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In preparation for our second Face-to-Face session the Cohort 21 facilitators sent us a survey. One of the questions was “At this early stage, what (if any) of the following areas are you interested in learning more about?”. There was a list of 12 options and I remember thinking “I want to click all of them, but perhaps I shouldn’t because it would make me seem naïve and a little bit nerdy.” So I clicked most of them instead. Throughout this entire experience, I have had an almost insatiable appetite to sample, read and learn about a wide variety of topics. These interests turned into emails I would send myself or links that I bookmarked that included; Assessment, Blended Learning, Design Thinking, Gamification, Innovation, Inquiry-Based Learning, Leadership Styles, Misconceptions, Modern Learning, Personalized Learning, Online Learning, Pedagogy, Project Based Learning, Disruption in the Classroom, Visible Learning and Google in Education. Each folder contains dozens (even hundreds) of articles or links to promising ideas that I wanted to dive into more deeply. I knew that I had finally ‘arrived’ when I was able to relax if I had lost an opportunity to read something I felt was important for me. I could honestly tell myself “It will either appear again or I will hear about it somewhere or I can simply look it up when I need to access that idea.” Great ideas have a way of making the rounds numerous times… the universe will provide.
Granted, I might have been a little obsessed with personal and professional growth prior to Cohort 21, but I am now certain that I have reached new heights. Rarely has a day gone by that I am not somehow thinking or reading about topics that have really caught my attention on some social media platform. Rarely has a week gone by where I have not found other educators that I now follow that feed my growing interests. I cannot count the number of times that I have used something that I had recently read about and applied it in a conversation with a student or a colleague, and felt like I had something meaningful to contribute. I continue to add new subscriptions to educational feeds and podcasts and have now arrived at the point where it is just beginning to feel like an unhealthy obsession. Cohort 21 has provided me with an opportunity to indulge my inner ‘teacher geek’ and to know that there are others out there that share the same passion.
I have loved being a little fish swimming in the ocean of big ideas. I have really come to appreciate that this year-long PD opportunity helped me feel like I was not trying to swim in a tsunami. It has made me bolder in the classroom. It has given me deeper empathy for my students and the creative confidence to try things that I have not done before. It has launched me into using technology not as an end but as a means to provide new opportunities for students to collaborate and express themselves. I have been embracing ambiguity, I remain optimistic and I want to continue to iterate as I go. From the beginning, I have taken to heart the message that both @gnichols & @jmedved have been promoting which is “This is simply the beginning”. I truly feel that this is a beginning and that I have much more swimming to do. Over the next few days, I will be posting some of the specifics about what has been happening this year.
Hi Mike,
Can’t wait to read more about your findings and reflections!
garth.
Great reflection, Mike.
I am grateful to work alongside you at LCS and see just how much you internalize all that you do in your classroom – the thought that goes into each step you take, makes your execution much more intentional with the students at the forefront of your design – empathy is such an important component! You have been pushing the limits in several areas and it has been a pleasure chatting and learning with you along the way. You always give me something to think about.
Looking forward to part 2.
Tim
Perhaps we should just change the Cohort21 advertising to include this quote from your post:
“It has made me bolder in the classroom. It has given me deeper empathy for my students and the creative confidence to try things that I have not done before. It has launched me into using technology not as an end but as a means to provide new opportunities for students to collaborate and express themselves. I have been embracing ambiguity, I remain optimistic and I want to continue to iterate as I go.”
Ditto! 🙂
Ruth
I think you speak for many of your cohort21 colleagues with this quote. In reflecting myself and also reading many of the “final” posts of others this sentiment seems to be echoed by many. You have summed the shared experience in a way that feels very true to me and I suspect many others. I look forward to hearing more about how this played out for you.
Melissa
Great post Mike! You should look at importing all those bookmarked articles into Diigo so that you can share them with the rest of the C21 crew!
It’s been great to work with you at school but also in C21, and I love how you’ve transformed the Enviro Science course. I love our conversations about learning and #LCSLearns is lucky to have such a passionate and dedicated educator who continues to push himself after 30+ years in the classroom! You’re an inspiration to us all!
Hi Mike,
I love this line from your post: “Great ideas have a way of making the rounds numerous times… the universe will provide.”
I share with you that feeling at times when we see and marvel at the incredible volume of professional resources, reflections on teaching and learning, and the exponentially developing body of research for the brain and how to engage it. It can be overwhelming, perhaps daunting.
However, I would agree that ideas that are worthwhile do circulate and come back again. I feel the one common denominator that remains time and time again is engagement. When we have learners’ brains engaged, ‘good’ things happen.
You tirelessly work to engage students’ brains Mike. I see it in the classroom, in the hallways or down by the waterfront.
Hi Mike,
I’m so glad you decided to share your thoughts about the year on this blog. I would love for you to share your top two or three articles from the year with us, as Derek mentioned, Diigo would be a great way to do this. Opening the floodgates to the flow of watefall of information on Twitter can be a little overwhelming for anyone, so I’m glad to hear that you found your sea legs!
Looking forward to hearing more…
Les
Mike,
Loved reading how you feel this is just the beginning… so true! I have seen your reflection this year go even deeper (if that was even possible) and have really enjoyed our conversations about learning and engaging kids.
Enjoy the final Co-Hort face-face!! Thank you for your incredible efforts this year!
Struan
Mike!!! This is such a great kick in the butt for me. You are an inspired educator, and your students are lucky to have you. Keep up the great work! I look forward to driving to the final F2F with you tomorrow… IN HAMILTON!