Reflection on EdCampNYC
Hello,Below is my reflection that I recently posted on my blog.----------------------
"It's In Your Hands" by Mary Rice-Boothe “All of us do not have equal talent, but all of us should have an equal opportunity to develop our talents.” ~JFK This past Saturday I went The School at Columbia University, not to drop my daughter off at school but for my own learning. EdCampNYC was an unconference that gave me the opportunity to continue a learning that has been fast and furious since I joined the education professional learning community on Twitter. I attended workshops on passion-driven learning and how to integrate choice into the curriculum. I avoided the technology workshops because so many of the educators I work with are not blessed with the technology needed to implement the ideas presented. As I reflect now a theme of the conference and the workshops I attended was 'self-driven learning'. The first workshop I attended was facilitated by Lisa Nielsen. It focused on a recent article she has posted titled, "20 Things Students want the Nation to Know about Education." The question of principals' perspective came up. The attendee stressed the importance of having administrators on board in order to see systematic change. I was signaled out because I was a former principal- uncommon in this unconference. I explained the accountability and tight timeline for success that is hung over principals' head and if there is a desire of principals to do school differently, they will do it even if they face pressure. In the second workshop, I found two principals but neither from the NYC Department of Education. I know that it's scary being a principal in New York City. No one wants to end up on the front of The New York Post. However, as I listen to new and veteran principals there is so much to share. One new principal talked about her desire to continue to be a learner. She wanted to continue to read and stretch her thinking like she experienced the former year during her training. However, attending EdCampNYC never crossed her mind-she had never heard of an unconference. For me, EdCampNYC was one of the vehicles I used to continue my own learning. I gave up my Saturday to not hear from a 'celebrity' educator but from those people I have had countless conversations with on Twitter. On Saturday, October 15th, I will be presenting a workshop on using social media as a tool to reflect, reinvigorate and relate for principals across the country. In the 90 minutes that I have, I hope to tap into a passion in principals to reach out beyond their schools to learn from each other. It's in our hands to become the learner we want our students and teachers to be.
"It's In Your Hands" by Mary Rice-Boothe “All of us do not have equal talent, but all of us should have an equal opportunity to develop our talents.” ~JFK This past Saturday I went The School at Columbia University, not to drop my daughter off at school but for my own learning. EdCampNYC was an unconference that gave me the opportunity to continue a learning that has been fast and furious since I joined the education professional learning community on Twitter. I attended workshops on passion-driven learning and how to integrate choice into the curriculum. I avoided the technology workshops because so many of the educators I work with are not blessed with the technology needed to implement the ideas presented. As I reflect now a theme of the conference and the workshops I attended was 'self-driven learning'. The first workshop I attended was facilitated by Lisa Nielsen. It focused on a recent article she has posted titled, "20 Things Students want the Nation to Know about Education." The question of principals' perspective came up. The attendee stressed the importance of having administrators on board in order to see systematic change. I was signaled out because I was a former principal- uncommon in this unconference. I explained the accountability and tight timeline for success that is hung over principals' head and if there is a desire of principals to do school differently, they will do it even if they face pressure. In the second workshop, I found two principals but neither from the NYC Department of Education. I know that it's scary being a principal in New York City. No one wants to end up on the front of The New York Post. However, as I listen to new and veteran principals there is so much to share. One new principal talked about her desire to continue to be a learner. She wanted to continue to read and stretch her thinking like she experienced the former year during her training. However, attending EdCampNYC never crossed her mind-she had never heard of an unconference. For me, EdCampNYC was one of the vehicles I used to continue my own learning. I gave up my Saturday to not hear from a 'celebrity' educator but from those people I have had countless conversations with on Twitter. On Saturday, October 15th, I will be presenting a workshop on using social media as a tool to reflect, reinvigorate and relate for principals across the country. In the 90 minutes that I have, I hope to tap into a passion in principals to reach out beyond their schools to learn from each other. It's in our hands to become the learner we want our students and teachers to be.
