Transcript from Saturday's SIG Leadership Meeting

Yesterday I attended a (I have to say).surprisingly wonderful day long workshop with 50 or 60 of my collegues who lead special interest groups within ISTE, and I have to apologize for approaching it with anything less than unbridled optimism. I can report that I learned so much that even though the next few days will be fabulous, I could walk home from Philly to Nashville happy and improved exponentially.

I was glad to have contributed to the event's success by suggesting that we utilize a text chat backchannel via todaysmeet.com. This post is to share that chat, which is chocked full of interesting resources,comments, and tips especially useful to anyone interested in building online communities. It's at http://todaysmeet.com/istesigleaders/transcript. Enjoy!

Be sure to revisit the pics from flickr in the previous post!

Flickr Stream from Scott's #ISTE11 in Philadelphia

All day Saturday I'm in the SIG Leadership Day learning from my fellow volunteer leaders how to, well, how to lead volunteers. It's a fascinating day with a dynamic group of human beings. We have a todaysmeet.com backchannel that's collecting all kinds of great "off-task distraction" which I'll share after the day.

All those conference calls helping design the day are really paying off!!!

I'll be adding to this Flickr stream all week, so this is the place!



I'll try to caption as I go but I'm sure I'll miss some and have to do that post conference.

My ISTE11 Conference Planner

All times are local.

and here's a conference planning map, including some secondary locations that I'd like to visit if I can pry myself away from the conference center:

View ISTE 2011 Philadelphia in a larger map

Results for "Merrick" search at ISTE 2011!

I posted our ISTE2011 SIG Picks for readers a couple posts back, but now having actually obtained my flight and hotel (ah, district red-tape!) I can feel confident sharing the events that I will actually be presenting and/or facilitating. I hope to see all the folks I only get to see once a year at ISTE, so don't be shy coming by one or another or all of the following! See you there! From http://www.isteconference.org/ISTE/2011, searching "merrick": TSIGOL SIGOL/SIGVE Forum: Teaching in the Cloud!  Add to Planner [Other Program Events: Forum/Summit/Symposium] Seats still available. Tuesday, 6/28/2011, 2:00pm–4:00pm PACC 105B Virtual Schooling/E-learning : Virtual Learning Technologies Kecia Ray, Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools with Kevin Honeycutt, Scott Merrick and John Ross John Ross and Kevin Honeycut highlight cloud based teaching and learning for students and adults accompanied by table talks led by online and virtual experts!  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

SIGVE (Virtual Environments) Gathering: Virtual Learning with Real People  Add to Planner [Concurrent Session: Birds-of-a-Feather]  Monday, 6/27/2011, 5:30pm–6:45pm PACC Grand Ballroom Lobby Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Scott Merrick, Metro Nashville Public Schools  Members and others will gather to celebrate our year, share a vision for SIG Virtual Environments, and pass the leadership torch.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

Virtual Environments Playground  Add to Planner [Learning Station Session: Playground]  Monday, 6/27/2011, 8:00am–4:00pm PACC Grand Ballroom Lobby Tuesday, 6/28/2011, 9:00am–4:00pm PACC Grand Ballroom Lobby Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Scott Merrick, Metro Nashville Public Schools with Andrew Wheelock This area will highlight various virtual environment projects, platforms, and ideas for educators looking to push the boundaries of educational technology exploration. Hosted by ISTE's SIGVE.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

Virtually There? Ten Tips To Building a Virtual Learning Program  Add to Planner [Concurrent Session: Panel]  Monday, 6/27/2011, 2:30pm–3:30pm PACC 126A Virtual Schooling/E-learning : Virtual Learning Technologies Kecia Ray, Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools with Cathy Cavanaugh, Kathy Hayden, Scott Merrick and Barbra Thoeming Learn 10 critical lessons to help build effective and efficient virtual learning programs for student instruction and teacher professional development.  (Contains Commercial Content)

The Jeffersons, Volume 1

As their friend and 'cross-the-street neighbor I feel completely entitled to lend a promotional hand to sharing this amazing, creative, intensely musical release. Visit http://thejeffersonsmusic.com to hear and purchase Lisa Brokop and Paul Jefferson's wonderful new project, "The Jeffersons, Volume 1." Presumably that hints that there will be a Volume 2 some day! My favorite is "Almost Like We Meant To," closely followed by "Alcatraz." What's yours!? Okay, I do like "One Headlight." And "Take My Heart." Okay, I love it ALL. 

