Thursday, June 12, 2014

ISTE "Unplugged" in Atlanta - Free Events Start Friday June 27th with HackEd14 Unconference

Each year hundreds of educators interested in social media, technology, teaching, and learning gather to build and participate in "unplugged"-style activities as a part of the ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) conference.

ISTEUnplugged.com events are free, thanks to the support (and latitude!) given us by the conference organizers and by our exclusive sponsor this year, ClassFlow. You do need to be registered for ISTE for all activities except for Hack Education unconference and the after-party, which are open to anyone, registered for ISTE or not. A HUGE thanks to ISTE for making this all possible! #ISTEunplugged.

Friday, June 27th - HACK EDUCATION (all day): Audrey Watters of Hack Education co-chairs our all-day flagship event this year, our "unconference" on teaching and learning (originally EduBloggerCon). In our eighth year, this event typically draws 200 - 300 participants from around the world. It's a great event for beginners and regular attenders alike. Please come join us--whether you are attending the actual ISTE conference or not--for an amazing community experience filled with interesting education conversations in a highly social environment. If you are juggling other activities or travel, you are welcome for any portion of time you want to attend.

Many people will tell you this is the event to attend at ISTE because it's all about connecting and sharing. Hack Education is based on the idea of an "unconference", and is organized by the participants in real time on-site. It's maybe better referred to as a "collaborative conference." There are no formal presentations, just "conversations" that you or others facilitate. Those who lead sessions are not expected to prepare material but just to facilitate discussion. More information and sign-up page.

Friday, June 27th Evening - HackEd14 AFTER-PARTY!: Our now-annual unconference "After Party" from 7 - 9pm, sponsored by ClassFlow and featuring Kevin Honeycutt and the iPhone Band.  HackEd14 will wrap up at 4 pm, and we hope you take some time to enjoy the tastes of downtown Atlanta for dinner before heading to the HackEd after-party! Join your fellow Unplugged attendees at the rooftop lounge atop the historic boutique Glenn Hotel, voted one of the “Top 23 Best Rooftop Lounges in the World”. This will be a great time for networking and cocktails with your fellow EdTech community members. The party is free, but watch for an email from me in the coming days to RSVP.

Saturday, June 28th (2 - 5pm) - GLOBAL EDUCATION SUMMIT: The third-annual Global Ed Summit is a 3-hour mini-conference organized by Lucy Gray and Steve Hargadon for those interested in globally-connecting students and teachers, and a physical followup to the hugely popular online Global Education Conference. This participatory event will feature: inspirational ignite talks by noted educators and organizations working to connect classrooms; round-table discussions in which educators will showcase specific examples of global projects; and a global resource cool tools duel in which attendees will share the best resources and tools for creating global experiences for students.  More Information and RSVP.

Saturday, June 28th 9am - 3pm - INVENT TO LEARN WORKSHOP: Join Sylvia Martinez and Gary Stager for an energizing day of “hard fun” as participants invent, tinker, and learn how to incorporate hands-on project-based learning in the classroom. Participants will engage in a variety of projects using modern tools and technology (this event has a fee). More information and to register.

Sunday, June 29 - Wednesday, July 1st - THE BLOGGERS' CAFE: Also in its eighth year, the Bloggers' Cafe is a location set aside by ISTE as one of their "lounge" areas for the conference, and is open the full duration of the conference. Often filled well-beyond the seating capacity generously provided, it becomes base camp for some, a landing place for others. The "BC" can often be intimidating to the beginner as they recognize the names of well-known bloggers or social media folks--but the name of the game in the BC is "EVERYONE'S WELCOME!" If someone doesn't notice you or introduce you to the group they are with, it's not for lack of manners, it's just because they are so involved--so please, introduce yourself! More Information.

Special Note - Event Code of Conduct:  We've added a code of conduct this year for the ISTE Unplugged events. Our crowd is always a terrific group of people, but this is a reminder: please be respectful of others at all times. The full Code of Conduct.

I hope we'll see you for one or all of these events. And a HUGE thanks to this year's exclusive sponsor, ClassFlow!


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