Minnesota Teacher of the Year

No matter how many years I teach, I always wake up well before I need to during the first week back to school. Last night I set my alarm for 6:00A.M., but this morning I snapped wide awake at four in the morning, ready to go. I sat there for an hour trying to fall back to sleep, then finally I just gave up and got up.

I’m sure this happens because I’m pretty much a big ball of nerves and adrenaline the first week of school. A lot of it comes from realizing the importance of a good start to the year, and from realizing how quickly students assess your effectiveness. A good September is the key to a good year, and the first week is critical for establishing the routines that will dictate the tone of the class. I feel like I set the tone, the pace, and the mood of the class in the first week, and if I can do things right then, the rest of the month has a good chance to go well. In many ways I suppose teaching a class is like raising a child: every year is important, but those early years are critical for development and learning. Likewise, the first week of the school year lays the foundation for the rest of the year, and that’s enough to freak me out in the middle of the night for a few days.

A few weeks ago I stumbled onto this video:

The piece speaks for itself, but it has to be one of the more uplifting things I’ve seen in a long time. It’s hard to look at the clip and not feel that somehow, some way, we’ll eventually get things right. I also think there are a few educational points to be made here, and I don’t want to pass them up.

I teach technology integration. In the course of my work, I often hear educators concerned that technology is invading our lives and taking away the human element. I think their point is in some cases justified, but I will also say this: if using technology in your classroom is reducing human interaction, you’re not tapping into the power of technology. Technology, done correctly, can bring people together in ways we have yet to imagine. Technology is a tool for enhancing and increasing communication, not dehumanizing our lives. The “Where the Hell is Matt” video is a perfect testament to this.

This is simplifying things, but the gist of the story behind this video is that Matt would make short videos of himself dancing in various places around the world as he traveled the globe, then post them online. After a while the word spread, and his little dancing videos became more and more popular. Eventually Stride Gum decided to sponsor his travels and dances. This latest video brings in people that heard about his dancing and simply wanted to join in on the fun. The whole thing started with one guy, one video camera, and a little web space.

Ten years ago, none of this would have been possible. The little videos of Matt dancing around the world would have been seen by maybe twenty people. There would have been no gum sponsorship. The final video would not have been made. There would have been no way to know of Matt, no way to spread the idea, no way to see it without the help of major television networks.

But in today’s world, Matt’s simple videos evolve into a project involving more than a thousand people from over 42 countries. As of this writing, it has been viewed 9.6 million times on YouTube and 2.6 million times on Vimeo, not to mention other video hosting sites. One person, making technology dance, inspiring and touching millions.

Video Information:
Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

For my first post I thought I’d start with my comments from the Teacher of the Year press conference:

I am honored and humbled to receive this recognition. I know that my path to this podium is a unique one. But perhaps that will bring focus, in a good way, to the fact that there truly is no one best “teacher of the year.”

When I think of the phenomenal nominees, mentors, and my amazing colleagues from whom I learn so much and who inspire me daily, I wish this award could be broken into pieces and shared with them all: For they are talented teachers who are passionately dedicated to their students, and deserved of recognition. And I thank them for their inspiration and encouragement.

I would also like to thank my friends and family, many who have traveled to be here today: friends for your support and family for your unconditional love (especially my wonderful children Kaija, Ben, and Anna, and my amazing wife Kris).

As wonderful as this recognition is, my greatest achievement as an educator will always be, simply each and every time I have the opportunity to impact the life of a child in a positive way: to watch them grow, to learn, and to love to learn, and to leave my classroom ready for what the world brings them. William Butler Yeats said: “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.”

My passion for teaching was ignited when I was a senior economics major at St. Olaf.  I had the opportunity to travel to Asia, and while there I spent some time in orphanages in Thailand and Hong Kong. I returned with haunting images of those children and ultimately realized that teaching children is the way I believe God has called me to impact our world. And I count it among my greatest blessings that for the past 18 years I have been able to work with the children of our community.

With all this in mind, I view being recognized as Minnesota Teacher of the Year primarily as a responsibility and an opportunity to be a representative for teachers, an ambassador for education, and ultimately, an advocate for children: my children, your children, Minnesota’s children.

Every year, Education Minnesota invites present and past Minnesota Teachers of the Year to spend some time at the Education Minnesota booth at the Minnesota State Fair. This coming Tuesday, August 26, is this year’s Teacher of the Year Day at the fair. Derek Olson will be at the booth after 4:30PM. I will be at the booth in the morning, from about 10:30AM to 11:30AM. Other Teachers of the Year from previous years may be at the booth at different times during the day. If you’re at the fair, please stop by and say hello!

While at the booth, you can have your photo taken and put on a free 2008/2009 school-year calendar.

The Education building is on the east side of the fairgrounds (section J-12 on the map). Hope to see you there!

Mike Geisen, the 2008 National Teacher of the Year, has started blogging about his adventures this school year. As National Teacher of the Year, Mike leaves the classroom for one school year to travel the world and speak about education. He will serve in this role through May of 2009. In addition to his sharp intelligence and thoughtful insights on education, Mike is a wonderful writer and an even better human being . We couldn’t ask for a finer teacher representative. Check out his blog here.

Have a great year, Mike!

Congratulations to Derek Olson for being named our new 2008 Minnesota Teacher of the Year! Derek received the award in the wake of Carleen Gulstad’s resignation for personal reasons in June of this year. Derek will make an excellent Teacher of the Year, and is incredibly deserving of the honor. He is a highly respected member of his community, an outstanding educator, and an engaging and energetic human being. I’m excited that such a tremendous representative for teachers and education will serve as this year’s Teacher of the Year. Congratulations, Derek! Have a great year!

In speaking with Derek, we decided to continue with the plan formulated in May of opening up the blog all Minnesota Teachers of the Year. This will relieve the pressure of one person trying to maintain a blog during what is often a busy year of serving as Minnesota’s Teacher of the Year, and will provide a forum for any former Minnesota Teachers of the Year to post their educational views and experiences. If you’re a former Minnesota Teacher of the Year and would like to be part of the fun, please contact me.

I will stay on as blog administrator, and will post as time permits. I have begun tweaking the format and making changes to reflect the changing nature of the blog. I hope to complete the changes this week. Derek and I will be meeting tomorrow to get Derek set up as a blog editor. He’s mentioned that he has a post all ready to go, and we should be able to put that up tomorrow evening.

I wanted to make a quick post first and foremost to congratulate our new Minnesota Teacher of the Year, Carleen Gulstad. She is both articulate and enthusiastic, and will be a wonderful representative for Minnesota educators! Congratulations, Carleen! I’m very happy for you!

In speaking with Carleen about the future of this blog, we decided that rather than limit it to exclusively the current Minnesota Teacher of the Year, that we could extend an invitation to all former Minnesota Teachers of the Year to participate in posting on the blog. Things get fairly hectic during the year you are the Teacher of the Year, and in this way we think we could expand both the reach and content of the blog. I’ve got piles of notes from this past year, and I’m looking forward to finally having time turn some of them into posts. But more to the point: if you are a past Minnesota Teacher of the Year and would like to write a few pieces on the blog, feel free to contact me at any time and we’ll get you set up with an authoring account. I will stay on as the person behind the scenes managing the blog.

I’ve got a few commitments that are keeping me tied up until the end of June, but at that time I’ll go through this blog and redo the format and focus of the blog. Carleen, of course, will have center stage, but I’ll add a page for past Minnesota Teachers of the Year who would like to post. So check back in early July for more information and a slightly different setup.