NECC: Making Sense of It All

As Tuesday's sessions come to a close, I will attempt to capture what I can of this conference for everyone back home. They say everything is bigger in Texas, and indeeed immense is the first word that comes to mind as I reflect on the 2008 NECC Conference in San Antonio. Eighteen thousand educators from around the world descended upon the city for this conference, and you can feel their presence everywhere. I'm not just referring to the 120 minute waits at the best Tex Mex restaurants in town, the five charter bus routes channeling participants to the conference center from hotels around the city, or a display of Apple Distinguished Educators (including our own Ellen FJ) "frozen" with their iPods in front of the historic Alamo. It's quite amazing to stroll through San Antonio's RiverWalk and hear passers by discussing pedagogical change, innovation, and Twitter. There are virtual playgrounds in the conference center where participants can create their own avatar and engage with Second Life. I lost count of exhibitors at around 75, nearly all of them with huge and impressive displays of interactive whiteboards, virtual worlds, sites for social networking, and digital equipment. I had hoped to share some video interviews taken with the Flip video camera, however nearly every location here is filled with noise, rendering these interviews incomprehensible.

The piece that transforms this conference from overwhelming into powerfully engaging is the fact that while everything here is big, and everyone here is encouraged to dream big, we all share one seemingly simple common purpose: we want only what is best for our students. I have met artists, musicians, scientists, writers, special educators, administrators, professors and yes, even students, all connecting with each other for lively and thoughtful discussions about the future of teaching and learning. While the sessions I've attended are about online learning, 1:1 laptop programs, 2nd Life, Google Earth, GarageBand, and digital literacy, this conference is far less "techie" than one would imagine. It feels much like any other education conference.

Ellen Fishman-Johnson co-facilitated an engaging presentation this afternoon with fellow Apple Distinguished Educator Gary Atkins on new approches to using GarageBand, getting beyond the basic loops and tapping into students' creativity. There was a line outside of the room thirty minutes before her presentation, and I could not help but beam with pride and count my blessings that we are fortunate to work with her everyday at Springside.


Over and out (for now) from San Antonio.....