Microsoft introduces TeachMeets into South Africa

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Microsoft South Africa recently combined with SchoolNetSA to introduce the first TeachMeet into South Africa. It was great to be part of this historic occasion. These gatherings of teachers are fast becoming a very popular form of professional development in the USA and in many European countries, in the field of technology integration in education. In European countries they are called ‘Teachmeets’ while in the USA they are named ‘Ed Camps’.</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHFfeCUWgr2h53NR9RUo_-_fme7ZLRfkKP16GRgpXGxSvJ-fXBM3q8aeF2H576YTgrasnqUC9EKI6FpztuTgMTKyYOP1B_f3v6VRbCv76fA0hU48a5nb31fIDp2xqf1uzhFDprQulltXA/s1600-h/image11.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsOyB6aDrZ1U3CjVbLiR7SeoqJvD4DxhF9BCY80MqyC91g8PfiapjNF0SiPsWHEvftIeAkg0HWxVGhijCG3_3g0lvR5aKc7CAjP6uEt0okrbhBTMxJPK89WqnZkL88b0hJ33KSUHsmXo8/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="261" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Microsoft's advertisement of the TeachMeet</td></tr></tbody></table><strong style="background-color: white; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Teachers sharing with teachers</strong><br /><br />Essentially Teachmeets are 'teachers teaching teachers' in a prescribed amount of time, usually 3 minutes, using the provided laptop and a data projector. It’s really a great way to meet teachers from other schools, and there is usually a tea slot provided for interaction and sharing to take place.  A Teachmeet definitely produces a sense of community and inspiration. One leaves with many new ideas, and feels a sense of making a contribution to education when presenting an idea. I have written two posts about Teachmeets in this blog in the past:<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> *<a href="http://e-blogschool.blogspot.com/2011/08/why-not-hold-teachmeet-in-your-area.html">http://e-blogschool.blogspot.com/2011/08/why-not-hold-teachmeet-in-your-area.html</a><br />*<a href="http://e-blogschool.blogspot.com/2011/08/more-teachmeet-ideas-from-partners-in.html">http://e-blogschool.blogspot.com/2011/08/more-teachmeet-ideas-from-partners-in.html</a></span><br /><strong><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Our Teachmeet wiki</span></strong><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Angela Schaerer, the Academic Programmes Manager at Microsoft South Africa, was the instigator of the first Teachmeet in South Africa, and two of us from SchoolNet assisted her in putting together a remarkable and very enjoyable occasion. </span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1EBqerwTqLIvc0930dqhHOVlycEsrERrsYub_irxcXU-wx4_eoBwhfSfP96kanTha3wmGaeX3EA6Ejso9jaNAYqjwSnTUXKXVDJRBzgbT0Jmb7GKluKgWiLx4b7K1HdfJB04lo06o7qk/s1600-h/Angela-25.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Angela 2" border="0" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVuFk6tadTek9RkeNCMmnOEhdswkOj8BsHOtLZl8TOFBTIyXzaiLpRh_dRySyqzv3gM3PUpUzDIG0wrhJIXrEKRGWypd8t4B0GNyEzYrOSTueaEXPjuZ2G88p3TVqbou_MhLdhgyT2HkM/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Angela 2" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Angela explaining how a TeachMeet works</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="background-color: lime; font-size: x-small;"></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">To encourage a sense of community in this endeavour we created a TeachMeet wiki <span style="background-color: yellow;"><span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://teachmeet-southafrica.wikispaces.com/">http://teachmeet-southafrica.wikispaces.com</a></span></span> which we hope teachers around South Africa will make use of should they wish to hold a Teachmeet in their area.  