Present at Dynamic Landscapes this spring

Would you like to share a successful project, teach a new skill, or lead a discussion at Dynamic Landscapes 2020? 

Applications are due this Friday.  You don't need to have the idea fully fleshed out (and I can help with filling out the form).

Here's where to submit your proposal and learn more about the conference.

Slides from Vermont Fest

I was at the Vermont Fest ed tech conference last week.  Here are some themes that I took away from it:

• A big emphasis on creativity, both high- and low-tech.
• Personalization
• A need to rethink how we do professional development in schools
• A real movement towards getting more computer science and coding in the curriculum.  Speaking of which...I hope you saw my last post about Hour of Code.

I also wanted to share the slides from my own presentation about using screencasting.  Thank you to Amy Wardwell, Olaf Verdonk, and Nicole Gorman for their contributions. Note that some of the examples may not play because they are not publically shared.

Oh, and here's a nice site I learned about (from watching a keynote speaker use it)-- https://www.flaticon.com/.  Lots of free icons to use in your presentations (attribution required if you have a free account).  I'm a big fan of icons over realistic photos when you want to present a general image over a specific one.

For example, consider this image of a student (from Pixabay.com)

versus this one

Icon made by Smashicons from www.flaticon.com

They're both compelling, but the icon perhaps better represents "all thinkers."

Vermont Fest 2019

The website for Vermont Fest (the annual Vermont educational technology conference) is now live at  https://vtfest.vita-learn.org/.  

Keynote speakers this year are Dan Ryder and Nathan Lang-Read. Here are their bios taken from the Vt Fest site:

"Dan Ryder has taught for 20 years at Mt. Blue Campus in Farmington, Maine. He is the co-author 2017’s Intention: Critical Creativity in the Classroom (EdTechTeam Press). Dan has presented his work on critical creativity, empathy fueled problem solving, and the improviser’s mindset at numerous conferences and workshops, including SXSWedu and Stanford d.School’s K12 Summit."

"Dr. Nathan Lang-Raad, author, speaker, and Chief Education Officer at WeVideo, will share his experience at NASA, as a STEM administrator, as a curriculum director working with instructional coaches, and as a classroom teacher as we all work together to map the future of #vted – with intention

Applications for presentations are still being accepted!

Are you doing something innovative in the classroom that you'd like to share with educators across Vermont (and beyond)?  I'd love to help you submit a proposal to present at the conference.

Dynamic Landscapes 2019

Here's a "save the date" for Dynamic Landscapes 2019.  May 20-21.  Past attendees (and presenters) from CVU have found this to be a useful and enjoyable conference.  Let's get a group together again this year! 

And why not consider presenting at the conference? Recent CVU presenters have included Annie Bellerose, Corinna Hussey, Peter Langella, Troy Paradee, Amy Wardwell, and yours truly. Talk to any one of us to learn more.

Please let me know if you're interested in going this year. Don't register yourself-- I'll put a list together so we can apply at once for a group discount.

More info here.

Vermont Fest 2018

The Vermont Fest ed tech conference in Killington Nov 8-9 this year. I'll be going and would love to have your company.

VITA-Learn has just announced the keynote speakers for the conference: our new Vermont Secretary of Education Dan French and Rushton Hurley of Next Vista for Learning, whose "specialty is working with educators to discover what digital media can do for their classroom and their teaching." Check him out below.



Early bird pricing ends October 24th.  Complete information is here.

Dynamic Landscapes Recap

The 2018 Dynamics Landscapes conference took place this week on Monday and Tuesday at Champlain College. Both teachers and students from CVU participated.  

Peter Langella led a session called Bridging the Gap, Troy Paradee and Amy Wardwell gave a talk called Implementing a Personalized Learning Space in High School and I presented a workshop called Every Single Thing You Can Do With WeVideo.  Corina Hussey, Colleen Wedge and Adrian Walther were also at the conference.   Here are some of us at lunch on Tuesday.

The theme of this year's conference was Authentic Student Voices.  Three CVU students presented their work to educators (and other students) from around the state at the Innovation Fair.  They all made a big impression on conference attendees.

