Convergence taught me how to be open to change and there is always an opportunity to improve your craft. Through convergence I have changed from a paper and pencil teacher to creating and assigning virtual assignments prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. – Cynthia Bonilla VGSA 5th Grade Special Ed.
Convergence taught me to have an open mind and to think outside the box in terms of instruction. –Melissa Higgins, 4th Grade Temple Hill Academy
Convergence taught me that younger students are capable of participating and learning in a virtual world -Megan Mata, 2nd Grade GAMS
Convergence reminded me, after 23 years in the classroom, that there is always something new to learn, teach, and be super excited about! -Hilda Santana
Convergence taught me how to be flexible, to take risks and try new things, and gave me the space to be comfortable enough to do all of this because I had colleagues who supported me. Aimee Bulson, 5th Grade ICT, GAMS
Convergence taught me how to try new things in the classroom to improve student voice and engagement. I was encouraged to take risk and talk about my failures, which makes me more successful in the future. -Alison Kan
Convergence gave me the support and confidence to take risks, implement flexible seating, create more room transformations, integrate more technology in a primary classroom while constantly trying to improve my instruction to engage my students. It was also a wonderful place to learn and collaborate from other amazing teachers in our district. Kristie Brand, 2nd Grade ICT, FOS
How did this prepare me for COVID-19?
It provided a sense of calmness or security with the use of technology and trying of new ideas in the classroom, especially when moving to a virtual setting. – Richard Durbin, SMS, grade 8 Social Studies.
“Preparation Meeting Opportunity”…jbmurphy
“If it wasn’t for Convergence I would be drowning”
“All that I learned created an easier transition for Distance Learning for myself and for my students. Most people were worried about the ENL Students and they were part of the group that knew what to do and logged onto Google Meets from day 1!” I have led District wide PD sessions on Pear Deck. Lauren Rivera Lead ENL Teacher South Middle School
Convergence has helped me step up and become a resource for my colleagues. I’ve led6u8i97][[[[-7 tech PD sessions and made myself available for trouble-shooting. – Alison Kan
“Convergence prepared me to easily transition into virtual teaching. I had been exposed to and practiced using most of the virtual teaching tools. Without convergence the process of virtual teaching would have been difficult for me.” -Stephanie Negron-Kaiser
Without Convergence my students would have no idea how to continue school work remotely. I have changed my instruction throughout the year based on each of our sessions. I’ve adopted Flipgrid, hyperdocs, quizizz, nearpod, screencastify and more throughout the year and once we began remote teaching I was prepared to continue content and my class already understood how to check daily agendas and complete their assignments. I even had a virtual class transformation virtually for my students during the pandemic. Without Convergence I would be lost! Cynthia Bonilla 5th Grade VGSA 5th Grade Special Ed.
Convergence definitely prepared me for Covid-19. For example, we learned about Flipped Learning during Convergence, which absolutely lends itself to distance learning. Since I fully implemented Flipped Learning with math in person with my scholars, we were able to continue with our instruction without missing a beat once Covid-19 hit. — Melissa Higgins, 4th Grade Temple Hill Academy
Because of Convergence, my 2nd graders were already comfortable with our Google Classroom. I was immediately able to push out assignments through our classroom and know that my students were able to access them. – Megan Mata, 2nd Grade GAMS
Convergence provided me with the confidence to tackle distance learning, it was like going through boot camp and gaining and learning tools that would help us to go on, convergence equipped us for this Covid-19 moment! -Hilda Santana, GAMS, 4th Grade
There are many who have said: “Nothing could have prepared us for Covid-19’s impact on Teaching and Learning.” For anyone who has had the benefit of the Convergent Training experience, nothing could be further from the truth! And while no one could have envisioned education being reimagined in such a dramatic and accelerated manner, the convergent teachers were ready for the seamless transition. They were first recognized as educators who knew their craft and who had a professional commitment to on-going formation. These are individuals who see excellence as the proverbial journey, not merely the destination! As such, they allowed themselves to become vulnerable in order to be retooled with new knowledge and techniques that would access technology and cutting edge software and bring curriculum to life in a myriad of ways that would address the needs of individual learners, put student data to real planning and pedagogical use, and ultimately achieve differentiated planning, teaching and learning on a new level of effectiveness. These teachers were prepared for a crisis that they didn’t know was coming! And while everyday of instruction presents the opportunity for teachers to teach, the New Normal of our academic year empowered the convergent teachers to immediately access all they had learned in order to ensure the highest quality of child-centered education that the Newburgh Enlarged City Schools could provide. John B. Murphy, Spanish Teacher, South Middle School
Before convergence I didn’t have a twitter account, I had just started to use google classroom, I certainly did not want to video myself for other educators to see. Shortly after starting I was making many videos of myself and sending them to my students and administrators after the first take. I was using technology daily in my classroom, and that “sometimes used” google classroom was now a staple for my students. Because of this, I feel I entered the COVID-19 phase of teaching with an unbelievable toolbox that has helped me to teach and connect with my students in a digital world. My students also had an advantage of being familiar with google classroom, flipgrid videos, screencastify feedback and tutorials, and peardeck lessons (just to name a few) because we had used them almost every day in school. I feel that I am “ahead of the game” when it comes to online professional development that is being offered because I have already learned about so many of these tools. I also now have an incredible community of educators through cohort and through Twitter where I have been able to share and exchange ideas with teachers I may have not otherwise met in my own district and in the country. Without convergence I would have been overwhelmed by all of the technology that is available, trying to learn how to use new programs and put them into practice. I am more than grateful for what I have gained from being a part of the Convergence Cohort, even more so in these unusual COVID-19 circumstances. Aimee Bulson, 5th Grade ICT, GAMS
Convergence gave the confidence and background knowledge I needed to survive this epidemic. I had always used some form of blended learning in the classroom but with being a part of the convergence it has taken me to new heights. Convergence has helped prepare me for distance learning in these trying times and I am beyond grateful for the experience. I was able to enhance my class’ distance learning experience through the continued use of Google Classroom, Flip Grid, Screencastify, Padlet, Peardeck, etc. and this was all made possible by Convergence. Without this class I would never have been prepared with all the tools needed to succeed in today’s ever changing social distance learning environment. I’m beyond lucky that I was able to work with Jen Cronk and many other inspiring teachers in our district, who taught me so many things about teaching, technology, taking risks and what it feels to be supported.
Kristie Brand, 2nd Grade ICT, Fostertown
