Getting Better Together

Being connected as an educator can take on multiple forms.  

A teacher can be on twitter, maintain a blog, join a Google hangout, or use other social media.  With students, a teacher can have a class twitter account, have students maintain blogs, engage in mystery Skype, or use back channels among other activities.

In addition, students can use their smartphones to do things such as to record and share.  QR codes and Google Docs give teachers easy avenues to share with students and give feedback.  There are countless ways to be connected.

But, at its core, being connected comes down to one thing: getting better together.  Having crossed my mind in the past, I was reminded while reading Julie Vincentsen’s (@jvincentsen) blog. Whether using technology or not, education is all about getting better together.

Technology can enhance collaboration and even make it easier.  But it is not necessary for collaboration.  When we work together, we can learn and achieve far more than in isolation.  Even one who works without others, cannot escape the influence of others through interaction, readings, or video.  Students can bounce ideas off of one another, can clarify their ideas with one another, and can teach one another.  Likewise, educators can receive the same benefits when engaged with their students.

Some activities may use technology while others may not.  Ultimately, however, the goal remains the same:  improvement.  And it is enhanced by others.

Just like educators encourage our students to interact with others to improve their learning, educators must also look for others to help them with their learning and improvement.  By being connected, we are getting better together.   As Julie notes in her post, “@AmyHeavin writes: Through our conversation, we share insights & ideas. When we act on those ourselves, we grow. When we share others grow too!”

If you have thoughts about what it means to be connected or, if this post has generated some thoughts of your own, please share in the comments. I would appreciate hearing about them.

---

This post is inspired by Share #YourEduStory. The prompt from @christyfenne was “What does being "connected" mean to you?”