Eric C. Sheninger's Blog, page 57

The Ultimate Gift For an Educator

Contrary to the belief of some, educators work extremely hard for little financial incentive when you look at the amount of hours that are put into the job. Whether you are a teacher or administrator, your work has always been about the students first and foremost.  To a lesser extent, but important nonetheless, has been the desire to collaborate with colleagues to enhance learning environments and experiences for education's number one stakeholder - our students.  It all comes down to learning, no matter how you slice and dice it, both on the part of the students and educators themselves as professionals. This innate desire to improve methodologies, pedagogical techniques, environments, and professional practice are the defining characteristics of educators across the world who are making a difference in the lives of students. In our profession it is rare that we receive meaningful impact on our work until a moment in time pulls us in another direction, yet educators continue day in and day out to help all learners discover success.


Image credit: http://onlinebusiness.volusion.com/as...
This is how I felt for basically all of my fourteen years as a public school educator.  As an administrator I always tried to help my students and staff experience success.  Did I always succeed? No way, but all my decisions were based on doing what was best for students and creating a school that worked better for them than for us as the adults.  I pushed my staff and myself to become better with mixed results at time. The motivation that kept me going was that I thought it was having a positive impact, but like I said earlier, meaningful feedback is tough to come by.  

This summer has been exceptionally difficult after I made my decision in July to leave New Milford HS. I had no idea how tough my last two days this week were going to be.  My professional family opened up like never before and humbled me with positive feedback. It made me feel very awkward, as my success has only come to fruition as a result of their willingness to embrace change and transform our school culture.  Bottom line is that my staff have and always will be the true catalysts for change at NMHS.  The end result has been a learning experience that our students not only deserved, but also expected. Then, just after I thought I had shed my last tear, I received the ultimate gift. I do not say this lightly.  This was the BEST gift a student has or could ever give me as an educator and it came, fittingly enough, through social media.  In the past I have blogged about how amazing Sarah Almeda is, but what she did touched my heart like nothing before. Her video is below.



What Sarah did literally brought me to my knees as I cried hysterically on the first day of my new job. I would never have known the impact that I had on her if it wasn't for her selfless act to create a meaningful tribute using her exceptional talents. There have also been tweets and emails from staff that reaffirmed my confidence in American education and my belief that we as educators have so much power to make a difference in the life of a child.  To educators across the globe, keep up the noble work you do for the sake of helping every child discover his/her passions.  You might not always get the feedback that you deserve, but I can assure you that your students will appreciate you in ways that you never thought were possible. That my friends is why we chose to become educators. Not for money, perks, or fame, but to positively impact kids because it is what we were meant to do.

ALL OF YOU ARE HAVING AN IMPACT!

The Ultimate Gift

Contrary to the belief of some, educators work extremely hard for little financial incentive when you look at the amount of hours that are put into the job. Whether you are a teacher or administrator, your work has always been about the students first and foremost.  To a lesser extent, but important nonetheless, has been the desire to collaborate with colleagues to enhance learning environments and experiences for education's number one stakeholder - our students.  It all comes down to learning, no matter how you slice and dice it, both on the part of the students and educators themselves as professionals. This innate desire to improve methodologies, pedagogical techniques, environments, and professional practice are the defining characteristics of educators across the world who are making a difference in the lives of students. In our profession it is rare that we receive meaningful impact on our work until a moment in time pulls us in another direction, yet educators continue day in and day out to help all learners discover success.


Image credit: http://onlinebusiness.volusion.com/as...
This is how I felt for basically all of my fourteen years as a public school educator.  As an administrator I always tried to help my students and staff experience success.  Did I always succeed? No way, but all my decisions were based on doing what was best for students and creating a school that worked better for them than for us as the adults.  I pushed my staff and myself to become better with mixed results at time. The motivation that kept me going was that I thought it was having a positive impact, but like I said earlier, meaningful feedback is tough to come by.  

