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

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#mindblown #thankyoudrew

Climate, Culture & Teacher Evaluation

photo credit: http://olympiamoving.com/files/2011/08/ChecklistClipboard.jpg

Climate, Culture and Teacher Evaluation

After attending the Teacher Leadership Conference in Syracuse last week, and reflecting on the discussion of Peer Assistance and Review (PAR), I began to think about the impact of a given district's/school's climate and culture on teacher evaluations.  It seems to me that a positive school climate, and a culture that has a consistent and clear stance on learning are necessary for teacher (and principal) evaluations to be viewed as an opportunity for reflection and growth.  A supportive community of educators and administrators with a shared sense of purpose, shared leadership, collaboration and trust is better positioned to use the evaluation process to improve and enhance school effectiveness.

Making a Case for Peer Assistance and Review

Like many of my colleagues, I support an evaluation process that reflects and puts an importance on what I do everyday.  I welcome evaluators, peers and the casual observer to see first-hand how I engage, motivate and challenge students, and the opportunity to show the incremental student growth as well as the milestone accomplishments is welcome.  However, we don’t have to look very far to find teacher evaluation systems that are cumbersome and often punitive.  With limited, and often infrequent, feedback teachers lack the opportunity to leverage the information into meaningful professional development that could potentially improve and enhance their effectiveness.

Peer Assistance and Review used in a district/school with a positive school climate and culture can put the emphasis on professional growth.  With the high-stakes attached to teacher evaluations it seems only sensible to have a process that incorporates performance review and assistance from a consultant teacher, in addition to the support of curricular specialists and administrators.  This collaborative approach goes a long way in helping to establish trust and promote a shared sense of purpose.

Thoughts?

I am interested in the experiences of those who have participated or are currently participating in PAR.  How is it working in your district or school?  How do you see it fitting in with the mandated teacher evaluation processes taking place across the country?

Finishing Strong: A Case for Project Based Learning

Myth: The School Year is Winding Down

There seems to be this myth circulating that the school year is winding down. Here in NYS we have an entire month left of school so that is the furthest thing from the truth.  What contribute to this myth however are the NYS testing schedule and our own local assessments.  For many outside the classroom these "summative" assessments would seem to indicate the end of the academic year, and that is reasonable to assume because they are supposed to be, well summative.  The problem is these assessments are given in April and May and we still have an entire month of instruction left.  The rub then is this, how do we convince students and families that what we are doing in the last months of school is just as important as what we were doing leading up to the state and local assessments?  It is important that we finish the year strong and end the myth that the school year is winding down.  We need to be sending our students out with a willingness, dare I say an eagerness, to look for their own learning opportunities over the summer. 

The Case for Project Based Learning

Project based learning engages students in exploring real-world problems and challenges.  Students see the connections between what they have learned in one discipline and its application to another.  It allows significant opportunities for active learning and collaboration.  Project learning promotes critical thinking and decision making, and it helps to teach persistence.  Students are motivated and engaged, and often seek out additional resources and information on their own.  These are precisely the learning habits that we need to form in our students.  If the learning that takes place in these last months of school has students taking control of their learning, applying the skills and concepts that have been learned, and breaks down the invisible barrier between the classroom and the world outside its doors we will have gone a long way in convincing others of the myth that the school year is winding down.

In The Classroom

Recognizing the waning enthusiasm of my students, and detecting the impending restlessness that comes with June, I wanted to go big for the last month of school and try something new.  I came up with an idea to change the architecture project that was designed to assess student understanding of geometry concepts. The standards assessed remained the same, but I wanted to incorporate the project with what the students were studying in English language arts, social studies and science.  I wanted my students to see the connection between different disciplines. I believed that if students took more responsibility for their learning and applied the concepts and skills they had learned in all their classes, they would demonstrate deeper understanding and greater levels of engagement.

