FETC 2015 is days away! After attending last year and seeing all the amazing tech demos and new startups in the #edtech arena, I'm excited to go again this year. If you don't know what FETC is, find out more here. In short, FETC is the Florida Educational Technology Conference. Google gave a keynote speech last year, which was eye opening. I remember one of the biggest takeaways being one line from the conference: "What's the worst consequence of your best idea?" I will be presenting with Kathy Androski (an amazing tech guru and Civics teacher who moonlights as a Media Specialist) representing Citrus Springs Middle School. Our students have been taking home their iPads and bringing them back to school ever day for three years, so we feel our session "Moving Forward with iPads in the 1:1 Environment" may offer some insights for some people attending or thinking about starting a 1:1 tech pilot program. Here's the FETC conference listing. In addition, I was asked by FASA (Florida Association of School Administrators) and Apple to speak at the conference about the soft launch of the "A.V.E. for Success"iTunes U courses that myself and other teachers from across the state of Florida have compiled and created together. Here's that session information. The first day of this conference coincides with my wife's 30th birthday (I follow suit this June). The second day, after I speak on behalf of FASA and Apple, I have to drive back from Orlando (a 1 hour and 40 minute drive) to make the Teacher Of the Year dinner I was invited to on time (I am still reeling from the shock and honored to have been chosen as the TOY for my school). This perfectly embodies the teaching profession. How could this be a better representation of our classrooms? We have a million things on our to-do lists. We time manage with our eyes closed. We get overwhelmed with standards, IEP's and 504's, but we somehow finagle everything into a neat mold of professionalism and enthusiastic grace. As teachers, we have more battle armor than we know. I'm thrilled to be a part of FETC, that I work at a supportive school that rewards risk taking and applauds the big technology integration dreams we all have (even if some of them don't always work), and excited that I get to talk about nerdy stuff for a few days with like-minded people. It's gonna be great. |
AuthorMiddle School English Teacher. Tech obsessed. Has devices. So do his students. They use them often. Archives
November 2017
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