K12Online09 Bridging the Divide: Call for Proposals, Keynotes, and LAN Party Plans

Today we are enthused to announce the 2009 K-12 Online Conference call for proposals, our pre-conference and strand keynote speakers, and exciting new plans for “LAN Party” live events we’re calling “Building Bridges.” The theme for our fourth annual K12 Online Conference” is “Bridging the Divide. Our free, online conference is for educators around the world interested in the use of web 2.0 tools in classrooms and professional practice. This year’s conference is scheduled for December 7-11 and December 14-17 of 2009, and will include a pre-conference keynote during the week of November 30.

The deadline for proposal submission is August 16, 2009. Selected presentations will be announced in early September. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR PROPOSAL via Google Forms.

OVERVIEW: K12 Online 2009 will feature four “conference strands,” two each week, and add new “LAN Party” live events on the Saturday following each week of the regular conference in partnership with EdTechTalk. Two presentations will be published in each strand each day, Monday through Friday, so four new presentations will be available each day over the course of the two weeks. Including the pre-conference keynote, a total of 41 presentations will be published. Each twenty minute (or less) presentation will be shared online in a downloadable format and released simultaneously via the conference blog (www.k12onlineconference.org,) the conference Twitter account, and the conference audio and video podcast channels. All presentations will be archived online for posterity. A total of 123 past presentations are currently available from K12 Online 2006. 2007, and 2008. We have applied for an iTunes University “Beyond Campus” portal, and anticipate our content will be available for the 2009 conference both online via our website and via our own free iTunesU Portal. If you are planning to submit a proposal, please review archived presentations from past years to determine what you might offer that is new and builds on previous work. As in the past, K12Online will host a variety of live events during the conference to complement and extend the asynchronous presentations and interaction opportunities on our conference blog.

The Saturday following the pre-conference keynote (December 5th) K12Online will host a live, “fireside chat” webinar with our 2009 pre-conference keynote speaker, Kim Cofino. Kim is an international educator currently teaching in Thailand. Kim’s keynote will be published on Monday, November 30th, and the fireside chat will provide an opportunity for participants to further discuss the ideas, technologies, and suggestions Kim mentions in her keynote. Saturday following each week of the regular conference (December 12 and 18) K12Online will feature 10 hour synchronous “live events” in partnership with the EdTechTalk webcasting network. All twenty-one presentations for the week will be played “live” over UStream.tv and EdTechTalk, and EdTechTalk will provide a backchannel chat / discussion forum for participants to synchronously listen and respond to each presentation. When possible, presenter(s) for each session will also attend their virtual online “playback” of their presentation and respond/interact with conference participants about the ideas of their session LIVE. Educators around the world are encouraged to host local “LAN Parties” in their communities, schools, and homes with other educators to participate in these live events. We are calling these “Building Bridge Meetups.” Our live events committee will develop and share more support information in the months ahead.

FOUR STRANDS:

Week 1

Strand A: Getting Started
Everything you wanted to know about getting started with web 2.0 technologies for learning but were afraid to ask. The presentations in this strand will focus on specific, free tools for newcomers. Whether you have one classroom computer or a laptop for every student, digital technologies can provide new opportunities to connect with other learners, create new and exciting knowledge products, and engage students in an expanded learning process beyond the traditional “boundaries of the bell.” Teachers first introduced to Web 2.0 tools are often unaware of the new possibilities for teaching and learning afforded by the Read/Write Web. Presentations in this strand will amplify and model what is possible in terms of pedagogy, student creation of content, and collaboration. Practical classroom implementation ideas will be emphasized. Presentations will focus more on the ways new tools can be used to engage students in learning, rather than focusing exclusively on how specific tools are used. If you’ve ever felt like everyone else knows more than you about teaching with technology and you need help getting started, this is the strand for you. Joyce Kasman Valenza (United States) will keynote the “Getting Started” strand. Wesley Fryer is the strand convener.

Strand B: Leading the Change
Innovative approaches to teaching and learning using web 2.0 tools are often utilized by a limited number of “early adopter” teachers in our schools. This strand seeks to amplify ways educators in a variety of contexts are serving as constructive catalysts for broad-based pedagogic change using Web 2.0 technologies as well as student-centered, project-based approaches to learning. Presentations in this strand will both showcase successful strategies as well as amplify critical issues which must be addressed for innovative learning methods to be adopted by teachers, librarians, and administrators on a more widespread basis. These issues may include (but are not limited to) issues of copyright, fair use and intellectual property, Internet content filtering, student privacy and safety issues, administrator expectations for teacher utilization of Web 2.0 tools, pilot initiatives utilizing key Web 2.0 technologies in different content areas, and innovative ways students and teachers are providing just-in-time support as well as formal learning opportunities for each other focusing on Web 2.0 tools. Successful approaches for both large and small schools, in rural as well as urban settings, will be included. This strand will explore and amplify a menu of practical ideas for educators in diverse contexts who want to continue amplifying possibilities in our schools. Konrad Glogowski (Canada) will keynote the “Leading the Change” strand. Elizabeth Helfant is the strand convener.

