Honey from the Hive
This was the first Summer since I started university when I had the opportunity to fill it up with activities I was interested in — reading books, writing articles, building my website, taking part in online Professional Development (PD) sessions! For the first time in some years, I wasn’t taking courses for my degree or attending classes or writing a thesis.
I had the chance to pursue passions that I love.
I encountered the Hive Summit in mid-July. As a new member of the teaching community, I had heard a lot about the people who were going to be presenting there and nothing could have been more exciting than being able to hear these exceptional speakers and learn from them. Organized by Michael Matera, the author of Explore like a Pirate: Engage, Enrich, and Elevate Your Learners with Gamification and Game-inspired Course Design, the Hive Summit was going to be abuzz with discussions about assessment, creativity, gamification and much more.
I saw many educators tagging their peers and encouraging others to sign up for this free PD opportunity: they were sharing their sketchnotes and tweeting about their excitement about the Summit, so it was no surprise that the excitement trickled into me and I felt motivated to be a part of it, too. After registering, my first step towards engagement and solidifying my commitment was to build my first sketchnote in response to one of the pre-Summit challenges.
Today, I want to share with you my Hive Summit journey as well that of some fabulous educators. Throughout the process, especially in the process of writing this article, I have connected with them, and together, we reflect on each of the sessions and share our favorite takeaways.
But before we talk about the sessions, why did we choose to attend the Hive Summit?
Teachers are lifelong learners and it is no surprise that so many of us loved the opportunity to learn, especially from leaders in education whose books we have read and whom we follow on Twitter.
Monica, Tisha and Kim didn’t need any convincing to attend the Hive Summit. The line-up of presenters spoke for the depth and width of learning that was going to happen.
For Josee, an educator new to Twitter, summer break was the perfect opportunity to take some time and reflect on past practices. She also wanted to gain new insights and knowledge. Since the Hive Summit was free and accessible anytime of the day between August 1–14, she was able to enjoy her summer with her loved ones, while as the same time meet her goal of learning something new. Valerie joined the summit for the same reasons when Monica, whose sketchnotes all the Bees have been downloading and keeping as tokens of each session, tagged Valerie in a tweet to sign up.
For Melissa and two of her teacher colleagues, Hive Summit was the perfect vehicle to organize and participate in live twitter chats together, talking about their work in the district while at the same time making connections across the globe.
As a teacher and counselor, Hans is passionate about Educational Cross-Training. The Hive Summit was a way for him
to challenge myself to learn new skills and ideas to strengthen my ability to support students, staff, and community — Hans
So, we all dove in, buzzing with anticipation to become better educators!
The Hive Days
Day 1: Bee Resilient — Michael Cohen
We know the Tech Rabbi, Michael Cohen, as a top influencer and ISTE keynote speaker. He kicked off the Hive Summit by saying that teachers are all designers of space, learning, lessons, and support. The idea that there is a real craft to teaching is exciting to hear and one we must all remind ourselves of from time to time.
Michael challenged the thinking that creativity can be planned out and orchestrated. He suggests that you have to give it time and let the students “become” creative through small victories. He mentioned functional fixedness which means we get so comfortable in our daily routines and way of things that we do not think outside the box. As teachers, we should take some time whenever possible to reflect on our practices and how we can make them better. We can use design thinking for this purpose to open creative doors.
Failure is necessary for growth and we learn more from our failures than from our successes. In that context, Michael taught us a new acronym: that for Failure.
F: First
A: Attempt
I: In
L: Learning
U: Unless
R: Reflection
E: Exists
Failure is just a step closer to being successful. It gives us room to grow and an opportunity to reflect on who we are and where we want to be. We have to model this behavior for our students to get them to be comfortable with risk-taking and failures, because ultimately this is what will unleash their creativity.
Day 2: Bee Creative— Carrie Baughcum
It’s not about “art” but about “ideas” — so check your mindset — anyone can do this!
