It Cannot Be The End of the Year---Already????

Wow, where has the time gone. I cannot believe tomorrow is already May1st. This year's PTP cohort has been a huge learning experience for me not only as a teacher but also as a new Ed Tech coach. As I think back to September when Tracey and I started planning the entire PTP Cohort process, I thought we were out of our minds. As a new ITF, I was still wrapping my own mind around the concept of coaching and even what the ISTE standards were. But, like anything else--it's best to jump in and either sink or swim. In my true fashion, I chose to tread water really fast and hope I didn't drown :)

 (This was Tracey and I after we had finished creating 

the PTP Cohort Self-Assessment--relieved and exhausted) 

Meeting for the first time with all of the volunteers for the inaugural cohort was nerve wracking. I knew we would have participants from across the boards, but I didn't realize how challenging it was going to be to divide and conquer even as the newly created "Tech Trio" of Mooresville High School. 

(Where would I have been this year without my team?)

Nonetheless, we found a way and quickly established our own individual cohorts for the year. I was lucky to land with the AP teachers. I felt for my first time as a coach, this was something I was familiar with and being that I was still in the classroom, I was going to gain a great deal from this experience as a coach and a teacher.  I sure did!  Since AP teachers are known to be just as overly ambitious like the students they teach, we quickly established we wanted to meet weekly via Google Hangouts. None of us had much experience in this platform, but it was an exciting endeavor. I grew to look forward to my Sunday afternoon chat sessions with my group.  I learned that our content really didn't matter because we were facing many of the same challenges when it came to integrating technology into our curriculums--too much content, not enough time, and a final exam that was still "old school" paper. There was also a fine line we walked between integrating technology just to make the lessons "cooler" and integrating tech to make them "most effective".  I like to think that this last line became the theme for our cohort this year, and I truly believe we made tons of progress. 

Some of the highlights for me from working with the PTP cohort this year was taking an idea/ dream and with my Tech Trio, nurturing and raising this idea to a reality. Because of this idea and our dedication to the cause, Tracey and I were able to present this concept at NCTIES 2015 in February and bring along some of our participants and lead teachers for the three days.  It was a blast to attend another tech conference and learn alongside my coworkers, but it was even better to see my fellow teachers' eyes opened to new ideas and strategies to use in their own classrooms. 

Our Awesome Teachers at ISTE 2015 

I'm exited that our PTP Cohort is continuing to drum up interest and this summer Tracey and I will be taking it to Philidelphia and the ISTE 2015 conference to share what we have learned. In a way, we have come full circle because the idea of a PTP Cohort was kind of dreamed up at ISTE 2014 last year in Atlanta, as well as our dream to present at ISTE one day. 

I'm looking forward to what is in store next year for this experience. There is much I have learned, a lot that we did well, and some things I will do differently for next year. I'm still treading water, but at this point----I'm keeping my head above it!