21st+century+conferences

= = =Attend a "21st century" conference anytime =



**Introduction**
The [|__K-12 Online Conference__]  is a free, volunteer-run, international, online event for educators around the globe. Presenters are selected by a panel of distinguished technology educators from the U.S. and several other nations. The purpose of the conference is to advance the use of leading-edge educational technology in the cause of high-quality K-12 teaching and learning, worldwide. In 2006, the first K-12 Online Conference, themed **Unleashing the Potential** , drew more than 50,000 attendees. The 2009 theme was **Bridging the Divide** .

Each year, over a two-week period, at least 40 conference sessions and keynote presentations in four themed strands are posted online. The presentations are then archived for continued access, on demand. Conference sessions are typically multi-media lectures (in video format) and most include links to supplementary materials. **This "thing" uses the archived conference presentations from all four years as content. I encourage you to first explore the 2008 and 2009 sessions, as the format has gotten "tighter" and the video quality better, but you are free to select sessions from any year to complete your task, and there are certainly quality offerings throughout.**

**Discovery Exercise**
Visit the [|__K12 Online Conference__] <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> site and "attend" a presentation of your choice.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**Pick a session that seems interesting/compelling to you, view the presentation and explore the supporting links or resources and see what you can learn! Be sure to view the included "essential questions," even if you do not wish to leave a Voicethread response.** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> (Check the <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">//Task, Part 1// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> below for blog post requirements).

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Now that you are aware of the <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__K12 Online Conference__] <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">, I hope you will return to this resource for future learning, that you will "attend" the 2010 conference next October, and visit the archived sessions for 2006-09 where you have time and interest. Please share this wonderful resource with your colleagues. (For those of you who may be interested in a further PLU opportunity, I have created <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">__another, less structured, online course__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> that uses the K12 Online Conference as content).

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> See instructions below for help in navigating the <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__K12 Online Conference__] <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> site.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The easiest way to <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**locate a session** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> is to click one of the <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**categories** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> listed under <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**2008** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> on the right sidebar of the blog <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> (The sidebar is present on every page of the site).

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #571279; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**¤ NOTE:** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> You will see the archived links for 2006 and 2007 as well -- if there is a session you feel <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">//compelled// <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> to "attend" from either of those years, you absolutely may, but I encourage you to enjoy the fresher, more "presentationally consistent" content of 2008 and 2009 for your first go! || * ||
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Under each category (for example, "Getting Started"), you will find several <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**blog posts** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> listing presentation titles, presenter information and a session description.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Click a <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**post/session title** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> to view the full session page, where you will find a full session description, and links to stream or download the presentation (typically in video format).

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Many sessions will provide accompanying resources (such as a companion wiki site or related links) as supporting content for the presentation. || * ||
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">On the <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**main session page** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">, you will find links for viewing (or listening to) the online presentation.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #571279; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**¤ NOTE:** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**Session lengths vary, but for 2008 and 2009, session videos have been capped at a maximum of 20 minutes (Forewarning: keynote presentations will be much longer)** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">. You should see a video "run time" or length listed next to the presentation link. || * ||

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #102894; font-family: Arial; font-size: 18pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**Task**
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**PART 1:** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Write a blog post sharing your thoughts about the session you viewed. What were the main points made? Was it worthwhile? Did you learn anything new? Did you find value in the online, anytime delivery option for professional development? Is there anything from the session you might use in your classroom or professional learning? Include a link to the session in your post. Be sure to include "Thing 13" as part of your post title.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**PART 2:** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Explore any other participant blog you wish and leave TWO comments (on two different blogs) in response to any posts that interest you. Be sure to include a link back to your own blog in the "website" field. (If you are logged into Edublogs, it should do this automatically).

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #b11b11; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**‡ HELP Video:** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">[|__How to leave a comment on someone's blog__] <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">(More Edublogs help resources available on the <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">__Edublogs Help Page).__