Restart Recharge Podcast

002- Remote, Face to Face, Hybrid... Oh My!

March 09, 2021 Forward Edge Season 1 Episode 2
Restart Recharge Podcast
002- Remote, Face to Face, Hybrid... Oh My!
Show Notes Transcript

In second episode we will Talk to Tracee Keough and Lisa Kuhn, tech coaches at Forward Edge, about how they have juggled coaching and supporting educators through the past year in multiple learning environments. 

 

Links mentioned in the show: 

Follow Tracee on Twitter

Follow Lisa on Twitter

Forward Edge Coaches Camp

Podcast Team

Hosts- Katie  Ritter & Justin Thomas

Editing Team- Megan Whitacre, Mallory Kessen, Michael Roush

Social Media/ Promo Team- Annamarie Rinehart, Lisa Kuhn, Molly Lutts

Creative/Content Team- Brooke Conklin, Emily Cowan, Tracee Keough

Research & Logistics Team- Mark Gumm, Tyler Erwin

Producers- Tyler Erwin & Katie Ritter

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Lisa Kuhn:

hit the restart button

Justin Thomas:

recharge those

Katie Ritter:

batteries Hi, everybody. Thanks for tuning in to restart recharge. We're back with our second full episode today I am one of your hosts Katie Ritter,

Justin Thomas:

and on the other host, Justin Thomas.

Katie Ritter:

So we are really excited. Today we've got our first interview for you with our podcast, and we have Tracy Keough and Lisa Kuhn with us and I would like to introduce Tracy here. Tracy was a classroom teacher for 11 years before taking on the role of a technology integration coach for us here at Orchard edge. She taught second grade and fifth through eighth grades. And the highlight of her career so far was teaching at the Innovation Academy in Arizona where students were in a personalized one to one learning environment where they could excel with online curriculum and hands on learning. And currently here at forward edge Tracy is a coach in two different districts and she supports multiple school buildings, multiple teachers, and as her role are in her role as a coach. She has also worked with blended learning hybrid schedules, virtual schedules and face to face schedules, along with a fully virtual academy for one of the districts that she supports. So welcome Tracy.

Justin Thomas:

Welcome Tracy. I want to welcome in Lisa as well. She wore the hats are sure to say Baray of a French teacher for almost 20 years. Eight of those years included sharing some headspace as being an info tech teacher as well. Now the feather in her education cap is to be this she completely revamped the entire French curriculum with her French teaching colleagues at her last school. That process taught her a lot about having vision using UDL and backward design and implementing the plan to realize that vision. It took a lot of collaboration to bring that vision to fruition. But having left that high school classroom behind she's now technology integration specialist with us for pre K through 12 teachers at a six building district. So one district but a lot of different school buildings there. She works with all those teachers, aides, administrators, EMS, secretaries and paraprofessionals in an ever changing world, in person and remote learning environments. Welcome, Lisa.

Katie Ritter:

All right, guys. Um, well, let's get started. And I know we covered just sort of just touched on the surface there with the introduction for both of you. But if you could, could each take just a couple of minutes and sort of describe the current learning environments that you are supporting with your districts just to kind of give our listeners a lay of the land of all that you are doing to support right now.

Tracee Keough:

Sounds good. Well, I'm Tracy Keo, as Katie mentioned, and like she mentioned as well, I am also spread across the Cincinnati area in multiple buildings to different school districts. West Claremont is one of the districts that I am in where I am covering the elementary buildings, there are six of them that I'm in, as well as the middle school building. And I'm also working with their online academy. So we are very busy with all of those pieces, trying to make sure that all of our students and teachers are getting their needs met in this unprecedented time. But even before that, that we were making sure that they were getting everything they needed. The other district that I am in is out in a very rural setting where we have some Wi Fi issues where we have students that don't even have Wi Fi in their house and they are driving to sit in parking lots to even access Wi Fi, or bringing home Blizzard bags of worksheets still and trying to use some offline techniques with their computers. So I do a lot of virtual coaching with that school district as well as working at least once a month trying to get out to their district and get on to some of those campuses to work with those teachers out there.

Katie Ritter:

Awesome. Thanks, Tracy and Lisa.

Lisa Kuhn:

So I am working with the little Miami school district which I think in today's world is probably can starting to be considered suburbia, even though they're still very many rural areas. It's a really fast growing area out there. There are six school buildings P K through 12. And I'm working with all of those buildings. It's over 300 teachers, almost 5000 students plus the central office. And while most of our students do have either one to one devices or internet at home, we do still struggle as well with some of that need for offline work. In an ever changing that whole internet versus satellite versus whatever kind of connection they can have.

Katie Ritter:

awesome yeah so so lots of things going on just between these two coaches in your different settings for sure. So we are actually stick around we will be right back in just 30 seconds we're going to take a quick sponsor break and we'll we will dig into the meat and potatoes of supporting remote hybrid and face to face coaching Oh my

Justin Thomas:

looking for a program that reaches all teachers in learning new tools to integrate in their lessons and you badges is the answer and she was in anytime anywhere badging program that is designed to take bite sized tools for instruction and teach teachers how to use them. LG has received the STC of alignment for Educator Standards. And each page in our expanding library is aligned to the ISTE standards and the Samer model. Learn more about the program that teachers call addicting and for hyphen edge dotnet backslash edu badges. Alright, welcome back. We have a awesome cast on here today we have Tracy Keough, we have Lisa Kuhn. And basically we have both of them on because we're going to talk a little bit about how can you prepare and support teachers in this ever changing learning environment, right? There's a lot going on this school year, there's usually a lot going on in normal school year, but this school year has been especially crazy. So today, we're gonna be learning a lot about these changes that COVID has have happened to have on our coaches and what the coaches have been doing to adapt to these challenges, these changes, and how they've been supporting their teachers through all of these changes as well. So that's why we have Tracy and lease on both of them working in large school districts that have some certain big challenges that we want to talk about. But I first want to bring up the idea of what is now changed for both of you from working with these school districts last year, because you guys were in those districts last year, what has changed from what you've done last year in those districts to this year with the COVID protocols and things like that.

