Connections

[Zelder]

As I immerse myself more and more in the wealth of tools and platforms available to me in the world of Web 2.0, a peculiar thing is happening to me.
I have read FAR more over the past few months as a result of checking our recommended web pages and tools and blogs by educators around the world. I have a Personal Learning Network mainly through Twitter (@fullonlearning), my own website (www.zoeelder.co.uk) and my own blog (www.fullonlearning.com). Not bad for under a year's work!
Not only that, I have moved from hoverring on the outside of blog posts and Twitter conversations to having the confidence to write responses, post blog posts like this and I have created my very own website, blogs and networks.

Ultimately, it would appear that I am becoming a truly reflective practitioner. Ask me this time last year if I would be sitting in my kitchen at 5am happily reading, connecting, watching talks, thinking and writing blogs as I am right now...well, the answer would be a very clear, very definite, "No WAY."

And yet, here I am.

And the impact of all of this? Much, I am sure, I am yet to truly recognise but I do know that I feel part of a connected community of like-minded, excited and enthusiastically dedicated people. I feel that I am no longer on this journey alone. I have people to learn from and learn with. Most significantly, however, I feel that I have something to contribute and I have the confidence to do so.

If this is what 21st Century learning can engender in teachers - connectivity, collaboration, research, enquiry, enhanced communication skills, creativity and with this, the confidence to contribute, then perhaps we're well on the way to doing this for our young learners.

What a fabulous world we are all creating.

A lovely thing to be part of today - my birthday. Thank you everybody as I look forward to another year of strengthened and new connections.