I have been really thinking about the idea of using social media to make local impact, not just global. It is easy to get caught up in the opportunity to connect with classrooms around the world, that we sometimes forget about the teacher across the hall.
A little realization I had this morning when I received a comment on my blog post, “Does Brainstorming Lead to Innovation?“, was how often we are not asked to really think and dissect something before we get together at a staff. Often, people are asked to read articles or excerpts, but how often are we asked to share our thoughts prior in some sort of open reflection? This makes all of us smarter, not just the person reflecting.
From the original post, John Spencer shared his thoughts by writing, “Seven Ways to Fix Brainstorming“. Comments on the post shared subtle pushback, or alternatives as well. What was important was the time to dissect, and actually share something that would be seen by others, ultimately helping people think more critically about their responses.
So what if we were to do this?
The week before (maybe more, maybe less) a professional learning opportunity, we had a school/staff blog that had an idea that was going to be discussed with staff. People would be encouraged to write, create, write a comment on the original, or do whatever they wanted to respond, as long as it was linked back to the original. This way, you are not limited to one person’s point of view, but are open to learning from others. Would this not make for a much richer discussion that dives deeper into learning when we would actually connect face-to-face with one another?
My view on brainstorming has changed simply because people were willing to take the time and share their thoughts and ideas. If you read them, not one of them challenged me, but challenged the ideas that were shared. That’s the power of a blog. What is important is to not only give people the opportunity to share their thoughts, but also give them time to create and connect their own learning. Obviously, the hope for any professional learning is that this trickles down into the classroom with our students, and I think this could be a powerful way to really dive in deep to our own thinking, as well as the thinking of others, in our buildings and organizations.
