The "P" in PLN

"P" is for POWERFUL

There are many days when I think the "P" in PLN stands for POWERFUL instead of, or at the very least in addition to, professional. Investing time and energy, connecting and developing a professional learning network, is certainly a wise investment. The power of being a connected educator, lies not in the connections themselves, it is not in the number of individuals you are following or the number that may follow you, the power is in the relationships that we nurture and cultivate. It isn't the technology it is the humanity. The technology is the vehicle that makes the relationship possible.  All of this has come into really sharp focus for me lately.

The opportunities I have had, the transformation I have seen in my teaching and learning as of late, can in a large part be traced back to being a connected educator.  Being a connected educator has afforded me opportunities I would have never dreamed of, and this has been a huge benefit to myself and to my students. Regular participation in the education chats on Twitter have helped me to develop some pretty amazing collegial relationships.

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS; RATHER IT TWEETS

I'm currently working with a gifted group of educators from around Upstate NY on an Ed Camp project.  You can follow our progress here: EdCampUNY. I have not met any of these educators in person yet.  We communicate via email, Twitter, and Google Hangouts, and though we have not met face to face, I consider these individuals colleagues and more importantly friends. As Marty Keltz so eloquently put it recently, "the virtual is real." I will be sharing more about my meeting with Marty in just a bit, but let's consider the power of those words. I think those new to social media can be quick to be dismissive of its positive power, I know I was a few years ago. But it really is true, if you invest positively, if you are authentic and genuine, the relationships that develop virtually can be just as real as any other relationships. This is why part of me is just a little bit jealous of Marty, you see Marty is on a journey that is going to take him part way across the country and give him the opportunity to meet more than a few of the people in his PLN.

MEETING MARTY

So let me set the stage a little bit, it was a pretty typical Tuesday evening, and after putting the kids to bed I sat down and began scrolling through my Twitter feed. There are a few great chats on Tuesday night, so it wasn't long before I was sucked in. One that immediately got my attention was the #PTChat being moderated by fellow New Yorker and all around great guy, Tony Sinanis. I jumped in, and it wasn't long before I found out that Marty Keltz, someone I had come to know through other edchat discussions, was in the area. Pretty quickly it went from connecting on Twitter to the next day meeting for coffee and great conversation.

I admit I was more than a little excited. Meeting people that I have come to know through our online exchanges is just plain exciting. It was actually at this point that I decided that maybe I needed to learn a little more about Marty. I knew we shared some common beliefs about learning, and the role of education and educators, what he shared and tweeted was what led me to follow him in the first place. I really felt like I knew what I needed to know; I knew what was important. But being somewhat responsible and prudent I thought a little research was in order. I started with checking out his Twitter profile and running a quick Google search, I very quickly found out that I had just agreed to have coffee with an Emmy award-winning producer, the co-founder of Scholastic Productions, and the man who led the team that created the Magic School Bus series. What?! Yes, I was feeling woefully inadequate, and yes, as an elementary school educator, the idea of getting to meet the man behind the Magic School Bus series was pretty mind boggling (talk about street cred with my students!). I woke up the next morning not really sure what to expect. I'm still struggling a little bit with putting into words just what our brief conversation meant. Which is probably difficult for some of you to understand. I think it might be a little like connecting with a long lost member of your extended family.

Very quickly our conversation turned to "our children" the students we serve, our mutual goal of promoting empathy and developing social emotional intelligence. Our shared belief that a test score should never define a child, and our support for the need to reclaim education for the whole child. I could have spent the whole morning talking with Marty, but time was short. Before I had to make my way to school we discussed his current project CritterKin. Listening to him I became more and more excited. His project CritterKin, with Jena Ball was just the thing I had been looking for. I couldn't wait to get back to school to share it with my colleagues.  In the coming months we will work with Marty and Jena, and the rest of the CritterKin pack as we help to develop social emotional intelligence, and promote kindness and empathy. This is just one more example of the POWER of the PLN.

The moral of the story is this...get connected. Yes, being connected takes time, and it takes commitment, just as building any other relationship does, and just like any other relationship you get out of it, what you put into it.

The power of the PLN is the people. It is the relationships that we build. It is the causes that unite us. The stories that we share.

Dreams to Reality: Reflection

Am I Dreaming?

Integrating technology effectively is not a pipe dream, a hope or a wish that is impossible to achieve. It is within the grasp of each classroom, each school, each district, and it is an imperative. So what do we do? Where do we start? I think sometimes that is the problem, the starting, and then the building momentum. It seems overwhelming. After all, the number of things to factor in, and reflect on, is huge.  There is no denying that really.  Everything from the policies and procedures, to the infrastructure, there are thousands of things that need to be considered, and I think the fact that it is such a daunting task sometimes causes us to abandon innovation before we ever really start.  