This summer has been exceptionally difficult after I made my decision in July to leave New Milford HS. I had no idea how tough my last two days this week were going to be.  My professional family opened up like never before and humbled me with positive feedback. It made me feel very awkward, as my success has only come to fruition as a result of their willingness to embrace change and transform our school culture.  Bottom line is that my staff have and always will be the true catalysts for change at NMHS.  The end result has been a learning experience that our students not only deserved, but also expected. Then, just after I thought I had shed my last tear, I received the ultimate gift. I do not say this lightly.  This was the BEST gift a student has or could ever give me as an educator and it came, fittingly enough, through social media.  In the past I have blogged about how amazing Sarah Almeda is, but what she did touched my heart like nothing before. Her video is below.



What Sarah did literally brought me to my knees as I cried hysterically on the first day of my new job. I would never have known the impact that I had on her if it wasn't for her selfless act to create a meaningful tribute using her exceptional talents. There have also been tweets and emails from staff that reaffirmed my confidence in American education and my belief that we as educators have so much power to make a difference in the life of a child.  To educators across the globe, keep up the noble work you do for the sake of helping every child discover his/her passions.  You might not always get the feedback that you deserve, but I can assure you that your students will appreciate you in ways that you never thought were possible. That my friends is why we chose to become educators. Not for money, perks, or fame, but to positively impact kids because it is what we were meant to do.

ALL OF YOU ARE HAVING AN IMPACT!

The Limitations of Being a Disconnected Nomad

It seems like just yesterday that I was a disconnected nomad working hard to maintain the status quo and conform to a rigid system commonly known as education. You see, prior to 2009 I was adamantly opposed to even the thought of using social media for both personal and professional reasons. As a building level leader burdened by endless responsibilities, I could not fathom wasting even a precious minute in what I saw as a perpetual time sap. I swore that I would never be on any social media site and became disgusted when friends and family brought up the topic.  As a result I chastised my friends and made sure that the environment at my school was not only free of this stupid entity, but also other forms of distracting technologies that would interfere with student learning.  It was a powerful combination of perception and stigma related to social media that convinced me it was a product of the devil that could only bring about harm and misfortune. Thus I was convinced that there was absolutely no value in using social media in my life.


Image credit: http://becomenomad.com/nomad/wp-conte...
Being a disconnected nomad limited my ability to lead and learn.  We fear what we don't know or understand.  When this happens we make excuses not to do something and in education we resort to blocking, banning, or pretending something doesn't exist.  This is how I saw social media and mobile technology back in 2009. The problem is that the majority of educators in 2014 still feel this way.  The epiphany for me was that I saw a professional opportunity in Twitter to improve communications with my stakeholders. From here I began to lurk and learn, which resulted in no longer being a disconnected nomad.  My problem, as I now often reflect back upon how I used to perceive social media, was that I was not educated on how this tool could improve leadership and learning.  

Here is what I now know and believe.  Social media is just a catalyst for conversation that is contingent upon listening, sharing, and learning. Social media, and technology for that matter, is not and will never transform education. If you are looking to these entities as a silver bullet to solve all the ills in the education world then you are looking at it the wrong way.  However, engaging in conversations with passionate educators has the potential to radically transform professional practice.  Thus the true silver bullet that will transform education for the better are the connected educators who harness and leverage social media to engage in powerful conversations that lead to changes in practice and the building of priceless relationships. These initial conversations then lead to changes in mindset and a push to action. Yes, this is my opinion, but one grounded in evidence of how moving from disconnected nomad to connected leader and learner has positively impacted my professional practice. 

The formation of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) using free social media tools has enabled me and so many other educators experience the immense benefits that are associated with connected learning.  The ability to learn about anything at anytime, anywhere, and with anyone has not only been liberating, but continues to be exhilarating to this day. Social media levels the playing field by providing access to educators from across the globe.  It is up to each individual to decide the level of participation in this space. As far as I am concerned any of the quadrants in the image below are where educators should aspire to be in except for the one where there is no connectivity.


