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NECC 2007

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As I sit here in the airport waiting for my flight to leave, I’m reflecting on “what just happened?”

I’ve been thinking about my experience at this year’s conference compared to last years. In my eyes I don’t even think you can compare the two. Maybe it was my outlook on the conference…but I think it has to do more with the way this conference was set up.

EdubloggerCon was a great kickoff to the conference…it started conversations that carried through the Blogger Café and into Will Richardson’s Spotlight session Wednesday Morning. This lounge area was created as a place to charge up and post blogs. We did blog, but face-to-face instead of on our web sites. David Warlick had a twit this morning that said “Trying to blog, but have given up and blogging f2f.” I think we all felt the same. If you wanted to write a blog entry you literally had to get up and leave the area…the conversation was so intense…so engaging that it sucked you in. For me, it just drove home the fact that blogging is about conversations. It’s not about writing, it’s not about journaling, it’s about connecting, sharing, conversing, and being part of a professional learning network.

It was face to face blogging. It became such a conversation that today I showed up at the Café at 8:30 and couldn’t find a seat! Tables were moved, people created circles and just like blogging people came and went like wondering through an aggregator. I commend NECC for creating these lounge areas and I have a feeling you’ll be seeing more next year. Some of our conversations at the Café were around how to improve the space for next year. I hope that NECC gives some of us a chance to help design and create this area to include more voices and allow for even more conversations to take place.

One thing I still can’t believe is the people I was able to meet and the people who wanted to meet me. That shocked me more than anything…and I must say I feel honored to be on anyone’s “who I want to meet list.” I know when you publish things to the web they are read by people all around the world, but it’s not until those people approach you just to say “hi”, to say “I read your blog” or take a picture with you does it really hit just how connected we all are.

It was an NECC about conversations, about connections, you had to create them yourself, but at least we had the opportunity to create them, to come together in a Web 2.0 fashion and just learn.

There was a lot of experiments. We experimented with Twitter, with Skype Notes (read below) and with other Web 2.0 tools. We all shared our knowledge; worked together to figure out problems and even taught each other new things. I’m looking forward to reading Brian Crosby’s post on how his new RSS reader has changed his reading habits.

Overall, NECC allowed these conversations that we talk about in the blogosphere to happen, allowed them to organically take place and that was the most powerful part of the Blogger Café.
Thank you to everyone who pushed my thinking, experimented with me, and just got down and geeky! I would say goodbye…but I know that we are all connected and that the conversations will continue!

See you in San Antonio!

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Presenter: Brett Hinton

an Open Source Content Management System (CMS)

You can set Drupal to allow sign up without a e-mail….that’s a good thing for schools who do not have student e-mail accounts.

Drupal allows you to have a wiki, blog, podcasts all in one CMS system.

I really like drupal but need to spend some more time setting it up, hacking it up, and adding good modules.

What Drupal modules in your opinion are a must have?

[tags]necc07[/tags]

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What a day!

Like yesterday’s post there was way to much information for my brain to process all in one day but here is random thoughts that I’m still wrestling with.

Skyping Baby NamesSkype Notes: Below you can read the notes that 5 of us took via a session this morning. To be honest the session wasn’t all that good…but Skype allowed us to ask those question and thoughts we have in real time and allow others to feed of them, expand them, and take them in new directions. If you have ever taken notes during a presentation, you know though questions you have that you want answered, those thoughts that you want to hear what others think…those make up our Skype Note. Everyone of us came out of the session looking at each other with wide eyes. It was the first time I think any of us had done something like that and it was so empowering…I’m sure you’ll see another one tomorrow.

Are You a Twitter Ninja?The most interesting part of the day (and the conference) as been the explosion of twitter. Part of yesterday’s conversation was around ways we can use this in the classroom? So today I downloaded TwitterCamp, installed it and the invited people to the Blogger Cafe for a preview of the software (of course the invite came via Twitter). Once there, things got out of control. The conversation started John Pederson grabbed my laptop and hooked it up the a TV that was standing by. From there we decided that nobody would watch it in the corner (and my laptop needed power) so we moved the TV so it was facing away from the Cafe and towards the foot traffic. People then started adding me as a friend and watching to see their twit pop up on the screen. For the next 5 hours the conversation was fantastic and I ended up spending the rest of the day at the Cafe.

Ryan Bretag
and I were talking tonight over where do you categorize twitter? The best thing I can come up with is a hybrid between IMing and Blogging.

IMing is real time syncroness conversation. Twitter is not, but like IMing you write in short straight forward language. Twitter allows you 140 characters so you learn quickly just how much you can write. You also are connected to the network at all times.

Blogging is asyncroness. You write, and at some other time someone (hopefully) stops by and reads it. Twitter is asyncroness but at the same time people are connected constantly like in a IM format.

So is Twitter a mashup of these two tools? You have a quick asyncroness conversation tool that allows you access to a learning network when you need it.

People often say “Yeah, but I don’t need to know when you’re having dinner.” You’re right, but that’s where twitter starts…..but not where it ends. It ends in the links that you share, the questions that you can ask your network, and the insider information you get from others.