There are of course places all over the world that have risen to the occasion.  There are places where amazing things are happening in terms of student learning. What do these places have in common? Here is a hint, it's not all about demographics and economics. I don't mean to be dismissive of very real obstacles, they do exist. But the reality is, even those school districts faced with incredible obstacles, can also be incredibly innovative, and produce incredible results (necessity is the mother of invention?).  It seems to me that what it boils down to is leadership and vision. Are there other key factors necessary to successfully integrating technology? Certainly, but without these two where are we really?

Sometimes it feels like a school or district's vision is really just an outline of a good intention. We set goals based on this intention, and we want to achieve them, but we don't. Quite frankly, the road to nowhere is paved with good intentions. We need leaders at all levels that will commit to the hard work of turning good intentions into actions, and actions into the reality that will truly prepare students for "college and careers."It is not impossible and it is extremely necessary.

A Case in Point...
If you want a glimpse at what this could look like sit down with Tom Murray from Quakertown Community School District in Buck County, Pennsylvania. I'm not going to pretend that they have some kind of silver bullet, or some kind of techno utopia there, but what they do have is pretty darn impressive. 

I had the opportunity to listen to Tom's keynote today at the CNYRIC ITD Talks.  I've followed Tom on Twitter, have participated in a number of the chats that he has moderated or co-moderated, read some of his contributions to electronic journals, and so I thought I had a general sense of what his keynote would be. Well, I was blown away. You see the learning environment Tom described I almost doubted could exist. A cyber school environment, BYOD, 1:1 implementation and blended learning, not in isolation, but woven together into an amazing tapestry to provide truly fluid, differentiated and personalized learning for students. It is clear that Quakertown Community School District's litmus test is "what is best for students and student learning." Their attitude and posture are clear, it is articulated in their vision statements, but more importantly is evidenced by their actions. Effective technology integration is not a pipe dream, a hope or a wish that is impossible to achieve, because it is fully alive in Buck's County, Pennsylvania.

Find out more about their 21st Century Learning Initiative .

PLN Blogging Challenge

PLN Blogging Challenge and My Thanks...

I had a couple of ideas percolating for an end of 2013 blog, and then the PLN Blogging Challenge came along. I was tagged in this challenge by one of my EdCampUNY friends Lisa Meade. I'm going to try to mesh my end of the year post with the challenge. Here goes...

In my year-end post I wanted to take the opportunity to thank the many individuals that have contributed to my professional growth this year.  When I sat back and thought about all the truly amazing conversations, chats, and interactions I had this year with so many gifted educators, I realized what a truly remarkable year it had been.  A difficult year to be sure, but one filled with so many blessings. When I become overwhelmed, or discouraged, I read my Twitter feed.  It is filled with examples of educators doing extraordinary things, and making a difference one child, one moment, one day at a time. So thank you for inspiring, challenging, encouraging and empowering me this year. And now without further delay...the PLN Blogging Challenge.

The Rules of the Challenge:

• Acknowledge the nominating blogger.
• Share 11 random facts about yourself.
• Answer the 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.
• List 11 bloggers. They should be bloggers you believe deserve a little recognition and blogging love.
• Post 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate to answer and let all the bloggers know they've been nominated. *You cannot nominate the blogger who nominated you.

11 Random Facts About Me...

1) I believe in God, the Father Almighty. Jesus Christ is my Savior. I believe in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Yes, I will wish you a Merry Christmas instead of Happy Holidays.
2) My roots are Canadian.  I moved to the United States in 2000.
3) I attended the University of Toronto at Scarborough and studied Environmental Science, and had not initially planned to pursue a career as a public school teacher.
4) My husband hates taking me to hockey games, especially if the Toronto Maple Leafs or the Toronto Marlies are playing. Apparently, I get a little into the game. See #2 for the explanation.
5) I have two children that I love beyond measure. Josh was born on Dec. 24 and Cassie was born on Dec. 9. Yes, December is a little busy in our house.
6) I have skied (downhill) since before I was 2 years old. Love Whistler, B.C.
7) My first teaching assignment in my present building was in 2nd grade. After that year, I moved to 6th grade where I remained for 10 years.  This year I returned to 2nd grade, and the very room I started in.
8) I grew up in a rural area outside of the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). Blackstock, Ontario was a great place to grow up.
9) Social media has allowed me to stay connected with family and friends from "home" and that means the world to me.
10) I love Italian food.
11) I love the magic of Disney.


My Answers to Lisa's Questions...