Image credit: http://www.danpontefract.com/wp-conte...

I offer up this walk down history lane as a call to action.  There still are too many disconnected nomads leading schools and teaching our students who have yet to experience the unlimited potential that connectivity offers. I am in no way saying that these people are not good at what they do, but they can be better. What I am stating emphatically though is that they are selling themselves short by succumbing to fears and misconceptions associated with social media. Help those disconnected nomads you know experience the value of social media this school year. Once they experience and embrace the value of this tool to engage in powerful conversations education will be one step closer to providing students with learning experiences they need and deserve. 

Become the Storyteller-in-Chief

The new school year has begun for many educators across the country with others soon to follow after Labor Day.  With the new year comes a renewed focus on a variety of initiatives that are aimed at enhancing learning and improving student achievement. Administrators and teachers alike will work to establish a shared vision and subsequent plan of action for meaningful change that will hopefully lead to cultural transformation. Schedules will be finalized, lessons developed, assessments graded, observations completed, meetings attended, and this basic routine in some slightly altered format will continue throughout the year.  During this time of excitement and euphoria comes the eventual focus on mandates and directives ushered in from the state level. This is quite often the most deflating part of the new year as the real reason for education is temporarily masked by misguided emphasis on elements that do not equate to real learning.   Regardless of a school’s or district’s particular cycle of activities and response to mandates, one thing will remain the same – students, staff, and administrators will experience success.


Image credit: http://nebula.wsimg.com/
In the face of adversity, right off the bat the seeds for innovation will be planted and students will begin to create amazing artifacts of learning to demonstrate conceptual mastery.  Teachers will develop authentic learning activities that allow students to construct new knowledge while applying diverse skill sets that the global job market demands.  They will also create differentiated assessments in order to provide students with valuable feedback as to the progress being made towards defined learning goals and outcomes. Administrators will conduct countless observations and walk-throughs while spearheading larger change initiatives to improve achievement and school culture.  

Here is the problem though. The mainstream media rarely shares the impactful work in schools that is actually making a difference in the lives of students.  Countless innovative practices that showcase student learning are never covered by the news. Specific achievements of staff and students might at best get a small sound bite in a local newspaper.  As a principal nothing frustrated me more than watching the media latch on to any negative education story and run with it while ignoring so much amazing work taking place in schools each day.  If you do not tell your story someone else will.  More often then not, I would say nine out of ten times, when someone else tells your story it is not the one that you want told.  My call to action this school year to all educators is to become the storyteller-in-chief.  

This is not a relatively hard thing to do. Social media allows us to take sole control of our public relations and tell our school stories consistently, accurately, and transparently. Educators are making a difference every day and these success stories resonate with local, national, and even international stakeholders.  Telling stories of student successes and staff accomplishments helps to combat and drown out the negative rhetoric that has become rampant in the education profession. It does not have to be a time sap either. So much time and energy gets put into traditional newsletters and websites even though the impact is fairly minimal.  Here are some quick ways to harness the power of social media in your respective role to take control of your public relations and become the storyteller-in-chief:

