Peer Feedback: Let's Take it to Heart, but not to Heart...

After every presentation or podcast I do I always like to pause and reflect on how I did and how I can improve for next time. Two examples come to mind when I think of this. Firstly, my presentation in March on Demystifying Teaching Reading, and secondly, my most recent podcast discussion for the New Teacher Talk podcast in which I spoke about family communication. 

Right after I presented for the pre-serve and early educators for my chapter of KDP on reading, I asked two of my colleagues for feedback (since they too wanted to attend!) I was grateful to have a meaningful conversation with my co-teacher on my presentation. True to character, he made a "great let's repeat" and "let's change it up" list for me, which I value when reflecting on how I can be better. It wasn't until this past week however, when I watched an outstanding webinar by Dr. Terrie Noland titled " How to Stop the 'I'm Just a Teacher' Mantra That Fuels Burnout." through edWeb.  that it clicked for me what I'm missing. While I have videos, graphics, and sections where participants can interact and be engaged with the material, I need to elevate my work to another level of engagement. Just as my co-teacher suggested, I need to make real-world connections with the material instead of sharing definitions in plain text. For example, it'll stick in my mind how Dr. Terrie mentioned Mr. Feeney from Boy Meets World as a reference. I had my "aha" moment and I even had a few ideas of my own pop into my head what I can do to add that extra layer of engagement. For me, talking about best practices in literacy instruction is vital and I want all teachers I speak with to remember my content. (I guess this can be said for all my presentations as well!)  I'm looking forward to putting in the work to jazz up my slides and make Demystifying Teaching Reading memorable! 

After my podcast I allowed myself to have a celebratory moment... I'm getting better! I remember the first podcast I spoke on and how nervous I was. Now they are like second nature to me and I'm feeling more comfortable. As the saying goes, practice makes (almost) perfect. I feel it's important as educators to celebrate our achievements and work, and for me this is certainly one of them. Then, my self-critical brain kicks into gear and I think about some of the minute details I'd like to polish. For example; I noticed I repeated a few words in which I could possible use better and different synonyms for. My plan is to think about the topic and questions ahead of time as I usually do, and write down a variety of words using an old friend (the Thesaurus.) Using a variety of words will continue to peak the interest of the listeners and hopefully inspire them to think about the topic in different ways. 

Now that this part of my self-reflection is over, it's time to get to work and put it in high gear for next time! Until then here are some Final Thoughts: Keep applying your own techniques to reflection, it is essential to improvement! Keep thinking "outside the box" about ways you can make your work better and include engagement factors. Keep reading, listening, and watching other experts in the field- they will be your best source of inspiration! 

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