Join the Flat Classroom Workshop in India, 2010

Flat Classroom™ Project

Just received this from Julie Lindsay -

The next Flat Classroom™ Workshop will be held in Mumbai next February at the ASB Unplugged Conference. If you are interested in joining us, classrooms globally are invited to apply to bring students. Read the details on the Flat Classroom Conference wiki and then fill in the online Registration form. Deadline is November 15th for applications.

Why should you bother to bring students and educators to a ‘Flat Classroom™ Workshop?’
The recent success at the Flat Classroom Workshop in Hong Kong, featuring Julie Lindsay and  Kim Cofino,  shows how a project-based action workshop is pedagogically significant and provides a learning adventure into 21st Century working modes using emerging technologies.

Vicki Davis and I are joining forces along with our friend and colleague, Bernajean Porter, to run an amazing event in Mumbai and know this is going to be a great success, just as the original Flat Classroom Conference in Qatar was last January. However we do need cultural diversity and we do need forward looking schools to seize this opportunity to sign up and bring students to Mumbai.

Need more information? We invite you read student and teacher comments and view more multimedia reflections at ‘Flat Classroom Participants Speak Up‘.

Also………

more about “fcp”, posted with vodpod

Find more videos like this on Flat Classroom Conference Anne Mirtschin, flat classroom teacher and advisor, put together this video based on the ‘three words‘ request from participants in Qatar’s event.

Flat Classroom live events are significant because:

- they immerse participants in addressing a global issue in a project-based format

- they use emerging technologies and Web 2.0 tools to connect, communicate and collaborate

- they not only talk about flattened learning modes but practice them e.g. including virtual participants, live video streaming sessions to the world, use of a globally available backchannel

- they encourage students and teachers to work alongside each other with a common goal

- they foster digital citizenship and digital literacy

- they promote best practice methods for coming up with ideas, pitching those ideas and turning them into viable solutions to identified problems

Are you convinced this is THE workshop to be involved with? The place to bring students for cultural interaction and a chance to hone in on a global issue and use emerging technologies to solve it as a learning community?

OK, now read the details on the Flat Classroom Conference wiki and then fill in the online Registration form. Deadline is November 15th for applications. All inquiries to flatclassroomproject@gmail.com.

How are you planning to use Google Wave?

A few weeks ago I received the infamous invite to from Google to use Google wave. I excitedly activated my Google Wave account and began searching for Waves to join, read and participate. I sent out the eight invites that I was allocated and started to add contacts and read the Waves people had added me to. Google Waves takes some getting used to but once more people begin using Google Wave I think Skype may become obsolete for instant messaging.

more about “google wave”, posted with vodpod

One fantastic feature is the way Google Wave translates the messages in the Wave in real time. This video is a great demonstration of this feature. This would be an awesome to immerse students in conversation in different languages to collaborate with other students and classrooms around the world. This is definitely a way to ‘flatten classrooms’ and bring the world into the hands of your students.

more about “Google Wave”, posted with vodpod

I am fascinated by what I have seen in the various Waves I have been added so please continue to add me to the conversations (kcaise@googlewave.com)! I noticed that I received another 12 invites so if you would like to receive one of the 12 Google Wave invites post a comment about how you would like to use Google Wave with your students or staff. If I receive more than 12 requests, I will create a survey and people can vote on the best suggestions. So, how are you going to use Google Wave?

November 18 – 3rd K12Online Conference LAN Party

Please join us on November 18, 2009 at 22:30GMT/3:30pmPST/
4:30pmMST/5:30pmCST/6:30pmEST
for a live event of the 2009 K12Online Conference

On November 18, the K12Online Conference is hosting a LAN party from 6:30PM to 8:30PM EST. We invite everyone to gather at the LAN party site with colleagues in order to view two past conference presentations and then engage in lively discussions in the EdTechTalk chatroom. The following presenters will be in attendance.

