MOOC-Ed Reflection

Good morning colleagues!

Last week I finished a MOOC-Ed through North Carolina State University. A MOOC-Ed is a Massive Online Open Course for Educators. The course was six weeks and was pretty much self-directed. Each week, a new unit would open, but the previous sections did not close. Teachers were able to finish the course on their own time. This was my first time taking a fully online class, so I was nervous about staying on top of the class. However, because only one unit was open at a time, I stayed focused. I will definitely be taking more MOOC-Ed courses!

The class' focus was coaching digital learning which is the role that I moved into this year. There were teachers from all over the US (and the world) in the class. Some were general ed teachers, some were coaches, and some were working together in coaching teams. It was great to have so many people taking the course because I was able to see how digital learning is working in other schools.

The goals for this course included:

• DEEPEN your understanding of what it takes to coach educators to integrate technology effectively with relevant and rigorous opportunities to build upon your professional needs and knowledge — whether beginning in your role as an instructional coach or seeking advanced strategies;
• EXPLORE relevant frameworks (e.g., TPACK, SAMR, Four Cs), strategies, tools, and resources to advance your digital learning coaching efforts;
• EXPERIENCE multiple opportunities for personalized application of your new learning and job-embedded practice; and
• DEVELOP and share a personal coaching plan to support your school/district's digital/blended learning culture.

What went well: 

• I feel like I made some good connections through Twitter. They designated a hashtag which I tried to use liberally. 
• I learned more about Flipgrid and came up with some new ideas for my classroom and the school. 
• I designed a coaching action plan that I think will help me continue to implement technology in my building. 
• The class also pushed me to complete some curriculum that I designed and gave me new ideas for my staff bathroom tech tips newsletter!

What could be improved: 

• Set Twitter chats were at different times each week. I made the very first one but ended up missing the next three because they were on different nights of the week. I hated losing that opportunity for connections and discussion. 
• Because you could finish the class on your own time, people were responding on the forums at a much later date. I found myself going back to the forums to see if anyone replied to my posts. I was craving good conversations, but it felt like everyone was too busy to work together (I get it). 
• Even though I'm a technology specialist, I am not technically a digital coach. At times it was frustrating in the class because it felt like the class was meant for coaches. I did not always have sufficient conversations about coaching from a teacher perspective to make meaningful progress with a staff. 

The negatives did not outweigh my enjoyment with taking the class, and as I said before, I would definitely take another MOOC-Ed course. I would encourage others to take a class (because it is definitely low-risk) and plan on promoting the courses through the tech tips newsletter!

Thanks for reading. I'll plan on writing again in two weeks! Have a happy Thanksgiving :)

- Rachel

@historicalipad

My Teacherspayteachers website

A small moment of gratitude

Dear colleagues:

It's November which traditionally is the month of giving thanks and being grateful. All sorts of people have been posting on social media and blogging about what they're thankful for. To no one's surprise, I'm also going to blog about what I'm grateful for. This year, what I'm grateful for is being able to change my mindset, whether it's dealing with my classroom, education, my relationships, or what's going on at that moment.

An excellent example of this was last Friday. I know how long it takes to get to work. I've been driving the same route for six years since we moved into our house. I give myself 15 minutes to get to work every day, and this day was no exception. What I did not anticipate was the incredibly thick fog. Whenever the weather is crazy, drivers either drive fifteen miles per hour over the speed limit or under. There is no in between. So I was dealing with stressful traffic, managed to hit ALL seven red lights on the way, and almost got into an accident. Another car and I were both (admittedly) "bombing" down a hill to try to make a green light. This other car was in the far right lane, and I was in the far left lane. The light turned yellow, and we both sped up when this other car switched over two lanes and cut me off. I had to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting them and ended up missing the light.

While I'm sitting at the red light, I check the clock and realize I'm now late to morning duty. All of that made me start to cry. On a FRIDAY. At a red light. When I finally got to school, I walk in, and a colleague is in there waiting for me. She joins me on Fridays only to help with breakfast duty. We started talking about the weather and traffic because her commute was not great that morning either. She asked me where I lived and then asked when we bought the house. Right now the housing market along the Front Range of Colorado is HOT. People are buying homes, sight unseen, for well over the market price. The last five people that I know of that sold their houses all sold within 48 hours or less, at asking price or more.

