When I looked at the programme for the IATEFL conference in Harrogate I was delighted to see just how many technology-related talks there were this year: over 50 out of a programme of around 400 talks. It seemed to me that technology had finally become manistream and that was a real pleasure for me. Apart from those talks there were signature events such as the Longman one run by my dear friend and colleague Nicky Hockly, the LTechs SIG pre-conference event which blended Twitter, Second Life and ‘real’ life perfectly and also the online conference, which featured live TV, recorded sessions, forums and the ever-present Twitter backchannel.
For those who see no purpose in – or need for – technology in learning, just try the recorded conference and have a think…
However, what was more surprising to me was the great joy and pleasure of meeting up with the PLN from all over the world. Speaking to Andy Hockley after the first evening, we both commented on how odd, yet how pleasant, it is to walk into a pub and see around twenty people, eighteen of whom you feel you know really well, but have never met. There were huge hugs and smiles, meet-ups arranged by Twitter, the photographs. Watching people rushing over to meet online friends with odd names, shouting out their delight. It was an amazing feeling.
But more amazing was watching what happened on Thursday in some of the tech-related sessions run by members of the PLN. Normally for a tech talk one might expect thirty or forty attendees (more, of course, depending on level of notoriety or particular content), but this year each session was a mob-scene with people sitting on the floor, standing up in corners and yes – being turned away (I was turned away from two because the rooms were bursting). The real joy, though, was watching what happened at the end of these sessions. Again, normally you’d expect three or four people to approach the presenter to ask a question. This year was different, however – I stood watching as lines of twenty people formed to kiss the presenters, hug them and express their joy at the session and the collective success of the PLN.
It was truly an amazing feeling, and I think the conference was pwned by the techies, no doubt about that. Techies who are human, loving and supporting. This was our first conference and I can’t imagine what it’s going to feel like next year, but I know I can’t wait.
As with every year, I had less time to go to things, and more time running around working on the online side of the conference, having meetings, etc. It does get harder every year, knowing more people and having more to do means that I don’t get to many sessions and don’t have time to really spend with everyone I would like to spend time with. Like many others, I spend most of each day running down corridors noddign at old friends and acquaintances and saying the ever-popular ‘we must catch up sometime’. But it rarely happens… and that’s a shame. I’m just glad I get to spend time with lots of them online, in Twitter, Second Life and elsewhere during the year.
I did manage some of the evening sessions, and the odd publisher party. It was good to see old friend and colleague Lindsay Clandfield launching his Global series, a little of Jeremy Harmer and Steve Bingham’s beautiful music extravaganza, the Pecha Kucha featuring the amazingly-beheeled poet Karenne, the sparkling Burcu and others. I loved Petra Pointer’s talk on Twitter – elegantly delivered and well thought-out. I loved booking in some of the PLN for interviews on IATEFL Online (so that if we didn’t speak too much at conference, I could at least catch up with them on video!), the plenaries were magic and so much more. And I enjoyed the time in the conference bar chatting, singing and (I suspect) making a nuisance of ourselves late into the night.
Wish I could have spent more time with people, with friends old and new, with the PLN, but it´s tricky when you’re combining a variety of jobs. Next time, if this conference is going to be like this in the future, I shall have to resolve to work less and play more, get to more sessions and just have more downtime. But until then, I think I shall simply smile at the thought that the geeks inherited the IATEFL earth this year, and all their base are belong to us 
. Hell, even Herbert Puchta was railroaded into signing up for Twitter. Result!
Thanks for this post, Gavin, which echoes many of my own experiences at IATEFL in Harrogate this year.
Last year at the IATEFL conference in Cardiff I remember that they were no more than 10 of us tweeting during Mark Prensky’s opening plenary, and it may have been even fewer than 10. This year there has been what feels like a parallel conference going on in twitter, involving not just the twitterati who were present, but those online, who were watching sessions in real time and tweeting along with us. It was absolutely magic. As Graham Stanley mentioned to me at one point, it’s becoming almost unthinkable to run a conference without free WiFi — and I think it is soon going to be impossible to run one without taking into account the twittersphere, and providing a place in which to share the twitter stream, as happened via the phenomenal online part of the conference.
Nicky
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 5:01 pm
Nicky,
I don’t think we’ll ever run another conference that doesn’t have free wifi for all delegates – the interaction this year was phenomenal and a lot of that came from people being able to keep in touch via connected smartphones, iPhones, etc., at the venue, combined with the input from outside. Twitter works on so many levels at an event like this, and I think we saw the best of that this year.