6:30 – 7:15 Second Life: K-20 Educators Exploring Virtual Worlds – Panel
Kevin Jarrett and Sylvia Martinez
Kevin is a K-4 Technology Facilitator at Northfield Community School in Northfield, NJ. He works closely with classroom teachers on engaging projects across the curriculum. Kevin also teaches online at Walden University’s Graduate School of Education. He has been exploring Second Life since March 2007 thanks to a $10,000 Faculty Excellence grant and expects to publish his findings in the fall.

Sylvia Martinez is president of Generation YES, working to empower students in K-12 schools through digital technology. Sylvia has designed educational games, curriculum, and online experiences for teachers and students. Sylvia speaks and writes on subjects such as the use of technology, simulations and games to enhance educational opportunities and enable youth voice.

6:45 – 7:30 Release the Hounds
Chris Harbeck

Chris Harbeck teaches grade 8 math to approximately 140 students each year. He has been teaching middle school students for over a decade and is in his third year of using 2.0 applications and “21st Century Learning” in his classroom. Despite the fact (or more realistically because of the fact) that math is one of those subjects students often reflect back on with distaste, fear or indifference, Chris has moved from teaching both social studies and math to the one subject. He has been involved in development of the middle years math curriculum at the divisional and provincial level. With his strong focus on conceptual understanding, Chris has discovered that using 2.0 tools and applications make math fun and interesting. An encouraging trend has emerged: students do not run away and saying “I hate math”; they love to do assignments and have started to see the beauty in math.

The EdTechTalk community will host this event at http://www.edtechtalk.com/live.
For questions or more information, contact Susan Van Gelder, Live Events Committee, at susanvg@mac.com or on Twitter at @k12online.

6:30 – 7:15 Second Life: K-20 Educators Exploring Virtual Worlds – Panel

Kevin Jarrett and Sylvia Martinez

Kevin is a K-4 Technology Facilitator at Northfield Community School in Northfield, NJ. He works closely with classroom teachers on engaging projects across the curriculum. Kevin also teaches online at Walden University’s Graduate School of Education. He has been exploring Second Life since March 2007 thanks to a $10,000 Faculty Excellence grant and expects to publish his findings in the fall.

Sylvia Martinez is president of Generation YES, working to empower students in K-12 schools through digital technology. Sylvia has designed educational games, curriculum, and online experiences for teachers and students. Sylvia speaks and writes on subjects such as the use of technology, simulations and games to enhance educational opportunities and enable youth voice.

6:45 – 7:30 Release the Hounds

Chris Harbeck

Chris Harbeck teaches grade 8 math to approximately 140 students each year. He has been teaching middle school students for over a decade and is in his third year of using 2.0 applications and “21st Century Learning” in his classroom. Despite the fact (or more realistically because of the fact) that math is one of those subjects students often reflect back on with distaste, fear or indifference, Chris has moved from teaching both social studies and math to the one subject. He has been involved in development of the middle years math curriculum at the divisional and provincial level. With his strong focus on conceptual understanding, Chris has discovered that using 2.0 tools and applications make math fun and interesting. An encouraging trend has emerged: students do not run away and saying “I hate math”; they love to do assignments and have started to see the beauty in math.

The Bugs are Coming! The Bugs are Coming!

Bugscope

What bugs are coming you ask? The image of the bugs  projected from the Bugscope! The Bugscope project uses a scanning electron microscope (SEM) allowing students around the world to view images of insects. The Bugscope is part of an educational outreach program through the Beckman Institute’s Imaging Technology Group at the University of Illinois supporting classrooms around the world.

Teachers can sign up for their class to participate and use the Bugscope to analyze insects collected by their own students. The insects are mailed to the Bugscope admins and are made available during the scheduled time. Students can ask the Bugscope admins questions and the admins will respond to the students in real time during the teacher’s scheduled viewing time.

How does it work?

You sign up, (tell your students to) find some bugs, and mail them to us. We accept your application, schedule your session, and prepare the bugs for insertion into the electron microscope. When your session time arrives, we put the bug(s) into the microscope and set it up for your classroom. Then you and your students login over the web and control the microscope. We’ll be there over chat to guide you and answer the kids’ questions.

