Miss-Coach Conway's Moments

Appreciation Folder : We have all had those days where you wonder how you ever got your teaching degree or how anyone could have possibly thought were were qualified for the job you hold.  Prior to teaching, I used to call my family for reassurance and to help calm me down from an impending hysteria (dramatic teenage years).  Once I started teaching though, it got harder for my family to really relate because they were not in the teaching fields.  In addition to that, in the moment, I may not have time to call someone for reinforcement as to my effectiveness as a teacher. My worst moment came one morning after I had a parent-teacher-principal-counselor meeting with a student who was continuously displaying troubling behavior.  After meeting with his parents, it seemed that there was nothing I could do because the parents didn't see any value in an education or respecting the system (or anyone for that matter).  I left that room, asked for a sub to cover m...

Humility : Of all of the places I could have learned about the benefits of humility, was a blog post I came upon via Twitter from the website The Art of Manliness .  Granted, the article " The Importance of Owning Up To Your Mistakes and How to Do It " is totally geared towards the male-waffle* mind but I was able to relate to the examples and rationale really well.   The author says it best: "[I]t's simple - you can't learn from your mistakes if you can't acknowledge you've made them!"  Once upon a time, I was one of those teachers (people really) who could never make a mistake...period...no matter what.  A student called me out on it one time and really made me consider the lesson I wanted my students to learn from me.  It's definitely not "do as I say, not as I do."  If I expected my students to take risks, make mistakes, and learn from them, why wouldn't I want to role model that for them? I wish I had read this articl...

Constructive Feedback:   It can help guide you to become better at your skill.  Some of us can really take constructive feedback harshly, though.  F ive years ago, I would have taken constructive feedback personally and gotten incredibly defensive.  Now, I am able to take some time to reflect, deconstruct, and really accept the feedback with open arms.  The article " Taking Constructive Criticism Like a Champ " has really helped me get to that point.  When I get back into the classroom, I plan on teaching this article along with a few activities with writing or projects.  I think it is important for students to learn that feedback isn't a bad thing, but a way to grow.   Additionally, I also would take the opportunity during the above-mentioned lesson idea to teach the importance of giving constructive criticism.  If the only feedback one gets is "Good Job" or "Nice", it doesn't help the other person grow or devel...

Participated in my first ever Twitter Chat!  Stressful yet a fun learning experience.  I used a combination of Tweet Deck and Twitter feed tabs to watch for questions and organize my answers and responses to other students.  We all shared resources and brainstorms for our e-learning classrooms.  What a fun time!

Ah, the struggles of taking something one already has made and tweak it to accommodate a new goal or assignment.  I created a Google site (in my blogger profile) as an online portfolio back in my undergrad and want to do two things with it since I regularly use it. 1. MAYBE transfer it over to the new Google Sites Stress - Is it even worth doing that in the middle of my grad course that I am trying to build work into?  Why isn't there a way to transfer an entire Google Site from old school to new school?  My need to have life organized seamlessly sometimes doesn't help me sometimes.   2. Add my graduate studies projects to my current google site Stress - It makes no sense to create an entirely different website!  Now I need to completely reorganize the current website.  How should I reorganize it everything to accommodate the new stuff though?   The struggle is real but I am so glad my professors are facilitating discussions ...

Welcome to Camp Conway !  This blog will follow the journey to and from my new adventures and back to base camp in this new chapter of my life.  I am sure I will create an "About Me" page to link here soon, but for now, here is a bit about me: Taught Title I Middle and High Schools for 5 years (MI, AK, and CA) Currently USA Wrestling's Elite Accelerator Program coordinator at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO (basically elite high school aged wrestlers living here) I contract out within my organization, nearby schools, and other organizations to problem solve using technology (usually educational technology) I am also a graduate student at the University of Colorado - Denver's Information and Learning Technology program