What's a 1 in 3, #iste2015? And, why should you attend?

Today, I got to take part in the inaugural ISTE 1 in 3 talk. And, by take part, I mean present. And, by present, I mean be the very first presenter ever of the ISTE 1 in 3 talks. I can't say that the little tidbit did not add to my already-increasing nerves. However, that's not what this post is about. This is about why you should attend them and why you should try these for staff development and future conferences.

Here's what's great: you only have three minutes, which means you get to hear a lot of really inspiring stuff and, if you don't enjoy one, it's only three minutes!

Here's how it works: Each person has a set of slides they have created. There is no restraint to the slides. You can have as few or as many as you want. The catch: you have to say it all in 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, your mic is cut off and your half of the stage goes dark. If you are in mid-sentence, you end in mid-sentence. Meanwhile, the next person immediately begins their presentation from the other half of the stage. The presentations continue alternating on different halves of the stage until the end. The countdown clock starts immediately once the previous presentation is done.

It is intense as a presenter. It also allows you to focus on the gist. It's a great practice for students. Imagine if you had to cut your students down to these? Though I often struggled to get my students to use 3 minutes, I think I could win them over in this format. The focus is on the content and the delivery.

This would also be a great closing/opening session at any conference or professional development. You could even shorten it to 60-seconds. Similar to an elevator pitch, you could have participants share their stories/sessions in 60 seconds in order to win over audience members to their sessions.

The possibilities are numerous.  Having delivered both an Ignite and a 1 in 3, they are different in nature. A 1 in 3 is an inspirational idea. An Ignite can be that, but often it is also a topic of controversy meant to spark/ignite the audience.

There are still two more rounds of 1 in 3s so make sure you attend! You won't be disappointed!