Registration is now open for the MassCUE & M.A.S.S. Annual Technology Conference.

REGISTER
http://2010tgl2-masscue.com/index.html

I hear from so many that they are thinking about deploying Google Apps in their schools. If you want to hear more from people who have already taken the plunge, here are two sessions that will be of interest to you.

Session 1 – WEDNESDAY, October 27 – 10:15 am – 12:25 pm
Room 21
Getting Going with Google Apps for Education
Rob Ford, Director of Technology, Wellesley Public School

Are you interested in using Google Apps for Education in your school or district, but unsure of how to get started? This session will walk you through the process of implementing Google Apps for Education from start to finish. We will also look at how to integrate Google Apps forEducation with LDAP, Moodle, and other tools, before concluding with a discussion of the privacy and policy debates around Google Apps for Education and other online collaboration suites.

This is more demo than hands-on, but you are welcome to bring your own laptop and work along with Rob.

Session 3 – WEDNESDAY, October 27 – 2:00 pm – 4:10 pm

Room 21
Application of GoogleApps: Collaboration in the Wild
Dr. Lee McCanne, Director of Technology and School Libraries

This hands-on session will have two parts:  the first part devoted to learning how to use these tools for collaboration by diving in and doing it, the second half devoted to sharing examples and ideas from teachers and integration specialist.In the first half we will get everyone setup with a public gmail account (if you do not already have one) and begin to explore the collaboration features of GoogleApps.  We will discuss the pragmatic use and some of the decisions to be made with the Enterprise Education Account (that Google offers public schools).  No experience with GoogleApps required, but experienced users are also welcome.  The second half of the session will focus on examples of educational application of GoogleApps and discussions of use in the wild.  Experienced users are encouraged to share their ideas and examples with the group.

Bring your own laptop.

Session reservation: $25.00 per session

Registration is now open for the MassCUE & M.A.S.S. Annual Technology Conference.   I’m looking forward to this.

REGISTER
http://2010tgl2-masscue.com/index.html

As promised, here is another session description.

Adobe Classroom Suite – PreConference

Discover new ways to engage students in learning using Adobe Digital School Collection software across the curriculum Today’s technology provides educators with highly effective ways to address a wide variety of learning styles-and engage all types of students, regardless of academic strengths and interests. Beyond the textbook alone, teachers now can use digital images, graphics, video, audio, and animation to engage students in learning across the curriculum. Students can express what they’ve learned through sights and sounds that go far beyond text-based reports. Beyond the classroom-in higher education and the workplace-proficiency with digital technology has become essential. No longer a novelty, digital media is applied and relied upon everywhere. So, in addition to using new technology to address diverse learning styles, teachers know it’s equally important that their students can use the new technology themselves. Students who don’t acquire substantial 21st century skill levels in the K-12 years will be at a decisive disadvantage when they enter college and the workforce. Join Robert Simpson, Teacher Learning Center Director Ferryway School, Adobe Youth Voices Leader, Adobe Education Leader and Digital School Collection Trainer to learn how to incorporate the Adobe Digital School Collection (Photoshop Elements, Premiere Elements, and Acrobat Pro 9) in your classroom and across core subjects through your district. This is a full day hands-on workshop. http://twitter.com/becomingamerica

25 is the maximum, so all others will be wait-listed.

All sessions will be held from 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m on Tuesday, October 26, 2010 at the Sharon Community Center

As one of many volunteers working on the 2010 MassCUE / M.A.S.S. conference (October 27 & 28), I have been active with the conference committee in organizing breakout sessions. This means reading proposals, recruiting presenters, and helping to make sure we have sessions that cover all the strands and that will appeal to all our audiences. The title for the conference this year is Today’s Global Learners—Tomorrow’s Global Leaders and the breakout session descriptions are really living up to the theme. In anticipation of registration for the conference opening very soon, I will post several breakout session descriptions over the next few days.

