Are you still thinking of how you can get to Elevate 2008 Conference, August 24-27 in Banff, Alberta, Canada next year? This will inspire you. Check out the new promo video they have on their site. Great work, Danny!

So, when you did your fall shopping this year, did you look for “videoconferencing clothes?” It struck me funny this year how much videoconferencing has affected my life; down to the choice of clothing.

I looked for solid colors that look great on camera. Not too dark; not too red; not too distracting.

My favorite color is what I call “videoconferencing blue.” That blue looks fantastic on camera. It’s also a favorite color for tech support staff. Here’s a sample:

So, how ’bout you? Does videoconferencing affect your shopping? What are your favorite colors on camera?

Did you get this in your email already? I hope YOU are planning to send them a little blurb about your use of videoconferencing. Let’s make sure they remember VC as a type of distance learning!

(From Paul Wurster, L&L Assistant Editor)

Is Distance Learning Effective?

There are many effective ways to teach and to learn. How does  distance learning compare?

ISTE’s magazine, Learning & Leading with Technology, wants your  opinion.

If you would like to share your thoughts on this topic, type a 25– 50 word response and e-mail it to letters@iste.org by October 26.

We’re going to select 6–8 of the best comments we receive  (attributing them with name, affiliation, city, and state) and  publish them in the December/January issue of L&L.

Not sure? Read the opinion of two other education professionals in  the September/October edition of Point/Counterpoint in L&L on the  Web.

Comments (25–50 words):
Name:
Affiliation:
City:
State:

We really appreciate your participation!
Kind regards,

Paul Wurster
Assistant Editor
Learning & Leading with Technology magazine
International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE)
Eugene, Oregon
541.434.8941
www.iste.org

Did you know that November 12-16 is National Distance Learning Week?

And, CILC is hosting awards on various distance learning topics. Click here to nominate a project or content provider, etc.

I was so delighted to find an email from Ruth Blankenbaker, CILC Executive Director, in my inbox this afternoon. Ruth has started blogging about videoconferencing. With a very creative title (another name-word-play), and an edgy engaging writing style. Be sure to add BlankenBlogger to your list of IVC blogs to read.

Welcome, Ruth, to the community of IVC bloggers. We look forward to learning from your perspective!

For the last several months, as I’ve been considering my PhD research, I’ve been wishing that we had a really good descriptive name for what we do – connecting to content providers, guest experts, authors, classroom-to-classroom projects, international cultural exchanges, etc.

Some names we have used are Videoconference Adventures, Electronic Education, Virtual Field Trip, and Expeditions. But these don’t really capture an all inclusive idea of using videoconferencing for curriculum based experiences.

I’ve been guilty of using the term “enrichment” to describe what we do. But enrichment has a connotation of an add-on, an extra. Some thing that is optional. We all know schools who have so thoroughly integrated videoconferencing into the curriculum that whole grade levels annually participate in activities that tightly match their curriculum. So enrichment doesn’t really work either.

So, what do you think of the term “curriculum videoconferencing?” It’s simple and straightforward. The emphasis is on CURRICULUM, right where it should be. It uses the most common term for this technology, videoconferencing. It works to include all the types of K12 videoconferences for the curriculum – authors, content providers, projects, collaborations. We could add K12 in front, but higher ed is dabbling in this use of VC too.  Curriculum Videoconferencing. Has a nice ring, doesn’t it?

What do you think? Does it work? Can you think of a better term?