#RuralEdChat Archive
#RuralEdChat is a chat that focuses on the needs of the rural educator. This chat has been revised by Tammy Neil (@MathNeil), John Martin (@edventures) and Natalee Stotz (@nataleestotz).
Tuesday October 4, 2016
Hey Natalee! Peanut is too cute.
Hey John! How goes it? Good night on the soccer pitch?
typing with one hand makes for a slow chat, though! And she climbed in my lap before I got my computer out!
Not bad. JV loss, but a varsity win!
Let’s see who is joining us tonight for . If you would introduce yourself and let us know where you’re from.
I find that giving my cat a fluid injection for her kidney disorder keeps my lap clear for chats.
Hey Bill. So glad you are here. That sounds like a lap-clearer for sure.
Hi ! Julie here from Brandon, FL. VP & CoFounder consulting co & husband-wife team
Shout out to on our Facebook Live event tonight.
I'm here! ! Peanut the Cat is being distracting. Natalee from Maine.
Hi Julie! Thanks for joining us.
I honestly think at some level she knows we're trying to help her. She'll be back.
Shout out to on our Facebook live!
Thank you! Glad to be here tonight 😊
Tonight we'll use a Q1 & A1 format. Don’t forget to tag your responses
If you'd like to join our facebook group we are Educators Group We'd love to add you.
I just added you to our facebook group so hopefully you can hear
Q1: In what ways are you “connected” in education? What are your favorite spaces for connecting?
I can! At least until the debate. :-\ I turned down the game; still watching.
A1: Twitter was my first love for connecting. Then I branched out to use FB professionally. Toss up for me as to which is fav.
A1 I connect primarily on Twitter (as y'all on know!), secondarily on Facebook. Lots of wonderful connections.
A1b: And Voxer is great, too. Love, love, love by PLN on Voxer!
A1: Twitter & Facebook are my 'go to' apps. Still working on ways to reach out to my dis-connected peers.
A1 Twitter! Especially chats like this one 😊 https://t.co/tBofcaXlC9
Q1: In what ways are you “connected” in education? What are your favorite spaces for connecting?
I love how organic Twitter is and how it has enabled me to connect with people far and wide!
Yes. Always looking for ways to bridge the connected-disconnected groups.
A1 Also, on a less digital note, networking at amazing conferences is a great way to connect
Last week, I did a transcript of favourited tweets and shared it w/our Admin Team. Great conversation.
And I feel like it's had longevity for me.So many Twitter relationships I began in 2010 still going strong.
The digital is so intertwined with the Face2Face for me. Meet online, then meet in person.
Do you think it helped them see the value in the Twitter chat conversations?
absolutely true. Love getting to know people at edcamps and meetups too.
Oh, absolutely. And of course, connecting with our colleagues is super-important (and not necessarily a given).
Yes! & the other way around as well. It's just a natural way of life & relationships today https://t.co/PIk4lZU2BE
The digital is so intertwined with the Face2Face for me. Meet online, then meet in person.
Honestly, I think they get it. I think it's about how little "free" time they have. I sympathize.
talking over on facebook about the shifts that happened when she became a connected edu.
Yes. I definitely see it as a time issue.
Yup! Like offline friendships, you can grow closer over time through shared experiences.
Q2: What’s the most important thing being connected has contributed to your practice?
A1 digital very important- but local regional get togethers important too
I certainly understand the time issue. I struggle to make time for online PD such as chats.
A2 No question, my multicultural knowledge and competence has grown a ton through Twitter connections.
Sometime I get frustrated with how tech has changed daily life, but I'm so grateful for things like this!
A2 knowing your not alone along with a support structure to enhance both personal and Ss learning
A2 What has it not contributed to? It's the way of learning today! https://t.co/Iptmch7QQ0
Q2: What’s the most important thing being connected has contributed to your practice?
The Facebook feed is not always working for me - wonderful when it was and when I saw the kitty!
Sorry, I'm not as focused on Twitter as I am on Facebook Live right now.
It really makes a difference to have support out in the world, especially in education. https://t.co/KfbVkJbodj
A2 knowing your not alone along with a support structure to enhance both personal and Ss learning
Partly due to my intermittent internet. So Sorry.
Yes! This for me, too! You nailed it! https://t.co/OX0i4a1s6d
A2 knowing your not alone along with a support structure to enhance both personal and Ss learning
Wrapping Facebook live ...coming back to Twitter.
Oh, I have every sympathy. And my Internet is by no means perfect. It was great to see and hear you when I could!
My struggle is balancing the amount of prep I need to do and my home life.
You get a larger sampling of ppl. Not only not alone, but also get diversity of perspectives & A's
I missed the kitty?! I had to stop the FB feed because of slow internet. and the multitask thing.
Hey, So glad to see and be seen tonight.
Agree. If I go too long w/out making a chat, I lose the sense of continuity and connection.
Heard! this is 1st time in 16 yrs that I'm not a madwoman juggling it all
I saved it. I also posted it to the Facebook group. :-)
The kitty was very cute. Held up to the camera just for a few moments. :-)
Thanks for going live with our chat tonight on facebook, Tammy! It was a great launch.
The hardest thing w/ chats is balancing home life, b/c when in chat I'm 'at work'
yes! The need to focus and be present in more than one place can be challenging.
Right. One advantage of a grown son and a wife who works... sorta near Farmville, VA! :-)
Q3: How do you ensure your connectivity includes voices from all areas of education?
For those of you on FB professionally, do you have separate accounts for personal & professional or just one?