Blogs – By far a blog is your most powerful public relations tool. In my opinion there is no better medium to share innovative strategies, ideas, and success stories related to learning and accomplishments.  A blog is the 21st Century newsletter that gives that function as a two-way engagement tool with the added benefit of adding multimedia content to make your story really pop. Give Google Blogger of Wordpress a try this year to capture the greatness in your classroom, school, or district.Pictures – There might be no better way to capture and share student work, facility enhancements, and accomplishments.  Instagram was my go-to tool of choice. During classroom observations I would regularly snap a photo of a student project.  On other occasions I would take photos of plaques representing school-wide achievement.  Once a picture was taken I could then easily share it across other major social media accounts such as Twitter and Facebook.  This process takes literally seconds.Video – Creating a YouTube channel or Vine account for your classroom and/or school allows you to capture your story with more detail.  Tools like Ustream allow you to share live events such as concerts, athletic contests, art shows, etc.Twitter – The microblogging platform allows any educators to share their story in 140 characters or less.  These tweets can be a dynamic combination of text, pictures, videos, and links to websites.  By creating a unique hash tag for your school, a threaded conversation can be shared with stakeholders or easily discovered during a search.  You can also use established hash tags to increase exposure of your stories.Facebook – This social media tool really become our storytelling hub at New Milford High School.  All of the tools above can be integrated or shared on a Facebook page.  Educators work extremely hard.  We now have the means and tools to tell the real story of what takes places inside and outside the walls of our schools.  Take the time to integrate at least one new strategy that enhances your public relations by meeting your stakeholders where they are.  By becoming the storyteller-in-chief you will not only build a greater appreciation for your amazing work, but also catch the eye of the mainstream media who will then look to you for positive story ideas. Never underestimate the power of your stories.


Image credit: http://socialbrandinglab.files.wordpr...

Our Work Defines Our Legacy

This post is my contribution to Leadership Day 2014.

Legacy is such a deep and meaningful word in my opinion.  The term can best be described as how someone is remembered and the specific contributions he or she made while they were alive.  When I think of legacy, important thought leaders, activists, musicians, and athletes come to mind such as Mahatma Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Henry Ford, John Dewey, Princess Diana, Joe DiMaggio, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King, Jr. The work and contributions of these individuals speaks for itself and their impact will continue to be felt for generations.  Then there are those people still alive today that are defining their legacy such as Derek Jeter and Madonna.  One’s legacy is not only defined by his or her contributions to society, but also by the perception and opinions of others who might have been impacted by their work. Below is an interesting take on legacy from George Mason University:

For perspective, each of us, through our lives, has encountered a wide variety of people.  We recall one or more teachers, a relative, a parent, a neighbor, a friend, a leader in the community, and others; we have countless encounters with others through our daily lives, as we share space and time together in stores, on our highways and walkways, in nature, at cultural or recreational events, in group discussions, and in virtually all walks of life.  While most of these encounters are brief, some are long-term and some are intense.   Some are more meaningful than others.  Many of these encounters, whether brief or long-term, have resulted in memories.  Further, some of these memories are more positive than others; however, each of the memories results in some impact upon us. Are the memories of these individuals – whether positive or less than positive – what the other person intended?   And, for those who made a lasting impression, this view may be shared by you and others, and can represent their legacy. 

Image credit: http://www.planyourlegacy.com/Portals...
In education I don't think anyone sets out to establish a legacy. Just like the examples above, it is our work and commitment to making a difference in the life of a child that is our main motivational force.  If there was one profession where individual or group legacy is least prevalent it is education.  Educators are not in the limelight or in a position for their work to get noticed on a grand scale.  This is not to say that our work is not legacy worthy. In fact, I feel that every educator who is able to help a child learn and puts in countless hours to ensure the success of students with varying ability levels has left his or her legacy in that moment.  

As many people know I stepped down as Principal at New Milford High School this past July and my last day will be on September 3. During my tenure I not only worked to improve every facet of the school, but I also became a connected educator in 2009. When my behavior early on shifted from primarily a communicator to learner everything changed for me as a leader.  Initial lurking led to active engagement with people who I had never met.  This was the turning point for me.  My sole purpose for harnessing and leveraging social media was to engage in conversations with like-minded educators and leaders to improve professional practice.  The more I learned in digital spaces the more I began to take risks to improve the culture at NMHS.  My Personal Learning Network (PLN) became, and still is, my most valued professional resource.  It was here and from thousands of amazing educators that I received the knowledge, resources, ideas, strategies, feedback, and support I needed to initiate sustainable change over the past five years.  Never once did I think about whether or not I was creating a legacy.  To be honest this thought never crossed my mind and I still have trouble wrapping my head around it.  

