Monday, June 27, 2011

The value of a PLN...

Today I had the wonderful opportunity to Skype with Dwight Carter's administrative team, and I must admit that they definitely didn't disappoint! I have been following Dwight's blog and twitter feed for about a year now, and I very much so appreciate him taking the time to organize his administrative team to speak with me. If this is not a testament of the power of a PLN, then I don't know what is...


Reflection being a crucial and essential quality of any great Educator, I feel it is necessary to share the main points from our discussion:

- Discipline is not about punishing students; it's about changing behaviors and helping students to learn and grow...

- Using faculty meetings to share and celebrate the great things going on in your school is much more effective and productive than simply disseminating information that can be shared through email...

- It would be a mistake to not recognize the vital and essential contributions of support staff; they ultimately make the school go round...

- Establishing and growing strong relationships with colleagues and students will always be the most important thing you do...

- We all need time away from the job; do yourself and everyone around you a favor by having a healthy non-professional life...

- Getting into the classrooms to see the awesome things going on in your school will pick you up on your down days, and even more importantly, students and teachers love it...

- Whatever you do...have fun and make sure humor is a daily part of your life...take a moment to laugh :)


I would also like to thank Lyn Hilt (@l_hilt) for skyping with me last week, as she also provided some great advice and insights.