The session below, Themes for 21st Century Education, is a panel session, and the moderator and panelists are Massachusetts School Superintendents, members of M.A.S.S. If you are an educator in Massachusetts or New England, quality breakout sessions like this one should provide the impetus for you to come to Gillette Stadium in October for the conference. If you are further away, maybe this description will inspire you to convene something similar for your state conference.

Breakout session description:

Where is public education headed?  We know that technology has exploded the possibilities for teaching and learning. We also know that our students must be prepared for life and work in a global context. And we know that certain competencies will be required in the workforce of the future. So what is the debate about 21st Century Skills all about? Is it about curriculum? Is it, as some say, about lowering the high content standards that have put Massachusetts first in the nation in student achievement? Finally, how does technology power the acquisition and application of skills, and support efforts to globalize the existing curriculum?

A panel of superintendents will discuss their work to deepen their understanding of the trends in technology, global education, and workforce skills as they relate to the mission of schools and districts in the years ahead.  The panelists will share their learning, reflect upon the tension between skills and content, and provide examples of what exemplary schools are doing to prepare students for life and work in the global village.

Moderator:
Anthony Bent, Leominster Public Schools

Panelists:
Maureen LaCroix, Bedford Public Schools
Kristine  Nash,  Hanover Public Schools
Ann Frederick-Koufman, Watertown Public Schools

ISTE has announced the winner of their first crowdsourced keynote:

The ISTE 2010 Keynote Committee is delighted to announce the results of its first ever “Crowdsourced Keynote” project!

After nearly two weeks of voting and more than three months of input gathering, Hawaii-based educator Dr. Jeff Piontek has emerged as the people’s choice to headline one of ISTE 2010’s three keynote sessions.

The ISTE keynote team will work with Dr. Piontek to present a relevant and inspirational session focused on the overall conference theme, Exploring Excellence, with a specific focus on effective school leadership for the digital, global era.

Pionek is the author of “Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasts…Oh My!” and many articles, including his latest, “Educating Jetson’s Children in Flintstone Schools.” Learn more about Dr. Piontek at http://jeff.piontek.googlepages.com/.

One fan commented, “Jeffrey Piontek is a dynamic, knowledgeable, and inspirational educator. His book has served as a guide for my staff and has helped to ensure that they successfully integrate technology into everyday instruction. Mr. Piontek presents his ideas in a very user-friendly manner, helping to facilitate the process of infusing technology into the classroom. His hands-on experiences provide teachers with practical suggestions that can be easily implemented. [He] translates the ‘theoretical’ into everyday classroom practice/s.”

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Piontek to our stage and thank all of our candidates and participants for their contributions!

~ ~ ~ ~     from ISTE email to members

I was (actually) fully expecting Chris Lehmann to be the people’s choice. Oh well . . .

Here is a blog post about the process and results, and here is a complete accounting of the results of the top nominees.

CoSN, in conjunction with METAA, the Massachusetts state CoSN chapter, will host a CTO Clinic on April 26, 2010 at Holy Cross in Worcester. CTO Clinics provide professional development designed specifically for the school Chief Technology Officer (administrator for technology).
See the announcement at:
CoSN Events
and on METAA’s web site:
METAA Events

CoSN members from the New England region will be encouraged to attend. Remember – CoSN Institutional members receive one free registration to a Regional CTO Clinic. Join METAA & CoSN now and save the date for the clinic.

I am so looking forward to the MassCUE fall technology conference this year.

Title of conference and dates:
Tackling 21st-Century Learning
Be sure to save the dates: October 28 and October 29 with the pre-conference on October 27!
Registration is open now.

There are four big reasons that have me so pumped!

1) NEW LOCATION
The conference has moved from its location of the past several years to GILLETTE STADIUM. The location is awesome. We’ll be using the clubhouse level for keynotes, exhibitors, and food, while the breakout sessions will be in the corporate boxes. The space has made it possible for us to have hands-on sessions, a cyber-cafe, and more room to just sit together and chat between sessions.
An extra bonus of this location is that it is close to Rhode Island. I have heard from some of my friends from other New England ISTE affiliates that people will be coming from all over New England, but that we should especially expect an influx of attendees from our neighbors from Rhode Island. Nice for networking, getting fresh ideas, and meeting new friends.