Over the past few years my work has been aligned to digital leadership and has ultimately defined me as an educator, leader, and person.  My objective has been to improve communications, upgrade public relations, establish a brand presence, grow professionally like never before, enhance student learning, redefine learning spaces and environments, and discover opportunities for my school with the assistance of digital tools.  It wasn’t really until this past week that I truly realized how this work has impacted other educators with whom I am connected.  The posts by Laura Fleming, Spike Cook, and Jared Wastler all brought me to the verge of tears. Each spoke directly or indirectly to my legacy as they saw it. There really is no greater praise one can receive than those from peers who are doing the great work themselves.

As much as I appreciate the positive feedback from my colleagues, I do not feel that I deserve it.  My motivation and drive over the years has been my students and staff.  I just wanted to create a school that not only achieved, but one that the community and we could be proud of.  In the end I believe we have achieved that.  We decided to go down the path less traveled years ago in search of a better way.  This new direction embraced a shared vision where digital tools played a vital role in our transformation efforts.  If there is a lasting legacy resulting from my time as principal in New Milford High School and beyond, it is only because of the work, determination, and commitment to create a school that works for kids and better myself professionally. One does not go out and intentionally create a legacy. Others who see value and impact in our work define it over time. Be the change you wish to see in education, focus on solutions as opposed to excuses, take action, and follow your gut. In the age of social media all connected educators and the actions they take will ultimately carve out their legacy. 

Amazing Students Do Amazing Things

Earlier this year I shared the amazing work of New Milford High School student Sarah Almeda in a post titled Students Yearn For Creativity, Not Tests. Wherever I now speak across the country and soon the world I share the incredible project Sarah created.  Her passion for the arts and creativity serve as an catalyst for her learning. She has capitalized on the concept of student voice, taken ownership of her learning, and become an inspiration for me and countless other educators and students across the world.  I am always in awe of the art that she creates using a variety of mediums to demonstrate conceptual mastery.  It is these artifacts after all that truly measure the construction of new knowledge as well as both skill attainment and application.



So what does an amazing student like Sarah do over the summer?  She creates amazing art as a means to continually demonstrate her passions while learning new skills and techniques in the process.  Above is a picture of her entry into the 2014 Cover Contest held by Creative Outlook, a free magazine distributed to high school teachers and students immersed in art and music. She used her self-taught knowledge of Photoshop, bitmap generation, image distortion, photo-manipulation, digital painting, graphics tablet, and an iPhone to make it. I’m trying to share her entry with as many people as possible as only the top 10 entries that get the most votes will enter the final stage of judging. 

As Sarah took the time over the summer to share her work with me I have made the decision to reach out to my network to see if you can lend her a hand to get to the judging stage. I hope you’ll vote HERE for Sarah and consider sharing her amazing work! Regardless of how the contest turns out Sarah's desire to follow her passions and push her learning boundaries make her a winner in my book.  Her true reward has been the construction of new knowledge and the acquisition of new schools that will aid her as she pursues a future career in game design. She consciously makes the decision to learn over the summer, which is why she is an amazing student. I can't wait to see what work she shares with me once the school year starts.  

Reinventing Writing by @Coolcatteacher

"You can't just drop new innovations into a classroom and hope that the instructor will invent effective ways to use them. To fully utilize a new teaching technology you often need to invent new teaching practices as well." - John Seely Brown

I absolutely love this quote that Vicki Davis (@coolcatteacher) uses in the opening chapter of her new book titled Reinventing Writing. I have seen all too often technology just get dumped on teachers and schools with no rhyme or reason.  This often produces a disastrous effect as the pedagogy does not support the use of the technology tool in arriving to or assessing learning outcomes.  Educators today are pressured to integrate technology as society becomes more digitized.  With schools becoming more and more connected and spending countless sums of money to provide adequate amounts of technology educators are becoming increasingly overwhelmed. The missing link is guidance on how these tools can be used effectively and appropriately to allow students to create artifacts of learning to demonstrate conceptual mastery.  Educators want to desperately see and know how technology compliments and/or enhances the work they are already doing.



