I used to think collaboration was just ‘working with others.’ Get together and make some plans. Divide up the workload. But, it’s really so much more.
A few months ago, over 200 teachers from all 50 states joined in our #KidVote project. Just over 30,000 kids voting. Learning together.
A couple of weeks ago, we built a schedule to allow 32 teachers new to Mystery Skype to partner up using a simple Google Doc. One document, 32 classrooms.
Just today? I was looking for a fresh perspective on presentations, shared a Google Form, and ended up with some great, thoughtful ideas on what to focus on. Ideas, sharing, feedback, and learning. In one click.
It doesn’t matter what the tool is. Twitter, Skype, Google Docs. It’s about people. It’s about a willingness to know that you can learn something new from every person you meet. Simple moments that became something more because of others. It’s the kind of collaboration that asks each other the hard questions, that pushes each of us to move forward, and the kind that continually inspires us to become better versions of ourselves. It’s the kind of collaboration that matters.
January 24, 2013 at 4:15 am
True dat! I just got done brainstorming with Leah LaCrosse (@LLacrosse) ways in which we could have our classes share what’s been going on in science. Our conversation on a Google Doc was open, friendly, supportive. It’s moments like these that I can truly learn and listen to another, a colleague involved in similar activities with similar aspirations. Hard to believe that even a few years ago this type of work among teachers was unheard of. Now, not working like this should be unheard of.