Why do you like Twitter?

People not on Twitter ask me this a lot - usually as they back away slowly. Last night's Twitter stream provided two answers. But I'm still not sure they would get it.

First, Erin Ochoa tweeted that she had posted her reflection on EdCamp Edmonton. We did a joint session together on using Twitter that day, although we were nearly 1,500 miles apart. (I wrote my reflection on that session at EdCamp Grand Rapids here.) It was good to be reminded of how Twitter supports professional collaboration.

Second, John Spencer started a Twitter meme with #pencilchat. He explained how it started here. Seventeen hours later and it is still going strong. Whatever the reason behind #pencilchat, it provided a lot of teachers with a laugh. And I for one could use the comedic relief.

PS The link in the tweet above pointed out another positive aspect of Twitter - connections. You can find out why here. I don't want to ruin the "rest of the story" surprise.

Are we the first?

I admit it. I am a bit on the competitive side. But the question I tweeted to Dan Callahan about hosting a Twitter chat between two edcamps was also about gaining perspective. If it had been tried before, then I wanted to be able to build on previous successes and avoid prior pitfalls. Dan's response meant that we were on our own (and that we were first, but that's not what's really important here.)

The idea was the result of a Twitter conversation I had several months ago with Erin Ochoa. We were chatting about assessment and wishing that we could talk face-to-face about it at Edcamp Edmonton. It was then that I realized that Edcamp GR was being held the same day. Initially, we thought about a Skype session. I had seen it done at Edcamp Detroit and thought it went well (I wrote about it here) but wondered if we could get things started the same way Erin and I had begun our conversation - via Twitter. Therefore, we organized an "edchat" between the two edcamps around the following questions:

We worked out a schedule that took into account the two-hour difference between time zones. The first 10 minutes would be spent getting participants acquainted with Twitter, the next 30 minutes engaging in the Twitter chat, and the last 20 minutes Skyping, which would allow us to extend the conversation beyond 140 characters. So on November 5th, John Golden and I signed up to lead the following session:

It worked out well. I lead the conversation and highlighted some of the nuances of Twitter chats while John tweeted links supporting our discussions. You can see a transcript of the chat here. At about 12:40 pm EST, we Skyped between the sessions. Fortunately, Janet Bell, in Edmonton, took a picture and tweeted it:

Interestingly enough, the Skype conversation we engaged in was mostly about Twitter, not assessment. Participants wanted to talk about how we use it inside and outside the classroom. It was not what I expected (real learning rarely goes as planned) but I would say the first ever edcamp edchat was a success. But being first is not what is really important here. This is what is important:

What is an EdCamp? Part III

Before this year, I had never heard of EdCamp, and then I got onto Twitter and began seeing tweets about it all the time. People raved about the experience and what they were learning at these unconferences. Was this a fad or would this be a transformative moment in education? I had to see for myself. Fortunately, Wayne State was scheduled to host an EdCamp - not exactly close, but close enough for me to check it out. Reflecting back over the EdCamp Detroit experience (the sessions I attended and the session I facilitated) I can see how it has helped me to refine my vision of 21st century education.

The two main points I wanted to address in my session were: (1) how isolation is destroying our education system; and (2) how technology can help us to break this isolation and connect. These were based on my view of education occurring in silos. Teachers isolated in their classrooms. Schools unaware of what was happening across their district. District disconnected from one another. Universities and K12 schools fighting over curriculum, methods, and resources. I thought that the answer was a lab school. In particular, a virtual lab school that would make use of the available technology to connect teacher educators, inservice teachers, preservice teachers, and K12 learners.


What I learned at EdCamp Detroit was that my vision was too limited. While a lab school would be nice, it did not go far enough.  My vision changed because of what I saw there. I smiled as other session facilitators discussed web resources I had been using myself. Hundreds of miles apart and we had shared an educational experience. I watched as one of my sessions Skyped in with another session at EdCamp Boston. When Nick Provenzano (AKA @TheNerdyTeacher) began to describe an internet project he had used, the teachers in Boston screamed (actually screamed like Nick was some rock star) because they were familiar with his work. Mostly, I was amazed as these teachers referencing the online work of people I respect and follow on Twitter. People like Dan Meyer, Eric Marcos, Alan November, and Derek Muller.


Reflecting on all this has helped me to realize that a lab school might be thinking too small. What I really want is a virtual one-room schoolhouse. A place where it is safe to explore ideas with other like-mined learners. A system that expects success through collaboration and support. A learning environment where the more experienced mentor those with less experience. A school where we share common knowledge instead of isolating it based on subject or grade-level.

