I really can’t wait until the New Hampshire conference. Should be interesting.

As for this topic, I already emailed my response and got a reply that the rewrite is under construction at this time. We will all know soon enough.

This is a perfect opportunity for ISTE members to make their voices heard – so now seems like the time to get involved. How about coming to the ISTE Member Welcome session Sunday afternoon and state the case there?

In fact, in past years, wasn’t there a member meeting at NECC to discuss ISTE policy and direction? Did that go away? Or am I not seeing it in the schedule?

I plead totally guilty of ignoring my duty as an ISTE member to speak up and take part in the organization policy development.

Last year was my first NECC experience. I have to say that the biggest impact and walk-away that I had was the sharing and global feel of information. It was free flowing and energizing. If you remember, at least for me, it was extremely special and huge and amazing the genuine open sharing and communication, learning! If I missed a session, all I had to do was find someone who blogged about it and I could usually hear some if it on a podcast. Amazing.

It would be a shame if this policy stifled the creative juices and free-flowing communication that a conference like this sparks. I am going there to learn and grow. But not being able to be two or five places at once, I hope to still be able to gain and learn from others who are willing to be “civilly disobedient”!!!

This issue is one that we have to discuss. It seems to be a $ issue. Who owns your content? I want to share what I know and learn from you and you and you. When I post online I hope that others read it, use it, share it.

When I post my presentations to my site, I often do not include the information from others, just the link to where it sits on the Web so others can get to it as they go through my presentation online.

Just my thoughts….

Kathy

I was planning to go to NECC in 2009 (couldn’t go this year) but I will not if it is this restrictive. I have been avoiding these types of conferences and these types of journals for my publication. Unless presenters/writers/creators can do what they want with their content, I’m not interested.

But of course, I’m only one person. Perhaps more people need to protest by choosing another place to spend their professional development dollars.

Putting on a conference like this is an unbelievably complex challenge. At least _I_ can’t imagine it, in its entirety. I’m going to NECC with my optimism in my pocket and my joy of learning waving like a beanie flag. Organizers and the organization have been nothing short of marvelous to me and to mine.

That said, the salient issue is that all of us are looking to increase not necessarily “commercial” capital, but “informational” value. We are looking to do something big for love, as Clay Shirky might say. This policy seems to come down like a heavy booted foot on a hippy’s bare one. The joy of sharing stifled by the legal constrictions of capitalism and institutional self-interest.

We should have seen it coming. Can ISTE rise above it? I’m soooooo looking forward to Saturday’s edubloggercon (just google it) to see what my wild, wide community of share-addicts think of all this…Right on, Gary

I’m sure that ISTE thinks they can make seventeen cents selling CDs of SOME sessions. One year they actually sold a CD of me bagging the ISTE Standards. I don’t imagine they sold 2 copies.

A little civil disobedience is in order.

At my sessions I will:
1) Tell the audience that ISTE claims ownership of my content without my consent or remuneration.
2) Ask where the ISTE podcasts of all conference sessions will be available on the Web.
3) Invite the audience to record away

There are several differences between NECC and a conference like TED.
1) TED is good
2) Authors/speakers are willing to “share” their IP because the production values and distribution will be of a high quality
As for protecting ISTE’s “business model,” they are a non-profit membership organization – not a lobbying or publishing firm.

The answer: ZERO

How many people are attending this year even partly because of what they saw and heard via the web last year?

The answer: I don’t know … but there seems to have been a buzz created … just look how many more people are attending the Edubloggercon … and that costs extra money and time to attend because of the added days.
Brian

I was all hot to post something about XO laptops at NECC (and elsewhere, with an interest in NECC) connecting to a virtual jabber server to share realtime conference info. Wonder if they’ve got THAT one covered? – Mark

I just love many of the comments and share similar feelings as those you and others expressed concerning the media coverage at NECC. I agree that you showed great diplomacy in sharing your thoughts and concerns about this issue personally believe that this policy came about as a result of the bottom line, money. While most educators would gladly comply and give consent to share the NECC sessions, the adherence to and enforcement of this new policy should have been delayed so that presenters knew up front before submitting and agreeing to present. Like one commenter noted, many educators will not be able to attend and reliance upon the sharing of media coverage of the content is essential to keeping current with ed tech trends, tools and issues. I find it sad that ISTE has taken such a restricting stand with the implementation of this policy. My first and only attendance at NECC was in Atlanta (had a disastrous experience that I shared on my blog last summer) and found the conference more suited to higher education and administrators versus educators that work with students in a K12 classroom. Even though I live in San Antonio, I still haven’t committed to attending this year. Thanks for sharing Wes!

But what about all those who cannot afford to attend the conference? Is there a price being put on knowledge here? The Haves can get, the Have-nots can NOT get? If we have the ability to broadcast educational materials, resources, best-practices, etc., should we not use it? We need to take a deeper look at these issues and the implications for global educational equity. I would be so bold as to say it is UNETHICAL to withhold resources and knowledge when we have the power to share.

I encourage everyone reading your blog entry to follow suit and take the next steps proposed in my blog entry.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention!

Miguel Guhlin
Around the Corner-MGuhlin.net
http://mguhlin.net

I don’t blame ISTE – they’re protecting the rights of their presenters and asking us to preserve the value in attending live. Is it wrong for me to believe the by paying and flying and traveling to attend earns me more rights in having access to the content?

They may be protecting their own institution. By live-casting and giving everything away, they may be questioning their business model. Right now, they likely want to try and preserve what they have. I am sure this will be an evolving issue as ISTE and other organizations come to grips with the impact of emerging technologies.

If this policy is enforced permissively (ie, just ask us so we can say yes), then I see this being more of a hurdle than an obstacle.

If they use this to quash participant media, however, then this is a different thing altogether.

BTW, I enjoyed this line: “I hope we’ll see this policy and the ways ISTE addresses intellectual property issues continue to evolve and mature. (I feel confident we will.)” — that is one of the finest specimens of tactful restraint I have seen in a long time.

Cheers,

Bill

I like your idea about bringing up CC right at the outset of acceptance of proposals. Creative Commons offers a variety of choices and many educators still need to be informed about CC. We are leaders in ICT; this precedent of ISTE makes me wonder how far we have come and how much further we have to go.

I will not be at NECC this year – in fact, I will be working with Teachers Without Borders in two developing nations hoping to promote ICT and address the issues of educational and digital equity.

Thousands of teachers from around the world will never have the opportunity to attend a conference so rich in professional development opportunities. However, because of podcasting and webcasting, they may have an opportunity to benefit from the expertise of educators – with their permission. I doubt very many educators would balk at that possibility – we are a sharing community.

Thanks Wes for sharing your ideas and best of luck in your negotiations with ISTE on these matters. These are very important precedents that are being set and I am thankful that you will be representing the side of reason.

Sharon Peters
are

Please note that audio and video recording will be taking place throughout the Summit. By entering the event premises, you consent to interview(s), photography, audio recording, video recording and its/their release, publication, exhibition, or reproduction to be used for news, web casts, promotional purposes, telecasts, advertising, inclusion on web sites, or any other purpose by TLt Summit 2008 and its affiliates and representatives.

Big difference!

I wonder if this also applies to videotaped excerpts of sessions (probably)?

I love your idea of letting presenters assign creative commons licensing to their own presentations, by the way.

I’m thinking that if ISTE were to follow the examples of smaller – but more progressive – conferences, people wouldn’t need to produce their own copies of sessions. TTIX sets an amazing example in this regard.