I was making a brief presentation to a group of teachers the other day, just trying to implant some seeds of ideas that I will take time to water and nurture later. It was more a time to have five minutes to start some conversations about the power of technology to shift the ideas and mechanics of learning in the 21st century.
Many teachers continue to hold onto their old stories of education. They want to teach, and be taught, the way they were taught 20 years ago. My role is to try and create 21st century learners of teachers, hoping they will shift their learning environments to reflect the skills our students will need as global citizens of the future. The skills of assessment, collaboration and developing personal learning communities.
One teacher asked me “where do you (I) learn?” I immediately jumped on blogs, both my own and others. maintaining this blog is not just an exercise to share my knowledge, but by writing I am able to reflect and crystallize my own understandings.
In addition, by reading (and commenting on) others blogs (made easy by an RSS aggregator), I can follow, share and reflect on others ideas and conversations. The links you see to the left – “My Reading List” – are a few of the blogs I follow daily. Add to that a few names I haven’t added yet, plus some random, occassional meanderings into the edublogosphere and I have a digital personal learning community. I can “talk” to David Warlick, Clay Burell or Jeff Utech and, through the wonder of cyberspace, can pick the brains of the most innovative thinkers in the world. No longer does geography or circumstance have to isolate us.
In addition, by reading several blogs from different perspectives I am able to build connections and understandings from information that I would not be able to access without technology. This is what we need to learn, and help our kids to learn.
Where to start? Must-reads are David Warlick and Will Richardson – the two evangelists of educational technology. Feel free to read my list and develop your own. Or browse Edutopia’s Edublogs We Love: Top Ten Stops for Internet Interaction for some other ideas (some are also on my list).
Get an RSS feeder (I use Netvibes) and spend 15 minutes a day. It’s the best Professional Development you’ll ever find.
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