Helping One Another
Today was a my second day at work meeting with individual teachers to establish technology goals, which we do at the start of each school year. The individual goals focus on two technology-integration projects that likely involve teachers going into “new territory” by trying new technologies/applications in their teaching. For our middle school teachers, they each were given a goal, to integrate the use of their Promethean ActivBoard into instruction.
This system isn’t perfect; but it does give teachers focus on how they can use technology in the classroom. I hope to present on this process through conferences this year.
Yet, something struck me towards the end of the day. One teacher said to me, “Things really work well together here, when we help each other out. I mean, right? Let’s work together and help one another…”
It was this act of working together as a team of educators, to help in the mission of educating students, that I hadn’t thought about for some time. I see my job many times as helping teachers use technology to improve their teaching. But I am not sure if I have ever looked at my colleagues, especially so when I was a teacher, as team members poised to help one another. Sure, I knew we were a team towards common goals, but so many times I felt we were each on our own.
Some teachers reached ahead. Some became administrators. Some moved on to better jobs. Some fell to the side… most marched on, imperfect, but good enough to meet the summer, and a new year.
So, it was with a very refreshing welcome that I heard those words today… “let’s [...] help one another…” It takes a special person, I think, to help a colleague. First, you have to be willing to think of your colleagues well-fare. Ultimately, helping your teaching partners in school helps the cause; it’s helping the art and science of teaching and learning to improve.
But it also takes a special person accept help. Probably this is most extraordinary. It’s an admission that you have something to learn from your colleagues. It’s an admission that you have room for improvement, that you may not have all the answers.
I personally don’t want to frequently admit I learn from my colleagues. Yet, it is true that I do. Working among the educators I have over the past 8 years (and going) has been an incredible learning experience. But a call to help one another is something that’s rare in practice, but needed nonetheless.