Gavin
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Gavin you sound very happy about these developments and rightly so. I am sure all those who have waited patiently for more acknowledgement of edtech (including me) can see that history was in the making at the last few conferences.
Perhaps the PLN has now grown to the size required for this to happen, in which case things can only get better. Plus there seems to have been a wave of fantastic new presenters on the scene (not new per se and in their localities, but to the PLN circuit) when mixed with the familiar presenters trying on new shoes by looking at tech, just created a dynamite experience. It seems that in a short space of time tech and language teaching has ceased to be mainstream and is now at the hot burning centre of IATEFL conference. That’s great. I think its a big step forward too.
Tech is not just a topic in education (and a very important one), it is an ‘issue’ of access as it is the surest way to involve the widest number of people in the IATEFL experience that we have at our disposal. So its a win on all counts.
So do you think part of the power of twitter was that it made the conference experience more connected for people, socially and otherwise? It does sound lovely knowing that at any time you could walk into a place and ‘everybody knows your name’ (‘Cheers’ music can, if you wish, be imagined here!). That is a major downfall of large conferences that they can be isolating for those who don’t ‘know’ people, whereas with the twitter PLN you always know someone, and many infact!
I hope that we might see some of the other marginalised parts of ELT exploding into the centre like this in future as there is still much to be done. And tech should play a part in that too. Its really worth trying to pin down what is required to make this happen and I am sure yours is the first (and excellent) in many postings on this topic. A whole new wave of presentations on the Harrogate experience will no doubt follow. We have created much food for thought both in and outside the classroom.
Well done to all for whatever part, large or small, was played in this amazing experience.
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 5:30 pm
Sara,
Thanks for commenting! I was trying to communicate the excitement and indictment without wishing to sound smug – not sure I managed it, but I’m sure you knew what I meant!
There were certainly a lot of new people at this conference – as you say, not new to speaking, not new to teaching, but new to the IATEFL annual conference and perhaps new to the online community side of things, too. And of course there were lots of old hands, as well. But the newness made it very exciting, certainly for me, and I’m sure for many other people.
As I said below (in answer to Jeremy) it is very exciting to know so many people, but it also runs the risk of cutting many other people out of the new groups and communities. A conference can be a lonely place for first-timers, and if a large percentage of the first-timers are wired and connected, it might just get a lot more lonely in the future. So your point about access is going to become increasingly important, I think.
Gavin
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Shelly S Terrell, Gavin Dudeney, Gavin Dudeney, Seth Dickens, Marisa Constantinide and others. Marisa Constantinide said: RT @dudeneyge: "the geeks inherited the IATEFL earth this year, and all their base are belong to us" : http://bit.ly/9CTzuH [...]
Hi Gavin,
I had thought of posting in the same kind of vein as you, but I think you have put the experience into words much better than I would have done (and of course thanks for that compliment).
Everything you describe is how it felt. I can’t remember ever feeling ‘belonged’ so professionally and personally. I think all of us in the ‘Twitter flock’ felt a hug sense of professional excitement and personal empathy. Quite an overwhelming experience.
The thing about technology this year – web 2.0 of course – is that it was no longer even an issue. It just WAS. I hugely enjoyed attending the pre-conference technology SIG (but in Second Life – the most natural way in the world!!). Techies didn’t sound crazy anymore (you never did, honest!!). When Shiv talks about gaming as the model for learning in Virtual worlds, for example, we all listen with a complete interest, just like we do to someone going on about groupwork discussion.
Your talk made the point well. Ditto Shaun Wilden, and Shelley and Özge’s terrific practical examples of 5-year-olds engaging with technology..etc etc etc
But of course it’s NOT the technology (you made this point), not the WHAT, but the HOW (I go on and on with that one!). And as if to prove it, the conference ended with the blinding, magnificent sight of one woman just standing there talking, enrapturing us with the beauty of words and stories.
Why is that amazing? Because – and you are right, it was like the FIRST TIME, she and the (one-time) geeks live in the same world.
Wonderful. Wonderful.
Jeremy
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 5:12 pm
Jeremy,
Thaks for popping over. That feeling of belonging to something much bigger and deeper is amazing, isn’t it? Though I did find myself struggling with time this year and didn’t manage to spend quality time with as many people as I felt I should have, and perhaps that’s going to get harder each year as more of us ‘know’ each other.
