VSTE

Virginia Society for Technology in Education

Conference

VSTE 18: Assistive Technology – My Early Christmas Gift

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With telescopic precision, Matt Newton used his VSTE 2018 session as a platform to spotlight one of many Assistive Technology Resources: Read and Write.  As a matter of fact, it was the only presentation which specifically focused on accommodations and modifications for the special education population.

Matt prefaced that he is not a representative for Google Read & Write.  He is a T/TAC coordinator who has witnessed the powerful benefits of the Read & Write extension.  In a matter of 60 minutes,  Matt expressed how the awesomeness of this tool could have lasting effects for students who struggle with reading comprehension.  This app is designed to help struggling readers grasp the content.  This is not to say that Read & Write is the “That’s It. That’s All Folks” app for struggling students.

As educators, we know we have to find what works best for our students.  I remember one student who was given an iPad as an accommodation.  The thing is…he didn’t like the iPad!  Regardless of its function or the number of apps which were downloaded on his iPad, he just refused to use it.

As Matt alluded to in his session, the best Assistive Technology in the world is the one that the student is comfortable with and enjoys using it.

Success is gained when teaching and learning become enjoyable and not dreadful.  So, if you have not done so already, check out Read & Write.  Your students just might thank you for it.  And if they don’t, it’s all good. There’s a galaxy of Assistive Technology just waiting to be discovered.

Matt Newton is a Technology Coordinator in the Training and Technical Assistance Center (T/TAC) at Virginia Tech. His VSTE presentation is here and more resources are linked from his conference presentation page.

This post was written by Nicci Doud, a Special Education Teacher for Prince William County.

VSTE2018: Pre-Conference Workshops Announced

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The Annual Technology in Education Conference will be held December 2 - 4, 2018, at the Virginia Beach Convention Center, Virginia Beach, Virginia.  Whether you are a first-time attendee or a seasoned veteran you will find the conference full of information ready to take back to your school or workplace.

This year, VSTE will be adding a pre-conference day on Saturday, December 1, 2018, from 9 AM to 3 PM. This pre-conference will include a variety of longer, hands-on workshops led by certified and seasoned instructors. Check out the schedule here and registration will open on Monday, September 17, 2018. The pre-conference will be held at W.T. Cooke Elementary School in Virginia Beach.

Check out the conference website for more information.

It Won’t Be All Work at VSTE 2017

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The best reasons to attend the VSTE Conference are, of course, the many, many opportunities to learn and collaborate with your colleagues. But that doesn't mean we can't have a little fun during our three days in Roanoke.

To that end, we hope everyone will be able to join us for the annual VSTE Karaoke Night party. Sing along to your favorite tunes or just enjoy watching your friends warm up for their Voice audition. Either way, it is always a great evening.

Karaoke B-52s

Since our theme this year is about the superhero that is inside everyone, we also invite you to do a little cosplay and come to the party in costume. Whether you are channeling Batman or Ms. Marvel, or maybe you choose to go the alter-ego route and show up as Peter Parker or Diana Prince, this is always a highlight of the conference.

Galactic Stinkeye

While the VSTE Conference is primarily about feeding your hunger for knowledge, we don’t ignore your need for real food (and snacks, of course). VSTE is one of the few conferences you will attend that goes all out to keep you fed.

Your Conference registration includes lunch all three days, snacks and beverages every afternoon, and lots of M&Ms, the official VSTE candy. And, since we are at the Hotel Roanoke, keep an eye out in the afternoon for their famous candied bacon. Because we know everything is better with bacon. But pay attention since this treat always goes quickly.

Bacon

Registration for the 2017 VSTE Conference is now open but spaces are going fast. Because our Roanoke venue is smaller than in Virginia Beach, the number of people we can accommodate is also smaller. The conference will sell out.

So don’t delay. Register now and we’ll see you December 3 - 5 for lots of learning and fun in Roanoke.

