Like many, I have looked to post-NECC postings as I try to sort and sift information. I am still working on some thoughtful reflections to jump start initiatives for next year. It's a lot to process. Going to NECC, San Antonio was an amazing event, and I am still riffing on it. Immersing in a different country, with hordes of like-minded professionals, both on and off-line is my kind of fun.
That being said, I was rather taken aback at the Twitter, as quoted by David Warlick here, "that as One commenter said, in explanation of a Twitter post she’d made during the conference, “I wonder if Canadian schools really get it.” I think Mr. Warlick's response was a defence of us cousins.
Then I happened on to Clarence Fischer's blog here , the title of which is "America .... You've Got Trouble".
So I've got two questions.
Firstly, what does it mean to "not get' something? I seem to hear that phrase a lot. Does it mean that one does not understand something? Or is it that it's an easy way to dismiss people who understand, and consider, a point of view, and then choose to not stop there intellectually?
Secondly, and a little more personal, what is it that Canadian schools don't get? And if the Twitterer thinks that American schools have the answer, PLEASE SHARE!! We're trying real(LY) hard.
Barb
Comments
Barbara,
I'm just setting up here in Commun-it (dunno if I can manage another online space...but I find them hard to resist) and I noticed your blog posting. Wasn't NECC fantastic? What a thrill to see Jim and Mali featuring their involvement with TakingITGlobal and iEARN in a huge keynote...this makes me think that Canadian teachers DO get it! I wonder what the person felt that we didn't get?
Many of us have been using constructivist approaches like MicroWorlds Logo (mentioned on Warlick's blog as one of the highlights of NECC 2008) and have been participating in global projects for a long time.
As I listened to the great speakers (like Ian Jukes, Idit Harel, Elliot Soloway, Mitch Resnick, Gary Stager) it struck me that we are actually further ahead in some ways than our cousins to the south. I was also pretty excited to see that 4 of the big speakers at NECC will actually be at the ECOO conference in November '08! Maybe it's because I don't have big bucks to spend on the latest gadgets that it keeps me focused on the learning....I seemed to spend very little time with the vendors, and when I did, it was the constructivist ones like MicroWorlds, Tech4Learning, Hyperstudio, Fablevision and Gen Yes that captured my interest.
I hear you Brenda about the accumulation of on-line spaces, but I think this one is worthy, and I'd actually like to see more Ontario educators' involvement here. We have a Point of View that is unique, something that was very apparent at NECC, which, I agree, was amazing!
And to your constructivist approach, bravo! I just don't see how an educator can do else but take the role of facilitator and learner, in today's quick-twitch, rapid response learning environment.
Which 4, or more?, of the NECC speakers will be at ECOO? I don't see that posted on the website.
Barb