The 3D Network

The ISTE 2014 educational conference, with over 16,000 educators and thousands more vendors in attendance, was remarkable. In this post, let’s zoom in on the activity that occurred with the ISTE 3D Network during this conference.

3D Network Activities

The ISTE 3D network is a special interest group (or personal learning network) of educators within ISTE who are interested in the promise of 3D in K-20 learning. At the ISTE 2014 conference, the burgeoning 3D Network grew its membership to more than 1,800 focused educators. It’s nothing less than a new grassroots force in education. 

The ISTE 3D Network itself hosted two well-attended events:

The ISTE PLN Open House: 3D Network Table. The table was swarmed by literally hundreds of interested educators, most of whom knew very little about 3D in general and many of whom joined the network on the spot. 

The 3D Network “Gathering.” The annual face-to-face meeting of the 3D network was well attended by both educators and vendors. It was a high energy event, bringing in new leadership and many new members. Many powerful 3D technologies were also demonstrated, including auto-stereoscopic tablets, 3D scanning, a small student-built 3D printer, 3D classroom lessons, and student-designed stereo 3D projects. Free copies of Presente3D’s PowerPoint add-on were awarded to all attendees.

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Overall, the ISTE 2014 educational conference was a memorable event in the steady upwards trajectory of 3D in education.