Disappointment is the Fuel for Tomorrow

“Don’t let today’s disappointments cast a shadow on tomorrow’s dreams.”
~ Unknown

Some days we are faced with hurtles that must be conquered or, after we trip and stumble, be reset so we can try again. It might be the realization that the restaurant you chose to eat breakfast in wasn’t quite up to snuff or that a lesson we teach wasn’t the best we could do. We have to accept that frustration/disappointment exists and we will experience it in some form every day. The big question is what do you do with it?

Sunday, was when ISTE 2018 really took off. Julie and I had our schedules ready and mine began by waiting in line for an hour to get a ticket to an Apple event I truly wanted to see. I attended a wonderful session about using the Clips app to empower students to create amazing products and to use their creativity to make things that are original and engaging. If you haven’t played with this app on your iOS device you’re missing out. It’s easy and incredibly powerful.

One of the things we (educators) don’t always do a good job of is celebrating the accomplishments and service of others. I was honored to attend n ISTE luncheon that did exactly that. I saw numerous educators from around the world recognized for the fantastic work they do. From a personal note, it was pleasing to see so many folks I work

with on the Teacher Education Network’s leadership team recognized for their service with the Presidents Service Award and our president, Torrey Trust, being recognized with the Making It Happen! award which is one of the top recognitions given by the organization. Torrey is such an inspiration to us all!

Remember that session I stood in line to get a ticket for? After racing across the center I arrived two minutes after they opened it up to the public and I was unable to attend. Oh well…as I mentioned, disappointment just leads to opportunities and off I went to another presentation.

The day included a wonderful opportunity for attendees to check out all of the ISTE PLNs. I joined my colleagues at the Teacher Education Network and enjoyed meeting and chatting with so many people interested in growing in their profession. Then it was time to head to the event’s first keynote speaker. So much was shared and there a few points worth sharing here. A big theme was the concept of truth and the ability to discern it. Richard Culatta said, “Our ability to separate truth from fiction is critical to the survival of our society.” This was a lead in to the concept of the ISTE standard about digital citizenship and what it means to all of us. Richard posed a challenge and requested us to physically write down our responses to “What is one thing you can do to promote digital citizenship in your school this year?” Good food for thought.

Neurobiologist David Eagleman delivered the keynote and presented some new information about how children today process information differently than ever before. The takeaway for me is that we must engage students with higher order thinking styled questions that ask our students to apply their understandings to these queries.

Powerful stuff and tomorrow promises even more…without the disappointments.