Good morning everyone,

Have you heard about K12OnlineConference.org, the free, totally web-based, multi-strand, global technology conference that runs for TWO WEEKS in October?

Dedicated in loving memory to Lee Baber, former K12Online Accessibility committee chair who passed away on July 31, 2008, this free PD event is a collection of presentations (fully downloadable and ready for your portable media player!) made by classroom teachers, district administrators and experienced edtech consultants. It is organized into four strands:

1. Getting Started
2. Kicking It Up a Notch
3. Prove It
4. Leading the Change

… which are all explained here. This event is the brainchild of four amazing people I’m pleased to say are part of my learning network: Darren Kuropatwa, Sheryl Nusbaum-Beach, Wesley Fryer and Dean Shareski. I’m not presenting this year, but my contribution to last year’s K12OnlineConference is a Voicethread called K-20 Educators Exploring Second Life and was created with Sylvia Martinez of Generation Yes (and many others!)

The K12OnlineConference rocks because it’s all about YOU. You review the schedule. You check out the speakers. You decide when and where you want to enjoy it, at school/work, at home, in the car, or out and about via your portable media player.  And, you get to interact LIVE with the presenters during the “When Night Falls” events held in Elluminate, which are great fun and a perfect compliment to the online content.

For more about the upcoming presentations (released in a sequential fashion starting on Monday, October 20th) check out the “teaser” videos prepared by presenters. Or, peruse the full schedule and jot down when the content you want will be posted. Don’t forget the keynote addresses as well!

The K12OnlineConference is, to me, the epitome of 21st century networked learning. Face it, leaving the classroom for sit-and-get face-to-face professional development is hard. It’s not cheap (and it surely isn’t free). Sadly, sometimes it’s not even very good. While nothing can compare to an in-person, hands-on workshop like Constructing Modern Knowledge or an unconference like EduCon, The K12OnlineConference is the next best thing, and it brings some of the best and brightest minds in education – everything from  experienced educators who command thousands of dollars for a speaking engagement, to regular classroom teachers like you and me. They all two things they all have in common: they’re leaders in their respective fields and they’ve developed their presentations just for you.

Hungry for more? The learning doesn’t stop there. Follow these folks on Twitter. Read their blogs. Meet them in person at conferences. But most of all, start contributing to the conversation. Every one of us has something to offer. Get out there. Start a blog. Share a resource. Even if it’s with a coworker or colleague or others in your own school. Everyone has to start somewhere! As you’ll soon see, learning in the 21st century is really all about people, and how technology brings us together, when we want, where we want, how we want. The K12OnlineConference is a perfect example.

See you at the conference!

-kj-

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