Lisa Kuhn:

I know for me, the big change has been that everybody wants me. This is a big change from pre COVID, I was a new coach in the district. So when COVID hit, I had only been in the district about six to eight months. So a lot of people were not yet comfortable with me. And since COVID hit, I've become very popular in the district. So much so that not only did I spend endless hours in zoom calls during COVID, round one in March, but actually March through May. But coming back into the buildings in the fall, I've had a lot more teachers reach out to me and a broader group of teachers at the various grade levels as well.

Katie Ritter:

Lisa, that seems a little bit like a kind of a silver lining blessing, I think yes. Oh, crisis for a coach, would you agree with that?

Lisa Kuhn:

I definitely agree with that. Because I'm seeing teachers now that I would say hi to they would say hi to me. But if I mentioned tech, it was like, oh, yeah, I have something to work on.

Katie Ritter:

And they had to go answer. Exactly.

Tracee Keough:

Yeah. I would agree with Lisa on that one. There's been that March through May really kind of picked up being that new coach in both those districts last year where I was really kind of floating with the float around my neck and just trying to make sure I was meeting all of their needs that were coming out of the woodwork. Another really big thing for me that's changed is my mindset as far as like trying to still think with inside the box of what they have available. But trying to innovate within that box, not throw new things at them. I heard it said really well by one of my teachers a couple of weeks ago, she feels like her brain is a is a bucket of water. And new things keep getting piled in with COVID. And we just keep pouring water in. But all the good tools that she used to use are like laying in puddles on the side. So trying to remember to pick up those puddles of old tools that she loved before this moment and putting those back into the classroom. So really bringing that back to the forefront of like, how did we use Flipgrid before this moment, or how did we do this? And bringing that back to them? So staying within their their comfort box, but innovating those pieces again?

Katie Ritter:

Yeah, I like dry. I like that analogy, Tracy. So can you and I know I'm putting on the spot for an example. But can you think of so when you say like working within the box, um, but innovating within that? Can you give a recent example of like what that looked like in practice with a teacher that you were working with?

Tracee Keough:

Yeah, so this was a first grade teacher that said that and something that she brought up was she used to love using Flipgrid, early last year with her students for just fluency practice sensations and reminding them like listen to yourself read and kind of all those things that we want our students especially in elementary school to remember how they read how they sound. And all of that's kind of gone to the wayside because they're so worried about sharing things and not being able to utilize tools the same way they did that. They pushed aside a lot of the old tech even though it's still in the forefront of all of our tools. They didn't realize what it was still capable of doing. So we sat down and had a conversation with She brought that up about like, well, what what are things that you still love doing that you still want to utilize in your class? And how can we bring these tools back to life. So Flipgrid was one of them, that she loved. And she brought up with that example of fluency. And so we came up with a kindness challenge to kick off her first grade kiddos this year, which they actually completed last week. Since they are now a one to one, they were able to each record their own voice and hear themselves who their classmates because they can't sit side by side right now as often as they would like to, they can't be collaborating with other classrooms. So we were able to get them on Flipgrid collaborate their voices, and then they're actually sharing those slip grades with another first grade classroom and then giving messages back and forth of kindness to kick them off on how they're going to use Flipgrid in that setting.

Katie Ritter:

Oh, that's awesome. So So you your biggest difference, then, like, what I'm hearing you say is you really been able to take advantage of sort of reminding teachers of the tools and the skills that are already in their tool belt, that may be the overwhelming blast of teaching in multiple settings, and every given day, it looks different, like just kind of re centering, helping to recenter them so that they can stay focused on like what they know and continuing to do some of those things, well, maybe with some slight adaptions for the multiple settings.

Lisa Kuhn:

Absolutely. And that's, that's a hard transition for many teachers to make, because a lot of my teachers tried all the latest greatest freebies, during COVID. And then when they returned in the fall, all of a sudden, those items were no longer free. And then they were floundering as to what do I do? What do I do? And I agree with Tracy 100%, relying on the tools you already have. And going back and finding out how they can still work? Or maybe you use them in ways that you didn't use before. Those are great avenues to explore.

Katie Ritter:

Awesome, yeah, thanks for those tips. So thinking about so it sounds like a lot of your kind of big changes are centered around maybe some of those one on one interactions with the teachers. When you think of some of the, you know, like providing group professional development or professional learning opportunities, what has that looked like for you, the school year, and in particular, like how have you paid special attention to keep it engaging for teachers when, you know, they might just want like a mask and or a screen break, instead of attending yet another, you know, professional development session since March,

Tracee Keough:

I know at least has done a really good job with this one. But something that I have started doing is trying to add in a component of fun to whatever we're doing, whether it's a virtual PD or live face to face PD, where you're shouting through your mask to communicate with people. Those are few and far between more virtual PDS. But adding in a challenge throughout it are little hidden diamonds throughout there looking for to keep them engaged. I just actually took one of our other coaches PDS where she had done a fixer upper Google site and transitioned that into using it for assessments so that my teachers were experiencing what their students would experience through Google breakout rooms. A lot of us as educators, we know how to use it on our education as the teacher, but we've never actually experienced it as a student side. So trying to flip some of those PDFs into that student experience so that they understand the other side of it and make that more fun and give them that collaboration time, which is what a lot of them are just wanted to be able to talk to somebody else.

Katie Ritter:

Yeah, that's a great point. Lisa, what would you what would you say how has your PD gone this year.

