I’ll be talking about student leadership and empowerment – and the way we can structure learning environments to offer those opportunities. Putting students into positions of responsibility for what and how other people learn teaches them that what they do matters, and gives them new insight into how they (and others learn.)

People always say, “you learn so much by teaching” – so why not have students learn AND teach. Combining this with technology, for which students today have a natural instinct and interest,  just makes sense. Students can teach other students, teach teachers, support technology professional development, help with technical set up and support, and much more. It creates natural collaboration opportunities, provides challenges at many levels, and is really useful. Giving students this kind of responsibility creates a win-win situation where students are valued for their expertise and hard work – real, needed work!

I’ll also do a follow up session to talk about the “how tos” of student technology leadership programs, and then another one about games in education.

I also hope to get some time visiting the famous geysers, boiling mud pools and thermal springs of Rotorua!

Sylvia

We touched on a wide variety of subjects, including: “myths” of technology integration, student voice, gender issues in technology, technology literacy and of course, education reform.

Link to replay interview (when you click this, it will launch Elluminate and replay the entire event, chat window and all.)

Be sure to check out the upcoming events in “The Future of Education” series – there is something for every interest!

Sylvia

I think it came out pretty well – listen and you’ll hear all kinds of ideas about “The Digital Classroom” from me and others including Helen Otway, Chris Rogers, Alan November, Andy Penman, and Michelle Selinger. I especially liked opening the show by talking about how technology is not dehumanizing us as it’s often depicted. Rather technology allows a greater sense of community with people around the world, and how this can now include young people in an unprecedented way.

Sylvia

The Digital Classroom – ACEC 2010 (click to play)

If this doesn’t work, try this direct link to the ABC site for the MP3.

Generation YES will be there in full force with a booth (#855) and other events. If you will be in Denver, we hope you will come by and say hello!

Pre-conference event - The Constructivist Celebration, Sunday June 27
Held once again the day before ISTE starts, this is a day-long workshop focusing on creativity and computing. For a very reasonable $60, you will receive free creativity software worth hundreds of dollars from the world’s best school-tool companies, breakfast, snacks and lunch, and a full-day workshop led by Gary Stager and other members of the Constructivist Consortium. Added bonuses: a free just-released “ImagineIt2″ DVD and a TechYES mini-kit. It’s always a sell-out, but right now there are still a few spaces left to join in the fun, so register today – you won’t regret it!

Sessions

• Dennis Harper – Establishing Student Technology Leaders Programs for Districts, States, and Nations Wednesday, 6/30/2010, 8:30am-9:30am, CCC 605.  Discover how districts, states, and nations can establish effective student technology leaders organizations that meet integration, infrastructure support, and technology literacy goals.
• Sylvia Martinez – Tinkering Toward Technology Literacy Wednesday, 6/30/2010, 10:30am-11:30am, CCC 605. Combine tinkering and technology and you have a time-honored tradition that allows imagination and creativity to lead the way to technology literacy.

Events in the Generation YES booth #855

• Adora Svitak (12 year old author, blogger, and the youngest person to be invited to speak at TED) will be sharing her ideas for education from a youth’s point of view.
• We will be sharing a new technology literacy study by a well-known researcher making the case for project-based technology literacy assessment. (more about this soon)
• GenYES and TechYES teachers and students from nearby schools will be in the booth sharing their projects and tech integration tips.

Plus… we will be printing handy business cards for any teacher who forgot theirs at home!

Hope to see you there!

Sylvia

I have an article in the current issue (Spring 2010) called Say the Change You Want to See, based  on a blog post from a couple of months ago. The article is about how educators can plan for the changes they want, even those much-desired wishes that sometimes go unspoken.

There are lots of other great articles in the magazine, including:

• Reaching and Teaching English Language Learners
• Digital Animation in Secondary Math and Science
• Becoming a 21st Century Administrator

And one more thing – it’s FREE! Even the print version is free, so choose whatever version works for you: online articles, full screen online flipbook, subscribe to receive a print version by mail, or PDF to print out and pass around.

Sylvia

When: 6 – 9 April 2010
Where: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre
Full details online: www.acec2010.info

I’m excited about this and will write more soon about my keynote topic, but first, some fun stuff!

From ACEC2010:

The ACEC2010: Digital Diversity conference opens in just 58 days. There’s a lot going on in the ICTEV office as we get ready to put on the biggest ICT event for educators in Australia this year.  The program is now online – check http://acec2010.info/program-glance for an overview.  Soon we’ll be inviting registered attendees to come back to the website, login and choose their sessions for the conference.

But first up is the ACEC2010 T-shirt Design Competition to select artwork for the official conference t-shirt.

This is an opportunity to get your students involved and showcase their design talent or even have a go yourself.  The winning design will go on the front of the official ACEC2010 conference t-shirt. Enter now to Feb 21, 2010.

Go for it!

Sylvia

Monday and Tuesday I’m in Washington DC for a big announcement – stay tuned for something exciting!

Wednesday I’m in New York City leading a workshop on project-based technology literacy with some independent schools.