Why BUGscope? Insects are the right size and work well in the microscope. They’re easy to find on nearly every playground or backyard. They have great detail at high magnification that most people have never seen. They fit into most schools’ science curriculums. And finally, because kids are fascinated by bugs!

Although global, the screenshot of the map shows schools that used Bugscope is definitely heavy in North America.

The Bugscope website has several tutorials, resources and images to help integrate this technology into the classroom. While I do not particularly care for bugs or studying bugs, I can definitely see students getting excited about their upcoming scheduled time to use the Bugscope remotely. To see the magnification in action, I took a screenshot of the website’s example of a fly:

During the teacher’s scheduled time to use the Bugscope, the teacher logs in to a special webpage that is referred to as the interface.

On the day of your connection you will visit a special webpage we call the interface. This webpage will contain a live chat client, live images from the microscope, and interactive control over the microscope. Our newest incarnation, Bugscope 2.0, addresses many of the compatibility and filtering issues with previous versions. All that is required is a modern web browser (see our Computer Setup page) and a fast enough internet connection (1.5 MB DSL or better, Cable modem, T1, etc). The operator will have the ability to move the stage, change focus, and adjust contrast and brightness. These commands are relayed to and executed by the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) in real time. New images are then captured and distributed to all of the clients. A live video feed is also available to the operator for extremely responsive control.

After the Bugscope session, the teacher receives a multimedia transcript of the session of the insects viewed and chat log between the experts and students. This sounds like a fantastic way to make science instruction come alive and show ways scientists work with technology in the real world. You can check the Bugscope website to find out if schools near you have scheduled times to use the Bugscope or to apply for your classroom to use the Bugscope. The website encourages you to allow at least six weeks prior to the time you would like to use the Bugscope. Let me know when your classtime is invaded by the Bugscope – I would love to be a ‘fly’ on the wall!

**Pun intended and yes, I am well aware it was a lame attempt at humor but humor me anyway!

‘Classroom Websites’ and ‘ePortfolios’ Resource Groups

LearnCentral.org

Do you have great resources about creating classroom websites or fantastic examples of a classroom website that you would like to share? A new group at LearnCentral has been created to serve as a repository of resources for easy classroom website design.

Weebly

This past Saturday on the Classroom 2.0 LIVE! show we had Dan Veltri from Weebly.com. Dan announced the recent release of the new education version of Weebly.  As a result of our conversation, I created this group for us to share ideas, resources and examples of using a classroom website with your students or parents. You can find the link to the recording of the show at: http://live.classroom20.com/1/post/2009/10/using-weebly-to-design-classroom-websites-special-guest-dan-veltri.html.

The link to the Classroom Websites group is: http://www.learncentral.org/group/30362/classroom-websites.

ePortfolios

After our recent show with Dr. Helen Barrett discussion ‘ePortfolios’ on ‘Classroom 2.0 LIVE!’, an ‘ePortfolios’ group was created for people to share resources and examples of student created ePortfolios.  There are already 20 members in the group and I encourage you to join and start a new discussion thread with your links, resources and examples for using ‘ePortfolios’ with students.

The link to the ‘ePortfolios’ group at LearnCentral is: http://www.learncentral.org/group/26108/eportfolios

Invitation to Join the Eracism Project – A Flat Classroom Project

Eracism Project: A Flat Classroom (™) Project

I just received this email from Julie Lindsay and Vicki Davis and wanted to share this invitation to join the new ‘Eracism Project‘ that the Flat Classroom™ Project will soon start. Information about the project and website to apply to join the project follows below.

Apologies for cross-postings but I need to get this information circulated globally and would appreciate any help you can give to get the message to different people and countries. I am still in the process of winding up a few things to do with the inspiring Flat Classroom™ Workshop Kim Cofino and I ran in Hong Kong recently, however this email is for another purpose.

Flat Classroom Projects ™ are very excited to be launching a NEW project for Middle School (Grade 7/8 levels are perfect) called ERACISM. You are invited to APPLY to be part of this pilot project starting VERY SOON. We need schools from around the world to submit teams to make this conversation and debate real!

More details about Eracism can be found on the website at http://www.eracismproject.org/index.html.