Vicki Davis has created a resource that identifies how traditional writing can be taken to the next level with cloud-based tools.  Students today are using technology to write outside of school, but more often than not they are not using them correctly or appropriately.  Reinventing Writing sheds light on practical ways for teachers to integrate a wide array of tools, Common Core alignment, and tips to avoid pitfalls. The book is broken down into three main parts. In chapter 1 Vicki identifies compelling reasons how new age tools improve student writing by identifying five specific benefits.  Chapter 2 focuses on the elements associated with picking the right tool to complete a specific writing task.  I loved the fact that Vicki created 20 essential questions for teachers to use in order to identify the perfect tool to complete a specific writing task.  This alone takes away a great deal of anxiety often associated with technology use as there are so many tools readily available to teachers, many of which are free. There are often many fears and misconceptions associated with technology, especially cloud-based tools.  Well Vicki has that covered as well in chapter 2 as she addresses CIPA, FERPA, and HIPAA. This is all just part 1!

In part 2 of the book Vicki breaks down 9 types of tools, each with their own dedicated chapter.  There are so many tips and practical ideas embedded in each chapter that can assist any educator regardless of his or her proficiency level using technology.  I know teachers will appreciate the "Ways to Use" table that is found in each chapter where Vicki has provided no less than 20 different ways to use the specified tool to improve writing.  Here is the chapter breakdown:

3 - Reinventing Paper: ePaper and eBooks4 - Reinventing Notetaking: Digital Notebooks5 - Reinventing Notecards: Social Bookmarking6 - Reinventing the Filing Cabinet and Inbox: Cloud Syncing7 - Reinventing Word Processors: Cloud Writing Apps8 - Reinventing Journals and Reports: Blogging and Microblogging9 - Reinventing Group Reports: Wikis and Website Builders10 - Reinventing Prewriting: Graphic ORganizers, Mind Mapping, and More11 - Reinventing Illustrations: Infographics and Graphics that Add Meaning
The third and final part of the book focuses on practical ways to implement the tools in the classroom.  Here Vicki emphasizes the key elements to promote and enhance digital citizenship among learners.  This is extremely important as working with online tools that focus on writing provides some new challenges for teachers and students alike.  She then goes on to discuss how to set up writing communities that truly foster collaboration.  The book concludes with a grounding in setting realistic goals in order to consistently push the innovative envelope when it comes to writing.  All in all this is a must have resource for teachers at all grade levels.  If you are a building-level leader do yourself a favor an purchase a copy for your school.

Schools That Work For Kids

My son, Nicholas, is your typical child growing up in the 21st Century.  He loves to play outside, swim in the pool, golf in the NYC Junior Golf League, have friends over, and feast on McDonald’s.  Then there is the technology aspect of his life, which is a very big part.  Who am I to deprive him access to an array of engaging tools that his generation is growing up with? It would be hard to, even if I tried, as the Sheninger household has 30 connected devices in it. He has his devices, which include access to an iTouch, laptop, Nintendo 3DS, Xbox Kinect, and Wii U.  Just like his daddy, my son loves his technology.  Even though he plays a variety of games with his friends by far his most favorite is Minecraft.  

Image credit: http://thumbs.media.smithsonianmag.com/
On a typical Saturday morning for example, you would think that there is a play date going on in our playroom where the Xbox is. You literally hear at times five different little voices.  Once you enter the room though you see only my son who has connected with his friends in numerous states through the Xbox.  Not only are they all engaged, but also they are collaborating, communicating, solving problems, strategizing, and thinking critically to create their own unique world.  What I just described in the last sentence is commonly referred to as 21st Century Skills (we have called them essential skills at my school for the past three years). However, I believe that these skills are paramount to success in the 21st Century and beyond.  My son and children around the world need these skills as well as experiential learning opportunities that allow them to follow their passions while unleashing their innate desire to be creative.  