2) NEW PARTNERSHIP
The Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (M.A.S.S.) and MassCUE (Massachusetts Computer Using Educators) are co-sponsoring the event this year. Each organization has, in the past, each had a fall technology conference. Bringing them together, the resulting conference will be MORE than the sum of their parts. Technology using teachers will be at the same conference with superintendents…hearing the same messages, talking to vendors together, and talking over lunch about how they can move forward back in their school district. It’s a great opportunity to kick off new initiatives with a unified vision.

3) GREAT KEYNOTE SPEAKERS, SPOTLIGHT SPEAKERS, AND BREAKOUT SESSIONS
Tony Wagner, author of The Global Achievement Gap, will present a provocative talk about the skills that students need in order to get—and keep—a good job in the new global economy and to be an active and informed citizen.

Donald J. Leu, with J. Gregory McVerry, W. Ian O’Byrne, Lisa Zawilinski, all of the University of Connecticut and the New Literacies Research Lab, will talk about The New Literacies of Online Reading Comprehension. Very timely and important topic!

In addition, there are so many really exciting and cutting edge breakout sessions that it is hard to select just a few to tell you about here. You can see the complete list at:
http://masscue.org/Conference2009/pdf/Complete-Workshop-Schedule.pdf

From Information Literacy to Information Leadership
In this interactive workshop, participants will have an opportunity to: 1) consider some implications of a focus on teaching and assessing 21st century skills; 2) look at a model for assessing 21st century skills; and 3) consider next steps for their classroom, school, or district.
Tony Wagner, Co-director, Change Leadership Group, Harvard Graduate School of Education

GoogleDocs/Netbooks/Moodle
Lee McCanne, Director of Technology and School Libraries, Weston Public Schools

SCORE: Winning Strategies to Conquer Information Overload
Kathy Schrock, Director of Technology, Nauset Public Schools, 1996 Pathfinder

Cyber-Bullying in Massachusetts: Current Trends & Compliance with the Broadband Data Act
Elizabeth Englander, Professor of Psychology and the founder and Director of the Massachusetts
Aggression Reduction Center (MARC), Bridgewater State
Sharon Grover-Renda, Director of Sales and Marketing, MECnet

The Educational Administrator’s Role in Advancing Technology: Issues, Considerations, and Challenges Inherent in Moving an Educational Organization Forward
Nicholas D. Young, Superintendent, Hadley Public Schools
Patrice Dardenne, Superintendent of Schools, Monson Public Schools
Suzanne Marotta, Superintendent, West Springfield Public Schools

The iPod Touch and Mobility Considerations for the School Leader
Paul Facteau, Marketing Development Executive, Apple Inc

There are sessions on using Moodle, Maximizing Collaboration using Technology, Creating Sustainable Professional Development Programs, Cloud Computing, and Using Data. I see sessions about the arts, science, math, writing, and more. Dr. Chris Moersch, the Executive Director of LoTi Connection will be presenting HEAT, and Beth Knittle, Massacusetts’ own second life expert is presenting a session. Do you use (or want to use) SCRATCH in your classroom? Want to meet Mitch Resnick, one of the primary developers? He will be presenting at the conference. Michael Purdy’s breakout on Classroom Twittering sounds really cutting edge and Isa Zimmerman’s session on STEM in pre-school should not be missed. You can learn about voicethread, robotics, universal design, smartboards, Eno boards, wikis, social bookmaking . . . . OK, you really have to check out the program yourself!

4) HANDS-ON!
Apple is back at our conference and will be running hands-on sessions all day both days.
At the pre-conference hands-on sessions attendees will take away software and all the tips and tricks about using the software.
During the main conference days there will be some hands-on (make it and take it) sessions. These will require a separate registration fee, but those who sign up for it will have a hands-on session learning to use something in the classroom (like a flip camera) and will take away the flip-camera at the end of the session – price included in the price of the session.

See you at GILLETTE in OCTOBER!!