Mackenzie Fournier: Hands on Learning: From Keyboard to Creation 

Cole Glover: Art through technology

and Willem Hillier: Robots that play musical instruments

Please ask any of us who attended about the conference.  I'm sure we each had our own take-aways.  One that I will share is a reminder about the power of sharing learning beyond the walls of the classroom.  If that resonates with you, let's talk about how we can use tech tools to get your class connected to other classes and/or experts.

Thanks for reading.

Group discount at Dynamic Landscapes

Registration is open for Dynamic Landscapes (5/21- 22).  I've left brochures in the faculty/staff lounge.  There is a $75 discount for each group of three that attends Dynamic Landscapes this May.  I'd be happy to coordinate that.  Please let me know if you plan on attending.  You should still do the normal paperwork, but I will arrange for the discount.
Registration is here.

PS There are two presentations being led by CVU faculty this year and we may have students presenting as well (that will be finalized early next month). 

Scheduling conferences with SignUpGenius

With PLP conferences coming up, some teachers are asking about a good tool for scheduling these (and other such events).  I've written up steps for using SignUpGenius here.  Please note that the document is only viewable to CVU faculty/staff.
An important note about the process is that you should not use this tool to collect any information other than the parent/guardian name (so, turn off the option to collect the email address).
SignUpGenius can also be used to organize "who's bringing what" to an event.

Dynamic Landscapes 2017

Dynamic Landscapes is an excellent conference held at Champlain College (5/22- 5/23).  Below is a call for proposals.  Last year, three CVU teachers presented at the conference and many others attended. Why not submit a proposal to present?  Show off what you're doing in your classes.  It gets you in for free and you get to share with fellow educators. This year, there's a new twist-- students can also present (and the keynote will be by students).  Please let me know if I can help you or your students craft a proposal or if you have other questions about the conference.  It would be great to have another big group from CVU this year!

Call for proposals is open! Students and adults can submit proposals this year. 100 students get free admission to the full conference this year... and did we mention there's a Student Keynote Competition? We've got an incredible lineup this year at Dynamic Landscapes at Champlain College, May 22-23, 2017! Our theme is 'Authentic Student Voices' and here's a snapshot of what that means... Adults and students can submit proposals this year! Call for proposals is OPEN!  Show us those incredible student projects. Show us what problems students want to solve. Pitch a meaningful presentation to an audience. Yes... this means 100 students will get free admission to the conference... full access! Student Keynote Competition!  Four students (or small groups) will keynote this VT Ed conference this year! It' a first in VT Education! These four will win a $250 grant for their school.  Show us your innovation, your ideas, and your passion to change the world for the better. Immersive workshops with an incredible lineup are taking shape Dive into a 1/2 day or full day workshop on incredible topics. Our Grand Prize is a 2K Innovation Grant!  We've got a lot of other prizes but let's face it... 2k? What could your school or project do with 2k?  We'll hear from last years winner and draw another. We have a large variety of workshop types and open labs... ...so you can build your own schedule. Check out the DL Conference website to learn more... and do help us spread the word! Registration will be opening soon! Stay tuned! We hope to see you at Dynamic Landscapes 2017. Adam Adam Provost President, VITA-Learn

Vermont Fest Recap

Last week, Mark Pogact and I attended the Vermont Fest ed tech conference. There were educators and "tech people" from all over Vermont and beyond. Here is the complete schedule (click through to see presenter materials). Here are some of the takeaways:

We attended a session with Peter Drescher on the new ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) Standards for students. We looked at how these have evolved.  Great conversations about assessing these and how they fit with the CSSU Grad Standards.

There was a panel discussion on PLPs during lunch on Thursday.  Lots of schools grappling with these.

On Thursday afternoon, we attended Dan French's session on Open Education School Systems. We applied the Design Process of

1. Describe problem as design challenge
2. Brainstorm/empathize
3. Rapid prototyping
4. Iteration and refinement

to the context of PLP implementation. 

On Friday morning, I was in the Innovation Lounge, where we were demo-ing such things as 3D printing, green-screen video, and programming toy robots.  Mark attended a session on virtual learning. In the afternoon, we both attended an excellent session on Open Education Resources.  This really got me thinking about how we can utilize free and open resources in classes and for student-centered learning.

