Google Classroom and Google Forms are now working together on the same wave length. Watch this two minute tutorial on how to integrate Forms in Classroom. Enjoy!

​Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities and the newly released Personalized PD: Flipping Your Professional Development. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is a 2014 ASCD Emerging Leader and Google Certified Trainer. Brad currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Dean of Students for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. He is a Google Certified Trainer and speaks nationally about tech integration. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.

October is Connected Educators Month. It's nice to finally see educators connecting in the physical and virtual world. The sharing, reflecting, and collaborating ultimately impacts the success of all students. Personally, I have been a connected educator for the past 4 years. I thank Eric Sheninger for showing me the power of social media as a way to expand my personal learning network way back in 2011. I have met and learned from so many people because of my connectedness. So many ideas have shaped my thinking and help move my school forward in ways I never thought could happen. There is no doubt that I am in a better place because of utilizing tools like Twitter to connect with some of the best minds in the business. Unfortunately, during my time as a connected educator I have seen some negative things happen that have no place in the educational world. Here is a short list of how connected educators can put a damper on one of the most exciting times in education...

1. Act like as the supreme ruler of education and that anyone you interact with must think the way you do.
2. Take cheap shots at people who are just trying to share best practices and help out others.
3. Think that you own a hashtag because we all know that you really can't.
4. Look down upon the disconnected instead of lifting them up.
5. Give people a hard time for how they act, think, or dress. 
6. Forget where you came from and not think about what's best for kids.
7. Think that you are bigger than education.
8. Take yourself too seriously. Humor is a huge part of remaining sane. 
9. Act as a celebrity and totally ignore people at conferences.
10. Share only your work and thoughts more than others. 

​Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities and the newly released Personalized PD: Flipping Your Professional Development. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is a 2014 ASCD Emerging Leader and Google Certified Trainer. Brad currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Dean of Students for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. He is a Google Certified Trainer and speaks nationally about tech integration. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.

​​Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities and the newly released Personalized PD: Flipping Your Professional Development. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is a 2014 ASCD Emerging Leader and Google Certified Trainer. Brad currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Dean of Students for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. He is a Google Certified Trainer and speaks nationally about tech integration. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.

Over the years I have grown exponentially as an educator from visiting other schools and seeing all the great learning experiences that students from around world are involved with on a daily basis. On the flip side, I am really proud of the fact that educators, on an international scale, have come to visit our school. Both scenarios provide all participants a chance to improve their craft and reflect on how they are impacting student success. Often you will see educational conferences now held at schools, which provides yet another opportunity for educators to experience another learning environment even though school may not actually be in session.

The positive impact school visitations have on education as a whole is truly inspiring and must be the standard. What I mean by "must be the standard" is that visitations should be the main focus instead of standardized testing, educator accountability reform, and wasteful money spent on irrelevant professional development opportunities to name a few. I wish there was some way that the money spent on the above-mentioned initiatives could put into a all encompassing program that would provide educators ample opportunities to visit educational institutions from near and far. The knowledge gained from these visitations could then be put into practice to benefit the school community as a whole. There is no doubt in my mind that school visitations are right up there with the EdCamp model and personalized pd, as innovative ways to provide educators with meaningful professional growth opportunities. 

Other benefits of school visitations include bringing about a sense of pride amongst all school stakeholders. On a daily basis our students and staff are doing tremendous things. So why not show them off to the world at large? Also, they give students an opportunity to truly explain what they are learning about to the special visitors. Visitations also give teachers and administrators alike, the opportunity to share insight on educational trends taking place around the world. Sometimes informal conversations are the most relevant forms of professional growth. 

So what do you say? Consider approaching your administration about visiting a nearby classroom, school, or district. If they know what's good for their school and students, they will agree to providing release time for you and/or your fellow colleagues. What if administration is an actual road block in making this happen? Another alternative would be to conduct a Google Hangout or Skype session with educators. It's free and be done at an agreed upon time. In the end, school visitations are what's best for kids, teachers, and administrators. It's what makes sense as the educational world looks to move forward with providing innovative learning environments. 

​Brad Currie is the author of All Hands on Deck: Tools for Connecting Educators, Parents, and Communities and the newly released Personalized PD: Flipping Your Professional Development. He is one of the founding partners of Evolving Educators LLC. Brad is a 2014 ASCD Emerging Leader and Google Certified Trainer. Brad currently serves as a K-8 Supervisor of Instruction and Dean of Students for the Chester School District in Chester, NJ. He is a Google Certified Trainer and speaks nationally about tech integration. Learn more about Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.bradcurrie.net.