The Ariel View

While I was living in Asakusa, I never had the desire to cross the river to the east. Then after I moved, they built the Skytree.

Skytree

Last week I was in Tokyo and had the chance to go to the Tokyo Skytree. I lived within walking distance of this place for three years, before it was built, then moved out of the city, and when I did make it back to Tokyo, never took the time (or had the time) to make the trip to Oshiage where the Skytree sits.

the view                               the ariel view

It was interesting to compare the view from the top (well, the midpoint observation deck) and the street. It got me thinking about a song.

only when we get to see,

the aerial view,

will the patterns show,

we'll know what to do.

Nada Surf - Inside of Love

Now is the time when I can take a look at the ariel view and see where to go and leave 2015 behind. I think it was a great year - a whirlwind year - but I am looking forward to 2016.

I remember sitting here in this same spot last year, getting ready for interviews, not knowing where I would be

now,
today,
a year later,

how different life would be.

Being removed from the blur of the school schedule is the time to take a step back and think about what needs to be accomplished in the second half of this school year.

Here are some things I want to more of next semester ...

serendipitous encounters

In the beginning of the school year, I would come to school around 6:30 am and just walk the halls. This gave me a chance to be more visible if any teachers had a question or issue they needed help with. I know there were times when I had a question and only thought of the question when I saw the person who had the answer. I have been coming a little later recently and want that to change. I should go back to coming in a little earlier and make a point to visit certain teachers in the mornings to check in and have conversations.

get in classrooms

The best advice I got before I started my role as a technology coach was to get into classrooms. The only way to know what is happening is to see it in action, they said. They were right. I feel uncomfortable going into classrooms without a stated purpose - the last thing I want people to think is that I am coming in to check boxes off a list. I want to go in to see how I can help.

join meetings

My schedule makes this challenging, so I need to be more creative with how I go about this one. Fortuately, the middle school and high school meetings are on one day, and the elementary meetings are on another. That gives me the opportunity to meet most of the teachers. One thing I would like to see more of in meetings is lesson sharing.

promote teachers in meetings

I tried this in the beginning of the year, but my approach was flawed. A teacher did a really cool project with her students, and had her to talk about it with other teachers. I won't do that again with such short notice, but I would like to see more teachers share ideas and celebrate student work. It would be great if a rotation could be set up so all teachers would have a chance to share something for 3-5 minutes in every meeting.

promote teachers through central hub

This year we set up a central space to share learning and teaching. Next semester I want to continue being a learning recorder for the school to help spread ideas.

practice mindfulness every day

I noticed towards the end of the semester I was feeling really burnt out. Next semester I want to take a city trip at least once a week, take more pictures, and practice some sort of mindfulness/meditation during the school day. This might be best done in the morning before the day starts. I could spend 10 minutes in quiet sorting the thoughts in my head.

prioritize
Prioritization has been the area I have found most challenging and another focus for next semester.


There were a couple other things I wanted to try this year that I might try this second semester. One of them was starting a book club. This one is purely for selfish reasons to get me to read more, but the more I think about it, the more interesting it is to me. I am just not sure that same level of interest is out there.

The other thing I am interested in is doing some sort of EdCamp or Meetup for the southern Taiwan region. I think this would be a great way to get teachers together to share ideas. Even though we have a great staff, I think getting fresh perspectives is always good. This wouldn't even have to be held at KAS. It could be at a coffee shop, or library perhaps, or anywhere convenient.


Of course, sometimes, the ariel view leaves things looking blurry.

The Words Left Unsaid

I often think about what I did or said and relive moments in my life trying to think of ways I could have made them better. It's weird and it is probably not healthy, but this is the way I have been since I remember. If unchecked it can spiral into rumination.

summer fireworks in Japan

Recently I feel left wondering if I  could have said something in a different way after an encounter with someone. Questions like these race around my head:

• Could I have extended the conversation? 
• Could I have been nicer?
• Could I have been more engaging?
• Could I have left a question more inviting? 
• How could I have made my conversation partner feel better? 

Don't Wait

There was another post in my drafts entitled "don't wait". I decided to combine these posts since there seemed to be a theme running through both of them.

That theme - there is never a good time, so don't wait. Don't wait to say what you want to say. Don't put things off. If you are meaning to talk with someone, head down the hall and do it. The sooner the better.

If Students Aren't Socializing While Using Tech, You're Using It Wrong

The above clip was taken at our Hour of Code event. These first graders were helping each other work through a coding app. They would then periodically cheer when they accomplished something.

While I was watching this, I kept thinking of the editorial in the Washington Post called "I gave my students iPads — then wished I could take them back". 

I was biased from the start since I think iPads are a great learning tool. I can see uses for them throughout K-12. If you have the right apps on them - apps that allow for creativity, visual thinking, and flexibility in demonstrating their skills. 

• Students should be pushed to share knowledge and teach each other.
• Students should be encouraged to help each other overcome technical challenges (without doing the action for the studetn who needs help).
• Students should be free to express themselves while working, and be free to have a quiet space when they need it.