Lisa Kuhn:

So group PBS are less frequent this year, just because again, like you mentioned, so many teachers want that mask break, they want that to themselves time break. And so what I've started doing or what are called Power PDS, they're just short little 30 minutes or less. They can be done before school after school during a lunch. Teachers want to combine on a plan Bell, they can do that. And so like February was framework February, and we use Book Creator and Flipgrid as frameworks in launching pads for student projects. March is going to be March Madness, where we've got a tic tac tic board that was developed by some of my fellow coaches. And I have tweaked it to be particular to little Miami. But I think the most important piece in getting teachers to engage in these group PDS is to keep the one on one time there. So I'll still just stop in to see how their day is how was their weekend. If I know that somebody was celebrating a birthday, I'll check in with them. I'm only in each building once a week. So it gives us time to kind of reconnect and a lot of times it'll be like Oh, while you're here. What about and I can often say well guess what? There's a power PD on that coming up on Wednesday or Thursday or whatever. And I've gotten over More attendance because of that. So, okay,

Katie Ritter:

that's awesome. So when you say that when you said that the PD could be before school lunch after school? Are you offering them at all of those times? Or

Lisa Kuhn:

in one day? No. Yes. So if I'm doing a PD at the high school this week, I might offer lunch and learns this week. Next week, I might do an after school. But no, I do not fill my schedule to be booked from before school until after school in one single day, because that is way too much. And typically, what I found with my teacher schedules is what works for one works for all more often than not. So if there's some kind of set of major district meetings, or testing going on, it's going to affect everybody. So I try not to schedule one entire day of PD, but rather break it down for them so they can choose, and they have options on when to attend. Okay, awesome. Oh, go ahead.

Tracee Keough:

Yeah, I was gonna say another thing I think Lisa does really well that I know I've tried to implement is with these power PDS recording one of the sessions you do, and then being able to post that to a Google site that you have for your teachers so that they can always go back if they don't catch it. And watch that. That was one of the things that I had forgotten to do on Friday with my PD with my teachers in the first session, and one of the teachers who's a regular was like, Are you recording these, you have to record these, I have to be able to go back and watch. I was like, Okay, I'll record them. I'm sorry. I'll go back and record the morning one, it'll be fine. So there's

Katie Ritter:

been a big change in PD kind of across the board is just a lot more recordings, making them on demand, so that people can access on their own time.

Tracee Keough:

Absolutely.

Justin Thomas:

Yep, that's something too, that I've done as well. We'd have been some recordings here and there of what you've been doing in PD sessions. And I've gotten the ability to for the staff meetings just have about 510 minutes of time just to kind of show a new tech tool or tip and then kind of adopted Lisa strategy there were you kind of use that as your kind of precursor you you show a tip here in the staff meeting? And then you kind of go out and say, Hey, what do you think about this and talk with teachers? And some of them are? Yeah, that sounds awesome. How can we use that a little bit more in our class and talking about kind of staff meetings and working with admin leads us into our next question of just how are you building that capacity for flexibility, especially in you know, when things are changing on a dime year, and maybe you have admin come in and say, Hey, we are going to go remote in two days, can you provide some sort of professional development for us to get these teachers ready to go, what if some of those things have been happening in your schools

Lisa Kuhn:

in my district, I feel like I have them to the point where in the fall, I pushed really, really hard to practice those strategies before it became a necessity. We do have the Junior High in high school, which are one to one. So that transition is a lot easier than our sixth grade and lower because they are not one to one. In some cases, they're lucky to have the Chromebooks in their rooms once a week. So in the three, four building, for example, the principal there back in the fall, she actually started a cart rotation, a Chromebook cart rotation, where every teacher had the cart for the entire day, once every three to four days. And during that day, they were to conduct classes if they were remote, so that they could practice with the kids getting on Zoom, they could practice assigning on their LMS, which happens to be Schoology. They could practice collaborating. And that way, when it did come time to go remote, again, everyone was much more prepared. And I think that being prepared and forward thinking is going to go much farther than just sitting back on our laurels of having made it through March and through May. And then oh, yeah, let's make the shift. Again, that's really hard to do in two days. So I tried to, again, keep up with you know, remember, just once a week, try to pose something for your students. And then if we do get in that we've got two days, what should we focus on? Then we sit down and we, the principal and I or some teachers and I will talk about what it is those students are going to need to do for the next couple of days.

Tracee Keough:

And I think I kind of took it a different direction when we were going through a lot of changes with my districts. In the late fall, early winter. I really focused on my teacher social and emotional awareness of what was coming. Because sometimes we weren't given like, Hey, this is coming down the road. Sometimes it was we think this is coming but we're not quite sure. And then two days before, like, on a Saturday, they were given a heads up. So I really tried to give them constant reminders of they've already survived the worst of the worst. And they did a really good job with what they had to and to keep pushing them and be that positive cheerleader in their corner like you're already doing it keep going your students are learning one way or another and just remind them that that they were doing the right things even if it felt like they weren't.

Katie Ritter:

Alright, I think that's awesome Tracy because I feel like we all All have needed a little bit of that like, positive reminder, like I know, you know myself even with like you guys, and not not just you but our entire team, I have felt that I have needed to reassure you guys a lot in terms of, like, there's so much need right now to support our educators in our schools. And you guys are so phenomenal about like killing yourselves to try to do everything that you possible possibly can. So you know, like, even you as, as my advice to the coaches who are listening, and to any administrators who support coaches that are listening is to not only really be reassuring your teachers, but reassure yourself, or reassure your coaches, that that they are doing a great job as well, too. And we're all just kind of, you know, taking it in stride a little bit, and we're all really doing, you know, the best that we can and really even even beyond the best that we can, because it's just been, it's been so impressive what you guys, what just educators across the country have been able to across the world have done in response to this situation? And, you know, like you both kind of touched on, you know, sometimes it's sort of a spur of the moment, or maybe you find out, Tracy, you said, like on a Saturday. And, you know, that's because everyone's doing what they can to try to get these kids into the buildings as safely as possible. And so unfortunately, that means that things are up in the air for us and for our teachers just a little bit in kind of on that same vein with like, so much coming to the teachers, and so much like having to transfer in the spur of the moment. Have you guys noticed I know kind of on our our team, collectively, there have started to be some conversations around teachers wanting to resist technology, and saying, you know, next year, I'm not doing anything with technology, because, you know, to their point, they feel very overwhelmed right now. And they feel like that's all they've been able to do and that they're just staring at a screen instead of interacting. But kind of one hat. Have you experienced that? And in like the second piece of if you have, how are you kind of handling that with your teachers?

