SXSWedu 2013 Reflections #3 - The Role of Passion Still Undervalued (except by educators)

If you read my Top 5 Observations from SXSWedu, you know the top thing on my list was that the role of PASSION seems to be undervalued - except by educators - for it’s impact on student learning outcomes. To me, this is a somewhat obvious statement (excitement tends to rub off pretty easily on students in a classroom at any grade level), but apparently this is still a hidden mystery to many of the vendors at SXSWedu. John Boyer (@plaidavenger) summed up my feelings rather well during the keynote at this year’s event:

(regarding the Bill Gates keynote)

Want your students to be excited and engaged in your classroom?  Ed tech is not the magic bullet - you are.  Sure, there’s pretty infographics (via @sk1060) that show students are more engaged in classes that use ed tech (and I’m a strong believer in that), but I also believe that technology in and of itself is not a motivator.  I’ve never been inspired by a robot or an Excel spreadsheet. People inspire me.  And I believe that the use of technology in a classroom is directly connected to the instructor’s motivation to inspire learning.  Let’s face it - using technology in a classroom isn’t always easy, mainly because it takes time.  Lecturing, that’s easy.  Most of us are good at flapping our lips (or maybe that’s just me).  But designing engaging lessons (no matter what kind of technology they use) takes an additional investment on the part of the instructor, and that’s probably not going to happen unless you’re really excited about your subject.

So, if you want your students to be passionate about their learning - show them that no one is more excited about the subject than you are.  I sat in on Alex Filippenko’s “Sparking Enthusiasm in a Large Lecture Course” session at SXSWedu this year.  His advice on how he engages students rings true for every classroom (no matter how much or how little technology you use):

• Show passion for your subject
• Build rapport with your class (learn names, tell stories, share embarrassing personal experiences)
• Encourage questions
• Share your notes (hey, technology is great for this)
• Do demos when possible (another great opportunity for technology use)
• Encourage peer instruction (even outside the classroom)
• Encourage discussion & use group activities
• Hold “extras” (stuff outside of normal class times, like informal get-togethers or field trips)

So, take the extra time to design that lesson that has them engaging on Twitter to share ideas.  Put those resources in Blackboard.  Make a video of that science demo (even a crude one with your laptop camera or a classroom doc cam pointed at the desk) so the students can watch it over and over.  Better yet, find one on YouTube, steal it, and inspire your students to recreate it.  Find someone that knows how to actually make Skype or Google+ hangouts work so you can bring in that guest lecturer you’ve always wanted to speak in your classroom.  If your students see your use of technology rooted in your passion for their learning, they’ll be inspired to learn more.  You don’t have to redesign every lesson to be done on the computer (that would probably be bad). And don’t ever expect that just because you post PowerPoint slides to your Blackboard class that your students will be inspired because you’re “using technology” in your class.  You have more passion for your subject than that.  What you can do is to look at every lesson and ask yourself “Is there anything else I can do to show my students how cool this really is?”

And isn’t that why you started teaching in the first place?

Keeping the Ball Rolling

I am attempting to challenge myself to be more visibly passionate about what I do on a daily basis.  I am very much a “doer” (and most people see that pretty clearly).  What I often fail to do is to be visibly passionate about the big picture on why I do what I do.  I teach on a daily basis - just not in the classroom.  My “day job” is keeping IT’s lights on.  I lead the team of folks it takes to make the internet/Blackboard/email/etc “just work.” The real reason I love doing that is because I love seeing what passionate educators can do when they have tools they can rely upon. I need to be more bold about that so it rubs off on others.

Up Next...

My second point in my top 5 takeaways from SXSWedu is “Educators Unite!” You can’t throw a virtual stick without hitting a blog post from someone gritching about how the entrepreneurs at SXSWedu have their priorities in the wrong place and don’t know how to relate to educators.  I’ll add my 2 cents to that pile (and share what I’m trying to do to change it next year).

SXSWedu 2013 Reflections #2 - Top 5 Observations

While it will take me some time to process all the thoughts I gathered this year, my “top five” observations are:

1. Passion is still the single greatest factor for high-impact, personalized, effective teaching and will infect students with the desire to learn with or without the presence of technology.
2. Educators Unite! Tensions between entrepreneurs and educators at SXSWedu may be by design (and healthy to a certain extent), but educators need to flood this conference next year and swing the “balance of power” if you will.
3. There are no new ideas under the sun for great teaching.  Only old (and great) principles presented in new ways.
4. No form of education is "dead." Despite what the MOOCs would have you believe, good traditional lectures still exist (and are very applicable).  Likewise, merely “digitizing” a class does not make it more relevant (and apparently keeps Richard Culatta awake at night according to the session where I listened to him speak).  Any teaching method that produces learning is still valid in my book.
5. “Ed Tech” needs to be redefined (at least for me).  I forget exactly where I heard it, but it stuck in my mind: technology developed specifically for education rarely “makes it.”  While many vendors may have found pockets of success, the chalkboard, whiteboard, overhead projector and LMS may be the only large-scale examples. (Of course, I don’t claim to be perfect so I may be overlooking something).  However, teachers who find inventive ways to use consumer technology in education often create synergies that can live on outside their classroom.

Yes, some of this is a repeat from my “How I Made This Year Better” post, but ask anyone who hangs out with me and they’ll tell you I tend to repeat myself.  