This wiki answers all the questions one might have about TeachMeets. </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUdXXYjQNDgs5bJkFfmQnZuRvPTWXTBP_ozEc67y0gorpM7zxwpsrQN5ZkFYgSY8aGwZPMcV5OFgrTAaXsJBiJ1PtvSHABa72To-OU9Z-BiEV7APfX-O-I8UFRXcl7QSrHrUgZddQyGww/s1600-h/image15.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxcOcQWsTApFb37Yj7j6le1HxhLqQD5xZVxvv8eiWSF-ohn5MXcfcrdppS4hqG2z6WmYCNX9kwD7K5cggW52W2iujDiwejIsTVnCnHvYmFUm6Hf77sE96DFxk8LNLd4We2IlcoiU_JW-Q/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our teachmeet-southafrica wiki home page</td></tr></tbody></table><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Programme on the day</span></strong><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The TeachMeet was held at the Microsoft Offices in Johannesburg on 13th October 2011. Angela planned a very stimulating programme in addition to the TeachMeet, and everyone left with a copy of the incredible Learning Suite DVD (one of my favourite DVDs). </span><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyGEjyFKFkVjsrQiL2-C_PVGz3xbx_3unosTU0ttUTUMdQuP22mtIvAqOU2vKLI8njPJ7thWRwbsQ9M2wzWy2tKjjs_C4-GBwylgeQgGFLJI02p0_NVlklF8l34WJjEyMgLRGh7RKoMQY/s1600/dvd.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyGEjyFKFkVjsrQiL2-C_PVGz3xbx_3unosTU0ttUTUMdQuP22mtIvAqOU2vKLI8njPJ7thWRwbsQ9M2wzWy2tKjjs_C4-GBwylgeQgGFLJI02p0_NVlklF8l34WJjEyMgLRGh7RKoMQY/s320/dvd.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Microsoft's learning Suite DVD</td></tr></tbody></table>When Angela advertised the occasion she wrote, “<i>Come and enjoy a TeachMeet…TeachLearn…TeachNetwork and TeachEat with us…</i>” That is a pretty good sumary of what a TeachMeet is all about!  Over 100 educators responded to the open invitation.  Teachers could choose to respond as '<i>Keen Beans'</i> and bring along a presentation to share or '<i>Enthusiastic Lurkers</i>’ and come along to learn and just enjoy the gettogether.<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br /><strong><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Social media</span></strong><br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Maggie Verster, our social networking champion in South Africa, managed the Twitter backchannel, and gave a humorous presentation urging teachers to join Twitter. Twitter is a marvelous platform for teachers to quickly and easily follow one another online to share useful resources. </span><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge5jTu1UtvtmXkm-flSNaZVuqbya93IWam7PbD3gYpTep5XqNNLf9DxRKsFmfzqmOr1uXnVvYQ2BtBw1NQtvIhamyTYWGPJNUiCFruM31XCJWe30kz365j38VrktkESZKvW0KCcbB0wYM/s1600-h/maggie14.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="maggie1" border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBR4CXZq_1X7_Z0P3HG-Va4nO9tEGNO9YCXWqtEX9fVIHAR-a1vt0tlmF1lEonJrZ0kxDscaYcrxPM_FHvXZfZrWPsNiZqGWtaiPIF9MgYAVJUxaOyUEzuF7AwFZU_f_JG8GT7la1q-ig/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="maggie1" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maggie Verster (centre) with Angela Schaerer (left) and Megan Rademeyer (right)</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="background-color: lime; font-size: x-small;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><strong>Teachmeet presentations</strong></span><br /><br />Altogether there we<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;">re twelve pres</span>entations.  We were each given three minutes to present and were timed with a stop watch.<br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEHFnRtM2z1hrLh53Ixe0vANUK0b-zi2JAvayxIB0utXW3gp6wfgap0PqiZSD0qd9AId5nk3ZrEBKzvIXHKoriXGwjb867Lz8Y_S8xPjhHIpoYFssxKPN-WH2WTMQsYJ1YozRe-U6qGFE/s1600-h/IMG_00494.