Digital Citizenship with Grade Threes

I sat down to talk with our third-grade team last week about lessons in digital citizenship. I was excited to get going on helping students use technology more responsibly and be more aware of how they are using technology.

I had already been planning a push with digital citizenship lessons to start off next school year, and this will be a great opportunity to try out some lessons with a great group of students.

The cat who liked the dog kennel.

I do feel like I dropped the ball this year, and perhaps let some students down who got into trouble due to their irresponsible choices while using their computers. I could have got some lessons in with most of the grades in the beginning of the year that may have gotten some of those students to think. Most of our problems are minor offences, which is a highly subjective term. My philosophy is usually to have a conversation with a student who makes a questionable choice. 

For these lessons, I want to make them as interactive as possible, incorporating role play to let the students to share their knowledge and experiences. I have found when students are able to share experiences they have had, they know possible solutions which can build their self-confidence.

And a note on the term digital citizenship: I don't like it. I think our lives are too intertwined for there to be a distinction between online and offline. But how many people are the same online as well as off?

I believe it is best to continually talk with students about digital citizenship, using real-time examples from class. Brian Lockwood recently released a video saying teachers should have YouTube channels so they know how it feels to be trolled. What if teachers created a YouTube channel and shared questionable comments with students? Or simply go to any site that receives a decent amount of traffic and look through the comments and talk through what is appropriate and what is not -- ask them what they would write and why.

As with any subject, I don't think there is ever one lesson that will make students experts in digital citizenship because there are so many factors at play. Conversations that push students to make and defend judgements though do have long-term effects.

What Makes a Good Day?

This has been sitting in my drafts folder since August. Today I was looking for a post idea and came across this draft called, "What Makes a Good Day?"

It all started one day when I had a meeting to check in with my principal. It was the beginning of the school year, and she asked me how my day was and I replied saying that it had been good.

She replied, "What makes a good day for you?"

I liked this question because it is one of those that turns a question around and forces a thoughtful answer. 

What does this have to do with the post? Nothing except I made it a few years ago and it needs to live somewhere other than a hard drive.

I think I answered something about accomplishing something or helping other teachers.

Now a few months later, and I am completely addicted to the feeling of accomplishment: whether it's making something or helping someone, these are what make my days recently.

And I've been really lucky to be involved with some interesting projects lately. To name a few:

• The grade 1's wrote stories that went through Book Creator and onto Seesaw and YouTube. Soon students in Australia will be commenting on the stories.
• A middle school teacher is in the process of gamifying a unit.
• A grade 4 class has connected with blogging buddies from other schools.
• Creating a central location where ideas can be shared.
• Implementing mini-meetings where teachers can bring lesson ideas for peer feedback.
• Creating a Scope and Sequence of tech skills linked to lesson examples.
• Designing lessons for classroom use. 

There are days when I go home not feeling good about my day, and those are the ones where I do not cross many tasks off my checklist, but I need to remind myself that a lot these projects are ones that do not get done in a day, and take time.

So what makes a good day for me? I would have to say seeing results.

What makes a good day for you, and how can you make tomorrow a good day?

Endurance

I recently saw a quote that said:

"     he who conquers, endures

I thought about this for a while, and while it may be true, endure has another meaning. So, this could be turned around to say:

"     he who endures ... conquers

 Endurance is essential to success and it is something that has been on my mind for a few weeks. When I arrived at KAS in August, after being in the city for a month through the heat of July, the superintendent warned me of feeling tired around Thanksgiving.

Well, here we are. Ready for the holiday break. And I'm not one to count down days either.

It's just caught up to me.

Why Teachers Should Blog

This post in nothing new, but rather is a collection of ideas gathered from many places and a way for me to work out an idea.

I started blogging way back in 2003 when I went to Japan as a way to keep in contact with my friends and family. It evolved into a photo blog, and when I became a teacher, it became what it is today - a blog for me to reflect on teaching and learning.

I am a believer and proponent of blogging. 

I believe teachers should blog for the following reasons (which are all related and some could probably be combined):

1. Blogs are a great platform for reflection. Write about your day, lessons, current issues, or ideas you have and invite others to join the conversation.
2. And speaking of ideas, blogs are a great way to keep track of ideas you have. Sam Sherrat had a great line in his Learning2 talk,"Ideas are like bubbles, if you don't catch them, they float away."
3. Blogging also has the potential to show you your own thinking. As Shelly Blake-Plock explains, in ‘Why Teachers Should Blog’, “… to blog is to teach yourself what you think.”
4. Not only does blogging show you what you are currently thinking, but it keeps a record of it so the changes in thinking can be seen over time. 
5. Blogging helps me organize and articulate thoughts in my head and helps me work through ideas.
6. It helps make connections to other topics.
7. Blogging is a great way to share ideas with others and make connections with other educators. 

Like I said, this is not groundbreaking, but I was doing #5.

You can also take a look at George Couros's ideas on the topic.

Learning About Commenting

All the students in Grade 4 are very excited to have their own blogs and be able to make comments on each others' posts. And since they are beginning a blogging project with three other schools, they will soon get plenty of practice.