As usual, some of the best learning came from conversations with colleagues from other schools-- in the hallway, at the next table in a workshop, or at lunch.  

Mark and I would be happy to share more details on what we learned if you're interested.  Thanks for reading!

Vermont Fest 2016

Vermont Fest 2016 is taking place November 3rd and 4th this year in Killington.  This is an ed tech conference, but it's about much more than technology integration-- it's really about learning.  It's a great way to get some new ideas and interact with colleagues from around the state.  Check it out at http://vtfest.vita-learn.org/

Summary of Dynamic Landscapes Ed Tech Conference 2014

Dynamic Landscapes 2014 was held this past Thursday and Friday at Champlain College.  DL is the annual spring Ed Tech conference co-sponsored by VITA-Learn (the state ed tech group) and VSLA (the librarians' association).  It always seems to come at a difficult time of year for people, so I'd love to figure out how we can get more teachers to attend next year-- but in the mean time, here are my notes and take-aways.

First off, as has become the norm for these conferences, most presenters include links and/or downloads to their session resources, so I encourage you to browse the schedule and click on a session of  interest to see what's available (as an example, I just clicked on "Using Technology for Personal Learning Plans" and found this helpful presentation).

Another way to attend a conference vicariously is through Twitter.  The image below shows just a few tweets during Joyce Valenza's keynote.  Note how the hashtag #vted (Vermont education) and her ID @joycevalenza are used to make them easy to find.

Here are the slides from the keynote

Unitentional FilmFest

More PowerPoint presentations from Joyce Valenza

OK, my big takeaways...

 If you haven't already experienced it, the Maker movement has blossomed in schools.  There was a "Maker room" at the conference that featured students showing projects they'd done (above) and giving participants an opportunity to look at and play with some tools, including a 3D printer and soft circuit projects.  One of the sessions I attended featured a class at South Burlington HS in which students dream up projects, then bring them to life.

I went a session where schools that had just undergone the SBAC field test reported out on what they learned from the experience.  Overall, it seems to have gone well on the tech side.  Obviously, the more students use technology on a regular basis, the more comfortable they are applying it in different settings.  Our own sophomores practiced on the Math SBAC test this past Thursday.  There will be practice tests next year leading up to the spring assessment.  More information will be available once the field tests have all been completed.

Personalized learning (including the aforementioned PLPs) was also a theme.  Although I wasn't at the session, I heard that Mt. Abraham UHS did an excellent job presenting the work they've done in this area.

I'll stop here, but please stop me if you'd like to chat about the conference some more.  Thanks for reading this far!

Dynamic Landscapes 2014

Registration is now open for Dynamic Landscapes 2014.  This is the Ed Tech Conference sponsored by VITA-Learn and VSLA.  This year has more of a "maker" theme.
Check it out here.

Dynamic Landscapes 2014 Request for Prososals

VITA-Learn and VSLA are again presenting the Dynamic Landscapes conference at Champlain College this year (May 15,16). They are currently looking for presenters. As I've mentioned previously, presentations by teachers are important, especially when they feature real work that real students are doing. I would be happy to help you prepare your presentation, or even co-present. If you have something tech-related that you might like to share, please read on...  

Request for Proposals

for

Dynamic Landscapes 2014

Do, Make, and Create!

Sponsored by VITA-Learn & VSLA

Vermont Information Technology Association for the Advancement of Learning

& Vermont School Library Association

VITA-Learn and VSLA are pleased to announce their joint sponsorship of a two-day conference at Champlain College on May 15 & 16, 2014.

We are now REQUESTING PROPOSALS FOR PRESENTATIONS at

“Dynamic Landscapes 2014”

We are looking for a wide variety of applications of effective uses of technology in the classroom and the library, including examples of integration using a wide variety of technology tools and applications.

We are especially interested in your great stories on creating learning with students. Creations for authentic audiences, maker faire projects, demonstrate projects you've done with students, show their work, advice you have on how the project worked and what you'd change next time. Talk about how learning is more vibrant for students, and for you personally.

