There Go My Heroes Part 4: Carl Hooker
If you’ve been reading my blog, or you follow me on Twitter, or listen to the pod, or have heard me speak recently (so basically anytime I’ve said something for public consumption) you would know that I am in a pretty reflective state these days. I am thinking a lot about my tenure as a teacher, about how I taught and my “style”. I am thinking about how I treated the kids and how I could have done better. I am thinking about the things I didn’t work hard enough for and about missed opportunities. And I am also thinking about how I got here.
A lot has changed for me over the last 18 months or so. But I honestly feel like my path was always leading me here. That path has seen a lot of twists and turns to be sure. I remember breaking down crying my first year because I was so tired. I was coming in at 6:30 and not leaving until 6 and it seemed a lot of the things I was doing weren’t working out. I was spinning my wheels on a few big assignments, and I was arguing a lot with the director of my school about the direction of the technology programs I was in charge of. It was a lot to deal with for a first time teacher, first time department head, first time curriculum designer, first time anything.
As I have been reflecting on everything I’ve done to get here I’ve also been thinking about the folks who helped me along the way. There are a lot of them. From the people who I worked with part time while I was trying to raise a family and go to school at the same time. To the professors who encouraged me and told me that my crazy ideas about video games may not be as crazy as they seem (who knew?) Obviously I’ve thought a lot about the sacrifices my wife and her parents made (we lived with them while I went back to school). We couldn’t have done it without them. I’ve also been thinking about all the educators who’ve inspired me, mentored me, encouraged me, amplified me, and taught me.
This is a series of posts about my educational heroes. This small group of people have had a HUGE impact on my life. The criteria to make it to this list is simple: Would I be doing what I am doing now, without them? If the answer is no, they’re on this list. I can also clearly explain WHY I wouldn’t be doing what I am doing now without them, which is important when you’re writing a blog post, they say… I also have EVIDENCE for most of them, which is amazing. I can show you clear examples of them going WAY BEYOND what is expected to help me. That, in my mind is what a hero is. So here we go. These are in chronological order. I think that hones a good narrative for my career and this path I’ve been on.
Carl Hooker
Carl Hooker is still having a HUGE impact on my life 6 years after we first met in Boston. He is the second person who is connected to me though attending the EdTechTeacher iPad Summit in November of 2013. I was lucky enough to be able to attend through my school. We were about to embark on a 1:1 program with MacBooks and iPads, and this was the best conference to go to in our mind. It definitely didn’t disappoint! I attended the pre-conference workshop with Carl and we hit it off immediately. It helps that his workshop was SO MUCH FUN to be in. It also helped that I was pinching myself that I was in Boston, learning from him and getting a chance to experience a lot of amazing tools, and listen to a lot of amazing ideas for the first time. Carl and I connected on Twitter right away, before the week was through. We remained in touch.
We didn’t chat super often, but the times we did he was always asking ME questions. It was a bizarre experience to have someone I respected, looked up to (literally - he’s HUGE), and had learned a lot from, asking questions of me. It reminds me that there are thousands of educators, everywhere, doing amazing work. A lot of them aren’t sharing their work with the whole world. Many are shy or just don’t want to feel like they are bragging. But the world is full of amazing teachers we can all learn from, regardless of their follower count on Twitter. Carl, even then, saw I may have a unique experience or perspective he could learn from, and that felt amazing.
In 2015 I took a HUGE jump. You could say it was my first backflip. I applied to speak at ISTE about Minecraft. This was before Microsoft owned them, before #MinecraftEDU was really well established and before Minecraft was seen as the powerful teaching and learning tool it is now. I wanted to share my experiences with Minecraft in classroom and how it could really change the way we do school. I told Carl about the opportunity and to my surprise, he promised to come to my session. CARL HOOKER WAS COMING TO SEE MY SESSION, HOLY CRAP. It was a terrifying experience. It was amazing. Carl was there the whole time, sitting in the front row, nodding his head, and live tweeting. I had an advocate!
One of the great things about having a podcast, especially one that is popular enough that people want to come on it, is that I am getting the chance to tell my heroes how much they mean to me. I was so happy to have Carl on OnEducation, and I wasted absolutely no time making sure he knew. The interview starts around the 39:00 mark.
I am thinking a lot about how Carl not only mentored me in some ways, but has also demonstrated what it means to be a mentor - or at least someone who wants to show people you care about them and their work and want them to feel recognized. I have been trying to do a lot of that lately. It’s just another example of amplifying voices. I am sitting in front rows, just like Carl did for me. I’m trying to pay it forward. Every time I do, I take a second to remember ISTE 2015 and how much Carl sitting in on my session meant to me.
As I am continuing to work, grow, learn, and share, Carl has been an amazing person to talk to. We talk more now than ever. I was completely floored when he offered me a Featured Speaker slot at LearnFest ATX this summer. Carl just continues to be with me in whatever I am doing.
After what seems like forever, Carl is leaving Eanes ISD after this school year. He’s doing his own backflip so to speak and going out on the road again to share his experience and knowledge. We are all better for it. I can’t wait to see Carl speak this summer and I can’t wait to see all the amazing things he going to do in the future.
Carl, you’ve been a GIANT advocate for me. I don’t think I’d still be doing what I am doing now, if it wasn’t for you cheering me on almost every step of the way. You’ve done amazing things at Eanes and you’re going to do more amazing things as you share your experiences with others. #imwithcarl every step of the way because you’ve been with me. Thank you!
