Lifelong Learning 2.0

Check this out:

Interactive Stories-Handhelds in Action-Special Guest: Tony Vincent

Date:
Saturday, May 23, 2009

Time:
9:00am Pacific/10:00am Mountain/
11:00am Central/12:00pm Eastern

Location: Elluminate

Recording (full):
https://sas.elluminate.com/site/external/installinfo/playback?psid=2009-05-23.0732.M.ACE02B5F35AA7E7975F015AAC6F794.vcr

Tiny URL for full recording: http://tinyurl.com/ob3ukc

Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders Through Innovative Technology

I am a lifelong learner.

I must continue to improve my skills to stay current with educational trends, so I can offer the best to my students. I have an important role in taking control of my own professional development. One way to do this is attend dynamic conferences and webinars.  As I find out about them, I’ll add them here.  Some are face-to-face, but most are set up for virtual attendance. I have been learning so much from the conferences and online webinars that I’ve attended this past school year.

As I’ve said in a previous post, there is such value at seeing ourselves as lifelong learners first, teachers second. Social communities and networking can play a huge role in our professional development. I can’t wait to be spoon-fed through power points and handouts. I need to continue to question and push myself. I try to step out of my comfort zone and take risks.  It is here that I’ll grow. I need to make my learning experience relevant and set out to create my own plan.

Let’s Collaborate!

I have added a page to my blog called Conference Calendar.  If you see an event you’re interested in, add it to your calendar. If you find one I should know about, send it my way and I’ll add it here.

NECC Unplugged

Want to attend NECC this year, but can’t make it?  You need to participate in NECC Unplugged!  There will be 3 days of presenting virtually, using Elluminate.  You can present at NECC Unplugged!  Anyone can sign up!  Check out all of the details on this wiki.

Enjoy!

Bought myself a ticket to this.

Happy day to me!

I am so excited to attend this web meeting about encouraging students in the area of social media and innovation!

The National Center for Technology Innovation is putting on a free webinar this week.  Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders Through Innovative Technology is taking place on May 20th, from 3:00-4:15 ET.  Check out this website for more information.  If you plan on attending, register early here.

Read about the presenters below. (Taken from the NCTi website.)

Learn about forward-thinking technology solutions from four leading educational entrepreneurs who have unleashed student talent through the use of online, interactive platforms. Join Steve Hargadon, Founder of Classroom 2.0 and an architect of LearnCentral.org; Paul Kim, Chief Technology Officer for Stanford University School of Education and a leading researcher for Programmable Open Mobile Internet; Jennifer Corriero, Executive Director of TakingITGlobal; and Emily Briggs, Program Manager of Sprout e-course, as they discuss successful strategies for developing the entrepreneurial spirit of global youth in advancing social media and innovation. The Webinar will take place on May 20th from 3:00 pm – 4:15 pm ET.

Love getting something for free?

Love Coldplay as much as I do?

Coldplay is giving away a free album, as a thank you to their fans.

Download those 9 tunes from their live performance and let me know what you think.

All SO good, but my favorite has to be “Fix You,” number 8.

Of course, I also love A Message, Green Eyes, Yellow, Speed of Sound, and Viva la Vida, Life in Technicolor, In My Place, Swallowed in the Sea, Sparks, Daylight, Trouble, Clocks, etc., etc.

Hoping to get tickets in Sacramento, but would much rather fly somewhere to see them- like in good ol’ San Diego.  Want tickets?  Get them here.

Photo link:  Coldplay

Have you attended an Unconference?  Recently, the opportunity to attend a free workshop on Web 2.0 came my way, and I quickly registered.  (Did I mention free?)

The first of the 2-day conference began with introductions and a few rules of the loosely structured format.  Steve shared the “rule of two feet,” commenting that anyone could get up and leave if this wasn’t what they were looking for.  The first day was interesting, but it was the afternoon session and the entire next day that really took off.

Here are a few notes about the sessions:

Friday’s Sessions…

Google Maps/Earth: Joe Wood presented on creating tours using Google Maps and Google Earth.  I’ve heard him present it first at the ILC, and several times since.  I seem to get something new from it every time.  (Besides the fact that his birthplace seems to change every time he presents. LOL)  He speaks with enthusiasm and a confidence that makes you want to bust out the laptop and give it a try.  And I have.  (More about my park-hoppin’ Google tour in another post.)

