Kevin, oh, Kevin, is at it again!

He's one of my several idols.

Yes, I confess: I idolize educators who can manage to contribute in an ongoing way to the understanding of our profession as a positive force in the world.

Kevin Jarrett's blog post today is thought-provoking and reflective, just what I need as I work to rebound from a nasty cold. Not only that, he took the time to send me an email (interrupting my grant-writing work, but happily) to say "Smile! Your on my blog," referring to the great little pic of me with some of my new friends, posed in the midst of the Second Life Lounge at NECC2008. I'm crouching behind, from left to right, Megan Deana, Jeremy Koester, Peggy Sheehy, and Claudia L'Amoreaeux (Coreina Grace, Jeremy Braver, Maggie Marat, and Claudia Linden if you're looking for them in Second Life).



Amidst all life's changes, friends endure. Kev, I'm also looking forward to the summer of 2009. Speaking of which, I'd better get back to my grant-writing!

Cheers from (finally!) rainy Tennessee!!

KZOwebcasting NECC 2008!!!

Thanks again to Twitter, and to kpruitt in particular, for leading me this morning to the http://www.kzowebcasting.com/necc/ website. Like many others at NECC2008 in San Antonio, Texas, I missed a lot of sessions I really wanted to make. This site makes it possible for me to be there, albeit asynchronously. I'll be pointing my folks at my week-long Web2.0 for Us! workshop next week to this site, and may even use some of our precious time together to view these together using the kzowebcasting interface. Yay!

What if I form a "club" to visit these videocasts on a weekly or monthly basis with a group of my colleagues at my school over a cup of coffee or a local brew so that they can benefit from experiencing them the way that I now get to?

See my earlier post about how I actually spent my time at NECC!

NECC 2008 Resources and Commentary

Cross-posting from Oh! Second Life, my Second Life blog:

Wow, it's been like a week since I posted anything here. Some kinda record.
I'm firing my laptop at my home office stepmachine station and working out to lose some of the belly I've accumulated over the past months spending most of my waking hours at a laptop. I'll still get to be at my laptop, but at least I'll be burning some calories. My old vinyl record turntable is on the shelf above my laptop, so I'm firing up some vintage Shawn Phillips to help motivate my pace :)

Pardon me whilst I do a 5 minute yoga stretch b4 climbing aboard...

There.

So. I spent a wonderful week at NECC 2008, and the best part of the whole experience was meeting and renewing face-to-face friendships and acquaintances with so many folks I have been working with ageographically (I just made that up) for a year or more. I touted the virtues of my real-world employers to everyone I met, I passed out nearly 100 moocards (see earlier post) and I presided over a sold-out workshop with my 8 co-presenters and several other bonus guest stars and did the same for a packed-house "Birds of a Feather" session, helped the edubloggercon pre-conference "unconference" session called "Web 2.0 Smackdown" by ustreaming for stellar blogger Vicki Davis, attended Kathy Schrock's "Get a MUVE On" lecture and Peggy Sheehy's session on the Second Life Teen Grid, met and instantly felt a kinship with Linden Lab Education Director Claudia Linden, learned about how to begin working in the TG, worked a band member avatar in SL for the talented guitarist of "One Horse Shy," then worked a speaker's avatar in the closing session for a full house of around 7,000 out front. I also had numerous gets-together with folks irl at dinners and meetups, expanding my personal learning network(s) exponentially.

12 minute into my step workout I'm now perspiring nicely! Shawn is singing his magic. The album, btw, is "Do You Wonder." Nice.

From NECC2008, some links:

SLedupotential (for maybe the last time--be sure to bookmark it! I think this site, developed before, during, and ongoingly after our 3 hour workshop, will continue to be a valuable one-stop-shop for shareable information for some time to come. Need to show your colleagues a video about this cutting edge education platform? SLedupotential? Find a new one? Or a new research report or article? Share it a SLedupotential. You see what I mean, I hope...

NECC 2008 bloggers--not sure why I'm not in there, but I'm posting the link anyway :( with the caveat that if it missed mine, it must have missed others, so it's incomplete :)

NECC 2008 podcasts--Some really good ones here. Not seeing them in iTunes, but they're p0sted at the Apple Learning Interchange website. Apple could do themselves a favor by putting them up on iTunes, based on recent twitter exchanges pleading for help downloading to laptops and mobile devices.

My NECC2008 flickrstream

All flickrsets tagged necc 2008

I gotta get off the step machine. I'm done! For now...

Cheerio!
Scott

Last day of NECC--Rockin' and Reelin' from the Week!

