My Reflections on Connected Educator Month 2015

Where did time go? It's October 29 and it seemed like yesterday when I sat with teachers from both Liberty and Freedom high schools to gear up for Connected Educator Month. Now that it is officially over, what did we learn? Where do we begin to become connected learners and educators?

Some of my takeaways from Connected Educator Month 2015 that I would like to share:

There are so many ways to connect with others using social media, but only a few ways that may stick with you. And that's OK!   

The ways that someone can connect with others to learn are endless. The Connected Educator Starter Kit gave us a number of tools to try. Twitter is heavily covered as well as using Blogs and Web 2.0 tools of all kinds.

I personally find Twitter to be my tool of choice.  I can open up my Twitter feed anywhere - computer, phone or iPad - and find a nugget of wisdom lurking in my feed. However, Twitter may not be your "cup of tea".  And that is why the P in PLN stands for Personal. There are plenty of other tools and communities out there that may speak to you. So which tool should you choose? Having so many choices can sometimes be daunting. My advice is to dive in and test it out. Give one tool a little bit of time. If it doesn't meet your needs, move on to something else. The Edublogs PLN Teacher Challenge is a great resource to get you started on some of the most popular tools like Twitter as well as explore some others (Diigo, Nings, Flipboard). If you are interested in starting a blog, here is a great tutorial! 

Connecting with other educators can be amazing.

Great activities involving other connected educators reenergize me.  I participated in an #edtech Twitter chat on October 26, 2015 hosted by Arne Duncan. Knowing that someone who has a hand in shaping education policy was listening to our answers made me feel like I was part of something really important.  During that short time, I was part of a national conversation about student learning. I was wired for the rest of the evening!  These types of interactions are not unique - they are happening daily (hourly) on Twitter chats around the country/world. Here is a list of educational Twitter chats by topic/day/time.

Becoming a Connected Educator is a work in progress. 

While I consider myself connected, it didn't happen overnight. I started forming my PLN in 2013 and feel like I have just scratched the surface. Don't be discouraged if you just started this journey and are still trying to understand it.  You have only just begun and will start to see results over time.  When you start, many people mostly read and would be considered "lurkers". Even during this time, you are learning how the particular network works. If you are connected with great people, you are exposed to great resources.  Where you start to see the greatest gains are in the interactions between yourself and others in your PLN.

And if you think you have it all down pat, read a bit of Will Richardson. Will is one of the most provocative thought leaders in education today.  In this interview, he mentions literacy in using the tools appropriately, safety in knowing who you are connected to, diversity of opinions in your PLN and ethics in using these tools.  So no matter how long you have been connected, there are still areas for growth. 

Are You Holding Back On Something Too Obvious to Share?

CC by 2.0 JUST DO IT. Paper Fold by the_fafa

Since this is Connected Educator Month, I thought I would do a post about Blogging (activities for days 14 and 15 in the Connected Educator Starter Kit).

I've always thought that I should be blogging more. By the number of posts on this particular blog, you may see why. But I have learned three basic things that I keep in mind to encourage me to blog and share more.

Truth 1: You just need to start blogging. Just. Do. It. 

I know that I need to work on my writing skills. When I was younger,  I wrote short stories, poetry and other things when I knew that only a few people were going to be reading them. I wasn't afraid to pass it to my best friend who just wanted to read it for the exciting tales I would tell. Writing for an audience takes it to a whole other level. We want it to be great. We want it to go over well. That's why we push our kids to write for an audience - to up their game and put out a better product.

Well some of us get are daunted by expressing our opinions on a very public way. Blogging seems scary to some of us.  But the secret to getting better is you just have to do it. The more you read other blogs and the more you write, the better you get.

My husband is a writer and writes on his own blog a lot. One of the most common questions aspiring writers ask is how they can be a better writer. More or less the answer given is usually, "Read more. Write more."  Just do it!

Truth 2: Everyone has something to share. Really.

Yes, we all have something to share. Our vantage points are valuable, believe it or not. There have been whole articles written about this. In this book, "Anything You Want", Derek Sivers talks about the "Obvious to You. Amazing to Others."  Check out Derek's video here. Your experiences are valuable, trust me!

Truth 3: Writing about your experiences helps you reflect. This is big.

