Learning at a Conference

Two of my new colleagues

Either I am an internet addict or everyone else at this conference in Missoula, MT is digitally illiterate. It is a Gifted and Talented Conference put on by our state gifted organization, AGATE. There are probably right around 1000 teachers here and only about five of us have been bringing our laptops to the sessions. I may be wrong, but I am pretty sure that I am the only one at the conference utilizing Twitter to share what I am learning. I have been recording my experiences on a new tool Dean Groom showed me called etherpad. It is a live document that can be edited by all participants as they chat in a backchannel section of the page. I tried to share my etherpad with the other guy here who had a computer and he would have none of it. That guy now does everything he can to avoid bumping into me (thinks I’m a stalker). In fact, I tried sharing it with all my colleagues and not a one of them had any interest. However, at the end of the day in my hotel room while messing around in WoW with a colleague, I shared my etherpad. My colleague thought it was the coolest thing ever and even made her own that she plans to use at a conference where she will be presenting in a few weeks. Thank God, for my PLN. It always validates to me that even though there is evidence to the contrary, I may be on the right track. I am not sure, but I imagine at other conferences laptops are used by far more people to share ideas and discuss conference content. This is the first conference where I brought my laptop and used various web 2.0 tools to enhance my learning. Those tools [(twitter, skype, WoW (yes, for me, it is a learning tool)] have made this conference the most meaningful I have ever attended.

On a personal note, my avatar in Second Life, Henny Zimer, turned 1-year-old on April 24th. I bought him a new cyclocross bike to celebrate but I am fairly certain that I will be the one riding it. Also, unbelievable to me, someone in Montana actually started reading my blog and it was my brother, Tom. I am very happy that he has read the things I have been writing over the past year…Thank you, Tom.

Henny's Birthday Present

Re-defining MUVE

I have always looked at Multi-User Virtual Environments as places involving operation of an avatar, for the last year anyway.  As my definition has evolved, however, and after reading a post by Dean Groom, which contained the slideshare below, my definition has become much broader.  I now include all interactive websites including nings, blogs, wikis, googledocs, and microblogs like twitter, plurk, and Jaiku.  When I first became immersed in on-line education, Second Life was my primary means of virtual learning.  As time has progressed, I learn through each of the applications listed above at different times and in different ways.  I may be off track when I say this, but I believe that On-line learning can meet the needs of nearly all different learning styles.  Please tell me if I am off-track my mighty PLN…If I am…isn’t that how learning is…always changing…

Virtual Words In Education

On a personal note, I interviewed for a new position that begins in the fall and I got it.  I will be teaching middle school gifted education…excuse me…Extended Curricular Services…they had to change the name.  In the interview I talked a lot about web 2.0 tools and twenty first century learning.  (Scaffolding and What did you say DEAN?)  I hope that I can practice what I preach when fall comes and I hope that my students become as engaged as I get when I begin sharing what I have learnt (aussie spelling).  Now…I must get on my bike…

QUALCOMM – Convergence

I vote for the Crocideagles…

more about “QUALCOMM – Convergence“, posted with vodpod