Ways Twitter has been used at this conference

  • To update others on good and bad sessions
  • To meet someone somewhere
  • To put a call out to the network for information
  • To ask for directions
  • To ask a thought provoking question
  • To tell people where others are located
  • To pass URLs
  • To ask for help
  • To pass information to others if you see them

I’m sure I’m missing some..sure we get the funny stuff too, like a call for Bloggers in a Bag, but the power comes from the network and connections the tool allows us to create.

How/Can you use it in a classroom? Not sure….but stop by the Blogger Cafe and join the conversation as we all try to figure out just what Twitter is.

Blogging FodderThe best part of my day though was when a teacher walked into the Blogger Cafe and asked if any of us blogged and could we help her. She was having problems getting her blogger blog to tag links that would be picked up by technorati. Within 5 minutes we hooked her into the network: David Jakes who uses Blogger was helping out, John Pederson IMed Vicki Davis knowing that she used Blogger and might know the answer.

The woman sat there for 45 minutes as we collectively helped her get started on her blog. It was a great moment for me…so help someone else join the blogosphere.

All night I’ve been thinking of the Blogger Cafe. What makes it tick? Why are all of us finding the conversation there better than the sessions we came for?

Around the Blogger Cafe there are people lurking on the edges. Once in awhile you can see them listening in on other conversations, watching and learning from afar, but not joining the conversation. We had this question during the EduBloggerCon: Is a lurker part of the community? What ever your thoughts is, we do need to invite these lurkers in to join us in the conversation.

So tomorrow my goal is to go to these lurkers and invite them…maybe they don’t want to join in, but then again maybe they just need an invite. If you are hanging out at the Blogger Cafe tomorrow I encourage you to invite people in to be apart of the conversation, to join the community that is growing there, and to engage in the most amazing conversations I’ve ever been involved in around Ed Tech.

There have been a lot of ways Web 2.0 tools have influenced this conference…I think we’re headed down a new conference path. A new definition of what a technology conference needs to look like, feel like, and support. I know I have been thinking about the conference of the future and how do you help participants to engage in meaningful conversations.

[tags]necc07[/tags]

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My Screen during this session

