positives

Today, I list the positives:

The weather is improving in PA.  Most of the 8 inches of snow that fell last week have melted.

The cycle 3 teachers are excited to get started.

An old professor of mine recommended me to a student as a "person of interest" in technology.

One of my innovation advocates passed her level 1 Google Certification.

I spoke in front of our school board last week about the DLP program and all of its current successes.

A representative from Future Goals/Everfi asked me to speak at a round table presentation tomorrow.

I participated in a round table discussion with Amanda De Balso about the homework gap.

Three of our buses in our school district will receive WIFI and devices for students through a grant.

The new Chromebook carts rolled out to classrooms last week.

I visited Google Pittsburgh last week for the very first time. 

I spent time with the other DLP coaches at the Applied Digital Skills training at Google.

All of my paper work for DLP is now caught up and completed.

I found 30 IPADS in a closet in the office and claimed them for the DLP.  Shhh, don't tell!

I visited Jen Tusik and Rachel McVeigh at their lovely schools. 

Angelique invited me to visit her school.

Winter Institute is next week!!!!!!

I am working with Jornea on Flipgrid training.

One of the innovation advocates and I participated in a Kahoot training session together.

I am now Google Level 2 certified.

I began the training for the trainer portion of the Google for Education certifications.

My most reluctant teacher is now in cycle 3 and loving it!

I love my DLP 412 family!!

And, finally, I have the best mentor around!!!  :)

Getting ready for cycle 3

Holiday break was much needed!  I feel so relaxed and rejuvenated, and I feel as though our staff is as well.

The DLP buzz is alive and well!  I'm at 99% of my staff completely on board!  One of the toughest challenges jumped on the DLP train right before break.  She made it very clear that she did not want any part of the program, but at the last minute, she sent me a text asking me to help her with Kahoot.  I jumped on the opportunity and brought a set of IPads to her class.  We only have 18, and she needed 26, but we paired up the students and got started.  The students absolutely loved the interaction and the level of engagement was off the charts.  She was amazed at how happy the kids were and how eager they were to keep going with harder lessons.  I showed her how she could save results in Drive and use it as a quick assessment.  She liked that.  She is not fully interested in using too many new things, but she did agree to use Kahoot again in January, and she recently showed interest in Pear Deck flashcard factory.  WINNING!

I've become quite the party planner/event coordinator!  I am now expert at asking companies for swag for prizes!  I recently got pear deck to give me two 1 year upgrades and some stickers swag for teachers, and Flipgrid is also upgrading 2 teachers and sent me stickers, lanyards, mugs, and a t-shirt!  I purchased a mug and t-shirt from Kahoot ( I didn't mind) to give away as a January incentive.  The holiday incentive was so incredibly successful, I want to keep that momentum going.

A few concerns have popped into my view of this program:

My district is starting to budget for next year.  I wasn't sure if I should budget for the classroom next year or not.  It is an extremely awkward feeling  Not sure how to handle this.

I started to realize this was a job that was for one year.  We all knew that going into the program.  I do, however, see how extremely successful this is, and I really think it needs to keep going.  Not with my district, however,   One thing that is perfectly clear is that once the program is given over to district control, the ease, the impact, and the growth of the teachers in the classroom will cease.  Immediately.  The role of coach is looked upon much more favorably because of it's association with Google.  The teachers do not feel threatened.  The teachers trust me.  They look to me for advice without fear of judgement.  I am their helper, their facilitator, their guide.....I am not the administrator coming in to tell them what they are doing wrong.  I fear for the program's longevity if Google/Digital promise/Ed tech are taken out of the picture. 

A few comments from administration make me realize that this coaching job has to be maintained by an outside resource.....it will die once the administration gains control.