Tracee Keough:

Well, I'm gonna say I have not experienced too much of that, between either one of my districts, there has not been a lot of the I just never want to pick it up and touch it again, conversation. And I think a lot of that is because we are trying to direct them back to you are doing a good job, you're doing what you need to do. And a lot now that we're back in, both districts are trying to stay in as much as they can. We're trying to direct those conversations, that blended learning piece of like, don't be on the technology full time while you're in the building with your students make those connections, have them off of their computers when you need them to be. And really directing conversations more that way. So that this last semester isn't fully technology based when they're sitting right in front of you. So I think that will help curb some of that feeling if there are teachers that are feeling it and not ready to express that yet, at least from where I'm at.

Katie Ritter:

Yeah, that's great point. I love that. Lisa, what about eel?

Lisa Kuhn:

Um, same thing, I don't think there are any teachers that have gone the route of I never want to touch technology again. However, I do have a handful that are worn out by it. And they want as little to do with it right now as possible. It's like

Katie Ritter:

that if I had another virtual meeting?

Lisa Kuhn:

Exactly, exactly. So it's their break time, oh, I don't if I if I don't have to do it, I really don't want to. But if you tell me I have to I will. So one of the angles that I'm approaching as well as trying to get them to understand the concept of hybrid environments. And that whether they're remote or in person, it's not an all or nothing. Show, finding that balance between the tech and the hands on is critical because students need skills in both areas. And so like with my my younger students, teachers, I've been pushing the Google Slides, for example, where students can do work at home on a piece of paper, they can create an art project. And they can take the picture directly into the Google Slides. Instead of having to take it with a phone downloaded, upload it, save it, it's a one stop shop, boom, it's done. And it's a matter of finding those little tips and tricks to use with the students at all age levels and the teachers because a lot of times they just don't realize those simple little tricks are there because they haven't used them before.

Justin Thomas:

I love that because it's not necessarily about replacing every single thing with tech. It's about how we can use tech to enhance the learning and these little tips and tricks are so perfect because it is sometimes I think and especially in this day and age where some schools are still remote trying to work their way back you think is all just going to be technology now and there's still a lot of very important needs that go around the entire, the entire board that is not just going to be straight through technology. But how do we use technology to complement that, in several ways for an instruction in the classroom?

Katie Ritter:

Thanks. Yeah, and I was, I'll just add to that to Justin, that's what I was going to comment is I love that both of you mentioned something about reminding teachers and working with teachers, that it's not just about being on the tech all the time, you know, that's coming from the tech coach, where, you know, we all know, as tech coaches, our job security depends on teachers using technology, right. So if anyone's going to champion it, it's going to be us. But I think that that's an important, that's an important thing for tech coaches to remember is that, you know, it gains credibility for you, I think, as the tech coach, and as less as the tech coach and more as an instructional resource, right? If you if you are the one reminding the teacher, sometimes I don't know if the technology makes sense here, like you might be able to do this better with like, you know, just face to face conversation. You know, I think that just lends credibility to when we do recommend the technology, like we really do feel like that would be the best option. So I love that you both both mentioned that as the tech coach to sometimes step away from it.

Tracee Keough:

I was just in a conversation with a second grade teacher last week or two weeks ago. And she was really concerned about math because her kids just needed hands on and she's like, but I just don't want them on the computer. Like we're over it. They're over. I said, then take them off the computer, like it's not that big of a deal. Put some manipulatives in front of them, put them back in the box, give them a day to quarantine or whatever they need to do and sanitize before. Yeah, like whatever we need to do hand sanitizer before we touch them hand sanitizer after but take them off the computer. And she kind of looked at me like are Did you just tell me not to use the I said, if that's what's best for your kids right now, that's what's best for your kids right now. I think that was like you said a valuable thing coming from the person that's supposed to be like, No, you have to be on technology. That doesn't really work.

Lisa Kuhn:

For him. I think sometimes too, whether the message is misunderstood, or the message truly is to the teachers that they need to be using technology all the time. I know some teachers in my district are under the impression that that's the expectation that they be on tech all of the time. And I think in many cases, it's more a misinterpretation of it, then the actual message. So kind of, you know, talking them off that ledge and saying no, really, it's okay, you're not going to get fired. It's okay to do what's best for your students.

Katie Ritter:

Well, at least I think you touched on something that kind of goes into the first episode that Justin and I did. Our very first episode was just defining the role of a tech coach. Because we so often need clarification, especially for brand new coaches who are just kind of like you're in this tech role. Now, you know, it's a brand new position, or, you know, we've never trained you on how to be a coach, but here you go go coach, um, you know, or whether it's for our teachers who think we're there to fix the projector or the computer. And that's not what we're there for. So, and part of that clarification of the role itself, I think is always really important for us as the tech coach, when we come in, to lay that expectation, to clarify that that is not the expectation that we are not there to make sure that every student in every classroom is just sitting on a computer every day. And when you clarify it in that way, and you lay that expectation of yourself for them, I think you can kind of physically well, when we were all in rooms together and could see facial expressions when we were you could like see kind of relief come over people like okay, they're not just gonna push me to be on the technology a lot. So I think that's a great point.

Justin Thomas:

Obviously, as you've mentioned, some teachers are kind of stressed about trying to use technology, how do you handle those situations with those teachers to just kind of calm them down and let him know everything is okay. No, you kind of alluded to it a little bit there.