Learning Together at the VSTE Conference

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Attending the VSTE Conference is a great learning experience.

Attending with a team from your school or district can make that experience even better.

VSTE member Margaret Sisler came to the 2016 Conference in Virginia Beach with more than fifty of her colleagues and reflected on those three days in this post from last December.

Learning Together

Last week each school in our pyramid sent a team of educators (a mix of admin, teachers, tech coaches, and tech specialists) to the Virginia Society for Technology in Education (VSTE) annual conference.  This is our state conference, attended by over 1200 educators from all parts and regions of our state.  Presenters are educators, administrators, tech coaches, vendors and cover so many topics I couldn’t even list them all here!

I’ve been to VSTE many times and serve on the Outreach Committee.  I usually attend on my own and present a session or two.  Attending with a team was both awesome and sooo different than what I was used to!

Divide & Conquer: When I’ve attended on my own (or with a friend or two from another school), I’m usually very conflicted about what sessions to attend.  I was presenting 4 times this year, so that meant 4 sessions that I couldn’t attend and there were so many great offerings!  When there was a session I was super interested in, I asked if someone on my team could present.  It was incredible to work together this way because it meant we learned and gathered the resources from all of the sessions that anyone on our team attended.  We used a note-taking template that I got from my #TOSAchat friends.  I made a copy of the template for our team and we all added our notes to the template as we went.  My team took notes on one google slide deck.  Other teams from our pyramid took notes collaboratively in google as well and we all shared those notes.

Relationship Building: Being together with teachers, admin, tech coaches and tech specialists from my school and these 9 other schools allowed us to relax and really get to know each other and build connections.  THIS is what going to these conferences does for me.  I’ve now got this huge network of people that I can reach out to.  I KNOW that I don’t have the answers to every question, but I bet someone in this group does!!   We were also able to connect with folks from around the state who are deep in the work we are all doing.  It’s so interesting to hear this wider perspective.  We often get bogged down by the district way of doing it and this helps us to open that up view of things!

Read the rest of the post on Margaret's site, Edutechnically Speaking. VSTE thanks her for allowing us to share her experience with our members.

Margaret is an Instructional Technology Coach in Chantilly, Virginia.  She works in a large high school with over 3000 students and is passionate about building relationships with staff and students, engagement, Google Apps for Education and innovative teaching ideas! She is a former elementary teacher and has been a Tech Coach in both Elementary and High Schools. In addition to her blog, Margaret frequently shares her thoughts on Twitter: @TechyMargaret.

Registration for the 2017 VSTE Conference, December 3 - 5 in Roanoke, is filling fast. Plan now to join us.

If you write about learning and technology on your blog, related to the Conference or not, and would like to share one of your posts here at VSTE.org, we would love to hear from you.  Send us the link and your email address, and we will get back to you very quickly.

Playing in the Halls at the VSTE Conference

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Most education conferences have a typical structure, with one or two keynote talks for all attendees and the bulk of the time devoted to hour long lecture/demo sessions of varying sizes. Tech education conferences also feature longer, hands-on sessions.

At the VSTE Conference, we've been trying to shake up that model to encourage our members to interact with each other throughout the three days.


In the past few years we have been setting activities out in the halls, inviting people to stop, participate, ask questions and play. Like playing with robots or making collaborative music. Stay as long as you like with no set time commitment.

At this year's conference in Roanoke, we are planning two areas in the conference hall for these kinds of informal, interactive activities. Look for them in the program, or just stop by and join the learning.

In addition, we will be adding something new in the form of mini-unconferences. In the style of an edcamp, these will be sessions where the topics will be decided by you and the format is about conversation, rather than presentation.

All of this and much, much more will be packed into three days of great learning and collaboration at the Hotel Roanoke, December 3 - 5. Registration is now open, and it includes options for one or two days if you are unable to join us for the full conference.

We look forward to seeing you at VSTE 2017!