This year's event proved to be rewarding, as was last year's. Here follows my summary of what I saw and learned.
Day One
Megasession 1
Is Social Software Changing Everything?
Presenters: Richard Kississieh (Catlin Gabel) & Tom Frizelle (Overlake)
Richard began this first “megasession” with an introduction to a site he created just for this conference. He touted the tool “Drupal” (http://drupal.org/about) which I haven’t yet looked into in detail, but I believe Richard described it as something like Moodle but (in his estimation) better. Not only was this site to serve as a record of attendees’ experiences and observations while here (if they chose to share them online), but it is also incorporates one of the central characteristics of Web 2.0 applications: users access and interact with data, and have the ability to add their own original content to what is already there. Web 2.0 was to be a central theme of this conference.
The PNAIS site Richard set up for this Tech Share Conference using Drupal is at:
He gave us an “in class” survey to complete and then turned his focus to the following examples of social software:
wikis
blogs
podcasts
student-oriented sites
If Web 1.0 is seen as a static resource – one visits a site and accesses the information made available there – in Web 2.0, one can access all the incredible breadth of information available and, in addition, interact with that information to add, change, or otherwise update what is already there (i.e. a Wiki) or to post new information, opinions, or perspective in the media of your choice (i.e. written blogs, audio or video podcasts). The ways in which these tools can build connections between people and assure that we can all access the best of many minds collaborating is increasingly amazing the more one thinks about it!
Megasession 2
Introduction to Web 2.0
Presenter: Cheryl Wolotira (Northwest School)
Cheryl opened her presentation with a video available via YouTube called “The Machine Is Us”. I had seen this once before. It’s a clever demo of how information can be and is manipulated by people starting with pencil & paper (and eraser) but moving to the far more flexible and instantaneous way to transform text with the computer, mouse, software, and the human brain.
The question posed by Cheryl was: Why should Web 2.0 matter to us (as teachers)? Her answer: Because it matters to our kids (our students). “It’s where the kids live.”
She went on to talk or demonstrate the following:
podcasts
v-casting
social network sites
blogging
wikis
video conferencing
Cheryl noted that, even as software tools evolve and change, the hardware we use is also in the process of being transformed. As an example, she showed as a FlipVideo camera (http://www.theflip.com/). Available in 30-minute & in a 60-minute versions, the FlipVideo camera is a one-piece video camera able to record video with the press of a button onto flash memory (no tape). To download the video, just connect the FlipVideo camera to a computer via its built-in USB connector (no cables!) and it’s done. Apparently the camera also comes with basic editing software. She did not go through an entire sequence but it did look easy as can be. The cameras are also quite reasonably priced and widely available (she got hers at Costco). Cheryl invited us to think back to what digital video cameras used to be and how “user friendly” and less expensive this hardware is getting. It’s another indication of the doors that are opening to teaching and learning options not readily available before.
As far as podcasting is concerned, Cheryl talked about the wide availability of easy-to-use and reasonably-priced digital voice recorders. Using Audacity (free audio editing software) and educational sites offering distribution networks, doing podcasting in the classroom is also becoming easier.
Web 2.0 also offers us Issues to wrestle with. From Cheryl’s standpoint, we, as educators, must keep ourselves and our students informed about:
Internet safety
copyright/fair use
reliability of content
Cheryl did not spend a great deal of time on these issues. Clearly each could be a workshop in and of itself. Still, I think her point was to make sure that mention was made of these areas where we need to be fully informed and prepared to teach (and reach) our students.
Day Two
Breakout Session #1 (Teacher Track)
Using Moodle and SharePoint
Presenter: John Newsom (Lakeside)
John’s session gave us an overview of Moodle and provided all an opportunity to set up a practice Moodle site on a temporary server he provided. We used session time to work on our Moodle experiments. John indicated that 2007-2008 would be a trial year for classroom/teacher use of Moodle at Lakeside.
Once I was able to create a site for next year’s 7th grade Laptop Prep class, I spent time learning how to add/remove modules and begin trying to plan and organize how I might construct a Prep Moodle site.