Lisa Kuhn:

Sometimes they can't be talked off the ledge in the highest stress moment. And that's just life, right? We all have those moments where it's like, I need to freak out I need to vent. And that's what I'm doing right now. However, it is possible that in that moment, sometimes they just need to be told this is your best option right now. Again, it depends on how how distressed they become while talking to you as to how you approach that. But I found that either, you know, we do come up with a solution in that moment, or they stay high stressed in the moment. But once they've gotten through to the other side and they have a chance to look back on it. There's often that relief like oh, yes, I did it. We got through it. Everyone survived on with the next thing. So it just really depends on how high stress they are in the moment I think and how willing they are to take that deep breath and have the conversation.

Tracee Keough:

And I think that goes to a lot of building that capacity and your relationships with your teachers as a tech coach, because in that moment, you're able to read your, your teacher that you're meeting with in that one on one scenario of like, I just need to sit here and listen and be an active listener. And let them just vent, and I've had a lot of one on one meetings in the last year where it's just, they just needed to be able to trust and vent and get through that with someone that's not judging, that understands the process. It's been in the classroom. And then once like Lisa said, once they get to the other side, they're like, Okay, so what do you got? How can I make this better? And other times they need to get off the call and come back, and you just email them and say, Okay, I hope you're doing better when you're ready. Let me know. And we'll talk through this. I had one that in May, March last year was getting on calls with me breaking down in tears, and like leaving abruptly, I've been on every Monday for the last year. And or since August, every Monday calls with her that lasts 30 minutes to an hour. And she is leaps and bounds from where she was. And she trusts in herself. And she believes in herself now. So I think it's a lot of building that cheerleader, almost, for those of us that are not cheerleaders, like just supporting them and, and being the rah rah behind, like, you've got this and it's non judgmental, and you'll get through it, and it'll be fine. And I always come back to like, you've done hard things, and you've done them for a while now. So this is just one more hard thing that we'll figure out how to get through. And that's, I think, been a big a big thing for me as a tech coach is just supporting my teachers that way and listening.

Justin Thomas:

I think that's something too that you know, sometimes gets forgotten with the role of a tech coaches is sometimes when you are you were a teacher, you think everything that's happening is happening just to you. And that's not always the case in you being the tech coach, you're in the classrooms, you're in different buildings all throughout the district, maybe in different districts too. And you can kind of see, you know, that's happening other places, it's not just that teacher, and you can kind of help relay that message and just know that you're there to help them. And you know, we'll get through this together.

Tracee Keough:

And you bring that up. And one of my favorite quotes that I read a while back was and I relate it to a lot of my teachers is we're all in the same ocean, our boats might look different, but we're still all in this ocean together. So yes, it's happening to other people, their boat might look a little bit different because they've got 32 Kids, or 12 of them, or IEPs, or whatever their boat situation looks like. But we're all in the ocean together. So yes, it's still happening across, you know, in this school or that school, but just making them aware that like they're not alone in the ocean.

Katie Ritter:

Um, and it makes me want to go to the beach right now. We are in the middle of teenage snowing. Yeah. Okay. Um, but no, I think that that kind of leads in a little bit. And I'm going to kind of push you guys just a little bit. So I think, you know, I always kind of joke. And I don't say this flippantly. It's part of the job that I've always appreciated. But that tech coaches are somewhat of like a teacher, therapist, you know, because when it comes to using technology, and they're, you know, scared about or they're not happy about what they're being asked to do, even if it doesn't have anything to do with technology, because we focus so heavily on building those relationships with teachers, you know, they trust and confide in us about a lot of things. And so sometimes, and I can easily see how, during COVID, this could have exacerbated in a sense, those, you know, our team did a book study two years ago on the book switch, how to change when change is hard. And one of the quotes that we got from there that we focus on is true, but useless, right? Where like, Yes, that's true that this is happening to you. But it's sort of useless in like solving this current problem that that we're facing, and that we're complaining about, right? So like everything that's on their plate, and sort of like event session coming from the teachers. And so I'm just wondering how you guys may be taking those true, but useless conversations that the teachers are having? You know, especially because both of you, you know, you mentioned how many buildings and teachers you support, right. So you've got to focus on building the relationship to show that you're empathizing with what's going on. But you can't just sit there in a, you know, complain fest for an hour when you've got a bunch of other teachers knocking at the virtual door for for help and support. So how are you taking those true, but useless, high stress moments and a lot of these cases through COVID and turning them into solution oriented conversations, because I think that that is a tricky thing for a coach to do. And you're like crap, yeah, I don't know what I would do either right in your mind, but you don't necessarily want to come out and say that to the teacher. So how are you handling that?

Lisa Kuhn:

I know in my case, most of the really Heavy, true but useless comments, and it's no dig against this grade level, it's because they don't have the devices. If you don't have one to one devices, a lot of these tech solutions seem overpowering and unachievable. And so a lot of what I'll hear is, but we don't have, but we don't have, which is absolutely true. But we still have to get those students ready for whatever it is. And so what I will often try to do is, first of all, acknowledge that I hear what they're saying, because acknowledging that they're being heard, go so far, and they're being more open to hearing the solutions that you offer them. And it goes, even if it's the fifth or sixth or 10th time that someone is complaining about the but but I can't because they they get it and they start understanding it and they open up to whatever it is, and they even become, in most cases become a part of the solution process. Without it just being me. Because you also need to take into consideration, you know, factors that are beyond yourself. You know, it's the students, it's the teacher, we have at least one teacher I know of that I've worked with that has satellite internet. So even for herself on remote learning days, she has trouble connecting to the meetings. So you know, what are some other solutions we can come up with? Yes, your students are not one to one. And yes, you have crappy internet? How can we work around that? And again, acknowledging and then pulling that person into the conversation?

