Social Technology in Education Conference #steconf

This morning I noticed that there is a Social Technology in Education Conference (#steconf) taking place at Harvard University. It is overlapping with the Open Education Conference (#opened09) in Vancouver. I discovered this SlideShare presentation from the conference titled A Survey of Social Tools by Ed Lyons.

A Survey of Social Tools

View more documents from edfactor.

I would love to listen to the livestream recording of Ed Lyons. I don't know yet if there is one. At the moment, it seems ironic to me that #opened09 seems so open to the entire online world with live streaming video of each session and mechanisms for online feedback to sessions while #steconf appears to be holding a private conversation in which only the people present at Harvard are invited to listen and talk.

So I have done a little searching on the internet for this conference. I still can't find out how much it cost the 200 + people to attend this one day conference. It seems that Ed Lyons has (maybe) organized the entire thing. Here is a link for the day's schedule. http://www.socialtecheducation.com/schedule/

At first I was disappointed that I could find no livestreaming video coming from this conference. However when I see that it is one man's vision to get 250 people together in one room to listen to speakers for 30 minutes at a time, I can see he may be a man after my own heart--someone who makes things happen, maybe with a small budget. I believe that the SlideShare presentations from each talk may be available. I notice that Ed Lyons is the second speaker. His second SlideShare presentation is already available for download. (http://www.slideshare.net/edfactor/technology-for-teachers-1846834)

I still wish that this conference day was live streamed and open for all of us to listen in and interact with those in attendance. At first I saw that this may be an issue of elitism (after all it is being held at Harvard) and exclusion. However, now I am taking a kinder view. That there may be an issue of lack of resources. As well, I believe that the way of holding conferences around technology is in transition. In the past, if you were putting on a conference with room for 250 and 250 showed up, that conference would be a success. However, now there are greater expectations for conferences. Especially in the technology realm, the most influential conferences fling the doors wide open so that the world can participate. I know that some people far away from the Vancouver time zone have been losing sleep this week trying to keep up with the live streaming video from the Open Education conference there (#opened09). The conference at Harvard today will impact those 250 people in the room with some dribbles of information and SlideShare presentations trickling out to the rest of us.

So thanks Ed Lyons and whoever worked with you to put on this conference. I don't want to come down too hard on you. But next time, all you technology conference organizers, could you please include a live stream feed so that the world wide web can be just that.

Dave Cormier - Big Wow at #opened09

Image via Wikipedia

Did you know that there's a very important conference about open education taking place in Vancouver, B.C. right now? I found this website which I think has live streaming video of many of the sessions. http://openedconference.org/
From one moderator's opening remarks, I believe the Art Gallery of Vancouver (see picture) is the site of the conference. This art gallery is right on Robson Street in downtown Vancouver. Tonight 150 of the local participants can join in a barbecue at Stanley Park. (No fire though because of high fire alert in the park. Must be bringing the BBQ from elsewhere.) People are tweeting each other with suggestions for excellent restaurants since everyone has 1 1/2 hours for lunch. They'll have a great selection of places to eat on Robson Street. That street is full of hustle and energy at all hours of the day and night.

If you go on Twitter, you can do a search for the hashtag for this conference. The hashtag is #opened09 although some people are also using #opened without the 09.

Three Canadians that I've encountered in other online settings are attending the conference: Dave Cormier (PEI), George Siemens (Winnipeg), and Alec Couros (Regina).

Here is a U-Stream video from a keynote session by Catherine Ngui http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1971271

As well, they are attempting to live stream every session from this conference. Check out this link for these U-streams. http://www.ustream.tv/opened09

Check them out. These participants are having some very important conversations about education and open education resources. They are inviting us to participate in these conferences via chat during the live streaming. (Later note: The chat for non-live participants is via Twitter.)

I'm continuing to listen to Dave Cormier live during a session that he is giving in Vancouver right now. Lots of people on Twitter are talking about this session. Some important things from this session: In a learning community people care as much about the learning of the people

Image by AmUnivers via Flickr

beside them as they do about their own learning. @kolorkid on Twitter commented "Community is a place where you feel safe (to make mistakes) so you can learn. Dave Cormier said, "Give them the literacies they need to join the communities they want to be part of." At this point he talked about (maybe) working recently with strawberry farmers because he was trying to find a strawberry place to take his child to. (later saw more about this on his blog. He's helping organize farmers online in PEI or something like that. Reminds me of Mack Male who is also making a difference in a hyperlocal manner.) Dave is an imminently quotable speaker. He is amazing.

It was funny towards the end of the question and answer time at the end, Dave (who is very funny) must have cut off someone's question or possibly answer. He said, "You guys had six hours yesterday." I know that yesterday there was a six hour discussion between two of the gurus of Open Educational Resources. Those two gurus must have attended Dave's session.

While I was listening in to Dave's session, I was also checking out what it was saying o

Image by Cuppojoe via Flickr

n Twitter about #opened09. I was following links (like the one to Ann Taylor's blog for her notes on the conference). Now I can understand what Mack Male and others means by "continuous partial attention".

Dave Cormier works in PEI. Here is a link to his blog: http://davecormier.com/edblog/. If he's not already a big name in the education technology world, I predict that this presentation today is going to zoom him up there. Wow! And he's from Canada. I'm so proud. (I stand and sing Oh Canada at this point. Join me if you are Canadian. Sing along with the YouTube video.)


Ann Taylor is blogging as she listens to one of the opened sessions. I'm going to check that out right now. Here's the address for her notes. https://www.e-education.psu.edu/node/468 Along with the notes for each session that she attends, she also includes the link to the video and a link to the slideshare notes for each session.

I need to post this writing so that those in my learning community can benefit from this conference. Even if you don't have time right now to join any of the live streaming sessions, they will available later on at the address above so that you can join in the learning that is taking place there.

I have used #opened09 to search Twitter for comments about this conference. It is interesting to see the comments of those attending the conference live with those who are checking in online. Fascinating! And they invited me to part of it. They invited you, too.