The 4State Conference Is Different
Twenty of my students just finished participating in the ASB 4State Conference in Springfield, MO. Yes, our school is in Springfield, so it was a pretty quick trip from the north side of town to the University Plaza Hotel, where we joined 400 other broadcast and video production students for a busy weekend.
I have attended so many high school conventions and conferences through the years, and I thought some of you might enjoy details about what makes the 4State unique. So read on, because yes, a list is coming.
Four sophomores work on a project for the 2019 ASB 4State Conference, which took place October 26-28.
*The 4State is more than just the four states it started with 11 years ago. The event has expanded, and there were kids from Florida, Alabama and Pennsylvania joining our four-state region of Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Oklahoma.
*The fun begins on Saturday evening to allow those playing sports, like football on Friday night, to still make to to the 4State.
*The novice contests allow first-year broadcast students to compete against each other, leveling the playing field. A great idea—my seven sophomores loved it.
*Teachers—and this is huge—teachers get to be around their kids during contests. We keep hands off the gear, but guess what? We get to advise, and teach. It totally diffuses the tension of larger events where teachers are kept away from their students during competitions. Each school has a home base where they edit and meet and collaborate, and it’s not unusual at all for teachers to walk around and visit with each other during contests (thanks Josh and the Central HS crew for letting me swipe some of your Oreos).
*There is an emphasis on contests because the hands-on work is where learning takes place. It is a staple of the ASB Workshops, and of the 4State. Learning by doing. There were 27 contests offered.
*Students pay $55 and can enter as many on-site contests as they want. Of course schedule conflicts will impact which ones kids can do, but some of my kids squeezed into three events.
*Judges’ critiques, on hard copy, were available at the closing ceremony, and they all included comments, some as many as a full page of comments.
Chuck the dog, a long time staple in HTV-Land, joined us as usual at the annual 4State Conference.
*We uploaded our entries and the 4State system was simple. BUT, if your upload was bogged down, you could simply submit on a thumb drive.
*We had free Internet in the large contest area all weekend.
*Everyone edited in an assigned area where tables and electricity were provided. Some schools got creative and brought decorative lights, a canopy, tons of snacks. Others just put their computers out and got to work.
*The contests were diverse. Journalism and creative production events gave every kid a chance to do both if they wanted to, or concentrate on their area of interest. I think my HTV kids had more fun doing production contests (music video, short movie production, etc.) because we do not do a lot of those things normally.
*There were screening rooms and a trivia bash. Students had things to do/watch after contests concluded.
*The Monday morning awards ceremony was fast-paced, and we got to see the winners. It was over in time for everyone to get on the road by 10:30 a.m. While the Saturday-to-Monday format is unusual, teachers know it is easy to have kids out of school on a Monday instead of Friday, because on Friday in the fall, there are so many sports and other events taking kids away from school.
*It. Was. Fun.
.