The teacher and I collaborated on the best way to introduce comments and starting online discussions. She followed the guidelines Taipei American School uses for their elementary school:

• Make a compliment
• Add new information
• End with a question
• Proofread your comment

For older students, one might use these guidelines via Eduro Learning:

The comment:

• shows insight, depth, and evaluation.
• is connected with the original post and subsequent comments.
• is relevant with links to supporting material.
• shows personal opinion expressed in an appropriate style and is clearly related to the thread or post.
• shows a level of evaluation and considers in some depth the outcomes, impacts or effects of the post or comments.

The lesson went as follows:

• She first spoke with her students about what makes a good comment. (See the comment framework below)
• She let the students make comments on each others' posts.
• The students were then brought together to look at a few comments that were made and worked together to think of how to make the comments better.

We also looked at the comment settings and made sure the settings to make sure students would be emailed whenever they received a comment.

This setting can be found in Dashboard > Settings > Discussion > Email  me whenever > [check] anyone posts a comment

If students do receive an inappropriate comment they should alert a teacher right away.

It is great that students will be able to authentically practice what they are learning with a real audience.

Word Sort With Google Drawings -- Improve Me!

Last week I went into an elementary classroom and observed a solid language arts class. It was a solid program with students learning independently and knowing just what to do and what was expected.

I had been wanting to try using Google Drawings more for a long time, and I could see a few ways I could easily substitute it in.




It went OK. The students were engaged, but they were not speaking as much as I thought they should be speaking.

So now I have a followup lesson where the students will take the words they practiced and use them in sentences.




So, what do you see that I could do to make either one of these better?

If you are interested in either of these Google Drawings templates, let me know.

A Partial Definition

Best friends are the people who make your problems their problems just so you don't have to go through them alone.

— Legofans (@Legofans_pa) November 10, 2015

I saw this Tweet in my feed, and it spoke to me.

First, because I feel it is the truth.
Second, because this is partially what I hope to be as a coach.

I want to be there for teachers, and support them through difficult times.
I want to be able to offer insights that will help them achieve their goals.
I want to be helpful.
I want to be a good teammate.

These are all the reasons I love being a coach and what drew me to the position in the first place.

These are not all that a coach does though, it's only a partial definition.

Defining Coaching at KAS

Now that structures for the coaching program at KAS have been built, it's time to deliver the message to the teachers and explain what coaching is, can be, and will mean for them.

Victor and I (with Diana's guidance) have decided in this first year of the coaching program to focus on the Tech Ambassadors at KAS. The Tech Ambassador is a team of teachers who are able and willing to help their peers with learning technology. Diana instantly recognized that we have a built-in group of teachers who are willing to take risks. So that's where we are starting.

I spent a lot of time in the past few weeks looking over resources and decided SIS had the most easy-to-follow definition I could find.

Something I am going to work on is creating an elevator pitch I can use to briefly explain the program whenever I am asked about it.

I have done this preparing for job interviews but didn't think of it as an option for explaining what you do until I saw Geoff Derry's post where he mentioned the idea.

So, I spent some time considering my options for the vision statement (the first slide) ...

• I support teachers by providing advice and in-class support.
• I help teachers choose appropriate technologies to integrate into their classrooms.
• I am there to support teachers when they need it providing professional development, in-class support, and act as a silent partner.

... and the coaching cycle ...

• The coaching cycle follows a lesson or unit through the entire process.
• The coaching cycle allows the coach to be involved in a lesson or unit from the beginning to the end, helping to increase student outcomes. 
• The coach helps guide the teacher through the planning process, the delivery of the lesson, and reflects with the teacher on the lesson.

Time and Space

The Learning Technology Strategic Plan has three parts: Lead -- Collaborate -- Share.

When drafting the coaching plan for KAS, I kept thinking of how teachers currently feel disconnected from teachers in other departments or parts of the building. Yet, when I observed teachers or learning working together, I saw great collaboration and idea sharing.

KAS has had a group of teachers called the Tech Ambassadors (TAs). The TAs are the innovators of the school, knowledgeable with tech, and able to help others when they had questions. When I arrived, the Tech Ambassadors met every other month.

From my point of view, these teachers needed to spend more time together. I thought long and hard about creating some sort of discussion forum where conversations could take place, but there is something magical that happens when ideas are shared face-to-face.

I read something about time and space needed for innovation to take place. (This might have been from Sam Sheratt from the blog Time Space Education.) So, I figured if we could make the time in the form of more frequent and focused, 20-minute meetings where teachers have a chance to bring lessons they are doing in the classroom to get feedback, it would help create a culture of sharing.

We begin our journey in a few weeks at our next meeting.

Just Listen

The other day I felt like talking with my best friend. That term is a little strange since I haven't lived near him in 13 years, and it might be a one-way feeling, but that's how I feel all the same.

So I was feeling that I needed to email him to talk out some things I had on my mind. Then the next day I got an email from him.

Then when I replied to his message, I unloaded.

That was probably the wrong timing and I know I caught him off guard.

I explained my issue and he replied and all was going well until it wasn't. Suddenly he was offering advice I didn't want. All it seems I wanted was someone who I could trust with airing my issue rather than looking for advice.

