{"id":109,"date":"2016-02-19T13:49:55","date_gmt":"2016-02-19T18:49:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/elligoudzwaard.com\/?p=109"},"modified":"2018-02-15T13:50:24","modified_gmt":"2018-02-15T18:50:24","slug":"the-trouble-with-ed-tech-conferences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elligoudzwaard.com\/index.php\/2016\/02\/19\/the-trouble-with-ed-tech-conferences\/","title":{"rendered":"The Trouble With Ed-Tech Conferences"},"content":{"rendered":"

The educational technology conferences I\u2019ve attended\u2013InstructureCon<\/span><\/a>, Online Learning Consortium\u00a0ET4Online<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Educause Learning Initiative<\/span><\/a>, among others, seem to suffer a\u00a0bit of mild hypocrisy in the form\u00a0of \u201cDo what I say, not what I do.\u201d While we (educators, faculty developers, learning designers) preach the gospel of active, inquiry-driven, holistic\u00a0learning, we rarely create these kinds of learning experiences for attendees at our sessions and conferences.<\/p>\n

The typical ed-tech conference\u00a0begins with\u00a0a \u201cWelcome Session,\u201d which amounts quite often to a litany of thank-yous, logistical announcements and instructions from the stage in an enormous ballroom filled with rows and rows of chairs. The crowd is soon ushered out to attend\u00a0three days worth of 45-minute\u00a0session blocks, stacked one upon another in rapid succession. In these sessions,\u00a0presenters most often speak to a slide deck from the front of the room to a passive\u00a0audience. These sessions are\u00a0interspersed with the odd\u00a0keynote address from a Very Important Person lecturing from\u00a0a podium into a microphone to\u00a0hundreds of rapt attendants.<\/p>\n

What are we doing?<\/i><\/p>\n

This program design is not, of course, unique to ed-tech conferences, nor is it universally true in my experience. Notable exceptions include\u00a0unconferences<\/span><\/a>\u00a0like\u00a0EdCamp<\/span><\/a>, pre-conference workshops (wherein you pay extra to learn in a hands-on fashion), and\u00a0Ignite Talks<\/span><\/a>\u00a0which attempt to democratize the speaking circuit. But despite what we know about how people learn, what people need and how real change occurs, we tend to fall back into traditional models of education.<\/p>\n

And so, what do we know? How do people learn? What do they need, and how does real change occur? A few tips:<\/p>\n

Start by Building Community:<\/b>\u00a0Engage people socially, emotionally and intellectually with one another. Don\u2019t just invite them into the conversation; invite them to\u00a0be<\/i>\u00a0the conversation.<\/p>\n

Give People Time:<\/b>\u00a0Lengthen sessions to allow for deeper dives and greater engagement. Offer fewer sessions and more breaks to allow for rest and synthesis. Facilitate reflection.<\/p>\n

Mix Up the Format:<\/b>\u00a0Lectures have their place, but they limit who can learn and when. Diversify session types to include conversation, working groups, brainstorming, application, participation, inquiry and exploration.<\/p>\n

Mix Up Your Media<\/b>: Go analog. Use audio. Incorporate movement. Try\u00a0art.\u00a0Design your slides<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to optimize learning.<\/p>\n

Redefine Expertise<\/b>: Reject the notion that the presenter is the only one worth learning from. Embrace and make space for collective wisdom to emerge. Value what everyone brings to the table.<\/p>\n

Free the Keynote<\/b>: Invite presenters who are interested in cultivating something new with your community, not just repeating their own canned wisdom. Highlight more women, more young people, and more people of color.<\/p>\n

The upcoming\u00a0OLC Innovate<\/span><\/a>\u00a0conference has made efforts\u00a0in many of these areas and is emerging as a leader among its peers. Some highlights that I\u2019m excited about:<\/p>\n