Please let me know if you have any questions, and please circulate this within your schools and beyond. We need to start this project VERY SOON! This could be run within a language arts/ humanities class (or other!) or as an extra curricular activity with a group such as the student council team as an extra opportunity to interact globally to enhance understanding.

If you are interested in having your middle school students participate in this global debate collaboration project please respond quickly as the project is scheduled to begin shortly.

New Online Position for Me!

Elluminate

Many of you know of my affiliation with the Classroom 2.0 LIVE! show and Classroom 2.0.com founded by Steve Hargadon. Our weekly show is held in Elluminate each Saturday morning and through my affiliation with the show and Steve Hargadon, I was recently offered the part-time position of  ‘Elluminate/LearnCentral Community Facilitator and Flat Classroom™ Project™ Administrator’.

Flat Classroom™ Project

My duties include supporting Elluminate and the new educator community ‘LearnCentral‘ and split my time supporting the Flat Classroom™ Project with Vicki Davis and Julie Lindsay. I assist with coordinating teacher meetings, project announcements and help manage the many projects that Vicki and Julie oversee.

LearnCentral.org

If you haven’t joined LearnCentral I encourage you to check out the community and wealth of resources. Elluminate sponsors both LearnCentral and the Flat Classroom™ Project and funds my position.

October 20th – 2009 K12Online Conference 2nd Live Event – LAN Party #2

Please join us on October 20, 2009
from 6:00PM to 8:00PM EDT (10pm GMT)
for a second live event of the
2009 K12Online Conference

On October 20^th, the K12Online Conference is hosting a LAN party from 6:00PM to 8:00PM EDT (10pm GMT). We invite everyone to gather in the EdTechTalk chatroom with colleagues in order to view two past conference presentations and then engage in lively discussions in the EdTechTalk chatroom at http:www.edtechtalk.com/live. The following presenters will be in attendance:

6:00 – 6:45pm Travel Through Space and Time
Silvia Tolisano
Born in Germany, raised in Argentina and living in the USA, Silvia graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Spanish & International Studies and a Master’s Degree in Instructional Technology. Silvia is currently teaching at a private elementary school where she serves as the Instructional Technology Facilitator and Webmaster. Having lived on three continents and traveled extensively, Sylvia is well aware of the importance of instilling global awareness & cultural sensitivities in all her students.

6:45 – 7:30pm How Can I Become Part of this ReadWriteWeb Revolution?
Alice Barr, Cheryl Oakes and Bob Sprankle
Alice Barr has lived, taught and traveled on five continents. She now lives in Maine where she is the high school Instructional Technology Integrator in a 1:1 laptop environment. Alice also teaches in the summer at The University of Southern Maine and provides professional development sessions during the year.

Alice was a Technology Learning Leader with SEED, Spreading Educator to Educator Developments and worked with teachers during the beginnings of MLTI, the Maine Learning Technology Initiative. She is now part of the SEEDlings webcast show, along with Bob and Cheryl, which is streamed live three Thursdays a month at EdTechTalk.

Cheryl Oakes lives and works in Maine and around the world virtually! Cheryl works with students and teachers in Wells, Maine and throughout the states of Maine and New Hampshire. “I am also lucky enough to be involved with folks from around the world through my online networks of the Webheads, Worldbridges, EdTechTalk and Seedlings. Join in any of these conversations. You will flatten your classroom.”

Bob Sprankle comes from Wells, Maine, where he is a Technology Integrator in a K-4 Elementary School. Bob teaches over 500 students technology skills for the 21st Century and has been integrating technology in a 3/4 multi-age class for 10 years prior.

Bob was involved with the SEED group in Maine as a Technology Learning Leader and helped train the first wave of teachers using laptops for the 7th and 8th grader MLTI project. He was awarded Maine’s Technology Teacher of the Year in 2006 from ACTEM. Bob’s students have received world-wide recognition for their “Room 208 Podcast”, and have appeared in numerous articles, including, The New York Times and Apple’s Education Site. Bob’s professional development blog and podcast, “Bit by Bit”, is geared to helping teachers incorporate technology into their classrooms and can be found at www.bobsprankle.com.