I wonder how much I jump in and offer advice when teachers are not looking for it. I wonder if that is an option teachers should have when meeting with me. I wonder what I could look for to determine if that is how someone feels during a coaching meeting.

How to Better Communicate?

When I was a homeroom teacher, communication and understanding took on a different form than my current role as a technology coach. 

I feel like communication in my lower elementary classroom was me as more of an authoritative figure who could dictate when and how students would make themselves clear when I did not understand them. I was also directing the learning, so I knew, or could predict their lines of questioning.

This picture really has nothing to do with this post.

SJSA Fourth Grade - The Longest Year in My Life!, 

by Michael 1952, via Flickr, CC BY 2.0

Now, however, I am on the outside and people come to me with ideas. The role is new to the school, so a culture is still being established. This has meant a lot of what I am doing is last-minute, can-you-come-in-later-today-to-teach-X?-type lessons. I'm not complaining, I just realize that the program needs to move to one of the coach joining planning sessions if there is to be a mind-shift in people's perceptions of coaching in the school.

Knowing I cannot change others, what can I do ot better communicate?

• Don't jump to answer right away
• Instead of answering with a solution, answer with a question
• Ask better questions
• Better empathasize
• Approach conversations looking for a win-win

Seeing

I spent this past weekend at Sun Moon Lake in the middle of Taiwan. Northface hosted some races and a concert, and finally at the end of Saturday there was a fireworks show.

Before going I had known there was the possibility of seeing fireworks, but I wasn't sure of the exact plan. When it came time to pack, I left my tripod behind even though I know that taking good fireworks photos requires keeping the camera stable for a few seconds, I rationalized that I could find a rock to put it on if I needed the stability. I really didn't know what was going to happen.

When I found out that the fireworks were set to happen, I went down to the waterfront to scope out the scene. I could kind of tell where the fireworks would happen based on the tripods lined up along the shore, so I went back to the hotel and got my camera. At the waterfront I looked for a place to set my camera up. I was looking for a location where I could take a shot that included something in the foreground along with the light show.

I found a golf cart in the parking lot where I could place my camera on top of the roof. I had the people in the scene, I had the tents, you can tell it is a festival, it was just what I wanted -- just what I expected.

Everything turned out good. 

But could it have been better?

It turned out I couldn't see in front of the tents so I couldn't see the lower fireworks.

I couldn't see how the fireworks were reflecting off the water.

I couldn't see the people down at the waterfront doing what they were doing.

I didn't get a different perspective from the one I had.

You can change your whole outlook just by walking on the other side of the street. Taking a few steps out of your current place can change your whole outlook.

Seth Goden says we think we are looking for something, and when something else comes along that is good, we don't see it.  The act of seeing is not putting a name on the thing you are looking for. 

I can't help but draw a connection to my current role. I wonder what I am missing and how I can see what I am not seeing. How can I see better? Is there I way I can be better at predicting?

What would a different perspective mean for me?

Today I had a coaching meeting with my boss. We've had these meetings set up for the past couple weeks, but we have had to cancel the last few. We took an hour to talk about how things are going and discussed some strategies I can take.

For me, part of seeing better is being able to talk out my thoughts and have a sounding board. Maybe blogging more would be good too?

#CoetailChat October 25, 2015 -- Disrupt PD

I think this was the biggest turnout for a CoetailChat yet. Feel free to look back through the chat, and come to #CoetailChat to continue the discussion.

 #CoetailChat happens on the last Sunday of each month around 9 pm Japan Standard Time.

Plan B

One of the most exciting parts of my position is when I get to sit down with a teacher who is fired-up about a unit or lesson they want to do with their class.

Teachers come to me either with an idea they want to implement, or looking for ideas. I was drawn to my current role because I love working with teachers and helping to give them the tools to make their ideas a reality.

a reminder for my students last year -- northern Japan is cold

A few weeks ago I was approached with an innovative idea to use Minecraft in an elementary math class. The teacher had found a resource with a lesson that integrated area, perimeter, and order of operations. It was a really interesting lesson idea, and I was excited to make this happen. I wanted the teachers to try it out before it hit the classroom, so I offered to teach an after school club so the teachers could try it before they used it.

Here's what I did ...

• I spoke with the Director of Learning Technology and got the OK to set up a server
• I spoke with the systems analyst to make sure that he could set up a server
• I signed myself up to do an after school Minecraft club so I could test it out for the teachers and see what it is like to integrate lessons with it

Here's what I didn't do ...

• I didn't ask what the teachers would do if they couldn't use it on the Chromebooks in their rooms. They are both 1:1, and I assumed everything would be OK. Minecraft doesn't run on a Chromebook.
• I didn't ask who would be involved. I was only approached by 1 teacher, so I assumed this was a one class project. It was a team effort.

In my own excitement to see Minecraft in action,  I was blind to alternate outcomes. I could only see the one where everything worked out the way I envisioned it.

When I emailed the teacher to say that Minecraft doesn't work on Chromebooks, the house of cards came tumbling down, and the project was put on hold. Naturally because the readily available computers in the classroom couldn't be used, the plan fell apart. I would have done the same thing had it been my own classroom.