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="IMG_0049" border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9Px4mQlWwXXjSoJ2u9zhonTA0wN1OURH4WbrZ-D9YhTVxXyI71UFcxmrmFa6ctWBvCR2MnAI3pNkkfMGtzCt-XHT8e4YCsf-JMA5dTf3I5O0ZbZD-ubD00ZNYYOOvVnJKUY9cXy7ByQ/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0049" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Here are the presenters with links to their presentations and videos of them sharing their presentations: </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">1. <b><u>Shireen Peters</u></b> from Parkview Junior spoke on designing a <i>'Shopping and Money using Word' </i>theme for Grade 2 using Microsoft Word. </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRIlW3rDhod1rCO1M-VEPjBlHoVDi5l4_U_xEHoSmYIsC4Vzne2O6L-s7cXMlY7hnumzoNBupiljDEVSi5UN6hr8iWM8uSXXdmUqHUTwrqQKb9etSGSAj6f3HoaZOaGERCUR5mD6ZiF-g/s1600-h/IMG_00243.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0024" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijt4FkViRgv32feFIsz4ccopf_5h6Zzd_mK8y6d160TF_qpgGOcEF0a8jqAHaPDbYQotd3qhAyK4bCpt4X8R9zQtj16_TGemaOfIwjFDHpqDwK0ORZjLJXTQBqfNVTVWB3RWXqhKxZzsc/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0024" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shireen Petersen</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Shireen's <i>Slideshare</i> presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/shereencachaliateachmeetshoppingandmoney">here</a>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Shireen's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLR85E4qsw0">here</a>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><u>Fiona Beal</u></b> from Fish Hoek spoke on “<i>Making a collaborative e-book</i>” using the free applications iEtherpad.com, Slideboom.com, along with any illustrative programme and Microsoft PowerPoint.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyK4G34mddxOJtDHtLS7T3PNOweCn4-uzNW43O96Ue1F8eajhXmzQHjENkKQrMyFe8-c4_BHuFixiwEneP_OczvLIi5uB-vwLKbCOKh6cAIwJnC60V4zfGf0VHo7ZwwlWqLAom-tYSNDg/s1600-h/IMG_00183.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0018" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE6Go-U9473Igu8JsrhPZBaxUkDf6DvcSAAyN6HFe-QkeRZVLTyt93Owsez3hlRRzOSHE43tuuU8b6SyfBuNxUAMEdqbH0oJaTO_0tMfPxDV5i3gNj_LDDE-6VE8WCG34hjH5P8mGl8Zo/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0018" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fiona Beal</td></tr></tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Fiona's <i>Slideshare</i> presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/fionabealteachmeetmakeacollaborativeebook" target="_blank">here </a></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Fiona's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJx2i7pZyKU">here </a></span><br /><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></u><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">3.<b><u>Daniel Maedi</u></b>  from GW e-Learning spoke on using a <i>'Spreadsheet Solution' </i>-  a drill and practice activity to assist the learners in Mathematics. </span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Yz4Q1a1jXcSsEdoVfErzk0qGsX5FlHMd1llQcoEbpu-Wdlacus6GwQ-phzaOAE9Y_F_7gFG4ffbKCKTDCfPKenz7hr_smOiWP8w7LWt4D49MnCVnrSC9w0mCGM5H293-7B_XniwH8C0/s1600-h/IMG_00263.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0026" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh22fqpC1-Q0tnIhnCh7LhIgsQxRW2G8_mbBT2q_HdpUDy7YmPCfmP-QPixUNJ8Vvl75Dj0rXDF8t2zjovcS9xLsd6_WM6HO-YZXciIyGSceVc-W9snG7nia3JcsTcu6Wc8ZZ4-0ITx2EY/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0026" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daniel Maedi</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;">Daniel's <i>Slideshare</i>  presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/danielmaediteachmeetspreadsheetsolution-10302685" target="_blank">here</a><br />Daniel's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIDeBhCc7_c" target="_blank">here</a></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">4.<b><u> </u></b></span><b><u> Jeneanne Hultzer</u></b> fromBrescia House School spoke out about using '<i>Excel in Maths Literacy'</i>.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5zNRsKDa_7MWFb8-vBRQYdHS6jXtekUUaZ8nLwrmFemS0kd0ehjI7pXABG_EAeJEf8g0AtIvbAnKoFrLV0_Rol5R-lMRpsuyNw-Zsmsg_hRfngUOznkBxBnOToXzj_GeuYI7D5r5V0jQ/s1600-h/IMG_00283.