Welcome to my blog! I'm Karen Belt, a Deputy Principal, working at Lynmore Primary School in Rotorua, New Zealand. In the past I have taught Years 0 - 4 and used 1:1 iPads to engage and motivate learners and improve student achievement. This blog documents my teaching and leadership journey and my learning processes with iPads in the classroom. I am a Google Certified Educator #SYD17 and I'm proud of having been a member of the inaugural Manaiakalani Digital Teaching Academy(MDTA) program and a Spark Manaiakalani Innovative Teacher (MIT) and an inaugural Manaiakalani Google Class OnAir teacher.

Tuesday, 20 January 2015

Online Presence ... my brand!

As part of the MDTA program, I'm completing a Digital Enhancement paper at the Auckland University this week.

One of the thought provoking messages from the first day, was around a digital online presence, or a personal brand.  In the current age of social media, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are commonplace, and so different to when I attended school in the 80s - an electronic typewriter was a "luxury"!

Consider this video clip:



I was already aware of the importance of what I post online and the digital footprint that I am creating as we often share this message with the learners at Pt England.  Privacy settings are available for a reason but you also need to be vigilant and check them often.

I enjoy sharing my learning experiences via my blog and seeing the visitor numbers increase (and which posts are more popular!)  But, in all honesty, I'd still blog without the visitors - for me its a place to be reflective about my teaching practice and the things that work (and those that don't) in an environment where I don't need to APA reference and can look back on my previous experiences and reflections - something I have been doing as I plan my lessons for Room 19 in 2015.

Through my blog, I'm aware I'm creating an online presence - and I'd like to think that presence shows me as a reflective practitioner, with a strong passion for technology-enhanced learning, innovation and a willingness to share my teaching pedagogy with the wider educational world.





1 comment :

  1. Branding a good concept, but there are so many brands in the market quite tough to compete in the market.

    ReplyDelete