In preparation of…

As I sit here preparing my stuff to run a session at the upcoming Unleashing Learning Conference in March in Melbourne, I’m reminded of a few things when I gather materials, thoughts to:

1. Do something worthwhile. I’m never one to rehash the same old stuff. I do recycle ideas, some that have failed but I make them better. I get feedback on the things that worked or didn’t from participants, friends, colleagues even those not within the teaching profession. These people’s opinions and feedback matter.
2. Make it memorable. I still remember presenters, workshop leaders, colleagues who made my time with them a memorable experience. I don’t mean ‘entertaining’ per se but memorable in that I walked away from my often short time with them thinking ‘Wow, Ive learned something here, questioned something, reflected on something that I didn’t before’. The likes of spending time learning with @gcouros, @kevinhoneycutt, @courosa , @shareski , @intrepidteacher ,@whatedsaid  and many, many others come to mind in about 5 seconds.
3. Come away with something new. The ‘selfish’ part of running a workshop, or giving a presentation is to come away with something to improve my practice, or extend my own thinking. I am not the one with the answers, I am an educator that has so many questions and some ideas and probably just as many wonderings and curiosities and even doubts as anyone else. I always come away with learning something from others and that’s a good feeling even if it contradicts and challenges my own beliefs.

In fact that goes back to Number 2. Those challenges make my own experiences a very memorable one. After workshops, conferences, interactions and collaborations, I take those experiences and bring them all back into teaching. It’s valuable.