We are looking for practical as well as cutting edge examples of how technology can facilitate and extend learning in the school environment and beyond.  Listed below are a few examples but don’t let these limit your thinking.

•       Projects that incorporate student-centered learning… the student is actively engaged in authentic, purposeful, challenging ways.  Where learning is inquiry based and students are encouraged to explore and discover… supported by meaningful use of technology

•       Students as “Makers and Creators”

•       Writing for the real world… Creating their own class blog and have a great class website

•       Projects where students collaborate with parents, experts and/or community members.

•       Share the work of your students (creation for authentic audiences)

•       Examples of collaboration beyond the walls of the classroom with other students around the world

•       Coding and other simulation ideas (ex. Minecraft, Hour of Code)

•       Animation / gaming: Looking for diverse grade levels

•       Lego robotics, Green screens, etc.

•       And so much more…

Please consider sharing your expertise and experience with your fellow classroom teachers and librarians at Dynamic Landscapes You will receive free admission to the conference on the day you present* and have a chance to network and share ideas with some of Vermont’s finest educators! Write-ups are due no later than February 22, 2014.  The earlier the better!

We are looking for several different types of presentations:

1.              Presentation Format – one hour (This type is our greatest need) – You share your Unit/project/story/idea/knowledge/etc. with the audience, demo the tools, and, as appropriate, engage them in conversation regarding your successes and challenges

2.     Panel - with you as Moderator – one hour – You pick a “hot” topic and invite a panel of 3-5 educators. Involve the audience by “priming them” in your write up. Please be sure to list your panel members as co-presenters.

3.     Collaborative Conversation.  One hour - Use your skills to bring a diverse group of educators together (the audience) to discuss key topics of the day.  Develop a couple of key questions… break your audience into smaller groups, and give them a process to discuss and report out.  Share your work on-line with all Dynamic Landscapes participants. Be certain your write-up clearly reflects the topics to be discussed.

4.     Double Session – two hours – these sessions are often built around a project (using the term very broadly) that someone has done possibly with students.  Typically, the first third of the session is sharing what you did and the remaining two thirds of the time is hands-on learning where you guide participants through using the technology and apps you used with your students. (Limited need for these sessions)

5.     Evening Workshops – three hours Thursday late afternoon/evening – These sessions often (but not always) have equipment tied to them (iPad, Chromebook, etc.). Participants can get a new one or bring their own. These are hands-on sessions where participants learn to use the device with their students often around a theme or project.  These can be aimed at an entry, intermediate or advanced level. We will consider proposals that do not have specific equipment tied to them. Be sure you pick a topic that will attract a broad audience from K-12. (Limited need for these sessions) Since evening workshop presenters are paid they do not get a complementary admission unless thery are also presenting at the regular day conference.

Participants are encouraged to submit multiple proposals.  To do so, just enter information in a new form.

To submit your proposal please go to…

https://sites.google.com/a/vita-learn.org/dynamlands2014rfps/

Co-presenters are welcome but only one person gets a complementary admission.*  If you wish to bring students please contact me for additional information.

A computer, projection system, screen and speakers will be provided and rooms will have Internet access.  We do encourage you to bring your own laptop with needed software already installed. Please specify if you have any special equipment or other needs and I will let you know if we are able to accommodate your request.

Write-ups are due no later than February 22, 2014.  I encourage you to have them in well before that if at all possible.  You will be notified soon after the deadline as to the status of your presentation proposal.

This year ALL proposals MUST be submitted on line.  Go to https://sites.google.com/a/vita-learn.org/dynamlands2014rfps/

and follow the links to the submission form.

If you have any questions or you wish to bounce possibilities off me, please do not hesitate to contact me atedbarry101244@gmail.com 

Thanks.

Ed

PS:       If you know someone who would be a great presenter, please pass this along. We DO rely on all of you to make this a successful conference. As you all know, our strength is in our Network. Lets put it to work!!

* If you do a double session you will either get a co-presenter in free for the day with you, or you will get two days free admission. Please remember there is a limited need for these double sessions.  In addition, presenters get paid to do evening sessions.  However, since they are being paid, evening sessions presenters do not get a complementary admission to the conference unless you are also presenting during the regular conference.

