All ya do is talk, talk…

I am fortunate to live in one of the greatest cities in the world, in one the largest school systems in the country, and to have one of the best jobs I could ever want. Combined this provides me access to learn directly from some of the brightest minds in the world. I am aware that I am beyond fortunate to have the opportunity to learn so much from such esteemed and renowned experts. Just this month I have been face-to-face with Jane Goodall, Marco Torres, Jean Michael Cousteau, Alan November, Diane Ravich, Deb Meir, Will Richardson, and Dave Warlick.

However, what I find myself realizing is that while they all have amazing, impactful, meaningful and relevant information and ideas to share…what is missing, what is needed, is for these educational leaders to come into our schools and work with us with a classroom full of students. Let us see these words in action. While I know it’s unrealistic to believe an expert can come in for one period and make miracles, I think that it would be a great follow up for those of us who are the choir to whom they’ve been preaching.

We are the converted and the logical next step for those of us who have bought the bill of goods is to commission these experts to a little more then tell us what we should be doing and instead join us in a “Get Going with…” lesson and provide ideas to keep it going. I’ve found that in so many cases it takes just this kind of push to see a these words in action to really start the type of changes these leaders are talking about. And, if we used some tech tools to record, share, and follow these experiences, well the results could have a tremendously impactful rippling effect.

Are others ready to move beyond the great talks and presentations? Have any of you actually had some of these experts work with your classes? If so, please share some information and links to what they’ve done and what you’ve learned.