I remember my first IATEFL where I knew two people. Spent most of my time wandering around on my own. That could never really happen these days, with those of us who are online and know so many others. But what about first-time visitors who are not wired (or can’t afford it, or live where it’s not available)? I worry that we might be opening one door and closing another, to different groups of people…
Glad to hear we no longer sound crazy (as if we ever did, honestly!) and even more glad that we can sit down with someone like Jan and share our worlds in a perfectly normal and mutually beneficial way. She was amazing, we were amazing, the conference was amazing and so was the online one.
What will it be like next year?
Gavin
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It felt just as you described. I sat on the floor in two sessions and I stood for an hour pressed against the back wall in another. At this event, I met so many more people from my PLN of Twitter friends. It was a great treat to be in Harrogate.
Adding to your last sentence, I was sitting across from Herbert as the conductor of the Twitter railroading (Burcu) steered Herbert through his first tweets. All around the table and beyond people were laughing and shouting. However, the funniest moment was when Herbert said, “I’m so disappointed in this (Twitter) I’ve been on here for 15 minutes and Gavin still hasn’t noticed!” It was hilarious!
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 5:16 pm
Kenny,
It was amazing, wasn’t it? All that buzz and activity. It’s quite gratifying to see Herbert on Twitter (I can’t imagine the arm twisting that went on there) and I do feel very bad about not getting to his first couple of tweets earlier. He must have nearly given up in despair!
I’m stalking him now though, so everything’s alright with the world again…
Gavin
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Kenny Reply:
April 14th, 2010 at 9:20 pm
I will post a picture of him on my facebook page. You will see the pain and suffering he was dealing with.
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I have to agree with the sentiments around the whole twitter/PLN love-in. I missed out myself, but I was able to follow much of the conference online… and I’m definitely planning to make Brighton next year…. Could the whole twitter/PLN thing get TOO big though? It seems manageable now, but could 12 months make it too unwieldy to work on the same level?
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 5:19 pm
Phil,
It’s a good point (see my reply to Jeremy further up) – there must come a time when 1,000 of the 2,000 delegates all know each other and it’ll be unmanageable and quite hard to concretise those online personal relationships with f2f ones.
A small sign of that was when 300 of us tried to descend on one pub after the Pecha Kucha… it was never going to work, of course, but everyone wanted to be with everyone else. As the person who knew where the pub was, I ended up leading a long and large line of people through the town, then not being able to get into the pub myself!
So yes, I think you have a good point and it will be interesting to see how this works on a bigger scale next year.
Gavin
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[...] Tweets about this great post on TwittLink.com [...]
The standing-room-only crowds at any session that had a whiff of edtech about it did indeed seem to presage some kind of Tipping Point in the attitudes towards this subject in the EFL/ESL world. One can only hope that teachers’ curiosity and enthusiasm will be sufficient to overcome the frequent objections by school administrators who tend to keep tech at arms’ length on the basis of cost / complexity / security or simply because they don’t understand it and see it as somewhat of a threat.
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 6:49 pm
Paul,
Yes, unfortunately you make a good point (and one I made repeatedly in my session) about support, expenditure, training and all the rest. I think things are getting better, but not nearly quickly enough – but I also like to think that this enthusiasm from working teachers may finally act as a catalyst… You never know!
Gavin
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I wish this were a worldwide phenomenon! As I blogged at Talk to the Clouds, the coverage streaming across Twitter made me wonder why US conferences seem so technologically lacking! I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t like it. (I mean, I do love the IATEFL-tech marriage and being able to follow along from afar, but I don’t love the lack of technological integration at US conferences. It feels like being hobbled.) It’s not a purely American thing, as the American Library Association is perfectly capable of massive geekery; it seems to be an American ESL teacher thing. I think. Anyway, if anyone wants to drop by my blog post on the matter and tell me what your theory is, let me know.
In the meantime, yes, I’m more than a bit jealous, but very pleased to hear of what sounds like a wonderful event.
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 6:52 pm
Clarissa,
Thanks for the comments. You’d be surprised how many American visitors to the conference echoed those exact thoughts! I spoke to at least half a dozen regular TESOL goers who asked me how we managed to pull it off… The answer is people (a team of over 20), money (quite a bit) and dedication (a mountain of it). To do it well requires all those things and we (he said, putting on his IATEFL Honorary Secretary hat for a second) are really very grateful to the British Council for providing the great majority of all three.
Gavin
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Yes but it was fun trying to get us all into the smallest pub you could find wasn’t it ☺
It was amazing to see how the twitter presence has grown since last year’s conference when, as Nicky said there were only a few of us tweeting out of Prensky’s plenary. This year I could be sat in one talk and ‘take part’ in another and added to that saving the tweets has also given me a great written record of the main points that arose.
