Hot Open Technologies Sessions at CUE '08!

Hello CUE Attendees! In just a few weeks, another exciting CUE conference will get underway. I'm looking forward to another enlightening experience at the west coast center of education technology innovation! I'm particularly excited about the strong showing in the Open Source Pavilion, of which I will be a part. This year, I'll be hosting two sessions centered around open source, which I hope you will attend.

My first talk will be a "Pop-up" session on Thursday evening, March 6 in the Open Source Pavilion, Exhibit Hall / Palm Springs Convention Center at 4:30p entitled Open Source Classroom Applications that are Ready for Prime Time. In this session, I'll take attendees on a whirlwind tour of some great FREE SOFTWARE that is ready to be used in the classroom today! Applications run the gamut from e-learning to desktop publishing, graphics to social networking. This session will consider specific examples of the "best" open source applications being used, and how they might be integrated into the curricula.

My second talk, which will be on Friday, March 7 at 11:30a, is entitled Safe Social Networking Using Open Source Tools, also in the Open Source Pavilion, Exhibit Hall / Palm Springs Convention Center. Through this session, I'll demonstrate how Saugus has used the open source Elgg project to create a vibrant, media rich social network for staff and students, with over 875 active users. Learn how to take blogs, file sharing, video, podcasts, and widgets from external sites, wrap them in a social network, and create an environment that's safe, effective, easy to use, and, most importantly, engaging and educational. Explore the possibilities and discover the impact of an education-oriented social network with me on Friday afternoon! (For more on this topic, read my article from the February '08 edition if ISTE's Learning & Leading with Technology entitled Social Networking for the K-12 Set.)

There will be plenty of other great open technology sessions as well - be sure to check the schedule. Watch this space for presentation materials immediately following the sessions. I look forward to seeing you there!