Oral presentations are an important part of academic life. Professors present at international, national, and local conferences to learn about related research and to contribute to the body of knowledge in the field. Presentations are also a great way to see how the audience responds to our ideas. I use them as the first step towards publishing. The conference presentations provided opportunities for me to network with colleagues. I received feedback on my own ideas presented during conference sessions. I learned about new developments in early education and teacher education. I met colleagues with whom I already am collaborating on research or writing projects. These experiences also gave me ideas about involving undergraduate students in research and scholarly projects. This has resulted in many student projects. My presentations about education in the Far East of the Russian Federation have resulted in two chapters in books about education throughout the world.