Steve Dickie has an interesting post about his goal for the 2007 MACUL Conference. I think it is a great topic. Also, it is important to have goals and be able to tell you principal, co-workers and the public why technology conferences are important for educators. Some people who haven’t attended professional conferences think of conferences as time off and a time for fun. The conference is about learning, new ideas and new contacts. I think about what I want to gain from conferences every year. Sometimes my goals are specific. I want to learn about _______ . Steve wants to learn about web 2.0 and implementing it in his curriculum. Other years my goals are more general. This is a “general” year.
My goals are:
1. Learn two or more good ideas I can use in my job. If I learn more than two even better.
Seven years about I learned about using Filemaker Pro for instant web publishing. I still use the basics I learn at that conference for registration sites, book databases and more. My time at the conference was worth it just for those skills.
2. Make a new professional contact.
I can’t list all of the people I have met at conferences that I have turned to for help and support over the years. Some have become friends, some are peers I now work with and some provide great resources when I need them. People like Kathy Schrock, Alan November, Chris Turek, Andy Mann, Ric Wiltse, and many others have helped me so much over the years. I hope other people can say that about me.
3. Visit with my peers.
It is amazing how much you can learn from a casual conversation. A new idea, management idea, a project, hardware, software, etc all come up in conversations that can help you learn and/or avoid mistakes.
4. Be Challenged.
The best conferences for me are the ones that challenge my thinking and challenge what and how I am teaching. When you are very comfortable you most likely won’t change. Growth often occurs when you are asked to meet challenges. I hope to be challenged and energized.
Oh, I all most forgot.
5. Have some fun doing all of those things.
What are your goals? What do you hope to bring back from MACUL 2007.
Jim
Jim,
Thank you for the kind words! I have learned at least as much from you as you have learned from me over the years…you are a good friend and a great educator!
Kathy Schrock