Vermont Fest 2013

As always, the Vermont Fest educational technology conference had a lot to offer this year and I've come away with some great ideas to share.

Some take-aways:

• Q: How can we share students' digital work like we do physical artifacts (posters, 3-D objects, etc.)?  A:  Make a poster with a QR code on it.  Scanning the QR code with a smart phone brings up the digital work.  Great idea for parent-teacher conference time-- let parents see what their kids are doing in the digital realm!
• Lots of schools going 1-to-1 in some form or another.  Wifi is key.  Some schools are also looking at BYOD ("bring your own device") models.
• Video is powerful.  Give kids a decent-quality camera and ask them to tell a story or learn about and report on their community.  Students who may not love writing can surprise you when given the chance to show learning in a different way. 
• It's not the tool-- it's the learning.  We know that, of course.  But it always helps to be reminded.

Interested in what you missed? Most presenters (including yours truly) shared their resources here.

 I did a presentation entitled "How not to ruin a presentation with technology" (with help from the art deparment!) that I'd love to come into your classes and present.

OK, my notes (I'd be happy to share more if these are too cryptic.  Use the link above to see the actual resources):

REEL History

Matt Henchen

Civics teacher, Harwood Union

Kids need to be media savvy

Two Stories

Tanner’s story—his 10-year old son.  Hates to write. Tech honors multiple intelligences.

Use of voxpop = ask a diverse set of people the same question.

Kids speak through media.

Powerful video of students interviewing a homeless man.

Power of the media to bring people together who wouldn’t otherwise.

Place-based learning.   What are local places you could use?

iPhone 5s has slow-motion camera; use earbuds as unidirectrional mics

Augmented Reality

Tarrant Institute
Similar to putting up QR codes, but the "code" is the object itself.

Aurasma-- iOS app for creating augmented reality experiences. Recognizes the image and displays resources overlayed.

Science Fair idea-- physical object with additional digital components.

Tech tips top 40

Common Sense media has added Graphite for searching.

A Fair(y) Use Tail-  uses Disney clips.

Get Creative.

BYOD
Gregory Connors- Rutland City Schools
Students bring their own devices and register them.
Complements 1-to-1. Not an expectation.
Info here.

Chrome Ninja

Jean Campbell, MMU HS

Showed extensions and apps

Nice extensions-

Send by Gmail

ScreenCapture

Diigo, etc.

Nice apps-

Loupe photo collage

WeVideo

LucidChart are all added to their Google Drive.

picMonkey

App development
Lucie Delabriere

Creativisy is not enough—need grit!

Make it social.

Programmer vs programmed-- kids should be "makers."

Buzztouch demo (tool for creating mobile apps-- iOS and Android)

Xcode for mac

Eclipse for android

When 1-2-1 and BYOD Merge

Luis Bango—Woodstock MS and HS

385 students in HS

Many devices on the network

350 school-issued netbooks on campus

iPad labs (20 in world languages)

6 technology interns

Spent a year “doing HW” to prepare for 1-2-1.

MS teachers helped the HS teachers get ready when 1-2-1 came to 9th grade.

Machines don’t go home.  Charge them during lunch.  Gets through the day.

Why don’t they go home? Couldn’t pay warranty.  Wanted to be sure they were there every day.  Didn’t want them in kids’ backpacks (sports teams).

Used Digital Wish chart for planning 1-2-1.

Vermont Fest 2013

Once again, VITA-Learn-- the VT organization concerned with technology integration-- is hosting Vermont Fest, a conference where you can get lots of ideas for your classroom.  You may have noticed the posters and brochures I left around school.  You can also get information here.  I'd also be happy to chat about how the conference may be useful to you.

Vermont Fest seeking presenters

How did you and your students use technology this year?  Do you have a success story you'd like to share?  Vermont Fest, the educational technology conference held each fall, is seeking presenters for next year. Workshops that are presented by teachers are especially powerful, as other teachers can see how a technique or tool worked in a class.  I'd be happy to assist you prepare a presentation.  Presenters also attend the conference for free on the day they present.  Interested? Read more here.