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0028" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLy5onY0GBJbxiXnd3lo8_O28Xi0BvZqPe9YBov5JeF-9JFj2vHg89l3DWJzc1ghv9ApqJMrCijrCkrNHmy5aOiKQ9dmQrCTkpKcw7yMXEeV3qn59pN7W7Says9i7vPc_cpylrQDIqBA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0028" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeneanne Hultzer</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;">Jeneanne's <i>Slideshare</i> </span>presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/jeneannehultzerteachmeetexcelinmathslit" target="_blank">here</a>:<br /><span style="font-size: small;">Jeneanne's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/2/Y3LkZ2QX7c4" target="_blank">here</a>: </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />5. <b><u>Helen Robertson</u></b> from Cornwall Hill College spoke about using '<i>Boogie Board RIP, e-Reader and cellphone as m-Learning tools'.</i><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIoP4qo2sau3-WenjakMNLAQw_y8W7k3CUo8zNNzRljP-Ajrk_jqxN_rBIeiuLoBYqZTx7-pFx0IME1qTiLqKofFJ7yxeaApcKPp3sjy436lpVpqUeuovmtM_-x91D0IASPzg5g4fJoqo/s1600-h/IMG_00313.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0031" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguSLP1IaaTss9zE1IVQEMy7_w_jRzRIgPk3FAQPu-aVPSxe3tqI34JgetllGzctjSZpo6GQc5cwphCEPTtKiLbMvRxrWDdHoAZEZpfFh77f2lri9A1WqnDecVIHRdiFCku59CvbJtsn_g/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0031" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Helen Robertson</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><span style="font-size: small;">Helen's <i>Slideshare </i></span>presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/helenrobertsonteachmeetmlearning" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /><span style="font-size: small;">Helen's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/6/hIJpE-TSh3g" target="_blank">here</a>. </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><u><br /></u></div><span style="font-size: small;">6. <b><u>Natalie Meerholtz</u></b> from Holy Rosary called her presentation '<i>Challenge your students to crack the code – QR codes'. </i></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZiopoMz84sWXq0pkS7B4cOwfGleaDy8SEqW2hrYSqKMcARI4RKe03iRGMbEdKynsOJ718wxFU3EsSlQejYE6Cg9ZIQgrbtenSVzTeduH_bJWw7xZscYL7HGqINpduf8QXI7qKwIpsF0/s1600-h/IMG_00333.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0033" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaSaLzlxqrEIPUe-CjoKWFXhMO17R8jeOqvjfEZUffb32UzWR7XSCLN82nq_CsgMyqx76TGH2SCC6B4-v5lLKkLVC6iTAEFL79zsFtfhN_ngdFG47WOBnIJirRD5t0PgK_TlsgRV2K6Ao/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0033" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Natalie Meerholtz</td></tr></tbody></table>Natalie's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/1/D_CcEfjL0Pk" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />7. <b><u>Maggie Verster</u></b> from Pretoria spoke about '<i>Organising your life in one cli</i>ck' using Diigo for bookmarking.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi93iZcu7Pb2iJqSAdp7fJRTWHO72KKrlA-FbCJ4f927R-2ICLEOfxHTJSuEMIZgZtXVaqKDu6VUELvAHoPrvSGryns4ACOdD-fejiBjj6lOhPoaNa-mMAC_D5xg6l9h9OehdetMlyrjNU/s1600-h/IMG_00103.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0010" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5Jk6tJl-abk5gxxA19VksakAuQ39eVsW8PwzdAlDT3cQ4Pec-_O7zF4wY-h9Q0buRr06G0UHkaEWxU8jDGsz6Ji7DEAZV_6e4awO_une8jHbKhnKm9tegUPsxZlRr_f2t4JGHIqL73Y/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0010" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maggie Verster</td></tr></tbody></table>Maggie's <i>Slideshare</i> presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/maggieversterteachmeetsocialbookmarking" target="_blank">here</a>:<br /><span style="font-size: small;">Maggie's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/4/DujFK6nIz8I" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />8. <b><u>Paul Wilton</u></b> from the Oprah Winfrey Girls' Academy in Gauteng called his presentation '<i>Life Sciences Grade 12 on Moodle</i>'. He generously offered to share his multitude of ‘Moodling Life Science' resources with others.