Every New England state has state ISTE affiliate organization, and together, we form NEISTE .

From our web site:

NEISTE is an organization representing the ISTE affiliates in the six New England States (Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Vermont). The goal is to provide a forum for coordination and support of state technology organizations through a regional effort.

Our NECC NEISTE reception was last night. It was well attended by educators from all of the New England states. At the reception, NEISTE announced a new partnership agreement between our organization and CDI computers. The agreement provides a 10% discount (from the already very low prices) for any school or government agency from New England purchasing CDI’s refurbished (off-lease) computers. The New England customers will also get a free extension of the typical three-year warranty to FIVE YEARS. Additionally (drum roll please) the offer extends to ALL of our educators and students! This is a wonderful agreement, sure to benefit teaching and learning in New England.

I am proud to be an active member of the NEISTE group. Go New England!

Tuesday at NECC 2009 I enjoyed the keynote address. It was in Oxford-style debate format, moderated by NPR’s Robert Siegel. The two sides argued the premise: Bricks and Mortar Schools are Detrimental to the Future of Education. For or against? The against side won (audience decision using response system) but they argued that education had to change substantially and that a hybrid of face to face and online was the key. Lots of fun.

See link below for more details:

http://center.uoregon.edu/ISTE/NECC2009/program/keynotes.php

The most memorable experience of the day was my participation in the Storm the Hill event. ISTE organized the event for hundreds of educators to meet key staff people from the offices of senators and congressional members. (See http://center.uoregon.edu/ISTE/NECC2009/glance/dc_hill_visits.php for details.)

I, along with about ten colleagues from Massachusetts, met with Bethany Little from Senator Kennedy’s office and with Nicholas Christiansen of Senator Kerry’s office. Then, we split into smaller groups to visit our region’s member of Congress.

Deb Donohue and I met with Lisa Salerno, a staffer in Jim McGovern’s office.

In every meeting, we talked about the following:

• the importance of funding the Enhancing Education Through Technology program (EETT)
• funding Preparing Teachers for Digital Age Learners, and
• simplifying Erate, fully funding erate, and supporting the bill to permanently exempt Erate from the Anti-Deficiency Act in order to prevent a repeat of the temporary shutdown that occurred.

Every staff person we met with was charming and welcoming, informed, and on board with our recommendations. I hope that this translates into some active support on the part of our senators and congressional members.

On a side note, it was so fun to walk through the halls of our government, armed with purpose, conviction, and appointments to make a difference. Thanks to ISTE for organizing!

Terrific conference day at NECC 2009.

We started the morning at a 7:30 breakfast hosted by Polyvision. Attendees got an advanced look at some of their new developments. I continue to be really impressed by the Eno board.

We raced right from the Grand Hyatt back to the convention center to attend a preparation session for our visit to Capitol Hill tomorrow. I look forward to meeting with staffers from the offices of: Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, and James McGovern. We will be talking about the importance of technology in education, funding, erate, and 21^st century skills.

From the Storm the Hill session we went directly to a CoSN CTO Leadership Forum , How 2 B a Disruptive Technology Leader! This was an interesting session examining how web 2.0 tools are (and will be) disrupting schools.

After a quick lunch I picked up my advocacy packet and t-shirt (to wear to the hill) and then visited the exhibitor’s floor. It is so big I was overwhelmed. Every exhibit I visited had something interesting to share.

At 2 pm, I attended Leslie Fisher’s Gadget Class: Now with Web 2.0 Freshness! I saw more new software tools, useful web 2.0 sites, and cool hardware in ONE hour than I could have researched and found in weeks. Favorite things I learned? The turntable with the USB port (digitizing your old vinyl); jott.com; smugmug.com; and iPhone apps like Shazam, SmugMug, Yelp, and AroundMe. BONUS – it was lots of fun. Go Leslie!

From there I went to Scott McLeod’s session, Effective Leadership in an Era of Disruptive Innovation. I thoroughly enjoyed Scott’s interpretation of Clay Christensen’s work. Check out his writing on this at bit.ly/neccmcleod1 .