I rushed to tell my boss to hold off on the Minecraft server not wanting to be responsible for wasted money.

All this could have been avoided if I had asked what Plan B and Plan C were. If I had thought through a little more and put my own emotions aside, I may have thought about other possible outcomes.

As it turned out, everything fell into place this time, but I am going to keep in mind to always ask about Plan B.

When Is Going For The Cool Factor OK?

My first thought when a teacher came to me about publishing a book to iBooks was, "that sounds cool." And it is a cool idea. It also gives students a wider audience, gets them excited about the project and could give them added motivation to do well, it also teaches them to publish, and not hand in their work.

For me though, it was cool. It was the win. The kind of project I want now because I know other teachers will notice and come to work with me.

Is it the best way to share student work? Probably not.

As you can see from this exchange with the SIS coaching team, their advice was steering me away from this project. And I agree that technology should be used just because it's there.

But still, I think there can be valid reasons for using tools just for the coolness factor - and while I probably would have steered me away from using iBooks as well, I think my reason of wanting a win to help attract teacher is a good reason to use it. You can't attract bees with vinegar -- and telling teachers that their reasons for using technology is not sound will not win over many people.

I am torn though.

If nothing else, hopefully this experience will help me to try to dig deeper when teachers want to use a certain app and I think I will think twice about when and how I steer willing teachers away from what they want to do.

A Little Positivity

So often I focus on my weaknesses and what I did wrong that I forget to reflect on the positives in my days. Today I decided, no forced myself to think of a positive in the past week.

So ...

One morning I went to help a teacher out. He wanted to know how to put pictures together on a page and print them out. I obliged and brought him through using Word, Pages, Google Docs, and Preview.

While we were test printing I asked him what this was for. He told me students need to print out their work.

I understand the thinking behind this ...  I used to teach Grade 1-2. But his students are in high school. So I asked, "Why are you doing all the work for them? Have them put the pictures together in a printable format." I explained to him that the students

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

I'm not sure what is being done about this now, but I felt good about the exchange because while not the best way to put it, I do think I brought up a great point for him.

It was a small thing, but losing track of the small wins can be counterproductive and could stop momentum. Celebrate the small wins, learn from the learning opportunities [less than successes], and move on.

Idea People

Bright Idea, by GDJ, via OpenClipArt.org, CC0 1.0

When we started this year, the Victor (Director of Learning Technology) created a Year Road Map that included an idea bucket section. I let all the thoughts that had been rattling around in my head spill out onto the page. That was six months of "heavy" ideas - ideas that did not escape me - laid out on the page.

Since starting I have struggled to implement many of these ideas. In order to carry through with them, and get some started, I have needed the support of others to help me. Without their support, nothing would have been done and the ideas would have stayed as ideas.

Idea people need support. If you are an idea person (and I don't think it's static, people shift between the two sides on a scale) seek out the people who can help make your ideas a reality. Find the space and people that help make your ideas become complete.

Getting Started on Twitter

"Just do it!" is something I heard a lot when I was starting on Twitter. But it's easier said than done.

Know Who to Follow
There are a few ways to follow people. Follow those you find or are recommended to you. Once you find some interesting people, see which hashtags they are posting to, or take a look at who they follow.


Steps to Build Networks
Building a PLN will take time and effort, but it is very much worth the time and effort. Once your PLN is built, you will have a network of people who know the information you need to know, and will be there to share ideas and resources with you.

Since I am new in my role of a tech coach, I reached out to my PLN (Most of whom happen to be tech coaches themselves and I can't tell if it was a conscience effort to engage with them. It could have been me dressing for the job I wanted. (See below)


Steps to take on Twitter
This is what I generally did when I started Twitter. I am not saying this is the best way though.

1. Lurk
Just watch and read at first.

2. Retweet and Curate
You can gain credibility by sharing content you find from others.

3. Reply
Start replying to what others say.

4. Ask / Answer Questions
The power of Twitter is in the community. Tap into it. You will get when you give.

5. Join Chats
Twitterchats are one hour to a week chats that revolve around a topic. They are a powerful way to learn and build relationships.

6. Generate your own content


Day 2 of the #ISEdChat - this would not have happened with one person working alone

The Importance of Enthusiasm

“Put Enthusiasm Into Your Work” - Dale Carnegie

I had spent almost a week preparing a presentation about my role as a learning technology coach is and how I could help support teachers. The elementary principal agreed to let me come in to talk to the team during their weekly meeting and I spent more time than I would care to admit putting together a presentation.

The morning of the presentation I was listening to a podcast about giving presentations and the advice was don't use images from Google Image Search. I don't have many pictures from my new school, so I had filled my presentation with Creative Commons images, but since I feel the same, I took the message of the podcast to heart and stripped out all my images during the school day.

At the meeting, I looked around the room at the elementary teachers and I did not see any energy. I was not feeling good about my presentation anymore either. Then I made my mistake, and one that I will try to not make again, I matched the energy of the room and spoke without slides.

Big Mistake

I fell as flat as the room's energy, and my message was not even remotely received. I had been afraid of coming off as fake or annoying, but worse, I  didn't come off as anything at all.

