NCaect Reflections

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I really enjoy going to local conferences - especially K-12 ones. All of my sessions were on Friday (starting at 8:15! AM) so I was able to enjoy my Thursday at some really great sessions. The group behind Teacher Tube, Kevin Honeycutt and of course our keynote Sheryl Nussbam-Beach. I love not only watching great speakers present, but I'm also very interested in fostering professional learning communities. The added benefit of the conference in Charlotte was that I got a chance to have an "adult" (i.e. not a stroller in sight!) meal with my parents and brother. (It was wonderful!)

I was nervous about getting to my sessions on time (Did I mention 8:15 AM!) since I was staying in another hotel. My first session was on Web 2.0, and my worst fears were realized (OK actually my worst fear is no one showing up :) There was no Internet - so I ended up teaching from the hip. I think I pulled it off, and thank goodness I had a good handout! (You would think I would know to use archived or downloaded websites as a back-up - I know now!) My next session on Podcasting I was a bit more prepared to have no Internet & luckily Audacity & iTunes can be "offline."

My last session was on Moodle & the last time I had a session on Moodle, 5 people showed up - so we ended up having a nice roundtable discussion about implementation (I actually think it was one of my best sessions). So I was not prepared for about 80 people to show up! It is hard to encapsulate something as gargantuan as Moodle in a 45 minute session, but I think we got the idea across!

Oh and to top it all off - one of my old teachers was in the audience! I'm not sure who was more shocked!

NCaect Opening Session - Shift Happens

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You can tell that teacher's run this conference. The energy and enthusiasm of the group is contagious! They are excited about they can do and honoring those before them. I'm excited to know a few of the award recipients!

I have always been a fan of Sheryl Nussbaum Beach's work. (Ustreamed) I enjoy her blog and have been looking forward to this for awhile.

Moblogged
The 21st Century is now - how are we changing?
Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 to Web 3.0 - Singularity
Dynamic textbooks with wikis - this is my favorite idea for wiki use
Accelerating Adoption rate - how long does it take to reach the "common household"

How do we prepare for jobs that do not exist yet?
Ten Trends
#1 Social & Intellectual Capital
#4 Education will shift from
#7 technology will increase the speed of communication

Move from accountability to responsibility - Intrinsic motivation for all

"Computers will not replace teachers. Teachers who use computers will replace those who do not."

Sheryl was an absolutely wonderful speaker - inspiration, real, and accessible. I am in awe.