1) It's a toss up Lord I Need You by Matt Maher or One Thing Remains by Passion

2) Depending on the day, it would be Pride and Prejudice or Love Actually.
3) High. Stakes. Testing.
4) 1:1 implementation and a more collaborative physical space.
5) I reach out to my PLN (those in my own school, District, and those online) 
     and I pray - a lot!
6) Daisy Dyer-Duerr (@DaisyDyerDuerr), Scott Totten (@4BetterEducatio), and Ross Cooper (@RossCoops31). I am wicked excited to meet Tom Murray (@thomascmurray) in January.
7) To be really present, and in the moment. Not racing ahead to the next thing.
8) Jesus of Nazareth 
9) Professionally - Recent collaborations with Dr. Dixon (he was a teacher of mine in elementary school) around Cognitive Kinesthetics and Helping Boys Learn.
10) Professionally - The deaths of students, Andrew Sleeth and Hannah Coye.
11) Hard-working, dedicated and caring.

Bloggers I'm Challenging...It is supposed to be 11, but most of my PLN that blog are already working on this. Here are three friends that I hope will jump in and blog...

Scott Bedley (of the Bedley Brothers)
Scott Totten
David Hochheiser

My 11 questions:

1) What inspires you? 
2) Favorite childhood memory.
3) If you could go anywhere and do anything, where would you go and what would you do?
4) When you have free time, how do you spend it?
5) What book are you reading?
6) What changes would you make in the current education system?
7) Proudest professional moment.
8) Most humbling professional moment.
9) Favorite song.
10) What I see myself doing in 10 years.
11) If you weren't in education you would be...

I love how this has helped me to get to know my PLN a little better.  I have such an overwhelming sense of gratitude for you.  My professional life has been forever altered, and I cannot thank you enough.  I am challenged, inspired and empowered daily by all of you. I wish you a very Merry Christmas, and a truly blessed New Year.

Thoughts on Testing

An interesting #vachat led by @philgriffins last night around testing, and what it should look like. Led me to post this. 

photo credit: washingtonpost.com

Let me start by saying that I am not in favor of the current method, or really any method, of high-stakes testing.  Assuming a single snapshot can encapsulate a child's learning, or understanding of content, or their ability to think deeply and critically seems utterly ridiculous to me. Politicians have corrupted the assessment process by tying teacher evaluation, principal and school evaluation scores to these tests. This needs to change if our desire is school improvement and impacting student learning. My opposition to high-stakes testing however, does not mean that I oppose assessment, or accountability.  I actually believe in both, but I think the focus must change and our purpose for testing must change, and the information that we collect and analyze must change.

Educators (and politicians) must move beyond analyzing summative test scores or student achievement in isolation, and consider formative assessments, observations, enrollment data, contact time, demographics, in conjunction with other institutional information in order to make truly informed decisions.  It is also necessary to gather data of specific teacher behaviors that have impacted students. Data about student engagement, desire to learn, and the impact of teacher feedback should be gathered and analyzed. Looking at the interdependence of these allows decision makers to analyze patterns, and ultimately prioritize, problem solve and plan appropriately for action.

We need to be purposeful and attentive in examining all aspects that are likely to contribute to student success.  We must examine our impact on student learning and make our decisions based on the wide range of evidence available to us. We must promote instructional strategies, and share the practices that are yielding the best results. Data driven decision-making is an important aspect of continuous school improvement.  Data provides educators with an overview of strengths and weaknesses in targeted areas. It is necessary therefore, that districts develop a culture of collaboration in which student information is considered essential to improving student achievement and supporting the whole child.  Our focus must always be that children are healthy in mind and body, supported, engaged and challenged.

Final thoughts...Part of the drive for high-stakes testing was supposedly our performance on testing compared to other countries. Do these international rankings really matter? Is this an artificial concern? What is our measure of success as a nation? What should be our measure of a child's success? 

Connected Educators, Twitter and The Edscape Conference

Getting connected...

I joined the Twitterverse about two years ago.  Like many educators I talk to now (not presently connected online), I had many misconceptions about the use of Twitter, and plenty of doubts about what it could do for me as a professional. I really didn't think that being connected on Twitter could, or would change me as an educator. I felt that I was connected to other educators in my area, and particularly in my own district, I maintained membership in professional organizations, and read current research; I figured that was enough. I was wrong, really, really wrong.

I could never have imagined the positive impact that being connected to other educators on Twitter would have on me professionally. The people I have connected with inspire and challenge me, and my thinking about education just about daily.  The discussions about current trends in education, best practices, the education reform agenda, leadership and learning, are nothing short of amazing.  Witnessing the dedication and thoughtful reflection of so many other educators energizes me, and compels me to reflect more deeply on my own practices, and beliefs about teaching and learning.