I did not inject my message with enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm and confidence are linked. They both come from within. Since I did not speak with the enthusiasm I have for the topic, I did not have the confidence while speaking that I could have had.

My presentation

If I had used my original presentation, and spoken with enthusiasm, I think I could have garnered some interest from the teachers. If I don't speak with enthusiasm for a topic I am passionate about, why would anyone else be excited to receive my message?

From now on, I will do my best to put enthusiasm into everything I do because who else will be enthusiastic about what I do?

This post was inspired by Episode 12 of the Carnegie Coach Podcast - Put Enthusiasm into Your Work.

How Do You Know What You Don't Know?

Each week, well almost each week, I send out a survey seeing what questions the staff has. Sometimes I am able to deal with these inquiries by email. These always seem to be the kind of issues teachers have, but aren't worth the time seeking an answer.

Above is a section of my survey results. The highlighted box is what spawned this post.

How do I know what I don't know?

That is a good question. In fact, Donald Rumsfeld knew this too.

My question is: if you know there are things you don't know, what are you doing to find them? Do you talk with colleagues? Do you read more about your subject? Do you engage with others online?

And my question for myself is: How can I better support teachers who feel this way?

Empathy

I was hired this year to be the first Learning Technology Coach at Kaohsiung American School. It is a great honor to be a part of the building and evolution of a coaching program.

At the same time it can be very humbling as I learn my way around the school and the role which has led me to feel isolated at times.

The other day I was making my way around the school and I visited one teacher's room. We were talking about his class, and how things are going for him because he is in a situation similar to me in that he is also new to the school and the country.

At one point in our conversation he said, "I am glad I am not in your position. You have it rough being in a brand new role at the school."

That little bit of empathy, that short phrase, made me feel connected and relieved that someone else understood, or at least thought about, what I was going through.

I was no longer an island.

Which left me with two questions I will carry with me:

• Am I in tune to what other teachers are going through? 
• Am I able to empathize as well as that teacher did?

Week 1 Performance Task

Share your thoughts on the process of selecting a colleague to work with, including at least one goal for your work with this colleague over the next six weeks.

crossposted on the Eduro coaching forum.

Before I started my journey in my new position at a new school, I was able to connect with some teachers. One of these teachers is currently enrolled in COETAIL, and when I get to the school, he immediately reached out for help with his Course 5 project. He has a very interesting project set up.

When it came time for this week’s performance task, he seemed like a natural fit since we have been working together anyway. I was also interested in working with this particular teacher since he teaches high school English -- a subject that I know little about -- and the secondary English department has started a blogging initiative for students grades seven to twelve.

The teacher I am working will be an interesting match for me: he is in the high school division whereas I have an elementary background, he has much more teaching experience than I do, and he is just an interesting fellow that will be fun to work with. In addition, if his experience is positive, I believe he will make for a good proponent.

Just having the role of “Technology Coach” causes people to have predispositions about me and what I do, one of which is that I will always be looking at technology. While that is something I will look at, I am more interested in seeing what teaching practices will have a more positive effect on student learning outcomes.

As I have gotten to know the school, the school has gotten to know me

Before
During the week of orientation or perhaps the first week of school, I don't remember when, I sent out a survey to all the teachers asking if it would be OK if I came into their classrooms to observe what they do. That way I would be able to understand their teaching styles, and get a feel for what the students are able to do.

I didn't get many responses. (I thought I hadn't gotten any responses,  but that was because I hadn't set up notifications on that spreadsheet.)

One thing I knew I wanted to do -- one piece of advice I heard over and over again -- was to build relationships. One way I had planned on doing that was through support with technology where I could, and being visible, but ideas totally stolen from Colin Gallager.


Then
There was one day in the first week of school when I was just walking around before school started. I noticed teachers would call me into their rooms, or come out to talk to me about questions they had. A lot of the questions I had in the beginning were support questions, but with a school that had an influx of new teachers, starting the school year in an almost brand new building loaded with technology, it was expected.

In the first week of school an email was sent out inviting teachers to Wednesday night bowling. I am not a bowler, but I thought it would be a good chance to get to know my coworkers better. So far I have gone every week except one -- and I am still terrible.

And suddenly one day the dam of tech support questions broke a crack and an invitation to come in to introduce Chromebooks to 3rd Graders came. Then another came from the other 3rd Grade class. Then I was invited into a high school class to watch IB Trigonometry give their IA proposals. (Which was really cool).


Now
Gradually I have been asked to do more, and people are starting to ask me for more support and I am finding myself moving all over the school frequently logging more than 10,000 steps in a day. Invitations to come and observe continue to roll in and invitations to plan lessons for classes has begun. Next week I am giving a search lesson to the 10th Grade English classes and a Digital Footprint lesson to the entire 9th Grade class. And invitations to observe or pop into classes are coming more regularly.


The Title
The title of this post refers to my role in the school. As I have built trust with my colleagues, they have seen that I can be a resource, and now I feel myself being used more.

Coaching Beliefs

After being hired I read a lot about coaching and came away with a few tenants of what I believe coaching is about (and I am looking forward to changing this list in the future):

- Coaching is about relationships. 
You aren't going to want to work with someone you don't like. You won't learn from someone you don't trust. I have the great fortune to work with and teach great people.

