I spent last week in Houston along with over 8,000 Catholic teachers and administrators in Houston for the 2013 National Catholic Education Association annual convention. In four days I spoke, attended workshops, and had countless enjoyable conversations with old friends and new. As I suggested in my last post, a workshop is usually not true professional development in terms of skill building, but I did learn an awful lot. Here are a few of the “Texas Ten,” the “Houston Decalogue”
- Teachers are concerned about the changes to their profession brought on by ed-tech, and many are frightened by the uncertainly of the future. However, most of those I spoke to (admittedly a self-selecting sample) are excited by the possibility of 1:1 classroom implementations and anxious to learn their role in this new world. Behind this I saw a deep concern for students and desire to do whatever it takes to serve them best.
- One of the speakers gave out a ballpoint pen with an iPad stylus on the other end. It isn't as good as my Jot pro stylus, but this is really brilliant, and I find that I'm carrying it everywhere.
- I felt and heard a strong sense of Catholic identity; that everything, all instruction, all governance, all marketing flows from this.
- Y'all is singular. All y'all is plural
- I am OVER paper. If a vendor or speaker gave me a flier or handout, this found its way to the trash at my first opportunity. Related to this, I am also over tote-bags filled with sales junk. We need a check-in where you can get a badge holder without the bag…or at least an ecologically responsible bag drop for those who choose to go without. I know this is an opportunity for vendors to get their stuff (paper) into the hands of attendees…see original statement.
- iPads continue to be the implementation of choice for schools looking 1:1. Of all the sessions in this area, I saw only 1 dedicated to Android, and nothing dedicated to PCs. While we will have to be sensitive to inevitable winds of change, this suggests that the bulk of institutional growth and professional development will be in this platform for the foreseeable future.
- Overheard many times, “I'm frustrated.” Never overheard, “I'm going to stop trying.”
- Meeting friends from Twitter whom you have never seen before in person is a rare kind of thrill (overheard coming out of my mouth, “Oh my goodness, that's Barb from Nebraska”). Finding out what truly wonderful people they are is an even bigger thrill. Related, Twitter is used only slightly less when you are all in the same room.
- Some of the vendors are the best people in the world…some less so. Interesting new game this year, I walked the aisles of the exhibit hall, deciding for each booth whether what they offered would be relevant 5 years from now. Many won't; some aren't relevant today, though they don't know it.
- Finally…DO NOT HOLD A PROFESSIONAL CONFERENCE IN 2013 AND NOT HAVE WIFI AVAILABLE IN ALL ROOMS FOR ALL USERS.
As always, I invite all y'all's comments.
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It was great to finally meet you, Greg. I appreciate your insights here, and found them to be true for myself at NCEA 2013, too. It is always energizing for me to be around so many people with a passion for Catholic education.
Regarding paper, it would have been nice to have the full convention program as a pdf–or maybe I missed it. The mobile webiste was a GREAT idea in theory, but after initially logging in, it never really worked the way it was supposed to.
I especially appreciated the music at the liturgies. Some of those kids can really sing!
Thanks for the summary, and I hope we get to meet again soon.
A highlight of my week was meeting you and Nick and Barb. I enjoyed too discussing supports for Catholic Education in today’s changing world.
In addition, your session shared both valuable insights and practical advice.
You raise an important point on relevancy that may well apply beyond the vendor tables. I wonder if using edtech to the best advantage for students is a key to keeping Catholic schools strong well into the future. I tend to believe it is!
I’m grateful for the opportunity to have met people at NCEA working on behalf of a vibrant future.
Great blog! I was frustrated by the wifi situation, as well!
“Y’all is singular. All y’all is plural”
Y’all is like vous and Sie. It’s polite, and can be singular or plural.
“a workshop is usually not true professional development in terms of skill building”
I’m surprised. In Architecture workshops if we don’t learn concrete stuff we can use like, the next day, we are not happy about having our time and/or money wasted, and say so in the feedback.