Too much salt!

Ever been to a restaurant for a meal and realize that just a bit more salt would really add to the taste of the great meal you ordered. You have the salt passed to you. You take some time to figure out exactly where you will start with the salt and then you begin only to find that some joker has loosened the cap so you end up with the whole shaker on your plate!

How do you feel? What do you do? How do you react?

Well, that is how some of the people who I talked to at the TLt IT Summit07 seemed to be describing themselves. Well, none actually used the above image but it was the image that I came up with from their descriptions. They went in to the conference looking for something that would add to their teaching, making it that much better. However, somewhere during the confernce, the lid to the shaker came off and they were overwhelmed with the amout of seasoning they received during the course of the two days.

Now, this isn't unusual for a conference. At least I don't think it is for most teachers. You end up seeing so many great things that you sometimes don't know where to start. However, in this case, there was some added stress. They weren't sure how what to do with the meal now that it was covered in salt. They were incapable of cooking it themselves. They knew that trying to brush a little off just wouldn't work although there will be some who try to do that and end up with a very bad taste left in their mouths and may never venture back to the restaurant or try that meal again to see how great it really might be. Some seek the assistance of a waiter to help them. However, in doing this, some are rude and impatient and do not fully enjoy the meal they finally get. Those that realize that this sometimes happens are able to relax and wait for the replacement meal to arrive. When it does, they begin to savour it, knowing that it took extra time because someone else had created this problem for them.

A whole group of people are headed back to their schools with that overwhelmed feeling. Some are willing to ask for help and patiently wait until it arrives and then they enjoy the meal, taking time to enjoy each bite as they work throught the whole meal. For those who don't want to take the time to get the help, they end up getting through the ativities but they don't work and the teacher is left with a bad experience.

Now, one thing that really made me sit up and take notice were the two keynote speakers. Both Ian Jukes and Michelle Noname talked about the need for teachers to begin using the technologies, the idea that students in classrooms are not the same as the students that were there even 10 years ago, that things were changing quickly and there was a need to bring our educational instruction into the new millenium. (They didn't say it like that but that was kind of the drift.) Now, as someone who has heard this a few times, I wasn't really too taken aback by what either said and, in discussing this with others, neither were they. However, one of the teachers from the school where I teach was with me and he had too much salt and wasn't sure what to do about it. So, as we drove back to our community, we discussed and debriefed the various things that he had gathered. This was where some really wonderful things began to happen.

This teacher is a veteran teacher who teaches a whole host of things. As we began our drive from the city limits, coffee in hand, I asked how he liked the conference. His immediate response was

"Great. It was a great conference. But too much information for someone like me. My head is spinning. I have so many things that I only partly understand and that last session I didn't understand anything. It was over my head. ..."

This went on for about 15 minutes as he just talked about all the things that went on. And then it came.

"You know. When we get back, I'm going to do one thing from this conference and you're going to help me until I get it right. I want to do one thing. There are so many that I can think of but I want one thing ..."

The conversation switched as we discussed a few ideas, well, more than a few but one idea would create another. The goal was to do one thing that would impact his teaching. So, if you were me, what would you have suggested and why? Let me know what you'd do to help this teacher to begin the journey.

We spent the whole ride home - 2 hours - discussing the use of technology to increase students understanding and ability to create responses that demonstrate understanding. This led to a discussion of educational learning philosophy which.... It was a great ride home.

I spent the rest of the week trying to get caught up on missing two days. I think I should be there by, oh, mid-July:) But, the excitement that I witnessed as I helped this patron determine to send the meal back and savour what he received, not rushing to get it done. There would be time for dessert, after dinner drink and a nightcap later. Right now, enjoying the meal was paramount.

I'll let you know what I told him in a few days.