What does it mean to be a "connected educator"? This summer I’ve been on what I call my " personalized, professional development journey” in order to discover what a connected educator really is, how I could become one, how it would benefit me as a teacher, my students, and fellow teachers as well.
How did this journey begin? How did I get interested in becoming a connected educator? Of all things, it was a Moodle course I was required to take for my district. I won't go into the specifics of the course, but the second module dealt with developing personal (or professional) learning networks through the use of Twitter. I jumped on this. As the mother of three teenage sons, I'd heard a lot about Twitter, tired it a couple of times, but never really got the hang of it. The Moodle course was the impetus I needed to dig deeper into the social networking application. Before I knew it, I was taking part in Twitter Chats, meeting other educators that were passionate about topics I cared about, and started growing my own PLN.
I discovered even more online learning opportunities through videos, webinars, and learning communities. I was excited to learn that the U.S. Department of Education created the Connected Educators initiative and August is Connected Educator Month. Even more opportunities to learn and network were now available free!
It was in this spirit of personalized learning and professional development that I decided to stretch further and take part in the Connected Educator Book Club. I was anxious to read the book, The Connected Educator, and take part in weekly chats and the online community. This week the group discusses the introduction and chapter 1. As I reflect back on my notes for this first part of the book, a few ideas really stand out.
First, I feel strongly about the idea of "do-it-yourself learning". In the book the authors state, "As a connected educator, you have the opportunity to direct your learning, connect, collaborate, and grow your professional practice. Connected learners adopt a do- it- yourself (DIY) mentality.” As a language arts teacher I am very familiar with the importance of allowing our students choice in both reader's and writer's workshop. Doesn't it make sense that the same principle of choice should apply to teachers and their learning opportunities? The push now is to connect to our students, personalize their learning in order to increase engagement, make learning authentic and relevant. Hmm, is it possible teacher engagement would increase if their learning was personalized, authentic and relevant? I know if I’m interested in the topic I'm studying I'm far more likely to get excited, stay engaged in my learning and want to share what I'm learning with others.
Collaboration was a second major idea from this section. The book states that connected learners not only learn from their PLN, they then bring their new knowledge back to their school communities and share with others. If we invest in our personal knowledge, we will have knowledge to share. Knowledge sharing... That's sometimes a challenge for me. I love to learn. I've found that I like to network and absorb new ideas. But when it comes to sharing, I admit I get intimidated. What if someone doesn't share my excitement? What if someone disagrees with me? Believe me I've experienced negative feedback/criticism and it is not a pleasant feeling. So sometimes sharing involves risk taking and this is something I need to improve. It just takes time.
Finally, the self-evaluation in chapter one made it clear to me that I am still new in this process of becoming a connected educator. As I read the postings and blog entries on the book club Ning I was amazed at the wealth of knowledge being so readily shared. There is still much I need to learn, knowledge I hope to gain in part from my PLN, the book club, online learning communities, and other opportunities for professional development.
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