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3BDevHHY1CimUBV0U2AK3VehFsYPa6ChU0k3jDGnwPyHmzuHR2Og9G6tSds0LbxTFB1wYXFFBECQTfvfOG0thW3GXT59q1UJ73qaV2Wa_ZgVVMAuGnhecWYSFJzKBtzsnsuQJAjBJxrg/s1600-h/IMG_00363.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0036" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1YnM4YQNC7ZkuJ-6XPFe6jOt4FPaBcT-d3TlWVEmlRulM04EPSFYr1Q0JUspTefCS2cJMrItBWhpp-sPF1JUq98_0fHtTWze7DyfihiE_ogO4qatx4AE3gjsa33LpOTltKP8Q_fWeWLk/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0036" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paul Wilton</td></tr></tbody></table>Paul's <i>Slideshare </i>presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/paulwiltonteachmeetmoodlinglifesciences" target="_blank">here</a>:<br /><span style="font-size: small;">Paul's <i>video </i>can be seen <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/0/C3k2_gB7bsU" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">9. <u><b>Aurelliah Rosenberg</b></u>, </span>Head of Educator Empowerment at ORT SA named her presentation ‘<i>Camera, action, lights – teaching with movies</i>.”<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAwD74YTh7usfUV8VO07tH_NukY00gUJFx6Ds8shC2-MUi6o1wNInm1IbS4m-6ERtWdG3oFvRC_-d19Q_lQlybHfdejhLhW-wInUVArjl0cRhnPKFwJZPZkwMbc2BTmNY4nq72tOuY8Wo/s1600-h/IMG_00373.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0037" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYPQVVetqZ24AfTMfdyW05Vndqfb2B8RGsXXyOAh_AGUNKGffgZf6pnrYei_NH4_xQYZQG5zmwTOlycSH2Vx4b6cLjXJaI6hfTl6FrwBQGG8-0D5oT577-QXAhqpXEZcxXHa5fx8uDTs/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0037" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aurelliah Rosenberg</td></tr></tbody></table>Aurelliah's <span style="font-size: small;"><i>Slideshare</i> can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/ariellahrosenbergteachmeetlightscameraaction" target="_blank">here</a>. </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Aurelliah's <i>video </i>can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/8/8vwJ4kRj2k8">here.</a> </span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">10. <b><u>Linda Bradfield</u></b> from St John's Prep spoke on <i>Collaboration versus Cooperation versus Coaching.</i></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinheAmnwM0JDHYoOgtydRuLUyWtdRBJ7wP6DwqqsJpDbNb_1GEaki5PEGtbT13qa1Bddos0JMqH6TJtb7STFgLCKQwasZGbufUbYkbN54Z2yjTSnhV9_D00EXwyzChk_cqlQ8zD756FhI/s1600-h/IMG_00413.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0041" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifFo2SoTRwQbCZ0JJAN5yL0qpavMPlicSmlIfLHYDkgCKwXUwBFFbLI2KR7lubcWH957Ek35QIG0jvFsSagpSE31UKsE806_EXkxYhwkKFLpyxIFv5i9plUsQ64pMungUgup5msQ33Vs8/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0041" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Linda Bradfield</td></tr></tbody></table>Linda's <i>Slideshare </i>presentationcan be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/lindabradfieldteachmeetcollaborationcooperationcoachingtm">here</a>.<br />Linda's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/5/FgvnADKCG3s">here</a>.<br /><u><br /></u><br />11. <b><u>Lyneth Crighton</u></b> from Brescia College had some great ideas for '<i>Recording with cell phones</i>' in schools.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAtfeFXNvbVcRrNsgbBKCQdrGd6jSDHnOSNOtKqOdakPk1oEVHbNSo55rJtglgSO1z84_jTntgWNM7bp1N1ZTt2lGIscdJzHp8wHDsuLT0VD_2AzFzhBlDOTm6mC_Gdv6xKKgxGPO0LSw/s1600-h/IMG_00453.