Events

Save the Date: VSTE in Second Life, May 16, 2022, 8 PM

May 2, 2022 by vsteadmin

Using Student's Creativity and Collaboration in a Virtual World Class

VSTE Presentation - May 16, 2022 5 PM SLT on Second Life

Becky Adams, Ph.D./Elli Pinion, SL
Faculty at the University of New Mexico

Becky is a former K-12 classroom teacher for 11 wonderful years. She became the Director for Online Course Development and Faculty Support for the University of New Mexico for 13 years, retiring a few years ago, but still is still teaching faculty. She has taught for UNM and New Mexico State University, where she developed and taught an Early Childhood and Tech online course. She received the Blackboard Catalyst Exemplary Course Award, and UNM Best Practices Course Advisory Golden PAW Award, and has been certified by Quality Matters, where she is a Master Reviewer.

Becky writes, "I am teaching in SL because of the amazing experience of a Middle School teacher and her class. I will share her experience and how it informed my decisions in using Virtual World technology to teach. This course, which just ended last week, is taught using social-constructivist theory, and collaborative and project-based learning approaches, which work well in K-12. The creative, flexible, and easy to build in the environment of Second Life is an excellent technology for this course. Students are introduced to teaching and training in Virtual Worlds by sharing research in teaching best practices, as well as current educational technologies that concentrate on Virtual Worlds and Virtual Reality. A final project is used as the assessment tool where they build a project with a group to teach a topic of their choice."

This event is free and open to the public. It will be held in Second Life, a virtual world. You will need a free account to participate. More information about connecting will be provided closer to the event's date. If you have questions, contact Dr. William Schmactenberg.

April Education Committee Webinar: Wakelet

April 13, 2022 by vsteadmin

Join VSTE's Education Committee on April 28, 2022, at 7 PM, for Improving Classroom Organization, Collaboration, and Creativity with Wakelet with Tisha Poncio, Digital Learning Specialist, from Wakelet.

Wakelet is a solution for teachers students, parents, and administrators as an easy and safe way to collaborate, communicate, and create while engaging students K-12. Users can organize content, create lesson plans, implement digital citizenship skills, and showcase school activities with stakeholders! This session will cover an intro to Wakelet, basic account setup, an overview of student accounts, and using Wakelet for meaningful integration in any learning environment.

This webinar is free but registration is required.

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcvcOyuqj0iHN1YBlPBB3EpXtSYVpUB4IvP

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Partner Webinar: Drive EdTech ROI With Evidence

March 15, 2022 by vsteadmin

Are you ready to transform your edtech ecosystem from the wild west to a modern, effective and strategically-aligned model of efficiency? Join LearnPlatform on April 5, at 1 PM, to learn how you can be effective and efficient.

In this webinar, Louis McDonald of Fauquier County Public Schools and Carl Moore of LearnPlatform will discuss how districts can:

Uncover what digital learning resources are in use across their district to identify trends, eliminate redundancies and understand ROI.
Protect student data and support cybersecurity efforts by building data privacy and other compliance requirements into evaluation criteria.
Generate the evidence necessary to gain a comprehensive understanding of which edtech tools are actually improving student outcomes, for which student groups, and under what conditions.

This webinar is free and open to all. Registration is required.

Use this link to register.

LearnPlatform is a valued VSTE Corporate Partner.

Upcoming Webinars from VSTE

March 15, 2022 by vsteadmin

Join VSTE's Education Committee, led by Board Director Tim Taylor, for its monthly meeting on Thursday, March 24, at 7 PM. We will be joined by Ron Shultz, PhD, Associate Professor of Teacher Education at
Eastern Mennonite University. Dr. Shultz wil, discuss Culturally Responsive Teaching in a Digital Age:

Regardless of the school division, it is evident that the cultural demographics of our students are becoming increasingly diverse. This requires a different perspective and approach for developing relationships with students and engaging them in the learning process. Simultaneously, technology impacts both our society in general, as well as the classroom experience, in ways that we have never experienced before. How might one inform the other? Join us for a conversation about how an increased understanding of culturally responsive teaching can more effectively inform technology instruction.

This meeting is free and open to all. Registration is required.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Join VSTE's Outreach Committee, led by Board Director Chanel Alford, for a Cybersecurity for Educators webinar on Thursday, March 31, at 7 PM.

Has your email or bank account been hacked? Did they take your personal information or alter your computer? Come to this webinar to learn about cybersecurity and how to protect yourself from hackers. Here’s your chance to ask the experts questions!

About CySecSoL:

CySecSol, LLC navigates networking, education, certifications, experience and designs a path that caters to the individual and not just the company. CySecSol LLC will get you to your goal of learning cybersecurity quick, fast and easy.

This webinar is free and open to all. Registration is required.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Register Now for LeadingEd Forum 2022

February 28, 2022 by vsteadmin

Join VSTE and the Virginia Department of Education for the Leading Ed Forum, March 23, 2022, at New College Institute, Martinsville, Virginia.

We will welcome Charles Chuck Moss, Director of Innovation and Development, Dinwiddie County, to kick off the day encouraging us to find our awesome as a leader. From there, breakout sessions will include:

What’s New with Google? with Kim Lane Clark, Program Manager, Google
Virginia’s Whole-of-Commonwealth Approach to Cybersecurity with Chris Cruz,Cybersecurity Program Manager, Homeland Security Division, Office of the Secretary of Public Safety & Homeland Security
Student Data Privacy with Lisa Waters, Cambridge Public Schools, Penny Murrary, Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community
Digital Accessibility Features in a Nutshell with Dr. John Hendron, Project Manager of Professional Learning & Organizational Development, VDOE, and Sarah Warnick, Director of Products & Services, Virtual VA
Authentic Leadership with Wesley Williams, Executive Director of Technology, and Laurie Seidel, Cultivating Awareness & Resilience in Education (CARE) Facilitator, Roanoke Public Schools.
Virtual Learning in Virginia: Here and Now! with Dr. Meg Foley & Reggie Fox, VDOE
What’s #GoOpenVA with Jean Weller, VDOE
Student Data Privacy Continued: Working With Marketplace Providers – Common Expectations are the Key with Larry Fruth and Steve Smith, Access 4 Learning (A4L) Community

Kelly Calhoun Williams, Ed.D., Vice President Analyst in Gartner Research will discuss Top Trends Impacting K-12 Education in 2022 for the event keynote, followed up by Dan Stoneman, Ph.D. Executive Partner with Executive Programs, Gartner, connecting the trends with instruction.

This hybrid event will host face to face attendees and sponsors. Virtual attendees will access the conference via VSTE's virtual conference platform. Cost for both attendees is just $50.

The face to face event will include a continental breakfast and lunch. Face to face seating is limited due to ongoing health and safety concerns. If you plan to attend in person, you should register as soon as possible.

This event is supported by VSTE's Corporate Partners: