Edubeacon

The third annual K12 Online Conference has started and the first opening keynote featuring Stephen Heppel has been posted to the site.  This conference is a unique professional development opportunity to engage with ideas and technologies that are having a real impact on 21st century classrooms.

Stephen Heppel Keynote: “It Simply Isn’t the 20th Century Any More Is It?: So Why Would We Teach as Though It Was?”
Description: We are in the throes of a financial crisis unparalleled on our lifetimes, and at the same time in front running 21st century schools around the world learning is seeing a transformation that seemed unthinkable in the dark days of 20th century factory schools.

As we move to a new tomorrow built on mutuality, collegiality, communication, community and ingenuity can we learn anything from the colossally expensive financial collapse of Wall Street, the City of London and many of the world’s financial centres.  In three sections, and in a conversational, intimate style, Stephen examines the certainties that stare us in the face from past learning projects that clearly mapped a new world of 21st century learning; he reflects on the impact on technology on the world around us, including the financial world, and ponders on what this means for education, for learning, and for the necessary pace of change as we experience the death of education and the dawn of learning.

Some key points about the K12Online conference…

• It’s Virtual – The entire conference is delivered as downloadable digital media via the Internet. You can can watch and listen without having to actually go anywhere to “attend”.

• It is Global – Educators from all over the world will be taking part in the event. It will offer you a wonderful perspective on what teachers around the world are doing.

• It’s Practical – The presenters are all practicing teachers who use these technologies with kids on a daily basis. Their workshops will give you tons of practical ideas.

• It’s Live – The conference unfolds over two weeks, 20-24 and 27-31 October 2008, and will include a pre-conference keynote during the week of 13 October. If you wish, you can take part in daily sessions as the are added to the website.  Two live events will also be available for participation.

• It’s Flexible – Everyone of the forty sessions is in the form of a savable presentation using some form of digital media. If you wish, you can pick and choose the parts that interest you and take part at your leisure.  Also, for ‘fringe’ conference delegates who prefer the unconference scene, notk12onlineconference may appeal.

• It’s Permanent – The sessions will all be stored on the website for future reference. You can revisit them anytime. You can also look through last years sessions.

• It’s Free – yes, free. There is no charge to be part of the event. Follow on twitter at ‘k12online’

You can find more information at http://www.k12onlineconference.org

My suggestion would be that rather than trying to cover everything, pick an area that you’d like to know more about and watch one of the videos, listen to one of the podcasts, read some of the conversations. Contribute. Get involved. You can take part as little or as much as you like. Engage with it in realtime or in your own time. Contribute actively or consume passively. It’s all good practice for interacting online.

Time zones have little impact on this type of professional development, you don’t have to travel.  Attend with you toast at breakfast of that relaxing glass of wine in the evening.  Better still, get a group of teachers together at school and share your participation and ideas.  We have much to be proud of in Australasian schools; it would be good to see a strong representation from this part of the globe.