At the end of this past school year I was feel a bit disheartened with education. Technology was making its way into more and more conversations but it seemed like there was so much more that we could be doing--that I could be doing. I was using social media for very specific personal reasons but I was not sharing to an audience bigger than those that I personally knew. After slowly putting myself out there, joining in on twitter chats and following other educators I can see huge misconceptions that I had.
I always thought those that are sharing had it all figured out. Wrong! No one really has a clue what they are doing. Austin Kleon author of “Share Your Work” says “amateurs know that contributing something is better than contributing nothing...they are lifelong learners, and they make a point of learning in the open so that others can learn from their failures and success.” Its not that the end product proved to be perfect, therefore it was shared- its more of -here is what I tried and I am putting it there to see if it may work for you too. Your audience will build as you share things simply because when you “Share what you love, the people who love the same things will find you” Kleon. I once heard a teacher sharing frustrations that those around her were to challenging her enough. I would say back that she is right in having those frustrations but maybe she is looking in the wrong place to be challenged. Don’t wait for those around you to show you the way and push you to the next level- find your tribe and challenge yourself. Lead those around you to be better instead of hoping for them to make you better. Connections do not have to be in person in more they are literally at your fingertips! In the same sense, another misconception I had was not using certain social media because I didn’t see a purpose for it. I need to turn that around and at least explore different social media uses simply because our students are using it. George Courus states “not every technology needs to be “edufied” but in a world that there are so many new things that we are still learning about and figuring out, I think it is important that we have some credibility in the conversation.” This reminded me of a conversation I had with my grandma. She was telling me that she doesn’t shop at Trader Joe’s at all because the produce was so expensive. I asked her if she has ever gone in to purchase other types of food and she quickly and strongly responded “NO!” In my opinion there are so many great products in there that you literally cannot find in other grocery stores. However, because of one aspect of the store- she will not have the opportunity to even try any of the other items. How many of us are just like that? We have an idea in our head and because of that certain idea we close off many other possibilities that could have lead to growth without ever taking the step forward to give it a chance. Even if one is already using social media to grow I can almost say with certainty that there are probably other ways to use it than simply sharing personal pictures or retweeting great content. One example is in a blog titled “If Great Authors of the past posted to Instagram” by Abraham. In this blog he shares screenshots of pictures and quotes posted as if there were those authors. I see this as a great assignment for students to share their learning in a creative and deeper way. At the same time it allows for the teacher to check for understanding. Instead of doing a somewhat boring biography report the student could take on the identity of the character and own their own learning. As most of us head back to school in a month or two I am motivated and inspired to share and grow. My own learning is not limited to the professional development that my district decides to share but instead it is in the amount that I am willing to contribute and seek out myself! Works Cited: Abraham. (n.d.). If great authors of the past posted to Instagram (and other great authors commented) [8 pics]. Retrieved July 18, 2015. Couros, G. (2014, October 27). Snapchat and Education. Retrieved July 18, 2015. Kleon, A. (n.d.). Show your work!: 10 ways to share your creativity and discovered.
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KellyI like people. I love their stories even more. Archives
August 2015
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