I was lucky enough to be selected to speak at the EdTech Conference in Sydney over the break. It was an amazing opportunity for me to have. Something that I never thought that I would be able to do.
With the opportunity to speak also got me entry into the conference. As it was my first EdTech conference I wasn't sure what to expect. The theme for the conference was to Create.
Day one started off with Jim Sill giving an Ignite presentation.
Jim Sill motivated and tried to prepare us for what was to follow.
One quote that really stuck with me was that in education you need to take the leap from safety. This really stuck with me because as a teacher I think that it is always best to take that leap not for you but for your students to increase their drive to learn. Really I see this is the Why we do things in our learning space.
He also spoke about meaningful learning. He quoted Jessica Lahey, "Meaningful learning happens when teachers are able to create an emotional connection to what might otherwise remain abstract concepts, ideas or skills." He also quoted Dr Immardino-Yang saying "It is literally neurobiologically impossible to think deeply about things that you don't care about."
Finally he finished off with
What I didn't know was how much my brain was going to explode over the next couple of days.
Following this the workshops began for Day one.
I heard Fiona Thomas speak about Digital Storytelling tools to support the diverse range of learners. Fiona spoke about the changes in education over the years. She gave us a range of tools to help learners who all have a range of different learning needs. One of the biggest take aways I got from Fiona was Equality vs Equity vs Accessibility. I am sure we have all see the first couple of images but I hadn't seen the third. This fits in with UDL (Universal Design for Learning)
This really sat strongly with me as an educator and learner. Making learning accessible for all is what I have always strived for.
Next up was Santi Vega. It was great to see Santi so passionate about Google Sheets. In his session we looked at Conditional Formatting, Data Validation and Pivot Tables. I think all these tools will be a great addition to my team as we move forward with our tracking. I do enjoy data! It was great to see Santi present as I do know him through MIT this year.
Finally for Day 1 was back to Fiona Thomas. This session was named: Are your students really thinking? Using Digital Tools to support the development of problem solving skills. This session was brilliant especially as it was about maths. She spoke about Robert Kaplinksy. Robert challenged 32 grade 8 learners with the question: "There are 125 sheep and 5 dogs in a flock. How old is the shepherd?" If you haven't seen it the video is below:
At the end of Day one my brain was completely zapped. It was time for a rest and some down time before day two began.
Day two began with Kim Pollishuke from Canada. She shared "Let's build an elevator to the moon"
She started off by saying Everything is unprecedented util it happens for the first time. She also shared her thoughts on education. From this session came three rather major takeaways.
With the opportunity to speak also got me entry into the conference. As it was my first EdTech conference I wasn't sure what to expect. The theme for the conference was to Create.
Day one started off with Jim Sill giving an Ignite presentation.
Jim Sill motivated and tried to prepare us for what was to follow.
One quote that really stuck with me was that in education you need to take the leap from safety. This really stuck with me because as a teacher I think that it is always best to take that leap not for you but for your students to increase their drive to learn. Really I see this is the Why we do things in our learning space.
He also spoke about meaningful learning. He quoted Jessica Lahey, "Meaningful learning happens when teachers are able to create an emotional connection to what might otherwise remain abstract concepts, ideas or skills." He also quoted Dr Immardino-Yang saying "It is literally neurobiologically impossible to think deeply about things that you don't care about."
Finally he finished off with
What I didn't know was how much my brain was going to explode over the next couple of days.
Following this the workshops began for Day one.
I heard Fiona Thomas speak about Digital Storytelling tools to support the diverse range of learners. Fiona spoke about the changes in education over the years. She gave us a range of tools to help learners who all have a range of different learning needs. One of the biggest take aways I got from Fiona was Equality vs Equity vs Accessibility. I am sure we have all see the first couple of images but I hadn't seen the third. This fits in with UDL (Universal Design for Learning)
Next up was Santi Vega. It was great to see Santi so passionate about Google Sheets. In his session we looked at Conditional Formatting, Data Validation and Pivot Tables. I think all these tools will be a great addition to my team as we move forward with our tracking. I do enjoy data! It was great to see Santi present as I do know him through MIT this year.
Finally for Day 1 was back to Fiona Thomas. This session was named: Are your students really thinking? Using Digital Tools to support the development of problem solving skills. This session was brilliant especially as it was about maths. She spoke about Robert Kaplinksy. Robert challenged 32 grade 8 learners with the question: "There are 125 sheep and 5 dogs in a flock. How old is the shepherd?" If you haven't seen it the video is below:
At the end of Day one my brain was completely zapped. It was time for a rest and some down time before day two began.
Day two began with Kim Pollishuke from Canada. She shared "Let's build an elevator to the moon"
She started off by saying Everything is unprecedented util it happens for the first time. She also shared her thoughts on education. From this session came three rather major takeaways.
- Don't be a flea in the jar
Educators become 'lids' to learners creativity. As educators we need to create conditions for children to be able to jump higher. - Get out of your own way Hope vs Doubt - remember the impossible dream.
- Find Value in your struggle Resilience is key to learning.
After the session with Kim I went to Flipping with Edpuzzle by Dan Jackson. This session was a hands on sessions where I got to work with Edpuzzle around creating flipping videos. It made me think how my maths program was going as would it be a possibility for more work around this for my learners. More thinking to come I feel.
Next was Kim Pollishuke again. This session she was giving an introduction to Flipgrid, named Supercharge Student Voice. During our time we got to sandpit as a learner flipgrid. I have not seen this tool before so I enjoyed being able to play with it. Kim also showed us the teacher side as well. I feel flipgrid will be beneficial for my journey as I will be able to get student voice a-lot easier. This will still require further thinking from me.
The final session of the day for me was my session. I have never had an issues speaking to people about education. I spoke about Explain Everything. I found it really interesting that no one really knew much about it. It was good for me to go back to basics again.
So over the two days what did I learn - Lots, lots and lots. I have returned home with my brain buzzing about all the new learning. Would I do it again? Totally!
A massive thanks have to go to all the MIT crew in Sydney for keeping the energy flowing. Also to Dorothy Burt, Pat Sneddon, Anne Sinclair and Jenny Oxley for making it all happen. Their support has been amazing with everything that they have given me as an educator.
Now for me - It's time to relax.
Happy Holidays Educators
Kia ora Mark, Thanks for sharing in such detail the experience and learning you gained from attending the Sydney Summit. I had not realise you had not attended one of the Christchurch Summits prior, so this was a brave step to launch into presenting as a first timer!
ReplyDeleteYour reflections on the ideas that resonated with you are valuable and I am pleased on a practical note that you were introduced to some tools and ideas you could implement in your own teaching immediately. I look forward to catching up with you soon.
Dorothy
Thanks Dorothy
DeleteYes it was my first Ed Tech Conference. It was lovely to be able to speak at it. I find that with any conference it is important to have your own personal 'take aways' that will help and support your own learning journey. Plus if they help others.
Yes looking forward to catching up in a couple of weeks.
Marc