Yes! ISTE21 LIVE is here!
I woke up this morning so excited because ISTE LIVE began today. This year, I was thrilled that my district covered the expense so that all of its tech coaches could have the opportunity to attend this epic event. So far, this event has not disappointed with an amazing Saturday Mainstage to kick it all off and then some great sessions that not only got me thinking, but inspired new ideas!
Kindness Creates Change- Cornelius Minor
ISTE Live truly began with so much wisdom. Cornelius Minor started us off with a truly inspiring message. He spoke from the heart and truly shared thoughts that educators around the country needed to hear after this tumultuous year. He addressed the need for equity in education and how we all need to work together to change things. He challenged us to look at education as "teaching young people to create opportunities for themselves and teaching them to do it responsibly." He advocated for true innovation as we look at ways to change systems- focusing on being kind to create change instead of just being nice. It would be impossible for any synopsis to do this justice, but his call to action resonated with me strongly and will continue to do so.
Going from Urgency to Agency- Miguel Cardona
The Saturday Mainstage continued with Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona. He shared his commitment to equalizing the playing field when it came to the digital divide as he began. In his call to action, he emphasized going from urgency to agency. How can we continue the momentum of the past eighteen months so that education can get creative and evolve faster. He explained that the Department of Education needs to help draw throughlines as we push education forward. How are we thinking differently? Are we gathering best practices together to affect change? As we return to "normal," how can we click the reset button and integrate what we have learned with what has always been done to find the right blend?
Creating Engaging Online PD for Teachers- Manny Curiel
If I could bottle up this session and drink from it every day, I would. Manny Curiel is truly a phenomenal educator with boundless energy. I thought I was energetic, but Manny takes it to a new level. In his session, he enthusiastically shared how he had created online PD for his teachers, why he does so asynchronously while including opportunities for connection and reflection and how he puts all of this together. It was amazing and I will definitely be going back to his website to review his slides. Speaking of his slides, he introduced me to a new program called Genially today which makes innovative slide decks. I will definitely need to check that one out.
Planning with the 4 Cs in- Katherine Goyette & Adam Juarez
The last session I attended today was facilitated by the awesome EdTech duo, Katherine Goyette and Adam Juarez. In this session, they shared how when you plan with the 4 Cs in mind, the tech takes care of itself. What I loved about this session was how Katherine and Adam role played a coaching session live during the session. It was so helpful to see this idea in action. I also appreciated the templates they shared for planning and how they allowed participants to crowd source examples of using this template- it was amazing.
