NECC-Day 1--Classroom 2.0: Exploring the Potential of Web 2.0

Steve Hargadon moderates, with Vicki Davis, Lucy Gray, Karen Greenwood Henke, Rushton Hurley and Leigh Zeitz

One of the many features of Web 2.0 tools is a back-channel chat feature. What this means is that when a session, workshop, panel, or keynote is broadcast to a remote audience (or even the live audience), then all audience members can participate in a back-channel conversation. These participant chat-rooms can be set up at uStream if you are broadcasting live video or you can set up a room at Chatzy. I think it is important that someone is able to moderate the back-channel during the event. For example, I was attending a panel discussion and the panel was taking questions from the audience but they also took questions that were posted in the chat room by audience members who were watching the panel discussion from the comfort of their own homes. I was also logged into the chat even though I was attending live and was having an ongoing conversation about the panel's comments with the remote audience. You can view the chat for this session at this Chatzy Room (the password is necc). Some of the conversation surely stimulates thinking.
Hargadon also used Poll Everywhere to assess his audiences attitudes and interests before the panel discussion began. The polls can be viewed here. Poll Everywhere uses the power of cell phone technology and I've blogged about it's capabilities before.
Hargadon runs Classroom 2.0, a great Ning social network with lots of members, discussion, and information about web 2.0 tools and capabilities. Biographies of the other panel members can be found here.