[9:21:56 AM] Jeff Utecht added Brian Crosby to this chat
[9:22:11 AM] Jeff Utecht added Vinnie Vrotny to this chat
[9:22:27 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Let’s do it!
[9:22:48 AM] David Jakes says: This should  be very interesting
[9:23:15 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: and now we know why so many kids are being diagnosed with add
[9:23:31 AM] Jeff Utecht says: for sure
[9:24:01 AM] Jeff Utecht says: OK..I’m thinking that we have a great discussion here and then I’ll post it to the blog afterwards….everyone OK with that?
[9:24:12 AM] Brian Crosby says: OK
[9:24:11 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: no problems
[9:24:13 AM] David Jakes says: yep, thats a good idea
[9:24:21 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: interesting experiment
[9:24:37 AM] David Jakes says: sweet
[9:24:55 AM] Brian Crosby says: Does that mean all my comments have to sound meaningful?
[9:26:05 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: hope my battery holds out. I also am audio recording conversation with iriver. will see what the quality is later
[9:26:06 AM] Jeff Utecht says: No
[9:26:14 AM] Jeff Utecht says: cool
[9:26:32 AM] Jeff Utecht says: It’s just a conversation…raw and meaningful.
[9:27:22 AM] Jeff Utecht added Brian Grenier to this chat
[9:27:29 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: hey brian
[9:27:33 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Welcome Brian Grenier!
[9:27:42 AM] David Jakes says: Brian:  we are chatting and this is going to  be a blog post so keep it clean
[9:28:05 AM] Brian Crosby says: OH.. OK
[9:27:58 AM] Brian Grenier says: hey vinnie
[9:28:09 AM] Brian Grenier says: cool i’m in
[9:28:17 AM] Brian Grenier says: dang
[9:29:26 AM] Jeff Utecht says: http://www.danieldura.com/code/twittercamp Twittercamp a display after this in the blogger cafe if you are interested!
[9:29:46 AM] Brian Grenier says: That is one heck of a mic for a podcast
[9:30:04 AM] David Jakes says: How many, about 50%
[9:30:40 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Question to Dave’s answer: How many people are using 2.0 tools in the classroom?
[9:30:51 AM] David Jakes says: Will is up
[9:31:06 AM] Brian Crosby says: Good point Jeff
[9:31:09 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: conversation is happening now behind the scenes What they don’t know and understand. Real classroom 2.0 experience
[9:31:16 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Blogger for 6 years….I didn’t know blogs have been around that long.
[9:31:44 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: Would be cool if they would post a chat window on the screen so that the underlying conversations can be shown to those not connected
[9:31:50 AM] Brian Crosby says: Or have stus use and design as opposed to teachers just bookmarking.
[9:31:58 AM] David Jakes says: motivating as a result of audience, kids need models for connecting into new learning environments when they leave us
[9:32:01 AM] Brian Grenier says: “Ways the tools are used”…this is the key to success
[9:32:19 AM] David Jakes says: Challenges:  they are ya buts…
[9:32:23 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Good poiint!
[9:32:29 AM] Jeff Utecht says: I like that
[9:32:57 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Do you have your mute on? I hear the skype bleap as we type…cool! 🙂
[9:33:07 AM] David Jakes says: I agree with that-dont do digitally what you have done on paper-we need new ways of doing things with these tools
[9:33:12 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: pedagogies as first step
[9:33:35 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Is it a new pedagogy or a transition of the old?
[9:33:48 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: mute off, but it would be interesting to find out if the presntors knew that this was going on in the background
[9:33:55 AM] David Jakes says: Will we be addressing new or old literacies?
[9:33:58 AM] Brian Grenier says: don’t do digitally what can be BEST accomplished on paper
[9:34:00 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Warlick’s up now
[9:34:00 AM] David Jakes says: Thats the first question?
[9:34:15 AM] David Jakes says: David up now talking about staff development
[9:34:19 AM] Brian Crosby says: new tools in old ways is why to many implementations fail
[9:34:26 AM] David Jakes says: absolutely
[9:34:34 AM] Brian Grenier says: kids are different
[9:34:37 AM] David Jakes says: The kids are different, we’re not
[9:34:40 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: we are being kids now
[9:34:48 AM] Brian Crosby says: Respecting kids
[9:34:54 AM] Brian Grenier says: RESPECT the audience
[9:35:03 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: are we respecting the presentors by spliting our attention?
[9:35:05 AM] Jeff Utecht says: I like that!
[9:35:24 AM] Brian Grenier says: what do we do when we go to workshops where we are not “respected”
[9:35:29 AM] David Jakes says: Staff development that happens casually, he’s talking about informal learning
[9:35:30 AM] Brian Grenier says: TUNE OUT
[9:35:44 AM] David Jakes says: why
[9:35:48 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Would you allow your students to do this in your classroo? Why or Why not? Is this learning?
[9:35:56 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: Low battery, yikes
[9:36:29 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: It can be learning, because we can question and challenge our thinking
[9:36:34 AM] David Jakes says: I’m being influenced by everyone’s views, modifying mine, some are being reinforced, so yes, that’s learning
[9:36:39 AM] Brian Grenier says: you cannot turn around at necc
[9:36:40 AM] David Jakes says: w
[9:36:44 AM] Brian Grenier says: literally
[9:36:46 AM] David Jakes says: Warlick discovers
[9:36:54 AM] Brian Crosby says: my recalctrant staff get wikis more than any other web 2.0 – might be a gateway
[9:36:55 AM] Brian Grenier says: but we can’t turn around in our classrooms either
[9:36:58 AM] David Jakes says: Twitter now into a wiki,
[9:37:08 AM] David Jakes says: Its called Twitter
[9:37:20 AM] David Jakes says: Its called TwitterCamp
[9:37:24 AM] Brian Crosby says: No Twinki
[9:37:28 AM] Jeff Utecht says: http://www.danieldura.com/code/twittercamp link to twittercamp