Wow, this has been a fantastic week, and I thank my administrators at both University School of Nashville and the Vanderbilt Center for Science and Math for making it possible for me to go. I also want to thank ISTE and its administrators for giving me stage above and beyond what I expected here, and the fantastic Claudia L'Amoreaux (Claudia Linden) from Linden Lab for being there for all of us every step of the way. Toss in a deep bow to Steve Hargadon and the organizers of the pre-conference Edubloggercon "unconference" for giving me a rich day of networking with and learning from some of the best minds in the forefront of educational advocacy.

One of the limitations of what a dear Second Life friend calls "meatspace" is that one can only be in one place at any given time. We are often able to rise above that limitation with the Internet (when the wireless connection works--no jab at the tech folks here: I'm sure they're doing everything they can to make things work) by twittering, blogging, ustreaming, ninging, and such; but it remains an absolute limitation of physicality. That said, I want to say I missed hanging out with my IVC friends this year. My amiable and extraordinarily capable colleagues in that arena, friends for nearly a decade of collaboration, will always be my friends, or at least I hope they'll allow me that privilege. I've simply been limited this year by the Meatspace Law: "1 body, 1 place."

I'll be working over the next week to summarize as succinctly as possible my amazing adventures here at NECC 2008. Until then, I'd like you to chew on the following:

I believe that virtual environments hold so much promise for education in so many ways that I've thrown in with that group here at NECC, also a dynamic, dedicated, pioneering band of educators. I believe that so much that I'm proposing a new ISTE Special Interest Group, and I'll propose that it be called SIGVE, for "Virtual Environments." I talked with ISTE Membership Director Jennifer Ragan-Fore last night at a small gathering of ISTE Docents, and she seems to think it can happen, in part based on the full house Birds of a Feather session we staged Monday here in San Antonio. Anybody else think so?

I'm prepared to pursue what steps it may take to get it started. This, as friend Cathy Walker said last night when I discussed it with her, is a first and most important step toward legitimizing this fertile field in the minds of reluctant administrators, especially the ones who hold the purse strings for teacher professional development programs. Let's begin to work together to bring ISTE member focus to the potentials of the 3D internet. What say? Kitty, send me that paperwork?

The "Money Shot"

I think April-Hope, Scott Swanson's assistant for the conference, took this with Lisa Linn's cam, but I consider it the "Money Shot," the one to remember, from our SLedupotential session in San Antonio at NECC 2008.

Just popping in before dinner to share it out. All the presenters, all my peeps, with Claudia Linden down front left. Do we look relieved!?

SLedupotential Rocked!

pictured, Meghan, Jeremy, me, Peggy, and Claudia, WooooT! I think I scarfed this from Kevin Jarret's flickr set!

Wow! A truly fun day yesterday as we gathered 9 educators from 9 states along with the 30 participants who registered from all over the country and beyond (Canada, Russia, and Australia) to dive into Second Life for immersive hands-on work. I declare it successful!

Later in the day, five others of us spent an hour with a packed room of educators to focus on Second Life as a Professional Learning Network in a "Birds of a Feather" session. That went every bit as well if not better!

So here I am, a K-4 teacher with a few other interests and skill sets mostly centered around teaching and learning, having spent extraordinary quality time with hundreds of colleagues whose main goal is to improve their own teaching and learning, and who are not afraid to travel to Texas to do so :). Not only that, they are not afraid to explore the outermost boundaries of educational potential. I'm embarrassingly proud of my co-presenters and I'm just as proud of everyone who came to share in the common experiences that have so enriched my own practice.

This year, I promise to come out of the virtual closet about Second Life. I came to this resolution mid-way in the Birds session, when I had the mic between others' shareouts and said something to the effect of, "I have to point out that, were I not in Second Life, I would know none of these people." I had to pause to compose myself before continuing. I was nearly in tears. I don't know if others noticed but I have a hard time imagining that it wasn't pretty apparent. These relationships, instigated and nurtured by shared enthusiasm for immersive education, are that important to me. Claudia Linden's participation here at NECC so encourages me that I do--I promise to proceed into the Teen Grid this coming year with the goal of bringing my own school's students into this immensely engaging world. This year, I promise to come out of the virtual closet about Second Life. Will you?

Pics from our NECC2008 SLedupotential work and play are at a set in flickr, and you can certainly get all the visuals you'd like by going to flickr.com and searching "necc08."

I'm up to shower and get to the Second Life "Playground," friend Lisa Linn and friend Scott Swanson's day long contribution to spreading the word that it's okay to explore and Second Life is a promising place to do so!

NECC 2008 Preconference Pics!

The ustream video on this page was shared out real-time during the session and had, at peak participation, 18 remote viewers. One was Clif Mims, who was sitting right next to me in person, so maybe don't count that one :)If it doesn't load for you visit this link for it!