- Coaches should make learning and teaching visible.
Since am in and out of classrooms more than anyone else in the school, I have an opportunity to highlight what is happening in the school. I am looking forward to developing this further.

- Coaches need to be visible. 
In my short time on the job so far, I have found it very beneficial to walk around in the mornings so teachers can see me. They don't always have the time to make a call or send an email to get me, but if they see me, they are more likely to grab me in the hall. Maybe the title of this section should have been "Teachers are busy - go to where they are".

- Meet teachers where they are.
Teacher A has been flipping class for years. Teacher B is having difficulty navigating Google Drive. Both need different kinds of support.

Safety Net

I sit down with a teacher to help with a digital tool, and the teacher doesn't need my help. They just needed someone to be there as a safety net.

I understand that people feel this way sometimes, and I am glad I am able to be there to help.

I wonder though how I can create a safety net for when I am not available.

---

Today was another great day where I found myself very busy and very helpful. Another question that came up for me today was: how can I better schedule appointments with teachers? I am finding it hard to cut meeting times short when we are on a roll. I need to get better at that.

First Two Weeks As a Technology Coach

The biggest regret I have from the last two weeks,  the first two weeks at a new school in a new country, was downplaying how much I like my new job.

I shouldn't say that I like it -- I love it.

Being at a new school in a new country has its own challenges. My last school was in Japan, and I completely misjudged how different the cultures were. Fortunately, I came a month before school started so I get to know the city a little bit which has made things easier.

There is a lot to learn moving to a new school. There is the faculty, which is considerably larger than my last, the school, the school culture, and general procedures.

KAS has a lot more technology in it than I have seen. It is so exciting to be at a school like this. And that is my role right there. The bridge between the technology and the teachers.

I have done some really fun things so far: being a resource collector, teaching an MYP IT class, deploy Chromebooks in the third grade, and do tech support. I believe the last one is essential to building relationships [trust] with the other teachers.

BUT, I don't want it want to fall into the role of tech support guy.

When I was hired I was asked for my general vision and a rough plan of action. The plan at the time was to start with the admin vision, move down to the departments, down to the teachers, and then cycle back to the admin.

I don't think it was a bad plan, but it is not very student centered. Not at all.

Now that I am here, I my plan is looking something like:

- build relationships
Most of my time is spent with relationship building. Just like students, teachers won't learn from someone they don't like or trust. And I get the added benefit of making friends.

- be visible and approachable
I have a strategy I call the walk, where I walk the school in the morning so any teachers having problems while setting up can grab me. I've been hitting my daily goal of 5,000 steps quite a lot recently.

- seek out early adopters
I am looking for early adopters; teachers who are not afraid to try new things and who have an ability to laugh even when lessons don't go the way the were planned.

- begin to push for more tech integration
I am not ready to start talking about tech integration yet, but I can't let this one sit for too long.

Getting Started

When I first started thinking of how I would begin with my new position as a Technology Coach, I had no idea where to begin. So I started reading whatever I could find.

The common theme that ran through all the blog posts, Tweets, videos, and articles was how being a coach was all about the relationships coaches develop with coachees. This made and makes sense.

Most people don't listen to those they don't have a good relationship with.

This goes for the student-teacher relationship, teacher-mentor relationship, teacher-administrator relationship ... all the relationships I can think of. Relationships will act as the foundation on which trust will be built.

Then I started thinking, and before relationships can be started, one must be grounded with themselves.

Smile Because It Happened

Today I there was a little good bye ceremony today at our last faculty meeting today, and as one of the leaving teachers, I cringed as we went around and people started giving speeches.

After 12 years abroad, I have seen many people come and go from my life, and the good-byes never get easier.

One colleague told me that she appreciated me "popping in" to classrooms and helping out when there. I didn't know how to respond to that.

I think it was hard to respond because that is just what I do. I like watching other teachers teach to get ideas for my own classroom. It is one of the reasons I enjoy talking with my colleagues. It helps me think and reflect on what I am doing.

I have been fortunate to work with inspiring educators.

Notes and Thoughts About Types of Learning and Learning Technologies

This week was the first of the course, and it was also the week report card drafts were due, so the course took a backseat until today - Sunday. The introduction video was of a model primary class and showed students learning through Minecraft. It was a good reminder of what a class could look like.

Sidenote - video lectures are more powerful when participants are required to answer comprehension/thought questions during the videos.

We watched a video of a class that learned about butterflies. My first thought was of UBD, and my next was that I wish I had seen what the other students in the class were doing when the teacher pulled a small group to guide them through the iMovie process. I liked what the teacher was doing, but if it was my class, I know I would have had students coming up to me with questions - unless they were free playing.

I liked how children worked in pairs with iPads. They were each working on their own task, but were engaged with each other through conversation. This shows technology does not always promote a "zombie-like" atmosphere.

We were then asked to take a quiz and save this answer for later reflection:

What are your main reasons for thinking ICT should or should not be used in primary education?