[9:37:33 AM] Brian Grenier says: aggreagator as lifelong learning engine
[9:37:49 AM] David Jakes says: Lynne Schumm is now on the stage
[9:38:02 AM] David Jakes says: Higher ed perspective from research and preservice teachers
[9:38:26 AM] Brian Grenier says: does tech improve student learning?
[9:38:26 AM] David Jakes says: Does it improve student learning, that’s the question.
[9:38:49 AM] Brian Crosby says: as a tool of learning – yes
[9:38:58 AM] David Jakes says: She is suggesting that this doesn’t make a difference, at least in test scores.  How do we measure, evaluate and document Web 2.o stuff relative to this.
[9:38:59 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Need strong evidence? As long as that evidence is based on future skills. NCLB doesn’t do that!
[9:39:10 AM] Brian Grenier says: you would need a control group
[9:39:28 AM] Brian Grenier says: meaning that you would need to withhold tech from a group of kids
[9:39:37 AM] David Jakes says: Have you even heard anyone speak of NCLB in this conference, I haven’t.
[9:39:42 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Great point Brian and which group would you want your kid in?
[9:39:48 AM] Brian Grenier says: exactly
[9:39:59 AM] David Jakes says: Brian is in the control group
[9:40:02 AM] Brian Grenier says: but if technology is a tool
[9:40:12 AM] David Jakes says: Preservice education is a joke
[9:40:21 AM] Brian Crosby says: amen
[9:40:35 AM] David Jakes says: They change less than k-12 education
[9:40:35 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: back up. Need wireless recharge of electric
[9:40:41 AM] Brian Grenier says: you teach as your taught
[9:41:26 AM] David Jakes says: what are some good strategies for math, science, we need the stories.  I’d rather focus on l
earning…
[9:41:35 AM] David Jakes says: Action reseach is sometimes an oxymoron.
[9:41:44 AM] Brian Grenier says: Once again a call for collaboration in our classrooms
[9:41:49 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Gwen’s up!
[9:41:58 AM] David Jakes says: Gwen Solomon is up now
[9:42:07 AM] David Jakes says: What constitutes an effective model?
[9:42:10 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: SRO in session
[9:42:35 AM] David Jakes says: Why do we need to publish a BOOK on models, thats what the blogosphere should be for
[9:42:44 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: viral marketing need to do viral staff dev
[9:42:59 AM] David Jakes says: I thought we needed new ways of doing things, not just doing the same things in new ways…
[9:43:01 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: that is the way to spread the wild fire
[9:43:19 AM] Brian Grenier says: perhaps the model lessons are out there, and the reason why we don’t see them is because part of the issue is a lack of understanding of how to amplify your stuff
[9:43:27 AM] David Jakes says: now doing a promotion for books, c’mon
[9:43:46 AM] David Jakes says: I agree
[9:43:50 AM] David Jakes says: But if you are doing
[9:43:53 AM] Brian Crosby says: Models that work – if we had many it might overcome other’s need for “research” to prove “it works”
[9:43:53 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: the other problem with lessons is ownership, which has not been addressed
[9:44:06 AM] David Jakes says: But if you are doing Web 2.0 dont you know how to amplify?
[9:44:17 AM] Brian Grenier says: not necessarily
[9:44:21 AM] Vinnie Vrotny says: but is hard to build truct and audience
[9:44:26 AM] Brian Grenier says: think about teachers new to this stuff
[9:44:32 AM] David Jakes says: Can’t get the microphone to work, c’mon
[9:44:46 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Tim Magner now speaking
[9:44:49 AM] David Jakes says: OK, so we need to publish some things on amplifying voice
[9:44:53 AM] Brian Grenier says: they are focused on learning and exploring the tool
[9:45:01 AM] Brian Grenier says: good idea
[9:45:30 AM] Brian Grenier says: none of us have a good idea of what school 2.0 looks like
[9:45:49 AM] Brian Crosby says: isn’t that sad!?
[9:45:51 AM] Jeff Utecht says: And we shouldn’t we’re still developing it
[9:46:03 AM] Brian Grenier says: good point jeff
[9:46:10 AM] Brian Crosby says: Good point
[9:46:18 AM] David Jakes says: What does an information-age school look like, rather than what does an Web 2.0 school look like
[9:46:24 AM] Jeff Utecht says: with the rate of change School 2.0 is ever evolving..there should be no hard “what’s it look like” it will look different everywhere, every year.
[9:46:27 AM] Brian Grenier says: i once heard that you cannot imagine something that you’ve never seen…..
[9:46:27 AM] Brian Crosby says: But we have parts we know work – beta
[9:47:12 AM] Brian Grenier says: shouldn’t school 2.0 be in perpetual beta?
[9:47:15 AM] David Jakes says: We need to fundamentally alter the ground rules of schools…but we can’t embrace everything at the danger of losing our core mission
[9:47:18 AM] David Jakes says: yes
[9:47:26 AM] Brian Crosby says: neverending beta school
[9:47:37 AM] David Jakes says: that’s the idea but that is absolutely opposite of what education is capable of
[9:47:49 AM] Brian Grenier says: Beta High home of the Bloggers!
[9:48:18 AM] David Jakes says: Mother Ship
[9:49:03 AM] Brian Grenier says: need for a bottom up push for change
[9:49:04 AM] David Jakes says: this isnt the federal govt’s vision…funny
[9:49:20 AM] David Jakes says: vision is to memorize and regurgitate
[9:49:36 AM] Brian Grenier says: please bubble A, B, C, or D
[9:49:39 AM] Jeff Utecht says: www.school2-0.org
[9:49:50 AM] Brian Grenier says: by the way, we want you to think outside the box
[9:49:52 AM] David Jakes says: the federal govt “vision” is a poster but how do you put a poster into action?
[9:50:21 AM] Brian Crosby says: plus it doesn’t jive with everything else they say it is
[9:50:31 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Someone blogged about perpetual Education once. https://www.thethinkingstick.com/?p=84 🙂
[9:50:43 AM] David Jakes says: What would a poster of NCLB and AYP look like?
[9:51:00 AM] Brian Grenier says: I thought it was Jeff that said that
[9:51:11 AM] Brian Crosby says: Climbing a hill of and
[9:51:14 AM] David Jakes says: Now its time for questions
[9:51:23 AM] David Jakes says: stop it g
[9:51:27 AM] David Jakes says: Stop it Gwen
