Obvious Growth: An #ISTE2014 Reflection

In the summer of 2012, I attended my very first ISTE conference. This prompted the creation of this blog, my first public writing, and my journey into EdTech. This conference and the people that I attended with laid the foundation for the honest reflection I had to do about how I was teaching and what I really wanted for my students. This was both exciting and extremely frightening.

ISTE is a hustle. The days are filled with learning and teaching, conversations, new ideas, sharing and pushing our thought-process to be different. The nights are long with friends and networking and celebrations. It is a late night and early morning space where many of us don't stop moving until we step back home. I heard it described by many as exhausting, draining, and emotional. With so much to take in, allowing the brain and body time to rest and reflect is vitally important in the processing of this experience.

As I rest on my plane ride home, I think back to 2012 and how different my personal and professional lives are today.  This year I had the privilege of bringing two of my colleagues to ISTE for the first time. Our school recently receive a substantial grant that will allow us to propel our 1:1 Chromebook program forward and develop our curriculum and teachers in a way that deeply supports the rich learning we crave for our kids. We have a team of people that I love and trust and that push me to be better each day.

Today I love teaching. Today, I am braver than I have ever been. Today, I feel like I make a difference.

In this travel home, I think about how different I am as a teacher. It is sometimes tough to look back on who I used to be, but a worthwhile exercise. As we push forward, it is important for me to remember this moment. In another two years, I want this same experience. I want to look back and be different. I want to be braver. I want to think some of the things I did and said were silly and misguided. I want the growth to be obvious because that will be it is deep and real.

As I gain strength and let the experience of ISTE marinate in a calmer space, I will push myself and my team to take what we have seen, heard, and learned and push ourselves and our kids to have tougher conversations. I want us to feel safe to explore what we did not learn at this conference, what did not meet our needs, what still needs tweeking. I will remember that all good change comes in a time of acceptance and raw emotion, so I will try to be gentle with myself and others as we jump into the work ahead of us. I will keep in mind the reverse vision of growth I hope to see when I look upon this self in the future, and I will work to make sure that change is obvious.

Making A Mess

Sometimes we have to make a decision to make a mess. Other times, we have to do things that upset people. There will be moments where we know the majority will not understand our actions, or maybe not have the ability to listen to the whole story, and they will judge us. Fear of any of these things will completely stunt change. 

If we want to make sustainable change in the educational landscape, we have to be willing to demo some of the existing structures. We must be willing to push our vision forward and uproot ineffective, stale, and stagnant systems. Breaking down these pieces cause the dust and dirt to stir and it makes our space cloudy. But if we aren't brave enough to knock pieces down, we can never truly transform anything.

This makes people uncomfortable. This is not tidy and it is hard to explain a big vision while standing in the midst of the rubble. The thing is, there is beauty in this space too. As grimy as it can feel, the story of change can be transferred from heart to heart and soul to soul. That doesn't make it any neater or easier to see, but it can build compassion and trust.

In a world where we cannot guarantee equality, we can strive towards change, and we can start constructing something different than we had before. This does not mean we all get the same thing, this means we get the change we work for, and the differences we invest in and steadily nurture. 

It means you have to get your hands dirty, while also trying to get others to see something magnificent beyond the mess. If you can eventually get others to roll up their sleeves too, then you know you are on the right path.

A Week at Warped Speed

(Photo by Richard Shaw)

The last week has swept me up and carried me along at warped speed. It was full of travel, conversations, connections, some disappointments, and lots of smiles. It only seems appropriate to now take some time for reflection.

Last Friday, I left Maryland before sunrise to travel to the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia. My colleagues and I were welcomes openingly into their school to observe the unique learning environment and practices students and teacher engage in daily. SLA is amazing example of student-driven, Project-Based Learning. We spent the day visiting classrooms, talking with students and teachers, and engaging in the very natural learning that takes place here.

Sitting down with Chris Lehmann was one of the highlights of this trip. If you have never spent time in Chris' openoffice, it is hard to explain the experience fully. Chris addresses every single student that passes his office (the doors are open on both sides to allow full access for everyone). He says hello, compliments, and encourages everyone. His love for people was felt when we talked with students and teachers alike. To quote one, "Working for Chris is the best thing that could ever happen to anyone." It takes an amazing leader to make individuals feels so special, yet at the same time build such a strong, collaborative community.

After our visit, my colleague and I continued up the coast to New Jersey. Here, we attended #Edscape, hosted by Eric Sheninger and New Milford High School. Not only did we attend amazing sessions, we had the privilege of hearing George Couros speak as the keynote. On top of that, I met up with a many people I had connected with previously and made some new friends. The learning, the connections, the heart and soul of the event, it was all so much more than I expected. I left for home feeling so incredibly grateful for the learning and conversations I was able to have with some of the most visionary people in education. 

I traveled back to Maryland and the week carried me along, but I was brought back to conversation that I had with George over the summer at ISTE. He asked me what I would change after listening to a speaker. I am often brought back to this question when reflecting upon experiences. I have engaged with some of the most important, forward-thinking visionaries in education. What have I learned? What did I take away? What will change?

The change for me, this time, is not to make any big changes. As I visited SLA and talked to so many different educators, I realized I am on the right track. I saw so many of own practices and my students' habits in the students and classrooms at SLA. I offered my own connected educator experience and shared the story of our school at Edscape. I showed others how we design our own curriculum, offer our students amazingly relevant learning experiences, and bragged all about our kids and teachers. 

I realized, for the first time, that it is time to just give these new practices a chance to become natural. I was encouraged and supported. The change for me is to not add anything new. The change becomes perfecting the craft of implementing everything that is currently new. My change, will be to not change everything, but to sit comfortably in the new that already exists, looking to how we can now improve and get better in this current space.

In an age when change and evolution of culture is happening so quickly, when do we stop and narrow our focus? How do we balance change and relevance with the chance to practice and do something well? As teachers, is there a space where both these thing exist? In trying to navigate this slippery slope, we must always ask what is best for our students, reflect upon the decisions and progress we have made, and always keep our eye on our goals.

As I reflect on these experiences, I will be mindful of what is happening now with my teaching and my students. We will change and grow as the world around us evolves, but we do this with purpose, never comprising the practices we have made current commitments to. 

We will be thoughtful in what we currently practice, ensuring that we are not locking into everything new, passing idea. We will focus on the important learning and growth taking place currently, always being open to the change that is best for us. When the time is right we will embrace that change. Right now, we sit mindful in our current learning space.