GA Conference 2007 - University of Derby

Had been a long build up to the conference. I was asked back in October of last year I think to lead one of the 2 workshops that are being put on by the GA Secondary Phase Committee: Future Fieldwork: GIS for Beginners. The other is 'Quality Street: Quality Geography' (which I think is a good title...)

When the conference programme came out, I realised that I now knew enough people presenting workshops to have a very busy 2 days if I was to try to catch up with everyone. Also started to have a lot of meetings planned, and because of the workshop I was also asking a few favours of people. I hope to try to thank everyone in the account that follows. And if I said I'd do something for you and missed you out, let me know !

FRIDAY 13th APRIL

Friday the 13th ! Woke at 5.50am, and the heat had been replaced temporarily with fog. Breakfast then off down the A1 and M1 from York slowly due to the fog which was very thick in places, picking up the A38 and down into Derby and arrived as the conference was opening, and delegates queuing for breakfast. The University of Derby is a good venue, with a large glass atrium which housed the exhibitors stands, and all the rooms are just off the main area. Coffee and first meetings with colleagues old and new - lots of SLN FORUM regulars. The GGiP stand was up and running already, and there was a buzz around the stand and for me it was 'the place to be' which I kept gravitating back to for the next 2 days. It was being manned by SLNers, particular Andrew Stacey and the founders: David Rayner and Dan Raven Ellison, but with lots of help from LittleMiss Ellis, Rob Chambers, , Bob Lang and others. Some fabulous badges available for sale,

Chat to Ian Hardie from RAYBURN TOURS. He was just back from Iceland, and discussed single malt whisky. I'll have to get to Iceland sometime soon.

Professor Andrew Goudie was first up on my list with an opening lecture which was well attended.

See my notes on the presentation which will appear shortly on the GLOBAL WARMING page.

It was a very useful run through some of the key points related to the impacts of global warming on geomorphology.

Met with Fran Royle to discuss publications and had a first look at the next GA Magazine: the blogging special article I wrote looks great ! - managed to get in a lot of the recent teacher blogs.

Also met up again with Karl Donert from Liverpool Hope University who is involved in the HERODOT project. There was some mention made of Sweden...

Up to the session on WIKI, BLOG and PODCAST by Val Vannet and David Rayner. Some great ideas for working with these Web 2.0 technologies. The rise in blogging has been one of the more gratifying things to occur in 2006, and will look for more developments in 2007. A packed house with standing room only.

Noel Jenkins was next up. He is the creator of DIGITAL GEOGRAPHY and JUICY GEOGRAPHY. He was doing a session with Duncan Fuller on Public Geographies, and they made a good team. Duncan was involved in the MY WALKS project, which I have blogged about. Good to meet up with him albeit briefly. The session was looking at the link between school and academic geography, something that Peter Knight mentioned last year.

Heard good things about the session on Slavery and the links that can be made with global trade and commodities and the fact that there are still over 20 million people in slavery, many of them children.

Lecture by Bill McGuire next - a talk postponed from last year: "Surviving Armageddon', where he introduced the idea of the 'gee gees' or GGEs, or Global Geophysical Events. A very entertaining look at a book where he featured as one of the characters, but got killed off by terrorists on page 30.

It centred on one of the possible GGEs he mentioned the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma (sic). Managed to ask a question at the end of the lecture.

Brief chat with Nicole Lyons: editor of GA Magazine, who was preparing for a 'Teacher to Teacher' session, and also John Lyon (no relation), and asked him about some work that formed one of the displays, about work on Waverley: a new town near Rotherham.

Angus Willson from SUSTAINABLE CITIES. ASC: Action for Sustainable Communities pack was being given away - very good free CD and Settlement Hierarch pop up pyramid. A very nice pack that he was giving away, but I got there just as they ran out, despite raiding the empty boxes under the table..

Had a chat with Stuart Gough who was demonstrating the very sexy MAGIC PLANET globes. Check out the VIVIFEYE site for more details on these and see a video: http://www.vivifeye.com/the-magic-planet.html I spoke to Stuart earlier in the year when he was looking for ideas to link the use of the globe with Geography curriculum and there are now some lesson plans for Geography topics.

To the GA stand to purchase some books: some good new publications which I purchased: Charles Rawdings' book on "Understanding Place as Process", and Tim Hall's "Everyday Geographies" and Alan Marvell and Claire Watkins' "Sustainable Tourism". Nice hessian bag to put them in too and reuse for shopping.

Met Simon Oakes and Jonathan Wolton from the RGS-IBG: chat on some of the new resources that are forthcoming at the GEOGRAPHY TEACHING TODAY website.

Launch of Charles Rawding's new book from Chris Kington Publishing: "Reading our Landscapes". Chat with Chris earlier in the day - met up at the SAGT for the last 2 years. A lot of Chris Kington's publishing information is now moving over to TEACHING EXPERTISE, where there is also the blog of a teacher heading to Antarctica.

Up to set up the room for tomorrow and check things worked - software had all been loaded, internet connection worked, and things looked to be OK.

