Technology in Education: Notes from the Closet

Written for Illinois Computing Educators ' August Newsletter Learn Some, Play Some Do you get a summer vacation?  How did you spend it?  Did you sip tropical drinks and bask in the sun enjoying endless lazy days?  After all, that’s how most of society sees the summers of educators, right?  What most folks outside of education don’t realize is that an educator's mind never takes a vacation.  Even if we are not on a school campus it’s always in the background. We constantly think about teaching, supplies that we need, how to reach that one stubborn student. We can be on vacation in the middle of a store or in the middle of a movie when an idea for our profession pops into our mind. It really doesn’t end. Most non-educators also don’t realize how much of our summers are spent increasing our personal knowledge to better our craft, reflecting on our previous lessons and prepping for new school years (not to mention answering emails from parents and completi...

Staying Connected  I am a connected educator.  I blog, share resources, tweet, post to Facebook, teach for three educational institutions and present at conferences to share my passion about technology in education. I ask my PLN (Professional Learning Network) for help when I need it and lend a hand when the need is theirs. Connected Educators share and learn year round but October brings extra attention to the concept. #CE14  is an international effort to connect educators that is led by the US Department of Education.  The organization does a great job of offering suggestions and activities for each day of the month.  The website contains a downloadable pdf that has daily activities for you to learn about to become more connected. Connected Educators.org  also contains a daily calendar of worldwide events that you can participate in. Why Bother? Educators are some of the most overworked folks out there (we won't even delve into the pay). So ...