Backchanneling: Interesting thoughts were shared by Zack Dowell on this topic.  Back-channeling involves having “sidebar” electronic conversations during a presentation or conference.  I get in trouble for that during Professional Development meetings all the time.  Apparently, some see it as good practice.  Cool!  Zack had us join in on a live back-channel discussion using Today’s Meet.

Storage: One of the participants told us about adrive.  50 gigabytes of storage backup goodness! And free too!

Saturday’s Sessions…

If Friday was a cup of drip coffee, then Saturday would have to have been a iced venti double Americano. I couldn’t get enough.

Blogging: Larry Ferlazzo and Alice Mercer did a fabulous presentation!  They shared tips, tools, and examples of their innovative teaching practices.  Check out Larry’s blog here. Man, can he blog!  He not only manages to add blog content daily, but he often has several posts per day.  Alice’s blog is here. Alice is a computer lab instructor, talented presenter, and blogging queen.  She is a wealth of information.  In fact, I just saw her last night at a CTAP meeting, at CUE, and recently, at this conference.  I told her last night that I’m really not stalking her. Really.

Speed Demos: The lightning round speed demos were faced-paced.  I heard about slideshare, scribd, delicious, diigo, and jing, to name a few.  Even though I am familiar with these tools, it is fun to see how teachers use them for learning.  Steve shared that even though he is not a huge Twitter fan, he organizes his seven Twitter accounts using Netvibes.  (Yes, I said 7.)

Here are 3 Things I Learned about Myself from this Conference:

I love the format of the unconference.

It is organic and fluid, allowing for diversions and restructuring of ideas.

It is collaborative, allowing for brainstorming and trouble-shooting.

It is more intimate, allowing for deeper conversations.

I value networking.

Anytime the focus of the sessions turned to social networking, I was all over it.  I am active on at least 5 Nings, and 2 other social networks.  I value people.

Participants took over the agenda by volunteering to  share ideas, present, or ask questions. This opened doors for networking at the breaks, and even to this day in subsequent online communication.  Larry Ferlazzo shared links with me with samples of student work, to answer some questions I had thrown out.  Alice Mercer invited me to get the word out in our efforts to plan follow-up meetings in Sacramento.   Several teachers gave me suggestions for a virtual open house project I’m tackling.  The discussions continue in a forum post on CR20, offering great feedback.  Zack Dowell asked me to be the K-12 Liaison for a Web 2.0 conference coming up next fall, at Folsom Lake College.  Networking can not only bring greater results, it has the potential to help us become better people. I’ve always preferred the team teaching model. Vince Lombardi said it well:

“Individual commitment to a group effort – that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.”
- Vince Lombardi

I need to take bigger action steps.

Steve Hargadon was kind enough to chat with me and gave me a couple of “pep talks” over the conference breaks.  He asked questions of which he seemed to already know the answers.  He encouraged me to take bigger steps and told me that he belived in me.  I was inspired!  And I took his advice immediately.  Several things have fallen into place since then.  When sharing about these opportunities in an email yesterday, Steve responded that I’m becoming a “web 2.0 mover and shaker”. Wow!  I’m not sure about that, but I do know that my professional development, educational goals, and perspective have been movin’ and shakin’ and I can’t wait to see where it takes me!

Many thanks to Steve Hargadon, of Classroom 2.0 and Melissa Green, of Sac City College, who hosted the event.

I am a goal-setting girl.

When it comes to project completion, I operate best if I take a few moments to set goals for myself in writing.  It puts things in perspective and holds me accountable to completion.

I thought I’d share the post that I have on the blog that I use with my students and their families.  It may be helpful to some teacher out there who has been on a similar journey as I have these past 10 months of taking a good look at pedagogy for best teaching practices and discovering how technology and tools can fit in.  It can put one in the state of being overwhelmed.  Unless….  you take time to narrow in on just a few things to apply, and set goals to that means.

It is only the beginning of May, you ask?  True.  Yet in the past 18 years of teaching, I’ve found that if I take time to do goal-setting and planning in May, then I’ll be more reflective than I’ll be in August, when the whirlwind of meetings, and set-up and expectations begin.

