#SXSWEDU2019

I find writing to be a great way for me to synthesize my learning and reflect on my experiences.  This year, I had the opportunity to travel to Austin Texas for the SXSW EDU Conference.  I arrived on Sunday, March 3, to begin 4 days of learning and connecting with thousands of educators and thought leaders from around the world. On the line to register, I met Leland Melvin. Of course, I didn't know who he was at first, but the lady registering  him outed him by loudly.  So, what do you do then.. you take a selfie with him, buy his book, and see him speak.  ​ I will talk about his message and impact later in this post.  

So... back to Sunday evening.  The  Special Olympics opened the evening with a reception that featured a series of writable glass walls in aa large conference room space where participants could add their response to the question, "What does inclusion mean to you?"  We also had the opportunity to talk to representatives and teachers who explained the Unified Chamption Schools program.  After the reception, it was time to start planning the week.  Just to put this conference into perspective,  the schedule is a 164 page with a table of contents.  There are so many choices, it is overwhelming.  There is even an app to help you organize your day.  

Day 1:
I started the day with a walking tour of Austin.  It began early and we saw several sites such as William Sydney Porter's home. For those of you who don't know him, he has written many stories including The Gift of the Magi and The Ransom of Red Chief to name two under the name O. Henry. It was cold and I cut the tour short... but not before learning that the guide works for a company called Tipster Tours.  This company takes people on free, no reservation, walking tours in cities around the country. From their website, "You pay what you like after the walk. You decide. We truly believe that if we do our best to create a great experience for people…without demanding anything in return…good things happen. Positive energy is created, which is beneficial to all!" So Cool!

---

Back at the conference, I decided that a good place to start was at the "First Time to SXSW EDU Meet Up."  This session was packed and led by Dan Ryder (@WickedDecent) and Lakita Edwards (@ArtsHumana).  The session was packed with newcomers like me and the facilitators provided opportunities for us to meet and talk.
Additionally, they shared tips like:

• Explore the Festival
• Experience Austin
• Prepare to be amazed and catch #onlyatSXSWEDU moments
• Share the Spark / Tell your story 
• Ask your fellow attendees what brings them to SXSWEDU
• Honor the power of the personal connection
• Embrace the Arts 
• and much more... 

   I was ready... at least I thought so. Lakita left us with several thoughts: I filled my schedule (remember it is 164 pages long) and off I went.  The exhibit hall, AI and Machine Learning, Remixing Virtual Reality (VR), OnRamps to College Success, Using Technology to drive Pre-AP success, and Timeless Learning, a Campfire formatted conversation with Pam Moran (@pammoran) and Ira Socol (@irasocol).  What a whirlwind of a take... I was completely overwhelmed and felt like I was running from workshop to workshop so as not to miss anything that looked interesting... While that was not effective, I did reflect on many takeaways:

1. ​​​Students who take dual credit classes are 2x more likely to enroll in college
2. There are about 300,000 AI practitioners and researchers worldwide, but millions of roles available (Forbes, June 2018)
3. We must leverage and improve our academic networks with colleges.  Football coaches and Band directors do it,  show should we.
4. Pre AP courses will be available to all schools in 2020.  
5. VUCA stands for Volatile, Unpredictable, Complex, and Ambiguous, and it descibes the world we live in.  This world requires us to be open, embrace possibilites, be transformative, and be imaginative.
6. Noise attracts kids, and repels [some] adults.
7. No two schools should replicate the exact same thing as there are not the same.
8. Children from poverty know different, not less.

---

" Connect, Reflect, and Have Fun! "
~Lakita Edwards (@ArtsHumana)

Day 2
Well, after a crazy day one, I did some reflection.  I perused the catalog and scaled down my expectations... not my expectattions for learning, but rather than breadth, I wanted depth. 
​My Day Two Schedule:

• Keynote: Turning Challenges Into Opportunities: The Ashesi Way
  • Patrick Awuah Jr., delivered the morning keynote where he described his return to Africa to create a new future there with a focus on changing the leadership core.  His focus was on student government and creating ownership of the mission.  Identifying the problems that existed an enacting an honor pedge that would not tolerated corruption and unethical behavior was where they began and transparency and collaboration with institutions outside of Africa using technology to amplify human behavior.There focus has become the need to teach love, compassion, ethics and how to ask questions - how to learn for a lifetime.    

• Coffee Break
  • The Coffee break that took place daily inside the "Meet up Pavilion" and was a great opportunity to grab a cup of coffee and connect with like minded educators. 
• How do We Get Effective Principals at Scale?
  • This session was facilitated Lora Dever, a graduate student whose research is focused on developing effective Principals.  She has concluded that leadership matters and that principals' influence is second only to teachers at the school level.  We need to "hold each other able" and assume collective responsibility for the improvement of our schools.  

