The Lone-Nut Leader

Watch this video.

 


Did you really watch the video or are you just keeping reading?

Come on, watch it. I promise you will like it.

(This is my favorite You Tube video by the way.)

Now ask yourself some questions...

1) Do you have guts? This guy is my hero. He felt something inside his soul. The music made him want to move. He didn't care what others would think. He got up and started moving. Kinda like in schools sometimes. We have to be willing to be daring. To be the one to stand up even if we are alone. Being the first person to stand up and dance is risky but often times it starts a movement.

2) Are you easy to follow? The leadership Dancing Guy provides is instructional almost, as the video points out. So from the very beginning people watching know it is going to be easy to mimic. Kinda like schools sometimes. Leaders need to lead in a way that is easy for others to follow. Nothing complex. Just simple leadership to drive change.

3) Do You Lead Publicly? When the first follower decides to embrace the leadership, Dancing Guy doesn't just keep doing. He shows the follower how to do the dance. He embraces the follower and wants him to feel as good as he does. Kinda like schools sometimes. When we want people to follow, we not only need to be easy to follow but we need to do it in a way that is easy for others to embrace. Sometimes that means showing them. Modeling good leadership is an important skill to master. Like the video says, "he embraces the follower as an equal. So it's not about the leader any more."

4) Is Your Movement Public? Once that first follower follows and they both are embracing the dance others begin to join in. Their (notice is plural now) leadership is public and then becomes a movement. And that movement is public for all to see. Kinda like schools sometimes. If the leadership wants to gain momentum and followers we have to make our movements public. Using social media tools can help. Showing what you are doing on your school Facebook page or Twitter account, posting videos to Youtube about the movement, talking to others. The more open your movement, the easier it is for more followers to join in. Like the video says, " Everyone needs to see the followers because followers emulate followers, not the leader."

5) Momentum...So once we get 2 then 3 then more followers the momentum takes over and the movement is in full force. More and more people join in and then the tipping point. This is the time at which people feel compelled to join in because there are more followers now than watchers. Kinda like schools sometimes. Once the movement gains steam and more and more followers join there comes a point at which people feel they have to join. They don't want to be "that guy" looking from the sidelines while the movement passes them by. So if we include the ideas from above, if our movement is public and we are modeling what we want and we foster leadership in others than it is that much easier to lead. It actually takes care of itself doesn't it?

Take a step back and examine your leadership. And ask yourself, are you a Lone-Nut Leader?

Where Am I?

So if you are seeing this post you might be wondering where I am. Or maybe not. But the story is still interesting none the less.

Each year I go on vacation. And starting 3 years ago when I go on vacation, I go on vacation. I don't take any technology with me. Nothing that will connect me with the outside world for 7 days. No computer. No Kindle. No phone. Well, I do take a phone since I will be driving somewhere but it stays in my truck. No Twitter or Facebook or Google Circles. Nothing electronic.

This digital cleanse is tough for me in some respects. I am plugged in virtually 24 hours a day. And this is my chance to get away from everyone and everything and reflect on my year. I will do a lot of writing, with pencil and paper. I have a stack of books that desperately need to be read. And I have a lot of thinking and relaxing to do.

While being connected is an important part of who I am, being disconnected for this time each year for a full 7 days is also helping rediscover who I am as an educator, and a person. So even if you don't give it up for 7 days, take some time way and go unplugged. Reflect and rediscover yourself....

photo credit: Chris Gin via photo pin cc

Flipping...It's Not Just For The Classroom

I've recently returned from a trip out to San Diego for #ISTE12. While there you could definitely sense several themes with the participants, sessions, and vendors. STEM was one. iPad and other Tablet cases, charging stations and protection plans was another. But overall the biggest topic that people wanted to talk about was Flipping the classroom.

What is flipping? In is simplest form, flipping is the idea that instead of the teaching of basic skills in the classroom, those skills are acquired outside the classroom, mostly through the form of videos. Then this allows for more depth, remediation, and/or extension in the classroom. It is becoming very popular in math classrooms because of the ease of access to content through sites like Khan Academy and others. But there are other classrooms like science and social studies where teachers are trying the flip. 

