EduBloggerCon09 and the BarCamp model

Friday, April 10th 2009 by Wes FryercloseAuthor: Wes Fryer Name: Wes Fryer
Email: wes@isteconnects.org
Site: http://www.speedofcreativity.org
About: Wesley is an international learning consultant, author, digital storyteller, educator and catalyst for educational reform focused on blended learning, differentiated instruction, and creative engagement. His bio is available on www.wesfryer.com/bio and complete vitae on www.wesfryer.com/vitae.See Authors Posts (74)

EduBloggerCon started at NECC in 2006 at Atlanta, and continued last year in 2007 in San Antonio. Several other EduBloggerCon events have also taken place at conferences including CUE, which have been “unconference” events focusing on ad-hoc, participant led discussions and presentations. I’ve heard about some of these, participated in a few, but will certainly not pretend to be knowledgeable about all these initiatives. Darren Kuropatwa helped organize “MB Edubloggercon 2008: Awakening Possibilities” at the end of last year in Canada, which featured talks confined to these parameters:

..talk for 5 minutes; 20 slides, 15 seconds per slide…..

That presentation model is similar to the Pecha Kucha format. These types of events are not (in my understanding) the same thing as an “unconference,” but they do share similarities in that they can be more organically organized and are participant-led. At EduBloggerCon 2008 there was a session (which I was not able to attend) about different edtech tools that followed a speed dating model: Short, limited amounts of time to share, with lots of participants. These types of learning opportunities at conferences are definitely a move in the right direction, in my view, in our world of social media, user-created content, participatory media, and prosumers. These events challenge some of the assumptions which exist about formal, traditional learning contexts, and encourage both creativity and sharing at levels I don’t think we typically see in “normal” conference presentations.

Last year’s EduBloggerCon was a great time of learning for me personally, but it drew some criticism (some might say a firestorm) from various parties for some good reasons. Laura Deisley provided a visual comparison of EduBloggerCon experiences from 2007 and 2008 in her July 2008 post, “Social Objects at NECC 2008 #1.” Laura wrote:

…in 2008 EduBloggerCon’s viral success meant the scale was different…and the conversation…well…let’s just say “interrupted,” not conversational, and definitely controversial.

Mark Wagner (known to many NECC bloggers’ cafe participants as the DIY jailbreak guru) shared on his blog following EduBloggerCon2008 a sentiment I think many of us felt:

I think every single one of us who attended [EduBloggerCon08] this year were glad that the edubloggercon brought us together, and the event very much owed its existence to Steve. I want to publicly thank Steve for his efforts on this – and the many other projects he donates his time to for the benefit of our community… Participation is absolutely vital to good professional development, and finding innovative ways to tap the creativity of the folks in the room has an even greater impact.

This year, in 2009, we’re looking ahead to EduBloggerCon09. As a community event, I view it as our responsibility to help make it an even bigger success than it’s been in the past. It’s easy to sit by the sidelines and complain. It’s much more challenging to roll up your sleeves, work with others, and figure out how to make something even better. And then deliver. That is what I’d say is our challenge this year for EduBloggerCon09.

Today I had a great phone call with Steve Hargadon, the primary “official” organizer of EduBloggerCon09, as well as Joe Corbett, discussing the event this year and how it can be made even better. EduBloggerCon was a LOT bigger in 2008, and I think it’s safe to bet it will be at least as large if not bigger in 2009. Unlike EduCon and BLC, which have succeeded in providing / encouraging a more intimate/conversational atmosphere (I’m told, I haven’t attended either yet) due at least in part to their smaller sizes, EduBloggerCon can’t and shouldn’t (in my view) become a smaller, more limited event. (In terms of participant numbers) EduBloggerCon needs to be and remain an open event, accessible by “veterans” in EduBlogging spaces as well as complete newcomers. It should be welcoming, it should be diverse, and it should be focused on shared learning.

Steve, Joe and I discussed using the BarCamp model at this year’s EduBloggerCon. I first heard about BarCamp events from James Deaton. According to WikiPedia:

BarCamps are organized and evangelized largely through the web, harnessing what might be called a Web 2.0 communications toolkit. Anyone can initiate a BarCamp, using the BarCamp wiki.
The procedural framework consists of sessions proposed and scheduled each day by attendees, mostly on-site, typically using white boards or paper taped to the wall. This is a form of the open-space approach and has been dubbed, with another play on words, The Open Grid approach.
While loosely structured, there are rules at BarCamp. All attendees are encouraged to present or facilitate a session. Everyone is also asked to share information and experiences of the event, both live and after the fact, via public web channels including (but not limited to) blogging, photo sharing, social bookmarking, twittering, wiki-ing, and IRC. This open encouragement to share everything about the event is in deliberate contrast to the “off the record by default” and “no recordings” rules at many private invite-only participant driven conferences

BarCamp events have been held QUITE successfully with over 500 participants. I’m not actually sure what the BarCamp “attendee record” is. The important point in this context is, BarCamp provides an outstanding model for how unconference events like EduBloggerCon can be organized and conducted.

I’d like to invite you to join Steve and I tomorrow (Saturday, April 11, 2009) to discuss these issues and ideas in the Classroom 2.0 LIVE Elluminate room, at 9am Pacific / 10am Mountain / 11am Central / 12pm Eastern / 5pm GMT. Visit Classroom 2.0 Live for more information.

How can we, as a community, make EduBloggerCon09 the best and most valuable learning experience it can be for all participants? Let’s put our heads together on this one. I’m sure we can create a great event at this year’s NECC!

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