I’ve been to NECC several times, but as a first-timer to EduCon, if I had to choose between the two conferences, I’d lean towards EduCon for the following:
Reason #1: Sessions are more like conversations than presentations. Every session I attended truly was “an opportunity to discuss and debate ideas – from the very practical to the big dreams.”
Reason #2: There are no extra fees to attend certain sessions, no matter who the “conversation facilitator” might be.
Reason #3: Meeting in real-time many of the people I follow in Twitter and/or whose blogs I subscribe to.
Reason #4: Ignite Sessions (a.k.a. Enciendas). OK, I didn’t actually make it upstairs to the Science Leadership Academy library in time to hear any of the lunch time, 5-minute presentations. But if the rest were on par with Andrea Zellner’s 5-minute piece, The Writing Revolution – R U Literate?, then I definitely like the injection of the encienda format into a 3-day conference.
Reason #5: Science Leadership Academy – Real-time students greatly added to the conversations, sharing their enthusiasm for their SLA community, acting as guides into a 1×1 laptop environment – and providing just-in-time tech support to all in need. And, hey, SLA is in Philadelphia. What more can I say?!