NCaect Conference 2007

So I sit here in my living room after an exhausting but satisfying week in Raleigh for the NCaect conference. When I agreed to be the conference chair last year, I did not realize how much this would renew my faith in technology in education. We were blessed with the presence of some of the greats- Will Richardson, David Warlick, Leslie Fisher, Chris O'Neal, Elliot Soloway, and Cathie Norris. My only regret is I did not get to sit in on their sessions! The feedback we received was fantastic and the board is already excited about next year's conference in Concord.

I was able to spend a little time with Stephen Shapiro and Brian Hackett from SchoolFusion as well as two of my colleagues in my district. We are working directly with them to develop our system's web presence. It is doing wonders for our teachers! I digress...During our dinner, we had some very serious conversations about the use of technology in education and how accountability is playing a role. Our frustrations with NCLB came out quickly. But the most serious discussion that came out of our dinner and also throughout the conference in sessions is that our teachers need to understand that they have to work smarter not harder and how technology plays a role in that. I get tired of teachers telling me that technology is just "ONE MORE THING" as if it is the straw that broke the camels back. NO NO NO! We have to get teachers to open their eyes and see that techology can make everything EASIER!! I am not sure how to do that but it is my personal mission.

Thanks to everyone who came to the conference and especially to EVERYONE that helped. We were truly a great team!