Tracee Keough:

I would Yeah, I would agree with you, Lisa. I think acknowledging is always key and step one of just letting them know, you hear what they're saying? If it's something that's like, you've heard multiple buildings, multiple places, I always let them know, I will pass that on to those above us. And they feel like well, maybe if it's coming from you, and then going up, maybe it'll be heard even louder. So I do let them know if it's something I'm hearing multiple times multiple places about that. But I also in that also start to question and kind of put it back on them like, well, what are some things that are going well? Or how could we transition this into here and kind of have them focus on some bright spot pieces that are going well to help them transition that mindset from the negative to the positive? Because in the moment, most of our teachers don't see the positive, they don't see what is really going well. And I think that's part of our job as a tech coach is to remind them, and to point out those bright spots and those things that are going well. So in those negative moments, those true but useless, like, Yeah, this is happening, we have to work through it. How would you like what is your dream work through? Like, what would this look like if you had everything available to you? Okay, so let's narrow it down. Now, let's break it down to what you do have, and how we can make this work for our students and, and kind of giving them that dream house scenario and then bringing it back down to reality.

Katie Ritter:

Yeah, I like that I always. Now, this was pre COVID When I when I was actively doing this, but I would always say, you know, if I felt like things, were kind of going down a path that that was going to like completely derail, like our goal of the meeting, or the PD or whatever it was, I would always start by just saying, like, I hear, you know, empathizing in some way. And then just saying, you know, I'm not gonna be able to solve that for you today. Like, let's focus on the things that we can solve why we are together, and that every single time I ever said that it always like, kind of put people in check of, okay, we're going down this path here of being really unproductive. And just kind of complaining, let's refocus. So I think that's good. And something else that you both said, that I want to highlight is like that empathy piece. And I would just my tip to coaches is be careful during that empathy piece. And I know that you both do this really well. But be careful during that empathy piece, because it's really easy as the coach when you're hearing the complaints of a teacher, especially if you're fresh out of the classroom, or you remember what that was like when you were in the classroom to be like, Yeah, I don't know why that principals doing it. Either. Like that's a stupid decision or that's terrible, right? Like, you can't over empathize where then it's putting you at odds of either being perceived as gossipy, depending on if you share too much or as working against the administration, like your your role is to really be that bridge, or that glue that kind of helps moving things forward. So Tracy, I love how you use that idea of, you know, kind of keeping your ear to the streets, if you will, and knowing what's going on in the pulse around the district or the building and knowing at what point do you as the coach, then accelerate that conversation and bring it to the administration to move that or to help solve that problem at a level that needs to be at to solve the problem without like going down the road of saying, you know, oh, yeah, everyone's experiencing this, this is really bad or, you know, whatever it might be. So I think that that was a great tip that you gave the listeners,

Justin Thomas:

I think it can be so hard to really, you know, celebrate those successes from those little victories, because immediately it's moving on to the next challenge. But what are some ways that both of you have been able to really highlight those success successes for the teachers to really like resonate with them to know that they you know, they're not just continuously in this battle, but they have had some awesome success throughout this COVID year.

Tracee Keough:

One of my favorite things to do is to have them put together a slide deck, especially those that I'm doing formal coaching cycles with, I have them build a slide deck that they share with me, and have them take screenshots or little snippets, blurbs of their favorite things that they've been working on. So the things that went really, really well for them. And then I build a highlight reel of all of those coaches that I've worked all of those teachers that I've worked with. And I ended up sharing that with all of the admin and the district leaders as well just to highlight those hotspots that are going on because they don't see them, either. They're just as knee deep as the rest of us, trying to figure out what's best for the schools and the students and the teachers. And really highlighting those I do tell my teachers up front, like I will be kind of pushing this into a bigger highlight reel and sharing this out at a higher level so that they know. But I also tried to when I'm in the building, give, take quick pictures and shout those out on Twitter. Like, look what's happening here. Oh, these are amazing. First graders are looking at this fifth grade class excelling. And then those really like highlight moments going to the admin while I'm on campus, and just also relaying that message of Did you check out this fifth grade classroom, she started Schoology badges or this could be a great tool for this and really shouting those loud and proud from for the admin to know because some of our teachers, I know I was one of them. They don't necessarily like to have that recognition. They're not ones to toot their own horn. So if you can get in there and kind of be the one to support them that way. I think it makes a big difference.

Justin Thomas:

Yeah, like that goes along with the cheerleader aspect, right. And I you know, I've mentioned this in the first episode, but being the ambassador between admin and teachers, because sometimes they are bogged down with everything that's going on in their respective departments, they don't see what or awesome things are happening in both ways. So I really liked that.

Lisa Kuhn:

Yeah. And I will also ask teachers, when they, when they share a success with me, I'll ask if I can share that with other teachers. You know, if they have questions about it, can I send them to you, I mean, that's really great. Same thing, you know, telling the admin, another thing I've started doing two is creating little stickers. The first ones I created, were back in the far fall, and they were like fist bumps. And you've got this, just as the craziness of COVID was coming back. And are we going remote? Aren't we going remote. And a lot of the teachers put them on their computers as a reminder that they had it. And then I just recently created some for these power PDS where I have a Bitmoji of myself pumped up. And so they can remember that they're getting pumped up with these power PDS and they get excited about it.

Tracee Keough:

I love your Bitmoji stickers. I remember Baray comment that just introduced her with every one of her Bitmojis where's the blu ray? So it's very fitting like everybody knows it's the least that Bitmoji

Katie Ritter:

Oh, are you do have emojis I've ever seen.