Keeping the Ball Rolling

This post is intended solely to summarize my top 5 personal takeaways.  I’ll break each one of the down more in depth over the next few days.

Up Next...

Keeping with my first takeaway, I’ll expound on where I see passion being devalued (particularly at SXSWedu), as well as the few places where it is held in proper regard.

SXSWedu 2013 Reflections #1 - How I Made This Year Better

This year was my second SXSWedu conference and overall it was a MUCH more positive experience than last year - primarily because I decided I was going to make it so.  And the making of it so was due to the people I met (which is a universal theme for great conference experiences).  I avoided vendors (except for drink coupons) and hung out with teachers at the meetups.  I stepped out of my comfort zone and met up with some “snarky teachers” for lunch. I went mad with Twitter.  It was fun.  But I believe educators can step up and make it better next year (and yes I’ll share my opinions on how that can happen).

What was better this year?

Better balance between vendors and educators (IMO)

This year I found the balance between vendors (“entrepreneurs”) and educators to be better than last year (though session bombing was still common). While the notable Audrey Watters disagrees with me on that, I will admit that I did make a conscious effort to avoid sessions presented by either a single vendor or a panel dominated with multiple vendors (with one MOOC exception), so maybe my results are a bit skewed. And while I wanted to see some of the “Big Data” sessions, I decided that connecting with individuals was more important (and that I could catch them via podcast later).

More choices than last year

There were definitely more options this year since the conference practically doubled in size with approximately 5,000 attendees, (as it did last year), which was great.  Almost to a fault. With only a 30 min break between sessions and sessions scheduled through the day (even during lunch), those of us who felt compelled to “get our money’s worth” were relegated to either starving or eating at the wallet-whomping food courts around the convention center and Hilton.  Still, I will gladly accept these “growing pains” as long as they bring more options for educators to collaborate during sessions.

Better wifi

Maybe it was just me, maybe it was my new MacBook Air, or maybe it really did change from last year, but I had zero issues with the “SXSW 5Ghz” wifi network present this year.  As an IT director I can appreciate the challenge of having to supply free Internet for 5,000+ people packed into a couple of city blocks.  Last year I had to swap back and forth between wifi and my mobile hotspot (neither of which worked all of the time).  This year it was much easier to stay connected and contribute online during sessions.

What can be improved for next year?

Educators Unite!

While some may be ready to let the conference go to the vendors, I would encourage every educator who came this year to bring two friends next year and “flip” the balance in the educators’ favor. There is still a great opportunity to take hold of this conference a the premier place for educators to meet and swap ideas.  I’ve met some amazing people this year (shout outs to @ssandifer @scitechyEDU @LindseyOwn @ms_cerda @s0delightful @Ms_cerda @drawsalot @thelock85).  You can too with a little planning, a lot of Twittering, and not being scared to step outside your comfort zone if you’re not someone who normally does that sort of thing.  

Keep the Tension - But Plan it Better

I will agree that some amount of “tension” between vendors and educators is a good thing, but it must be regulated better.  “Session bombing” is still too common.  Perhaps educators need to create a hashtag for posting/blacklisting vendors who enlist this tactic at next year’s conference (or if there is such a thing, I need to know what it is). Along this same line, I would encourage educators to avoid any sessions led by a single vendor (it WILL be a sales pitch), and the planning committee to avoid selecting panels made only of vendor representatives.  A product or concept may benefit from vendor participation, but it should always be backed by educators who can share their experiences unless the session is designed to be of interest only to other entrepreneurs (which I can see there is a need for that).

Ban Buzzwords

One of the better sessions I sat in on was one where the moderator took it upon himself to solicit from the audience three buzzwords the panel was not allowed to use. While he was readily given 10-15 options, it was at least good acknowledgement that too often buzzwords pollute dialog within sessions and lead to less participation and understanding.  I know that “big data” and “personalized learning” are hot topics, but those who speak completely in buzzwords frequently have little to say.  

More Food Options

OK, this may be just a personal observation (primarily because of the healthy eating kick I started last Thanksgiving that has led to me shedding some 30 pounds), but there is very little opportunity to maintain a healthy diet while not skipping great sessions.  Some of my best sessions this year were during the lunch hour.  Call in some food trucks, have more food vendors set up tables in the lobbies, or use the catering services of the convention center (which have been excellent in other conferences I have attended) - but do something to help ward off SXSWedu starvation.

My Country For a Hashtag

Encourage session leaders to have a hashtag for each session, and to actively use it during the session.  Twitter (and other online resources) are still too underused for my tastes.  For a conference that is supposed to be about “disrupting education” (yes I know that’s “pot to kettle” on buzzword usage) and demonstrating new ideas, it is still much too traditional in its implementation.

Keeping the Ball Rolling

Last year I had every intent of not letting the energy I picked up from SXSWedu 2012 die quickly after the conference... But just like every plant I’ve owned, exactly that happened. So this year I approach my post-SXSWedu buzz with a more seasoned resolve and a new plan (blogging).  While I completely expect these thoughts to go largely unread, at least the act will sharpen my writing skills for when I return to the classroom as a student for an MBA program either in the summer or fall.

Up Next...

For my next post I’m working on my top-five “takeaways” from this year’s conference.  I’ll start with a summary to introduce them, and then break each one of them down in the next few weeks.