For more of the wonderful music these two have created, performed, and recorded over the years during their solo and band careers, you can visit Lisa's official website at lisabrokop.com, Paul's at MySpace, or Paul's band, Hilljack's MySpace.

We couldn't ask for better neighbors. One of these days the Merricks will actually go out at night and catch one of The Jefferson's local performances at the Bluebird!

Populating Your Personal Planner for ISTE2011 in Philadelphia? ISTE SIGVE Pics Will Help!

ISTE 2011 is sneaking up on us and will be here before you know it. If you're attending ISTE in Philadelphia, this quoted search will help make sure you attend the REALLY important sessions, workshops, and events. Those, of course, are those chosen by the Special Interest Group for Virtual Environments as relevant in the SIG Picks' process. SIGVE members weighed in on the content of over 800 such items, limited to only 20 Picks. Two of those didn't "make," apparently, or were cancelled for other reasons, but the remaining ones are in this list. Go to it! I for one am clicking "Add to Planner" for every single one! Quoted from the official ISTE website's search feature: A Deeper Understanding of the Holocaust through Virtual Environments  Add to Planner [Learning Station Session: Poster]  Wednesday, 6/29/2011, 11:00am–1:00pm PACC Broad St Atrium , Table: 7 Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Social Studies Andrew Wheelock, Erie 1 Boces/ WNYRIC with Susannah Renzi Think history is dull? This presentation will highlight a powerful new way of bringing history to life.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE (Contains Commercial Content)

SAP141B Design Spaces for Learning: Exploring Physical and Virtual Learning Areas  Add to Planner [Workshop: Hands-on] Seats still available. Saturday, 6/25/2011, 12:30pm–3:30pm PACC 118A School Improvement : Digital-Age School Design Chris Johnson, University of Arizona with David Jakes and Christian Long The design of school spaces affect how students learn. Discover how you can employ "design thinking" to create and redesign schools and classrooms that support digital age learning.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

Dive into Virtual Worlds: Learning about Ecosystems through Immersion  Add to Planner [Concurrent Session: Model Lesson]  Tuesday, 6/28/2011, 2:00pm–3:00pm PACC 119A Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Shari Metcalf, Harvard University with Chris Dede Learn real science, virtually! With EcoMUVE’s immersive, inquiry-based curriculum, discover plants and animals, dive underwater, shrink to microscopic size, travel through time and collect and analyze data.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

SUF222W Digiteacher Workshop: Digital Citizenship within a Project-Based Learning Environment  Add to Planner [Workshop: Hands-on] Seats still available. Sunday, 6/26/2011, 8:30am–3:30pm PACC 121C Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Digital Citizenship Vicki Davis, Flat Classroom Projects with Julie Lindsay Discover the project-based method of teaching digital citizenship in this workshop from Digiteen Project co-founders Vicki “Cool Cat Teacher” Davis and Julie Lindsay.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE, SIGDE, SIGLIT

Games, Simulations, and Virtual Environments for Learning and Teaching  Add to Planner [Concurrent Session: Panel]  Wednesday, 6/29/2011, 1:15pm–2:15pm PACC 103A Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Games & Simulations Greg Jones, University of North Texas with Lisa Dawley and Chris Dede Discover games, simulations, virtual environments, and visual experiences in education and see projects that benefit learning and teaching.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE, SIGGS