Those who blog regularly say they reflect more about their professional practices and philosophy. Here's an article about it as well. Because your reflections are now made publicly available on a blog, you also have the opportunity to hear from other educators in the form of feedback. Connecting with other educators promotes learning something TOGETHER. My personal belief is that I learn things more deeply and completely when I learn about it with someone else.

So what are you waiting for? Go get your own blog today!

Transform Your Classroom (and Yourself) by Being a Connected Educator

It's Connected Educator Month (CEM) and there are a ton of ways for teachers to participate. It's a national (actually international) initiative that was originally developed in 2012 by the U.S. Department of Education.

Highlights of CEM 2014 included:

• hosted 800 events during the month,
• mentioned on 6 million web pages,
• reached educators in 139 countries and
• every two days counted 15 million tweets.

So, who would benefit from participating in CEM? EVERYONE!  No matter where you are on the "connected" spectrum (true beginner, adept, expert) there are activities and tools that may benefit you! Even if you are not an educator, learning the basics of becoming connected to others in your industry will greatly benefit you personally and professionally.

For beginners, I would suggest downloading the Connected Educator Starter Kit. It is chock full of introductory activities that will get you started. By no means are you expected to do all activities (31 Days worth)!  Instead, pick out the items that interest you. I highly recommend Days 1-4 for beginners. You'll create a professional Twitter account and start to find content related to your interests. Days 15 and 16 help you start a blog where you can reflect on learning and teaching. 

For those who have already dabbled in using tools such as Twitter, Youtube, a blog or other Web 2.0 tools, I also recommend the starter kit as you may pick up some new tips. On Days 7, 8 and 9, you'll explore using Digital Storytelling to connect with others. I encourage you to also check out the hundreds of events taking place throughout the month. 

The Connected Educator Month official website has an updated blog and Radio (podcast) station where you can hear educators talking about how being a Connected Educator has impacted them professionally.

Participate now and connect with thousands of other educators in this huge initiative. Connected Educator Month (October) is only the beginning. You can direct your own learning whenever and wherever you want.

If you are an educator at Bethlehem Area School District, you have the opportunity to earn BFLEX hours for participating in CEM. Contact Evon Zundel for more information.

To follow on Twitter, follow the hashtag #ce15 or @edconnectr.

In the Cloud

Clouds by Kate Ter Haar  (CC by 2.0)

Yep, I had one of those days on Monday. I walked into my office, turned on my computer and what I saw next made me sigh. It was the circle/slash symbol on my Mac laptop as it was starting up. But I didn't feel the dread of discovering that I had lost my data. On the contrary, nearly EVERYTHING save about ten documents (that have to be in Word format for now) I use on a daily basis is IN THE CLOUD. The reason I was disappointed was that I did not have a spare computer available to immediately continue working. I actually felt angst since I knew I COULD be working on something, but had to hunt for an available workstation or laptop first.

Some may say, "Wow, that's scary!  Aren't you afraid that your stuff is somewhere else?"  Actually, I am not.   My information is in my Google Apps account. From Google's Security page:

Google maintains a number of geographically distributed data centers. Google’s computing clusters are designed with resiliency and redundancy in mind, eliminating single points of failure and minimizing the impact of common equipment failures and environmental risks. Access to our data centers is restricted to authorized personnel.

 How did I start working in the Cloud?  I did the following:

• Use Google Drive to store all of my documents, spreadsheets and presentations. In addition, I can create surveys and automated quizzes using Google Forms. 
• Use Google Calendar to keep track of all of my appointments. In turn, I can access the school's Google calendar to stay up to date on events. 
• Use Google Mail in Chrome to manage my email inbox. 
• Use Google Plus to store photos and photo albums

I still use iTunes. But my personal music is in my iTunes account or backed up on my personal computer at home. I use Time Machine to back up my personal Mac to a USB Hard Drive.

Did I achieve this overnight? Some could switch cold turkey, but not me. No, it took me a while (about a year) to migrate my information over to Google. But I consider it time well spent since I am no longer tied to a specific computer to be productive. I can log into a PC, Mac, or Chromebook anywhere I have an Internet connection to access my information.

