PETE & C: We Came, We Learned, We Conquered!

I had the opportunity to attend one the biggest educational technology conferences in the nation on Monday and Tuesday (Feb 11-12) in Hershey, PA and learned a lot about where education is going and how educators are reaching our students in this fast-paced, tech savvy, 21st century.

For starters, the PETE & C conference was packed with educators around the state of PA and surrounding states with one common purpose: To learn more about how we use technology to increase student engagement, learning, and interest. One of the main things I took away from the conference is just how many web tools, apps, and free software is available to educators. If your students have the internet, they can access almost anything free to help them learn and grow. Here is a link to 60 web tools in 60 minutes. So much awesome free stuff!

The idea of FLIPPING out is definitly real and working. I was skeptical about flipping the classroom but after hearing and seeing people that have done it, I am definitly a believer. This summer I will begin working to record my lessons so I can spend more time in class on discussions, reflections, and meaningful work. My big argument against it was what if students don't have internet at home? Two options: One, give them a flash drive to view on a computer. Two, ff they don't have a computer, burn a DVD and have them watch it on their DVD player. Should you FLIP your classroom?


We as humans now live in the era of hyper-connectivity. For me, I had a blast using the #PETEC13 tag while in sessions seeing what people were Tweeting. Twitter is the real deal for educators to learn and build a PLN  (Personal Learning Network). It is just amazing how no one really watches and listens to a presentation anymore using a notepad to take notes. Everyone was on an iPad, smartphone, and laptops. We are becoming masters at multitasking. If you are interesting in learning more about Twitter, here is a link to
everything you need to know and a guide for teachers.

The last presentation I had the opportunity to sit in on was my favorite. Matt Bergman of Hershey Milton School killed it in sharing ways teachers can use Livebinders. Here is a link to his presentation and website Learn, Lead, Grow that has all of the information. The most important thing Matt is doing is making his content accessible 24/7 365 to students which is key in today's learning environment. He also shares some great recipes to reaching ALL learners.

Did you attend the conference? If so, what did you learn that I missed? Any other cool sites we should know about? Thanks.

-RD