The EdTechTalk community will host this event at http://www.edtechtalk.com/live.
For questions or more information, contact Susan Van Gelder, Live Events Committee, at susanvg@mac.com or on Twitter at @k12online.

September 27

This is the second most difficult post I have ever had to write. The first was September 27, 2008, the day my mother passed away. That very day changed my life forever. My family is still reeling from losing such a caring, giving mother. The people that attended her funeral shared how wonderfully caring and generous my mother was with them in so many ways. It was incredibly touching to hear the many lives that Mom touched on a daily basis and changed forever.

So on this difficult anniverary I will be offline much of the day. I still have not gotten over losing Mom and not quite sure that I ever will. I know we all grieve differently but I find it strange that my siblings handle the grief of losing Mom much, much better than I have although I am the oldest by four years. Mom struggled financially much of her life providing for my siblings and I so wanted to help provide an easier life for her in her retirement. She was two years away from retiring and was looking forward to spending that time with us and her grandchildren. Time that will never be.

September 26 K12Online Conference LAN Party

Please join us on September 26, 2009
for the first live event of the
2009 K12Online Conference

On September 26, 2009, the K12Online Conference in partnership with EdTechTalk will host a worldwide, sychronous “LAN party” (free web meet-up) from 2:00PM EDT (6:00PM GMT) to 5:00PM EDT (9:00PM GMT). Organizers encourage educators around the world to get together with colleagues and engage in lively, online discussions during this time using links provided by EdTechTalk. Past presentations will be shown, and participants are invited to engage in live conversations about the presentations with the featured presenters during and following each session. A K12Online Conference overview is scheduled at the EdTechTalk (http://www.edtechtalk.com/live) website 30 minutes prior to the LAN party.

This event provides an opportunity to try out the synchronous EdTechTalk environment and platform, which we will be using for the 2009 K-12 Online Conference in December. For more background about LAN parties, see Jeff Utech’s post from Sept 2006 and the K12Online08 Shanghai LAN Party wiki. The Shanghai LAN parties are models we hope educators around the world will emulate in 2009. You do NOT have to gather face-to-face with other educators to participate in this Saturday’s live LAN party events, but F2F connections are encouraged! Here’s the schedule. (Times below are EDT. Start time for the first presentation is 6:00PM GMT. Use this WorldTimeServer link to convert this time for your local time zone.)***copied from Wes Fryer’s blog, “Speed of Creativity“.

2:00 – 2:45 Film School
Mathew Needleman, Apple Distinguished Educator, has been integrating video in the classroom for seven years as a teacher of kindergarten, first, and second grade. Make better classroom movies with simple tips that will help elevate your vodcast to the next level in terms of artistic and technical merit. Learn how to storyboard like a pro, choose shots that support the telling of your story, and capture better lighting and sound.

2:45 – 3:30 Open, Social, Connected
Dr. Alec Couros is a professor of educational technology and media at the Faculty of Education, University of Regina. This presentation unravels a recent open graduate course offering titled “Open, Connected, Social” that was offered at the University of Regina, Winter 2008. The presentation describes the theories influencing the course, types of open practice, reflections and outcomes, and goes on to describe the emergence of “open teaching”.

3:30 – 4:15 Wiki While You Work (Basic)
A former high school English teacher, Mark Wagner has since served as an educational technology coordinator at Estancia High School, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, and the Orange County Department of Education.  His session briefly introduces participants to the Read/Write Web, and to wikis in particular. A live demonstration of wikispaces.org and wikipedia.org will illustrate that…, “If you can use a word processor, you can use a wiki.”

4:15 – 5:00 We Like Our Blogging Buddies: The Write Stuff With Blogging Mentors
Kathy Cassidy is a grade one teacher at Westmount School in Moose Jaw, SK, Canada.  In the winter of 2008, Patrick Lewis’s university class of pre-service teachers were blogging mentors for Kathy’s grade one students. This presentation talks about that collaboration and the results of the research that was conducted about the effect this mentorship had on the students’ writing.