Kamehameha Schools Distance Learning (KSDL) Owau

They say everything is bigger in Texas, and that’s definitely true of ISTE in San Antonio. I have been to Ed Tech conferences before, but none with 20,000 people from 70 countries, all in one place for one thing: to get inspiration and ideas on how we can improve education through the creative use of technology. And there were a lot of ideas and even more inspiration to be shared. A few stood out for me. 1. Jane McGonigal, a keynote speaker, truly won me over to gaming with her inspirational speech about how gaming can improve the world. She talked about how gamers experience positive feelings in every game that are in short supply in the real world. Hence the name of her book, Reality is Broken , which I immediately purchased and devoured on the flight home. Her thesis is that if we take the 1 billion gamers in the world and set them loose on games that can positively impact our real world, we can change the world. I signed up for ChoreWars as soon as I got home, a game she

Since working at KS I have had the privilege of attending various trainings and conferences, but the one that resonated the most with me was the Ed Tech Conference on June 4-5 hosted by our very own IT Department.   This conference was fun and entertaining including interesting speakers, breakout sessions and little challenges in between! The three keynote speakers gave some of the best presentations I have ever seen. They had interesting and motivating stories, which made me laugh and even tear up! The story that had the most impact on me was by Nirvan Mullick a filmmaker who made Cane’s Arcade, a story about a 9-year-old boy who created his own arcade out of cardboard. The response to this film was phenomenal and because of it’s success the Imagination Foundation was created to “find, foster, and fund creativity and entrepreneurship in more kids like Caine.” http://www.imagination.is/ This film proved that creativity still exists in young children even wi

On July 9 th and 10 th I attended the culture- based education conference held at the Hawai‘i Convention Center. To me this was one of the most rewarding experiences for both my personal and professional life.             Having just moved here from the mainland, I have never been given the opportunity to learn about the culture of Hawai‘i and it’s people through native Hawaiians in this kind of setting. I attended many breakout sessions where I was immersed in the Hawaiian language as well as heard stories from the past. The individuals who presented were very passionate about the topics they were discussing which in turn made me feel more connected to them and made me want to learn more!             The beginning presentation began with Dr. Eddie Kamae and his wife Myrna, filmmakers who have continued to keep the Hawaiian Legacy alive for decades through their documentaries. It was interesting to note that Uncle Eddie started this through music. Mele is an important piece of H

This showcase event was student organized and consisted of presentations by students and teachers. It was really inspiring to hear about the innovative things these students and teachers were doing in their schools and in their communities. These amazing people are pursuing their passions and showing others how education could be... Photo by Amy Burvall Unleash the Power of Youth One of the student presentations that really stood out for me was by a high school sophomore, Brittany Amano .  Just wow.  This girl started volunteering and raising money for good causes since she was in elementary school.  She built on her own family experiences with a grandmother who was homeless, and her passion to help the homeless motivated her to raise $513,000 in the last two years!!! Her message to us was that kids can do a lot.  Message received!  Entire organizations couldn't accomplish that.  So yes, let's build and unleash the power of youth to engage in our communities. For

This was my first year at the KS Ed Tech Conference!  I liked some of the fun things they integrated, like slam poetry, Minute to Win It challenges, the Aurasma app, and the scavenger hunt app.  These little things showed the detailed thought they put into the conference and the fun character of the IT Department. Plus it gave me something to do during breaks!  The photos above are challenges from the scavenger hunt.  The lows I will sink to for an extra raffle ticket to win an iPad Mini.... hehehe.  :) I was really impressed with the keynote speakers that they were able to get for the conference!  All three of them had such great stories, and they were truly inspiring.  Though there were many things to learn from all of the sessions, I'm just going to talk about my thoughts for a couple of them. Caine's Arcade - Nirvan Mullick I had read an article on Caine's Arcade a while back, so I was really excited that Nirvan was one of the speakers.  For those who haven'

At the Alamo  Howdy y'all!  This was my first time going to the ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) conference, and it was amazing!  Mahalo KS for this great experience!  :) They said there were over 20,0000 people, so imagine all of the madness!  Here are a couple of pics to show the scale of this thing. Keynote Ballroom - You can't see the line behind us, but it was like Disneyland to get into the keynote. Vendors - Sensory overload There were so many sessions, and I haven't even begun to reflect on what I learned and what I hope to incorporate. But, I'll just talk about two sessions that I really liked. Opening Keynote: The Epic Win - Jane McGonigal I knew this lady had to be great even before I went because Claire said, "Oh my gosh, Kim, you are sooooo luckyyyy!!  You get to see Jaaaaanneeee!"  :) Jane specializes in gaming in education.  She is brilliant.  I loved what she had to say. One of the key thin

    Aloha all, I recently attended the Adobe Illustrator  CS6, 3-D mock up and Design class at UH. This is the Pacific New Media course taught at the Universtiy of Hawaii. First of all they moved the classes to the basement of the Sinclair Library which was challenging to find. And finding the parking was also a challenge. Any way I walked in the class and the teacher is wearing a headband and sporting a full print of Jimi Hendrix plastered all over his shirt. I knew already this class was going to be good! He owns his own company and gave many tips on how to set up the artwork before sending it to a print house. Also he gave information on labeling your work and tips on work flow.     Anyway we did hands on on creating a 3-d illustration of an iPhone, using CS6 which was really good because I just got CS6 installed th day at work. It was really good to get familiar with the tools and what they all could do. We also got demonstration with using the perspective tool, that is really hel