Down for chat with John Widdowson, author of the EARTHWORKS series and the THIS IS GEOGRAPHY series.

Had the AGM of our Secondary Phase Committee, and some discussion on the new KS3 PoS and the GA's consultation.

Out to the car, and Tom B and I made an attempt to find the hotel. Managed to find it at some point, and up to the room. Had an hour to 'freshen up' and then it was out again towards Derby centre and London Road, and the 'posh' Stuart Hotel. Out for a meal at the restaurant San Marco. We had booked a table for our meal.... except we turned up and we hadn't in fact booked. None the less, they found us a table for 10, or was it 12, in fact it was 13.... Had very nice Grolsch and red wine and the largest pizza I'd ever seen. Nobody finished them... Walked back to the Stuart where some people were having drinks, but for Tom and I it was into the fleshpots of Derby's zone of discard and then through the CBD.

High spots: drunk girls throwing bottles around, drunk girls walking along holding each other up, three stilt walkers one of whom was wearing a bikini, several people selling roses (?), several requests for money, bouncers, taxi marshalls in fluorescent jackets (a new one on me), loud music pumping out from conflicting pubs and clubs.

To the Bistrot Pierre for SLN meal: drinks had been taken. Bottle of Peroni, then walked back through the city centre to the hotel.

SATURDAY 14th APRIL - my daughter's 8th birthday - the sacrifices I make for Geography

Up early, a reasonable night despite the usual 'hotel noises' that you get. Foggy again, and in to the University for early breakfast with David Lambert and Di Swift, Dave and Val. Other SPC members arriving and finished off making up the "BEST DELEGATE PACKS" at the Conference (allegedly)

At 8.20, it was up to room B222 to set up for our workshop: a few technical 'issues' to deal with first though:

2. By 8.40 the room was still locked. I'd been up and down the stairs three times by then. Someone came, but that was just to drop off some water, so we at least weren't going to die of thirst.

4. Finally the key arrived with 5 minutes to set up for a 2 hour session, and as the door was opened, an alarm started to sound !

5. We went in and started setting up. Apologies to delegates who had to endure the alarm, or had to wait down the bottom, and this also meant that we couldn't do a final technical run through of all the issues...

Had our FUTURE FIELDWORK workshop - head over to the page to download the resources for a time limited period. My introduction went quite smoothly I thought, and then Tom Biebrach and Alan Kinder took over - groups went out to do their data collection, thanks to GPS handsets loaned and demonstrated by Tom Bramald of GEOMATICS, who I met earlier. The sun had now burnt away the fog and it was a glorious day again. Delegates came back to the room and worked through some very good activities produced by Tom Biebrach and Fred Martin then skilfully rounded off the session and drew everything together.

Many thanks to Helen Young for giving up her Saturday morning to lend a hand at the session.

Workshop went very well. Bryan Ledgard was there taking some photos of the various stages, so hopefully some of those will make their way into the GA Magazine supplement. Had some good delegate feedback.

See the Geographypages page which relates to the WORKSHOP

Also check out ANDREW STACEY's excellent IMAGE GALLERY on his site.

The man from MAPALYTICS came along at the end of the session, and I went to see a demo. This is a new venture from a company called EduMap. This is an entry level GIS system with additional curriculum content which would be useful for those who wanted a simple GIS which is online and requires no software to be downloaded or installed.

For more information go to EDUMAP website.

Chat to Alan Doherty, who was down representing SAGT - I met him in Dundee when I went up last year (and the year before). He very kindly gave me copies of some of the Journal of the SAGT: notably an edition edited by Richard Muir entitled "Reading the Landscape". He was there to launch the GEOJUICE website and CD sets. Alan has launched a website and series of CDs called GEOJUICE. Check out the sample images.

Rick Cope - had a chance to play on the COASTAL MANAGEMENT resource that was on the network too. Published by GeoPacks. Sorry I didn't get to see you later in the day Rick.

Had lunch with Alan K. Going through the workshop. Lots of GGiP networking still going on.

Second of the GA Secondary Phase Committee workshops: Quality Street then took place. Kathryn Stephenson led the session and handed out chocolates, and there was then a circus of short sessions on Concept Mapping, Student Voice and Collaborative Work / Leading the Department which were run by Rob Lodge, Sarah Watts and Emma Johns, and finally Simon Renshaw rounded off the session.

I particularly liked Gary Dawson's input which was to combine those old classics the MYSTERY and the MOVIE to make the MYSTERY MOVIE - proved to be a bit controversial though !

Documents from the 2 SPC workshops will also appear on the GA WEBSITE.

Down to see Alison Neale, who presented a Teacher to Teacher session on aspects of ICT use in Geography. It was good to see her again - she spent a term as a PGCE colleague, and is now an NQT.

A few final chats with a few people and various bits and pieces then it was goodbyes to all at the GGiP stand and out to the car, and off back up to York on a glorious sunny afternoon to catch the rest of my daughter's birthday.... Jelly and cake anyone ?