It will be interesting to see if there is post-IATEFL rise in the number of ELFers using twitter as a result. I do think that Phil’s comment about size might become a reality –i.e. it might get a bit big. As I said in my Harrogate online interview, I did feel like that at times we were part of a clique (albeit a large one) – more than one person commented to me that they felt they were missing something by not being on twitter, and others felt there was a conference going on within a conference. As such so the more that join the better as far as I am concerned. I look forward to seeing how that works out in Brighton
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 6:57 pm
Shaun,
It was kind of fun, until everyone realised they weren’t going to fit… then we had to spread out over a few different pubs and I suspect the magic was lost. Next year we’ll hire a nightclub for the Twitter meet-up…
I think many people joined Twitter as the week went on, and many more will do so over the coming days – but Phil does have a point (and I expanded on it in my reply to Jeremy) of the sheer size of the Twitter community, and the possible alienation amongst people not using it.
Can’t remember who said it to me in one of my professional development sessions (held regularly throughout the day at the smoking area outside the Holiday Inn), but it really was like two circles or two conferences.
Our job for next year must be to think about how we make those conferences meet, how we join the circles and how we ensure that first-time visitors and those who are not wired and cannot join the PLN can come to conference, feel comfortable, welcomed and supported.
Answer, please, on a postcard to…
Gavin
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You managed to convey the incredible buzzing joyful enthusiasm one could feel at the conference. I am glad I could be able to watch some of it online, I felt priviledged. This is a new era, new communications means, new ways to connect with other like-minded people. This gives me hope for the world!… and it makes me think how great it would be to create a whole equivalent for the French language…
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 7:04 pm
ALice,
There was a real buzz, an amazing buzz – and a great feeling of support and warmth and it was fantastic to see that happen. The online conference also helped – and the numbers of teachers worldwide watching that (over 25,000 and counting) make it all so immensely satisfying. Now it’s your turn to create the French language equivalent
Gavin
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Hi Gavin
Twitter does seem to bring a whole new level of involvement to a conference and this is the second time I have felt it keenly. The first was at the Naace conference in the UK last month. A follow-up forum in that instance asked about the twitter stream – did it work, was it distracting, did anyone enjoy it, benefit from it etc. One man said that he hated it, he would rather read a whole blog post or paper. He clearly did not get it. In both cases I felt that Twitter enriched the whole experience.
The combination of being able to see presentations on-line, take part in the pre-conference Second Life event and follow the twitter stream certainly made me feel very involved in Harrogate 2010. To be a part, even on the periphery, of that networking without being there is quite extraordinary!
I think that people who are not part of that wider networking experience may still have a very enjoyable conference but that they could feel unnecessarily lonely and isolated if they are there alone. For the rest of us of course, even when alone we can walk into a room full of conference goers and know that we will know people there
Finding them may not be that easy but once found meeting them face 2 face is wonderful!
Carol
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
Carol,
Thanks for dropping in. More and more conferences have this kind of thing going on now and the element of engagement is certainly rising.
Next year I’d love to get hold of a second projector and get the stream projected next to my slides, despite the obvious dangers. I think mostly our audience are kind and supportive and it might inform the presentation by having input coming in directly.
It would also provide more direct engagement with remote viewers/listeners and would be an interesting experiment. As I say, I know this has gone badly wrong in certain fora, but I just can’t see it happening in ELT (famous last words!)
A large conference can be a lonely place for first-time visitors, though – and if they don’t have this pre-built community to meet up with (and the majority do) I can really see how it might get even more difficult to meet people and get involved.
And yes, I suffer terribly from not being able to recognise in real life those people I know as small square avatars in Twitter. Add that to my terrible memory for names and faces and I’m really in trouble…
Gavin
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Hi Gavin,
Your thoughts and many others´ are so similar to mine!
The only difference for me was that this was my first IATEFL conference and during the days before the conference I feared I might be wandering alone in this huge event.
Twitter completely changed that and I was already in the company of Twitter “friends” two hours after I arrived in Harrogate. I attended many great sessions during the conference and many after-conference great discussions, which greatly added to the whole experience.
It was such a feeling that I can only think of being more involved with the LT SIG and getting to Brighton next year!
Vicky
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 9:46 pm
Vicky,
It was great to meet you in Harrogate and a pleasure also to hear that Twitter and the PLN worked out so well for you. Finding likeminded friends at a conference has never been easier – but let’s not also forget how much time we have put in to building our networks and nurturing our connections.
Hope to see you next year in Brighton – get involved with the LTechs SIG and I’m sure it’ll happen.