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0045" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Wirtgh4SlTmhBUw1h8La9zeI8hEZrKrU9DnsYLB0lhnEnLf2ByRW9-YeOlMuk0bXdZxZr77BQsA0ECxxERNeVTqHVvD62WGnSJU2wRujHzrmadgy68Bm8z7MU5y6_ZW5V6BZoNej5kk/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0045" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lyneth Crighton</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span><br />Lyneth's <i>Slideshare</i> presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/lynethcrightonteachmeetsmartphonesforrecording">here</a>.<br />Lyneth's <i>video</i> can be viewed <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee#p/u/3/Pg3S5rTVo88">here</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">12</span>. </span><span style="font-size: small;"><b><u>Charmaine Hart</u></b> from </span>Bryandale Primary School Grade 5 showed how she integrates the curriculum in her advertising unit in English First Language She called it '<i>Advertising in English'</i>.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrdcv9Q1QUk-8FkLxKj1j7bxWNhYB_M-wwVFyhN9oemNgNUi3hht5IniR5Ca5qZLmwMtfXu5FdhqZfSnFvYgs0zFC6tQP4DPutzLkKfYjkP-3WGFHKN6ZDrfdNSF86kAlqvmle8eEmZeg/s1600-h/IMG_00473.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0047" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzs4zQJYiB8apqsiyqVAhtUbJrBBppi32YgokghnQYaiYo7M1GI9ZiuTr2k_UA_Ldh_YzaQbOIP-YO09IypxCPglB0FgegA4UafEi2aVqxvp9ozLBYHTVRh6sd7axHiuEsy0MBfDHvYPc/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0047" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charmaine Hart</td></tr></tbody></table>Charmaine's <i>Slideshare</i> presentation can be found <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11/charmainehartteachmeetadvertisinginenglish">here</a>.<br />Charmaine's <i>video</i> can be found <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckYa5TmCJZg&feature=channel_video_title">here</a>.<br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />The audience was enthusiastic and they listened with rapt attention.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw40Dj8J5eMuTf8KK-1bUNSudcbQ9Rk3jjbqY4GCSabMrA0PN3KhezItDfFglrEHFOcpC8x7kJ0MR51uZXZ736L3Bjl17lF1Ri8ptoJAOKQBrxAZbHt14642tirTzuHtwLmAFSFJw0CL8/s1600-h/audience2.jpg" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="audience" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTIiWqETGVsU117m-9IqQHMwnCTrVfKZ03g2CQOylSdtZeb8ZR7EehP9u6rcKvLAbKT3LgZLSfuPs6SrkOI2cgkTi82lZdHGnCtQMJWlXaCmA_M0G-P3h8UWeVE99mYBI6O-L9Ll-8O04/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="audience" width="244" /></a></div><br />After the Teachmeet Megan Rademeyer from SchoolNet urged teachers to consider entering the Microsoft Innovative teacher competition next year, and to start planning their projects soon. <span style="font-size: x-small;"></span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL1Zi1eQSOXNik5ryVU8fx6mWXgA7blmpwiw0rgr709O1L-v-79WSV744IWRzvsZl8mXV7Ez_m2sUDzEdAvTZRt2evXznlJorf7JWc8wcU0qh8Y5iEjhVAIEH3BJU5nnl_HVIo3mcn7aQ/s1600-h/IMG_00603.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="IMG_0060" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFuds7MFdCVlmXEwteh2q_4Tq04xH-2LVEHOpIaNEt9KoH0ittqV-J_AhPFY3-9YJeNUJHaOH-sThSkmnm-TnJy6q4B5WWJZfIFcUiG5CP1sWhVyrFbkhiLdrDP0Z2BFpld6QWZ9Q8cfw/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="IMG_0060" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Megan Rademeyer</td></tr></tbody></table><div id="__ss_10278564" style="height: 414px; width: 417px;"><strong style="display: block; margin: 12px 0px 4px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After that Fiona Beal spoke on Microsoft's free tools</span></strong><strong style="display: block; margin: 12px 0px 4px;"></strong><strong style="display: block; margin: 12px 0px 4px;"><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/fionabeal/microsofts-free-tools" target="_blank" title="Microsoft's Free Tools">Microsoft's Free Tools</a></strong> <iframe