Last week I was in Louisville, Kentucky for the 2009 Association of Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) International Convention. AECT is "a professional association of thousands of educators and others whose activities are directed toward improving instruction through technology. "¹ This year's conference was titled "Integrative Approaches: Meeting Challenges." My highlights were:

• Hanging out for the week and attending the conference with Julie, my best friend from the University of Hawaii (UH).
• Getting together with Ellen, Peter, Betsy, Curtis, Rachel, Ari, and Kim, UH professors and grad students.
• Attending sessions on: engaging, effective, and efficient instruction (Merrill); technology literacy (Davies); learning through inquiry (Goodyear); US ed tech programs (Ku et al); structuring online instruction (Zydney & Byk); open courseware (OCW) (Parker); and cross-cultural instructional design (Tracey & Unger).
• Supporting my colleagues at their presentations on: synchronous online professional development (Leong & Eichelberger); and social networking (Hoffman).
• Volunteering at the convention and meeting other volunteers.
• Meeting other graduate students and finding out about their programs.
• Learning about Louisville. Especially the visits to Churchill Downs, the Muhammad Ali Center, the Louisville Slugger Museum, and the neighborhoods wtih old Victorian houses.

It was a good week. The next conference I go to I'll have to present some of my research :-)

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(1) AECT (2009). www.aect.org