As a part of Connected Educator Month, Silvia Tolisano — the mind behind the all-things global education and #edtech blog Langwitches — wrote a bit titled Standing on the Shoulders of Giants. In it, Silvia pays tribute to the folks in her digital network who challenge and inspire her. She writes:
“My work is a direct result of their curation effort, their ability to trigger my imagination, their contribution to help me make sense of things I never thought or dreamed about and the pool of past experiences each one brings as an educator.
I am not an original, I am a remixer of the collaborative experience and knowledge building network, that technology allows us to access, connect with, learn from, reflect about and then continue to share.”
That’s an awesome way to frame who we become when we join together online, isn’t it? We become remixers — people who borrow ideas that were freely shared to create something new and fresh and exciting for our students, for our schools and for ourselves. Our power doesn’t come from our individual talents. Instead, it comes from our collective strength.
Need proof that connections can change practice? Here are 12 really bright minds who shared thoughts in digital spaces that I remixed to make a tangible impact on the work that I do in my classroom, school and community in the past year:
@ChrisWejr – Elementary Principal in BC. Currently helping me to rethink the role of grading and honors assemblies in schools.
@birklearns – High School Principal in BC. Currently helping me to rethink the role that collaboration can play in driving school improvement.
@bethdownie – Middle Grades Teacher in NZ. Currently helping me to rethink what cross-continent collaboration between students can look like.
@hutchinsonjm – Middle Grades Teacher in NC. Doesn’t write or tweet nearly enough, but no one has changed my practice more. #brightguy
@teacherdiana1 – Elementary School Teacher in BC. Currently helping me to rethink how cause-driven learning can change our kids, our classrooms and our world.
@gogogoggin – Middle School Math Teacher in CA. Currently helping me to rethink the role that Kiva and microlending can play in my teaching and learning.
@shareski – Canadian Digital Learning Guru. Constantly forcing me to rethink what grading and assessment should look like in my classroom.
@gcouros – Canadian Division Principal in charge of Innovation. Constantly forcing me to rethink the intersections between technology, innovation and leadership.
@edrethink – Middle Grades Teacher in AZ. Constantly forcing me to rethink the choices I make as a teacher in a tested world.
@arielsacks – Middle Grades Teacher in NY. Constantly sharing great instructional practices that I tweak and start using in my classroom almost immediately.
@pernilleripp – Elementary School Teacher in WI. Constantly sharing great #edtech ideas and resources that change the work I do with digital tools in my classroom.
@mrscienceteach – Data Literacy Guru in NC. A source of incredible conversations on all things education who I just plain dig hanging out with.
@philip_cummings – Middle School Teacher in TN. Another source of incredible conversations who helps me to polish new classroom practices all the time.
So who are YOU learning from? And more importantly, what are YOU doing to help other people learn?