I have just the one. But I've had to make some adjustments recently. Most people really like what I post re: Ed
just 1. More & more I see benefit of merging our selves &moving thru world "whole" I respect those who do it diff
A3 I *try* (with middling success) to curate my feed so there's some variety, which can feed more variety.
I have an 8 year old. 😜 At least the hubs & I are doing same job-can take turns, tag team, etc as needed
I have one "just family" account and one "family friends professional" account.
A3: I try to follow a wide range. Do need to clean it up a bit. It's been a while.
A3: Hit or miss. I actually try harder to get voices from outside of edu.
A3: Sometimes I look at my feed and think, "why did I follow them? Who are they??"
Me too, actually. And from different spots on the political spectrum.
Me too - I try to clean up those who no longer tweet esp when I hit Twitter's follow limits.
I've had to prune two or three times but finally broke the 2001 barrier.
A3 I think it's important to seek out edus in various roles, from diff backgrounds & in diff assignments or points in career.
A3 where relationships come into play. Get to know ppl enough to know areas they represent https://t.co/GG8QzImv6L
Q3: How do you ensure your connectivity includes voices from all areas of education?
Q3 Q3: How do you ensure your connectivity includes voices from all areas of education?
Not even sure what i'm at for numbers. Maybe I'll go look...just not important to me anymore! Interested in content!
There are follow limits? 😳😱 I had no idea!
A3 try to include several voices- but maybe quick to unfollow if their voice no longer adds to the convo
Yeah, that's probably the toughest but maybe the most important lately?
When I decide to follow someone, I look at what they tweet and ask how their tweets with enrich my life.
Yeah - not a huge deal until you get into the thousands but there's a ratio you have to maintain
I meant the "how many people I follow" number. Followers mattered more because it led to the restriction.
Q4: How does your connectivity support or enrich your face to face relationships in edu?
To my mind, for sure. :-) People who engage in respectful dialogue are pure gold.
(Right, ?!)
Since I focus on professional for Twitter, I look at enriching my PLN, my learning & my work
Thank you!
Also, I want to think about what I"m tweeting & will I be enriching the lives of my followers?
A3: You must purposely work to ensure you hear from a variety of voices. Lots of levels, cultures, age groups, etc.
Yes. Connecting w/folks who have different views & actually blding relationships reminds us of hope
This. It's a deliberate & ongoing practice to seek others and listen, give space, amplify voices. https://t.co/FIQEhXLNUW
A3: You must purposely work to ensure you hear from a variety of voices. Lots of levels, cultures, age groups, etc.
A4: Some of my connections have become face to face relationships. Some life long friendships have developed.
I usually try to keep my numbers close. Haven't gone on a big following spree lately, so hadn't thought much about it!
A4 I think being connected online has helped me see my f2f relationships in new lights. I appreciate & reach out more.
The Twitter follow limit is more about making sure the follow/follower numbers are close.
Hey there friends I'm bugging out early. Thanks for a great chat - hope to catch you next week after my school board meeting!
A4: Because of Twitter, I met & discovered and a whole bunch of other ME educators.
A4 I'm more knowledgeable, more nuanced, better at holding back and listening.
A4: honestly, 140 characters isn't enough to adequately express how much my f2f relationships are enriched!
I don't think enough can be said about how connecting in these spaces can really develop our listening. Well put, Bill.
You can FB Live and share your answer. No character limit there. :-) https://t.co/lNIJZC0mlK
A4: honestly, 140 characters isn't enough to adequately express how much my f2f relationships are enriched!
I don't have any other 3rd grade teachers nearby so I have to seek out relationships & connections online. It strengthens me
Wow, that sounded awfully egotistical. :-(
Yes! Connecting can break down those feelings of isolation we might have, especially in rural environments.
Bill, we never use that word when we talk about you. We get it. We've all learned so much from each other.
I didn't read it that way at all, Bill! Be kind to yourself!
I don't think it sounds like ego. It's honest!
I love how we all jumped to defend from :)
and are such kind people. No wonder they attract people to !
honest reflection, which we need to take time to do & cherish
Last Q coming up with a bit of a challenge in the vocab/language department.
I'm glad I'm in a school of 15 staff, some in our district are 1 or 2 ppl. I try to keep those in the loop with weekly emails
Q5: What word(s) can we use besides connected so that opposite (un-connected, disconnected, etc.) doesn’t sound so off putting?
Good community. Definitely here! 😊
This is a great question. Thinking...
https://t.co/CTEX1ITW3w
Q5: What word(s) can we use besides connected so that opposite (un-connected, disconnected, etc.) doesn’t sound so off putting?
It's not easy to say stuff like you did w/o feeling brag. Working on grad school app- can relate!
A5 Relationship building? Networking? https://t.co/NfpRLgV4h2
Q5: What word(s) can we use besides connected so that opposite (un-connected, disconnected, etc.) doesn’t sound so off putting?
Oh no! I meant to tune in to and missed most of it! Emily from MI - was home sick today, but back w my 2nd graders tomorrow!
A5: This is a tough one but I think we may be doing a disservice to those that value f2f connections over online connections.
So sorry you were under the weather today.
Truth! To be proud of something does not automatically make it negative. We need to celebrate more
And connections aren't just digital, but digital has co-opted the meaning. https://t.co/6pXABhb1R5
A5: This is a tough one but I think we may be doing a disservice to those that value f2f connections over online connections.
Nothing like a sick day to make us extra happy to see the kids the next day! :-)
A5 How about globally connected vs. locally connected?
A5 even tho we haven't settled it, I think grappling w/Q itself makes us considr how we might carry better understanding 4 all
Is anyone here going to be affected by hurricane Matthew?