[9:51:30 AM] Brian Grenier says: David is getting kudos so is Jeff
[9:51:50 AM] David Jakes says: how do you guys feel about this
[9:52:01 AM] Brian Grenier says: help me write a book?
[9:52:17 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Karen Henshaw from WA
[9:52:31 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Need a huge collaberative space for schools
[9:52:37 AM] Brian Grenier says: NING network?
[9:52:45 AM] Brian Grenier says: possible solution?
[9:52:47 AM] David Jakes says: Who wants to start?
[9:52:54 AM] David Jakes says: One spot, one area
[9:52:57 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Ning could be the thing
[9:53:04 AM] David Jakes says: yep
[9:53:07 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Teacher from NJ
[9:53:11 AM] Brian Grenier says: Doug Nore??
[9:53:17 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Beginning with PD
[9:53:27 AM] David Jakes says: Everybody wants to know how to start
[9:54:10 AM] Brian Grenier says: I had the same question in the SIGMS session…”where to start”
[9:54:29 AM] Brian Crosby says: Then if it works make sure everyone knows about it over and over
[9:54:49 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Tighter control is that is possible in this 21st century?
[9:55:06 AM] Brian Grenier says: Hey Jakes…I’m in the back
[9:55:34 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Jakes ask can we use these 2.0 tools in PD to teach web 2.0
[9:55:50 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Richardson…we have to become part of the social netowrk…kids are learning networks.
[9:56:02 AM] Jeff Utecht says: We should unmute so people can hear us. LOL
[9:56:08 AM] David Jakes says: The networking piece is key
[9:56:23 AM] Brian Grenier says: I encourage teachers NOT to use the tools, especially blogs, as an educational tool at first
[9:56:29 AM] Brian Grenier says: blog about quilting
[9:56:32 AM] Brian Grenier says: or food
[9:56:35 AM] Brian Grenier says: or sports
[9:56:35 AM] David Jakes says: we have to do it as educators ourselves first, citing edublogger con as an example
[9:56:45 AM] Brian Grenier says: whatever we can use to hook you
[9:57:15 AM] David Jakes says: Tim:  tremendous amount of informal learning that goes on with technology
[9:57:27 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Good point…with students I start with tech…they love this stuff and it’s a hook
[9:57:38 AM] Brian Grenier says: how did you learn to blog?
[9:57:45 AM] Jeff Utecht says: How many schools have a virtual social network?
[9:57:54 AM] David Jakes says: got a blogger account and started typing
[9:57:53 AM] Brian Grenier says: could be a great topic to write about
[9:58:17 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Installed WordPress and just started writing. www.wordpress.org
[9:58:19 AM] David Jakes says: do these tools set the grounds for a different pedagogical conversation?
[9:58:27 AM] Brian Grenier says: perhaps with these new tools informal learning is more effective than formal PD sessions
[9:58:31 AM] Brian Crosby says: can’t get comfortable until you use it
[9:58:31 AM] Jeff Utecht says: There is Brian…authentic experiences…spot on!
[9:58:44 AM] David Jakes says: tim is now talking about a
[9:59:12 AM] David Jakes says: VCR, or they had the kids do it for them?
[9:59:17 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Ozzie now speaking
[9:59:24 AM] Brian Grenier says: Garrick Brown?
[9:59:35 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Nothing will be blocked
[9:59:47 AM] Brian Grenier says: is this REALLY a good idea?
[9:59
:49 AM] Jeff Utecht says: That’s us in China as well
[9:59:50 AM] Brian Grenier says: NOTHING
[9:59:52 AM] David Jakes says: Nothing will be blocked, he doesn’t teach in the US
[10:00:22 AM] David Jakes says: DOPA, CIPA, NCIPA, ESPN…
[10:00:33 AM] Brian Grenier says: this is a GREAT conversation taking place in this room
[10:00:58 AM] David Jakes says: A catholic system that unblocks everything!  THAT ROCKS
[10:00:59 AM] Brian Grenier says: we need to set up a wiki real quick for people to continue from here
[10:01:12 AM] David Jakes says: Google
[10:01:15 AM] David Jakes says: Google
[10:01:27 AM] David Jakes says: Google Doc would be better for muliple authors
[10:01:53 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Guy from TX
[10:01:53 AM] Brian Grenier says: EL PASO
[10:01:58 AM] David Jakes says: Dave Romatka
[10:02:01 AM] Brian Grenier says: David Romaka
[10:02:08 AM] Brian Grenier says: this guy is SHARP
[10:02:08 AM] David Jakes says: I was close
[10:02:25 AM] Brian Grenier says: he does outstanding stuff with his kids
[10:02:41 AM] Brian Grenier says: utilize your student
[10:02:42 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Put the students in control
[10:02:52 AM] David Jakes says: now there is an idea, student empowerment
[10:02:54 AM] Jeff Utecht says: “They have been playing with computers since they were 5 years old”
[10:02:58 AM] Brian Crosby says:  Only if you have kids that have access
[10:03:16 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Univ. of Washington student..cool
[10:03:23 AM] David Jakes says: Freshman from the University of Washington is now talking, he’s been a student for his entire life
[10:03:33 AM] Brian Crosby says: So have I
[10:03:57 AM] David Jakes says: Social networks out there Scriptovia.com
[10:03:58 AM] Brian Grenier says: I am getting Romaka’s students’ website
[10:03:58 AM] Jeff Utecht says: scriptscriptovia.com
[10:04:13 AM] David Jakes says: social network dedicated to learning, not just a social site
[10:04:14 AM] Jeff Utecht says: www.scriptovia.com
[10:04:58 AM] David Jakes says: dont turn this kid loose on a stage
[10:05:10 AM] Brian Crosby says: wow stus working on making it work – what a concept
[10:05:18 AM] Brian Grenier says: is he a vendor?
[10:05:36 AM] David Jakes says: no, he’s an 18 year old with passion
[10:05:43 AM] Brian Grenier says: cool
[10:05:49 AM] David Jakes says: is this site live
[10:05:57 AM] Brian Grenier says: Now a retired guy is speaking
[10:06:04 AM] Jeff Utecht says: Are some of the best concepts going to come from Univ students like this? People that have grown up with it..get it…and know what students are feeling.
[10:06:18 AM] David Jakes says: yes, it is, but the system sqaushes this
[10:06:22 AM] David Jakes says: see, spirit killers