For first time Sketchnoters, this session which featured the sketchnoting guru, Carrie Baughcum, was not to be missed! One of Josee’s favorite parts (and I second that!) was the fact that Carrie taught us how to introduce it into the classroom. She broke down the different elements of sketchnoting (colour, fonts, containers, icons) and encouraged teachers to sketchnote with their students. Carrie’s YouTube channel was a gem some of us had been missing out on! We also realized how some of our note-taking habits already had sketchnoting elements… just a few more touches were needed!
Carrie reminded us that when we are vulnerable and model risk-taking, our students feel more comfortable doing the same. I have been learning so much about Math and the fear of making mistakes. If I am afraid to get something wrong as I explain an answer or horrified when I make a mistake that the students can correct me on, I am confirming the belief that mistakes are bad and it is best to be in the safe zone — know everything, or don’t do it. Carrie encourages her students as well as educators to use sketchnoting as way to dive in and get ideas on paper — unapologetically. As I have tried to explain to anyone who would listen to me about sketchnoting — it’s about you, your understanding and the connections you make.
Related to Michael’s theme of creativity, Carrie too hones creativity amongst her students using sketchnotes and other activities like gamification. Creativity gives her students who don’t excel in traditional school an opportunity to really show what they know and develop into people that can do more than make an A on a test.
Day 3: Bee Thoughtful— Rick Wormeli
I will be taking an assessments course coming Fall and I was particularly looking forward to Rick’s session. As a pioneer in assessment research and with over 30 years of experience in teaching, Rick talked about grading, quizzes, differentiated instruction and how to shift the school culture. I remember stopping the video when Rick and Michael were discussing quizzes.
I have been assessed this way throughout my university career. I have graded quizzes for students and their mark has contributed 5% of their overall grade. I have seen students fight for one more mark in a quiz or assignment as it is pulling their grade down because they submitted the assignment late and the 10% penalty had to be applied. Rick’s session helped me understand why: because we sometimes mistake assessments as the means to teach students to meet deadlines. This is true, whether one be in university or in school. If it wasn’t, why would we even have a late submission penalty?
Most recent evidence is the most accurate indicator of a student’s learning. — Rick Wormeli
Melissa and I agree that the one message we will never forget from his session was to be a part of the change.
I wish I had that advice when I was a new teacher years ago! — Melissa.
Encouraging teachers to be a part of the change, no matter where we are in our careers, is a step towards empowering us because we feel in control, we feel that we can make a difference and that our influence goes beyond the students we have. When I was making my sketchnote, it reminded me of water: it is the most powerful force in the world. It can erode mountains, break down trees that are deeply rooted in the ground and at the same time it is an agent for life because we need water to survive.
Teachers need to have the courage to be a part of the solution. We should be like water: Agents of change.
Day 4: Bee Real— Tara Martin
Tara Martin is the one who founded BookSnaps: using Snapchat to get her students engaged in what they were reading.
For Valerie, Tara’s presentation was all about her style of teaching. As teachers, we have heard, read and felt this so many times (I was just reading something similar in The Growth Mindset Coach by Annie Brock):
If you want to make a connection to the brain, you have to connect with the heart first.
When you show your students the real “you”, they see you as a human, not a robot. They feel that you can understand them and often, it makes a huge difference. We evolve with every single day of teaching and learning with our students. Tara reminded us that when we bring us to the classroom, we give our very best. We are able to connect to everyone around us, which would not be possible with a veil of pretence.
To those who were not aware of the Ela Ben-Ur’s Innovator’s Compass, Tara introduced us to this people-centric way of thinking that involves working with who our students are: their dreams, their measures of feeling successful, what matters to them and what they want to try. This is possible by getting to know the students and then helping them meet the goals they have set. Asking non-judgemental questions and listening are key habits that will help us create a nurturing environment where our students feel welcomed and cared.
As educators we have to “jump in” with the people we serve in order for them to be empowered to jump in on their own. When Tara explained how she reached the epiphany “What if we all cannonballed into the deep end at the same time?! What a huge splash we would make!” it was almost as if we were reliving that moment with her.
