Also, if you are reading this post, I would be thrilled if you would participate in my PLN Inauguration Day Voicethread. Thanks!

Mexico Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (MEXTESOL), 35th International MEXTESOL Conference.

On October 16 – 19, we will be live blogging select MEXTESOL sessions, mostly plenaries, keynotes, and those sessions covering technology and 21st century skills. Here is the tentative schedule with live blog links.

Full Program here.

Traditionally when we think of poverty, we have images of underdeveloped countries or regions where there is no or little hope to help or participate. We see stark images of human suffering that seem so distant and detached . But the truth is that there is always a way to join in. And poverty existing only in the aforementioned areas is a stereotype. Poverty exists in every reach of the world, and in every country. Just extending a hand locally can make huge differences in closing the gap.

Since education is one of many factors that keeps this divide wide open, I am calling on all teachers, teacher trainers, and educators of any discipline and skill level to participate in a project, any project. Perhaps hold a remedial reading and writing class for illiterate members of the community. Join a Big Brother or Big Sister program (or similar project) then use that time to mentor, educate, and be a role model for a disadvantaged youth in your area. There are a million possibilities of something that would suit both your interests and meet community needs. Let’s work together to close the gap of poverty forever. It can be done!

If you don’t have the time to participate in a program, then consider donating a small amount of money directly to a family or a child, or buy them some school supplies or clothes, etc. If there is an organization that you trust in your area that works to combat poverty, donate through them.

There is a way. There always is. Won’t you please help, yes today. Thanks

Down the Rabbit Hole with Steve Dembo

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/steve-dembo–den-keynote

http://voicethread.com/#q.b166642 (Bob Sprankle, inviting personal reflections from conference participants.)

Words say a lot!

I love this Wordle from the BLC08 Conference. We can tell so much just from the language that we use…

I also like my del.icio.us Wordle.

There is also a conference wiki page entry at the EduBloggerCon wiki and conference site. Get BLC08 full program. Get conference goodies of Alan C. November’s presentation at Google Docs shared page. Ning BLC Group. Keynote opening address from Alan C. November.

Alan C. November’s Ustream presentation.

Broadcast by Ustream.TV

Related Reading:
See the 21CT- Frank’s Blog Wordle

Thanks Dean Shareski for this video clip.

So close but yet so far, but as close as almost being there. Hats off to all of you that are sharing your learning and expertise and wanderings with the world.

Related Reading:

Almost Live from the Web 2.0 Smackdown
A Bit More Education Techno-Twaddle; Why I Avoid NECC, 2008 Edition

If you decide to join Plurk, can you do me a huge favor and join by clicking here (then directly click on the “Plurk” button)? This will make you my Plurk pal, and that will make me very happy. Plus I get some extra Plurk karma and other goodies if you join via my account. Thanks!

The more I plurk around the more I “get” it. Plurk is a microblogging Web 2.0 tool that let’s you create discussion threads in 140-character bites. But, unlike Twitter, it holds a discrete conversation together. Ginger Lewman has been live blogging Ian Jukes’ presentation today at the NECC 2008 Conference in San Antonio, Texas (NECC also has a Ning Community). Here is a live feed to the session, proving that Plurk keep’s a single discussion intact:

Full feed here: http://www.plurk.com/p/utg6

Liz Davis has a nice video tutorial on Plurk Basics.

You can save Plurk threads for future reference by clicking on “plurk page” link at bottom right of each discussion (see image above), then click on the RSS feed on the following page … subscribe to your favorite RSS reader or simply tuck it away into your bookmarks. I am hoping that they will eventually add a “favorites” feature for Plurk posts. Plurk, like almost any Web tool, takes a little playing around with before you get the hang of the interface and its capabilities. Give it a go, you’ll be glad you got plucked by Plurk.

Related Reading:
Why I *heart* Plurk by Steve Dembo
FAQ: What is Plurk?
From Blip.tv and Liz Davis: Plurk Basics
Liz’s Plurk blog coverage: Seeing the World through Blog Colored Glasses.
The NJ Tech Teacher’s blog post NECC Remote (via her Plurk post of course)
Plurk in a Twitter World

Even thought these games do have a competitive element, Brigitte was clear in conveying that they are played in the context of teamwork and shared goals, not individuals working in isolation to “win.”