frameborder="0" height="355" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/10278564" width="425"></iframe> <br /><div style="padding: 5px 0px 12px;">View more <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/" target="_blank">presentations</a> from <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/fionabeal" target="_blank">fionabeal</a> </div></div><br /><br /><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Others involved in organising the TeachMeet</b><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwzLFDj1HQXWLfd7o6eabCZg0cNOV4WJh_AtEvx6rPuW_EUSNIPjC8BhEI279XzQ4wd3-rXE3RB6Vcf7QfhVvmE6lXNpqkQ0F8Mf4WoO4bW5qF590HFM4fCL9OU1hq21gcsR24N28H7Tg/s1600/IMG_0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwzLFDj1HQXWLfd7o6eabCZg0cNOV4WJh_AtEvx6rPuW_EUSNIPjC8BhEI279XzQ4wd3-rXE3RB6Vcf7QfhVvmE6lXNpqkQ0F8Mf4WoO4bW5qF590HFM4fCL9OU1hq21gcsR24N28H7Tg/s320/IMG_0002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thabile from Microsoft was the contact person for the TeachMeet</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;">The spirit of a TeachMeet is sharing and the beauty of a TeachMeet is that all the participants  can access all the presentations. </span>Microsoft has a great website which teachers around the word can join and use to create groups and upload information. This is known as the <a href="http://us.partnersinlearningnetwork.com/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">Partners in Learning Network</a>. I would encourage all teachers to join. It’s free. Microsoft created a TeachMeet group on this Network so that everybody could access all the presentations of the day.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiviIpdPiTL2aMgeOFrAAkmTMMXGx_GNEV-qCFYWA-0sRWnDhQYrbJhxVs5Rfh76DPOTeMJxMsmFJ06hx5We63JjRYzJptlJDWK9xh_1_6oP2MlTB80zy6gc6JeWbX9ecjKWDDK8Yzxy_0/s1600-h/image27.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPe2S9tMDszhkvhdrwlCcEMjnJkufROuazudbSyt1xXdtuR9M2-hY7AlfBG2_4E_cmGWlKL7ntNDNNuhMdF_BXHk7tF_-6ILWSqPjlMwT_zEq759XaY5ruOiwGs5fPmIvp0n7OAQHkMrA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Partners in Learning Network</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">A report was written about the TeachMeet by ITWeb in October. They called it "<b><i>T</i></b><i><b>eachmeets - 'Speed dating' for teachers"</b></i>. Read it </span><a href="http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=48289:teachmeet-speed-dating-for-teachers&catid=262&tmpl=component&print=1" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><strong>Photos of the day</strong></span><br /><br />  <br />                                <embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Ffionabeal%2Falbumid%2F5678552537527732257%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="267" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="400"></embed><br /><br />The videos in this blogpost are hosted in SchoolNetSA's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/SchoolNetSA?feature=mhee" target="_blank">YouTube channel </a> and the Slideshare presentations are mainly hosted in SchoolNetSA's <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/Schoolnetsa11" target="_blank">Slideshare channel</a><br /><b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><br />More Microsoft TeachMeets coming up in 2012</b><br /><br />The good news is that Microsoft is planning more of these around the country in 2012. I would encourage all teachers to keep their ears open for an announcement of a TeachMeet near you.  It is a great way to share and hear about the ways technology can enhance learning.<br /><br /><br /></div>

teachmeets Microsoft introduces TeachMeets into South Africa

Microsoft South Africa recently combined with SchoolNetSA to introduce the first TeachMeet into South Africa. It was great to be part of this historic occasion. These gatherings of teachers are fast becoming a very popular form of professional develo…

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