Some of the best learning and bonding conversations I have with my son are when he explains his rationale and thinking that have gone into creating various Minecraft worlds.  His learning is evident as he meticulously explains the structure and function of the different worlds he has created.  One of the best designs I ever saw was a McDonalds that he created.  It had the golden arches as well as the color red associated with the company’s brand. Now you couldn’t order a Big Mac or Happy Meal, but he had it designed in a way that you could grab a turkey to satisfy your hunger.  As a parent and educator, seeing his creations, discovering his methodology, and basking in his enthusiasm never gets old.  In my opinion, this is learning at its finest, driven by authentic engagement, passion, and creativity. 

Here is the major problem though.  The structure and function of the majority of schools in this country is the exact opposite of the world that our learners are growing up in.  There is an automatic disconnect when students like my son, regardless of their grade level, walk into schools due to the lack of engagement, relevancy, meaning, and authentic learning opportunities.  Our education system has become so efficient in sustaining a century old model because it is easy and safe.  The resulting conformity has resulted in a learning epidemic among our students as they see so little value in the cookie-cutter learning exercises they are forced to go through each day.  The bottom line is that they are bored.  It is time that we create schools that work for our students as opposed to ones that have traditionally worked well for the adults.

Creating schools that work for students requires a bold vision for change that not only tackles the status quo inherent in the industrialized model of education, but also current education reform efforts.  Even though Common Core is not a curriculum, many schools and districts have become so engrossed with alignment and preparing for the new aligned tests that real learning has fallen by the wayside.  In New York Common Core, scripts for lessons have become the standard.  We need to realize that this, along with other traditional elements associated with education, no longer prevail.  How we go about doing this will vary from school to school, but the process begins with the simple notion of putting students first to allow them to follow their passions, create, tinker, invent, play, and collaborate.  Schools that work for students focus less on control and more on trust.  Most importantly, they are places where kids actually look forward to coming.  The time for excuses is over and taking action is the only logical choice if we are committed to real change. Do your students enjoy coming to your school? If not, how will you change that?

Roadmap to a Job-Embedded Growth Model

I remember a few years back during a meeting with teacher leaders, a tipping point that would ultimately change the direction of professional growth at my school.  During this conversation I was passionately sharing my experiences as a connected learner.  As social media embracement was not even a blip on the radar at this time, these teacher leaders were quite skeptical about the alleged benefits I described.  Undeterred, I continued to talk about the concept of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) and what it had done for my professional growth. I shared how it’s simplistic nature, built on conversations with educators all over the world, led to new knowledge development, resource acquisition, exposure to innovative ideas and strategies, support, feedback, friendships, and spirited discussion.  Best of all, at least in my mind, was the newfound ability to learn anytime, from anywhere, with anyone in the world for free.  Little did I know that this conversation set the stage for one of the most significant learning shifts we ever experienced at my school.


Image credit: http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cehd/career/I...
Once I got off my soapbox to catch a breath, one of my teachers said that this concept was great, but questioned the amount of time that teachers had in general to engage in meaningful learning.  With all the many state mandates and district directed professional development, as well as time after school devoted to grading and lesson planning, in her mind and many others, time was not readily available.  Who was I to disagree, as her words were stark fact.  In concert my teacher leaders said it would be great if we could have a job-embedded growth model as many organizations have in the real world.  Well this is just fine and dandy in theory, but much more difficult in practice.  

I wanted to try really hard to at least attempt to find a way to implement a consistent pathway to learning during the school day as my teachers had requested.  Then it came to me, much to the chagrin of my Assistant Principal.  My inspiration came in the form of the Google 80/20 Innovation Model. The premise of this for a long time was that Google employees had to spend 80% of their time on their actual job duties, while the other 20% could be spent working on anything they were passionate about as long as it improved Google’s bottom line. When reflecting on this, the light bulb went on and I seized on an area of opportunity embedded in the eight period day schedule.  In the end we created our own Google 80/20 model at my school even though Google axed the program last year.

