Special Anniversary March issue--MindShare Learning Report--Exclusive Podcast Interview with Alberta's Education Minister Dave Hancock

Award-winning educator Dr. Christopher Spence was confirmed by Trustees as the Toronto District School Board's next Director of Education at a special board meeting Sunday. Dr. Spence will be assuming the reins of Canada's largest and most complex school board in time for the 2009/2010 school year. He leaves behind a successful legacy at the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board, where he has served as Director of Education since 2004. Congratulations to Dr. Spence, he has the "right stuff" to lead this very complex board into the 21st Century.

The Florida Education Technology Conference was most memorable on a number of levels.....the Cousteau interview was solidified there thanks to Mitchel Townsend....I was honoured to be appointed president of the newly formed Pepperdine University Online Masters in EdTech Alumni Chapter....I caught up with fellow alums, faculty (Dr. Margaret Riel and Dr. Paul Sparks, Program co-directors, incidentally, Dr. Sparks also serves on the MSL Report Advisory Board)and students...I had a wonderful exchange with Dr. Nelson Heller, the Godfather of EdTech in the U.S., whose company had been acquired by Scholastic and now recently acquired by MDR, a D&B Company. Finally, what do you do when a speaker doesn't show up at to a session on EdTech Leadership, well, quite simply, you step up to lead the session. It was a great impromptu experience. According to my friend and organizer Wendy LeDuke, I'm going to be invited back next year! Congrats to Wendy and her team for hosting an excellent conference.

Speaking of conferences, I had the opportunity to participate in a hands-on Central Ontario Computer Users Conference (COCA)--"For the Love of Games," in Niagara Falls recently. I caught the presentation by Dr. David Hutchinson, who presented on, "Playing to Learn--Gaming in the Classroom." I enjoyed his session so much, I bought his book, appropriately called, Playing To Learn, which I highly recommend. The book is packed with project based learning activities that cross the curriculum and surely engaged your students.

Special thanks to Canadian Trade Commissioner, Candice Rice of Foreign Affairs and International Trade for facilitating an interview for the MSL Report with Kam Memarzia from Playgen, UK, a global leader in the Serious Games space, who was in town recently to deliver a keynote. Watch for his interview that will be broadcast via the MSL Report next month. Incidentally, MindShare Learning is collaborating with the Canadian embassy in D.C. to host a joint reception in conjunction with the National Education Computing Conference (NECC) in D.C June 28-July 1 . MSL has also partnered with the International Society for Technology & Learning (ISTE) organizers of the conference. Watch for more details!

Congratulations to Veronica Lacey, President & CEO of The Learning Partnership on their recent celebration to recognize 31 exceptional leaders in education from across the country have been chosen as Canada's Outstanding Principals(TM) for 2009. I had the good fortune of attending the dinner which was most inspiring. It was great to meet Terry Young, CAP, President, who ventured down to Toronto from Nunavut, NWT. Small world, Terry and I were speaking recently and discovered that a former hockey teammate from York U Shawn Maley, now assistant deputy minister in Nunavut, is connected through a mutual friend.

Prime Minister's Awards - A new competition for Prime Minister's Awards for Teaching Excellence as well as the Prime Minister's Awards for Excellence in Early Childhood Education was launched on January 15th. Guidelines and nomination forms are available on the PMA website. The deadline for nominations is March 31, 2009

iProf Scores and "A". According to The Hour Report on CBC TV, university students downloading podcast lectures attain higher grades. However, there is concern over the declining attendance. Does this suggest a trend emerging where face-to-face learning will be a thing of the past?

Doug Doherty, Canadian Sales Manager, Thinkronize, (producers of award-winning netTrekker, smart internet search tool) touched base to share their special 20% break before March Break...buy netTrekker now to beat the price increase. For more information, or to receive your free trial, drop Doug an email.

