Join_In

Catch the Fever: Viral Professional Development - Add your voice!

Scheduled for publication -6/2/2008 7 am EDT

Viral Professional Development is emerging in education as a viable method of increasing teacher engagement and learning. Using tools such as [|Twitter], [|rss readers], [|blogs], [|educational networks], and [|wikis], educators are collaborating on a grassroots level. This year at [|NECC], a [|panel discussion of educators] on [|July 2nd at 1:30 pm CDT] will be discussing and [|live Ustreaming] a session to discuss viral professional development.


 * How did this panel discussion originate?**

On Monday, September 17, 2007, Google launched the [|Google Presentation] web application to their suite of services. News of this new service spread quickly through the blogosphere and Twitter and soon more than fifty different people made over 500 edits in a twenty-four hour period to [|one Google presentation]. Since introduced, this presentation has been used by hundreds of people to begin conversations centered on free online tools used to weave a web of connections between people around the world.

As a result of this transformational experience, educators begin discussing the importance of sharing the changing nature of professional development and documentation of best practices in //VIRAL// professional development. The proposal was written in [|Google docs] and since acceptance, an expanded group of educators around the world has used a wiki, elluminate, and a variety of tools to bring a collaborative, immersive viral PD experience to NECC and to people around the world.

[|Vicki Davis, moderator] [|Darren Draper] [|Kelly Dumont] [|Kristin Hokanson] [|Robin Ellis] [|Ryan Bretag] [|Beth Ritter-Guth] [|Carolyn Foote]
 * Presenters**

Backchannel Presenters/ Moderators [|John Maklary] [|Stephanie Sandifer]

**How can you participate?**
At 1:30pm CDT on July 2, we will be participating in a NECC panel discussion that centers on the power of the network. During our presentation we hope to demonstrate to all those attending our session in person (and virtually), just how powerful global collaboration can be. Hence, we are asking for **your participation** in our presentation as well.

1) Join our Ustream
We will be streaming the presentation live on the [|Open PD Ustream channel] at [|1:30 pm CDT on July 2nd]. You may watch here and participate in the conversation (and even ask the panelists questions).

2) Leave a comment on our voicethread
One way that you can participate now is by adding your voice to the VoiceThread below. Please take a few minutes and add your thoughts about the different tools depicted through images in the thread. We would truly like as many voices possible, offering a wide range of thought on the usefulness of the common tools we all use in our collaborations.

How do you use these tools? How are they important to your professional development? Please add your voice.

Insert embed code for the voice thread from this page - http://thewallscamedown.wikispaces.com/Join_In

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3) Join the conversation on the NECC Educational networking site
We've created a [|discussion thread] to converse on this panel discussion at the [|NECC educational networking site].

Follow our most recent announcements.
All announcements and events pertaining to this session will be announced at the Walls Came Down wiki.