Day One

Fresh off the drive home from day one of our collaborative course and the fire inside me has been fanned.

I learned today that despite my recent work (and success) controlling the general anxiety that permeates my life, my excitement and anticipation and the impact I want to have on the direction education is moving in can be overwhelming physically and mentally.
I need to remember to ground myself with patience, humility and a curious mind that seeks to learn and think and then to act in some capacity (continually like cycles of inquiry). 

Over the last few months I have been learning to accept where I am in my career now and work towards getting the most out of it.  I am even more inspired after today to move forward with my grand goals and hopes for our society and for education.

Listening to the speakers today has helped to refocus my efforts.  I see very clearly now that although it is easy to identify many problems, barriers and challenges in our systems it is even more important to consider the issues thoughtfully and focus on coming up with a series of possible solutions/strategies and having the faith to try them and then try again if so needed.

I find the format of this course engaging and thought-provoking.  The simplicity with which fundamental principles, ideas and strategies from our FDK (right acronym?!) document (community building, home-like touches, inquiry, and so much more) can be incorporated into adult learning tells me that it is realistic to imagine a day when all classrooms of all grades are enriching places for 21st century learners.