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).