The conference is starting off very promisingly! Edubloggercon began with my meeting many of my twitter and blogging colleagues whom I'd only previously known online. My co-presenters for Monday's session were mostly there, and I made some contacts I particularly cherish, including Alice Mercer, Dean Grooms, Fred Delventhal, and Terra Sieberman ("Louise Borgnine")--I got real-life hugs from folks I'd only texted them to before. This is a fabulous experience.

A couple highnotes, Scott Swanson approaching me telling me "Dude! You're quoted on the poster!"

Terra seeking me out to deliver a membership ribbon that says, simply "Rock Star." This is because I'll be onstage with the live band during the reception tomorrow night, "being" the guitarist in the band onstage in Second Life. Life(s) is good.

I have audio, I have video, and stay tuned, because I'm not afraid to use it!!!

Friday Evening at NECC2008

In town, when I finally got it together to start contacting folks, I found Peggy Sheehy and Keisha Ray, two colleagues and friends I thought should know one another. I met Keisha shopping with her friends Kelly and Molly and Keish and I broke off to go to Dick's Last Resort for a tasty beverage and a chat. The bartender there told me that he wanted to start teaching guitar in Second Life. I think that's a great idea!

Peggy joined us, and what's more, she brought Bernajean Porter, she of the digital storytelling fame and celebrity. Note, if you will, her inclusion in the Wikipedia entry on the topic...

I'm a bad podcaster, I guess. But though I did think about asking permission to record the conversations, I did not. You simply have to take my word when I say that putting those folks together was the best thing I've done in a while. Keisha, Metro Nashville Public Schools' Assistant Superintendent for Grants and Programs, wasn't aware of Peggy's pioneering work in Second Life, or really about Bernajean's firebrand approach to the power of digital storytelling and her embrace of that virtual world platform as one more way to help students gain skills to share with the world the stories they have to tell. She is now, by gosh, and I am moreso by virtue of being a witness to the animated discussion at the table.

Bernajean's about to unleash a project encouraging teachers to share stories of how they've made a difference in their students' lives. You'll be hearing a lot more about this, so keep an ear out. It was such a joy to meet her that I'm feeling blessed tonight.

And blessed also to finally meet in real life my good friend Cathy Walker, Arkansas technology teacher and a long time collaborator in Second Life. Cathy (padlurowncanoe Dibou in SL) is orchestrating the inworld audio stream we'll use to deliver audio from our SLedupotential workshop here Monday to attendees in Second Life. She's also a stunningly smart woman and a kind person and it was amazing to meet her. I'm looking forward to working with her more this week and in the future. the chemistry between Cathy and Keisha extended my own appreciation of the night, and it was further enhanced by the joining of others, including John Miller, Marianne Malstrom, and several other fun folks. We all headed over to Mad Dogs Pub for dinner and more chat. A great start to an exciting week of conversation and learning! The real work starts tomorrow, as I spend from 8 to 5 in edubloggercon! This work, tonight, falls in the category of networking and learning. Well done, I say.

The Conference Center Lab's (mostly) Set Up!

and I popped into the as-yet-not-completed registration area and took a couple pics. Then (thanks LA:) I went over to the ISTE membership pavilion and THERE I WAS!

See that avatar flying over my head, right over the ISTE BOOKS sign? That's MEEEE (or rather, that's Scottmerrick Oh, my Second Life "me." I hope to ship that sucker home at the end of the conference :)

Arrived Safely at NECC, Now in the Conference Center, Room 006D

, where I will be installing Second Life on the 31 computers in the room. Looks like I need to wait on my contact for the installation since I don't have the perms to do it without a password. Good security, bad scottvenience :)

I met Barbara Conover on the flight (she'd been at it since 3 in the morning from Philadelphia), who's Project Manager for the Center for Visualization at St. Joseph's University. She's managing a huge CSTA pre-conference in the building tomorrow, geared around the Alice Project. Very much a lagniappe meeting, since I'm planning to use Alice, a 3d modeling software, with my older elementary kids next week. SEE!? I've already learned something!!! This is gonna be AWESOME!

Virtual NECCers!

Hey, ya'll,

Knee-deep, I am, working on a myriad of tasks toward being ready for NECC2008 in San Antonio. If you're gonna be there, look me up. I'll be hanging out at Edubloggercon all day Saturday, then you can expect to see me around the fine folks who are the core corps of the ISTE Second Life initiatives.

For my dear readers and colleagues who cannot travel to the fair state of Texas for NECC, I just created a ning group at http://www.necc2008.org/group/virtualneccers for you all. I think this might just catch on, so get in on it early and participate enthusiastically! I'm not sure how much I'll be around, so it's up to you to move the conversation around and make the group what you want and need it to be.

Tell 'em I sent ya!

Cheers from Nashville!

