Right now, I am in one of the most incredible places in the world. After traveling to Puerto Rico last week, I am now in Washington, DC at American University for Discovery Education's DEN Summer Institute. There are more than 100 people here, including instructional technology coaches, principals, media specialists, and most importantly, teachers. When I say the wealth of knowledge that is in this place is magnificent, Believe Me! The information, collaboration, and connections are like none other. I will admit, it was a bit much when I came in; however, I soon learned why everyone was so excited...the experiences from the past DENSIs. I am really appreciative of the summer institute. The people here look out for one another. THEY CARE ABOUT YOU! They have proven that! I even have been two people while here (LOL: inside joke).
There was something I did notice though when I got to the opening session on the first evening for DENSI. I was somewhat reluctant to speak about it, much less, blog about that thing I noticed. I did not want to be perceived as a troublemaker or cause anyone to feel uncomfortable; however, one thing I realized is I have to be true to who I am and what I believe. The thing I noticed is that I am the only Black male here and 1 of two minority males. I am not mad with Discovery Education, but my mind just wondered, "Where are we?" As an elementary educator, I do understand that minority men are few and far between in the field. However, in comparison, I began to think about middle school and high school male educators as well as those who work in the field of education who are minority males. I asked even more questions to myself...Did more apply and not get accepted, is it due to the summer vacation that many of them did not apply, and how many even knew to apply?
I am going to keep this blog post short, but I think about ISTE 2015 and how there was the #POCatISTE. I think about the connections I made and I thought about how I kept hearing people say the amount of POC at edTech events are normally small, even for women (I want to say total I have counted about 12 POC at this particular event). Again, this is not to say I don't appreciate this experience! I am having a blast! If the theme is about being a connected educator though, my question becomes how can we connect so more educators can become involved, especially those of color, especially when so many teach children who are typically not as privileged?
There was something I did notice though when I got to the opening session on the first evening for DENSI. I was somewhat reluctant to speak about it, much less, blog about that thing I noticed. I did not want to be perceived as a troublemaker or cause anyone to feel uncomfortable; however, one thing I realized is I have to be true to who I am and what I believe. The thing I noticed is that I am the only Black male here and 1 of two minority males. I am not mad with Discovery Education, but my mind just wondered, "Where are we?" As an elementary educator, I do understand that minority men are few and far between in the field. However, in comparison, I began to think about middle school and high school male educators as well as those who work in the field of education who are minority males. I asked even more questions to myself...Did more apply and not get accepted, is it due to the summer vacation that many of them did not apply, and how many even knew to apply?
I am going to keep this blog post short, but I think about ISTE 2015 and how there was the #POCatISTE. I think about the connections I made and I thought about how I kept hearing people say the amount of POC at edTech events are normally small, even for women (I want to say total I have counted about 12 POC at this particular event). Again, this is not to say I don't appreciate this experience! I am having a blast! If the theme is about being a connected educator though, my question becomes how can we connect so more educators can become involved, especially those of color, especially when so many teach children who are typically not as privileged?