Week 2

Strand A: Week in the Classroom
Leveraging the power of free online tools in an open, collaborative and transparent atmosphere characterises teaching and learning in the 21st century. Teachers and students are contributing to the growing global knowledge commons by publishing their work online. By sharing all stages of their learning students are beginning to appreciate the value of life long learning that inheres in work that is in “perpetual beta.” This strand will explore how teachers and students are tangibly bridging divides between instructors, learners, classrooms, content, and experts outside the traditional classroom. Presentations will also explore the practical pedagogical uses of online social tools (Web 2.0) giving concrete examples of how teachers are using the tools in their classes. Rachel Boyd (New Zealand) will keynote the “Week in the Classroom” stand. Maria Knee is the strand convener.

Strand B: Kicking It Up a Notch
You’ve been using blogs, wikis and other technologies for awhile but perhaps haven’t seen them transform your classroom and the learning environment for your students in the ways you think they can. This strand amplifies ways new technologies can be used to transform classroom and personal learning. Rather than merely replicating traditional, analog-based learning tasks, how can digital technologies permit teacher-leaders to “infomate” learning to add greater interactivity, personal differentiation, and multi-modal exploration of curriculum topics? Fresh new approaches to using Web 2.0 tools for learning and authentic assessment will be highlighted. Presentations will explore innovative ways Web 2.0 tools can be blended together to help students create, collaborate, and share the knowledge safely on the global stage of the Internet. Maybe it’s time to share your insights and experiences with your teaching community. Join these sessions to gain insights on “bridging the divide” for learners in your classroom and/or your professional practice. Diego Leal (Columbia) will keynote the “Kicking it Up a Notch” strand. Jose Rodriguez is the strand convener.

REQUIREMENTS

1. Presentations must be a single media file of twenty minutes or less in length. (Only keynote sessions can exceed 20 minutes.)
2. Presentations must be submitted in a downloadable and convertable file format (mp3, mov, WMV, FLV, m4a, or m4v.) Presenters wanting to use an alternative format should contact their respective strand convener in advance.
3. Presentations are due no later than (NLT) two weeks prior to the week the relevant strand begins. (Week 1 presentations are due Monday, November 23, Week 2 presentations are due Monday, November 30.)
4. Presentations must be submitted only one time and on time. Early submissions are welcomed! Repeat submissions (with changes and additional edits) will not be accepted. Presenters should proof carefully before submitting!
5. All presentations will be shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.

Optional presentation elements:

1. Prior to October 31st, presenters are invited to submit a “teaser” (maximum video or audio file length: 3 minutes) about their presentation. This can be any type of online artifact and does not have to be downloadable. Examples may include videos, animations, posters, audio interviews, etc.
2. In addition to marketing the presentation, teasers can be designed to encourage and solicit community input related to the presentation topic in advance of the presentation submission deadline.
3. View teaser examples from 2007 at http://k12online07.wikispaces.com/Teasers
4. Supplementary materials supporting presentations are welcomed. These can be wikis with supporting material links, linked examples of student projects, school district exemplary initiatives, social bookmarking collections, and/or other related content.
5. Follow-up projects and/or live interaction opportunities for conference presentations which further amplify the possiblities of the presentation topic may be included. (This can include sharing and building of content prior to, during and after the conference.)

EVALUATION AND SELECTION

As you draft your proposal, you may wish to consider the presentation topics listed below which were suggested in the comments on the K-12 Online Conference Blog:
– Special needs education
– Creative Commons, Intellectual Property, Copyright and Fair Use
– Student voices
– Community involvement
– Games in education
– Specific ideas, tips, mini lessons centered on pedagogical use of web 2.0 tools
– Overcoming institutional inertia and resistance
– Aligning Web 2.0 and other projects to national standards
– Getting your message across
– How web 2.0 can assist those with disabilities
– ePortfolios
– Classroom 2.0 activities at the elementary level
– Teacher/peer collaboration
– Authentic assessment
– Overcoming content filtering issues
– Navigating “open web” versus “closed web” publishing of student work

Prospective presenters are reminded that the audience of the K12 Online Conference is global in nature and diverse in their educational context. For this reason presentations and presentation materials which address issues from a variety of perspectives are welcomed.

EVALUATION

As in the past, co-conveners will lead a blind review committee to select presentations. Acceptance decisions will be made based on RELEVANCE, SIGNIFICANCE, ORIGINALITY, QUALITY, and CLARITY. Borrowing from the COSL 2008 call for proposals:

A submission is RELEVANT when
it directly addresses the conference and strand themes

A submission is SIGNIFICANT when
it raises and discusses issues important to improving the effectiveness and/or sustainability of 21st Century teaching and learning efforts, and
its contents can be broadly (globally) disseminated and understood

A submission is ORIGINAL when
it addresses a new problem or one that hasn’t been studied in depth,
it has a novel combination of existing research results which promise new insights, and / or
it provides a perspective on problems different from those explored before

A submission is of HIGH QUALITY when
existing literature is drawn upon, and / or
claims are supported by sufficient data, and / or
an appropriate methodology is selected and properly implemented, and / or
limitations are described honestly

A submission is CLEARLY WRITTEN when
it is organized effectively, and / or
the English is clear and unambiguous, and / or
it follows standard conventions of punctuation, mechanics, and citation, and / or
the readability is good

Please follow K12Online on Twitter and feel free to submit questions about this call for proposal via Twitter or here as comments on the conference blog.

Please share this call for proposals far and wide! 🙂