Leading and Learning with Technology Spot

Hey all,

I just learned this evening that I'm to be the member profile for this upcoming month's ISTE Leading and Learning with Technology print magazine. Realizing that folks may come here from that wonderful publication I just want to say thank you to Jennifer Ragan-Fore, ISTE's Director of the General Membership Program, for aiming the editorial radar my way. As whatever the editors do with the profile info I sent them will doubtless reflect, I'm just a teacher, flailing about in as organized way as my own teaching and learning styles will allow, doing my best just like all tens (hundreds?) of thousands of other teachers do every day. I am at once heartened and humbled by this weird, brief spotlight.

Scroll down and check out sidebar links here. It's a rich place, in undefinable ways. If I have any words of wisdom for you it's the same ones I share with my kids: Be Good and Have Fun.

I have a new focus that I'm examining for my own non-masters thesis: Seek Balance.

Cheers, and let's have a fun and kind summer...

SLedupotential--FULL!!!

Yippee! I just finished adding "Reserved" signs on the last of the realworld attendees' chairs (the tie-dye ones on the floor) in the SLedupotential Virtual Room high above ISTE Island. Here's a snapshot--the little white signs all say "Reserved for a San Antonio SLedupotentialer, click for more info" and a click will take the clicker to the workshop wiki, already populated with more stuff than we could get thru in 3 days, much less 3 hours. Neat!

Attendees will be getting a brief pre-conf. survey the first of the week to help us narrow focus a bit to tailor the learning experience, which this will definitely be, and for all of us! Check back here for a SLurl the "day of," Monday, June 30, at 6:45 SL time!

At present, the workshop will be open inside Second Life to anyone, although I'm sure the ISTE Island Managers reserve the right to close the teleports if we get too busy. I currently have seating for 24 (the red "unreserved" chairs) and off in the corners I've placed 3 dance floors for the breakout sessions, which I'll name soon. Any suggestions for names?

Stay tooned!!! Oh, here's the NECC page that brought me the news:

The "Embedded Practicioner," -- Words of Blogging Wisdom from an 8th Grade English Teacher

I didn't mean to do it. After all, I had already spent over an hour in Second Life earlier in the day at a fantastic panel discussion on "Virtual Identity," the discussion facilitated by the dana centre in England. That panel featured Howard Rheingold, coiner of the term "smartmob" and widely acknowledged creater of the concept of "virtual community," and Will Gardner, founder of the non-profit "Childnet International," an internet safety organization created to "help make the Internet a great and safe place for children." I did some recording there but haven't had a chance to do anything with it. (I hope I can, since it was really wonderful.)

So when I logged in on my laptop at my boy's bedside while he went to sleep last night (he doesn't really need that anymore--it's just a tradition with us, one that I'm sure I'll be losing soon as he breaks into teenagedness) I never intended to get caught up in another online presentation. I made the crucial (propitious) mistake of checking out the happenings at the Auditorium on ISTE Island.

Friend Kevin Jarret (KJ Hax inworld) manages a wonderful Tuesday night speaker series over there, and his blog, "The Story of My Second Life," was one of the first ones that motivated me to begin blogging my Second Life experiences. Last night, KJ offered Torontan 8th grade English teacher Konrad Glogowski (SL: Konrad March) on the topic, "The Embedded Practicioner," sharing information about his journey from attachment to his "teacherly voice" to the development of his "readerly voice," which a teacher attempting to nurture literacy skills with blogs must, in Konrad's view, adopt.

Take 20 minutes and listen up to the segment of the talk I choose to share. If you are interested in educational blogging with students, I feel it's a "must listen!" Then head on over to Konrad's blog, "blog of proximal development," for more. I'll add the pics I took here soon, but here's one for starters, the one referenced early in Konrad's presentation, when he's talking about what most of us traditionally, and habitually, call "teaching":



Cheers,
Scott

NECC Birds of a Feather Gets its Final Co-presenter!

Okay, ya'll. In an effort to make the Birds of a Feather June 30 interesting and fun, I've added several co-presenters. Why? 'Cause I CAN, silly! I promise I'm finished!

The RL rundown:
Me, you know me
padl is a Tech Coordinator in Arkansas, JS is a Community College nursing educator in Washington state, Gia is a SLoodle expert in London, Know is a theater teacher in New Jersey, and the Prof. is an English language teacher in Kobe, Japan.

Sound fun? It will be. Join us. :)

New Moo Cards!

Hey, all,

Toward preparing for NECC in San Antonio, I've created new mini-bizcards at moo.com, where I ordered 100 to have on hand for the week. This has also made it possible to upload the cards' image to Second Life and create business cards there! There's a little stack on the table in the Bloggers' Hut and the Podcasters' Place. Feel free to take a copy so you can always have my websites in your pocket (or at least most of them :).

Here's the image: