100 Innovative Educators Attending the Microsoft Innovative Education Forum This Week

Below is a guest post by Rob Bayuk, Microsoft U.S. Partners in Learning Team (aka @TeachTec on Twitter). Rob also blogs over at his TeacherTech's Blog.

I'm very excited about this event because not only is it an incredible opportunity for some highly creative and brilliant educators to get together and showcase their innovative work, but I GET TO BE A PART OF IT (as one of their judges). Thank you to Rob and Microsoft Partners in Learning for inviting me. I really can't wait!

Beginning Wednesday evening 100 educators from across the country will arrive in Seattle for the Microsoft Partners in Learning 2011 U.S. Innovative Education Forum. The Innovative Education Forum is part of a worldwide program designed to shine a spotlight on some of the world's top educators and provide them the opportunity to collaborate and exhibit innovative tech-infused projects they've done with students. Over the past year educators applied, applications were reviewed and these 100 educators were chosen and represent 25 different states and all K-12 subjects and grade levels. While attending the event educators will also participate in a number of unique professional learning activities.

Ten finalists from the U.S. event will be chosen to represent the United States at the Partners in Learning Global Forum in Washington, DC in November. The global event is expected to attract more than 700 teachers, school leaders, press and education thought leaders from more than 75 countries. 

On the agenda for these teachers over the two day forum hosted on Microsoft's main campus includes their project exhibitions which will be evaluated by a panel of judges, learning excursions to some of Seattle’s best known landmarks such as the Space Needle and Pike Place Market where collaborative teams of educators will create classroom project activities based on their experiences, and hands-on technology workshops using Microsoft’s latest programs for education.

The group will also hear two inspiring keynote speeches by Dr. John Medina, author of the New York Times bestseller Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School and Dr. Jane McGonigal, world-renowned game designer and author of Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World will deliver the closing keynote.

But fret not, both keynote presentations will be streamed live through the Partners in Learning Facebook page. "Like" the page to watch the streaming and get updates on the event as it happens. We will also stream through our IEF web site and if you'd like to follow along on Twitter follow me @TeachTec and watch for #msftpil.

If you would like to read a summary of the projects that will be exhibited this week checkout this post.

Rob Bayuk

Microsoft U.S. Partners in Learning Team

(aka @TeachTec)

Dear Spammers

Dear Spammers,

As if you weren't annoying enough. Learn how to spell, would you? Not only is your spelling awful, but what in the world is, "Permanently Lockup" Account? (Click on image below to enlarge.)

Sign me,

Highly Annoyed

Google+ (Stay With Me Here)

Is Google+ the new Twitter or FaceBook? Could it be a replacement for Skype, Qik and Flickr?

These are some of the big questions swirling around as everyone tries to wrap their heads around Google's new social network, Google+.

I only have my account for a day and will reserve judgment until I give it my best efforts, but I can tell you this about my social networking experience:

1. As with all new social networks (Buzz, Plurk, Orkut, Friendster) I proceed with cautious optimism. 
2. I firmly believe that the key to any social network transition, is bringing your already-established network with you, and then increasing it further (if that is your goal). Point: if you can't bring your network with you, then you'll find yourself checking into multiple SNs, which will quickly grow tiresome.
3. Posting to multiple sites is fine, but tends to annoy. (See bullet #2.) 
4. FaceBook has a huge advantage in that even older generations and self-proclaimed techno-phobes are using FB. I'm not sure I see a quick bolt to Google+ for these folks. 
5. Branding is everything. Google has landed the search term; everything gets "Googled." I'm thinking that FaceBook may have cinched the everything-related-to-social-networking term. 
6. I am comfortable with FB, understand how the privacy settings work and use them well. Today. Last week, FB changed my settings on me and I had to tweak them. Again.
7. Too many other folks who use FB, are NOT as aware of the privacy settings as am I, and those in my social network, and frankly I'm tired of seeing and reading about very smart people shooting themselves in the feet because FB makes it too difficult for them to figure it out. Then again, NONE OF US are very good at chasing moving targets.
8. Most of us are clamoring for something secure, clean and easy that could be a potential use in the classrooms. This looks very promising, and not sure what it would look like for the Google Apps in Education user but (Google are you listening?) if there is no possible way for teachers to moderate student comments before they go live, large U.S. public school districts will likely take their 19th century ball and go home. 

