Z is for Zealous

Virtual teachers have made a passionate commitment to the newest approach to education in history. They are dedicated to insuring students experience the joy and success of learning. These educators are pioneers and nurturers, willing to step outside tradition and embrace a new methodology which is firmly anchored in learning theory, creativity, and results. Future doctors, lawyers, CPAs, engineers, teachers, authors, and entrepreneurs are born every day from this dedication, and what may have first generated skepticism, now is heralded as an amazing educational breakthrough.

Two particular teachers in my lifetime stand out because they made sure I knew they believed in me. Neither one ever really delivered any inspirational, life-altering speech about strengths and my future. Instead, they each consistently did several things: measured me against high standards; regularly praised my hard work which insured I would continue to be diligent; and demonstrated daily through conversation, laughter, and steadfastness that I was a valuable human being about whom they cared. These two teachers never knew one another. They met me at different stops along my educational journey, however each invested in my life and future through their zealous commitment.

Often the days of instructors run long in the virtual teaching world. When the classroom is defined by a computer screen, text messages, emails, and webinars in which the teacher and student are only shown in a one inch square video, it is easy to lose sight of what we are really all about and the wondrous things we are doing.

Remain committed to one student at a time. Teaching is your job, not your pastime. Who is behind that screen, on the other side of the assignment? What does he or she demand of you or, more important, need from you even though they don't know it? And even on your busiest days, do the students' needs remain your primary focus?

I know each teacher's dockets are filled with email responses and material to grade, but at the end of the week, month, year in your revolutionary virtual teaching job, of what will you be most proud? It doesn't matter what age your student population is, what new tools you have mastered, or what testing demographics you achieved. Let it always be about your students.

Reflection: Sometimes the term "zealous" implies too much passion, too much commitment. Can you be too steadfast about educating youth? Conversely, have you encountered teachers for whom education is only a job, whether virtual or on the ground? As we reach the end of the alphabet journey, what does being an educator mean to you no matter where you serve?

Y is for Yardstick

The traditional definition for a yardstick is a 36 inch measuring tool, no more, no less. It's a very precise mathematical measurement, always the same with no variation, entirely predictable. That's the known.

Or is it? Examine your personal teaching yardstick. What criteria do you use to measure your students' engagement and success? Do you look at the grade book screens for assignment completion, check the activity logs, count the responses you receive to student emails and then draw your conclusions?

Do you assess the students' cumulative grades and draw universally recognized conclusions, such as failing grades, missing assignments, failure to attend a live webinar and no response to phone calls or emails equal a disconnected learner? After all, it's a virtual learning environment and this is the window we have, right?

As you might expect, I have another theory or two for how to push beyond what would appear to be the obvious yardstick for students. Here are just a few questions I suggest need answers:

• What tone do you hear in work submissions?
• Is the student most often working in isolation?
• Where is the student working - bedroom, living room, dorm room, coffee shop?
• When was the last time you sent a student an email to ask how the course was going, quietly ignoring the student's true engagement level?
• What do you think about student plagiarism on a personal level as opposed to a teacher/student level? (In other words, could a student's inability to clear the plagiarism screening software mean he truly doesn't know how to integrate research rather than a blatant attempt to deceive?)

Most current virtual teachers were trained to work in a brick and mortar school. Transitioning online has been both challenging and exciting. Remember, however, that students and teachers look the same no matter what tools are used.

Did you go out in the hallways or walk the campus commons between classes, greeting dozens of students as you passed them? Had you become schooled in reading the slumped shoulders or nervous laughter? And wasn't it interesting to just stand still and listen as the students walked by? Oh, the things you learned! Just as the teaching venue has changed, so too should the variety of creative ways we reach and teach our students.

Reflection: I challenge you to look beyond the obvious yardsticks with which we have grown comfortable in education because many of them limit our ability to learn about our students and how best to support them in the virtual school environment. Sometimes, an inch isn't an inch, but instead, an indication of something more. Don't be afraid to ask a student what that might be. A new, more flexible yardstick could make all the difference.

X is for Xanadu

We have finally reached "X." Haven't you been curious about what word I would select? Xanadu fits online schooling perfectly. The word originated in a Coleridge poem in the late 19th Century and means "a beautiful place."

We work hard for our students, teaching them new things as we too learn the newest ways to reach and teach. The connections made despite the distance and view-blocking computer screens (when the webcam is off) are amazing. We are people-to-people, caring and working together. Hard work most days, but also a complete educator's joy.

