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WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP – Kathi Kersznowski, one of the Washington Township Public Schools’ Technology Integration Specialists, recently was able to attend the International Society for Technology in Education four-day mega conference in San Antonio, Texas. The ISTE annual conference convenes in different U.S. cities each year. There are generally more than 17,000 attendees from countries all over the world, almost 1,000 sessions from which to choose, and hundreds of the biggest and most cutting-edge vendors. ISTE is known internationally as the biggest and the best conference for educational technology.
“I love everything about it,” Kersznowski said. “I attended ISTE in Philadelphia two years ago, and Denver last year, and San Antonio this year. It’s an incredible conference – a true gift of four days of intense professional development – and I seriously take advantage of every single moment. Without a doubt, it allows me to stay current with the very latest in Ed Tech, which is critical. It is literally my whole job to know the latest and the greatest tools, sites, apps, methods, pedagogies, and products so that I can support the faculty, administration and students in Washington Township.”
Kersznowski said that her favorite thing about the conference, which she voluntarily attends, is the connections she makes – the networking and the people.
“Anyone who knows me knows that I am intensely active in the Ed Tech community on Twitter, other social media channels, and through various conferences throughout the year,” she said. “ISTE gives me a chance to connect and learn from so many of my online professional learning network (PLN). I can often learn as much from a random hallway conversation, elevator chat, or impromptu snack break with an ISTE friend as I might learn in a formal session. The vendors have products to sell, sure, but they’re also intensely invested in giving me personalized instructional demos of software, hardware, etc. I get to bring all of this back to Washington Township and share it.”
The biggest trends at ISTE this year? Kersznowski said it was everything and anything having to do with STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math).
“STEM, STEAM and the Makerspace movement were pervasive at ISTE this year,” she said. “Last year it was 3D printing, but this year it’s grown more inclusive: engineering, design thinking, robotics, and especially coding – starting with elementary schools. There were sessions and vendors and demos all over the place, and I’m thrilled about that. It’s amazing to see what other schools are doing with some pretty awesome computer science and STEM activities with even their youngest learners.”
The other pervasive theme at ISTE this year was “flipped” and “blended” learning.
“Almost every presenter, vendor, keynote speaker, and attendee had something to say or share about making learning more personalized, individualized, choice-based, and accessible to every student,” Kersznowski said. “There were honestly thousands of ideas and products to support these movements. I tried to learn or gather as much as I could, but there’s just no way to learn it all in four days. I had intense FOMO (fear of missing out), but I also have this incredible PLN via Twitter who are already promising to share resources and continue learning together.”
“Attendance at ISTE is ultimately a gift to Washington Township,” she added. “I’m just a conduit between the brilliant resources at the conference and the willing and eager staff, students, administrators, and families back home. That’s why I go every year – because I love learning, but I love sharing that learning even more. It’s a win-win, and I’m already really looking forward to ISTE ’18 in Chicago.”
Above is a photo of Kathi Kersznowski at the ISTE conference in San Antonio.
Techie Travels to Conference
District Technology Specialist Kathi Kersznowski Attends National Conference on Technology Education
“I love everything about it,” Kersznowski said. “I attended ISTE in Philadelphia two years ago, and Denver last year, and San Antonio this year. It’s an incredible conference – a true gift of four days of intense professional development – and I seriously take advantage of every single moment. Without a doubt, it allows me to stay current with the very latest in Ed Tech, which is critical. It is literally my whole job to know the latest and the greatest tools, sites, apps, methods, pedagogies, and products so that I can support the faculty, administration and students in Washington Township.”
Kersznowski said that her favorite thing about the conference, which she voluntarily attends, is the connections she makes – the networking and the people.
“Anyone who knows me knows that I am intensely active in the Ed Tech community on Twitter, other social media channels, and through various conferences throughout the year,” she said. “ISTE gives me a chance to connect and learn from so many of my online professional learning network (PLN). I can often learn as much from a random hallway conversation, elevator chat, or impromptu snack break with an ISTE friend as I might learn in a formal session. The vendors have products to sell, sure, but they’re also intensely invested in giving me personalized instructional demos of software, hardware, etc. I get to bring all of this back to Washington Township and share it.”
The biggest trends at ISTE this year? Kersznowski said it was everything and anything having to do with STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math).
“STEM, STEAM and the Makerspace movement were pervasive at ISTE this year,” she said. “Last year it was 3D printing, but this year it’s grown more inclusive: engineering, design thinking, robotics, and especially coding – starting with elementary schools. There were sessions and vendors and demos all over the place, and I’m thrilled about that. It’s amazing to see what other schools are doing with some pretty awesome computer science and STEM activities with even their youngest learners.”
The other pervasive theme at ISTE this year was “flipped” and “blended” learning.
“Almost every presenter, vendor, keynote speaker, and attendee had something to say or share about making learning more personalized, individualized, choice-based, and accessible to every student,” Kersznowski said. “There were honestly thousands of ideas and products to support these movements. I tried to learn or gather as much as I could, but there’s just no way to learn it all in four days. I had intense FOMO (fear of missing out), but I also have this incredible PLN via Twitter who are already promising to share resources and continue learning together.”
“Attendance at ISTE is ultimately a gift to Washington Township,” she added. “I’m just a conduit between the brilliant resources at the conference and the willing and eager staff, students, administrators, and families back home. That’s why I go every year – because I love learning, but I love sharing that learning even more. It’s a win-win, and I’m already really looking forward to ISTE ’18 in Chicago.”
Above is a photo of Kathi Kersznowski at the ISTE conference in San Antonio.
- WTPS -