I am very skeptical of flipping. Mostly because of the fact that kids leave school to do more school and that just isn't right. (But that is a post for another time...)

I do believe that there is a more practical application of the flip that doesn't involve the classroom. 

Faculty meetings. 

Someone on Twitter asked me the other day if I had any resources for making faculty meetings better. I thought about it and it dawned on me. Why not flip them. We use the same reasoning for flipping a classroom and apply it to the faculty meeting. 

Think about it. All the nuts and bolts stuff that is shared in a faculty meeting could be shared asynchronously via other means, freeing up the traditional faculty meeting time for other things. 

Not enough time for PLC meetings? Use the Faculty Flip to free up that time and allow grades and departments to meet, talk and plan. 

Not enough time for Professional Development? Use the Faculty Flip to have an unconference sharing session of what's working and ways to improve practice. 

There are lots of practical applications for the Faculty Flip. The point of it is to make the time the staff or groups spend together more meaningful. Many of the meetings that take place in a school are informational. Scheduling, data sharing, field trips, etc. Many of these could be sent in an email or shared in a group. Thus freeing time to do something meaningful for kids. 

So the idea sounds great but how do you share that information? Email is one way. And it is truly one-way. It's tough to carry out a conversation over email. There are some easier and better ways to share information. 

Google Docs-Easy to start and use. Put your information in, and share. You can create one doc for the entire year and add too it so there is always a running record of what has taken place. Once shared, other staff can leave comments or link to your document when creating new ones for other business. 

Ning-A while back when Ning went paid it got a bad rap. But for educators it is still a great option. With Ning Mini being free for up to 150 members there are some great features like forums, groups, and 1 gig of file storage that would be great for sharing documents, ideas and more. 

Edmodo-My favorite social network for schools, you can set up groups for grade levels and departments, share documents, set up polls and questionnaires and more. And there are lots of applications beyond the faculty sharing that folks could begin to see it being used in their classroom too. (I wrote a post about how to use it a while back.)

No matter what you use, try it! See what you and your staff can do with that extra time if you share that information digitally and reserve that faculty meeting time for faculty learning time. Try the Faculty Flip!

photo credit: Hani Amir via photo pin cc

Reflections On #ISTE12 Day 1-The Power Of Connectedness

I've spent the better part of 3 days taking part in various parts of the #ISTE12 experience. (Basically, if you don't know, ISTE is the international conference for technology educators. This year it's in sunny San Diego.) I have had the chance to meet with educators and friends from all over the world. I've sat in on sessions and had conversations in the Bloggers Cafe and in the hallways and the one theme that keeps coming up over and over is connectedness.

As educators, we are all part of something greater than ourselves and our classrooms. We have the power and potential to do something great. It is tough to do alone. But thank goodness for the power of connections. Getting plugged in and taking advantage of the power of others is an important step in our journey.

I have made so many friends, and had so many wonderful opportunities. I am lucky I am a connected educator. I take pride in it as well. And spending time over the last 3 days mingling, mixing, chatting and conversing has recharged me and made me once again believe in the power we have.

Whether you are in San Diego or not, we all have the power to get connected. You've already started if you are reading this blog. Maybe it came to you through your RSS or maybe you saw a link on Twitter. That's a first step. But take the advice from many here at #ISTE12. Make connections that matter. Spend time in your network talking and learning with and from each other.

There are still 2 days of learning here and I can't wait to see what is around the bend.

Thanks to @sraslim for the picture today!

The Power Of The Lurker

Any one who knows me or reads my blog and Tweets knows I am a big advocate of social learning. The idea that we don't have to be the smartest or be an expert in everything should be a big relief in the classroom. When I started teaching I did everything I could to make sure I knew more than my students. Looking back, I know I wasted a great deal of time and many teachable moments with that attitude. I don't have to know everything. I have a network of people that I am plugged into that can help me, advise me, suggest for me and point me in the right direction when I am wrong. And for all of them (and you) I am grateful.

It's this idea of social learning, however that I have struggled with since I entered the space. I felt like I had to be online, all the time. I had to share something, all the time. I had to comment and react all the time. Over the few years I have been here and the many conversations I have had I know that not to be true.

