Reflecting on the last eight weeks, I’ve felt that the amount of learning I have done is the most I have acquired in the entire program itself. I began to wonder why I felt this way and the conclusion I have come to is because this is the first time that I have truly contributed so much with such a close group of individuals that we became invested in each other and one another’s growth. It was so much more than a grade this time around. I initially attributed this to it being summer and “having more time.” I quickly found out that I did not have more time. Rather, I was enjoying the course work much more and the weekly collaboration between Allison, Colby, Pedro and I.

Recognizing what I believe is needed for professional development to become professional learning, I sought out like minded individuals, later known as Harapnuik’s Quartet, to create a call to action to help other educators receive the professional development they deserve. My team and I quickly realized the lack of support that we, personally, were not receiving along with so many other educators across the country. We wanted to make sure we were surrounding our professional learning with a never ending amount of support throughout the entire process. We created an outline of what our sessions would look like and how we anticipate the year, or timeline, to go. We believe that great things take time and should not be rushed, so we’ve agreed to be flexible with our learners and allow more time if needed. Although our Professional Learning has thoughtfully been planned out, we still have details to continue putting in place. In the additional resources tab, you will see previews of what our sessions will entail and a variety of links that will be beneficial to have handy as our Professional Learning begins to unfold.  

Taking both courses at the same time allowed me to connect adult learners to my child learners. Regardless of age, we should all want to do the doing and the learning. The connection that my Professional Learning will provide through a SLE is the replication I am doing in my own classroom with my own learners through my innovation plan.

Working with such a phenomenal group of individuals has made me a better person and learner. They see my strengths and let me thrive in them, while recognizing my weaknesses and allowing me to work through them. Every meet with my team was an opportunity for me to broaden my horizon...I am guaranteed to walk away with a new idea. I have no doubt that our relationship will flourish throughout the remaining courses.