Interested in moving to the CLOUD? Here are some places to start learning how:

• Google Drive - Ed Tech Challenge's tutorials on storing things in Google Drive - http://www.edtechchallenge.com/one/1-3-store-and-share-files
• Google Calendar - Google Calendar's Help Center
• Google Mail - Getting Started Guide
• Google Plus - Google Plus Help Article

Google Myth #3 Debunked - I can't do labels in Google Docs

Oh, this is so not true! There is a handy Avery Google Add-On called Avery Label Merge! Open a Google Document and go to the Add-Ons menu.  Select Manage Add-Ons.

Search for Avery.  Your search should turn up Avery Label Merge.

Give the Avery Label Merge Add-On permission to access your account.

To get started, click Add-ons > Avery Labels Merge > New merge. You will be prompted to choose Labels or Name Tags.

You will then be prompted to choose a layout from the most commonly used labels on the market. Not all labels are available, however.

Then, pick the Google Sheet that contains your data for the labels. It is helpful to put column headers in your sheet.

A Google document will be created with detailed instructions and the label area where you will be formatting your data.

Click on the Column header names to format them in the label area in the document. You may change the label layout, spreadsheet and sheet within the spreadsheet and the rows where you data resides.  Click on the blue Merge button.

A new Google Doc will be generated with your labels. Click on Open on the next dialog box to get to your labels!

Google Myth #2 Debunked - Google Docs doesn't have any clipart

On the contrary, Google Docs has it better! There are at least three ways that you can find pictures to use in your next document.

ONE: Insert Menu

In Google Docs, Sheets or Slides , go to Insert  > Images . There is an option to upload, take a snapshot or link from your Google Drive. In addition, you can search Google Images, Time Magazine or Stock Images for your photo!

TWO: Research Tool

In Google Docs, Sheets or Slides, go to Tools < Research. Type in your search parameters and use the Images filter to quickly locate your prized photo.  Then drag the photo over into your document!  Voila!

To narrow your search to images that are free to use, share, modify, even use commercially, click on the arrow below the search box to reveal the filter tools.

THREE: Open Clipart Add-On

For those who like drawings to add to their documents, there is yet another way to import clip art! Go to a Google Document and click on the Add-On menu. Select Get add-ons... option to locate the Open Clipart Add-On for Google Docs.

Search for Open Clipart and click on Free to add it.

Give the Add On permission to access your Google Drive.

You will be taken back to your Google Document. Under the Add-Ons menu you will have the option to search Clipart.

A pane, much like the Research Pane, will appear on the right side of your browser window. Enter your search terms there to find your clipart and drag from the window into your document to use!

To read about the next myth about labels in Google Drive, continue to read here.

Google Myth #1 Debunked - There are no templates to use in Google Docs

When I conduct workshops about Google Apps or Google Docs, I sometimes hear people say, "Google Docs is great, but it doesn't have what I need or use in Microsoft Word". At first glance, it may actually seem this statement is true. I am here to debunk three common myths I hear periodically.

Myth #1: There are no templates for me to use in Google Docs

If you are looking for templates generated by Google much like the window that pops up every time you start Apple Pages or Microsoft Word, you are correct. It doesn't work exactly the same way. However, there ARE templates available to everyone who has a Google Apps or Gmail account!

If you perform a quick Google search for "google templates", the first hit will be Google Docs Templates!  Check it out here: http://docs.google.com/templates/.

In the Public Templates (left tab) you'll find a few templates created by Google like the Presentation - Professional , Recipe - Striped or Resume - Standard pictured below. submitted by people who want to share their good fortune in creating a decent looking document.

But, the bulk of what you will find are templates submitted by other people using Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms and Drawings. 

If you are using Google Apps for Education, you'll have a special area for templates created by people within your Google domain. This is a GREAT WAY to distribute templates used by staff in your organization and in your classroom!  Teachers can distribute templates to their students quickly by submitting it to the template gallery by clicking the Submit a template link in the upper right hand corner.

To read about the next myth about clipart in Google Drive, continue to read here.


UPDATE: There ARE templates (just like Microsoft Word, Apple Pages) in Google Docs (like Word), Google Sheets (like Excel) and Slides (like Powerpoint) as of Sept 2015!  

https://docs.google.com/document/u/0/

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/

https://docs.google.com/presentation/u/0/