I've never attended AASL,but feel it would be a huge learning opportunity. I've been to NECC/ISTE twice and I love it. I feel the advantages of learning with a wide audience, both at the conference at elsewhere are huge. I'd like to see more of this sharing to those not attending. Next year, AASL is pretty close to me so I may try and attend.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on what worked well and what needed to be improved. It certainly helps to reflect on these things when looking ahead.

I think the wonderful librarians who plan national event (or participate) forget that for many of us the money, travel and/or absence from work is not manageable. More open sharing is a great idea. Chris Anderson's groundbreaking book, FREE, points out the benefits to an organization of free and open sharing. It makes business sense and it is inclusive for all school librarians, not just the ones who are cutting edge. And isn't that who you need to reach??

I know that AASL's been having conversations about what the benefits of membership are/should be - what's behind the password? what's free? I can see them charging a fee for "off-site" participation, but does it have to be as much as on-site? I'd vote NO.

Joyce, your comments are right on the money. The move to a more open mode of communication is nothing more than a reflection of the steamroller that is 21st century-style professional development. We really have no choice in the matter. Rather than fight it or try to turn it into a revenue stream, openness in professional communication is our best hope of keeping the profession vibrant - perhaps even our best hope of keeping the profession alive and breathing in these economic times. The payoff will show in increased membership and new models of financial health and growth.

Finally, I firmly believe that those who want to and are able to come to conferences will always do so. By keeping communication tightly regulated, we only hurt those who cannot come (as Librarytwitt notes above). I would bet my ALA membership (since 1987!) that it's a minuscule number who wouldn't come to a conference simply because much of the content is available without charge online.

Another thing I wish AASL would consider is to have the conference during the summer. It just doesn't make sense to me to have a conference for school librarians at a time when they are needed at school. Back to the topic at hand, I believe sharing conference materials online only increases awareness to what is available at the conference and makes us all want to attend in person next time. Joyce, thank you for sharing so much too.

I appreciate your description of Twitter as a river flowing under the conference. From my school I dipped into it continually, clicking links and following discussion threads. From my end it was a dynamic peek into an event I would have loved to attend. Thanks to the Geek Squad for working so hard on behalf of all of us.

Everyone on your team did a great job, Joyce! You did not let anyone down - AASL did! They didn't take fast wireless connectivity seriously, they balked at the idea of a FREE platform like a Ning and went with the hard to navigate & change LearningTimes and an avarice possessive position for controlling the intellectual property of presenters who didn't even get free registration! But they did do a lot of things right and the good definately outweighed the bad and AASL is still the best conferences out there if a Media Specialist can only choose just one.

I wouldn't want AASL in the Summer - I find a break of a few days at the beginning of school and having my mind expanded brings me back twice as energized to start new things IMMEDIATELY in my school and my PLN grows and is more vibrant than when most of us are on vacation.

"The wrong people are attending ed tech conferences" - Scott McLeod "

The more “Ed Tech” conferences I attend, the more I see people there who don’t need to be there. If we are talking about real change in education, the kind that makes nervous people of those with big jobs in big companies that depend on education as a market, than we’ve got to get different people here."

So if so...then we need to reach out with the materials and give some to GET some. On Saturdays Costco gives out bread & butter pickles and I buy the whole jar. I think that says it all.

Thank you Joyce for your thoughts. I have been thinking about how to tie together my ideas from AASL Charlotte. I also attended AASL Reno which was an experience which truly propelled me to move from English/Special Ed teacher to teacher librarian. The AASL conference was unlike any other conference I had attended as a teacher and watching a reflective learning community in action and united through a "green" conference was revolutionary for me. And though the shuttles were perhaps less than ideal, I remember the bus ride as a another opportunity to meet someone new.

In Reno, there was an abundance of information online that allowed attendees to preview sessions or follow up with take-aways. I remember one session on garage band where we created our own podcasts. So now when I reflect on my experience in Charlotte, I do feel let down because I wonder what could have been if things had worked differently. At the convention center. At my hotel (where the wireless was equally sluggish). What could have been if my inability to feel connected (literally) wasn't the ubiquitous overriding concern? The sessions were great and the presenters did amazingly well with making adjustments if/when needed. And I appreciated the fact that most attendees and presenters did not bemoan the poor connectivity constantly. Instead, professionalism prevailed, and the geek squad was at the heart of that movement as well.

I am convinced that this conference, of all conferences, simply must be unshackled. The Twitter stream speaks to this desire and this need. And I believe if you do so, the revenue and attendance will soar. The AASL conference isn't just for school librarians; it's truly for the entire school community. The principles of 21st Century Learning require all teachers to become teachers of information, analysis, and application first, foremost, and for the future. This opportunity for school librarians to help to lead this movement is a natural progression. Why should we stand in our own way?

I loved the "open"ness of the conference. I would not be able to attend a confrence that far away for a variety of reasons. Yet, I felt present each day via Twitter. Thanks to you and your team!

Joyce,
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. As a person who is pretty lucky to even get to attend one national conference a year, I wish that there was a way to tie these wonderful opportunities together. By that I mean I wish that by paying for attendance to one national conference, I received the benefits of attending others. Do you see where I'm going? With some collaboration between AASL, ISTE, NCTE and others wouldn't it be logical that my membership and travel expenses to one would allow me to take part online in the others? There is so much that is good about all of these conferences - but most people aren't able to attend more than one a year.
Thanks for all you do - and thanks for providing arenas in which we can discuss these issues!

I have attended AASL conferences in the past (prior to Web 2)and found them to be absolutely wonderful. However, for the last several years even though I did not attend in person, I have found the NECC conferences which are very sharing and open to non-members to be VERY VALUABLE. And even though I'm retired now, and not an ISTE member, I want to attend ISTE's next conference. I feel like I could gain much more in person after participating virtually. ALA/AASL need to become much more open if they want to continue to represent teacher librarians.

Free and open access to information is the new reality. Keeping a conference closed does not increase its value, but rather, limits its influence. In order to have a global influence, the events of the conference need to be open and free to the world so that the flow of information and resources can travel throughout the world. Those who attend conferences obtain more than new ideas and information. There are freebies from vendors, hands-on experiences with new resources, face-to-face encounters with presenters and friends, networking, connections, meals, workshops, tours, author presentations and book signings. The very ambience of the experience cannot be recreated online, even in a webcast. It is worth the price to attend, but for those who cannot, freeing the flow of information as it occurs is the next best thing and increases the impact the keynotes and presentations. Isn’t that the purpose of the conference, after all?