She asked if we bought before the housing market exploded and I told her that not only did we purchase in 2011, we used a federal program to get our house! Good Neighbor Next Door is a HUD program that provides housing assistance to public servants. It is a lottery for select homes in older or struggling neighborhoods. The person who "wins" the house in the lottery has two mortgages on the house, each at half the price of the home. The person can also do renovations which are wrapped up in the cost of the home. After three years, one of the mortgages goes away. The idea is that the person can not only afford the house but also revitalize it! This, in turn, helps the neighborhood.

So during breakfast duty, I'm explaining all of this to my colleague and she is blown away. She's never heard about this program and can't believe how lucky we were. Telling her this story made me realize how #blessed I really am. Even though I had a bad morning, she helped me change my mindset instead to how grateful and lucky I am. I thanked her for helping me have a better morning and she, in a surprised tone, told me "You're welcome."

The whole point of this blog is to not only be grateful for what you have and thankful for the people around you, but be sure to help support a colleague see the positive in their lives. Make this week, before Thanksgiving Break, a good one! Take a moment to see, and help others recognize, small moments of gratitude.

Thanks for reading. I'll see you next week :)

- Rachel

@historicalipad

My Teacherspayteachers website

Personality tests

Hello colleagues! So I have a random story to tell you to start the blog this week. I was scrolling on Twitter not long ago when I saw my high school best friend post about her personality type. I've taken personality tests in the past, but I figured I was due for an upgrade. Turns out that I have the exact same personality type as her, INFJ. In the Myers-Briggs personality assessment, INFJ stands for introverted, intuitive, feeling, judging.

I used a website called 16 Personalities for my "assessment." I don't usually push sites like this, but there is a reason that this website is the first Google search result! The personality descriptions are quite descriptive, and I must say, spot on. When I read through my personality type, my jaw kept hitting the floor. My husband was trying to watch baseball, and I kept interrupting him to talk about my personality and all of the things I was learning about myself! It's like someone had finally unlocked my brain code. Apparently, INFJs are the rarest personality type which explains why I've felt so isolated my entire life!

Some of my personality strengths include

• creativity (I'm pretty good at thinking outside the box)
• decisiveness (ask me a question, and I'll give you a definitive answer. Where are we going to eat? Done.)
• determined (hello magical word that I chose for myself during Path2Empathy)
• altruistic (I don't care about money, fame, and power. I want everyone to be better). 

Weaknesses?

• I'm private (You don't need to know about me - apparently other people don't feel that way!)
• sensitive (Did I take my no crying pills today?)
• perfectionist (HELLO)
• can burn out quickly (Why were the last five years so hard?! I did it to myself). 

While reading through my INFJ personality, I realized why I'd felt so misunderstood here at Skyview and how I just wanted my job to have meaning. I want people to be better because I think we, as teachers, can make a difference.

So, what's the point of this blog. Am I just talking about myself here?

Giving the kids the Myers-Briggs assessment is the perfect way to start the school year (a little late... I know!). Giving the students a personality test isn't new or innovative, but I wish I had done THIS assessmet with my students every year. Knowing my little type A self, I would have put together a Google Sheet with students' names and personalities. This would have helped me better approach students. I could have better through through my groupings and team "jobs," and I could have pushed my students towards a certain set of occupations. Also, I want all of my colleagues to take the personality test so that I can learn a little more about them. I want to have better collegial relationships, especially in this new role.

I did, earlier today, ask some of my close colleagues to take the Myers-Briggs assessment, and you know what? I learned a lot about some of my closest friends (and even sisters). Some of their strengths and weaknesses were not surprising (because I know them well), but some made me look differently at my friends and family. I guess I just enjoy learning more about people. Is that part of my personality type? :)

Thanks for reading. And if you want to know a little more about yourself (I see you teachers... I know you will), TAKE THE QUIZ. I'll see you next week :)

- Rachel

@historicalipad

My Teacherspayteachers website