This year will be my second year attending the annual ISTE conference. I have noticed that there are n
ot many graduate students/preservice teachers that attend . In fact, last year, I think there were only two of us and we were just lucky enough to meet each other and share how overwhelmed we were at being there. Like I said: we're pretty rare.
So why do I go when there are so few people that are at my professional level?
Because I like to learn from people more advanced than I am.
At the ISTE conference, I am surrounded by people at all stages of their career. Some of the people I've met (and hope to meet) have been teaching and training for 5, 10, 15, 20+ years and they've still maintained their sense of inquiry, discovery, thirst for knowledge. What is even more amazing to me is that despite their experience, they don't care that I am a little "green;" they care about sharing ideas and learning with me. As with any conference or event, I get to meet the people in my learning network face-to-face and move relationships beyond 140 characters and Google+ hangouts. I get to have conversations with people that are doing things in their classrooms that I hope to throughout my career. With every conversation, I am challenged and inspired. Once I come home, I don't keep what I learn to myself; I bring it back to my classes and share them with my peers so they are learning with me. I am really looking forward to four days of learning and spending time with the people who have been such a huge part of my learning and development as a teacher.
See you all in San Diego! :-)
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