Those early years as a virtual teacher remind me of a treadmill. I was always creating accountability tools so I could track incoming and outgoing calls; noting how my students worked and mastered their subjects; and capturing details on activities, strengths, and background. It was hard work each day to know how to prioritize and make a decision on who needed me first and most.

I have learned that even though everything about management systems, accountability tools, creativity tools, and more have moved through ongoing and unlimited iterations, teachers still face decisions on how and who to prioritize. All of the needs are still there and always will be no matter the sophistication. Can we see this as a beautiful place in spite of the stress and usual long teacher hours? Indeed I believe we can!

Students at every age come to us with diverse needs which, for many, can best be met in the security of their own homes in front of a laptop. We craft and deliver learning approaches, mold accountability levels, and reinforce personal responsibility. We develop memories in live conferencing sessions which become reference points for the students, just as those types of conversations did in the on-the-ground classrooms.

We answer hundreds of emails, many the seed of a future conversation with these same students. We make mistakes as we run the webinar and the emoticons fly into the chat area - our students are laughing with us! We forget to hit the "record" button and one of our students private-messages us as a reminder. That's collaboration!

Connections may look or feel different, but at the center, the education is the same, molded to 21st Century expectations. Our classrooms are a beautiful place, a virtual Xanadu. Hopefully, this classroom experience is a good fit for you at this point in your career. Just know that your commitment and presence is one of the reasons this new education model is truly, simply, Xanadu.

Reflection: Spend time reflecting on what brought you to virtual teaching, what the benefits are for you and your students, and how being part of the online Team just makes the virtual experience stronger. Do not choose to work in isolation, but instead, join the team connection and start the conversation.

W is for Wonder

Many days we can't help but wonder if we are doing all we can to meet the needs of learners in our care. Maybe more days are filled with self-doubts than not. Our students wonder if they have done enough to be proficient in their courses and eventually on the mandated exams and college entrance tests. As we know, parents wonder if students are working enough hours and doing the right things, a concern at every age, including when the child goes away to college.

The good thing is, while we can and will always wonder, we do have tools to move from speculation to proof. We can watch student work via automatic grading systems and grade books. We have emails and phone calls, time shown on learning management systems, student notes and webinar scripts. We are able to look for improvement, weaknesses, and consistency. We can make sure the students are keeping tabs on their own progress and completion. Students are reassured when they know we are watching over their growth, learning, and involvement. They build confidence when we mentor their work and their dreams. They stop wondering if they can be successful because they believe they can.

Detractors and skeptics of online education most often aren't fully aware of how it works. Naysayers wonder if this type of education is rigorous enough, consistent in delivery and content, and a place where teacher and student can engage. Teachers need to assess and share how they are engaging with their learners virtually. We know the proof of how we are engaging with learners, how the learning management systems actually work, and we need to offer transparency to build that assurance and understanding.

www.digitalbookworld.com

Online learning is an economical choice in many ways. No bus rides, fewer hardbound textbooks that are outdated long before a district can afford to replace them, no need for particular wardrobes, packed lunches, or opening day school supplies. While admittedly we must educate our students on the responsibilities of working on the Internet, they are removed from drugs, gangs, and violence.

It's one level playing field - everyone has an equal opportunity to learn and, for us, to teach - with security and confidence. We deliver an excellent, researched curriculum in an engaging format with sound objectives and criteria. Technology and learning platforms are constantly innovating and improving. The programs are rigorous and afford different levels of involvement to meet each student's interests.

Do you wonder if you are effective, perceived as effective, or have utilized every tool needed to allow you to be effective? Used properly and thoughtfully, online education provides an excellent and supportive teaching and learning environment. Use your colleagues as a sounding board to remain current and engaged. Don't work in audio isolation because it "looks" different than years past. Team teaching has never been easier and can produce some remarkable outcomes. We have always known teachers and the teaching profession make a difference. That fact hasn't changed except to improve.

Reflection:  When was the last time you teamed with another teacher to reach a student? Or worked with a colleague or two to preview presentations and online course work? And do you attempt daily to think and work outside the box in this innovative model?Continue to wonder, always wonder.

V is for Vista

The foundation of virtual schooling has been conceived of and built on a distant view or outlook which allowed for an extensive range of possibilities. Not just extensive, but unlimited. That vista is what brings teachers and students together in this place at this time.

The possibilities are the focus. As educators, we look at children or learners as bundles of potential as opposed to missed opportunities or failed skills. It isn't what they haven't done, haven't achieved, but rather, those things which they are still capable of achieving. Even bad choices can be overcome through compassion, diligence, and the refusal to let even one student slip away.