So, are EdCamps a fad or a transformative moment in education? I think they are an opportunity. We have worked in silos for far too long. It is time to breakdown the barriers that separate us and work together to educate all learners. EdCamp has the potential to move us toward this goal. 


See for yourself at the nearest EdCamp. Or you can start your own. I know that I will be at EdCamp Grand Rapids on November 5, 2011. I hope to see you there - maybe over Skype.

What is an EdCamp? Part II

In my previous post, I offered an overview of my experience at EdCamp Detroit. Well, it did not provide the entire experience. I still need to share my presentation and the wrap-up of the unconference - that is the purpose of this post.

I called my presentation, Collaboration between College and K12 Classrooms: Win-Win-Win-Win. It was essentially based on two of my prior blog posts: one dealing with using technology to support distance learning and my dream to reclaim assessment from politicians and testing companies. Earlier EdCamp Detroit sessions on technology and collaboration also gave me some resources. Mostly, though, I wanted to listen to the participants' experiences and ideas about ways to consolidate our efforts to improve education.

Consequently, my PowerPoint was fairly bland. The version provided here includes backchannel comments from Kristen Fontichiaro (@activelearning) who tweeted much of the session. I am grateful for her contribution.

After my initial remarks, I opened up the conversation to the participants. Some of the College-K12 collaboration experiences included: Preservice teachers acting as substitute teachers and an Autism Center in Novi partnering with a local university. Kristen also made us aware that the University of Michigan is already exploring a lab school.

The new ideas generated were wide ranging. A member of the local college faculty suggested that her students could hold extracurricular classes to address K12 students' interests. A high school social studies teacher thought that it would be helpful for college students to describe the process for entering and succeeding in college to potential first-generation college attendees. Participants also suggested using Skype as a way to provide homework support, using college students to staff existing projects like Destination Imagination, and teaming college students with National Honor Society students in mentoring younger students.

I am sure there were other ideas that I missed (always the problem with making a list). Several times I found myself so engaged with the conversation that I forgot to take notes. I would ask that you please add any other suggestions in the comments.

While these ideas were amazing, it was the connections that I made that I found most meaningful. I now have contacts across the state. Tech-savy contacts that I will tap this coming fall when I have 60 preservice teachers in need of experience working with real K12 learners. I went from my session to wrap-up filled with ideas and hope.

EdCamp Detroit ended with a summary of the day, another brief Skype session with Dan Callahan at EdCamp Boston, and door prizes. What sticks with me most is a question asked by Nick Provenzano: "What if your next Professional Development day was an EdCamp?" Well? What if...

What is an EdCamp? Part I

EdCamp Detroit was an eye-opening experience. A perk of being a university professor is attending a lot of conferences (NCTM and TEDxGrandRapids to name two recent ones). I had never been to an unconference, however, and was looking forward to checking out this new approach to improving teaching.

The first thing to know about EdCamps is that there are no prearranged speakers. Participants arrive and encounter instructions like those shown below. EdCamp Detroit had 32 slots available spread equally between four one-hour sessions. To my amazement (since we always struggle to find enough K12 teachers to present at Math in Action) these slots began to fill rather quickly.

I have given plenty of talks, but I will admit that this format intimidated me a little - maybe because I had not done my typical preparation. After overhearing one of the organizers encouraging another participant to put an idea up on the board, I decided to take a risk. I selected a time slot at the end of the day and a topic that I thought would allow participants to be actively engaged. Most people feel like their brains are full at the end of a conference and I wanted to provide an opportunity for them to release that pressure by reflecting on what they learned. There will be more on my presentation later, but first I want to provide an overview of the EdCamp Detroit experience.

I chose sections that I thought I could incorporate into my final session. The first was called "The Flipped Classroom and Screencasting." Dan Spencer shared his ideas for using available technology to enhance learning and referenced examples like Khan Academy and MathTrain TV. Steve Dickie led the next session on "Pseudoteaching." He referenced blogs by Frank Noschese and Derek Muller (which actually questions some of the assumptions made by Khan Academy). In the third session, Mike Kaechele led a discussion about "Collaboration Across Classrooms." This included a Skype session with a group at EdCamp Boston (led by Marialice Curran) which allowed participants to share their experiences and see the power of this resource in action.

@TheNerdyTeacher shares with participants at EdCamp Boston

Very little of this was new to me. Again, I have more time than your typical K12 teacher to explore emerging educational approaches, ideas, and resources. Still, I was energized by these sessions because of the involvement of the participants. EdCamp presenters expect everyone to get involved and in most cases participants oblige. I left Mike's session excited to see what would develop in mine.

To be continued...