Gavin
[Reply]
Hi Gavin,
I’m new to twitter, and I have never taught it could make such a big impact on my life! Watching IATEFL online, and tweeting.. Posing a question during an interview with Keiran Eagan, and tweeting! Wow! The world is on my fingertips.. Thanks to PLN!
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 9:47 pm
Candan,
Thanks for commenting – it’s great to hear how the technology brought you closer to those of us at the conference and I’m happy you had such a good time with us. Hope to see you at the f2f event next year.
Gavin
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Gavin, I appreciate this post and the responses hugely, because it’s a great summary of my own experience of upgrading my tech knowledge.
I started to do this last July because I had realized how much I was missing. I moderated a discussion on YLT SIG in October, came to TESOL France in November as much to hear you and other tech speakers as for any other excellent reason, and finished in Harrogate, where I now feel up to speed.
I agree with everything everyone has said, but I’ll just add a few comments from a newcomer’s point of view. I didn’t like being told by Mark Prensky last year in Cardiff that I was a digital immigrant because I considered I was using the technology as much as I needed at the time. Well, maybe I was oversensitive. But whatever, the heart of the matter was that I didn’t like the exclusive nature of the term – and in this circumstance, it’s also ageist. It goes against everything I do professionally and personally.
But for the same reason, I don’t like the term techie or geek, because although I think (?) I’m up to speed, the terms are still exclusive, and I certainly don’t think they apply to me.
Twitter is no longer a mystical science, it’s something we can all enjoy. The online conference was an extraordinary experience – we couldn’t have dreamt this was possible when I was president of IATEFL ten years ago, and quite central to the IATEFL mission.
What you and your colleagues have achieved with your work, culminating in Harrogate online, is to turn the exclusive into the inclusive.
It’s nothing less than the democratization of access to information. That’s something to be very proud of.
[Reply]
admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 11:31 pm
Simon,
I really appreciate your taking the time to comment, and also for taking the time to find out a little about the e-world and what it has to offer you. As I said on Twitter earlier tonight, finding a personal ‘hook’ is often the way in.
I think most of this vocabulary is pretty divisive, unless – of course – you claim it for yourself. I’m happy to be a geek, or even, as someone said just before the conference, a ‘tetchy techie’. I’m pretty comfortable with what I do, and I know a lot of other people who are too.
As Jeremy pointed out, the fact that the geeks can sit down with the storytellers should tell us something about the whole thing. To be fair to Prensky, although he popularised those terms, he has pretty much abandoned them and the connotations they held. We’re al learning to live with each other in this brave new world…
Thanks for the praise at the end – most of it I’ll pass on to the British Council, though I may keep a drop for myself. But yes, quite truthfully, this is a further democratisation of access to information and we must try to take it as far as we can over the coming years.
I’m looking forward to planning Brighton Online with Julian and the team, and I hope we’ll have some innovations and announcements soon.
Gavin
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Hi Gavin,
Not much to add but echo the thoughts of those above. I experienced IATEFL Harrogate online like many others and I just have to say that I was mightily impressed with the online coverage. The livestreamed plenaries, all the interviews broadcast as the conference was going on, the chance to ask a question in real time to my Twitter friends (and watch them answer – Thanks Shelly!!) was an amazing experience.
Having said that, I think rather than experience such an event from afar (as I did with the tailend of ISTEK) I would definitely want to be there next time. All the talk of tweet-ups has made me more than a little bit jealous!
Hats off to all of the fantastic people at the British Council (and your good self) who made it all possible.
Best
Mike
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admin Reply:
April 12th, 2010 at 11:57 pm
Mike,
Thanks very much for the comment. I think I’d agree with you – nothing quite beats being there, if you possibly can. But this kind of coverage, plus being included and invited to participate by the PLN makes up for it a little. Now if only they could start streaming beer that tasted as good as it does in real life…
Thanks for the hat, and watch this space to see what happens at IATEFL next year. I reckon ISTEK may have a few surprises for us in 2011 as well, but my lips are sealed!
Gavin
[Reply]
Hi Gavin,
Great to read your post , so many positive things and I got the feeling that you enjoyed this IATEFL conference more than any other IATEFL conference you have ever attended, would that be right?
For me it was certainly the most enjoyable IATEFL conference I have ever attended. I had participated in 5 before , Dublin 2000, Brighton 2001 and York 2002 when I was physically there and Cardiff and Exeter online. In Dublin I spent one morning in an Irish language school, in Brighton I popped up to the National Theatre for a matinee of Synge?s ?Playboy of the Western World? and in York I spent an afternoon in Whitby tracing the footsteps of Bram Stoker. I did know some people at these conferences but not many. I didn?t mind sneaking off to do these things as I didn?t feel THAT involved with and integrated into the conferences.
