We’re looking at a great set of presentations, and do make sure to save some calories for the poster reception. Good food and topics like educational data mining, mobile learning, metrics and a question we all wrestle with, is there an educational advantage to NSDL?

Here are the things you don’t want to miss:

Tuesday, the opening plenary from 5-6:00 PM followed by the poster reception.

Wednesday at 8:30 AM, the panel on cyberlearning, where we intend to reinforce the theme for our meeting.

Thursday closing plenary at 12:15 PM on issues of sustainability.

And of course, don’t miss the opportunity to connect with your colleagues, both old and new, during the breaks.

Looking forward to seeing you all there!

And remember that registration and poster submission closes on October 19, so hurry on in to get your seat reserved!

You can also go directly to the Annual Meeting pages for more info about the meeting without logging in or registering.

We’re finishing up the program schedule and will have that posted within a week, after all the presenters have been notified. It’s shaping up to be a great set of sessions that really underscore NSDL’s movement from library to learning.

We’re also developing an Orientation Brown Bag to be held in early November for all new projects and staff. So, stay tuned for more details on that.

Topics range from concrete examples of how to mine different sources of web usage data to middleware to help improve the accessibility of NSDL to the blind.

The registration site and poster submission pages with be released mid-September, and we’ll be back out to you all when they are ready.

From Digital Libraries to Cyberlearning
In 2008, the NSDL Annual Meeting highlighted activities that are pushing the boundaries of digital libraries by finding ways to weave together learning and technology in our highly connected world. Presentations also underscored the challenges of working within the evolving national infrastructure while producing real results in the classroom. For 2009, proposals should explore issues and report on activities building on this transition from library to learning.

This year the Committee is asking you to submit your talk in one of six topical areas. The six categories for presentations include:

Evaluation and Impact: Focus on efforts and results to measure the effects of NSDL in real educational settings, and to document impacts as observed from the STEM teacher and learner audiences of NSDL projects;

Outreach and Professional Development: Outline models, research or designs of activities implemented that promote the use of NSDL in alignment with instructional practice;

Research Findings: Present cumulative experiences and compelling narratives about ongoing, or concluded, research (e.g., technology, education, policy) within the context of the NSDL goals to support effective usage of library materials;

Sustainability: Describe strategies for sustaining your work within a broader vision for NSDL while keeping pace the evolving national STEM research and education infrastructure;

Services, Discoverability and Technology: Demonstrate tools and technology developed to enable the creation, discovery and adoption of digital materials tailored for use with today’s learners;

Collection Development: Advance the craft of digital library building by presenting strategies and software for library building, working with standards, archiving and other library tools needed to ensure the utility and integrity of library collections.

The Committee continues to encourage presentations that incorporate various media (e.g., video clips, podcasts, blogs), which further underscore the movement from Libraries to Learning.

The following session types will be available for the 2009 meeting: Panels, Presentations, Computer Labs, and Lightning Talks. Please read the suggestions about session formats below; refer to the Proposal Submission Process FAQ; and as always, contact the Planning Committee with questions.

Panel or Presentation, up to 30 minutes: This time would support an update on several facets of one project’s activities, or several projects could report on related activities.

Panel or Presentation, up to 60 minutes: This time would support a panel presentation comprising several perspectives on an issue or an in-depth examination of one significant issue.

Computer Lab: These sessions do not have to follow a specific format, though we ask that proposals describe an engaging and interactive session, resulting in tangible outcomes for participants. Possible session formats could include workshops or training on tools and technology, or hands-on demonstrations of site features or activities. Some examples include: train-the-trainer sessions on delivering a specific workshop curriculum, learning to use an NSDL service such as Content Clips or CWIS, or learning how to de-bug a particular piece of software. We do not plan to provide computers this year unless specifically requested by the presenter, since most attendees bring their personal laptops to the meeting.

Lightning Talk: Lightning talks are 5-minute presentations on any topic and are a great way to quickly share detailed information. The style is informal, focused, informative, and can be as prepared or as spontaneous as the presenter chooses. You do not need to organize a whole session of lighting talks. The Planning Committee will organize the talks into 60-minute sessions.

How to Submit a Proposal
Proposals will be due by midnight of August 28. NOTE: There will not be an extension of this deadline. Because the meeting space is limited this year, the Committee may not be able to accommodate all presentations as in past years and you may be asked to change the length or format of your proposed activity. Please check the proposal FAQ for general information.

Although the complete Annual Meeting site is not yet available, you may fill out a template for submitting your proposal at http://annualmeeting.nsdl.org/proposal_registration.php.

We will notify presenters by September 4.

We will accept poster submissions starting in early September. If you have any questions, please contact me.

The overall structure of the meeting will be the same, with the poster reception on the first evening, and ending the meeting by noon on the 19th. Registration will open in early September. The planning committee is working on a theme for the meeting, and has come up with 6 major areas of interest: Evaluation & Impact, Outreach & Professional Development, Research Findings, Sustainability, Services & Technology and Collection Development. We will be asking presenters to submit their presentations with these categories in mind, to help us better slot your talks with similar topics. We will also be putting on some pre-meeting sessions via ReadyTalk, including an orientation for new staff and projects, and other presentations that will help us all hit the ground running at the meeting.

So, stay tuned to this blog for future updates, make your travel plans and hotel reservations and plan to reconnect with your colleagues and friends in November.

The planning committee has begun meeting to talk about how we can streamline the meeting given our short timeline, yet meet the needs of the community as expressed through the 2008 meeting survey. The RC is working on a contract with a DC hotel for dates in November. I’ll let you know as soon as we know about the dates and location.

We’re planning a series of brown bag sessions via ReadyTalk leading up to the meeting. They will include an orientation session for new staff and projects, a presentation by the Pathways Webmetrics group and other topics that the AM committee sees as important. These sessions will be archived for those unable to attend. We hope they will help all attendees get off to a fast start from day one of the meeting.

Good to be back in the middle of NSDL community events! I’ll be working part-time as the NSDL Annual Meeting chair. So, if you contact me, I might not get right back to you, but do trust that I will.

So, stay tuned, I will be posting regularly!