[10:06:23 AM] Brian Grenier says: Schools as spirit killers
[10:06:26 AM] Brian Grenier says: wow
[10:06:41 AM] Brian Crosby says: I just pulled up the site
[10:06:45 AM] David Jakes says: absolutely, walk down the hallways and you can see it
[10:06:58 AM] Jeff Utecht says: expensive???? Skype, Twitter, Moodle, Google, Zoho, Blogger, wikispaces
[10:07:00 AM] David Jakes says: this process that we are doing is very cool and interesting
[10:07:15 AM] Brian Crosby says: From the site:
Scriptovia.com is an online community for students to collaborate and receive feedback on their academic work. This includes essays, notes, lab reports, presentations,
and everything else students create to advance their knowledge.
[10:07:17 AM] David Jakes says: He’s retired, teacher 0.3
[10:07:50 AM] Jeff Utecht says: John Pederson now talking
[10:08:09 AM] David Jakes says: John didnt know that VCRS were difficult
[10:08:33 AM] Jeff Utecht says: John’s blog add it if you don’t have it http://pedersondesigns.com/
[10:08:38 AM] Brian Grenier says: need for patience
[10:08:43 AM] David Jakes says: kid with the Web site is Aseem Badshah, email is aseem@scriptovia.com
[10:08:53 AM] Brian Grenier says: do we expect change to happen to quickly????
[10:08:54 AM] David Jakes says: Parent guy is up now
[10:09:03 AM] David Jakes says: do we have a choice?
[10:09:55 AM] David Jakes says: What is the role of the panel right now?
[10:10:05 AM] Brian Grenier says: are we opening our PD opportunities to parents and teachers alike?  sisde-by-side?
[10:10:12 AM] David Jakes says: thats a nice idea
[10:11:03 AM] Jeff Utecht says: We are running monthly parent trainings this year
[10:11:36 AM] David Jakes says: We have to start with the pre-service teachers?
[10:11:46 AM] David Jakes says: No, we have to start with everyone!
[10:12:01 AM] Brian Grenier says: website of David Romaka’s  El Paso students — http://ccte.episd.org
[10:12:03 AM] David Jakes says: So what–what do they know about learning?
[10:12:18 AM] David Jakes says: What do they now about teaching-know that first, tools are easy
[10:12:40 AM] Jeff Utecht says: They don’t know the tools…or they don’t know how to use them for education…they’ve had no need to use them…but they have facebook, myspace, and use technology…we need to help pre-service teachers learn how to use these tools for education.
[10:12:55 AM] Brian Grenier says: PD guy speaking
[10:12:58 AM] David Jakes says: I’m surprised at the focus on tools, but I guess that is a starting point
[10:13:25 AM] Brian Crosby says: our local university is terrible about having stus use tech – 10 years ago the talk was about requiring laptops and still many don’t use beyond Word/Powerpoint
[10:13:56 AM] David Jakes says: the universities in our schools have masters degrees in instructional technology and they are an absolute joke.
[10:14:29 AM] Brian Grenier says: I have heard more talk about libraries and librarians at this year’s NECC than expected….why then is it that libraries, at least in my experience, don’t model what this conversation is about
[10:14:34 AM] David Jakes says: Most of my friends who have enrolled in these could teach the classes
[10:15:02 AM] Brian Crosby says: student teachers are required to use tech in every lesson – but if they use an overhead projector or calculator it counts – ugg
[10:15:10 AM] David Jakes says: interesting point Brian, many more librarians than normal, maybe because they realize their world, as they typically see it, is over…
[10:15:29 AM] David Jakes says: need to reinvent…again..
[10:16:12 AM] David Jakes says: Will we self-organized into our own schools?
[10:16:17 AM] Brian Grenier says: perpetual entreprenuer-educators (did I hear that right?)
[10:16:29 AM] David Jakes says: We’ve already done this with the edublogosphere…
[10:16:43 AM] Brian Crosby says: Maybe currnt students will have to grow up to run universities before they change
[10:16:59 AM] Jeff Utecht says: But you have to be willing to fail! That is what building something new takes.
[10:17:20 AM] David Jakes says: We also need to rethink our mentoring programs, pair up a new teacher with a 25 year veteran and you can guess what happens-its a self perpetuating system
[10:17:26 AM] Brian Grenier says: 19 minutes left on my battery. YIKES
[10:17:43 AM] Brian Crosby says: and learn to deal with failure – not something to fear
[10:17:46 AM] David Jakes says: 3.11 hours on mine-dude, get a travel battery
[10:18:26 AM] David Jakes says: plug by the big pillar to the left of the screen,
[10:18:44 AM] David Jakes says: Warlick is leaving!!!!
[10:18:48 AM] Brian Grenier says: Warlick has left the building
[10:18:48 AM] David Jakes says: what’s up with that
[10:19:03 AM] David Jakes says: does he have another presentation?
[10:19:05 AM] Brian Crosby says: He has a preso at 2
[10:19:23 AM] Brian Grenier says: he did 2 hours earlier at SIGMS
[10:19:27 AM] Jeff Utecht says: 10 mins of battery left 🙁
[10:19:39 AM] Dav
id Jakes says: but hes a monster, he can go all day
[10:20:11 AM] David Jakes says: when does this end?
[10:20:33 AM] David Jakes says: tools cannot force change!!!!!
[10:20:36 AM] Brian Grenier says: web 2.0 tools will force a change?
[10:21:01 AM] Brian Grenier says: New styles of learning will force the change
[10:21:34 AM] Brian Grenier says: kids learn different…the tools fit nicely into that…but the change will not be cause because of the tools
[10:22:03 AM] David Jakes says: What will force the change, student and parent unrest
[10:22:26 AM] David Jakes says: it will get worse before it gets better
[10:22:35 AM] Brian Grenier says: true, though student unrest moreso
[10:22:57 AM] Brian Crosby says: together with working examples that make others want to be part
[10:23:09 AM] David Jakes says: wow
[10:24:00 AM] Brian Grenier says: we need to be advertising  to a larger audience best practices to our teachers that “don’t get it”
[10:24:35 AM] Brian Crosby says: Yes, what’s the best way or ways?
[10:24:46 AM] Brian Grenier says: that often means that we need to go low tech
[10:24:50 AM] Brian Grenier says: word of mouth
[10:24:59 AM] Brian Grenier says: letters in mailboxes
[10:25:02 AM] Brian Grenier says: email
[10:25:40 AM] Brian Grenier says: maybe we try to highlight best examples ineffectively to those teachers we are trying to pull up
[10:27:34 AM] Brian Grenier says: This was cool
[10:28:02 AM] Brian Crosby says: Should be broadcast

