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.
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!
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!
RSS Feed