Here’s the post, written to my families, taken right from my other blog:

In the previous post, I’ve shared the mission and core values of Visions in Education. Our mission is to prepare each student to succeed in a rapidly changing world. An important part of this mission is a focus on helping students become familiar with the technology tools that are available. These tools can help students communicate, collaborate and contribute now, as a student; in their future education; and later, in the workforce.

I’ve taken the opportunity this year to learn more about educational technology, research how teachers are integrating it into their curriculum, and investigate some of the web 2.0 technology tools available. I am learning so much that I’m almost overwhelmed. (Okay, I’m already overwhelmed.) To help, I am choosing to focus in on just a few things for next year the next several years. I will be sharing more about these in the future. For now, here’s a brief description of the goals I’ve set to address our school’s mission statement.

1. Blogging: I will be using this blog to communicate and keep you informed. Additionally, I want to provide a place on the blog for student blogging. Students tend to write better when they have a purpose and an authentic audience. I will provide a “publishing place” on my blog for posting student-writing projects next year. There will also be a “student spotlight” which I’ll share more about later.
2. Social Networking: The Visions Homeschool Network will be used to facilitate community and connections for you and about 800 other parents. I have it just about ready to launch so you’ll have a chance to join before summer.
3. Technology Instruction: I’m not sure how this will take shape yet. This is in addition to regular tech instruction.  I hope to create a “Tech Club” for interested students. Let me know if you are interested in this or have ideas.
4. Project 2.0: This is a self-directed learning program that I am putting together for 7th-12th graders or Parent Educators who want to learn more about Web2.0. I hope to have it completed for the fall semester.  I’m really excited about this one!!
5. Online Portfolio Projects: Colleges are seeking out potential student candidates through online networks. I will be available to help your high school student create an online portfolio that they can add to throughout their high school years, and later present, as they apply for colleges and scholarships.  Let me know if you are interested.

If you have any thoughts about any of these, I would love to hear it. Post a comment below.

Creative Commons Photo Attribution:

Web2.0, by Tyler Howarth

Determination, by Pixleposition

Another great interview from last week!

Thursday, May 7th, at 5:00pm Pacific / 8:00pm Eastern / 12am GMT: Michael Horn, co-author of Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns, and the co-founder and Executive Director (Education) of Innosight Institute, a non-profit think tank devoted to applying the theories of disruptive innovation to problems in the social sector. We’ll discuss his book, Web 2.0, and more.

Michael B. Horn is the co-founder and Executive Director, Education of Innosight Institute, a non-profit think tank devoted to applying the theories of disruptive innovation to problems in the social sector. He is the coauthor of Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns (McGraw-Hill: June 2008) with Harvard Business School Professor and bestselling author Clayton M. Christensen and Curtis W. Johnson, president of the Citistates Group. Strategy + Business named the book the best human capital book of 2008.

Disrupting Class uses the theories of disruptive innovation to identify the root causes of schools’ struggles and suggests a path forward to customize an education for every child in the way she learns. Horn has been featured as a speaker at many education conferences, including the National Evaluation Systems’ conference and the Grantmakers for Education conference.

Prior to this, Horn worked at America Online during its aol.com re-launch, and before that he served as David Gergen’s research assistant, where he tracked and wrote about politics and public policy. Horn has written articles for numerous publications, including Education Week, Forbes, the Boston Globe, and U.S. News & World Report. In addition, he has contributed research for Charles Ellis’ book, Joe Wilson and the Creation of Xerox (Wiley, 2006) and Barbara Kellerman’s Bad Leadership: What It Is, How It Happens, Why It Matters (Harvard Business School Press, 2004).  Horn earned his MBA from Harvard Business School and an AB from Yale University, where he graduated with distinction in History.  Taken from Steve at Future of Education.

Date: Thursday, May 7th, 2009

Time: 5pm Pacific / 8pm Eastern

CHECK OUT THE RECORDED SESSION BELOW:

RECORDINGS:
Full Elluminate Recording: https://sas.elluminate.com/p.jnlp?psid=2009-05-07.1705.M.09DE040BCD…
Audio (.mp3): http://audio.edtechlive.com/foe/michaelhorn5-7-09.mp3
Chat (.rtf): http://audio.edtechlive.com/foe/michaelhorn5-7-09.rtf (Open in word processing program.)