Think Globally, Act Locally

I actually saw this title on a menu in a restaurant and it had me thinking about this blog post by Jen W. She wrote, in It Is Time To Get Your “I’s” Checked from Tech Thoughts By Jen,

“Take the time today — perhaps this week — or maybe this entire month to talk more about what others are doing than what YOU are doing.Showcase what your students are doing, your teachers are doing, your admin are doing.”

I have decided this year to look for others in my district that may be doing something unique or exciting and feature them in my blog. I think this will involve some research on my part and begging too (I will have to convince the teachers to let me interview them).

I think many of the good teachers are very modest and don’t “toot their own horn.” We have been taught at early ages that bragging isn’t right. I wonder if that has hindered us somewhat. I want to know the good things that others are doing in their classrooms. I want to know what is working, what is motivating the students, and what is successful out there. How can I learn to improve or try new things if I’m not learning from others?

I started to think of the many things my colleagues have done that really hadn’t been recognized by others. There are tons of teachers out there who are doing great things in their classrooms and others need to know about it. These things should be shared and spotlighted throughout the district. I want to know how they came up with this idea, how they organized it, how they got it to be successful. I also want to know the pitfalls to watch out for. What weaknesses does it have?

I complain so much about how education and teachers get a bad rap in the news but I’m not doing anything to help. So this is my small step to doing something about it. I had a principal who once told me that complaining isn’t bad as long as I tried to offer some solution to help the problem. Just complaining is like spinning your wheels and nothing good comes out of it. So, I know this isn’t anything major, but it is my small step.

Now I’m excited about it and can’t wait to start! I will try to pick one teacher each month (I’d love to do it once a week but I’m afraid that I will be biting off more than I can handle). If that goes well, I will try to do two a month but we will see.

Now I will need to do a little detective work! I can’t wait to share all the successful stories with you! Stay tuned for future stories!

Original image: 'Day 50 - Two thumbs UP!' http://www.flickr.com/photos/60717073@N00/2278721818 by: John Carleton