It was good to hear from John Palbom recently while on Skype to share his travels across Ontario on behalf of Advanced Presentation Solutions, SMART Technology's leading dealer in Canada. John is a Master SMART trainer and retired educator, who is passionate about sharing his knowledge with educators. John tells me they offer full day, hands on PD from beginner to advanced users of SMARTboards. PD is vital to maximizing the value of your investment in SMART Technology. Advanced has an excellent philosophy---working on the principle that "SMART Classrooms + Advanced Technology = Enhanced Learning", the 'PD Series' initiative is aimed at providing help and support to educators as they integrate SMART boards into their teaching practices. For more information, drop John an email.

Congratulations to Frank Naftara, president of Studica, who recently expanded his business across the pond, establishing U.K. Studica Ltd. Checkout Studica's comprehensive software and peripheral solutions, headquartered in the fine city of Mississauga.

Has MindShare Learning Inspired other industry players in Canada to launch 21st Century contests? Growing up Digital guru Don Tapscott recently launch the NextGen Education Challenge. Simply upload your video telling sharing how you would change the education system. Submit your answer by March 31, 2009 to be eligible to win.

What you could win: The Top 10 finalists will receive a book bundle with personalized signed copies of Growing Up Digital and Wikinomics, 1,000 and a Private Don Tapscott Webinar to your School, Company or Organization... go here.

Our friends at FrontRow also launched their second contest to recognize outstanding teachers demonstrating effective use of technology in the classroom. Click here to learn more.

Judy Burns, Canadian Account Manager for Education for Epson was kind enough to share news on two very special bundle offers (projector/document camera and the 400W/Wall mount) that run until March 31st.

Congratulations to Alberta Education for jumping on the contest bandwagon to inspire 21st Century Learning....Lights! Camera! Action! Derek Merilees of HP gave me a heads up that HP is sponsoring a very worthy contest in Alberta. The Speak Out Video Contest is a great way for you to tell us about what you want and need for your education. We have been going around the province listening to students talk about their education. It is now your opportunity to speak out with a video. If you are between 13 and 19 years old, you are eligible to enter. What do you have to do? Create a video 60 seconds long about your thoughts on "What I want. What I need. My Vision for Education..." How to enter....Until March 31, 2009, you can upload your video right here. You'll also need to fill out the official entry form and submit with your video to Speak Out headquarters at Speak Out, Alberta.

Congratulations to our friend and associate, Dennis Hitchmough, who recently joined the Information and Communications Technology Council of Canada. The Information and Communications Technology Council of Canada (ICTC) is pleased to announce that their Focus on Information Technology (FIT) program, which is being carefully aligned to the Ontario curriculum, can be used by Ontario secondary schools to help meet the new Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) program developed by the Ontario Ministry of Education. The FIT program allows students to focus their learning on the ICT sector while still meeting the requirements of the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD). FIT supports a student in Ontario by helping them to learn the skills, knowledge and work habits necessary to make ICT a career choice. The program includes specific credits, sector recognized certifications and training, experiential education, opportunities to connect with postsecondary pathways and help in developing the skills and work habits needed in the ICT industry. Embedding the FIT program into grades 11/12 computer science courses makes implementing the SHSM program easier for teachers because it is a complete package of resources that has been developed for teachers by teachers.

For more information, contact Dennis Hitchmough, ICTC Regional Manager at: 416.265.6234 or via email.

Alberta and British Columbia are also part of the FIT program with all the resources and information you need to start helping students reach for an exciting career in ICT. Contact Deborah Vance at: 403.479.4211 or via email.

Now that I've reflected on this past month's activities, I can better understand why February seemed fly past at the speed of light . We packed in a lot of activities since the new year. I look forward to a slightly slower paced March, thanks in part to a scheduled break with our family.

Looking ahead, We're in the process of planning the MindShare Learning EdTech Industry Leadership Conference September 30th at the Schulich School of Business @ York U. Sponsorship and presenter opportunities are available. For more information, contact me here.

Keep the news coming and the learning curve steep! Cheers, R.M.