Day 5: Bee Ready— Matt Miller
While technology has the potential to encourage future driven thinking and learning, it also runs the risk of diluting the overall learning experience if it’s not more than a shiny new toy. Matt Miller, the author of Ditch that Textbook: Free Your Teaching and Revolutionize Your Classroom, eloquently shared that sometimes “technology is a thousand dollar pencil.” He used the analogy of building a house to explain why educators should resist the temptation of only using the one technology tool they learn. When we build a house, we utilize all the tools in the tool box by asking the question: “what tools do I need” for this project? To Hans, theory gives application it’s WHY. If we don’t understand when, how, and why to use a cool new piece of technology, strategy or program, we end up resembling a carpenter attempting to nail a screw with a hammer.
Inappropriate tool choice lends itself to disengagement, missed learning opportunities, and frustration.
While modeling a risk-taking classroom by jumping in on new technologies is a powerful and an incredible classroom strategy; it’s also critical for us to do our due diligence to understand the why behind the tools we implement. Matt points out a multitude of ideas to gather information globally through platforms like twitter, skype, face time, Instagram, etc. An added bonus of developing our PLN and/or taking the time to discover the theory behind a new piece of technology is that, as educators, we are then equipped to help students share, connect and explore their learning in creatively intentional ways.
Day 6: Bee Joyful — Michael Matera
Sorry, Michael, but hands down you had the most adorable host ever: your daughter! Mila rocked the interview delving deep into the heart of gamification and how it can be used as a legit pedagogy.
Through gamification, with Mila’s help, Michael tapped into an idea that “play applies to all pedagogies.” While gamifying a project might sound overwhelming, creating an element of gaming within the constructs of class content can be as simple as layering a game idea on top of a teacher’s current instruction. For example, I play jeopardy with my HTML summer campers (Grades 5 and 6). They love winning monopoly money for points and sounding buzzers.
The best practice is inspired by theory. — Donald Kruth
I could not agree more. I took Karl Kapp’s course on Lynda.com about Gamification of Learning and it taught me many things! As educators, we are familiar with concepts of scaffolding, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, episodic memory but how can we ensure we are following these good teaching practices in a gamified classroom? Read more about it here.
Day 7: Bee Connected— Sarah Thomas
Sarah Thomas is the founder of the Edumatch project and her conversation with Michael was full of ideas to share with colleagues about why/how to get on Twitter. It allows us to connect with amazing people around the world, whether they be educators, psychologists, authors, engineers or astronauts. Growing your personal brand by engaging with people on twitter and being open to hearing out all new strategies is one step towards lifelong professional growth. Kim plans to share the sketchnote from this session (above) with her staff — to try to convince them to get on Twitter for PD & networking purposes.
At A Teacher’s Hat, we have grown our Professional Learning Network because of Twitter. It has given us access to people who were unreachable before and it has also helped us grow as a team. I remember putting out the call for writers in June and receiving response from educators who wanted to write. On this article itself, some of us are in Canada while others are in the United States. We have collaborated to bring this reflection in this form and this would not have been possible without Twitter… because that is where I found them. 🙂
Day 8: Bee Confident— Joe Sanfelippo
For anyone in or taking on an administrative role, this session inspired action and reflection. Similar to Michael reminding us in his first session that educators take on multiple roles, Joe Sanfelippo, the author of Hacking Leadership, said that we are all leaders to some degree. However, true leadership is when we listen to those we serve (think about Tara’s session on being Real) and work together to make things happen.
It’s the WE and the US, not the I and the ME — and that the vision needs to be everyone’s, not just the leaders’.
Joe spoke about being intentional and making conscious choices that promote the positive message we are looking to spread. He spoke of social media as an easy way to amplify the message and grow our audience.
He also talked about what happens when we do not communicate well.
When you’re not there, gaps exist, and people make up their own realities.
When we are empathetic to our learners, we operate in the same reality as them, witnessing their struggles and accomplishments. Teaching is an amazing job and we do a great service to our community because we make our students and peers feel valued, safe, motivated and we change their lives.
Day 9: Bee Passionate — Dave Burgess
Continuing with Joe’s message of intentionality, when educational worker bees are intentional with their actions, they can produce copious volumes of connection, purpose, and ongoing learning. Nearly every session of the Hive Summit referenced the need to think through our school choices. Perhaps none were more passionate than Dave Burgess who reminded viewers that even the simplest decision to have students enter the classroom with the lights on or off is an intentional decision. Dave is a master at showmanship and stage presence and consciously casts his spell on his students. His point illustrates the art of teaching wonderfully and inspires us to ponder what unintentional choices we make every day.