I began the way so many of us do, by lurking.  I did some homework, and looked for some of the key players, and began following who they followed.  I took some of the "Who to Follow" suggestions from Twitter, and then I lurked.  I tried to pick up on some of the nuances of Twitter and the Twitter etiquette.  I started slow.  I followed chats, and began to retweet comments or questions that struck me.  Then I began to contribute.  It didn't take long for me to realize how this social media tool could be transformative, and a real game changer. Connecting to other educators on Twitter has done nothing short of changing my professional life.

If it wasn't for Twitter and being a connected educator....

• I would have not learned about George Couros (@gcouros) and the amazing work he does around innovation. Let alone have the opportunity to meet him. 
• I would have never believed that I could participate in professional development in my pjs, while sipping coffee on a Saturday morning. Thank you to #satchat and its founders @bcurrie5, @wkrakower and @ScottRRocco. 
• I would not have realized how many of us are seeking out answers to common questions, looking for best practices and how universal some things really are. Shout out to one of the first chats I participated in regularly #CollabEd and the co-moderators @askteacherzcom and @JamieArmin.
• I would have never met so many talented people, and imagined connecting in the ways that we do virtually.
• My class would not be connected to the global community in the way that we are now. Check out our class Twitter account @LuceClassPage.
• I would have never learned about Eric Sheninger (@NMHS_Principal) and the amazing work he is doing in New Jersey or the exceptional conference he and his team organizes each year (#edscape)

This list could go on and on, but I would like to instead spend a little time today focusing on the Edscape Conference that took place yesterday.

The power of #edscape

The Edscape Conference is orchestrated by Eric Sheninger, principal of New Milford High School and a dedicated, connected educator.  He and his team organize the conference around innovative teaching and learning.  It is an opportunity for educators, with a wide variety of backgrounds and professional responsibilities, to gather and share on a wide variety of topics related to teaching and learning. For many of us, it also becomes an opportunity to meet in-person the people we are connecting with online each week. The conference is held on a Saturday at the New Milford High School campus and is supported by a number of corporate sponsors.  This year's conference drew, and connected about 400 educators from 11 states, and Canada. You can learn more about the specifics of the conference here: http://edscapeconference.com.

The feeling yesterday at the conference was electric. By no exaggeration, this was hands-down the best professional development day I have ever had - period. I am struggling to put into words just how powerful this conference is and the impact that it will have on so many teachers and students. It really is something that needs to be seen to be believed.  If you would like to see some of the learning and reflection that came out of the presentations be sure to check out the backchannel (the real-time online conversation about the presentation topic/speaker) by using #edscape.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank publicly Eric Sheninger, his team (which by the way includes some of his students!) and the corporate sponsors for their hard work and dedication to this effort. Thank you for the opportunity to learn, to share, to grow as a professional. xo

#LeadWithHeart

#LeadWithHeart

As I embark on my own leadership journey through the Central New York Teacher Leadership Program, I have been reflecting on what it really means to be a leader, and specifically a teacher leader. I have spent a lot of time considering what makes a great leader, and what I have come up with is that great leaders lead with their hearts.  I have some pretty amazing leaders in my PLN, but a few in particular standout: Steven Garraffo, George Couros, Peter DeWitt, Tony Sinanis, Leah Whitford and Fr. Christopher Celentano.

These individuals have demonstrated through action and word what it means to lead with heart. There is so much we can learn from them, but perhaps the most important lesson is the absolute necessity of valuing human relationship, and how vital it is to lead with heart. Leading with heart is more important than the knowledge you have of policy or pedagogy.  It is greater than the wealth of your experience, all of these are important to be sure, but they pale in comparison to effectiveness of leading with heart. 

Keep your heart with all vigilance; for from it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23

Reflections on Leadership

Reflections on Leadership...

This past weekend I was working on an application and I was asked to describe my contributions to my school community, my profession and in short how I have demonstrated leadership in each. It was a challenging task. I was extremely uncomfortable writing about myself as a leader. I expressed to a friend that I felt rather unworthy of being considered a "Teacher Leader".  And then over the next few days the most incredible things happened. I received emails from colleagues thanking me for helping or encouraging them, a friend and former colleague sent me the most encouraging note in the mail, and then an educator I follow on Twitter shared the TEDxToronto Talk by Drew Dudley, Leading with Lollipops, and my mind was blown. Drew's introduction summarized perfectly what I had been feeling. His talk actually challenged me to redefine leadership and to think of it in a more global context. So right now I want to thank each of you who recently helped me to recognize the moments when I have indeed taken on the role of leader. And now it is time for me to pay it forward.
_____________________________________________________________________________

Thank you Marlene, Donna and Priscilla for these...

_______________________________________________________________________________


#mindblown #thankyoudrew