Stretch Yourself

A Personalized Journey to Deepen Your Teaching Practice

Fanny Passeport, Caitlin McLemore

• Publisher: ISTE
• Year: 2018
• eBook ISBN: 9781564847461
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Two award-winning young educators from opposite sides of the globe share their insights to guide teachers on how to take risks and innovate in their daily practice.

Stretch Yourself: A Personalized Journey to Deepen Your Teaching Practice is chock-full of tools and strategies to show teachers, especially those new to the profession, how to stretch and innovate in their teaching. Using the metaphor of yoga--with its focus on process and practice--the authors take teachers on a journey of self-reflection and assessment, leading them through three stages: Breathe, Stretch and Meditate.

The book covers such topics as developing a sense of self-awareness to achieve excellence and the importance of maintaining balance and persevering in your practice.

This book features:

• The unique look and feel of a journal, with space to write and reflect on ideas as you read.
• A self-assessment quiz so you can evaluate your mindset in terms of technology use and innovation.
• Ideas for using tools available in your “edtech toolbox” to improve your teaching practice.
• Highlights of teachers’ and students’ voices through project examples so you can learn from various perspectives.
• Practical activities aligned to ISTE Standards for Educators and the ISTE Standards for Students.

As the authors state, “Only through interacting with content, making mistakes and trying new things can we truly become aware of what there is to learn.”

Audience: K-12 educators

Part 1
Breathe

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”

—Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy

In yoga, everything is tied to the breath. Each pose is coordinated with the breath. As you move through poses, you breathe in and out, connecting breath and movement. Connecting movement to breath makes the body and mind become one. Breath is the foundation for all other movements. Breath is the force that both revitalizes the body and the mind, allowing yogis to release any tension, and feel calm and relaxed.

In edtech yoga, we also start with the breath. Consider breathing as the vital force that allows you to pause and envision infinite possibilities. The routine of educators often revolves around strict timetables, meetings, noisy environments, and short breaks. In addition, educators are often extremely dedicated human beings who give up their personal time to planning, grading, reflecting, and supporting students or colleagues outside of their regular schedule, taking care of themselves last. Indeed, many will relate to this observation: teachers spend many of their holidays sick at home! Teachers just hold the pressure until the students are off, and when they suddenly release the tension, the body cries for rest! But balance and self-care are absolutely non-negotiable. We need to breathe and make breathing a habit. As you consciously and intentionally breathe, you will feel better and establish clearer vision as a growing educator.

Before you begin your stretching journey, let’s take a moment to pause and invest some time in being mindful and present with ourselves. Simply focus on your breathing until you feel calm and connected. Once you feel centered, think about yourself and your goals: What are your strengths and areas of improvement? What goals do you have for technology integration? When you envision the perfect edtech classroom, what does it look like compared to your current classroom? How does your vision impact you, your students, and perhaps your school community or broader professional learning networks?

For your stretching journey, we want you to use this calm and connected space to envision your potential and then put it into action. In chapter one, you will envision the kind of educator you want to become, identify what inspires you, and explore your purpose. In chapter two, you will start to connect your edtech vision to your pedagogy and attitude about edtech as you begin to think about how you might put your vision into action. And in chapter three, you will expand the boundaries of your vision by exploring how you connect with others. (Remember that we will be along for the ride, providing specific strategies and action steps to assist you on your journey.)

ISTE Standards for Educators that Connect to Part 1

1. LEARNER

Educators continually improve their practice by learning from and with others and exploring proven and promising practices that leverage technology to improve student learning. Educators:

1a Set professional learning goals to explore and apply pedagogical approaches made possible by technology and reflect on their effectiveness.

1b Pursue professional interests by creating and actively participating in local and global learning networks.

1c Stay current with research that supports improved student learning outcomes, including findings from the learning sciences.

2. LEADER

Educators seek out opportunities for leadership to support student empowerment and success and to improve teaching and learning. Educators:

2a Shape, advance, and accelerate a shared vision for empowered learning with technology by engaging with education stakeholders.

2b Advocate for equitable access to educational technology, digital content, and learning opportunities to meet the diverse needs of all students.

2c Model for colleagues the identification, exploration, evaluation, curation, and adoption of new digital resources and tools for learning.

Chapter 1

Envision What Might Be

“You are stronger than you believe. You have greater powers than you know.”

