I picked up playing Pokemon later in life. I was a little too old when it game out, but I found it through teaching as kids traded cards and played the games. One of the key concepts of Pokemon is the ability to evolve over time. Some Pokemon take special circumstances to evolve, but almost all Pokemon can evolve in the right situation. The Pokemon will look a little different, but it is still connected to its previous form and, now, it has new skills. I feel like I have evolved and TheNerdyTeacher has evolved with me.
This page has been pretty barren the past few months. I have been struggling with what to do with this site. I left the classroom in October 2024 to join SchoolAI as a Curriculum Manager. Since then, I have moved into Community Manager and now the Senior Manager of Champions and Advocate Program. That lives in the department of field marketing and as far away as I could have imagined from my ELA and Social Studies Certification over 20 years ago.
I've spent a good amount of time reflecting on what this all means for me as an educator, am I still one, and what to do with a site that has shared all the tips and tricks in the world of edtech as I have discovered them. Ultimately, I realized that that the main reason I started this over 15 years ago was all about connections. I wanted to connect with a world that felt distant. I wanted to connect because I felt like an island in my school when it came to exploring technology. I needed some place to share my ideas and see if it resonates with anyone out there.
I'm still in the same spot, but the island looks so much different than it did in 2010.
Over the past year and a half, I've been very lucky to have had amazing managers who have worked hard to help me level up my skills and mentor me in all of the things I did not fully understand as a classroom teacher or consultant. I have learned so much and have grown in my confidence to make decisions based on the data in front of me. I am able to connect with my friends who have been in edtech much longer and share stories and learn from them. The Growth Mindset is important in all aspects of life and I get to live it every day. With that in mind, here is the growth I hope to bring to The Nerdy Teacher.
First and foremost, The Nerdy Teacher has been my place to share the things that are going on in my world with a particular nerdy pov. As the site grew in popularity, I had to focus on broader, larger ideas without being specific to what was going on in my school or classroom. I can still do that and explore what it is going on in the broader world of edtech from behind the scenes. If you are looking for hot tea on SchoolAI, you will not find it here. If you want to know about how teachers are interacting with edtech, edtech trends from the other side of the aisle, and all things edtech and nerdy, you've come to the right spot.
I will share my love of PBL, MakerEd, my advocacy for Accessibility and Inclusion, and my next book (It's coming together!) because I will always share what I am passionate about. I still am open to side consulting and would love to chat with about that if you are interested.
What's next?
Follow along and find out. I promise it will be more regular because my therapist says I need a better way to process my thoughts than burying them deep to deal with later. LOL.
Hugs and High Fives,
Nick