[tags]necc07[/tags]

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Presenter Timothy Magner

School 2.0 website. (A must read!)

Cell phones allow you to call a person not a place

65.4% of U.S. population own cell phones.

Average U.S. home has 26 different media devices

Wired teen population surges at the 7th grade

44% of boys 79% of girls online in 6th grade

e-mail is a fixture -IM is preferred

79% of teens report helping adults do something online that they couldn’t do themselves.

Use to customizing everything

US youth lag much of the world in use of mobile devices to connect to the Internet

Showing poster of School 2.0 (from link above)

“We’re creating the future together!”

Question: Top two challenges for schools
Answer: Recourse and effectiveness

Said he would put the PPT online. Worth it if you give presentations to staff…great stats that can be used.

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There has been so much learning going on the last couple of days. I’m trying to work through it all, but my main processor (my brain) is running slow trying to understand what all this new knowledge, new thinking means.

http://www.gapingvoid.com/fail444456.jpg Why are we afraid of failure? We teach our kids that we learn through failure but when it comes to use taking risks, trying something new we don’t because we’re afraid others will laugh if we fail. Or maybe for administrators: if you take the risk to try something new and test scores don’t improve you risk your job?

We know that we learn through taking risks, but we’re not willing to fail although we all know that some of your best learning comes through failure. We need to take risks, we ALL need to understand that it’s OK to fail, we learn, we move on.

0724_6insiid_a.gif Sheryl points to an interesting image of how U.S. online users use the web. If we look at the school age students this is what we get:

34% Create web content

24% Contribute via comments, polls/rating and reviews.

11% Collect resources via RSS, tags, bookmarks

51% Use Social-networking sites

49% Read, watch, view, listen to content

34% are inactive on the web

There is just one small problem I see with these numbers. If you are a “Joiner” (which BusinessWeek calls those who join and use social networking sites) are you not also a creator, contributor, collector, and spectator/reader? You can not join a social-network without creating content by writing blogs/articles, creating videos or taking pictures. You have to be a contributor in order to be known in the social-network by commenting or being involved in polls/ratings. You are a collector as you collect friends, videos, images, and resources. You are a spectator as you read, watch, look and listen to what others have created in your social-network. So 51% of US school age students are in some way using the web in a learning capacity. If you move to what BusinessWeek calls Youth (age 18-21) this jumps to 70% which makes sense, as these are some of the first Millennials, first digital natives, that have grown up with Web 2.0 tools. It will be interesting to watch this wave over the next couple of years.

Vowing Wedding Favors I have to say (as do many other bloggers here) that the Blogger Cafe is the place to hang out when you are not in sessions. The ongoing conversation there is amazing. Stop by and sit down next to some one and it’s not long before some deep conversations start happening. I learned more today in the couple hours I spent there, than I did at all the sessions I went to combined. If you are a blogger or are just thinking of starting a blog…stop by, introduce yourself, and let the fun begin..it won’t be long until you see the power of conversations.

http://www.gapingvoid.com/history76156.jpg And then there is Twitter. Twitter has come alive at this conference. You can check out my twitter account to see the conversation that is coming out of sessions and the thinking happening on this new social tool. You can also read this post on a great story from Sunday on how Twitter became the network tool that brought some of us together for a baseball game.

Don’t tell me you don’t get twitter until you’ve tried it! Set up an account follow some friends and create your own personal twitter network. (Take a risk!)

Research shows that students are using these tools, we’re not teaching them because we’re afraid of failure (on some level). Meanwhile the blogosphere continues to expand continues to ask questions that I don’t know if there is an answer too…yet. New tools continue to evolve, continue to push us to try something new and different that we might not get. If we do not try these new tools, overcome our fears, and continue to ask the hard questions we will have no chance of ever evolving to School 2.0.

