What did I learn today?

This is a cross post that also appears on http://peel21st184.wordpress.com/.  The goal of this project is  share our stories and promote 21st Century learning. The goal is to have as many of our voices heard from students, teachers, administrators, superintendents, Educational Resource Facilitators, Early Childhood Educators, parents and any key players in our schools.

What did I learn today?

Every day that I get to work with students, I learn how incredibly resilient our students can be.  

Today, I was reminded of this as I was with my family at Canada’s Wonderland.  As my car was heading out on the Leviathan, I thought I had heard my name called.  I asked the person I was with if he had heard my name being called and he said that was just my nerves talking. 

https://www.canadaswonderland.com/images/rides/Leviathan-image-3.jpg

After my 3 minute ride we pulled back into the station and once again the announcer was talking and at the end of his announcement he said, “ and Mr. Pearson, I hope you enjoyed your ride!”  This time I know it wasn’t my nerves talking, I looked into the booth and there was a former student, smiling behind the glass at me.  We had a brief moment to catch up.  He is now training to be in the military working on jet engines.  A goal he had stated to me 4 years previous.  A remarkable accomplishment for him, as I look back and consider what this student did to get to where he is today.

My memory might be fading at this point, but here is the long and short what he had to overcome: multiple school changes, over an hour and a half bus ride to come to school, multiple suspensions, multiple issues with teachers, multiple issues with me and multiple issues within himself.

In my three years with this student, we took the time to get to know each other when times were good and we built that relationship where he still felt safe when times were not so good; when he need to be cooled down, or even sent home.  He knew he could come back and that he would be held accountable for what had happened.  We took the time to work through his mistakes together, it is what he needed, and really what all students need.  Together we created a relationship where he felt comfortable to learn from his missteps, to reflect on what had happened.  He learned to never give up, he learned that failing was okay.  Most importantly, he learned that he had someone that he could lean on and trust.  I also have to say that he taught me so much as we went through his time in high school.

This student came to believe in himself, that he could grow both academically and personally and this is what helped him overcome the obstacles life presented him.  This strength or mindset is what will see him through to his goals. He believed that he was not fixed in the die that life had cast for him.

Today, I was reminded that the amazing students we work with can:

Inspire.

Greatness.

Together.

It’s funny that I remembered all of this after a roller-coaster ride of up’s and down’s, much like life can present us with. 

Really it's ALL about CONNECTIONS!

In this world of modern learning students and teachers can easily become overwhelmed by the waves of information they find online and by the waves of people they encounter as they are using social media.  Many authors, from a whole host of media formats, have expressed concern, feeling students will be antisocial, cowering in front of their screens, lacking social interactions, all alone because of this technology.  This is not the case, technology is about connections.

A teacher, that I used to work with sent me a link to the video below, it highlights many of the perceived and real issues regarding the overuse of social media.  Nevermind the fact that I no longer work in the same school as the teacher who sent me the the youtube link, or the fact that he used email to get in touch with or the fact that he found the video on YouTube, a place for people to post their creations and share with the world. It sounds like technology is helping to keep a professional relationship going, even though by now it should be defunct.  Our relationship is still operating and because of it here is the video he shared with me:

This spoken word piece should serve as a cautionary tale regarding isolationism.  Mind you the problem of reclusiveness had been prevalent in society for many years before the internet, Web 2.0 and social media were created.  Perhaps, if a person is prone to isolationism these new tools of connectivity can allow the to create more space between themselves and 'real' connections.  This doesn't have to be the case.  In my role working with at-risk students, I have seen the opposite where technology has brought these fringe students out of their shells. I will provide three brief cases of how technology actually brings us closer together.

My first example is through my use of twitter.  I guess I was a relatively late entry into the twitterverse, when my first tweet came out in May 2012 for a professional learning day I was leading. I have been a lurker, casually looking in on the hundreds of conversations and active PLNs.  Eventually, I started participating and growing my own PLN on twitter.  This past June, I was able to attend ISTE for the first time and this was because of my PLN. I put out a request for reasons why people attend ISTE and my PLN responded.  I presented this information to my supervisors and was allowed to attend because of it.  At ISTE, I realized it wasn't about the technology, it was about the connections I was making and the people I was able to meet from my PLN. Technology and social media brought us together to from real world connections.

My second example of technology bringing people together to make real connections also comes from the ISTE conference. I had the opportunity to attend the opening Ignite sessions and I was able to hear Reshan Richards @reshanrichards, Explain Everything @explainevrthng co-creator speak.  Needless to say it, was inspiring and served as another example of how technology brings people together.  The @explainevrthng team had never met face-to-face during the entire time they developed, tested and refined their app.  It wasn't until #ISTE2014 that they were in the same room together.  Here is an example of technology bringing strangers together, allowing them to collaborate and produce an amazing app. Furthermore, here is a technology conference, which enabled them to come together and meet each other in real time.  Another awesome tale of technology bringing people together. 

My final tale for today again revolves around Twitter. I was contacted by a teacher from Nashville, Tennessee, @2footgiraffe.  He wanted to know if I would be interested in participating in a Principal's Unconference he was hosting.  Through the power of twitter we connected and with the technology of Google Hangouts, I was able to participate and share my perspectives on, Workflow vs. Workload - Using Web 2.0 tools to take the power back. Even though it was not an actually face-to-face encounter, we were able to share information and ideas, a key component of any social interaction.  

So, for those who are concerned about technology driving us apart and this leading to a depersonalization of society; rest assured that for every one story of social media and Web 2.0 leading people into lives of solitary confinement;  there are a million more where technology has brought people together.  Remember, social media and the Web 2.0 are all about relationships, Really it's ALL about CONNECTIONS!