I approached my colleagues about trying thematic and project based learning for the last month of school.  We decided to use the Middle Ages as our backdrop, and address our content standards through project based learning.  Students are presently researching and writing papers on the Bubonic plague, how it spread and its impact on life in Europe.  They are researching medieval manors, creating scale-drawings (floor plans) and building models of castles.  This upcoming week students will be challenged to design, build and launch a trebuchet providing them with an opportunity to learn through experience about technology in the past. 

The use of project based learning has been very rewarding. I have observed students exploring, making judgments, and interpreting and synthesizing information in meaningful ways. There has been improvement in many students’ abilities to work with their peers, and the level of excitement and engagement is nothing short of amazing. The myth that the school year is winding down is just that, a myth.

We Can't Ignore Social Emotional Literacy

With the spotlight shining brightly on the implementation of the Common Core State Standards, "rigorous" curricula and their associated high-stakes assessments, we as educators run the risk of ignoring other critical skills for learning, problem solving and communicating - the skill set encompassed in social/emotional literacy (SEL). A failure to  address SEL adequately will have devastating effects on the students in our classrooms and our communities at large.

The world we live in seems increasingly narcissistic. As educators we have a responsibility to make students "college and career ready", but we also have an equally (or perhaps an even more) important task, and that is to model and teach responsible citizenship. The attitudes and actions that lead to responsible citizenship, and away from narcissism, are rooted in SEL. These are in fact the skills that will lead to success throughout life.

What Can We Do?

Actively teaching our students empathy is imperative.  Being able to understand what another person is feeling helps students to build and maintain positive relationships with others. We need to cultivate a culture of empathy in our classrooms by teaching students how to identify/label emotions in themselves, recognize them in others, and share feelings in a non-judgemental way.

Closely tied to empathy is effective communication.  Effective communication lies in the ability to understand another person or group's perspective, to be an active listener and then to be able to articulate one's own thoughts, ideas and/or needs. We need to provide students with ample opportunities to engage in meaningful dialogue and to practice negotiation and compromise.

Cultivating a sense of appreciation is necessary. We need students to focus on what is going well, and that the things that are going well, more often than not, outweigh the things that are not.  Recalling one good thing that has happened in the past 24 hours is a great way to start the day on a positive note. When we are in a positive state of mind, our brain is more receptive to information and ready to learn.

We must remain dedicated to teaching the attitudes and actions that lead to responsible citizenship.  The benefits of doing so are in the creation of a positive classroom and school climate, an increase in pro-social behavior and academic achievement.

Additional SEL Resources:

Prelude2Learn - http://prelude2learn.com/
Tribes Learning Community - http://tribes.com/
Project Happiness - http://www.projecthappiness.org/
 Second Step - http://www.cfchildren.org/second-step.aspx

No More Pity Parties!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eatmeatnow

I have spent some time lately thinking about motivation and engagement, my own, my students and my colleagues.  I've been reading books, participating in online discussions and talking with my teacher friends about our struggles with motivation and engagement.  Two books in particular have really helped me to frame my thinking, the first is Helping Boys Learn by Dr. Edmond Dixon and the second is Teach Like A Pirate by Dave Burgess.  I have also found the The Principal of Change blog by George Couros, while not specifically related to motivation and engagement, to be thought provoking and challenging. Conversations with my friends in the staff room, and in the virtual staff room,  have really caused me to think more deeply about the apparent lack of intrinsic motivation we seem to be experiencing both within the confines of the classroom and beyond our classroom's walls, and how we go about addressing more than just surface level engagement.

So where is it? What happened to intrinsic motivation? Why are we struggling to engage beyond the surficial? It seems to me that we are having many of the same conversations over and over.  I know that I have been guilty of playing the blame game.  I blame my own lack of motivation on mandated assessments, the obsession with high-stakes testing, increasing curricular demands, the list goes on.  What I have realized though, is that I can bemoan the current state of affairs, or I can take an active role and be a changemaker.  I am responsible for me, and I am responsible for my attitude and my instructional practices and it is time I acted like it.