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.