 rellis http://connectedtalk.wordpress.com/?p=111

Since NECC of 2007, and during several other conferences throughout the year there have been conversations taking place about a need to move beyond the echo chamber. Many educators see the value of web 2.0 tools and the potential for use in their own learning/professional practice and also classroom practices. For many they may be the only individual where they work who understands these tools, uses them in their own practice, and they may feel they are alone in what they are trying to do to begin conversations regarding incorporating web 2.0 tools to change practice in their own communities. The questions has been asked how we move beyond the echo chamber, how we inform others, bring new voices into this conversation, share what we believe is changing in the world, the way we communicate, use information and why education has to change as well. What are the new tools, how do we use them to our advantage in our personal growth. How do we use them to move classroom practice from what it is now, to a more engaged environment that extends beyond classroom walls, how do we connect students and teachers around the globe to collaborate and learn together.

In early March of 2008 Dennis Richard, Superintendent Falmouth Schools in Falmouth, Massachusetts started a conversation on Professional Development 2.0, because of his experience here –

”While I was at ASCD 2008 in New Orleans in March 2008, I started a conversation with some ASCD Leadership Council members and my online network of educators about the need for educators familiar with Web 2.0 pedagogies to spread the word about how they are successfully using the new 21st Century technology to improve student learning. That conversation has continued until today, April 3, 2008. We have less than a month to pool our collective intelligence to help ASCD do a “bang up” job for its membership in Orlando in March 2009 on technology and engaging students in learning. See the home page of this wiki, Learning beyond Boundaries for more details”.

He blogged and sent messages through Twitter to those in his network to read a proposal he was formulating. He wanted to take what he had learned in the past year to the decision makers at ASCD, Association School Curriculum Developers.

“The idea is to use my leadership role with ASCD (explained on the wiki under “The Conversation”) to “propose” more visibility for the web 2.0 pedagogy proposals so they are given due consideration for their importance and uniqueness and eventually to do the same for the selected presentations. I think major professional associations like ASCD are ready to acknowledge the important and transformational role technology must now play in our schools. We can have a significant influence on the quality of their conversation if we shift out of our traditional circles and bring stories of how students every day are deeply engaged in learning by teachers who are using web 2.0 pedagogies”.

ASCD’s theme for 2009 is Learning Beyond Boundaries persistence paid off, 102 educators have signed on to be collaborators and this message now appears on the wiki:

“I can’t believe it, but I have great news! Kathleen Burke, Director of ASCD’s Annual Conference accepts our offer and wants us to work with ASCD to develop a 3 year plan! More to come in the following days”.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”. Margaret Mead 10:45 A.M. EDT, 5.5.08

I am happy to be part of such a group of committed citizens and I look forward to working with everyone to develop and implement the three year plan with ASCD. Thanks Dennis, for pushing beyond the echo chamber.

In this 18 minute clip, JJ Abrams, (creator of LOST), speaks of inspiration, imagination and his belief in mystery as a catalyst for imagination, infinite possibility, hope and potential. When he writes he sees a blank page waiting to be filled with something fantastic. He believes whatever he writes needs to be worthy of the technology he is using. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if our students to looked at writing in this way, writing as an expression of infinite possibility? Take a few minutes and enjoy watching this, I did.

With the abundance of online communities and tools now available to all of us there has been a lot of conversation lately of how people use these tools, for what purpose. The conversations have mentioned the fact some are seen as using these tools for self promotion, followings, name recognition, which I admit I believe some people do, but this is no different than what happens in our day to day, face to face lives, is it? We all have the same ability online, as we do face to face, we may chose to ignore what we find offensive, or follow along, either way the choice remains with the individual.

I am, as Sue Waters used to describe herself, a reluctant blogger. I am not skilled in writing, and it is something that does not come easily to me. I feel blogging is a means of reflection, having an opportunity to talk out loud, and maybe have someone listen, and respond who is interested in the same topic, is experiencing something similar or have an opinion on. We are all attracted to content for varying reasons, we are all attracted to different writing styles as well. What matters is this, I have a mechanism to write, publish, and possibly engage in conversations that would not be available to me otherwise. In order for those opportunities to present themselves to me, I also understand I have to make the effort to do the same thing with others, to be a good virtual citizen as well. Making connections, participating in conversations, extending myself beyond my blog to cultivate relationships – just as I do in my life everyday.