Anyway, back to the fun stuff. After a little “Find someone who…” icebreaker, we got to play some really fun fluency games like:

1. Round Robin Toss – we split up into small groups with little crumpled paper balls (no more hunting for real balls now!). The person with the ball describes a famous place in Morelia (insert location of your choice). The others then have to guess the name of the place being described. Once someone correctly guesses the location, the speaker then tosses the ball to a new team member, and so on. The first team to cycle through all members wins. P.S. My secret location was The Planetario. (topic can be varied: describe a room in the house, a famous person, etc.)
2. The Birthday Line – I liked this one because we got to gossip while others eavesdropped then tattled on us. Sounds like real life you say? Hehehe! Everyone lines up in order of their birthday and then describes “the perfect Bday celebration” to the person next to them in line (so each person has a chance to listen and talk). A few people are identified beforehand to be “gossips” that sneak up and down the line listening in to all the “private” conversations. After a few minutes everyone returns to the classroom and the gossips report on what they heard. And, no, I was not the guy that said that he wanted to be “unmarried” on his ideal Bday.
3. Why Have You Got a Monkey in Your Bag? – This was great imaginative fun. One person starts by passing a bag (purse, portfolio, lunch sack, whatever, etc.) to another team member and asks, “Why do you have a monkey (pumpkin, car, bottle, brick, shoe, etc.) in your bag?” The responder must come up with a convincing explanation and answer other team members’ questions. The bag is then passed on and the cycle repeated until all have a chance to ask and reply. Then the team reports on the most interesting response to the entire class. Great way to extend vocabulary and get some fun listening and speaking practice. Why do you have a monkey in your bag?
4. Messenger - I really liked this game; I think because it really tapped into the teams collective intelligences and collaborative spirit. One artist and several messengers working together to decode an image from memory. OK, here is the setup. One team member is designated as the artist (we had a volunteer, someone that liked to draw). The teacher/facilitator has a predetermined image on her computer (or on paper, etc.). One by one different “messengers” from the group take a look at the image and report back to the artist. So those students that are better at say color organization and spacial relationship get to shine and participate in a way that they learn best. Then maybe the next student is more “texty” and literary and can report back on the exact words that he saw in the image. Perhaps the next person has good interpersonal skills and can better “see” relationships played out in the image. The naturalists might remember best the animals, plants, trees, etc. Of course, let the kinesthetic students take a 2nd and 3rd trip back to the image. And all the while that students are shining in their strong intelligences and contributing collaboratively in a proud and meaningful way, they are also exposed to and challenging their weaker strengths and growing in a more rounded fashion. At the end, all teams show and compare their drawn images to see which most resembles the original.

Like, I said, “We had a blast!” Also be sure to check out Brigitte’s other blog, Fun Web Tasks for English Learners (for all the good 21st Century stuff).

http://www.ausculti.org/

Great opportunity to start a digital storytelling project with your students.

The Center for Digital Storytelling is based in Berkeley, California. CDS is a non-profit training, project development, and research organization dedicated to assisting people in using digital media to tell meaningful stories from their lives. Our focus is on developing large-scale projects for community, educational, and business institutions, using the methods and principles of the Digital Storytelling Workshop. We also offer workshops for organizations and individuals and serve as an international clearinghouse of information and resources about storytelling and new media.

Other digital storytelling resources:

Digital Storytelling Links
Sample Lessons: Digital Storytelling
Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling
50 Web 2.0 Ways to Tell a Story
NAIS – Digital Storytelling Adventures
Terraminds Twitter Search: Digital Storytelling
del.icio.us Digital Storytelling tags
Google Blog Search: Digital Storytelling
The Connected Classroom Links
Digital Stories
Discovery Education Network streaming resource for Digital Storytelling
Engaging Digital Natives with Digital Storytelling
Digital Storytelling Carnival #3
Lisa Huff’s Wiki – Digital Storytelling (& more)

Please add more Digital Storytelling resource links in the comments area. Thanks!

http://www.liftconference.com/

LIFT08
6-7-8 feb 08

Challenges and opportunities of technology in society

LIFT08 is a three day event to explore the social impact of new technologies. Come to get in touch with tomorrow’s most important trends, those changing our lives and organizations on a daily basis.

