How does one "present" at an unconference?
You see, I am passionate about a number of topics: inclusion, assistive technology, literacy and communication. Having an opportunity to talk about them, learn about them, and discover new resources with others keeps me engaged in the work I do. So, when the opportunity to share and connect with educators at #redcamp13 came up, I signed up immediately, but now, I have been wondering what "sessions" and "presenting" look like at an edcamp.
The most meaningful professional learning usually revolves around answering a lingering question. With the edcamp model of identifying topics being so unique and participant driven, why would we approach "presenting" in a conventional way? Let's ask questions. Let's bring our most exciting materials. Let's be free to give our opinions, share our experiences, and wonder aloud. Presenting, then, would not be lecturing, but rather facilitating a conversation. That's not so tough!
Looking forward to seeing and learning from you next weekend.
Jasmine Travers-Charbonneau R.SLP, MSc.SLP, SLP (C)
Speech Language Pathologist
REACH, Red Deer
jltravers@cbe.ab.ca
Wow! Jasmine, thanks so much for your perspective. You're the first to accept the #redcamp13 invitation to collaborate here on the blog... and kudos to you for diving in on your first blog. Honored you took the leap with us:)
ReplyDeleteI too am very intrigued by the naturally occurring inquiry context that edcamp unconferences present. The question(s) linger, as you say, and they can be hard to pinpoint. We just hover around them to divine the answer, or quite conceivably, the answers... which I think are most often found "in the middle" as opposed to the dichotomous and polarized right and left. That's what the collaborative process is all about, at least to me.
Thanks again for throwing a stone in the pond.
And question you did! And we did too! I thoroughly enjoyed your session and another session we were in together. You have so much to share with educators and you have really got me wondering about a lot of things. Thanks for sharing and providing your perspective.
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