I believe we all contribute, we all have a voice and we all make a difference, although not everyone’s contribution and or difference may not be evident through a blog or online. For me my contributions to the greater good may not be through this blog, but I feel my participation in OpenPD with Darren Draper, the presentations we have done together about our experiences in providing professional development in a way not possible before now, have been important, have made an impact on those who attended the classes and the presentations. I know too I make a difference in my district; I am able to learn from those in my network and in turn share that knowledge with those I interact with face-to-face everyday. My contributions may seem small to others, but it is relative, the contributions I make where I work may never be seen by others in the online world I participate in, but that doesn’t mean they do not exist, or I do not matter either. I believe the words on this image apply to all of us,”There are some things we cannot do on our own” and “a strong and cohesive sense of community is essential to expanding opportunity to all of us”, maybe EdubloggerCon in San Antonio will be a time for all of us to talk about our sense of community.

Flickr Image Source user opportunity agenda

The legendary story of his ear, the melancholy ballad Don MacClean wrote in honor of him, not to mention the hundreds of original works hanging in the finest museums in the world. Vincent Van Gogh remains to be an important part of world culture, a fascinating historical figure that continues to capture our interest and whose art touches our hearts.

Art history fans and anyone who is intrigued by the great Vincent will love this site. Learn about the man behind the art at this Web Exhibit entitled “Van Gogh’s Letters”. Many of the details of the master artist’s life are revealed through his personal letters, including his diet and penchant for alcohol, certain incessant psychological conditions such as agoraphobia and depression, as well as more intimate revelations such as his personal beliefs and feelings.

Our OpenPD session this afternoon was designed to introduce blogging, my hope was the conversation would be beneficial for those in the class who are new to the concept and thinking about starting a blog of their own. Well once again my expectations were exceeded, and I am so grateful to all of those who participated today. Sue Waters was asked to join us and speak to those participating in class why she blogs, how she got started and if she would share any thoughts, and tip, for writing good posts. Well, Sue wrote a post about our OpenPD session, the topic for class, asking others contribute a comment on the impact their own blogging has had on them, their learning. It is full of interesting stories and suggestions, please take some time to read it. Sue also invited some other bloggers to join in the conversation as well; we were fortunate to have with us the following people:

• Jenny Luca recently wrote a post on PLN’s and balance great, worth reading
• Sue Wyatt as known as tasteach her blog on Smartboards and a classroom blog
• Joe Dale Integrating ICT into MFL classroom
• Kevin Honeycutt - Driving Questions as well as his blog The “Rest Area”
• Sarah Stewart Sarah’s Musings
• Mr. Plough The Next Step
• Carolynn Bruton Carbru’s
• Mrs.Durff Writing a Blog Post and Classroom blog
• Kimberly McClain Terrible Teacher

Thank you all for making another session of OpenPD so worthwhile, I learned a great deal once again. I am grateful for the true sense of collaboration, and sharing everyone brings with them to class, what we are able to learn from one another is phenomenal. This is a wonderful experience for me. Sue thank you for all of your wonderful contributions to this class as well as your work in the edublogger world. On the wiki we do have an assignment for this coming week, look at and respond to 4 other blogs we have some listed on the participants page as well. Also to set up a blog at Edublogs so you are ready to start. Hope to see you all again next week.

On Wednesday we completed the second week of OpenPD Round 3 and it was a great success. Conversations centered wikis, widgets, how to embed objects / widgets into a wiki. I learned about customizing embed codes when placing videos in a blog or wiki.
Jamie Gustin explained when embedding video clips from YouTube/TeacherTube you should customize the embed code so you do not inadvertently copy and paste code which allows for related videos to be embedded. I had no idea related videos could be pulled in through an embed code, very valuable information.

• When you have a YouTube or TeacherTube video you would like to embed, to the left of the video there is a space where you are able to copy the embed code, well if continue to look to the right of the word embed you will see a customize link.

• Click on the customize link and there is a radio button to check which says don’t include related videos. I would suggest always having this checked.

Scott Weidig and Bud Hunt also joined us in class and in our Skype call. Each has had experience using Zoho, another online collaborative tool with many components similar to Google. Zoho contains a wiki as well as many other features as well. Never having used Zoho myself, they both made excellent contributions to our session on the features of Zoho they use and their experiences.