I have heard rumblings, now and then, that the only way you can learn on Twitter or other social networks is to contribute. I might be making more extreme than it actually is but for some the mentality is that you have to contribute to learn.

Yes, it is very difficult to learn if no one shares. If we create new knowledge and don't share it is it knowledge at all? But if we are plugged in and connected to Twitter, or blogs or other social networks, do you have to be an active contributor to find value and power in the network? I don't believe so.

When I teach Twitter now I don't start with sign up. And many times when I do my Twitter PD people look at my like I have 2 heads. Why would I bother teaching Twitter and skip the sign up and the how-to? Why? because like anything we learn, we have to make a connection. There has to be some hook to draw is in. Rarely, I have seen, when it comes to social learning, is the hook the technical stuff. And even more rare is a true desire to want to learn socially. (Not saying there aren't those educators out there, because they are. Just saying its rare.) For many they have to first see the why. They have to find the value in these spaces to want to take it to the next level. Once they see the why, the light bulb goes off and they they are hooked. It just takes a little push in the right direction.

So, when I am doing my Twitter PD I start with searches. I start with hashtags. I show the power of the hashtag. I want to start with that instant hook, that connection to the network. If I have English teachers, I show them all the users and the tweets on the #engchat hashtag. I show them the archives of their chats. I do that for all content and curriculum areas. The beauty of all that is that you don't have to be a Twitter member to find all that valuable information.

We will, of course, come back together and I will show them the sign up and the how-to's. But if they never sign up that is ok with me. I will show them blogs and if they never write a post, that's ok with me. I will show them other social networks and if they never engage in a conversation, that's ok with me.

I want them to explore these spaces, as often as they can, as often as they see fit. I want them to be another tool in their toolbox for learning. But I will tell you. Many say to me they find value in lurking and searching. But the true value was when they took that next step and signed up and added their voice to the conversation. I didn't have to push. They discovered that on their own.

There is power in lurking. To say you have to be connected, you have to be plugged in, contributing, sharing, I'm not so sure. Is the ultimate goal to get every educator connected and sharing? Definitely. But we can't devalue the power in lurking and taking.

So, maybe instead of encouraging (pushing) others to contribute blogs and tweets and ideas, maybe we begin by having a conversation about the value of lurking. Show there is value in what we have here and in other social networks by encouraging others to get connected and take from the network. That just might lead to the growth of our networks.

If you are lurker, be proud!

photo credit: paloetic via photo pin cc

Why You Should Sign Up for @eduClipper

I have written about the awesomeness that is eduTecher before. Created by my good friend Adam, it is always one of the first places I go to learn about new tools and resources for the classroom. He has amazing collection of apps, sites and more that you can spend hours looking through.

Building on that success Adam is at it again creating a free tool for teachers (and students...well anyone really) called eduClipper.

The idea is that there is so much out on the web that you want to save. Blog posts, articles, videos, audio, images; we are all trying to find the best way to curate information. And for many they want to take it one step further and share that information in a logical way with others.

Thats where I believe eduClipper will help. Users will have the ability to clip just about anything and share their boards with anyone.

Here is a video that does a much better job explaining it than I do.



While you can't download it just yet, you can sign up and be one of the first to try it. Head over to the eduClipper beta site to add your email to list.

Thanks Adam!

2012 Top @Livebinders Voting Open

Y'all know how much I love Livebinders. Around our office we use them all the time to organize resources and share the good stuff with our teachers. Tina and Barbara (the Founders) have created a great product that really meets a lot of needs for teachers and are always willing to listen and seek out advice for changes they want to make.

Last year they unveiled a contest to have educators vote on the Top 10 best Livebinders around. I was humbled to have two picked by my fellow educators to make that list. My Twitter In Education and QR Code binders both made the short list and it really was pretty awesome.

Nominations just closed for 2012 and my Twitter Guide for Edu binder was again nominated. So if you want you can head over to the Voting Binder and cast a vote my direction. The nifty part is that you can see all the great binders that have been nominated. Everything from iPad resources to Presidents to math binders have all been nominated. Its a great resources to just find great content.

Below is my Twitter Binder for you to take a look. Its got more Twitter resources than you can shake a stick at and is constantly being updated with new information. I hope you can throw some votes my way!