I'm stuck right now.  I'm sitting in a classroom, surrounded by boxes and memorabilia, about to head to a new job that I'm very excited about... but I can't move.  Stuck.  Not happening.  Nope.  No way. 

My goal is to have everything out of my classroom by Friday.  We have half a day with the kids tomorrow and then it's all over... another year, gone.  I've only been teaching for two years, but if they are any indication of what is to come (and I'm sure they are), my career will be gone in a flash.  So here I am, in a reflective state while all the stuff waiting get packed up quite literally stares at me. 

So why am I not moving?  Simply put, I think I'm afraid of another big change.  It is scary to let go of the old and bring in the new.  It is easy to stick with what you know and never venture on to experience different things.  That is why I have this on my desk to remind me what is on the line if I do not take those risks:

Getting stuck is okay.  Just remember that without risk, you will never grow.  Take the plunge!  I know I'm going to right now.

Well, I did not get into the Google Teacher Academy in Chicago.  The emails were sent out while I was in the middle of hosting a pizza party wind-up with my Grade 6/7 Tech Team at my school which, in hindsight, was probably the best way I could have found out.  There was no room to be sad or upset; I could only continue on laughing and having fun with my kids as we celebrated their service to our school.

After the party was over and my teaching day was done, I sat alone at my desk picking apart the reasons for this missed opportunity.  I have absolutely no doubt that the other unsuccessful applicants found some time in the day to do the same.  As gut-wrenching as that process was, I drew up some conclusions on the matter.  These can be seen as tips for the next GTA application process, but this is also how I try to deal with setbacks as an educator in general. Rejections and failures will happen to everyone so here are some ways to appropriately deal with them. 

1) It's ALL about your attitude

Disappointment was certainly an emotion that clung to me like a static-y sock once I was alone.  Watching the #GTACHI feed on Twitter, I could tell I wasn't the only one feeling this way.  Some were noticeably bitter, others were doubting their worth, and it didn't stop for most of the night. 

It's extremely easy in this phase of the game to tweet out a lament to your followers and get some quick, sympathetic attention, but ask yourself: is it necessary?  Don't forget that your upset tweet is out there forever once you click that magic button and the selection committee is watching that feed.  It's probably best to find a friend and talk about it privately or chat through a direct message to a trusted PLN member online.  When you do tweet, keep it positive and fresh and reflect on what you gained from the application experience. Remember, failure is a learning experience, not a career-death sentence. 

2) Take a step back

There were a lot of unsuccessful applicants wondering what they could improve on within 30 seconds after reading that email.  I think it's important to take enough time to properly reflect and to make connections with people that can help you to do that.  Whatever the failure, make sure that you surround yourself with a positive, like-minded community and forge some relationships.  Be patient - it could take months to develop this circle, while others may already have it established. While that sounds difficult not to act on "fixing things" right away, is is absolutely necessary to your growth.  Fresh eyes are better than tired ones.

3) Access your support system, be open to feedback, and start fresh

This particular step comes far after the initial shock of failure.  When you've taken some time and begun to heal, make sure you access those relationships you've forged with people who can help you. When they do step in to help, it is not beneficial to defend what you've already done to the nth degree. Focus on a few pieces of the puzzle that are important to you and discuss why that is the case.  Be flexible and willing to change. While constructive criticism can hurt, don't forget that it's constructive and is making you into a stronger candidate. Sometimes outsiders can see things that we simply cannot or would not have considered otherwise.

4) Don't give up and hold your head high

Okay, okay, I know this one is cliche, but it's a necessary attitude to adopt when you do take the plunge and try again. You can't go in with a failure attitude because then you will undoubtedly get a failure result. Don't forget your experience, but apply your learning, and be confident in the fact that you are now a better applicant, educator, and person because of it. If you know you're worth it and you portray that well, other people will start noticing, too.

Whatever stance you decide to take, I would really encourage everyone to stay connected. There is no value in isolating yourself. Take time to collaborate, learn, grow, and reflect. As the old saying goes:

Today I, alongside one of my colleagues, had the honour of making a presentation to our local Rotary Club for their generous donation to Gordon Greenwood.  Earlier this year, the Club provided us with the funds to purchase our first 10 iPads and get our technology program off the ground for our special needs students. 

Before tonight, I'd never been to a Rotary meeting, and to be honest, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect.  I hadn't anticipated the "community" aspect of our role in this project and presenting in front of so many esteemed community members.  Though we were likely the youngest people in the room, we were instantly welcomed as peers and equals.  The inviting smiles and warm conversation occurred not only through our complimentary meal, but throughout the rest of the evening. 

The most important part of the meeting, though, was our presentation about how technology has impacted our school.  Our students are engaged and excited about going to Learning Assistance.  Kids who have difficulties with reading, writing, and math are getting the adaptations they need in order to be successful at school.  Previously resistant teachers are jumping on board after seeing the positive results of iPad implementation in the Resource Room.  A small grant from a local community club was turned priceless in the hands of passionate educators, a team of educators I am proud to say I've been a part of.

Bringing this success story back to the community members that made this possible was also priceless.  A comment from Langley City's mayor sat with me at the end of the Club's meeting. I may be paraphrasing, but in a nutshell, he said that any community outreach is fundamentally ineffective without passionate implementation behind it.  I agree 100%.  It's not enough for schools or outside agencies to buy technology just for the sake of having it in the hands of students - passionate people who believe in authentic and creative learning is equally as important to have as the hardware itself. 

As soon as I saw the link on Twitter for Google Teacher Academy in Chicago, I knew I had to apply. I have been working on my application for almost two weeks.  Today I pressed the "Submit" button and, I can tell you, I was in a very different place back when I read the requirements than I am now.

When I began, I was forced to put something difficult in perspective: they may not want me because I'm not 100% savvy with Google apps.  Sure, I could have said that there have been very few opportunities to showcase the brilliance of tools like Google Drive when you're still training your staff how to turn an iPad on and off, but do they really want to hear that? I should be pumping up their products in the application process, right? Yet, I'm not someone who easily compromises who I am in a selection process. If I'm not meant to be in the running, then I'm glad that I at least got to be myself while I was in it. 

So I went through the motions and answered the questions. No problem. I'm a writer. I can craft an eloquently stated answer within 150 words and still get my point across. All while still being me. Then I got to the bottom of the application page.

Uh oh.  A movie?  Whaaat?

What would I do? How would I put it together? I know next to nothing about iMovie (the available video editing software on our district computers) and while I might be charismatic in person, I'm not a big fan of myself on camera.  I decided to let myself mull it over for a few days, writing down ideas, crossing them out, rewriting, tossing ... all the things typical of an aspiring writer editing his first screenplay. Things were not going well.  How could I be me without showing me?

I soon decided that I needed a theme for my video.  I planned the movie to revolve around a spy/Mission Impossible style;  I am a "tech teacher on a mission," after all.  This began to show great promise as I tinkered, played, and reworked video clips and images.  I taught myself how to screencast using SnagIt (free trial inside link) and captured images typed on GoogleDocs, from previously made Prezis, and from my iPad on the GoogleEarth app.  Then of course, after all that comes the formatting and making sure you're within the one-minute time limit... Loads of learning.

Today, as I sat back and watched my hours of handiwork in one single minute of video, I realized how much had gone into this project.  It's almost like I had been tricked into my own professional development with all of the digital tools listed above!  But I was so motivated to polish my application and get into GTA that I hadn't even considered the learning process involved within it...  What an exciting and inspiring concept!  

For those of you who care to watch, my submission is below.  Wish me luck and thanks for reading!