Steve Jobs Made a Difference, How will you?

Unless you are living under a rock, by now you have heard the news that Steve Jobs is stepping down as CEO of Apple.

This quote is from the "Think Different" ad campaigns when Steve returned to Apple's helm in 1997:

"Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

How will you make a difference today in the learning of your students or your colleagues? Are you crazy enough to think you can change the world? If the world is too big to tackle right now, think about the work you do each day that pushes the world further. What are you doing to inspire the people around you? 

You ... can make a difference... "To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world." -- (author unknown).

A new school year begins.... time to think about applying that summer learning!

What did you learn this summer? How will what you learned help your students in the coming year? Did you discover any new tools or ways to motivate your students to learn?

This summer I attended the ISTE Conference in Philadelphia. This conference draws more than 13,000 attendees each year. There are break-out sessions, poster sessions, spotlight sessions, workshops, keynote speeches and a huge vendor floor. Fortunately, there are many archived sessions available online so I can revisit and relearn and rethink how this new knowledge will help me teach others in the coming year.

The ISTE opening keynote address was delivered by Dr. John Medina, author of Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home and School: (fast forward to 29m40s to skip the ISTE opening comments).

Be sure to check out the ISTE Video on Demand page at http://isteconference.org/ISTE/2011/glance/video_on_demand.php for access to more than 50 recorded sessions!