If you will be in Austin this weekend, we hope you will set aside time to join us for a TweetUp, sponsored by WeAreTeachers and Dell. Come kick your weekend off with complimentary drinks, snacks and a chance to make new connections and meet your ” tweeps” in real life amidst breathtaking panoramic views of beautiful Austin, TX.
A tweetup is a networking function that incorporates Twitter. It’s a way to meet people you have connected with on Twitter, and also a way to meet new friends that you can keep up with via social media like Twitter or the WeAreTeachers community.
Who Will Be There?
Join your fellow teachers as well as these distinguished attendees from Dell and WeAreTeachers:
Dress is “Austin appropriate,” think cool and casual. Jeans are fine.
How Can I Find Out More?
You can see more about the TweetUp, find our hashtags and reserve your spot at the Tweetvite.
Come kick off your weekend with your friends from WeAreTeachers and Dell. We promise a great time will be had by all as we announce some exciting news with Dell! See you there!
In an era when the President of the United States uses a Blackberry and computers are becoming as necessary as number two pencils, digital technology is changing the way we live and learn. The digital age has created an exciting new environment for us all, and innovative teachers like you are embracing and harnessing the power of digital learning to blow the walls off their schools and open up their classrooms to other educators all over the world. But sifting through all of the information about digital learning can take more time than a busy teacher has to spend, so we’ve found some great resources on the web to help you find new ways to incorporate digital technology into your classroom.
The case for digital learning is simple: your students live in a time of wikis, webinars and iChat. But how could this help them in the classroom? This video shows what your digital learners expect of you in a Web 2.0 age.
At WeAreTeachers, we want to encourage you in your efforts to be a part of this digital revolution, both by providing you with the tools you need to keep up and through the teacher’s magic word: funding. Through WAT microgrants, we are helping teachers get their big ideas out into the digital world-and the response has been phenomenal. Our current “Digital Learning “ microgrant sponsored by Dell, had over 200 submissions! From those 200 applicants, the community will vote to determine the top ten who will receive $200 and a flip video camera to share their project with the entire WeAreTeachers community. Have you had a chance to take a look at the microgrant applications? It’s a great way to see what your peers are doing to bring their students into the Web 2.0 age. You are sure to be inspired! What is so exciting about each of these teacher-submitted ideas is that they all demonstrate how digital learning empowers teachers to share their passion for reaching students in a fresh new way.
We are so proud of the astonishing response to this microgrant. What this tells us at WeAreTeachers is that you are excited about being on the forefront of using this technology, and we are thrilled to support you!
And we aren’t the only ones, many companies are hopping aboard the digital bandwagon. Everywhere you look, companies and organizations are standing up and taking notice of the need for digital content. NASA has a wonderful Digital Learning Network that was designed to help educators bring the wonder of space into the classroom. PBS will be launching a fantastic digital learning library this fall, geared especially towards educators. The Digital Learning Commons is a nonprofit organization created with the sole intention of helping teachers find the best digital learning techniques to give their students an edge. Additionally, exciting programs are being developed like the Digital Learning Lab at UC Irvine, which is currently looking for educators to collaborate in a host of digital learning projects.
How do you use digital learning? Do you keep a blog? Have your students used wikis to research information? Have you thought about using a flip video camera like the ones we are including with our microgrants to collaborate and idea share with other teachers? Is there an area that you’d love to see supported by a microgrant? We want to hear about it! Have you been inspired by an idea from our 200 applicants? Your feedback is crucial, so please take a minute to leave a comment and let us know your thoughts. We cannot wait to infuse your ideas and bring you more valuable teacher-generated content that will inspire, enlighten and empower you in the days to come!
I have attended NECC every year since about 1980. You can imagine the changes I have seen! Each year I know it is one of the “can’t miss” conferences in education, and each year after I attend, I am reminded why.
As expected there is a ton of new information and technology shared here.
There is another layer, however — one that is less tangible, but all the more important to note. That is the incredible learning that takes place when this many people get together with enthusiasm, passion, thirst for knowledge, and desire to collaborate with their peers. I could only think… “Wow, if teachers are this passionate about learning from each other, imagine how their students must feel when they transfer this to the classroom”. To take it to the next level, what if students were able to learn in this type of setting as well? Wouldn’t they also achieve the same benefit?
This innovation and teacher collaboration is one of the reasons that we started the WeAreTeachers microgrant program. During NECC we announced the latest microgrant on “Digital Learning” sponsored by Dell. Our goal is to put a small financial contribution directly in the hands of teachers to kick off a project along with a Flip Video Camera to record it and post for other teachers.
The Tweetup was a great place for teachers to finally meet their colleagues who they had only known virtually through Twitter, Facebook or their blogs. It was a cool way to put a real person with the “personality” you have come to know on the web. Also, this event allowed for more exchanging of ideas in real time — a truly powerful experience. Equal to this was the Bloggers’ Café where many more informal meet-ups occurred.
Many attendees have been blogging about their experiences at NECC. If you attended NECC, be sure to add your favorite memories here.
Some themes I found most prevalent at NECC this year included:
o Global Education – An example is the good work at IEARN. This concept of the flat world and open classrooms with shared experiences with other students across the world was a key discussion.
o Philanthropic Education – An example is My Hero or other Cause Oriented Projects. There were many shared ideas on this topic as well.
o Grassroots Teacher Empowerment efforts – like WeAreTeachers & Classroom 2.0. These are two places where teachers are organizing and gathering to further the causes of global education and teacher empowerment efforts.
o Debate over the potential detriment of the brick & mortar school to learning was also a much discussed topic. Malcolm Gladwell’s keynote brought this to the forefront.
The official stats of attendance from ISTE : 13,574 registered attendees, 849 int’l attendees, 1,253 booths, 140 journalists, etc.
Here is a list of some of my more interesting reads from bloggers at NECC:
http://www.speedofcreativity.org/
http://www.dangerouslyirrelevant.org
http://preclectic.com/
www.spirobolos.blogspot.com
http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
www.amyboehman.blogspot.com
www.uenatnecc.blogspot.com
http://www.angelamaiers.com/2009/07/necc-finally-breathing.html
http://www.isteconnects.org/2009/07/02/the-definitive-necc-09-wrap-up-post/
http://en.community.dell.com/groups/edu4u/blog/archive/2009/07/07/authored-by-kari-stubbs-necc-09-from-the-brainpop-perspective.aspx
http://coolcatteacher.wikispaces.com/
If you will be in Austin this weekend, we hope you will set aside time to join us for a TweetUp, sponsored by WeAreTeachers and Dell. Come kick your weekend off with complimentary drinks, snacks and a chance to make new connections and meet your ” tweeps” in real life amidst breathtaking panoramic views of beautiful Austin, TX.
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