If it’s Thursday and Friday (Jan 28/29) it must be Atlantic City for TECHSPO 2010 – the annual statewide technology exhibition and training conference for New Jersey school leaders, sponsored by the New Jersey Association of School Administrators. Alan November and Gary Stager are keynoting this conference so it ought to be a good one.

The cherry on top of this crazy week will be Educon in Philadelphia Jan 29-31. This is the third year for this conference put on by the Science Leadership Academy (SLA.) Educon and SLA are captained by their visionary principal, Chris Lehmann, and powered by the amazing teachers and dedicated students of SLA.

The sessions will likely be streamed online, so if you are interested in tuning in for “conversations” rather than “stand and deliver” – check it out. It’s an awesome session list.

My session on Tinkering Towards Technology Literacy will be Saturday morning at 10AM Eastern time. If you are attending Educon, I could definitely use a volunteer to help with the streaming! If you will not be in Philadelphia, check the Educon website for instructions on connecting remotely.

Whew!

Sylvia

Related posts:

• Posts on Tinkering
• Posts on Educon and SLA

It’s rocketing up the charts of “most popular “videotaped sessions from NECC 2009 with a huge 96 views!!! I can’t wait for my NECCY award

See other popular videos at www.istevision.org

Sylvia

If you are thinking of going, take advantage of Super Early-bird Registration –ends March 1st!

This is an environment in which educators can reacquaint themselves with the joy of learning while expanding their vision of the ways in which computers may be used and interact with some of the most powerful thinkers of our time.

The four-day institute, July 13-16, dedicates a large chunk of time to learning by doing. Participants engage in personally meaningful projects that challenge their creativity and build upon the expertise of the community. The Constructing Modern Knowledge faculty is comprised of remarkable teachers who love learning and teaching.

Last year’s projects included:

• Kinetic sculpture
• Videogame design
• Simulation building
• Robots that played musical instruments
• Puppets that roared

…and much more

Best of all, amazing connections were made between subject areas. Art teachers collaborated with mathematicians while kindergarten teachers shared her molecular models with an accomplished scientist. A good time was had by all!

Constructing Modern Knowledge 2009 will be held July 13-16, 2009 in Manchester, NH with an optional pre-conference science and history tour of Boston on July 12th.

Manchester is a small New England city with a great airport serviced by most major US airlines and terrific restaurants within walking distance of the institute site, The Radisson Hotel. There is a free airport shuttle and discounted hotel rates for participants. Manchester is also a convenient drive from most of New England and the Mid-Atlantic states.

Faculty:
Besides yours truly, the faculty includes Dr. Cynthia Solomon (one of the three people who invented Logo), John Stetson and legendary educator and author of more than 40 books on teaching and learning, Herbert Kohl. Gary Stager is the organizer and host.

Guest Speakers include:

Deborah Meier – a Macarthur Genius honored for her decades of service and innovation in urban public education. Ms. Meier is the “mother” of the small schools movement and her Central Park East in NYC and Mission Hill in Boston provide stunning examples of creative, compassionate, competent public education.

Lesa Snider King – one of the world’s leading experts on digital photography and imaging. She is such a great teacher that even I understand Photoshop while watching her perform her magic. Lesa just authored the new Photoshop CS4, the Missing Manual.

Peter Reynolds – the award-winning author, illustrator, animator, software developer and inspirer will host a CMK Reception at his famed FableVision Studios at the start of Wednesday night’s Night Out in the Big City (Boston)

Registration includes:

• Four-days of learning adventures
• Conference dinner
• Night Out in the Big City (Boston) beginning with a reception hosted by Peter Reynolds at the famed FableVision Studios
• Free creativity software from Tech4Learning, LCSI, Inspiration and FableVision

Hope to see you this July ! Super Early-bird Registration ends March 1st!

Sylvia

This time I’m headed for the New York State education technology conference NYSCATE in Rochester, NY November 23-25, 2008. I’m looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones, most likely at Dinosaur BBQ.

If you are going to NYSCATE, be sure to check out these sessions:

NYSSTL –Technology Leadership for the 21st Century
Sunday, 1:45PM Stacy Ward
Learn how the HFM and WSWHE BOCES have created the New York State Student Technology Leaders (NYSSTL) Club in 30 middle schools. Students help their teachers learn to use technology and their classmates prove their tech literacy, creating a community of 21st century learning in our schools.

Where Teachers Learn, Where Teachers Teach
Monday, 10:45AM Sylvia Martinez
For many teachers, technology professional development happens outside the classroom and never crosses the doorstep into the classroom. This session will explore two models of professional development that cross that barrier: classroom embedded and student-led professional development.

Little Green Monsters: The XO and Its Implication For Education
Tuesday 10:30AM Brian C. Smith, Sylvia Martinez, Dr. Gary Stager
The XO low cost laptop was designed to revolutionize education in the developing world. The panel will discuss the lessons we can gain from this learning initiative and the implications for the future of education. We will also explore why such a simple idea has created such controversy.

By the way, I’m happy to have someone record, live blog, or ustream my sessions IF you can come and do it. It’s just too hard to do it AND present.

After that, it’s back to New York City for a family/friends Thanksgiving, and then some workshops in Brooklyn. More about that later!

Sylvia

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