k12online conference

The K-12 Online Conference invites participation from educators around the world interested in innovative ways Web 2.0 tools and technologies can be used to improve learning.

The conference has a schedule full of inspiring presentations; I could sit at my computer for hours and collect ideas. Hmmmm...I have been sitting at my computer for hours collecting ideas. I must will myself to move away from the screen and create my own picture of how these possibilities could be used in my classroom. The presentations have provided websites to turn to, questions to consider, models to work with, and connections with like-minded colleagues. There is no doubt that my students will be motivated by working with web 2.0 tools. I need to accept that I will not create extravagant lessons overnight and begin with a little step in the digital direction.

k12online conference

Image source: http://flickr.com/photos/capecodcyclist/105521304/

The K-12 Online Conference invites participation from educators around the world interested in innovative ways Web 2.0 tools and technologies can be used to improve learning. This FREE conference is run by volunteers and open to everyone. The 2007 conference theme is “Playing with Boundaries”. ~ http://www.k12onlineconference.org/


The first keynote address, by Clarence Fisher (classroom teacher, Manitoba, Canada), outlined four factors of "Classroom 2.0" - a term used to name a teaching style which, by embedding technology into the curriculum, changes the possibilities in the classroom. The first factor, and the key, is pedagogy. The tools of the Read/Write Web are transforming our relationship to our subject matter. He stresses that access to the world wide web is changing how we teach. It is a movement away from memorization and repetition of predifined content toward the learner becoming discoverer and creator. The second factor is the use of tools that promote collaboration. The theme of collaboration is receiving much positive attention in the modern schoolhouse. The tools of the Read/Write web call for authors to share in the creation of messages and presentations (wikis and googledocs are prime examples). Factor three is the change in relationship to information. Digital tools require students to be creators and questioners of information. He notes that such activity will take place between the students and people from all around the world (speaking to the conference theme - Playing with Boundries). Being a good thinker is an important lesson in the 2.0 Classroom. We need to be "prosumers" vs. consumers. Finally, curriculum was addressed. Fisher encourages teachers to look into their curriculum and ask, "What is it that is important in there?" Meaning, we need to prioritize.

Fisher suggests redefining what happens in school by thinking of the classroom as a "studio," a place where many creators work under the guidance of a master. A place where energy and enthusiasm are high and participants are actively engaged in an activity they enjoy.

"Playing with Buttons"

"This is my generation. This is what we do."
~23 year old, laughing at a pair of 50-somethings trying to work a new remote control, as he took the remote out of their fumbling hands and smoothly programmed the DVR to record the Red Sox game.

Using the buttons, something that takes a level of courage for a baby boomer, is second nature for the members of generation X. When we were children our buttons were attached to colorful scraps of fabric. This generation has been playing with electronic buttons since they've been old enough to reach for them. On/Off. Off/On. Change the volume. Change the channel. The two year old is having a ball while the adults are creatively looking for ways to disenable the power... TV, telephone, noisy toys, games, dishwasher, key fobs, microwave, computer key board...This is where I'm heading with this:

I had a day notable for its technological advancements. It began with attending an international conference - online - and ended with watching the Red Sox in High Def. These events were exciting, stimulating, and overwhelming. The remote control will take me weeks to figure out as will the content and implications of the many digital tools to which I am being introduced through the online conference (address below). With their cell phones, im's, ipods, and blogs, today's youth are effortlessly crossing boundries - classroom, school, state, nation, age, socio-economic, religion... From home to 'Philawarepragacago,' they are "playing with boundries." For me, with my brand new computer mic, user names and passwords, I'm in the middle of a whirlwind. I will myself to click on the buttons; I hold my breath to see if my computer reacts as I intended and I feel as if I am braking through boundries chip by bloody chip.



http://www.k12onlineconference.org/