Concept

Three full days of workshops, talks, social activities and discussions to get a look at the most important technological trends and meet the people behind them.

Program

LIFT spotlights key trends in technology’s impact on life and work in 2008 and beyond. As entrypoints, we group presentations into tracks like Internet, new frontiers, a glimpse of Asia, foresight or new interfaces.
Find out more »

Who is attending

LIFT gathers four main communities:

• Entrepreneurs, investors, and private sector professionals who come to develop their network, find new ideas and partners to take their projects to the next level
• New media and designers who attend to keep an eye on the latest developments in business and society.
• International workers from NGOs and the UN system who look for the latest trends in new technologies, and meet the people behind them.
• Academics who enjoy the open and collaborative atmosphere to broaden their areas of research.

Why should you register?

In three days, LIFT will give you an overview of the big changes you need to be aware of for both your life and work. You will get new ideas, see what others are doing, sense the upcoming trends and meet the people behind them.In a society where the biggest assets are ideas, LIFT is the event you need to attend not to be left behind.

Pre-school to High School English as a foreign language teachers celebrate on diploma day, January 11, 2008. After 140 hours of tasks, essays, reflections, portfolio preparation, class projects and such, they deserved it! Teachers received diplomas for the Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT) Cambridge ESOL preparation course certified by the Secretary of Education, Departamento de Profesiones. This course was designed by and taught at Centro Universitario Angloamericano in Morelia, Mexico. Course facilitator, Ellen Sue Graber Lichtman.

Frank’s Faces of Web 2.0 was quoted on HitchHikr today about participation with Educon 2.0

Flickr Photos of Educon 2.0

My head is still spinning. I just participated in the stream from EduCon’s conference. Attendees were talking about twitter and how to take advantage of it for educational purposes. Lots of confusion even among Webheads on how to harness the power of twitter and get started. I enjoyed chatting live via Ustream with Tom Barrett, Langwitch’s Silvia, and J. Clark Evans. Thanks to all of you.

At the same time I was tweeting, answering emails, updating my blog and social network, and trying to take care of teacher’s concerns here at the university where I work. You must be a multi-tasker to survive in this technology-driven world .. that is for sure!

Here are the e EduCon Ustreams http://educon20.wikispaces.com/EduConTV

Check out Julie Lindsay’s coverage at her blog, E-Learning Journeys

E-Learning Journeys: The Changing Shape of Conferences: EduCon 2.0

IATEFL 2008
42nd International Annual IATEFL Conference
Exeter, UK 7-11 April 2008

http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/iatefl2008/index.shtml

Join us and fellow ELT professionals from around the world to discuss, reflect on and develop ideas. The 42nd IATEFL Conference will offer many opportunities for professional contact and development. The programme offers over 300 workshops, posters, talks, panel discussions and symposiums by international presenters from over 60 countries.

News Flash

We are looking for two Roving Reporters who are able to communicate the
excitement of the IATEFL conference, as well as the key points of the debates happening in Exeter, to practitioners worldwide, whether the latter are teachers and trainers in the state or the private sector. The two Roving Reporters will report on the major debates and news at IATEFL as it happens. They will use laptops to produce quick-fire reports, mini-interviews and personal impressions. These will be published on the Exeter Online website each day.

* We invite you to apply for selection as one of this year’s Roving Reporters by completing the Writing Challenge below. Applications will be judged by British Council and IATEFL colleagues.
* The two winners chosen to be this year’s Roving Reporters will be notified by the end of February.
* The winners will have their conference fee, flights and connecting travel, hotel accommodation, meals and subsistence paid for.

Download Application Here