Month: March 2008

I agree with Alfred completely.  This was the BEST workshop I’ve ever been to and here’s why.

1.  The conversations.  After every block of sessions, I ended up at a meal where we discussed the previous sessions and how to use the information.  That has NOT happened at other workshops.

Quoted from http://blogs.msdn.com/alfredth/archive/2008/03/03/game-development-in-computer-science-education-day-1.aspx:

Computer Science Teacher – Thoughts and Information from Alfred Thompson : Game Development in Computer Science Education Day 1

 

Being at a conference on a cruise ship is different from being on a land based conference. For one thing we are out of range of shore based Internet and cell phone coverage. For another there are not the same distractions that one sees on land. Oh sure there are stores and swimming pools and the casino. But all the places to eat are on the ship and you can’t really go that far without seeing people who are also on the conference. What happens is that people wind up talking to each other – a lot!

2.  The lack of snarkiness. AP Computer Science teachers are snarky.  They have their cliques, and they have their courts.  If you don’t long belong to one of those, you are just left out period.   After having said this, I should probably never attend another AP CS conference again, but then oh, well, I’ve always been left out.

3.  The level of interaction.  I never felt in over my head.  I did a lot at the last CMU AP CS conference.  I always felt that I could take something out of the workshop and bring it back to my school and disctrict.  However, I will admit I skipped all the robotics sessions — it bugs we that we can’t afford them, and I did skip the sessions on how to set up college curriculum.  I do that on a regular basis, and have a master’s degree in it. 

All in all, it was good, I recommend the cruise format — and the Landry / King company did a fabulous job of taking care of us. Carlyn and Vera provided top notch service, and I really appeciate the private room.

My cell phone came in REAL handy.  I haven’t seen the full bill yet, as Cingular is processing it and March 3 is the first date of my cell phone month.

However, I was on the Cingular network all day Thursday, all day on Friday, or most of it, and then again on Monday morning.  I was able to get some grading done on Thursday and Friday, which is a good thing. I was also able to commincate with some students.

It was even better in Miami at the airport, I was waiting on a plane for about 4 hours and was able to get quite a bit of grading done, more if I had had a power outlet, I didn’t want to completely drain my battery, not sure why.

This website gives lots of good travel information, and this type of article in particular is one of the two reasons I did not go on shore:  http://www.frommers.com/blog/2008/02/next-time-cruiseline-tries-to-sell-you.html

The first reason though was because it was the only downtime we had, and I need to de-stress, de-frizz, and just relax for a few hours.  And the best thing I did on the trip was to have a cute Austrialian gal french braid my hair — which de-frizzed me.  I didn’t have to touch a brush for three days she did it so well.  It really simplified my life. And the price was reaonable.

I drank the Koolaid and was good — but I already like that flavor.

I will be honest, this is one of the best events I’ve ever attended.

Better than TCEA, better than SIGSCE in Auston, and we won’t talk about the AP Workshops….

The premise is:  Microsoft and their partners in the game industry are having trouble attracting people wo work for them.  There are two issues:  One issue that there are not enough applicant to hire, and the other issue is that the ones they do hire often do not have what they feel are "basic skills".

The sessions we went to addressed both.  Some concentrated on the first issue — attracting students to computer science since game programming is motivating to a lot of students.  Some concentrated on the skills that game programs need. 

They also addressed the overall problem — which is decreased enrollment in all computer science programs.

The best thing about this workshop, is I was treated with respect and as an equal. 

I also got to play some Xbox — that was just a few hours each night, and I got to be one of the first people to play a particular game written for the Zune.

I’d LOVE to go back.