What's Next for Me? - David Getz

I used Powtoon to create this entertaining reveal of my "What's Next" plan:

So, what's my plan?

This summer has been very eye-opening for me. Before taking this class, I would probably have identified myself as one of the more "tech-focused," "trendy' teachers in my school. However, I learned that I still have a long way to go to live up to the NBPTS guidelines, and I definitely need to consult the TIP model more when thinking of ways to roll out new tech in my classes.

For those of you who have seen my work over this class and offered me feedback (which I really appreciate, by the way!), you probably know that I 1) am a music teacher and 2) have a proclivity to be creative in my structure and designs. This is why I think the Staying Connected challenge is what's still resonanting me with even though I began it four weeks ago. By expanding my PLN, surfing Twitter regularly over the past 4 weeks, and dialoguing with authors and experts in my field, I have been exposed to so many more individuals who think like me both in and out of their classrooms. In the past, I have often felt "on an island" when it came to structuring my class and assignments different than the typical classroom. Thanks to this class forcing me to reach out and connect with others, I have found there is a whole civilization of teachers on Twitter with similar trains of thoughts.

My "What's Next" doesn't involve just one specific roll-out of a tech tool, but a whole shift in thinking over the next stage of my career. I am entering my 10th year teaching, and, to use a music reference, I feel like I just finished Act 1 and am getting ready for Act 2. Throughout the last decade, due to my drive to constantly think of new ways to structure my class, I feel like I've relived my first year teaching several times (though it's always been a great first year!). Now, as I've settled into a comfortable structure and I like the direction my program is going, I want to model for my students how to be a successful and responsible online collaborator. I feel that I've lived my way through enough "teachable moments," that I'm ready to start helping other educators benefit from my experiences. As I've spent the past 4 weeks building my PLN, I've gleaned a lot from others. Now, I want it to be my turn to share.

I'm a big idea person, and I want my students to see that I have big goals. (An inside joke in my class is my constant desire to appear on Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show). My big goal for Staying Connected is to publish a book. Through this class, I have been able to get in touch with F-flat Publishing, a music publishing company that specializes in e-publishing non-traditional, creative methods for music teachers. I have already reached out to the president of the company in hopes of pitching some of my ideas.

Resources I will be returning to:

Twitter: Since I first opened my Twitter account in 2017, I've gone through mountains and valleys of engagement. This summer was definitely the most productive time I've spent on social media probably in my life. I want to ride this good momentum into the school year and keep expanding my PLN.

Canva: What an amazing visual platform! I love all the options I've discovered here, and as I love to make things visually POP! in my classroom, I imagine I will be using this a lot in the years to come.

Powtoon: In making the short video at the top, I had a lot of fun browsing the various templates and options within this entertaining tool. I think this could be great for concert theme reveals, individual student recognition, and various fun-announcement type moments in class.

Padlet & Wakelet: These tools both are excellent for curation. While I did spend last spring designing a website for my class, I could definitely see myself using these for certain student projects. Perhaps a music tutorial video board of some kind? It's got a lot of potential.

Prezi: This is a great step-up from a Google Slide show. Not being bound by a linear design, Prezi opens up a lot of options for different presentation styles. I find Prezi helpful when teaching scaffolding as you can literally layers within layers to show how information often works from the roots up.

In Conclusion

If you've read this far, thanks for coming along with me on this journey. I have appreciated working through all of these challenges with you, and I hope we can continue to learn from each other over the years. I really liked how Andrew ended his infographic with a quote by C.S. Lewis, so I'll end this post with a quote that has inspired me over the past 4 weeks:

"I've come to learn that relevance isn't based on how much you speak. It is measured by how much people listen when you speak." - Sho Baraka