By exploring, identifying, and ultimately tapping into our own “secret sauce” intentionality can be the seasoning that amplifies our strengths, harnessing our style to facilitate student growth.
Dave also talked about all of the decisions teachers can make to create a WOW experience for kids, putting the power in teachers’ hands! He made us feel like we are more than “just teachers”, a message that Joe shared as well.
We are designers, creators, motivators, and so many things that matter.
Since Michael Cohen’s session on Day 1 also addressed similar themes, there could not have been a better way to come full circle about the roles we play and the many hats we wear as educators.
We can’t wait for it to snow; we need to make our own!
And we did, by engaging in this fabulous PD for starters!
What we loved about the Hive Summit…
Reflection might be the most powerful metacognition of the lead learner.
Each session was filled with thoughtful, reflective presenters and educators who unapologetically reach for epic new heights of student learning both in their own classrooms and in the greater educational ecosystem.
They actively seek feedback from peers and colleagues they trust and demonstrate humility in their quest for honing their own skills. — Hans
They brought their passion to all of us watching and hearing them talk, interacting with them on Twitter… they brought us out of our shells.
Hive Summit gave us the opportunity to build a community.
While Melissa and her colleagues used it as vehicle to drive professional development in their district, we all at some level, connected with others watching the sessions, and felt inspired by the sketchnotes that Monica created, and others modeled — some of us even took up sketchnoting for the first time. Some sessions stretched our brains and filled them with new possibilities, others helped with reflection. I am sure we all know the feeling:
We were totally giddy when one of the Hive Summit speakers would respond to our tweets. It was very worthwhile! — Melissa
It started the wheel of change in us. We are all passionate about learning, sharing and growing as educators. It was such a great platform to inspire these conversations.
We also asked Twitter and the following are the gems we received from educators:
Would we wish something was different for next time?
With the eight of us racking our brains at this question and wanting to change almost nothing, here’s what we think would make the Hive Summit better:
- I learned from Hans that in some states in the USA, including Washington State, in order for an educator to get a clock hour credit for PD, it must be from an accredited university or organization. A continuing education credit has to be through a University. Thus, the certificate of learning that we downloaded after completing each session might not count towards clock hours. Would it be possible for forthcoming Hive Summits to collaborate with a university (for educational credit) or organizations (for clock hours) such that the time spent in PD is accepted by the state?
- The nine days of videos were jam packed. I remember trying to keep up and hoping I wasn’t missing out on anything. Kim suggests that spacing out the videos a bit, for example, a day between them, might help the attendees engage with them even more. Of course, we would all love for the videos to be available for an additional week!
- Integrating some of the technology teachers are using in the classroom would be another enhancement. Monica suggests a Padlet or Flipgrid to keep all the responses and reflections in a central place. This way, they would be easy to refer back to. Almost like building a digital archive of the amazing Hive Summits — those that have happened and those that are coming up!
- This one is obvious: we hope that Hive Summit will find other great educators to interview next year! We have been left full of inspiration, wanting more.
Though this started as a professional development session for myself, I realize now that it didn’t just help me, the teacher: it also helped in the growth of the Editor that I am for my publication. It gave me the courage to reach out to educators, connect with them and ask them to contribute to this reflection piece about the Hive Summit. Though I may not have a classroom of my own yet, I learned about the struggles teachers have as well as how important leaders like Joe Sanfelippo and Dave Burgess are in our lives. I pondered my journey as a student and as a learner and developed new skills that I will continue to hone. I felt the energy and enthusiasm of the work that the speaker educators shared as well as feel an inspiration that will last me until the next Hive Summit.
Together we are trying to change the world. — Michael Matera.
Let’s keep the buzz alive until next time!
The Hive Summit has so far raised $2,600 with donations from educators of the Hive Summit. Please consider donating to help fund initiatives by Kiva to help others around the world.
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