GTAUK Reflections

Almost one month has passed by since GTAUK (Google Teachers' Academy, United Kingdom). My bucket is still full, but at least the information I gathered during the academy is not sloshing out of the bucket! What an incredible brain upload! (I'm wearing my Google sunglasses because all the bright ideas were blinding!) I feel like I was plugged into a USB outlet and hundreds of files have been uploaded. It will certainly take some time to unzip all the files. I met many passionate teachers from around the globe, teachers who are willing to share and learn from one another. The Google Teachers' Academy at the Google office in the UK experience was uplifting because seeing with my own eyes the employees of Google working away at their computers, brainstorming in the elevator (oops, lift), conversing over dinner in the cafeteria, and all of it about their various jobs was awesome. The work atmosphere in the Google office is contagious, more companies should model overall expectations of their employees and workplace atmosphere after Google. (The food is excellent!)

I am sure the teachers could have spent a full 2 days gathering and sharing information and ideas. The first day flew by very quickly, for almost 12 hours we were immersed in all things Google and "Googleness." Not one teacher "ran out the door" when the academy was over. They all wanted to speak with the presenters and share even more. Some of the best ideas I heard during the academy were, using Google Maps for lessons, how to use the spreadsheet in Google Docs, using Google Moderator with the faculty of a school, and advanced Google searches. This short list does not begin to tell how much information was "uploaded." Much of it will come out here in this blog, little pieces at a time, over time. I would not change one thing about the academy with the exception of making the 2nd day a full day! Thank you Google for having the Teacher Academy in the UK. Perhaps another international academy will be in the works soon.