A Teacher, Coach & Dad

A couple of weeks ago my school district hosted our annual Technology Day. We had a great day for our staff with lots of learning opportunities and some really great conversations. I have been doing a lot of thinking about a statement that was made in one of the sessions that I attended. The session was hosted by my good friend Brent Catlett aka @catlett1 called "Rocks or Sucks." Yes, it's a brutal name, but after you have attended one of these sessions you will look forward to the next. Read here for an article by @billselak about the "Rocks or Sucks" session.

There were some really great conversations happening on the topics that Brent was throwing at us. We talked about homework, professional dress, testing, then the topic of social media in schools was thrown on the table. After the participants divided themselves, each side (and middle) were asked to give their point(s) of view. There were only about 2-3 teachers on the Rocks side of the room and one of those teachers volunteered their opinion on why they favor social media in education. This particular teacher had some really good points in regards to the value of social media in education, but there is one thing that they said that stands out. I can't recall what they said verbatim but it went something like this, "I want to know if a kid is tweeting about my class. If that kid tweets that my class sucks, then I guess I need to do a better job of teaching." It might not seem like that big of a deal to you, but the teacher that made this comment is only in their second year. I never imagined I would hear this from a second year teacher.

I wonder how a veteran teacher would react to this situation? Would they send the kid to the office? Would they blame social media? I hope not. I hope that they would have the gumption to take a look at what they were doing and make changes in their classroom for the better. I would hope that they would have a conversation with the student about using social media in a proper way and about being a good digital citizen. I would hope that they would have a conversation with that student (or class) and ask them for some feedback on what they could do differently in their classes.

I had some of those conversations with my students after my third year of teaching. I didn't have to read a tweet or Facebook post to know that my class was boring. I was teaching like I was taught. Overhead projector, transparencies that I covered up with a blank sheet of paper. I was having my students set and get. I was doing all the talking. Luckily, I had a Principal that challenged and encouraged me to ask my students for some feedback about my classes. He told me that if I did ask for feedback, that I had better be prepared to change some of the things I was doing. I did it. I asked my students what I could do differently. I empowered them. They gave me honest feedback.

It made me a better teacher.

Maybe it's time you asked your students for some feedback. Trust me, they will be honest.

I witnessed something the other night that I think ought to happen more often. I witnessed students and teachers from all over the United States (and two from Honduras), using Twitter to practice and learn. Yes, I said Twitter. The students and teachers were participating in #spanstuchat that was founded by our two Spanish teachers Rebecca Huls and Kara McNeese.

I can't walk by their rooms without having a big smile on my face. I hear laughter and music, I see movement and students having fun while they are learning. The enthusiasm that is emitted from their rooms is inspiring!

What are they doing that makes it so special? They are making learning authentic in their classrooms. I've seen their classrooms set up as an airport terminal, complete with TSA check-in at the door. Students walked in, went through the routine of checking in and had to do it all while speaking Spanish. One of my favorite times to sneak into their classes is when The Market is taking place. Students bring all sorts of baked goodies, set up their booths and sell their items using fake money. Oh yea, they do this all while communicating in the language they are learning. Last week the Olympics were taking place in Honors Spanish. Talk about a fun learning environment! Don't believe me? Check out their class hashtag #auroraspanish Social media in the classroom? They have that covered too. They knew that their students were using Twitter, so they created #spanstuchat, a monthly chat focused on student voice.

Are you making learning authentic in your classroom? Are you making your content relevant to your students. Are you still doing activities and units that you were doing when you started teaching? Change it up! I've always said that creativity costs you nothing. Thank you Rebecca and Kara for providing such an awesome learning environment for your students!