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:
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.