It's time to register! Flat Classroom Conference Japan 2013!

[Julie Lindsay]

We are working hard in the background to bring you an amazing experience, the next Flat Classroom Conference, to be held at the Yokohama International School, Japan.

Why come to Japan?

This event is for STUDENTS and TEACHERS. It is a challenge-based process conference that joins all learners together in different ways. It is a chance to connect and work with other like-minded people who are ready to share ideas and create action projects for change in the world. It is a fast-paced event that keeps you moving, talking, collaborating, creating, and finally celebrating. It is the START of collaborations between schools that will be sustained beyond this 3-day gathering! It is an event that not only talks about global collaboration and global education but MODELS it!

Theme

In order to recognize and appreciate the challenges facing our host country, Japan, our Conference theme will be: How do we help each other? We are fortunate to have very close relations with two intermediate schools in the tsunami-hit Tohoku region of Japan, as well the Tohoku International School. We would like to highlight the opportunities that we have to support others, in our local environments. Participants will be asked to develop project ideas that respond to the conference theme, while working in small groups.

Students

Students will work in teams (created by the Flat Classroom Conference Committee) of mixed school groupings to develop a solution to the conference theme. As part of this process they will:

• brainstorm ideas
• learn about the storytelling process
• pitch early ideas to an audience for formative feedback
• develop their ideas more fully
• follow the storyboarding process
• create a multimedia product to express their solution
• present their multimedia product to an audience to determine which teams will present at the final plenary
• plan and facilitate the final plenary

Teachers

Teachers will also work in teams (created by the Flat Classroom Conference Committee) of mixed school groupings to develop a project (either for individual classrooms, or for a whole school) that addresses the conference theme. The focus for teachers will be on pitching that idea to their school leaders. In addition to developing this project idea, teachers will have the opportunity for:

• Technology BootCamp: tool and skill-based training on topics like multimedia tools (like iMovie, MovieMaker and VoiceThread), blogging with students, wikis for centralizing resources, social media (like Twitter and Facebook) for connecting with others.
• Reverse Mentor Pitching: an early pitch session with students as the audience to get their feedback and continue to refine the project idea.

Technology

This conference is a technology-rich experience. All participants are expected to bring their own laptops, and to admin rights to their machine (check with your school if you’re not sure). We’ll use tools like:

• Social Media: Twitter, Facebook, Ning
• Wikis
• Blogs
• GarageBand, Audacity or SoundCloud
• iMovie or Movie Maker
• VoiceThread
• Flickr and iPhoto

For those participants that are currently working in a 1:1 environment, the Flat Classroom Conference provides a model for what your school could (perhaps should) be doing on a regular basis. The use of technology in this environment demonstrates the level of engagement and the technical expertise that students are able to achieve in a technology-rich and relevant project-based environment.

Tell your friends, pass this message on! Tell you administration! Tell your teachers! This event is life-changing, unique and not to be missed in 2013! Come to a conference that will change your ideas and practice about collaborative learning.

REGISTER your interest NOW!

Questions? Email [e-mail]

We hope to see you in Japan!

Julie Lindsay

Director and co-founder, Flat Classroom Projects and Flat Classroom Conference and Live Events Inc.