Dynamic Landscapes 2013

This past Thursday and Friday, I attended the Dynamic Landscapes conference at Champlain College.  Lots of great learning and sharing!  Here are some take-aways.

In Thursday’s Keynote, Pamela Moran and Ira David Socol argued that “cognitive authority no longer resides in publishing brands and academic credentials, but in value to, and usability by, society” and addressed the questions, “How do we build the capacity - across faculty and leadership - for the rapid, significant change needed by our students now? What must all of us do, starting now and working continuously, to create a culture of learning innovation?”

My (pretty random) notes:

• We are no longer in the “Gutenberg era.”

• We need settlers, not just pioneers (westward expansion metaphor for innovation).  Not enough to have a few teachers out there innovating-- it’s the ones who follow their lead that make the difference.

• There’s an Inverse relationship between countries that do great on math tests and their ability to invent/create.  

• If kids are uncomfortable, they are paying attention to uncomfortableness. If chairs are uncomfortable, you start paying attention to that.  

• There are no standard problems with standard solutions today.

• Skills students need are: Search, connect, communicate, collaborate, make viable solutions.

• Kids need:
• natural light
• fresh air
• large muscle movement
• ability to figure out ways to access info and communicate.

I next attended a session on the Learning Commons at Mt. Abraham Union HS.  They are working to change their library’s physical space to make it most conducive to learning.

In Challenging the Model of 1-to-1, Amanda Paquette & Nichole Villieux (from the Hartford schools), described how each (5th and 6th grade) classroom was given a mix of technology tools so that students could choose which tool works best for which purpose. Teams chose a combination of mobile devices and worked with the Tech Integrationist to prepare.

The rationale: Push people to do something different. Force differentiation.  Choose the right technology for what they were trying to do..

The teacher said that students often wanted to go to iPads first but learned that this was not always the best approach.  They had to make decisions.  Why did you choose that device?  e.g. use iPod Touch for voice recording.  Students are more engaged.

The teacher also emphasized that it’s OK to make mistakes and learn together.

For the last session on Thursday, I attended Shannon McCauley’s workshop on infographics.  Shannon is a social studies and English teacher at Mt. Mansfield UHS.  She described how she has students create infographics to present a point of view, using a choice of tools.   If you are not familiar with infographics, I will be writing a separate post on these soon.

Friday’s keynote speaker was Steve Hargadon, who spoke eloquently about how technology and social networks are transforming culture and learning.  

I attended a session on students coding video games, which was offered by VTVLC.

I next checked out Expanding Learning Opportunities when Mobile Apps Extend

Google Apps. Lucie deLaBruere is an amazing tech integrator and she shared her expertise on using mobile devices (iPads).  One take-away from this session was the importance of checking out how an app shares data when choosing an app to use.  For example, can the app export to Google Drive-- or elsewhere in the cloud?

My last session was called Dipping Our Toes in the Internet2 Pool. This was a discussion to SEGP and the types of learning opportunities that it affords.  Many of the resources shared do not require Internet 2.  The one that I liked the best was the National Archives, which makes all kinds of documents available digitally.

Finally, the closing on Friday featured a group of 5th and 6th grades from Moretown who are just embarking on a 1-to-1 netbook initiative.  The students talked about the types of activities they do with their computers and the impact they’ve had on learning.

As always, the conference was an inspiration.  I hope you will consider an educational technology conference next year-- see me for ideas!

Dynamic Landscapes, May 16-17, 2013

Dynamic Landscapes is a conference co-sponsored by the state organizations for technology integrationists (VITA-Learn) and librarians (VSLA).  It's a great opportunity to get ideas for integrating technology and information literacy in your classes. It is also conveniently located at Champlain College (where the lunch is excellent!).  Workshops are led by teachers, tech integrators, librarians, and more.  There are also opening and closing keynote speakers each day.  

CVU teachers who have attended Dynamic Landscapes in the past have found it to be informative and inspiring. Please consider attending this year!  More information may be found at https://sites.google.com/a/vita-learn.org/dynamiclandscapes2013/