After such a busy day spent taking in new ideas and racing from one thing to the next, it was nice to visit School Wires reception and then to have dinner with a couple of MassCUE friends, Tom and Annamaria.

Tomorrow looks to be just as jam-packed, starting with a 7:30 am breakfast presentation. <yawn. . must sleep>

]]> http://K12EduBuzz.com/monday-at-necc-2009/feed/ 0 http://K12EduBuzz.com/sedta-meeting-at-necc-2009/ http://K12EduBuzz.com/sedta-meeting-at-necc-2009/#comments Sun, 28 Jun 2009 02:18:58 +0000 Jean Tower http://K12EduBuzz.com/?p=279

This evening one of the events I attended was the SEDTA “Turning the Tables” state member set up . Each participating state technology director sets up a table displaying materials that tell what that state is doing with technology in education. One of the agenda items was the Virginia’s Innovative Application Contest Winners Award Ceremony. Todd Bowden won for a really cool educational app, Number Line. Number Line is available free from the iTunes store (under apps).

After the award was presented, the featured guest speakers were Aneesh Chopra (Obama Administration, Chief Technology Officer and Associate Director for Technology, Office of Science and Technology Policy) and Jim Shelton (US DOE, Assistant Deputy, Secretary, Office of Innovation and Improvement). They were both interesting and spoke with great conviction of the importance of technology as a key factor in improving schools and in rebounding the economy.

I have tried to capture here, a few of the salient points.
Aneesh Chopra:
The Obama administration does not see technology as a separate entity or program with technology centered goals. Rather, the thinking is more like “how do I bring technology innovation to the entire portfolio of projects I want to accomplish.”
My Comment: This is exactly the kind of shift in thinking I wish for my colleagues in education. Rather than ask me what is the latest and greatest gadget, I would like to have educational administrators think about how we can apply technology to core curriculum issues and to all of our strategic plans and goals.

Jim Shelton:
In talking about the role of technology directors, Jim explained how technology was becoming an ever more vital piece in the solution to many problems. “People are about to figure out how important you really are” and “expect to be pulled into conversations in many realms” he said.

“The details of The Race to the Top are not yet public” but he did add a note about technology being an important component of many solutions.

Jim said that one important goal of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was to improve the infrastructure and specifically, to ensure that broadband becomes fully deployed.

More than once, he said that our educational standards must be “fewer, higher, and clearer” and that we must use ARRA funds for “more impactful outcomes.” He said that this was the biggest one time investment in education and that we will all be disappointed if five years from now we have spent it and don’t see real impact.

ISTE CEO Don Knezek asked about an “expanded accountability system” that would assess students all up and down the spectrum and that would not be targeted at measuring against some lowest minimum standard. Neither Jim nor Aneesh brought clarity or new thinking about this topic, but they also did not come to the defense of “the test.”

In response to a question about the tension between “locked down” networks and the creativity of teachers and students wanting more freedom on computers in schools, Jim Shelton said that to make teachers really effective users of technology they had to have the following:
“Just in Time, Real Time, Support, and Professional Development”
My Comment:

Hard to argue with that!
Aneesh Chopra had a response that really resonated with me. He said that schools had to think about the requirements of the organization and “the profile of the individual who will bring technology innovation to the front office and not just do what is comfortable to the back office.”
My Comment: This is an excellent point and reflects the thinking of the CoSN committee I have been working with on school technology administrator requirements and have certification criteria. When I approached Mr. Chopra afterwards, I introduced myself and then complimented him on his insightful comment. I explained that we were working toward a certification for technology administrators, much the way other school administrators have certification. At first he suggested that he thought that two people were required, a technology administrator who understands the “techie” side of the house, and someone else who understands what to do with technology in education. I hope I made my point that the CTO must understand the business of education and that the better solution is to have a fully certified CTO who has a strong and informed network administrator (and technical team) working for her or him.

I’m so glad our state Technology Director, Connie Louie, invited us to this event. It was worth attending just to hear some of the current thinking in the Obama administration about technology in education.