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Posts Tagged ‘conference’

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Self-Directed & DIY Learning

In My Work on October 9, 2011 at 10:13 pm


I’m in New York at the moment, preparing to chair a panel at the MobilityShifts conference with fellow Faculty of Information graduates representing the Critical Making Lab. It is uncanny how our three research projects ultimately touched on common themes despite our wildly different research approaches. Perhaps the apple does not fall far from the tree, but this panel is going to be interested in discussion the differences, the similarities, and most important, how it relates to two of the conference themes: DIY University (why not just learning in general?) and Digital Fluencies for a Mobile World (how big is this ‘world’ we are talking about?).

We’re going to have more questions than answers, it’ll be the first time we’ve all spoken about our research since defending, and we are all going to bring something different to the discussion. Learning happens anywhere and at anytime, and the three contexts that we look at will give some interest contexts to discuss questions and concerns that the conference participants will surely have.

I’ve staked out a place to get my coffee and croissant before it all starts, and the summer-like weather will certainly help with getting me out of bed early. Not looking forward to rush-hour subway.

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The world at St. John’s

In My Work on July 15, 2011 at 8:57 pm

The presentation yesterday went pretty well. It was a small but engaged crowd, with many familiar faces and some great new colleagues. As always, putting ideas out there was a great way to strike up conversations with others, and learning about other people’s work. Experiencing a gathering of people from all corners of the globe has been both enlightening and humbling. I am especially excited about some of the new canadian colleagues I have met. I am forever indebted to Prof. Beverley Diamond (co-chair of local arrangements with Prof. Kati Szego and the inspirations behind Memorial University’s Research Centre for Music, Media and Place) for recommending that I submit a proposal when we met last year at BFE 2010. It’s funny how unplanned connections draw you down a path you never dreamed of walking down. I won’t promise anything, but I will do my best to write up some of my thoughts and some of the most interesting sessions that I have sat in.

I have to note once again that this was an extremely well organized conference. Maybe Newfoundlanders are just used to organizing music-related gatherings of this size, but what a team and what a city to be Canadian hosts to the world. Heck, they made me feel so welcomed, I want to come back and explore the rest of the province!

I am going to take the “excursion day” tomorrow to soak in more of the wonderful people at this place, and do my own job as Canadian host by showing people around. And if I am lucky, I will get to see the sun rise over Cape Spear before I leave, like I wanted to when I was here almost ten years ago exactly.

May there be a clear sky on Sunday morning.

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ICTM 2011

In My Work on July 13, 2011 at 6:30 pm

Greetings from St. John’s, Newfoundland, the eastern-most city in Canada. I’ve been here since Sunday, but I haven’t had a chance to write a post at all. The trip has already been full of interests: had fun conversations with an urban planner on my way in and we ended up splitting a cab downtown, met an aspiring-ethnomusicologist who was working the booth of a boat tour, briefly met a librarian working in Ottawa over breakfast at my B&B, and walked until I had no more legs. While here I also had a call with my second reader who gave me her feedback on my thesis, and I should be receiving a written report from my external any time this week now.

Today was the official start of the conference, and there are some very colourful people around in all sense of the word. It’s fascinating to me to see the way scholars from different parts of the world present their work, and their approaches to music research from a variety of perspectives. The folks at MUN have also done a great job organizing everything. Aside from things they can’t control like last minute cancellations of paper presentations and the drizzly weather, they seem to taking care of the 500 attendees (from 55 countries!) very well.

I’ll write up more thoughts later. Time to put those last minute touches on my presentation tomorrow. Wish me luck!

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