---

• Inclusive Coding for Kids with Special Needs 
  • Christopher Harris (@Principal_H) and Jennifer Duda (@DynamicDuda338) along with Andre Van Rooyen, a Neuropsychologist facilitated this discussion and deep dive into the strategies for inclusive coding, a language that transcends reading abilities.  They offered several resources including Tynker, Anki Cozmo, Sphero, Parrot Mambo, and Ozobot Evo among others in order to encourage "errorless learning."  They even suggested an trip to a local Apple store to help facilitate learning.  Start as a group where the teacher models, suggested Duda, and then fade the prompts until students are independent.  These two have long been members of my Twitter PLN and it was great to meet them face to face.  

---

• Distraction? Educational Esports as a Learning Tool
  • Esports are growing in their popularity across the country. It enables learning while students get to do what they enjoy.  UC Irvine currently offers 13 full scholarships for esports.  Online clinics are available on Twitch that support the ELA based curriculum available on www.esportsfed.org.  Like traditional sports, esports also teach students persistence, grit, and scientific reasoning.  Current research shows a strong connection between video games and learning.  The club components include: club charter; mission, vision and values; code of conduct; toolkits; competition; coaching; curriculum and online workshops; beyond the game challenges; fundraising; and a network. 

• The Right Stuff is the Never Give Up Stuff
  • ​​​Leland Melvin (@Astro_Flow) was simply amazing. His inspiring story focused on his journey in life that began with his mother reading books to him such as The Little Engine that Could and Curious George and moved to the chemistry kit he was given as a child that sparked his curiosity.  "You never know what you are going to do in life, and never know the skills you will need," he said. 

This attitude led him to become an at NASA, an organization he said, works really well together.  From there, he experienced tremendous challenges, including losing his hearing in a pool training exercise, that he overcame to be able to make several space flights.  He encouraged the audience to use what kids love in order to teach them more effectively.  His website, lelandmelvin.com has more about his current work as well as many inspiring videos.  Don't forget to check out the "stupid astronaut tricks." And finally, don't forget the "man in the yellow hat" from Curious George who symbolically represents the people in your life you constant lift you up and are there for you. ​

• The Science of Science Podcasts 
  • Nate Butkus, an 8-year old young man has developed a passion for inspiring kids with his science based podcasts. His show is called "The Show About Science" He does his research on YouTube and has done interviews with many current scientist while also appearing on national television. He too reminded the audience to never let anything stand in your way.  https://soundcloud.com/the-show-about-science

i Stands for Experiential Entrepreneurial Semester

• Ranked #10 by The Princeton Review, Tec de Monterrey College in Mexico focuses on entrepreneurial development. The focus for students is to start a business, using their passions, in a semester long effort where the class meeting times are modified to facilitate this model of learning.  There is also a strong mentoring component that has led to success. It follows the Tec21 Model that assures the development of solid, comprehensive exit competencies that will help to solve, in a creative, strategic manner, the challenges of the present and those the student will face in the future.  The exit competencies are:​
  1. Evaluate - the coherence, relevance and risk of the business model
  2. Integrate - necessary resources for the development of a product or functional service
  3. Specify - the value proposition through the development of a product or functional service
  4. Implement - customer acquisition strategies
  5. Communicate - entrepreneurial project effectively to clients, investors, mentors, and work team 
  6. Integrate - personal and entrepreneurial team strengths 

Day 3
Day 3 was going to be a day of networking with educators, visiting the vast exhibit hall, seeing several speakers , and then engaging in two hands-on workshops.

