James Surowiecki to Provide Opening Keynote for ISTE'S NECC 2008 in San Antonio

brendah — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 15:40:00 GMT

June 29 - July 2, 2008 in San Antonio, Texas

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®) is pleased to announce that noted author and journalist James Surowiecki will deliver the opening keynote address at the 29th annual National Educational Computing Conference (NECC), to be held June 29 through July 2, 2008 at the Henry B. Gonzales Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas.

"We're very pleased to bring James Surowiecki to NECC audiences this year," says Leslie Conery, NECC Conference Chair and ISTE Deputy CEO. "His ideas for managing the 'wisdom of crowds' are tremendously relevant to what we do in education—from kids working together in the classroom, to school-wide and district leadership, to very large scale collaborative projects. Innovative and practical, his work focuses on the how-to of good group decisions. How do we dodge both groupthink and an over-reliance on outside experts? How do we gather and aggregate collective wisdom into a usable roadmap? This keynote should really set the stage for a wonderful conversation!"

Formerly a history professor at Yale, Surowiecki combines rigorous thought with entertaining examples from a wide array of disciplines. He writes a twice monthly column for "The New Yorker" magazine and is the author of "The Wisdom of Crowds." Before joining "The New Yorker," he wrote a financial column for "New York" magazine and was a contributing editor at "Fortune." Surowiecki has also written for a range of other publications, including "The New York Times Magazine," "Wired" and "The Wall Street Journal."

The world's most comprehensive Ed Tech event, NECC 2008: Convene, Connect, Transform, is presented by ISTE in cooperation with the Texas Computer Education Association. More than 17,000 teachers, teacher educators, technology coordinators, library media specialists, administrators, policy makers, industry representatives, and exhibitors from around the globe are expected to attend.

Billed as the most hands-on and interactive conference yet, NECC 2008 will provide attendees the opportunity to exchange ideas and collaborate with peers from around the globe. Conference offerings include hands-on labs; bring-your-own-laptop sessions; model classrooms and dedicated peer-to-peer learning spaces, including a Bloggers' Cafe and lounges for Podcasting and Second Life.

For nearly three decades, NECC has provided K–20 education professionals with an annual forum to learn, exchange, and survey advancements in the field of educational technology. Through hands-on and discussion-based workshops, lectures and interactive sessions, discussions with key industry speakers, and the largest vendor exhibition of its kind, NECC offers participants the unique opportunity to discover and share what they need to develop the appropriate use of technology in their classrooms, districts, and universities. NECC involves more than 700 local, regional, and national volunteers in the event.

Prospective attendees are encouraged to register soon, as housing resources and exhibit space fill up quickly every year. Travel information and a conference schedule with searchable program database are available at http://www.iste.org/necc/.

Full registration materials, including workshop titles and a schedule of social events, is available at http://www.iste.org/necc/, or by phoning toll-free (800) 280-6218. International inquiries should be directed to (541) 346-3537.

Applications for exhibit space and vendor sessions are available online at http://www.iste.org/necc/, or by phoning NECC 2008 Exhibit Management at (800) 280-6218 or (541) 346-3537. The fax number is (541) 346-3509; e-mail is neccexhibits@iste.org/.

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James Surowiecki to Provide Opening Keynote for ISTE'S NECC 2008 in San Antonio