How many times have we heard of the tainted histories of adolescents whose paths never seemed to intersect at the right time with the right person? Even when their choices are poor, it doesn't mean they aren't looking for someone to tell them so they can refocus! Are you that person?

Thank you to www.nps.gov

One of my favorite places to visit is Glen Arbor, Michigan. The writers' group to which I belonged for years took a week each June to sequester themselves at cabins on Glen Lake to focus on writing. The drive from the small resort into Glen Arbor was via a twisting road with several lookouts. I made excuses to take that drive often so I could pull off onto the forested dirt road and park.

Ten steps and the trees broke onto a view like no other - it stretched across Big Glen and Little Glen Lakes to the Sleeping Bear Dunes and on to Lake Michigan. That vista never ceased to leave me breathless, even though I knew what I would see. The lush green and grey-white birch trees gave way to shimmering, light-catching blues with splashes of colorful spinnaker sails and soaring gulls.

So too I ask you to always look for the expansive, the unexpected, within the commonplace as you approach your students each day. Each interaction, no matter how brief, whether online or on-the-ground, brings the promise of what you can do together given the chance. Don't waste the opportunity! Don't assume you know how a student will or won't respond, but instead, prepare to be surprised and amazed over and over again. Look for someone or something each day which takes your breath away and dismiss any predisposition that you know what you will see. Only then can you and your students be amazed anew each day.

Reflection: Using a professional journal or blog, keep track of those things which are the "aha" moments in your teaching day, in any day. You won't see them if you aren't looking and life moves so quickly, you won't remember them if you don't take time to save them in writing. It only takes a sentence or two, nothing more, but you will be grateful in years to come.

U is for Unique

No one in the world is just like me. No one is just like you. No one in the world is just like each of your students. No one teaches students quite like each teacher does. And each of the families which your teaching touches is just as singular. No two days or hours or webinars are the same. So what does this uniqueness mean to teaching and how do we harness its benefits?

Each student deserves a part of you, your time, your input, your view. We each have stories about those moments when another human being touched our lives in a distinctive way, where memories which have spanned years engraved themselves on our hearts and minds, and shifted our universe.

Several years ago I went on a search for my first grade teacher and found her. She graciously responded and whether or not she actually remembered me, she reconnected and stays in touch. She acknowledged my fond memories and how I felt I owed her an overdue debt of gratitude for the difference she made in my life at such a young age.

I have relocated my tenth grade English teacher, another pivotal influence in my decision to be a writer, an English teacher, and a leader. Each of these two teachers made the difference that has spanned decades and whose imprint couldn't have been left by anyone else. Thousands of people have come and gone, and while they may not have shifted my life dramatically, they still left a part of themselves behind to shape who I have become..

Celebrate the uniqueness of you. In addition, celebrate the same in your students. If it is still early in your career, you have many more years to gather students into your memory book. Don't let an opportunity slip by without making that connection. It will be a moment you can't recapture and one which you might end up regretting.

You are teaching at a unique time in education history and writing a singular chapter by being a part of it all. Share this experience with a student or a colleague today by talking with them about what teaching and learning means. And don't be surprised if twenty years from now one of these same students sends you an invitation to reconnect. No one else will have touched that student's life like you have.

Reflection:  How do you think your students, especially virtual students, perceive you? And how do you think they settled on that perception? Can you provide the role model young people need when it comes to judging others' unique qualities?

T is for Trust

You need to adopt a balancing act between team and trust in order to do a great job as a virtual educator. Both are critical and, not surprisingly, vital to collegial support and your support of students. If we look at our lives we see teamwork everywhere. Our families, immediate and distant, are a team, bound together with a thread of trust by a common heritage, goal, or commitment. Our neighborhoods are a team, and we all know how disgruntled we get when members of that team are messy or thoughtless or loud, or how touched we are when they are thoughtful and supportive.


When I was little, I loved the Dutch doors which were common in southeastern Pennsylvania. I would hang on the lower one and swing back and forth, letting my mind wander and enjoying the motion. Of course, I was warned repeatedly that it would warp the door or bend the hinges, but it didn't matter. I did it as often as I could get away with it.


This image comes to mind because, just as with my favorite doors, both trust and teamwork swing both ways. Just as you are expected to be in your office and working hard for your students, you need to be able to depend on your administrator to be working just as hard for staff and students. Curriculum writers, instructional designers, IT staff all come together to create courses and culture. A strong team needs everyone willing to do whatever is needed to get jobs done right.