By contract all teachers had to teach five periods. In addition, they each had a lunch, prep, and duty period all 48 minutes in length.  It was at this time that I saw an area of opportunity in the form of non-instructional duties (cafeteria, hall, in-school suspension). Every teacher had one non-instructional duty period a day in their schedule.  By cutting the non-instructional duties in half, I was able to free up each of my teachers two to three periods a week allowing them to engage in activities related to professional growth.  This was the birth of the Professional Growth Period (PGP).  In order to free up our teachers, my Administrative team and I assumed the duties that were cut to pick up the slack.  Now you see why my Assistant Principal was not happy with me at first.  Once we got rolling though we realized that our improving school culture did not warrant so much attention to, and supervision of, duties, which eventually made it much easier on all of us.

PGP time for the past two yeas has been dedicated for my staff to become better educators and learners.  Depending on the semester, all teachers now have 2-3 duty periods off per week to engage in professional learning opportunities.  The have been encouraged to find their passion and work to define their purpose.  This time is spent learning, innovating, and pursuing ways to become a master educator.  Think of it as a differentiated learning opportunity that caters to each of my staff member’s specific needs and interests.  Sample activities include:

becoming a connected educator by developing and engaging in a Personal Learning Network (PLN)researching best practicesdeveloping innovative learning activitiescreating interdisciplinary lessonsengaging in face-to-face professional developmentlearning to use new technologiesearning a digital badgecollaborating on projects with colleagues. 
This is the time that they desperately wanted and needed to improve their craft, build on innovative thoughts and ideas they always wanted to pursue, and acquire new knowledge. It was stressed that this time was not to be used to make copies, leave the building to get coffee/food, or socialize in the faculty room.  It become all about the learning.  The expectation was, and has been, that each staff member submits a learning portfolio at the end of year evaluation conference that demonstrates how PGP time was used to improve his/her professional practice.  The portfolio can be created in any way that fits the creative nature of the staff member, but should clearly identify what was done to:

improve instructioneffectively integrate technologyengage studentsaddress the Common Core Standardsincrease student achievement  
The PGP Learning portfolio has been presented at the end of year evaluation conference for the past two yeas and is one of the major artifacts used in the McREL observation/evaluation tool.  It can be created in anyway that my teachers see fit, but it must clearly articulate what they learned and how this knowledge and/or sills were integrated into professional practice to improve student learning.  Adding more depth to the PGP process and portfolio has been the digital badge platform created by media specialist Laura Fleming to acknowledge the informal learning of our teachers.  The end result has been a proliferation of innovative practices as teachers have been empowered to take ownership of their learning through autonomy.  Removing the time excuse didn't hurt either.  

#SaveEdShelf

I was recently notified by William Jenkins that EdShelf announced it will be ceasing trading at the end of this month. However, as this has been a popular resource with users a teacher called Alicia Leonard has launched a #SaveEdShelf campaign. This is a model that I have been trying to establish in the UK and progress has also been slow. Therefore, I wanted to show my support for Alicia’s campaign and published this post “Don’t Leave EdTech Startups Sitting on the EdShelf”.  Edshelf's mission is to make a positive impact in the world by making education more efficient and effective. They strive to enable educators to do what they do best, teach and inspire.  Edshelf is a directory of websites, mobile apps, and desktop programs that are rated and reviewed by parents and educators, for parents and educators. They help us find the right educational tools for our specific needs.


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It is my hope that this post will empower you to take a moment to log onto EdShelf and review some products to see if an increase in traffic might generate some investor inquiries for this start-up. Please feel free to share details of this campaign with any other education contacts you may have in your network. I hope that you have found this update useful and will be able to take a few moments to review any EdTech products that you use and pass details of #SaveEdShelf on to others.