At Cardiff and Exeter I got my methodology students to watch a couple of the sessions and then we discussed them in class . I remember a post conference discussion I had with Hugh Deller in one of the forums but that was about it in terms of communicating with people there.
This time I felt totally involved start to finish and only missed the final plenary live cos I had to catch a plane to Trieste. The fact that I was more involved this time than ever before is much to do with your efforts Gavin in helping to organise the online coverage, in encouraging more and more people to be involved in the blogging community and promoting twitter.
If I hadn?t got onto twitter and I hadn?t started a blog then I?d never have known all the people I know now who were participating in Harrogate. And it was because of this community of people sharing that I enjoyed it more than any other conference before and not PRIMARILY because of the quality of the sessions, which was amazing.
What this means I think is that twitter and blogging have had an enormous social impact on our ELT community that Ken also writes about on his latest blog post http://kenwilsonelt.wordpress.com/ and that there is something about these mediums that brings out the best in people.
Whatever it is, there is something big happening in our ELT world, I would suggest on the same level as the political changes in Europe in 1989 and it?s fantastic to be a part of it!
[Reply]
admin Reply:
April 13th, 2010 at 9:30 am
Mark,
I always enjoy the conference, but as many other people have noted, there was something special about this one for all of us involved in edtech, but also for those using technologies in their personal lives (blogs, Twitter, etc.) and for those of us who cross the divide.
I think you can certainly enjoy the conference on your own – there are a number of social events and things like the quiz evening where you can join a team and get to meet people, but turning up to an event like this and seeing almost everyone else having someone to talk to can be a strange and disconcerting experience. I do think Twitter has the power both to mitigate against these feelings, but also to exacerbate them for those outside the community.
You and I seem to have a similar trajectory – starting off on your own doing some sightseeing, meeting a few people and making some friends… And then the addition of the online conference and the chance to ‘get to know’ people both before and after the live conference. I’d like to be able to take the credit for that (and thanks for offering) but a large part of it has to go to Julian Wing at the British Council, and their subsequent investment in the event.
As you say, blogs and Twitter have played a large part in our success, and in our collective enjoyment of the event and it’s largely due to the friendship and dedication of those blogging and tweeting that this has come about. I’m not sure the revolution is quite as embedded as you think, but it’s certainly on the horizon.
Best,
Gavin
[Reply]
I just wanted to add my impressions because I’m relatively new wto Twitter. I strted tweeting last year and then geve up spending more time on Facebook, because I thought I could “do more” there. This conference has really opened my eyes to what Twitter can do as I wtahced people tweet, and started following people and adding my own comments. It feels a bit overwhelming at times, but entering any new world does, and it’s incredibly exciting at the same time, so I’m looking forward to exploring some more.
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admin Reply:
April 13th, 2010 at 10:13 am
Sharon,
Great to have you on the journey with all of us. I’ve never really used Facebook much, even though there are more possibilities – I just prefer the simplicity and immediacy of Twitter. The overwhelming feeling doesn’t last long…
Gavin
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Hi Gavin
I had the most wonderful time as a Tweeter during the conference and there were many highlights but I have to say, one or two personal low ones as well.
It was amazing to be introduced to people that I already kind of knew on Twitter and I must say I was never disappointed. I have attended previous conferences with just a handle full of real-life colleagues but I have never felt this kind of connection between people before. I don’t usually laugh much at conferences but I certainly did this time.
Other highlights for me were simply bumping into random people and after a few seconds of blank expressions, suddenly realising who that person was. I nearly spilt coffee over a participant and his laptop and as I apologised, it suddenly dawned on me that it was Shaun Wilden. Lots of very funny, sarcastic banter ensued and he made me laugh all the way through the conference. His talk, by the way, was excellent.
Joking aside, I think the most powerful aspect for me was to be able to ask a presenter a question that had come from a remote participant Tweeter. I need not elaborate on this; it felt truly amazing.
I did say there were a few low lights too. I stayed up far too late and was quite tired so probably didn’t pay attention to all that I should have. Thank goodness for the livestream though because I can now watch many sessions at my own leisure. I didn’t attend as many sessions as I normally do but that was because I was talking to some of the presenters and fellow Tweeters in their down time, but that in itself resulted in enormous amounts of learning. I also missed some important sessions, like the ones about learning in an Islamic culture, that really would have been useful for my day job but there wasn’t enough room to fit us all in.