Now, let's widen the circle one more time and include your students in this image. Think of those students who are consistent and hard workers. They work; you respond. You work; they respond. Feel the swing? No one would continue to go to a doctor if every time you asked his expert opinion, he just sat and stared, or worse, never invited you back to an exam room. Soon you would stop coming and search out a different authority.

Psychology tells us adolescent disillusionment and emotional detachment are often a product of repeated disappointments. In the virtual world, that looks like unanswered phone calls and emails, and assignments without feedback. Those things become trust-breakers for any age learner.

See if you can get more students in your classes to swap both trust and teamwork with you. Make the commitment and the positive circle of dependence will eventually breed independence, one student at a time.

Reflection: Even on the most daunting days, everything still happens one student at a time. What can you do today, every day, to improve the trust and teamwork between you as the educator and your students - one at a time?

S is for Student

I suppose this is the most obvious choice for the letter "S," but I might just take this some place unexpected. Sure, our primary focus as a teacher is on the learners with whom we work. We not only strive to teach them things they don't know, but we do our best to earn their trust and make them comfortable as they pass through our classroom doors.

I challenge you, however, to see yourself as the student...the student of the students. We have assumed the role of teacher because we schooled for years, earned certification, and then accepted teaching assignments. I maintain it isn't until we accept a role reversal that we can be most effective at our jobs.

What are these young people teaching you daily at your job? Do you remain open and sensitive to their needs, their humor, their challenging of limits? Are you skilled at putting yourself in their place? If the student is fully virtual, he is sitting at home, often alone, facing a computer and working to learn. At the same time, friends are texting and emailing, music or the television are playing, and snacks and drinks are calling his name. Doesn't this sound a bit like a description of your work place and how easy is it for you? Are you able to fully discipline yourself to sit for hours accomplishing what is needed, able to ignore more appealing distractions? If you are doing graduate work yourself, what do your study times and submissions look like in light of other things you want or need to do?

It is all a study in human nature. We subconsciously prioritize things in the order in which we enjoy doing them, not always in the order in which they are due. That can get anyone in trouble at any age, but especially a less-disciplined learner.

How can you be that one positive distraction they just can't refuse, the one place they so want to be that they will ignore television shows and YouTube videos, phone calls and sleeping late? We can't "make" students do anything, but we can entice them to make better choices. Study your students, be your students, and meet them in their world in order to best connect them to you, your classes, and your content. And absolutely vital to forming relationships with students at all levels is the ability to laugh, not at them but with them. Many students have been reconnected to learning when a teacher uses humor to move a situation forward.

Reflection: Study your students' behavior to determine how best to serve them as teachers. Don't generalize or base assumptions on pop culture ("all young people are lazy" or "college kids just want to party"). Assess the time of day, the season, the heaviness of the expectations (graduation imminent?), their individual likes and dislikes, their family and extracurriculars, and everything else you can glean from initial introductions. How will you bring it all together to spell success for each learner?

R is for Renewal

I love the freedom of researching the availability of books via the county's online library site, then requesting they be delivered to my local branch. When the email arrives to say they are in, I stop by and the first thing I ask as I check them out: "Is this renewable?" I have learned I rarely complete a book quickly with life's responsibilities and I want to make sure I won't be caught in the middle of a story.

Reading is an activity that brings renewal into my life. Is it the same definition when we talk of renewal and commitment? Is it the daily resolve to continue, to complete, to improve? To me, the meanings are similar and it allows me to wake up every day with a "do over" voucher. Maybe yesterday we just couldn't answer any more email, couldn't return messages, and the grading never did get to a good stopping place. We are in trouble if we let each day tug us further down rather than renewing our commitment to do the best job we possibly can. More often than not, stepping away lets us step back in later with renewed strength and clarity of vision. No matter how small the breaks we take, if these are "me" focused, they improve our chances for renewed commitment.

I am a fast reader, but need to set aside the time to read. I know this and yet, I feel guilty when I step away from my computer screen during a project to finish another chapter of the current Patterson mystery begging for my attention. Admittedly, we all need time to refocus or rejuvenate in whatever way works best and we need to acknowledge and support that need for others.

Students need that relax and do-over ticket as well. Everyone is entitled to line up for the precious, under-utilized, renewal elixir. We ask students to step into ever greater responsibilities at each stage of their education and at the same time, we forget to open the door to personal renewal time for them at the same time. It is part of the balance of life they need to learn whether sixteen or twenty-something.

