By Al Summers on 8/12/2009 5:50 AM
The Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration (CILC) is a wonderful organization in Indianapolis that has a plethora of online content and virtual field trips. The CILC will be very involved in the 2009 NMSA Annual Conference. They are working with the schools who will be involved in the 21st Century Classroom as well as hosting a series of virtual field trips on Tech Savvy Saturday. Watch www.nmsa.org/annual for details. The content providers for this series include:... Read More » |
By Al Summers on 8/5/2009 7:39 AM
In case you had not noticed, all conference workshops, featured sessions, and concurrent (breakout) sessions are now online. You can see the complete schedule, session descriptions, presenters, times, etc. Go to the conference website www.nmsa.org/annual and navigate the system or just use this link http://www.nmsa.org/annual/ConcurrentSessions/tabid/1492/Default.aspx
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By Al Summers on 8/4/2009 3:14 PM
I mentioned in my last entry that I was headed to Indianapolis for a meeting with Fanning Howey (our architects), the Skillman Corporation (our construction management company) and the schools who will be in the 21st Century Classroom. The meeting provided a lot of discussion and also the very first renderings of the 2009 version from the architects. I wanted to share them with you, so I loaded them on our 21st Century Classroom discussion group on our Conference Connections page. You can find... Read More » |
By Al Summers on 7/28/2009 4:00 PM
I am headed back to Indianapolis tomorrow for the second meeting to plan this year's version of the 21st Century Classroom. Since the first meeting earlier this month, we have added a construction management firm to the project. The Skillman Co. is joining forces with Fanning Howey Architects to lead the planning and building and to facilitate the work of all the other sponsors and contributors that make the 21st Century Classroom so unique and so powerful.
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By Al Summers on 6/29/2009 12:35 PM
Got into DC last night for ISTE's NECC. Needed the least expensive way, so I flew into BWI then caught the B30 bus. Over the river and through several woods and we were at the Greenbelt Metro station. Took the green line to the Ft. Totten station and then the yellow line to Crystal City. I am staying at the Marriott there, but found out there are two—the Crystal City Marriott and the Crystal Gateway Marriott. I can't imagine any confusion in that situation. Of course, I ended up in the wrong... Read More » |
By Al Summers on 6/25/2009 11:30 AM
"Making a World of Difference" sums up the two themes of our 2009 Annual Conference in Indy—globalization and service learning. These two are also strands we have added for this year.The Asia Society has stepped up to design (and sponsor) a "suite" of presentations around the theme of globalization. Tony Jackson of the Asia Society will be the lead presenter in this suite and will focus on global learning.America's Promise has done the same with the theme of service learning. The lead presenters... Read More » |
By Al Summers on 6/22/2009 3:49 PM
I had the privilege of presenting a couple of workshops on technology at the Tennessee Association of Middle Schools (TAMS) annual conference last week. We talked some at the TAMS conference about the challenges of funding to get technology. On Twitter, I came across an organization that looks pretty good. It is called Digital Wish and they help connect teachers and schools with funding. You create a wish list for what you need and you can post stories and videos explaning why you need it. They... Read More » |
By Al Summers on 5/27/2009 10:53 AM
The conference Ning, NMSA09 Conference Connections, that I mentioned earlier today is now live and ready to roll. The address is http://nmsa09.ning.com.
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By Al Summers on 5/27/2009 7:06 AM
Watch for a new feature to go live this week. We want our conference to be a much richer and fuller experience than just the three days on-site. Many of you are familiar with Ning and the great things you can do on a Ning. NMSA has created a Ning for the conference. Watch for it to go live by the end of this week. We already have a technology group running even though the page is not yet live and we plan to have at least one group or forum for every conference strand. Conference presenters... Read More » |
By Al Summers on 5/27/2009 6:56 AM
We have some exciting news for those of you watching the progress of the 21st Century Classroom. First of all, the two schools for the classroom have been finalized. On Thursday, November 5, students and teachers from Clay Middle School will be in the 21st Century Classroom. Clay Middle School is in Carmel Clay Schools on the north side of Indianapolis. Clay Middle School is doing some excellent work with digital tools and their work extends well beyond the school's walls. Clay Middle School... Read More » |