From what I can see so far, Google+ makes it pretty easy to create your network (not sure what it looks like for someone who has not established one yet). What I like best about Google+ is the fact that before you share anything, you must choose who to share it with; unlike FB which works exactly the opposite where the default is "share with [your default]" and you can choose to hide from specific groups or individuals. By creating "circles" (or groups) of people, you can organize your contacts so that you can, for example, publish your children's birthday celebration photos and share updates on your latest medical procedure to your family members only. I'm liking the idea that my "geek-talk" doesn't have to spill over to my non-geeky friends; that is IF they come over to Google+. (See bullet #2.)

Jason Calacanis talks about Google+ in this week's episode of This Week in Startups,  and recently wrote a post, "Why Google+ Will Take Half of The Social Networking Market From FaceBook (or There Goes Calacanis Again"). I recommend reading the entire post, but copied and pasted below just a portion of his post to share his top reasons why he thinks Google+ will totally rock. 

Here are my top reasons why Google+ will be a crushing success.

1. Larry Page and Sergey Brin are using the product
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When Larry Page took over as CEO, I sent him an email and told him that if Google was going to be taken seriously as a player in social, he needed to get a Twitter account and start using it. Leadership starts at the top, and Google’s leadership is, finally, taking social seriously. Notoriously press-shy Larry (how many interviews has he done since taking over as CEO? oh yeah, zero) sharing kiteboarding photos speaks volumes. Sergey is also posting, interestingly, action shots (a sky-diving photo).

2. Forced categorization of contacts
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Google+ forces you, through an elegant user interface, to put your contacts into circles. When you update your profile (a.k.a. your Facebook newsfeed or Twitter stream), you are forced to select who you want to give this information to. This throttles how quickly you can build your social network and how quickly you can share with it -- and that’s a good thing! Zuckerberg elected to build Facebook as fast as possible, and he believed people would never take the step to select which groups they wanted people to belong to, let alone which groups they would send to. That decision, combined with the horrible treatment of a user’s privacy, has meant that many people simply do not trust Facebook. Google realizes this, and in a brilliant move the company has, as Dave Winer says, “zigged where they zagged.”

3. Google Hangouts is as good as Skype, and a lot more fun
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Google Hangouts is a 10-person, video chat product that’s fun and free. You can hangout with your address book in seconds, it’s rock solid and -- did I mention -- completely free. I could certainly see myself using this product instead of firing up Skype.

4. Chrome Browser and Chrome Store integration
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If you didn’t know, Chrome now has 20.7% of the browser market. That’s from a cold start with the beta launch in September 2008. Google also has an app store that competes with the iTunes store and charges 30% to developers for apps just like Apple. However, Google only charges 5% for in-app purchases, while Apple holds the line at a very unfair 30% for in App purchases. That’s how Google like to do  it: take your competitors revenue stream--be it Microsoft Office, Windows, Apple’s iOS or Apple’s in App purchases--and make them free (or close to free). Google gave Angry Birds away for free on Chrome starting on May 12.  More than 1M folks downloaded it in the first 10 days. Boom.
Browser market share = power.
Facebook does not have a browser or an app store -- yet. You can be sure there are 50 developers somewhere on the Facebook campus working on one right now -- 100% sure.

5. Android integration
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Let’s do some deep, deep analysis shall we?
a) Apple has a mobile operating system but no social network.
b) Facebook has a social network, but no mobile OS.
c) Microsoft has a mobile OS but no social network (arguably, Skype is a dormant one [ http://launch.is/blog/l018-how-microsoft-spent-7b-on-skype-and-15b-on-a-facebook-k.html ]).
d) Google has a social network and an operating system.
Who’s going to have the best mobile social user experience?
If you answered D, you are correct.