I advocate being careful to not let pessimism take over your thinking. Not every student attempts to deceive, to shortcut work, or procrastinate, any more than a teacher does. Some try it a few times but that sound you hear is the door opening for a conversation (not a lecture) between instructor and student about making better decisions concerning use of time. Repeated procrastination patterns open the door even wider and demand another conference to initiate a plan for improvement. In all instances, however, be reminded of the importance of your permission to the student to make corrections without repercussions. The teacher has a large role to play in teaching a student balance and it is something we need to constantly practice ourselves.

Reflection: There are choices to be made when a student is a repeat offender for late or incomplete assignments. Every missed assignment is an open door for growth. Make a decision to not dismiss or stereotype a student's actions. Rather, plan now for how a successful conversation might play out. Use this same approach for uncleaned bedrooms and family chores going undone. Switch up the expectations and watch the changes happen!

Q is for Quintessential

This word describes what teachers are and what they strive to be: of the highest quality, the perfect example of class or quality. We don't always hit that mark but the reviews are mixed. One day a parent or student will call, explaining in no uncertain terms that a certain instructor isn't doing a good job. The next day, someone else calls to rave about the same teacher's best points. Definitely, it is a case of perspective.

Try to remember we are dealing with individuals who are bringing as many different experiences to the classroom as we bring educational expertise. Sometimes it is hard to see beyond the issues to the people when we are tired at the end of a long day or an even longer week. And yet, I find teachers are respectful, patient, and professional, and deliver firm expectations tempered by grace, sound educational practice, and insight.

What constitutes a teacher of highest quality, a quintessential educator? We know the metrics for being a master teacher or nationally board certified, but do we believe completion of the requirements for those titles is all it takes to be dubbed one of the best? Or should we consider the spirit or driving force behind each educator as a factor? I believe indeed we should.

It takes an extraordinary person to be willing to respond patiently to a student, parent, or colleague, despite the lateness of the hour. Equally extraordinary is the individual who takes time to constantly create one-to-one interactive sessions for students, who listens an extra 10 minutes even when other things are tugging at her time, and who will leave no avenue unexplored when searching for answers.

Perhaps you don't see those things as going above and beyond. Good - because I would agree. But not all educators are equally talented or devoted to their profession and, more important, to their students. Mediocrity is not an acceptable standard, especially in a virtual venue where communications are too often subject to interpretation if you don't devote the extra effort needed to make sure both message and intent are clear. Additionally, you devote the time to make sure each stakeholder's response is heard and acknowedged.

Reflection: Do you know how to inject personality into your messaging? If your calls or emails are one-dimensional (flat, business-like, boring), your recipients will simply stop reading. Review your subject lines as the "hooks" to your messaging and then, practice being personal and uplifting. Soon it will come naturally and bear dividends.

P is for Pacing

Some people like to work until they drop, giving it their all. They feel personal satisfaction when they can say they are done, mopping their virtual brow. Others bite off smaller pieces but move ahead consistently, adopting an almost plodding approach.

Still others do a few minutes, then walk away from it. They dust the desk top, load dishes into the dishwasher, put paper in the printer, check teeth for leftover lunch remnants, file down the pesky ragged fingernail, then flick away more dust.

These people have a lifetime membership in the WPC or Worldwide Procrastination Club. And another group belongs to what I affectionately have dubbed the Vigilante Brigade - those who keep checking in to see if they have anything else to do or do better or do over, never able to define the finish line. It is futile to encourage that worker type to let it go.

It really doesn't matter which group you most closely mirror because it takes all kinds of people with all kinds of approaches. What does matter is that you recognize your own "MO" (modus operandi or method of operation for those who don't watch nearly as many crime dramas as I do). You learn to keep yourself in check by adjusting and improving through pacing.

We would be arrogant to assume self-care is for everyone else but us. Even more arrogant, really, to think our students need help with pacing guides and work habits when we aren't practicing the process ourselves. If right now you are frantically pushing real or virtual personal paperwork for long hours in order to meet the timelines and it splashes over into weekends and holidays, let's take an honest look at a few pacing questions.

• Do you find yourself putting things off (head talk: I can do that tomorrow, or next week, or never)?
• Could you have used a mentor's or friend's calming voice weeks ago but didn't want to feel dumb sharing your panic and asking for help?
• Have you ever done that tried and true self-survey called a "personal time and motion study" where you log everything you do in a work day to see where you are losing precious time (a five minute game on Facebook which turns into an hour of scrolling through newsfeeds)?
• Do you use a timer to self-limit yourself during the day? Keep colleague calls and instant messages to reasonable lengths. Grade in chunks for a set amount of time. Answer emails for another set time period.
• Do you organize small group webinars when you know you have two or more students with similar needs rather than trying to reach each separately?
• Are you doing your work (and more importantly, your play) with a grateful and joyous heart or is each day a growing drudgery?

