Welcome! Rather than write a unique blog entry every day for what happens at TCEA, I’m going to pack all that goodness into one blog entry and ask that you check back periodically. Most of the recordings are done on my phone, impromptu, and aren’t much longer than 3-5 minutes. At the end of the day, I’ll try to wrap it up with a short reflection, again unscripted and real. Content will feature the most recent stuff at the top (it’s reverse chronological order), older stuff at the end. I hope that makes it easy to insert new stuff!

Monday, 2/2

Daily Reflection

Part of the fun of attending TCEA is reconnecting with friends and colleagues. And, exploring cool ideas, as a chat with Ron reveals.

What a joy to see old and new friends:

I was also inspired to finally sum up this information, Free AI Comparison: Gemini Rules #BoodleBox The Winner.

Sunday, 2/1

Daily Reflection

Not available yet. I was a bit tuckered out from a lot of walking and running around, and lack of sleep. I’ll come back to this in a bit. I’ll post some more pictures on Monday.

Afternoon

This afternoon, I had a chance to follow-up and interview Tim about Gem and NotebookLM Workflow connections. You can listen to the audio of that conversation via this blog entry, which I wrote in the wee hours of the morning.

I found myself looking for Screenity and Scre.io for Chromebook based screencast recording. I was looking for a quick and easy video recorder. Screenity worked pretty well, and I’ll have to try Scre.io at some point to see how it works. You can see the results in the linked blog entry about Gem and NotebookLM.

Morning

I had a fun morning sharing session resources on Navigating Difficult Coaching Conversations with Confidence. I am particularly proud of the random scenario generator.

Saturday, 1/31

Daily Reflection

Here’s a quick reflection on today:

I ran into some wonderful folks today, and I even remembered to snap some selfies:

Technology Roadblocks, Detoured Around

About 35 minutes before my session on Video-Based Coaching was due to start, my HP Windows 11 laptop decided to display the blue screen of death:

As you might imagine, this is NOT the screen you want to see right before you have to give a presentation. Fortunately, I always carry a Zorin Linux (or some type of GNU/Linux) Live USB. With it, I was able to restart and boot into a full-blown operating system. Zorin Core Linux worked like a champ, connecting to all peripherals (except the battery operated clicker for slide advancement). My biggest worry was getting it to work with the projector, but it handled that easily. Unfortunately, after shutting down, I was unable to reboot using the Live USB. This meant, I had nothing more than a paperweight. After the session, I took the machine over to the TCEA Tech Crew, renowned for their technical acumen.

Alas, no one could resolve the issues. What’s worse, the machine’s keyboard stopped working. It was one sick puppy. I put the machine away, and made my way around today with my phone as my only connected device. At the end of the day, I spent around 40 minutes trying to resolve the issues. It appears the BIOS was fouled by firmware update the night before (which I couldn’t have delayed and gave no indication the night before it was a problem). To fix the problem, I will need a BIOS Recovery Tool from HP. Not something I want to deal with during TCEA Convention week.

Fortunately, San Antonio is my home town, and tech delivery (an Asus Chromebook) was a short drive away. So, this lighter piece of equipment will be my presentation tool for the week. This device is considerably lighter than the HP laptop, so I’m looking forward to less fatigue dragging a heavy bag around.

Explaining Gem and NotebookLM

This has to be one of the most fun conversations I had with someone today. You can read the step by step and see more infographic goodness here.

Video-Based Coaching

Today, I’m presenting on Video-Based Coaching. I’m jazzed because Brian and Jennifer from SWIVL will be joining in to showcase their technology. It’s easy to imagine folks standing around recording classroom instruction, learning from students, collecting actionable evidence that coaches and teachers can use to improve learning. But the knowing-doing gap sure gets in the way. I know a lot of teachers, and while some know how to record video, process it, then analyze it, it’s not that easy. That’s why it’s great to have a solution available.

Listen to a quick chat with Brian Lamb and Jennifer Raye below:

You can now see my Video-Based Coaching session resources in their entirety online. They are shared under Creative Commons BY-SA copyright, and if you’re thinking, “Why are you making all this goodness available?” Well, for one simple reason.

Technology moves super fast, and if you blink, you’ll miss it. All this will be obsolete, except the research, in the blink of an eye. If you are interested in learning more, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m going to try and remember to record the audio of the session, but if not, I’ll be sure to post a quick recap.

After my session, I’ll be spending time on Level 3, so feel free to drop by and say hello! But don’t be surprised if I ask you to record a quick interview and take a photo for placement here!

POCKETALK Chat

I had a chance to chat with Arturo, Katie, and Jiro from POCKETALK this morning. Listen to the chat below and watch video:

Friday Arrival, 1/30

People are gathering for the TCEA 2026 Convention and Exposition. I will be sharing my report here daily! So be sure to check back every day to see updates to this blog entry.

Reflections on the Day

During the Day

Walking the staff tour!

A Quick Chat with…Dr. Bruce Ellis

Meet the TCEA PD Team:

Signs Along the LOOONNNGG Hallway

Kudos to Macee Hall and Ben Starr for coming up with these. My favorite is the “Learning is a journey (Just like this hallway).” Credit for that gem goes to Macee, if I’m not mistaken!