• Young People Win: Rethinking Advocacy in a New Era
  • This presentation was a conversation between news reporter Dan Rather (@danrather), and David Hogg (@davidhogg111), co-founder of March for Our Lives. The conversation focused around what David called "sensible gun control" and community based violence intervention, two of the goals of the March for Our Lives Movement.  He pointed out several facts that included regulations on toy guns being more regulated than the real ones as well as the lack of research funding around guns and laws that protect gun manufacturers.  When asked to be objective about what he has accomplished as well as what he is most proud of, David pointed new laws that enable courts to disarm people as well as the rise of youth voter turnout.  Dan Rather ended the meeting with a favorite quote of his, "Hearts can inspire other hearts with their fire."
• A Gift of Literacy: A Conversation with LeVar Burton
  • Reading and literacy are a birthright according to LeVar Burton (@levarburton)as he talked about the importance of reading in his home growing up.  Not only did his mom read to him, but she modeled reading for him. "If a child can read, they can accomplish anything," said Burton. Skybrary, a newly released app is a supplement to the reading experience available in the app store, developed by LeVar and his team and now part of the Reading is Fundamental network. Our love of reading is cultivated and connected to our passions. and we need to give all students both choice and access.  
• Using Tattoos to Teach the Essay Writing Process
  • This workshop, presented by Jonathan Chin was intended to teach the group exactly what the title indicated... 
  • The Task: with your group, please design a meaningful tattoo for me.  It will go on my forearm and/or hand.  It can be any size you feel appropriate, and any color among the sharpies we have, etc.
  • Ground Rules: (1) you can use your smart phone or device to look me up.  Note: I go by both Jon Chin and Jonathan Chin. (2) Your group can ask me two questions total.  Make sure they are worth asking. (3) You can use scrap paper to sketch and develop your ides.  In the last 10 minutes, nominate one artist to transfer the tattoo to me.  
  • The idea behind the task was to introduce students to low and high stakes tasks, asking questions, using primary sources, online research and source credibility, engaging creativity and the visual sense, and symbolism, all while empowering students by changing the power dynamic
• Developing Creativity in Every Classroom (Presented by Adobe) 
  • This workshop, was a hands-on workshop around design thinking.  The design challenge was: How might educators encourage students to identify creative solutions to real world problems in their community? We were reminded that 72% of hiring managers say that students aren't prepared, lacking communication, creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration skills (Adecco's "State of the Economy and Employment Survey) 
  • Visit the Stanford d.School 
  • Stoke Deck
  • The Ever Forward Club
  • The Masks We All Wear - Ashanti Branch TexMarin
  • Additionally, explore the following Apps... Spark Post, Spark Video, and Spark Page

"Limits force us to rethink how we are working and push us to new heights of creativity."
~ Ed Catmull

Finally... The exhibit hall was vast and featured everything from start-ups to colleges and universities, new technology products, furniture, and a mobile fab lab.  Several of my stops included:

• 3Doodler
• Brainly
• Breathe for Change
• Catchbox, Inc.
• Edmentum
• H2O for Life
• Muzo Furniture
• Noise212 Labs, LLC

• Oculus
• Sketchup
• Sli.do
• Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools
• V/S America
• zSpace, Inc.

---

Day 4 
The last day of the conference began and ended for me with Jennifer Gonzalez's (@cultofpedagogy) keynote, and she was nothing short of spectacular.  Her talk (on her birthday by the way) was titled "The Aerodynamics of Exceptional Schools" and used the forces that work on an airplane (lift, weight, thrust, and drag) as an analogy to the forces that affect school progress. 
To effect change, she offered nine tips once you define some really precise goals.  In the picture, you can see the differences between you plan and reality, but notice that the little flags can be interpreted as little victories along the way rather than obstacles.   ​

Build in time for bumps along the way.

• Take a Breath - Instead of rushing to implement a new idea, slow down and take time to get clear on what you want.  What problem will this solve?  What are the obstacles? Do I have any proof that this idea will work?  Can I find a guide? Can I get advice from someone else who has already done something like this? What is my long-term vision; a big "why"?
• Find Allies - Introducing a new idea is hard to do alone. You will have greater success if your on a team, even if it is a team of two.  See the first follower video below for some inspiration to help multiply your enthusiasm.

• Set Precise Goals - Without precise goals, all we have are dreams.  The SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely) model, coupled with backward design, will increase our success rate. 
• Expect Bumps - Our plans never end up following the smooth path we plan.  If we expect bumps, we will be less surprised by setbacks and can build in buffer time along the way. 
• Invite - Ask questions rather than giving directives. What do you need to make this thing happen? Try voluntary piloting or offer choices to get the ball rolling.  
• Validate - recognize and affirm the feelings of another.  It is not the same as agreeing with them but rather a way to acknowledge that these thoughts and feelings are real for them.
• Be Transparent - when you are transparent about your goals, your work is more approachable and instead of feeling threatened, people will be curious, ask questions, and join you.  Transparency can be in the form of a newsletter, blog, video, meeting, etc.
• Praise - Find ways to pull people in based on their strengths.
• Dig Deep - When you are tired, and want to give up, start thinking like an elite athlete and dig deep; if you really believe in what you are doing, it's worth the fight!

Jennifer's full presentation can be seen here: https://youtu.be/3s_NkSEWJZg 

The Restaurants & Culture

Some new books for the reading list:

The sun sets on a week of learning! Thank you SXSWEDU...