At the risk of sounding unsympathetic, I suggest that many things which trip up our daily intentions to be proactive and successful in completing work are self-generated and controllable. We are all  WIPs, a professional writer's acronym for "Works in Progress." We all can change, but the key is recognizing first, the need, then second, the process which will work for us. For me, it is making reasonable and realistic lists and working hard to stick to them.

Reflection: Set three doable goals each day for a week. Then, make it four goals. Sometimes it takes diligence and practice to relearn personal pacing, and don't be afraid to ask for help. Our best lessons are not learned in isolation.

O is for Opportunities

Each day we are offered a chance to start anew, given fresh opportunities to get this thing called "living" right. In the teaching profession, we work to master academic excellence by way of teaching and constant professional development. Let me offer some help by way of word association possibilities.

Starting Fresh

Teaching offers us constant new beginnings. Quarters, semesters, terms, new school years being new students, new course content, and undoubtedly, new perspectives. Teachers tell students they have short memories which allows yesterday to be forgiven and today to be new. Is it true? Or do we too easily recall a person's past indiscretion and treat him or her accordingly?

Renewal of Personal Commitment

Each day is a gift to us as educators and to young people as learners. Everyone needs to assess commitment to the responsibilities of the unique job so we can ask learners to do the same. The death knell to education from any perspective is the phrase: "I don't care."

Goal-Setting

Don't leave anything to chance. Set goals daily, weekly, monthly, and beyond, then review them often. Goals are not meant to be set in stone, but emerging, growing, and flexible. If you aren't meeting your goals in a reasonable time frame, decide if they are the right goals for you, then take the opportunity to make positive changes.

Learner Engagement

Evaluate the number of learners in each class who you can categorize as "engaged." Create a spreadsheet for yourself and decide what the definition of engagement is and do a quick ranking of students weekly. Then look for improvement, no matter how small. Identify what is working for you, for your students, and what seems to have little impact. Detect trends, shift gears, and, most of all, celebrate successes by letting them know.

One Student at a Time

While you have classes with many students, work hard to see each student as an individual. You wouldn't want a supervisor to only lump your hard work and skills into the collective term "staff" and be unwilling to acknowledge those unique things you bring to the team. So too we need to honor our students one at a time, whatever it takes. We have many technology tools at our disposal now to do this easily.

Reflection: Have you reviewed your opportunities today, making sure you aren't missing anything pivotal to your personal success or that of your students? Take time to do it now.

N is for Noteworthy

How would you define "noteworthy?" Perhaps "something which is important, worth noticing." What if we expand that definition to include not only things but people - specifically, students. And what does a student need to do in order for you to take notice?

Early in my own career I remember reacting more quickly to negatives than the positives, only because negatives seemed to demand a need for immediate control. We know from our educational psychology courses that people naturally seek attention, even if it is through negative behavior. I look back on my reactive behavior and know now it wasn't what I should have done. I have learned over the years we get more of what we reward and less of what we extinguish.

So what does that look like in the world of virtual teaching and learning?  Can you find ways to reward those who are less than stellar in their response to your course expectations? How easy is it to send an email to a student who is attaining high percentages or the highest grades on a test or quiz? It is more difficult to find a reason to applaud a student's 60% or a late assignment which is finally submitted, but we need to do just that. Presenting a positive where one is rarely awarded could reap huge benefits in self-esteem and a renewed or new commitment.

Praise disenfranchised students often enough and they begin to connect. Remember the recommended approaches in the virtual teaching world: check-in emails and phone calls are important, delivering a sincere tone of concern for a student's success. We want to be the person a student runs toward rather than another person he or she might run from. Even when a student is only reading an email or text message, the important idea? He is reading and it will get progressively harder to ignore repeated and sincere offers for assistance.

A student's active enrollment in a virtual learning environment is noteworthy, becoming less and less novel. However, rather than being able to see a student in a classroom environment, now we need to use all our available tools to reach out and engage in different ways. Decide how your students came to be on your class list because personal choice and commitment are key. Let your students know you honor their commitment then set the hook and move them forward. Nothing sweeter than a student who learns in spite of his reluctance or negativity. That, indeed, is noteworthy!

