Edcamp is a form of unconference designed specifically for teachers and their needs.

 

What makes Edcamp an unconference? Unlike traditional conferences which have schedules set months in advance by the people running the conference, Edcamp has an agenda that’s created by the participants at the start of the event. Instead of one person standing in front of the room talking for an hour, people are encouraged to have discussions and hands-on sessions. Sponsors don’t have their own special sessions or tables, all of the space and time are reserved for the things the people there want to talk about. People could pay hundreds of dollars to attend another conference, or they could go to Edcamp for free.

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Built on principles of connected and participatory learning, Edcamp strives to bring teachers together to talk about the things that matter most to them: their interests, passions, and questions. Teachers who attend Edcamp can choose to lead sessions on those things that matter, with an expectation that the people in the room will work together to build understanding by sharing their own knowledge and questions.

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Edcamps are:

• free

• non-commercial and conducted with a vendor-free presence

• hosted by any organization interested in furthering the Edcamp mission

• made up of sessions that are determined on the day of the event

• events where anyone who attends can be a presenter

• reliant on the “law of two feet” that encourages participants to find a session that meets their needs