Finally, I felt a bit mute surrounded by lots of people with lots to say and feel I haven’t really found my voice yet. However, I did lots of listening, learning, observing and analysing and there is now an awful lot of information and many ideas spinning around in my head. I am truly inspired now and would not be feeling like this if it weren’t for the connections that Twitter allowed me to make and for that, I am sincerely grateful.
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admin Reply:
April 13th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
Amanda,
Thanks for posting and for your reactions to everything over the last few days. I like the idea of people laughing at conferences (it so often doesn’t happen) and if you spent your time laughing with old and new friends, then that seems like a pretty good experience to me.
Like many other talks (as you say), I missed Shaun’s, but I suspect it was as good as you found it. He’s a smart and caring man, though you should try and keep hot coffee away from people and computers.
Balancing the work and the social is usually quite hard at conferences, but was perhaps especially hard at this one with so many new friends to really meet for the first time, so much to talk about, so many photos to take, and so much to tweet about. I know I certainly overdid it, and almost lost my voice that final evening with the singing.
But the fact is that the social side of it all is as important as going to the sessions, so you shouldn’t feel too bad about not working 100% throughout the conference. And anyway, you can catch up with some of it on the Harrogate Online site when you have a chance.
I also thought your idea of running teacher development sessions around the online content was an excellent one, and there’s material there for quite some time. So, all in all, I’d say you’re fine and won’t have missed out on much. And when you did, I’d say it was for a good reason.
As for feeling mute, I think that has happened to all of us at some point, and I sometimes find myself at events where I simply want to go and have a quiet night in and a bit of room service. Plus, some of us can be quite loud when we want to, and that often drowns out more sensible people
Glad to hear, though, that Twitter did it for you, as it did for many others. All the reactions coming in to this page are going to be handy for a future conference talk on planning conferences, so please encourage anyone elese you know to drop by and add a bit to the discussion.
Gavin
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Was it really only 50? It felt like a lot more!
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[...] see Gavin Dudeney’s blog on this here and my response, it really feels like the landscape has shifted! addthis_url = [...]
Being “otherwise occupied” not only could I not be at Harrogate, but I couldn’t even be online and have had a lonely better-late-than-never day
Having read through from top to bottom, I guess you don’t need MORE praise, Gavin, it’s so perfectly obvious you’re doing an exceptional job, but the remarks about TESOL not having the same twitter buzz does make me want to point out that with nothing but a team of volunteers TESOL has, for the last ten years, organised the Electronic Village Online… which many IATEFL techies owe their techiness to. Let’s render unto Ceasar…
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admin Reply:
April 14th, 2010 at 8:11 am
Hi there,
And thanks for commenting. Please don’t misunderstand me – I think the people who made reference to what happens at TESOL were remarking only on the relative lack of conference offerings online, and this was echoed by the then President of TESOL three years ago when I had dinner with him during IATEFL Aberdeen. The EVO led the way in online training and continues to be a shining example of what’s possible when volunteers get together. And yes, it has trained hundreds of teacher worldwide, and I suspect many of them were in Harrogate, or attending Harrogate online. I don’t think the people who made those comments were ignoring the amazing contribution of the EVO project to the world of edtech in language learning at all. Rest assured, the EVO legacy is safe in our heads!
In fact, IATEFL is also largely a volunteer force, having a small permanent staff and over 100 volunteers, and our online coverage would not be possible without a partner who can not only finance most of it, but also find an extra few sets of hands to do most of the work. So indeed, I’m rendering, big time
– but also wondering if TESOL will go down the online conference route in a similar manner at some point in the future?
As for coming to the party late, you’re always welcome at any time.
Gavin
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oops… better late than never catching up
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One of my favorite parts of the conference is when you yelled the Techies have conquered! The Techies have conquered! I really enjoyed the Learning Technology presentations and felt I learned from them and was inspired by them. This isn’t usually the case but at this conference there were so many tech presenters I look up to that really inspired me!
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admin Reply:
April 14th, 2010 at 8:13 am
Shelly,
I may, at that point, have been over-excited…, but it was a moment of vindication of around fifteen years of my career and I felt it merited a shout or two. Hope I didn’t frighten anyone!
Gavin
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[...] IATEFL Pwned by Gavin Dudeney [...]
[...] IATEFL Pwned by Gavin Dudeney [...]
Unfortunately I didn’t make it to Harrogate, although I did watch some of the online presentations and interviews and participate in the chat room, but while it’s great to hear that there was a surge in technology-related talks, what strikes me as odd is why it has taken so, so long, for so many teachers to recognise the potential that technology-enhanced learning can afford.