Reflection: Develop a personal definition for noteworthy and start a list of noteworthy events, people, influences in your daily life. Can you add your own name on a regular basis as someone who makes a difference and is worth noticing for students?

M is for Motivation

Do you believe in the potential for each student you teach? Think carefully - not most students or some students, high-achieving students or engaged students - but every student whose name appears on the class lists? Levine's poem below speaks to the heart of the teacher, but it was never written just for educators. Motivation overrides gender, ethnicity, learning ability, and age.

I had a student in my remedial classes, a young man who came from a disconnected family who had never valued education. I became this student's cheerleader and daily impressed upon him the power of learning everything he could to achieve his high school diploma. A simple aspiration for those who value graduate degrees, but not so simple for someone who had few people pushing him forward.

Mike graduated, reluctant and somewhat disinterested to the end. Several weeks into the next school year (in an era when students could still walk into buildings, wave at office staff, and go to classrooms), Mike appeared in my doorway during class. Unassuming and on a mission, he ignored the class I was teaching and strode to my desk. He parked one hip on the desktop and announced, "Well, I just had to come here first to tell you the good news!" Surprised, I responded, "Do tell, Mike!"

With all the pride a young man could show, Mike shared that because he had his diploma and a proven track record with part-time work, he had been given one of the town's new garbage trucks as his own to use as the newest sanitation officer. "With benefits, a 401K, and all kinds of stuff!" He was grinning from ear to ear and I had tears in my eyes. The first in his family to achieve and now, independent in every important way. He went on to talk about apartments, a new truck, and someday, a girlfriend. Motivation and a belief in his value moved this student to places he never knew he could go. He is still in this job and has become a shift supervisor. My own pride for him is boundless.

If you find yourself tempted to mention even once that a particular student just can't learn, it's time to rethink your commitment to education and make important changes. Every human being has a dream and you are in the most honored position to positively affect the dreams of so many vulnerable people. Do you have the courage to believe in their potential so they can meet their dreams? They are depending on you. You are their lifeline, guiding light, and motivation. I helped Mike to believe.

There is inside you

All of the potential

To be whatever you want to be;

All of the energy

To do whatever you want to do.

Imagine yourself as you would like to be,

Doing what you want to do,

And each day, take one step

Towards your dream.

And though at times it may seem too

difficult to continue,

Hold on to your dream.

One morning you will awake to find

That you are the person you dreamed of,

Doing what you wanted to do,

Simply because you had the courage

To believe in your potential

And to hold on to your dream.

Author, Donna Levine

Reflection: Choose a student facing failure in your class, based on persistent disengagement or current low grades, and offer that learner a chance at a dream today. Tomorrow, choose another...then another...and another. What will you do to motivate, connect, and facilitate his or her dream? Be specific because you can't motivate with generalities! We make a difference one person at a time.

L is for Luck

Luck is an unlikely premise for how students learn. As trained educators, we have a tool bag filled with methodology and research, plans and academic tricks. But here are some ways "luck" does apply in the virtual world.

Lucky, aren't we, to have a teaching job which releases us from hourly bells, slamming lockers, and morning commutes when we are teaching virtually.

Lucky is the student who has a caring, involved team of teachers, parents, advisers, counselors and more, working on the student's behalf. The online venue allows for fast messaging and turnaround to determine how to help the student reach their goals and, most often the teaching environment is rich in tools to identify and diversify.

Online students are lucky to not have fire drills and bomb threats, tornado drills and lockdown practice. We are not threatened by gangs or angry students, taunted about wardrobes, food choices, or how we walk down the hall. The noise and pressure are gone which allows for better focus for everyone.

Lucky is the freedom we have every day to focus on teaching and reaching. We can use our time to connect and individualize as we earn the students' respect. Once they understand our commitment, they too feel lucky.

Lucky is second cousin to providence or destiny. As teachers, you were destined to work together for the good of hundreds and thousands of students. Their eyes are on us throughout our careers and students remember those who affect their lives. For instance, grading is a necessity of our jobs, but we should be proactive and innovative (despite the testing climate we face) in determining a student's depth of understanding, then raise a cheer when we see it evidenced.

Do you believe that luck just happens as its definition implies? Or can someone make their own luck? If you don't believe you have any control, then you become a victim to what surrounds you. The role model students need is an instructor who can make informed decisions and best choices, not something based on luck, and that is the definition of professional.

Reflection: Engage in an academic conversation with a student today. Put down the grade book, pick up the phone or conference microphone, and have a discussion. See what the student teaches you. It will be a very lucky day for you both.