Immersive Worlds, Immersive Learning: How 3D Virtual Worlds Change Everything  Add to Planner [Concurrent Session: Lecture]  Wednesday, 6/29/2011, 10:15am–11:15am PACC 111B Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Diane Lewis, Seminole County Public Schools with Janine McGrath Learn how you can provide truly immersive learning experiences in 3D worlds from Second Life and Quest Atlantis to WOW and many worlds in between.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

Learning Between Worlds: Integrating Virtual and Real World Classrooms  Add to Planner [Learning Station Session: Poster]  Tuesday, 6/28/2011, 4:00pm–6:00pm PACC Broad St Atrium , Table: 35 Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Technology Integration Rory Nackerud, Center4EduPunx  Experience the integration techniques of a social media instructor morphed into a student teacher of middle and high school language arts and science.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE  (Contains Commercial Content)

Machinima Fest 2011  Add to Planner [Other Program Events: Meeting/Gathering]  Tuesday, 6/28/2011, 5:30pm–7:00pm PACC 126A Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Kae Novak, Front Range Community College with Marianne Mahlstrom, Rory Nackerud and Andrew Wheelock Machinima Fest 2011 will showcase videos created using 3D virtual worlds or games, and it's potential for learning and communicating. Discover the possibilities of using machinima in your classroom.  Everyone invited! Sponsored by SIGVE. For more information, including how to submit a video of your own, please visit http://sigve.iste.wikispaces.net/Machinima+Fest+2011  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

Project-Based Learning for Interactive Education in Virtual Worlds  Add to Planner [Learning Station Session: Poster]  Monday, 6/27/2011, 8:00am–10:00am PACC Broad St Atrium , Table: 25 Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Susan Toth-Cohen, Thomas Jefferson University  This poster details the specific steps and outcomes of project-based learning for graduate students who collaboratively developed virtual world exhibits on health and wellness.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

Real World-InWorld Design Challenge: Inspire Students to Solve Space Challenges  Add to Planner [Learning Station Session: Poster]  Monday, 6/27/2011, 8:00am–10:00am PACC Broad St Atrium , Table: 24 Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Sharon Bowers, National Institute of Aerospace with Mark Clemente Through both face-to-face (real world) and virtual world (InWorld) collaborations, students solve NASA-inspired design challenges. New challenges available each school year.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

TSIGOL SIGOL/SIGVE Forum: Teaching in the Cloud!  Add to Planner [Other Program Events: Forum/Summit/Symposium] Seats still available. Tuesday, 6/28/2011, 2:00pm–4:00pm PACC 105B Virtual Schooling/E-learning : Virtual Learning Technologies Kecia Ray, Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools with Kevin Honeycutt, Scott Merrick and John Ross Virtual, online, and immersive learning environments are becoming much more accessible and acceptable. Visit this forum to find out just how accessible learning can be for students and teachers!  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

SIGVE (Virtual Environments) Gathering: Virtual Learning with Real People  Add to Planner [Concurrent Session: Birds-of-a-Feather]  Monday, 6/27/2011, 5:30pm–6:45pm PACC Grand Ballroom Lobby Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Scott Merrick, Metro Nashville Public Schools  Members and others will gather to celebrate our year, share a vision for SIG Virtual Environments, and pass the leadership torch.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE

The 3 Cs: Connecting, Communicating, and Collaborating for Student Scientific Research  Add to Planner [Learning Station Session: Global Collaboration Project]  Sunday, 6/26/2011, 7:00pm–8:30pm PACC Broad St Atrium , Table: 13 Digital-Age Teaching & Learning : Virtual Environments Randall Thomas, GLOBE Program/UCAR with Donna Charlivoix and Martos Hoffman The Student Climate Research Campaign uses open source virtual platforms to engage an international community of students, teachers, and scientists in scientific inquiry and research.  Recommended by ISTE's SIGVE  (Exhibitor-Sponsored)