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Presenter Mitchel Resnick

People complain about schools but not about Kindergarden.

Creative learning spiral

Imagine
Create
Play
Share
Reflect
Imagine

Develop technology with a Low Floor and High Ceilings
Develop technology with Wide Walls

Telling some great stories of what students have created through a MIT program. Iceland, Singapore, US. Amazing products!

Showing off Scratch (If you haven’t downloaded and played with the program…do it! Actually download it and give it to a kid….they’ll master if before you will. 🙂 )

Scratch is AWESOME!
-Drag and drop pictures from the internet.

Is technology “tinkerable” (a.k.a hackable?)

Cricket being released today.

We need to develop critical thinkers. In Kindergarten we allow student to explore and tinker. After kindergarten you’re not allowed to tinker. Both as a teacher and as a student?

We need to network together
We need to get people thinking in new ways
We need to build communities.

Life needs to more like Kindergarten.

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(Doug Johnson’s session is over flowing. People standing out side looking in. I am sitting in the Blogger Cafe while David Jakes has a front row seat in the session. He is taking his notes in Skype. I’m copying the notes here as a blog post about the session….exactly what Doug is talking about.)

Doug Johnson

Crap detector

10 tech directors

All the rest are librarians

And you are getting a long so well.

Showing old photo and Second Life image

Beloit.edu/~pubaff/mindset

Showing what kids today have never known-very effective

The Kennedy disaster was a plane crash, not a disaster.

They are just eating this shit up,
Doug has got some groupies.

They’ve never used white out.

First understanding:  it will be easier to change the way we teach, the way our Net Gen students learn.

Second understanding:  Today’s students like to learn.  They just don’t like what we want to teach and how we teach it.

See the Educating the Net Generation from Educause

Cell phones

Don’t do anything without music

Gamers

Multitaskers

Don’t like to go outside

Compulsive communicators

Want quick fast immediacy

Bombarded with commercialism have a ton of stuff

Skim over the tops of things, know a little about a lot-the generalist generation

Learn by failing, inductive discovery

Talk for hours without saying anything

My job is to confuse you at a higher level.

Now showing demographics of millenials.

Follow Zits in the comic strips to understand Millenials

Watch more digital media than television

See Student Monitors Lifestyle and Media Study, 2005

See Threshold Magazine, new resource

Doug is asking if anyone is live blogging this

We call informal learning with other kids (what they do online at night) …cheating

How will schools change as a result of students understanding and knowledge of technology

Ability to cheat taken away from kids (are you kidding me?)

Let them bring their iPods

Give kids more choices

Individualized instruction

Quit expecting kids to follow long directions.

We need to use technology as a hook

Make education 24/7

Use students own technology to teach them

Buildings places kids want to be

You are actually blogging this…you were serious

Information has changed, its becoming conversational

Now talking about a home media ecology and all the tools-I would call it an ecosystem rather than an ecology, but they’re close enough

Now talking about tagging and how so last year Melville Dewey is

Confusion about tagging, don’t get that its about categorizing

I don’t mean to dis on Dewey-Doug

They think tags are about finding information…

Now talking about Wikipedia…This is the evil wikipedia, devised by Satan, and cast from the depths of Hell (tongue in cheek)

Showing Encarta vs. Wikipedia chart. Wikpedia blows it away.

Teach copyright from the point of view of the creator

Discrimination and evaluation skills need to be taught to kids.

Students need guidance more than ever

Needs to be a focus on organizing, creating and using information.

Doug has myspace page…with no friends (But we’re all your friends Doug!)

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(Late to the session…breakfast with Tim Lauer worth it!)


Presenter James Gate

Talking about how great Moodle. (I’m a huge Moodle fan…but if you use Blackboard that good too…I really don’t care what you use as long as you use something!)

-Use the blog feature in Moodle with tags to take notes in class. Great idea!

Elgg.net
-Can connect the two with a module (We did this for a bit….love the idea but elgg is not a smooth program for a individual install on you own server.)

Set up network with inboxs, outbox, and sharebox. (This is what we are setting up next year…looking forward to the new network.)

Only about 10 people in the room have an aggregator 🙁

Collaborate with Google Docs

How do you keep kids from chatting within Google Docs? (My thought…what a great use of Google Chat…note taking, discussions, interaction…all within one document that can be saved and printed or graded if needed.)

Showing SplashCast media. Check it out!

Showing The Universal Timeline Aggregator

Showing PantherPress (Using Joomla great looking site! Our high school kids set this up on their own! www.saswire.com The Unofficial school newspaper of SAS-Puxi High School)

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Just back from the ballgame at Turner Field. What a great park!

There was a sign in right center that read “Welcome To The Bigs!”

That’s what I feel like so far being here at NECC. This is the Bigs!

I did find out thought that you can’t take a bunch of geeks to a ball game and not talk about technology. I learned about 2 new tools, had conversations around sessions this week, and what people are doing at different schools.

I’m looking forward to tomorrow, big time conversations, big time connections, and big time presentations.

So grab the ball, give it a rub down, and let’s do it!

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