—Antiope, character in Wonder Woman

In a postindustrial society, it is imperative that students learn the skills necessary to succeed and contribute positively as global citizens in the digital age. As Collins and Halverson (2010) note, technology can and should transform teaching and learning. A more recent indication of the critical need for effective and meaningful technology integration in schools is evident in the 2016 National Education Technology Plan, which states that technology integration is critical to teaching, learning, leadership, assessment, and infrastructure.

Chapter one begins with the demystification of technology integration so that you have the freedom to think about best practices for edtech. Then we establish a postconstructivist approach as our philosophy toward learning. (With this philosophy in hand, our hope is that you’ll remember you are not alone in this exploration of designing your emerging “you.”) Next, we share specific strategies for doing this, including walking through a visible thinking routine, finding your “om,” becoming a “glocal” educator, engaging in self-analysis, and examining the value of developing a network. Finally, we show you how to meet your emerging self so that you can start your journey toward action and growth.

You picked up this book to become a better educator. You may be looking for ways to be innovative, for encouragement to re-energize yourself and your classroom, or for new ideas for integrating technology into your classroom in ways that make sense. But it all comes down to change and a willingness to pursue and embrace it.

Understanding and Designing Your Emerging “You”

Let’s pause and breathe together. It’s time to take a step back, gain some distance from the present, and think about what we might be able to create. Often, we set goals that follow a linear approach. Instead of creating linear and conclusive goals, what about casting aside a prescribed template and approaching personalized learning in a more organic way? George Couros (2015) says that innovation is “creating something new and better” (p. 19). Better is the important piece of Couros’s statement. Think about personalized learning as a way to become a better educator. What if we became aware of our unknown self and of all the possibilities that lie in this inner zone? What could happen then? In this chapter, let’s acknowledge the people and ideas that inspire us; but instead of trying to mold ourselves to what we think is expected to “look” innovative, we will explore what matters most to us and discover our voice and our better selves. As Simon Sinek (2011) says, “If you don’t know WHY, you can’t know HOW” (p. 70). Your WHY is your purpose, which determines your authenticity and uniqueness.

We hope that as you read this book, you feel a sense of starting fresh. This fresh start might be a way to reconsider your insight and your teaching practices. It might even change the way you see yourself as an educator.

To help you discover the best version of your educator self, we created the following mindfulness meditation. To perform this exercise, you will need to have your eyes closed; so you can either ask someone to read the text to you, or you can go to the the video (noborderslearning.com/stretch-yourself) and listen to the instructions there. During this experience, be gentle with yourself. Let go of the things you are not satisfied with, and welcome the positive thoughts that emerge. Suspend any negative thoughts and concentrate on what is in front of you: your dream and vision of the perfect classroom. No matter your current environment, this meditation will bring you closer to your best version as an educator.

Stretching Exercise

Discovering Your Best Version as an Educator: A Mindfulness Meditation

Find a quiet space where you can sit or lie down (on your back) comfortably. If you’re sitting, place your hands on your thighs; if you’re lying down, place your arms away from your body. Close your eyes and let your body rest. Concentrate on your breathing: inhale and exhale slowly; breathe in and breathe out. Become aware of the feelings in your body as you continue to inhale and exhale at your own pace. Feel your breathing beginning to calm you down—slowly, gently. Bring your awareness to the movements of your abdomen rising up and down. Release all tension from your body and feel your muscles relax. Feel the contact points of your body with the surface you are sitting or lying on. Bring your attention to your shoulders, slowly letting go of any remaining tension.

Now that you are relaxed, let’s take a learning journey together.

Imagine that you are on a magic carpet, gently floating in the air. You feel calm, and there is a light breeze carrying you toward the perfect classroom.

Enter the classroom door and begin to soak in the space. Pay attention to the light coming through the windows. This first impression makes you feel welcome, safe, and content. Take in the positive vibrations of the room. There is soothing music in the air—it’s not too dim, nor is it too loud.

Look at the key elements of the classroom. The walls are a light color; student work is displayed with clarity and intention. You see the importance of student voices and choices and how the showcase is about sharing the learning p...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Copyright
• About ISTE
• From the Authors
• Acknowledgments
• Contents
• Introduction
• PART 1: Breathe
• PART 2: Stretch
• PART 3: Meditate
• Conclusion
• Appendix A: Quiz Scoring and Personality-Profile Inclination(s)
• Appendix B: Glocal Project Examples
• Appendix C: Digital-Citizen Lesson Plans
• References
• Index