I'm always looking for opportunitites to learn more about integrating technology into the classroom so I made the easy decision to attend edcamphome 2.0. The first ever edcamphome (July 2103), was a blast. As a participant I engaged in conversations with other Science teachers and picked up some new tools to try. When the event was over I had a headache and my eye muscles twitched - but I was pumped full of the energy that new ideas bring.
This time around I volunteered to be a session moderator. I did my homework: lower thirds were set, "day of" instructions reviewed, Google Hangout on Air settings fixed, apps were loaded. I had never moderated anything before. But I had experience using Google Hangouts and felt confident in my abilities to invite edcamphome participants to a hangout and get the discussion rolling.
For the first session of edcamphome 2.0 I chose to moderate the session "GAFE in the classroom". We were hearing about some great apps and extensions. Participants were getting into the edcamphome spirit, contributing and asking questions. And then I noticed that I never clicked on the Start Broadcast button! I imagined a look of dissapointment on David Theriault's face. Brady, the event mascot, was probably covering his dog eyes in disbelief. How could I let the edcamphome organizers down? Didn't any of the partipants notice the ON AIR button wasn't displayed? I snapped back to reality and hit the button managing to capture the last ten minutes of the session.
I had made my first mistake as a moderator. Wonderful. It meant that I was learning.
Session two was my chance to do it right. I chose to moderate "Virtual Field Trips". On my second attempt, I was relieved to see a familiar face, Scott Bedley (@TASFair) on the participant list for the session. I knew he would have plenty to add to the conversation. This time, eveything went smoothly. At the end of the session participants thanked me for moderating and I felt the stress release from my body. I had successfully moderated my first complete Google Hangout on Air for edcamphome 2.0.
Of course I had my reservations about being a moderator. I could make a mistake while tons of people were watching across the nation. If you are thinking of being a moderator for an event like this or even a small in-house event, I urge you to do it. Events like this can't happen unless people are willing to try something new and scary. In making a googleful failure, I know that the organizers of the event are appreciative of risk-takers and challenge acceptors - even when they struggle and sometimes fail because they know that person is learning. Thank you edcamphome for allowing me to stretch my learning muscles and grow as an educator and technology integrator.
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That's it! I'm done! Well, I've heard that the hardest part about writing a blog is starting one - writing the first post. Yes, it took me longer than I wanted it to, but now that it's done I'm relieved. I am very busy teaching middle school Science throughout the year, being a mom to a toddler, a wife, and gardening both at school and at home. I just pulled off a small miracle!
My near future blog posts will focus on my summer "homework"; books related to teaching and education, field trips to gardens and museums, and professional development events. Other planned topics include gardening apps, integrating technology into gardening and Science classrooms, using QR codes in the garden, making movies in the garden, and more. Please follow me as I continue to learn along with my students this year! Alas, a geek wish came true this year as my school district announced its Bring Your Own Device initiative. When I heard the news my head became heavy, my eyes blurry. Images of laptops swirled in my head. What would this mean for my students? As much as I was excited about the options this new policy allowed, I knew the reality of the situation: some students didn't have a device to bring to school. I had plenty of Science lessons ready for this day, I'd done my homework - I knew it would come. As a teacher must do, I embraced the idea of adaptation and flexibility to make the most of it. I joined a local chapter of Computer Using Educators (CUE) and applied for a grant to purchase two tablets. I made a Google Map of the free wireless locations near the school. Applications for district managed tech grants were completed. Students doubted their ears, "can I really bring my laptops to school tomorrow?". Oh, YES you can! With two newly awarded iPad minis, my own personal Chromebook, and an obsolete original model iPad the class was ready to try some new approaches. Students eagerly displayed their devices on the desktop. We discussed digital citizenship, cyberbullying, and classroom procedures for using tech. Demonstrations of login procedures were given. As I had anticipated, there were challenges. It was evident that most students didn't really understand how to access or modify the settings on their device. I told them "It is your responsibility to know how to use your own tools." Some students came to the rescue and became "Tech Heroes" because they were able to help others to access the wireless signal on a potpourri of devices. King-sized candy bars were provided to them without delay! As a class, we tried various web-based student response systems with varying degrees of success. The rest of the year flew by. Students used their devices inside and outside of the classroom. Since our class is organized into "garden groups" and the Science lab tables are arranged to accommodate this it was used to assign projects and assignments. In most cases, the groups would have at least one device amongst them to share. If they did not, I allowed them to use one of the iPads. As long as assignments allowed for this group collaboration, the students were engaged and surprised me with their creativity! Garden groups worked together to produce short vocabulary movies. They used QR readers to access gardening videos during a practical garden lab. Photos of vegetables and flowers they grew were used in student created edcanvas lessons. (Find out more about these lessons in an upcoming post.) As I was cleaning out my room for the summer, filling up that paper recycling bin, I considered the year. My learning curve was steep and as several of my students indicated in a year end reflection theirs was too. As it was necessary for me to adapt to my teaching environment, it was necessary for them to adjust to an altered learning environment. |