Not So Distant Future

In one of the most enjoyable sessions at EdubloggerCon, we had an interesting book discussion about Clay Shirky’s book Here Comes Everybody. I’m only on chapter one, but still found the discussion of how we face what is coming and what will happen to schools fascinating. Wish we’d had time to go even deeper into it–this could have been a whole day discussion, really–and so many interesting perspectives we had there.

As we talked, I was thinking about the whole concept of how we think of teaching–traditionally thinking of students like buckets that we fill up versus thinking of the importance of talk and conversation in terms of how students learn. Isn’t one reason that “everybody” is online is for these very conversations and informal learning? So how can we be sure conversation is part of the learning process going on in our schools?

Lastly, the other best part of the session–Will had some of us sitting on the floor which really felt like a book study.

My live blogged notes are below:

How are library services changing?     I’m really excited to be on a panel of oustanding librarians at NECC on “remixing” tools and strategies for a 21st century learning environment, as Cathy Nelson mentioned on her blog as well.

Joining us will be Joyce Valenza,  Anita Beaman, Judy O’Connell, Diane Cordell, and Kim Cofino(remotely) to talk about remixing roles and how librarians truly can function as change agents in their schools.

The session is not just for librarians, either!  For a collaborative partnership to work well,  we need to partner with teachers, administrators, tech coordinators, curriculum leaders, etc., and we all need to understand the potential for each other’s roles on a campus.    So we hope to have many of you join us to learn how we can all support one another more effectively.

By the way, the session is on Wednesday, at 8:30, so grab some coffee on the way!  (It’s cooler in the morning in Texas anyway ;))

NECC is fast approaching!

If you haven’t registered, you still actually have until June 18!   And if you have registered but aren’t from “around here” I thought I’d share a few tips!

It’s likely to be hot.  We’ve been having an unusually hot June and so far, it shows no signs of breaking.  Of course, the Riverwalk area is somewhat cooler, and there’s quite a bit of shade all along the way, and Texans do believe in air conditioning!

So the trick is, dress for really hot weather, but have some sort of jacket/sweater or something for the “indoor weather” as the convention center is always freezing.  (It is also HUGE).

If you are a new attendee, you may not realize there is a wiki set up to give you the scoop on what is going on “in between” events in some of the lounges and cafe areas.

And there is also a NING site set up where you can already start chatting with people who’ll be there.

I created a NECC San Antonio travel wiki last summer, and if you haven’t checked it out, I’ve put some tips as to dining and fun things to do.  There’s also a page to sign up if you are an attendee who is on Twitter and want to share your info!

Hands down–one of my favorite things to do is to have a frosty mug of root beer at Schilo’s–a place locals know up off the river just above Casa Rio restaurant.   And my other favorite thing is the lovely McNay Art Institute, which is a short drive from downtown, but it’s a beautiful museum built in a Mediterranean style home and they have just opened a new addition.

And if you are from Texas and haven’t decided yet, you have a few more days (and if you are a member of TCEA, there is a discount for attending!)

See you in San Antonio!