Justin Thomas:

That's true. And I was today years old when I realized that every one of your Bitmojis had the brain. So it shows how, you know, I've been paying attention to that. But I remember when you brought those tickers, you know, you kind of came into the office, you're like, which of these do you like? And I'm like, What the heck is what are all the what's going on all these Bitmojis and they explained what you're doing. And I was like, Oh, that's a really cool idea. So you guys are definitely way more creative than I am. And some of these cases

Katie Ritter:

love it. And we've I like how you, I liked how you said that you asked, or you ask the teachers if you can share what they're doing. That's that's really good. Because, um, you know, I talked about this in some other areas. But when you think about if you're familiar with the Steve Chapman books around the five love languages, and then he also has one for the five love languages in the workplace. Some people hate public recognition, or they hate that, that words of affirmation. And so like just announcing them in a faculty meeting, or maybe putting them in the staff newsletter could actually do the opposite of what you're trying to do by pumping them up. So I like that you, you know share that you ask them and kind of a second piece that I always think is awesome with that, and connects to share. brightspot is sharing what the students did, right? Because that goes like for a couple of things where it can make a teacher in that same building or district to all things created equal as you this other teacher has access to and, you know, in the students and if it's Oh, You can do it down the hall, I'm not just hearing about it from, you know, the school that is perceived to have every benefit and everything working for them. But if we can do it here too, then I can do it. And I mean, we're all we're all pretty much in education because we care about making an impact in the lives of, you know, youth, right? So if I think we're driven a lot of times by seeing what the kids do, and their reactions to it, and what an awesome, you know, experience it was for them. So I think that's another thing that I I've personally had success with before, too.

Tracee Keough:

I loved that you mentioned, when you asked the teacher, if you could share that you were sharing that with other teachers so that you are bringing teachers to them, and kind of building that inner community within that school of like, hey, this teacher over here is doing it. And she said, You could ask her if you had questions, or he was willing to share his template or whatever. I think that builds a lot of that community too for them.

Katie Ritter:

For sure, it takes a village right. Um, so we we have talked a lot about, you guys mentioned a lot in some of like your silver linings from one of the first questions that Justin and I asked you, you talked about some of those skills that, you know, because of COVID, that we've been sort of forced to do and adapt and learn are now sort of translating back into the regular classroom. So thinking in that same vein, when you think about yourself as a coach, some of these modifications that you've had to make, whether it is to professional development, or just how are you being visible for teachers, when you know, we're not physically together and buildings to maybe adapting your coaching cycles, what what is something that COVID has caused you to change in your coaching practice that you plan to keep in place, even when you know that the days of COVID are eventually sooner or later are going to be behind us? Yeah,

Lisa Kuhn:

that's the one of the changes that I've made is how I have my appointment schedule set up with my teachers. Even though I was always available via email, or phone calls, if I was in a different building during the week, teachers really didn't, they didn't really latch on to that until we hit COVID. And I set up appointment slots that anybody could access from any building at any time. And that way, if I was not doing an in person, or I wasn't doing something with the building, I was scheduled for that day, they now know that they can schedule a Zoom meeting with me. And we can connect virtually, I even had someone a little earlier today. She's like, I'm trying to get this thing set up in Google, I want to post it to Schoology can resume later this afternoon. Absolutely, you know, so it's really opening up that other avenue for them. So that they it's kind of a you know, on demand anywhere, anytime, yes, you can get a hold of a tech coach, even though they're not in your building. So for me, it was just a different way of doing it that that made more sense to the teachers. And then I really the one thing that I want to keep and I've kept the whole time is those personal check ins. So even in a remote situation, you know, sending out a little email to a building a department and individual, those little touch points still keep things going and and moving in a good direction regardless of whether we're in in person or remote.

Tracee Keough:

And I would second kind of all of that, at least I was saying, really structuring out that time. One thing that's made a huge difference for me that I hope to continue moving forward is Mondays have really become some dedicated time with my online teachers. And I know that Academy is not going away moving forward, where I have specific one on one time setup with teachers, for them to whether it's social emotional needs, they just need to vent or we're talking through things. But we have had regular Monday meetings and I'm hearing more and more of like how important those event whether they need help or not. They know it's there. They know they have that scheduled time set aside where they have to take a breath and really focus and ask questions that they normally will not set aside time to ask because it's scheduled for the whole year out we do it quarter by quarter. And really getting more of those onto the books moving forward for those online teachers in the virtual academy. Because it is working for a lot of those teachers that I'd meet with regularly to have that dedicated time. Similar to like Lisa saying it's all access whenever they need it. I think another thing personally for me as a coach is reminding myself that I need to continue growing and not stay stagnant. So I've been really more aware of like reading more books intentionally based for what I need to be focusing on, whether it's blended learning, the book study that the district did, whether it's just my latest one which was being creatively productive. So just trying to find ways of things that I can continue to grow myself as a tech coach so that it's Not all technology based but tools that I can then relate to my teachers to help them feel successful as well.

Katie Ritter:

Yeah, I love that. Tracy, can you please provide a summary of being creatively productive? Because there are days? I feel like maybe I could do some

Tracee Keough:

tips when I get there? Yes. I got a great.

Katie Ritter:

Yeah. Okay. Yeah, um, I think that that's an awesome thing to point out, though. Because coaches need professional learning opportunities on how to coach Right? Like, obviously, as a tech coach, we had to stay on top of new tech tools and what's coming out and, and so on and so forth. But I mean, that's really kind of the reason why we created this podcast is because there's not a whole lot of training opportunities that are beyond just how to use the technology, right? Like, like, how do you actually coach? How do you build relationships? How do you do these things? What is a coaching cycle? And how do I implement it? Right? So that is why we I mean, naturally, kind of the heart and soul of why we're doing this podcast is because there isn't specific professional learning opportunities provided to coaches around coaching, leadership, and all the other things that we have our hands in supporting across the district. So I love that you mentioned that. And that that is that that's been a focus for you.

Justin Thomas:

Going on with that? What are some of those go to tools I know you guys talked about a little bit with this. But can you elaborate a little bit more maybe some other of these ideas that you kind of had these strategies that bridge this gap between moving between these different learning environments.

Tracee Keough:

So I'll say some of my go to tools that I've really been focusing on with teachers and Lisa highlighted one of them earlier is Google Slides, that's going to go to with all of my schools elementary, middle and the Virtual Academy in and the rural district out in Logan elm, because they are two different LMSs. And that plat form will work for both of them, giving them that online and offline abilities for any age group, which has been really nice teachers feel really comfortable utilizing that piece. And then Nearpod has been another one that's really played an important role in the West Clermont district this year, because it has so many pieces that are so interactive. So when they're transitioning between in person and hybrid and face to face, and blended or remote, or whatever, that tool still is something that they can embed into Schoology as their LMS. And have a live presentation where the teachers controlling it, whether they're remote or in person and have a student lead piece and have collaboration boards and different things happening to really engage the students. So that's been another really important tool that we've utilized this year, to kind of keep engaging everybody, and moving them through that process of learning and, and conversations.

