Discovery Education is holding a virtual conference for kindergarten through 12th grade teachers and administrators on Saturday, April 25.
Available at no-cost, the day-long professional development event offers both virtual and face-to-face opportunities for educators to learn actionable tactics and strategies for integrating of digital media into classroom instruction.
“Discovery Education is pleased to once again offer the VirtCon as a professional learning opportunity for educators around the world to connect, collaborate and grow their practice,” said Lance Rougeux, vice president of learning communities and instructional implementation for Discovery Education. “This is an ideal experience for educators who want to learn new strategies for transforming their classrooms or schools into dynamic digital learning environments to support the success of their students. I am looking forward to an inspiring event and invite educators worldwide to attend.”
Among the scheduled keynote presenters are:
* Dr. Todd Wirt, Assistant Superintendent for Academics at North Carolina’s Wake County Public School System. Dr. Wirt’s presentation will explore how the digital transformation of classrooms worldwide has given students many opportunities to experience an environment of choice. With increased freedom and creativity, failure is naturally going to become a part of the process. Dr. Wirt will share with participants his recommendations for designing classrooms that foster creativity and embrace failure.
* Don Levy, Former Senior Vice President of Marketing for Sony Pictures, Faculty at Boston University. Levy’s presentation will discuss how the increasing availability of digital production tools and a growing market of trained and experienced talent creates new and important opportunities to apply visual techniques to communicate, educate and develop understanding.
* Dacia Jones, District Science Specialist at North Carolina’s Durham Public Schools. During her remarks, Jones will share her insights on how to engage students with inspiring activities that raise expectations in the classroom, include students in the planning process, and tie authentic learning to standards.
Additional presentations during the Spring Virtcon will explore a variety of timely education topics. Among the scheduled presentations are:
* 6 Ways to Show What You Know, presented by Dennis Grice, K-8 Technology Teacher at St. John’s Lutheran School in California. During his session, Grice will demonstrate practical ways to give students ownership of their own learning that empower them to use their creativity to ‘show what they know.’
* It’s About Learning, Not the Device, presented by Rachel Yurk, Instructional Technology Specialist at Cedarburg School District in Wisconsin. This session will explore instructional models that support the effective integration of technology into instruction. Educators will learn more about valuable digital resources and how to implement them to make the classroom environment stronger, while increasing learning and motivation.
* Building Community Through Creativity, delivered by Tracy Carpenter, Technology Integration Specialist at the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland. In this session, participants will focus on infusing creativity into the classroom to create environments that transcend geographic limitations and provide spaces for students to create, make mistakes, collaborate and solve problems.
*Farm to Table: A SAMR Immersion Lesson, delivered by Matt Monjan, Vice President of Partnerships at Discovery Education. During this session, Monjan will lead a Farm to Table transdisciplinary lesson through the lens of the Substitution Augmentation Modification Redefinition (SAMR) Model, which helps educators infuse technology in teaching and learning.
More information about the 2015 Spring VirtCon, including details on registration, online and in person events, and hosting local events, can be found http://www.discoveryeducation.com/springvirtcon2015