K is for Key

Every definition for this word - noun, adjective, and verb form - can be connected to education, students, teachers, and the mission of any school at any level.

Keys have one primary purpose: to open locks. As educators, we work to open doors for our students on a daily basis. So, do we view ourselves as a skeleton key, pass key, keyless entry, or the keeper of the deadbolt? Where does our teaching style place us? Are we someone willing to open any door, to release any obstacle as easily and creatively as we can? Do we provide a universal key or expect students to find their own?



Keystone is an important word when you grow up in Pennsylvania as I did. In case you don't remember from elementary geography classes, Pennsylvania is known as the Keystone State because it was in a pivotal position on the Eastern seaboard, centrally located in the Thirteen Original Colonies. I believe high school is the keystone to a student's future, the block which extends or connects the first 9 years and links him to his future. In a more intimate sense, teachers are the keystone for a family and the children, keeping them connected to everything education has to offer and the student's needs. The arch can't stand without the keystone connecting block. Are you the best connection you can be?

Key or tone reminds us that when everything is right where it should be in music, the melody is positively moving no matter what music genre you enjoy. What tone do you use with your students? On your off-key days, can you still reach out to each of them?They do and will react to that tone via email, webinars, and online discussion boards.

Keyed up each day to open your emails,check for submissions, listen to voice messages? Or are you tired enough on a regular basis that you dread it? Regain that excitement in whatever way possible. Students deserve to hear and share the enthusiasm you bring to learning. In my experience, nothing is more infectious to young people than enthusiasm!

Finally, did you know one of the definitions for key is "cardinal?" Cardinal means "of first or highest importance" as in cardinal number. Always think of teaching as the key to the students' success; the school being the key to the future; and teachers always making student needs of the highest cardinal importance. In all ways, you are key.

Reflection: Are you the key to success for a learner or an obstacle? If you let down or dismiss a student, you may not be the best teacher you can be. What more can you do or do differently to make sure you are meeting your own potential so you can underscore theirs?

J is for Joy

The word I selected for "J" might seem strange, considering other possible choices. Life changes for the better if we find something for which we are grateful every day. Focusing on what brings us joy can also have similar far-reaching effects.

Joy is a state of mind, a way of life, and an inner peace. In the hectic day-to-day pace of job and family life, we need to take time to find those things which make us joyful. I am not suggesting a state of euphoria (although some things might just fill our hearts to overflowing), but instead, look for those things which cause you to stop and appreciate the good. It doesn't have to be large or even noticeable to anyone but you.

For instance, I inherited the love of birdwatching from my parents. As I crossed a large parking lot recently, I heard a gull screaming nonstop. I located him atop a tall lamppost and the closest I could figure was this bird was annoyed that I was walking near a discarded bag of French fries. I stopped to stare, giggled aloud, and launched into a human-to-bird conversation. Three other people joined me and the fun was infectious. It was a positively silly and spontaneous moment which brought joy. I smiled all the way through the store and was still smiling as I pulled into the garage when I got home. (The French fries were gone, by the way.)

Juggling isn't easy in the virtual world either. You are expected to make choices daily for students and your teaching. Sometimes a decision is second-guessed and you end up feeling you have let someone down. Remember not to be too hard on yourself. Give yourself the same understanding you would give others.

Judgment is called for in teaching and with it comes the need for fairness. You monitor your curricular area, determine what lessons need emphasis, and respond to student needs. Do you spend more time on email and grading, or making one-to-one contact with students? And once you choose, how long do you spend on each? What determines those choices? And do you get annoyed when something interferes with your plan for the day? Consider, however, it might be just that interruption that brings joy to your day!

Jell-O is an underrated dessert option. Many people equate it with hospitals. I actually have the "Joy of Jell-O" cookbook somewhere and one of these days, I will master the Jeweled Jell-O Surprise. This particular shimmery confection comes to mind when thinking about the elusiveness of some students, colleagues, and deadlines. It is hard to pin people and things down and yet, just like in all the work world, we need to make sure the expectations are clearly defined and students understand that responsibility is learned from consistent practice. And just like this particular culinary creation, what a joy when all the diverse expectations come together.

Just as I encourage you to find Joy in the midst of juggling, I also insist you spend some time each day doing something just for you so you will recognize the joy when it comes. If you are too tired or stressed, you could easily miss it altogether.

Reflection: Do two things each day--something unexpected which makes you smile and something spontaneous which cheers someone else. What did you do today?