Journey to Becoming a Connected Educator

Please read what my techy friend, partner and instructional coach +Connie Patton  wrote:

I am honored that you asked me to be a guest blogger on your site. I decided to write a post using the first two words of your theme, "Connecting educators with a world of resources for developing the whole child."

This summer we have spent quite a bit of time exploring what it means to be a connected educator in our graduate course. This connection is referred to as P²LN (Personal and Professional Learning Network) in the book What Connected Educators Do Differently.

You can find this book at Amazon, just click  the link.
Ultimately, as we expand our personal and professional learning network we become better at what we do, and better meet the needs of the students and colleagues we serve. As educators we strive to create environments so students will feel connected to school because we know that those who feel connected are more likely to succeed and realize that the same holds true for us as professionals. We need peer-to-peer interactions and reciprocal relationships in order to grow.  I realize that creating a network is a collective effort that takes time, but I have found that it has been encouraging, and it has professionally challenged me to strive for greatness. If we are asking our students to engage in self-directed meaningful learning, then we as educators should model the way. A great place to start is to build your P²LN with tools such as Twitter, a blog, and a website.

Connected educators create connected learning for students!
Connie Patton: @conniepatton010 www.conniepatton.com

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