“And that’s how you can automate your Google chat to translate back and forth between English and Mandarin instantly!”
We were only one hour into the academy, and already I was typing notes as fast as my fingers would allow. Tech-savvy educators were taking turns presenting two-minute tutorials on incredible uses for Google Apps. Allow students to make free phone calls through a website which are then delivered to a teacher’s web voicemail box! How to turn your web browser into a screen reader! I knew then that the next two days would be intense.
I was lucky to have been chosen as one of 59 educators to participate in the New York Google Teacher Academy. The Academy is designed to support a global community of technology-minded educators in their use of Google Apps. I applied over the summer by writing essays and posting this video (see below) on YouTube about my vision for “Motivation and Learning”.
Since the Lycée Français has just completed its transition to GMail, the timing of the academy was especially poignant. I was trained specifically on the educational uses of Google tools like YouTube, Google Sites and Google Drive. These sessions were particularly useful, as the first trimester of 6ème informatique, which I teach, is focused on GMail and Google Drive. Many of the new “tips and tricks” that I’ve picked up will help me refine and update the curriculum to assure that the students are aware of the full potential of these tools.
I was able to network with educators from as close as the Dwight School and as far away as Dubai. I also met developers at Google who were interested in how educators use their tools, and looked to us for suggestions. At the end of the academy, when I was officially named a “Google Certified Teacher,” I was added to a listserv of 750 educators who have attended Google Teacher Academies worldwide. I now have a pool of knowledge from which to draw inspiration and expertise.
At the Academy, I met educators who are teaching the design process (as I am in 5ème/7th grade informatique) as well as educators who have coached robotics clubs for several years. Now that we’ve connected, my students and I are able to benefit from their observations, their successes, and their challenges.
As the Lycée looks to stay at the cutting edge in technology and pedagogy, I feel that both the training I received and the network I gained will allow me to be a more equipped resource for the students, faculty and administration. And the most important tidbit I learned at Google Teacher Academy? It wasn’t discussed, just posted on a sign on a cubicle: “Focus on the end user (the student) and all else will follow.”
About the Author :
Originally from Scranton, Pennsylvania, Adena Dershowitz is Head of Middle School. She began working at the Lycée as the secondary technology integrator in early 2012 and became Director of Digital Learning in 2014 and then Director of Curriculum Development in 2018. Adena earned a master’s degree in education and technology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland. Prior to her work at the Lycée, she worked to infuse technology into informal (afterschool and camp) education. In her spare time, she likes to travel, experience the outdoors and make things.