One would think that educators would be leading and embracing new ways of thinking and doing and yet things have been so slow to change in education. Even at ELT conferences, I’m frequently surprised that the presenters usually speak as though their audience members are unlikely to be familiar with the subject matter at anything other than the most basic level. This raises the question of what basic level of digital literacy teachers should be expected to have at the end of the first decade in the 21st century.
When, for example, I have attended conferences related to other fields, I have found the depth and (intellectual) level of the material and themes presented to be much more challenging. There is a critical tone to the presentations and surrounding discussions that I have often found to be in disappointingly short supply in the ELT world, which often seems limited to show and tell.
Have I just been looking in the wrong places?
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admin Reply:
April 18th, 2010 at 7:24 pm
Ludus,
Thanks for commenting. I’ve often said that the teaching profession is particularly conservative, and ELT/ESL perhaps even more so. We do get a lot of ‘show and tell’ presentations at conferences, but these do seem to cater to the majority, who are interested in technologies, but not sure where to start.
I think those of us who go beyond that are still few and far between, and perhaps talking to a far greater minority. However, all is not lost… The first few presentations I did at conferences I was one of very few people talking about ltechs, and talking to audiences of around twenty, who didn’t have a clue what I was talking about most of the time.
These days the average audience is much more comfortable with a variety of technologies, and perhaps it needed that kind of comfort level before we could (can) move on to a higher level of discussion, of the type you’ve witnessed in other disciplines.
Maybe now we’re ready to talk about the bigger and deeper question?
Gavin
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Ludus Reply:
May 2nd, 2010 at 9:19 pm
“Maybe now we’re ready to talk about the bigger and deeper question?”
Absolutely!
I think bigger/deeper issues are largely being neglected by the EFL crowd that I most frequently come into contact with online through blogs, Twitter, conferences and other sections of my PLN. If anything, it seems that the relentless cycle of new web 2.0 sites and services has become the opium of the EFL masses. The Pied Pipers of this trend often to seem more motivated by the social capital and reputation building power that comes with being first to find something new and have no time or interest in exploring anything at a deeper level.
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[...] the great IATEFL conferences I have attended – and I have been to quite a few over the years. Gavin Dudeney had great fun celebrating the ‘triumph’ of technology. Nik Peachey praised some of the [...]
[...] IATEFL Gavin Dudeney called Twitter “the source of all knowledge”. Did the conference convince you or a [...]
[...] of a surprise meeting someone face to face that we’d only ever met before on line. In fact, Gavin posted some interesting observations about this phenomena, a good while before the whole conference [...]
Dear Gavin
It is great to hear people talking about the use of Technology in the classroom.
I am sure that this works veyr well in the UK, Europe and th US. But what about developing countries? the use of Technology is very limited here. Students or teachers cannot afford the cost.Also, many students in rural areas are not familiar with the use of Technology and sites like Twitter and Second Life or even use web-sites for learning a language.
How do we help such students to learn a second language especially English?
Any Ideas?
Regards
lalitha
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admin Reply:
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Lalitha,
There’s quite a bit happening in countries you might call ‘developing’. Check out the Plan Ceibal in Latin America, the One Laptop Per Child initiatives in various countries, and mobile phone learning in many other places. There is, of course, still a big digital divide, but I do think it’s narrowing.
As for helping people learn English where there’s no technology, well – a lack of technology has not stopped very successful English teaching for decades all around the world. I think technology can help, can make it more interesting, more communicative and more ‘global’, but I don’t think it’s vital. Where people have it, and used well, I think it can make a big difference, but that’s only part of the story…
Gavin
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[...] the original post: That'SLife » Blog Archive » IATEFL Pwned opium, relentless, social, the-relentless, [...]
Dear Gavin
Thanks a lot for your post, I also attended IATEFL Harrogate and I thogught it was normal to have so many presentations on tech. Until I met a friend of mine who lives and works in UK storming out from a session very angry because the presenter was talking nonsense something impossible, we can never use in ELT. I asked what was the presenter talking about. She said “the virtual world”. I was happy because I realized that the digital divide is no longer between us in developing countries but between those working and living in the developed world. I knew what was the “virtual world” and “second life” about but someone living in UK did not. Isn’t that rewarding!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
Hala (from Sudan)
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admin Reply:
May 10th, 2010 at 9:58 pm
Hala,
Thanks for your comment. Of course there is still a digital divide in terms of access, but the digital ‘knowledge’ divide is, as you say, also large. I wonder when teacher training will catch up with technology?
Gavin
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