6. The avant garde have left Facebook already
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Last week I gave the opening keynote for the fabulous Future of Web Apps conference in Las Vegas. If you’ve never been to a Carsonified event, I highly recommend it, as it’s filled with people who actually build stuff (as opposed to CEOs like me who simply take credit for other people’s work). During that keynote I asked how many folks used Facebook for photo-sharing. About 15% to 20% of the audience raised their hands. I asked how many folks used a new service like Instagram, Path or Twitter to share their photos, and 70% of the audience raised their hands. I asked how many people were using Facebook more now than last year. Almost no one raised their hands. The tech-savvy crowd has grown tired of Facebook and Facebook’s privacy games -- including the huge misstep of making facial recognition opt-out and not opt-in -- are starting to drive folks from the platform.

What are your thoughts on Google+? Will you stay with me?  

EduBlogger Snobs? Please, Stop The Whining Already

If you read my previous blogpost, you know I was unable to attend ISTE11 but I was able to follow along a little bit. When I say, "a little bit" that is only because of MY time schedule, and not for lack of available options. By following the hashtag #ISTE11 on Twitter, I was able to keep up with some of the breakout sessions and links to the posted resources. I'm still following the stream, and I recommend you do too, because every day new videos and presentations are going online; and this is my main lifeline to this knowledge. Today for example, I found out that archive for Joyce Valenza's Learning Tools Family Feud is now online. Check it out here.

It was also via Twitter that I discovered Dr. Medina's keynote was online. By the way, Twitter is not just for consumption. Don't forget to share the Twitter Love and pass on the great information you learn. Also, not to miss is Chris Lehmann's closing keynote.

I was also following the Twitter streams of many folks I've come to call friends over the last few years. These were not people who automatically became friends on the first "follow." These were relationships that were built just like we build them in real life. By talking about nonsense and by talking about topics of which we agree, disagree and that we are passionate. These are people who I sought out AND/OR who reached out to me.

Mark Wagner "saves" a chair for me.

Some of these people, who I now call friends, I've met face-to-face and many I've not yet had the pleasure; but all of whom I feel comfortable reaching out to via Tweets, email or even a phone call if I want to ask a question, need assistance or a favor, or just want to chat about something. I've done this many times and many of these folks have reached out to me many times as well. On request, I've not hesitated to share their resource, engage in a live-blogging event, promote their latest venture, guest-blog on their sites, contribute financially, mentor a student in their class, write a letter of recommendation, judge a contest in their school or district, present at their conference, and more. I KNOW my experience is not unique.

Teryl Magee "channels" me.

So, I am a little (a lot actually) offended when I hear and read about folks who feel there is a clique and exclusionary mentality of the EduBlogger community. What you are probably seeing at a place like the Bloggers' Cafe, is folks hugging.  They are hanging around with their laptops, talking. They look like they know each other. They are sharing chips and kicking off their shoes and playing guitars. Some might have been napping if I were there, but rumor has it that nobody picked up that role this year - so disappointed! Some do their best to bring their friends from home along for the experience ~ Thank you to all my friends for reaching out to me via Tweets and for helping me feel better about not being there!


So, does it look intimidating to someone who doesn't already know someone else there? Yes, probably. Who owns this problem though? Can you fault the folks who have established relationships and are excited to see each other and can finally have conversations that are over 140 characters at a clip? Or do you fault the folks who want to be in those conversations?

I say, neither. 

There is no blame here because there is no problem of exclusion.

If you want to be a part of this community, and I recommend you do because it's just awesome, I say you need to "pay your dues." Just as you would in any relationship, you need to say, "Hello" and introduce yourself. You then need to cultivate a relationship by doing what people do; communicate in an ongoing and thoughtful manner.

There's no secret password. There's no test. There's no IQ requirement (thank goodness, for I'd be out immediately), there's no assumption of knowledge or pedagogical agreement.

Having said that, I will say that I do not know everyone but I do know that we are as different as are all people. Some of us are very outgoing and some are very shy. Some are very friendly and some appear to be less friendly and take a little while to warm up. Some will engage you in an argument almost immediately and some just want to sing with you. Some you will like very much and some you will not. The EduBlogger community is a real community of real people who just want to solve the problems of the edu-world, one student at a time.

If you want to do that too, then stop whining about it and say, "Hello" next time instead of walking away.