Lisa Kuhn:

And kind of along those veins Google Suite, definitely the docs, the sheets, the slides, and again, because they have that easy offline capability for the students that don't have the access that that some of their their counterparts do. Another one with the teachers that I've been going to is loom we do have a subscription in the district to zoom, which you can also record there, but not all teachers are comfortable enough to do screencasting with it. So loom has a free for education option where it's an upgraded, subscription for free. And it's great for doing screencasts, either just the screencast itself, or you can do with the little insert of your video there. Or you can do just a straight video. And it's very simple, very easy to learn. And a lot of the teachers appreciate how simple it is, it's not some complicated tool that they can't manage. on the student side, though, Flipgrid has become a real big go to for the online recording types of situations again, because it's so easy to use most of our platforms like Schoology or Blackboard, if anyone's ever still using Blackboard, most of them have some kind of video recording options. But they're just not as easy and simple for students at all grade levels to to use. So I'd say those are a couple of mine that in this remote age I've kind of started leaning towards.

Tracee Keough:

And I would follow that up by saying and I think Lisa does does this as well and has seen this in her district as well as we're really starting to see the the teachers coming together more and building those strong teacher teams more so than in the past. So districts that have always said like we are this and we share and collaborate and really when you start talking to teachers, that's not always been the case. In this past year that's really starting to come to the forefront. They really are building those strong teacher teams and starting to share those mature meals, whether it's a loom video that they've made or a slide deck that they've produced really sharing those resources. So that's become a go to like resource for a lot of our teachers, as well as reaching out to their strong teacher teams to help break down a unit or Math Science, whoever's taking what to create those tools.

Katie Ritter:

Good, another silver lining from all this craziness. Okay, last one, we'll have Lisa. No, I

Lisa Kuhn:

was just gonna say I will say one of the difficulties in in gathering these go to Tools is there's some really strong ones out there that are great for both in person remote and hybrid learning. But they come at a price. And so that's where those conversations have to be had with the districts, you know, to try to determine how much is it going to be used, so the district does get a return on investment. You know, EdPuzzle is one that has come to the forefront this year, where you can take a premade video or create your own and embed questions within the video. Who wouldn't want that? Right. But it comes at a price to be able to do that to the extent that most teachers and districts want to. So just a little, you know, be careful and aware of these really cool tools, know what their, their, their parameters are. And their limitations are as far as you know, money and usage.

Katie Ritter:

Yeah, and I know that I think, first of all, school treasurer is everywhere. Thank you, Lisa. Second, I think that's also that is a tough thing as a coach, because these tools change so frequently, right? And that that's kind of how they start sometimes is like, you're we're giving it away from free. And then the next thing you know, you've got all your teachers using it, and then they change their policy, and now it's paid. But I definitely think that's a good thing to point out to, to keep on the forefront of our minds as a coach, for sure. So I have one last question for you both. And that would be if you could share your top tip with coaches right now to help them get through the rest of the year. What would it be? And it could be to start something to stop something to continue something. But but if you think about what has helped you the most get through this year, what what is it that you recommend?

Lisa Kuhn:

put your mask on first. It may sound a little cliche, but it's just like our teachers, if we're not taking care of ourselves, we're not going to be any good to any of the teachers that we're trying to help. And putting your mask on can take a lot of, you know, different versions, it could be coloring in a meditation book, you know, for five minutes a day, it could be closing the door and turning off the tech. It could be watching a movie, it could be collaborating with someone on something that's not tech or maybe it is maybe that is how you recharge and restart. Oh, wait, you can listen to our podcast, restart, recharge, and that'll keep you going to. But definitely take care of yourself. Allow yourself to take care of yourself. That's a big one.

Tracee Keough:

So yeah, not the coach. That's good at that one. Don't put my mask on first. But that's like the mom, teacher. Me. I'm working on it. But yeah, I would say the one thing I would tell coaches is find the positivity, find the bright spots and find the meaning and purpose in everything you do. Because even in the hard times, they're there. And it's our job for ourselves and for those that we're supporting to help point those pieces out because they're living through the hardest pieces. And we need to be there to show them that things are going okay and and things are are going to be okay at the end of it.

Katie Ritter:

I love it. I needed to hear both of those ladies. So thanks. Those are great. Yeah. Yeah. Well, thank you both so much again, Tracy Keough and Lisa Kuhn, part of our instructional technology coaches here at forward edge value both of your perspectives that you're sharing on the podcast and that you share with our team on these topics as well too. So thank you so much. It's been wonderful having you on today. Thank you. And so I do want to share before we wrap up here we at forward edge are going to be hosting a coach's camp this summer of 2021 where we are going to be actually leading a training so it will be two full days of training specifically for Instructional Technology coaches. So how do you implement formal coaching cycles? How do you market yourself how do you clarify and define your role and a lot of other topics so we will be leading that. I don't have any more information for you beyond that as of now but we will at our next episode to share the dates and information on how you can attend our coaches camp but we wanted to throw it out there so as you are thinking about pouring into yourself as a coach, you know that that will be an option for you this coming summer. So we're excited about that. And next are well in two weeks from when this episode goes live, we're going to be talking and really digging into virtual PD burnout, and how you can strategize around that as a coach so be sure to subscribe to restart recharge wherever you listen to podcasts, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at our our coach cast.

Justin Thomas:

Feel free to reach out to us and let us know what topics you want us to discuss. So press the restart button, recharge your coaching batteries and leave feeling equipped and inspired to coach fearlessly with the restart recharge podcast

Katie Ritter:

a tech coach collective. Okay, there we go. Thank you