BRAD CURRIE
  • Home
  • About
  • Presentations
  • Books
  • Awards/Honors
  • Blog
  • EE
  • Contact
  • Home
  • About
  • Presentations
  • Books
  • Awards/Honors
  • Blog
  • EE
  • Contact
Search

Are Students Thinking About Their Brand?

9/30/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Recently I was asked by one of my colleagues, Meryl Ironson, to speak with our 8th grade students about branding. Honestly, for whatever reason, I never that about the importance of students starting to think about and begin to build their own brand in the physical and virtual worlds. Whether they know it or not, students are being monitored by others on a daily basis. Their actions in school, on the playing fields, and in social media spaces paint a solid picture of who they are and what they will become.

​The purpose behind my visit to Mrs. Ironson’s 8th grade class was to get students thinking about who they are as human beings and what they are truly passionate about and how this translates to a brand they are intentionally or unintentionally creating. We started the discussion by defining the word brand. Students quickly realized that they had a pretty good understanding by sharing examples related to Steph Curry and Under Armour, and shedding light on what their parents do for a living. In one of the classes, a set of twin sisters shared how they use Instagram to brand their family farm. How cool is that? We also had a transparent conversation about the negative ways you can brand yourself and how that creates a hole that sometimes you can not dig yourself out of.

I then shared my experiences with branding in the educational world and the passion I have in helping educators enhance their effectiveness. A look at how Black River Middle School tells their story through social media and how our students contribute greatly to the brand we have created. From a district wide perspective we looked at how our district is doing the same thing through the #WeAreChesterNJ hashtag. So not only are we trying build a positive brand in the physical world through the actions we take in the school setting but also in the virtual world with how we convey all the great things that are taking place on a daily basis.

So what are the next steps we can take as educators to ensure that students begin to think about and actually start planning out their brand? One of the first things educators, and adults in general, can do is model what it means to have a brand. Then, expose students to how others in their age group or idols they admire get the word about all of the tremendous things taking place in their lives. Guidance and support can be offered as students start to plan out the steps they will take to ensure their brand is where they want it to be. It’s almost necessary now that middle or high schools offer a branding course of sorts. Now more than ever, people of all ages have opportunity to create a solid brand that helps move the story of their life and passions forward in a positive direction. Let’s start to have serious conversations as school stakeholders around how we can work with students to ensure they are successful in the future.
Brad Currie has been in the field of middle level education for more than 17 years as a coach, teacher, and administrator. He currently serves as a Director of Planning, Research, and Evaluation for the Chester School District in Chester, New Jersey. Brad is the 2017 NASSP National Assistant Principal of the Year and part of the ASCD Emerging Leaders Class of 2014. He is the co-founder and co-moderator of a weekly Twitter discussion for educators called #satchat. Brad has authored four books including 140 Twitter Tips for Educators and Hacking Google for Education. He presents nationally on educational technology and social media in the school setting. Connect with Brad by following him on Twitter @bradmcurrie or visiting his website at www.evolvingeducators.com.


0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    May 2020
    April 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    August 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013


    Categories

    All
    Achievement
    Blog
    Branding
    Common Core
    Communication
    Culture
    Digital Curriculum
    Digital Leadership
    Education
    Educational Reform
    Educational Technology
    Elementary School
    GAFE
    Google
    Google Classroom
    Grading
    High School
    Interview
    Job Interview
    Leadership
    Math
    Middle School
    Olympics
    PARCC
    Parenting
    Parents
    Perseverance
    Pinterest
    Professional Development
    Public Relations
    Remote Learning
    School
    School Improvement
    Schools
    Self Promotion
    Sochi
    Social Media
    Standardized Testing
    Students
    Swivl
    Teaching
    Technology
    Text-messaging
    Twitter


    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • About
  • Presentations
  • Books
  • Awards/Honors
  • Blog
  • EE
  • Contact