NJASA Techspo 2014 - A look back and forwards

I had the upmost pleasure of presenting with Jay Eitner (@isupereit) and with OnCourse at this years annual Techspo! The #edtech convention was fantastic and I think that it truly helped to reshape some thinking of major stakeholders in our schools. 

The conference had its ups and downs, as all do, but it was fantastic to meet up with fellow like-minded educators. These folks are true #agentsofchange in education. 

While I was happy to present, I was unhappy to note that the organizers doubled booked me and I wasn't able to present again with Jay and Sandi Paul (@SPaul6414) about Bring Your Own Learning and devices. I heard it was a great session with questions flying back and forth. That is exactly what this sort of conference should have, CONVERSATIONS. Not just a few people talking at the front and other listening but active participants who want to make a difference in the lives of our students and how our schools are run. 

This was my second year going to this conference. Since last year, I have been to about five "unconferences" and EdCamps and I have to say, it is a world of difference. Not that this type of conference isn't worth your time. It is. But there is a time and place for both. No matter what though, as long as you come out of these with some great connections and deeper thinking about what you are doing, then they had done their jobs. 


Here is the presentation that Jay and I gave:

Breaking Down Barriers 


Here is the one Jay and Sandi gave:

BYO Learning 


For more pictures and testimonials, check out my Twitter page and the hash tag #techspo14.
Also check out the session page! 

App-O-Da-Week #10

With only a few weeks of school left, now is a PRIME TIME to learn about some primo apps! 

Many of you have heard of Brain POP. If you haven't, it's a fantastic, educational site that contains a plethora of content and curriculum. From videos, activities, and quizzes, if you can't find the topic on Brain POP, then the topic just may not exist. Brain POP has a few sites too - including one for K-3, 4-8, ESL, and Espanol!

The drag is that you need to pay for this program but that hasn't stopped them from putting out there Featured Movie App. The App can be found in the Apple iTunes Store, the Google Play Store, and the Chrome Web Store. When you can find an app in more than one place, you know it is something that can be  all teachers and students can enjoy.

Brain POP summarizes there app:
"The BrainPOP Featured Movie and BrainPOP Jr. Movie of the Week apps regularly deliver fresh movies, quizzes, and bonus features right to your handheld device. They cover a breadth of relevant topics including current events, historical figures and milestones, holidays, curricular subjects, and more."


Commonsensemedia.org lays it out pretty well what students can learn in 3 minutes: 
"Kids can learn the main points about a range of different topics -- science, math, social studies, art and music, language, and more -- through brief videos. For example, there's a three-minute video on how digital animation is made. The app features one video every day (although kids can browse topically to watch others anytime), and kids can take a quiz after each video. Quizzes are designed to help kids not only retain the content in the videos but also practice vocabulary and reasoning skills. BrainPOP Featured Movie provides well-presented material on many topics that kids learn about in school."

So there you have it! Two apps for you to digest this week. Please share these with any and all students, teachers, and educators that you know! And remember, same App time, same App channel next week!

Are you are "Connection" Educator?

I for one, will not, and will never, bash an educator for not being on a certain program or doing a certain thing. That's just not sound leadership. Telling everyone that they need to be doing something for afar may be effective in the short term but in the long term, what is lost?

The same can be said when it comes to connected-educators and those who are not (let's call them, non-connected educators). Telling everyone that they need to be on Social Media is not sound leadership. But all too often, I have seen it recently.

It goes something like this:

Connected-Educator - " I don't get why more people aren't on such and such, they need to be or they will get fired." (BTW, that was said on Twitter, in a tweet).

Non-Connected Educator - "I don't get or have the time to go on these sites. I have all the resources I need and my school will provide me with everything I need." (Said in Lunchroom).


So you have these two sides nuking it out in forums where their only audiences are those who have similar feelings and interests. Its like an echo chamber. No one can reach the other side because we are speaking in places where they aren't.

Instead of doing that, we need to be leaders and we need to be CONNECTION Educators. These are people who connect with one another is many different areas, in person, online, in small groups and in large groups. They know how important face-to-face interactions are. They know and understand that PD opportunities happen all the time, whether LIVE, Recorded, or archived.

They reach across the aisle to both sides and bridge the gap. They are CONNECTION Educators. They make the connections with staff on all fronts. They share the wealth on information they have, instead of keeping it to themselves or re-posting it in a place where only those who know the info already are. When presented with two extremes, the middle is often the best bet and most reliable option.

Let's be that for our colleagues. Let's be that for our staff. Let's be that for our students.


FYI - Just in case you do want to join an online chat, check out this list of hashtags!

List of Twitter Hashtags For Students and Teachers - EdTechReview: List of Twitter Hashtags for Students and Teachers. As monitoring the hashtags and getting the needed information easily, is simply a gift in the age of knowledge bombardement.