Certainly still in the planning stages, I plan to keep modifying and adding to what I was able to start at the conference
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Breakout Session #2 (Teacher Track)
Using Web 2.0 Tools
Presenter: Cheryl Wolotira (Northwest School)
Cheryl invited us to visit a set of links on the very recently activated site she has set up for teachers at The Northwest School. She and her school went with a service called SWIFT – which costs only $500/year. SWIFT provides easy web page creation and hosting for all teacher sites. Page templates are provided making assembling and maintaining a website quite doable for the typical teacher (she believes). Cheryl pointed us to her site (below). In particular she had us go through her list of Links since so many of them relate to Web 2.0 sites and resources.
http://teachers.northwestschool.org/nws/cwolotira/index.php
Links include:
Interactive Web
- Blogspots - Great blog site for those new to blogging.
- bubl.us - Online and collaborative mindmapping and brainstorming.
- de.licio.us - Collect, tag and annotate your favorite websites
- Education Webcast Network - David Warlick's podcast site
- iTunes - Find educational podcasts, how-tos, or post your own or your student's podcasts.
- Learn Out Loud - Podcasts and Audio Books, many of the free! Great site to look for audio, and educational podcasts. Think about this for students that have difficulty reading or need other ways to process written information.
- Second Life - Virtual reality world. Create an alter ego for yourself and then have a look at what educational institutions are doing! Think distance learning in a virtual world.
- stu.dicio.us - Collaborative tools for students. Take notes, create schedules and calendars, share your work with group partners.
- TeacherTube - Teacher-created v-casts on all sorts of topics including specific lessons for students, tutorials and social commentary.
- Wikispaces - Create a wiki for yourself or others to use. Educational institutions can get the premium account for free.
Professional Development
- 2 cents worth - David Warlick's entertaining and very informative blog about the state of education and educational technology today.
- Digital Directions - A new online journal from Education Week on what's new, what's exciting and what's workin in educational technology.
- Landmark for Schools - Links to all sorts of useful sites for students and teachers.
- Read/Write Web - An article from Read/Write Web outlining all sorts of interactive web applications.
Social networks
- Facebook - This probably doesn't need much explanation but think of the possibilities for collaboration!
- Flikr - Upload, tag and create using your photographs.
- Furl - Save links and pages you find on the internet.
Another tool Cheryl talked about (although we didn’t spend much session time on it but it does look worthwhile for further looking at) is Classroom 2.0 (http://classroom20.ning.com/).
Day Three
Breakout Session #1 (Teacher Track)
Putting It All Together: Rebuild, Remodel, or Rethink
Presenter: Cheryl Wolotira (Northwest School)
Cheryl announced to us that her intent for this session was summarized by the first four words of the session’s title…..putting it all together. We were all set about to work on whatever we had with us that we started while here at the conference. My time was spent mostly helping two of our Middle School teachers, who were also at this session. Their focus was on following up on the beginning they had made in setting up Moodle sites for their foreign language classes. I got a little done on mine, too, but most of my time at this session was helping others.
Breakout Session #2 (Teacher Track)
Copyright ≠ The Right to Copy
Presenters: Eric Stratton (UPA) and Kristen West (UPA, unable to attend)
Eric presented a PowerPoint and a .pdf handout that he along with Kristen West (Coordinator of Academic Technology at UPA, who was not present), covering many, many websites covering copyright and fair use along with tools for finding royalty-free and public domain items. The discussion also included the increasingly higher profile and attention being given movements such as Creative Commons where content creators can attach less stringent copyright protections onto their intellectual property.
As many in this session acknowledged, raising awareness copyright law, the fair use exemption, and the ethical issues arising out of the whole question of intellectual property is a big challenge to tech folks, librarians, and teachers alike. Truly reliable and consistent information on copyright and intellectual property rights is available but all-too-often ignored or disregarded. The list of resources provided by Eric and Kristen on their .pdf sheet are quite comprehensive.
Another reality is that many of the students who come to us seem to have adopted the “whatever I can get on the Internet is free to use” point of view. Again, there were some among this group who also recognized that some of today’s challenges in dealing with the issues surrounding copyright have to do with the adults in our institutions, too. It was not lost on some of us that the realm of copyright, fair use, and intellectual property – and how the Internet has had impact on those concepts – is one challenge where we have nearly as big a job educating and convincing our colleagues as we do our students.
Adieu…….
Eric’s copyright session was the last one of the conference and it brought to a close the 2007 Tech Share Conference. Now it was time to head home. As was my experience last year (after attending the first Tech Share Conference at Islandwood), I found my time to be well-spent at this conference. I’m grateful that PNAIS offers this kind of professional development opportunity. It’s a lot of work to put together such an event and I hope those who organize this conference know that many of us “out there” are very appreciative. The good part, of course, is that I went home with much learned and much more to explore!
