2009 Chagrin Falls Education Technology Day
March 9, 2009
The 2009 Chagrin Falls Education Technology Day was a home run! We had a wonderful group of speakers from across the State come speak to us about how technology is transforming teaching and learning at their districts.
We learned about Web 2.0, Personal Productivity, Personal Learning Networks, Course Management Systems, 21st Century Skills, and just about every other important ed tech topic.
All of the materials are being shared on the Chagrin Falls wiki and 21st Century Learning wiki. If you want to read other great debriefs about this event, check out Lani Ritter Hall‘s blog, or Doug Jones “Jones’n”, Director of our education division.
There were two other elements of this day that have stuck with me.
1) This day created dialogue across the district and beyond about 21st Century Skills. I do not believe it would have been possible to attend this one-day event without shifting your outlook about the role of technology in education. Every teacher, administrators, and staff member was touched by something at this conference.
2) Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach remains one of the most inspirational figures in my life. Her energy and vision are contagious. She bravely asserts her point of view and pushes the envelope to extend everyone’s thinking. Here is an excerpt of an e-mail that I sent to her:
I strongly felt that your message was clear to every person in the auditorium. I heard MULTIPLE Superintendents say that they were totally on board with your message. I loved the quotes about technology at the end of your presentation. Everything you spoke about was extremely powerful, persuasive, and mind-changing.
I thought your workshop facilitation was one of the most mind-opening, fascinating, productive “work shops” that I have ever been a part of. We need more Sheryl’s in the world. You were dynamite. That event at Chagrin Falls certainly galvanized my interest in the role of technology in education. Since the first time I met you and stumbled around your blog, you have helped ignite a passion for 21st Century Learning and Personal Learning Networks in me as well. I will be forever grateful to you for this.
The Superintendent of Chardon Schools, Joe Bergant, has joined twitter and is driving change at his district as a result of this wonderful day!
Thank you to all the speakers and attendees for organizing a wonderful event. It is exciting and humbling to be part of a business that is helping drive so much positive change in our community.
FETC Day 1
January 24, 2008
I understand that today was not FETC day 1 for everybody, but this was my first day in town. I am going to post my general observations about this conference.
-This is probably wrong to say in education technology circles, but I like this conference much better than NECC. I went to NECC last year, and it was overwhelming. There were thousands of workshops, vendors, and things happening – and it felt chaotic and disorganized to me. FETC is a lot more manageable and seems to attract higher quality speakers and vendors.
-It is wonderful to see so many personal and online friends and colleagues attending the same conference. I am meeting my friend, Anna, from wireless generation for dinner this evening. Her FreeReading.net program is being adopted by Florida! My old buddies from SchoolNet are in attendance.
-Alexander Russo, Will Richardson, and Lee Wilson are other prominent bloggers in attendance.
-At the vendor booths, the variety of product knowledge is staggering. There are some products where the vendors understand every detail about their product, its market, and its advantages – and these vendors are a pleasure to listen to. Other vendors are unclear about what they are selling and how it fits a school’s needs.
-I also had the opportunity to watch Steve Dembo from Discovery (and Teach42) speak about the Web 2.0 revolution in education. Steve had great energy and energized the crowd. I heard comments after his speech that people were incredibly impressed with his passion and ideas. As a heavy Web 2.0 user, I found his speech to be a bit boring. I believe that people who are not exposed to these tools need to get their hands dirty with these tools to truly understand them. But it was still a good time.
Overall, I have been quite pleased with the conference. It is well attended and presents the perfect opportunity to build relationships with new partners and vendors in our space.