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Pete Sharma’s Top Six IATEFL moments

1 The start of Will Nash and David Read’s presentation

They’d recorded a green screen video of themselves talking. They then had a ‘conversation’ with their on-screen talking heads. Best moment? Will on-screen taunting newly shaven off-screen Will: “Where’s the beard?”

(A similar effect achieved by Shaun Wilden and Nikola Fortova in their session on apps, using an avatar)

I tried on Google Glass. Not the best moment of the conference, as I’d just learned seconds before that glass was being discontinued. And I wear glasses, so, er, I couldn’t actually see anything much…

2 Aurasma with Stephen Pilton

I’d read the article in Modern English Teacher. I’d used the pictures in that article to demonstrate Augmented Reality. But I didn’t really quite ‘get’ Aurasma until this session. A refreshingly humorous session in the midst of the intellectual earnestness.

3 Hacking the classroom

Stop the clocks. Cancel the milk. Paul Driver’s speaking. The one unmissable presentation. (See photo)

4 App smashing with Jo Dale

When I first saw Joe Dale talk about this, at a Learning Technology SIG day, I took notes. I kept up (just) with the breakneck speed. But I actually didn’t quite understand app-smashing.

I do now.

Best moment: Joe talking OVER his avatar talking and explaining something on-screen. Talk about multi-sensory, multi-dimensional input. Very funny and a great last session.

5 The International Quiz

Spent a year preparing for this – watching University Challenge; Eggheads; Only Connect; Pointless. Family Guy (for the one question about, er, Family Guy).

We (The Schwas) were first equal. All credit to our writer Sue Lyon-Jones. And well done Gavin for declaring a draw after the second tie-breaker.

And we nearly didn’t go…

6 Carol Ann Duffy

Mrs Midas; Mrs Aesop.

Those were the top six. There’s NO time to mention:

  • the British Council party at the Town Hall
  • air dropping with the fabulous Arena sisters
  • the Cultura Inglesa session on Pinterest by Andreia Zakime
  • Paul Sweeney’s excellent talk on on-line course construction, demonstrating exactly what a good session should be…
  • catching up with the wonderful Liliana Simon, who showed me the hidden trigger on the cover of Gavin and Nicky’s book
  • meeting my co-author, Jeremy Day, AFTER we had done an eBook together!
  • chatting to dear colleagues

OK – off to join the hashtag ‘Already missing Manchester’ group…:-)

Pete Sharma’s six greatest IATEFL Manchester moments

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