One Day, or Day One?
In the summer of 2016, I had the chance to visit the Rocky Mountains for the first time.
The following is a post written on my other blog, bormannbytes.com.
For anyone that has subscribed to this blog, you may have noticed it has been a VERY long time since I’ve written. While it is true that I haven’t posted to this blog in eons, I have, indeed, been writing.
Where have you been?
About three years ago we redefined Professional Development at Oelwein, a school that I first had the opportunity to work when I first moved out of the classroom and began my work as a Instructional Technology Consultant. I wrote about that experience it this post. Since then, other school districts have caught wind of the Personalized PD model and have reached out to incorporate it as well. I’ve also had the privilege to present at multiple conferences in Iowa, and even got accepted to present the model at ISTE last summer in Denver.
With many school districts wishing to implement the model, it became apparent that I needed a better way to disseminate it and a mode that is more attainable and digestible for school districts to use.
A sign?
Several of my constituents have urged me to write a book. I will admit, the idea of writing a book has kind of always been on my bucket list, but the task has always seemed daunting in scope. However, it was a quote that finally pushed me to pursue this endeavor. In my Twitter bio, I put “Presenter – Blogger – One day, Author.” It seemed like wishful thinking, until I scrolled upon an anonymous quote on Facebook that read, “One Day, or Day One. It’s up to you.” Was this a sign? Perhaps not, but it reshaped my thinking and lit the flame from the gray coals. I began to write.
What’s it about?
Initially, the concept was to lay out the nuts and bolts of the Personalized PD model that I helped to create. It was originally comprised of just the HOW to the model. But once I completed the first draft, it became apparent that I was missing…something. As a read back through, I realized I was missing the WHY. I thought back to all of my initial conversations with school districts that become interested in the model, and I noticed there were a lot of WHY conversations that would often take place, but I didn’t include any of it in my first draft. So it was back to the drawing board in creating the essential precursor of WHY a school should consider the idea of Personalized PD. I touch on the idea of growth mindset, intrinsic motivation, and sustainable autonomy. This lead to a more indepth analysis as to what works when it comes to learning and how we might be able to embed these big ideas when it comes to PD.
When’s it coming out?
At this point, the book has been handed over to the publisher for reviewing and editing. I imagine there will be some revising before moving forward with the next steps. So to give a definitive date at this time is tough, but if I had to guess…maybe summer? I know it’s been a slow process so far even in writing the book, so to have it complete will take some patience – a virtue that I have had to practice intentionally in order to develop it further.
Final Thoughts…
I would like to think that I can get back to blogging more frequently, and I intend to. I just appreciate any subscriber who has hung in there patiently. I promise to bring more content soon.
Jarod Bormann Author, Day One