Some think students need more tactile practice to help develop fine motor skills, and technology does not always facilitate that.

I had planned on completing this Coursera course ... but then I found a different one that really appealed to me called How to Teach Us offered by High Tech High. Since I am taking a summer course, I don't have time for all three.

###


The following is a chart from the course resources.

Table 1: Definitions of learning types

Learning type	The learning experience
Acquisition	Learning through acquisition is what learners are doing when they are listening to a presentation or podcast, reading from books or websites, and watching demos or videos. This is probably still the most common type of learning in formal education. The student is playing a relatively passive role while the teacher uses the transmission mode of teaching… We cannot avoid learning through acquisition. Students need to learn what others have discovered, to hear about expert ways of thinking and practising, and what is known already about the subject. Enabling students to build on the work of others is fundamental to formal education and the progressive development of ideas.
Discussion	Learning through discussion requires the learner to express their ideas and questions, and to challenge and respond to the ideas and questions from the teacher, and/or from other students. The discussion may or may not end with a consensual outcome. The pedagogic value is the reciprocal critique of ideas, and how this leads to the development of a more elaborated conceptual understanding.
Investigation	Learning through investigation guides the learner to explore, compare and critique the texts, documents and resources that reflect the concepts and ideas being taught. Rather than having to ‘follow the storyline’, as in learning through acquisition, they are in control of the sequence of information, and can ‘follow their own line of inquiry’, making them more active, and giving them a greater sense of ownership of their learning, taking a critical and analytical approach, and thereby coming to a fuller understanding of the ideas.
Practice	Learning through practice enables the learner to adapt their actions to the task goal, and use the feedback to improve their next action. Feedback may come from self-reflection, from other students, from the teacher, or from the activity itself - if it shows them how to improve the result of their action in relation to the goal of the activity. This helps them to develop, understand and use the knowledge and skills of a discipline, like ‘learning by doing’, or ‘learning through experience’.
Collaboration	Learning through collaboration embraces mainly discussion, practice, and production. Building on investigations and acquisition it is about taking part in the process of knowledge building itself. It is distinct from learning through practice because although it builds something this is necessarily done through participation and negotiation with peers. It is distinct from learning through production, because although it produces something this is through debate and sharing with others.
Production	Learning through production is the way the teacher motivates the learner to consolidate what they have learned by expressing their current conceptual understanding and how they used it in practice. Producing an output generates a representation of the learning enabled by the other types. In its simplest form it is the learner’s expression of their current thinking, which enables the teacher to see how well they have learned, and to respond with feedback, guidance and further explanation.

Table 2: Definitions of ‘learning types’ in terms of typical technologies used

Learning types	Conventional technology	Digital technology
Acquisition	Reading books, papers; Listening to teacher presentations face-to-face, lectures; Watching demonstrations, master classes.	Reading multimedia resources, websites, digital documents and resources; Listening to podcasts, webcasts; Watching animations, videos.
Collaboration	Small group project, discussing other students’ outputs, creating a joint output.	Small group project, using online forums, wikis, chat rooms, etc. for discussing other students’ outputs, creating a joint digital output.
Discussion	Tutorials, tutor groups, student seminars (students leading discussion), discussion groups, class discussions.	Online tutorials, tutor groups and seminars, email discussions, discussion forums, web-conferencing tools (synchronous and asynchronous).
Investigation	Using text-based study guides; Analysing the ideas and information in a range of materials and resources; Using books, people, field trips, to collect data for analysis; Comparing texts, searching and evaluating information and ideas.	Using online advice and guidance; Analysing the ideas and information in a range of digital resources; Using digital tools to collect and analyse data; Comparing digital texts, using digital tools for searching and evaluating information and ideas.
Practice	Doing practice exercises; using tools; doing practice-based projects, labs, field trips, face-to-face role-play activities.	Using digital tools, models, simulations, digital games, microworlds, virtual labs and field trips, online role-play activities.
Production	Producing their own representations of what they have learned, using statements, essays, reports, accounts, designs, performances, artefacts, animations, models, videos.	Producing and storing digital documents, representations of designs, performances, artefacts, animations, models, resources, slideshows, photos, videos, blogs, e-portfolios.

Definitions are taken from Chapters 6-11 in Laurillard, D. (2012). Teaching as a Design Science: Building Pedagogical Patterns for Learning and Technology. New York and London: Routledge.

We know that the best learning comes when teachers use multiple approaches to to expose/engage students in the material. When planning, teachers should consider how to incorporate these learning types into the lessons, and consider possibilities

• What are the types of learning we are trying to elicit from our students?
• Here is the teaching/learning problem - how can technology help?

ICT and types of learning about
The Ecosystems of Rice Fields

Learning through:	Students learning about your topic could be using:
Acquisition	Teacher selected videos, teacher-created
Discussion	A class-generated, teacher-facilitatd GDoc
Investigation	Teacher-selected website, Skype
Practice	Doodlebuddy, Kidspiration Venn Diagram, Mindmapper
Collaboration	ShowMe, Adobe Voice, iMovie
Production	Adobe Voice, iMovie, ShowMe

Given my learning and teaching goals, how can technology help?