EPT 008: Eric Sheninger @e_sheninger

Eric is a Senior Fellow and Thought Leader on Digital Leadership with the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE) and Scholastic Achievement Partners (SAP). He also serves as a practitioner by serving as the K-12 Director of Technology and Innovation in the Spotswood School District (NJ). Eric has worked as the principal at the New Milford High School and has a string of awards and accolades to his credit for successful implementation of sustainable initiatives harnessing the learning culture towards an all-round betterment.

Eric has authored and co-authored several books including, Digital Leade rship: Changing Paradigms for Changing Times, Communicating and Connecting with Social Media: Essentials for Principals and What Principals Need to Know about Teaching and Learning Science. Eric is one of the most followed personalities in Twitter and was recently voted by TIME Magazine as one of the best 140 Twitter feeds of 2014. Eric's TEDx talk on "Schools that Work for Kids" is very inspiring and well worth the watch!

Eric had no ambition to become an educator (both his parents were in education), but as fate would have it (and lucky for us) Eric found his calling working with students as he pursued a masters degree in fisheries biology.

When asked about his TEDx talk, he begins by saying,

"Life is not a standardized test"

Schools are failing to see what really matters because of the rules that currently govern the education system - test scores. If they school and their students are doing well on tests, then needless to say they must be doing well, right? After all, what does the SAT actually measure, right?

Students need to have a diverse set of skills so that they can be prepared for anything, especially for jobs that are still not in existence yet. Speaking of which,

“How is school preparing kids for the real world ... we are preparing kids for a world that no longer exists” 

Schools, generally speaking, have remained unchanged for the past 100 years. If we want creative thinkers, collaborators that are digitally literate, we need to rethink what schools look like.

"Schools need to mirror the real world"

As Eric talks about the journey that he led his school through, the two elements that strike me as the most tangible are giving up control and trusting the kids. Through that they were able to create an awesome vision into reality.

"The community itself is brainwashed ... the parents want their kids to be taught the same way they were."

Through parent seminars and engaging with the community, being "proactive, rather than reactive" the much anticipated pushback of using all this new technology never came about. The school was able to innovate and let the ideas of social media integration, collaborative learning spaces, BYOD, blended and virtual learning spaces come into existence and be the tools that were used to accelerate multi dimensional learning.

"All I am is an educator trying to do the best for students"

Eric is critical of procrastination and how people need to prioritize the time in order to share their ideas. Using the time that is already available to you, such as those quiet moments in the morning when the house is still asleep, are ones that can be used a lot more effectively, especially for those creative endeavors. Using technology to help do away with some of the more mundane our routine tasks is essential. Eric uses an app on his phone called DocuSign, instead of having to go to Kinkos to scan and fax something and sign documents.

"If it's important to you, you'll find a way - if not you'll make an excuse."

Excuses embody a fixed mindset and we need to look at having more of a growth mindset to challenge ourselves and take action. Especially as we are serving so role models for students. Eric cites his own example of keeping up with an extremely busy schedule and still being able to make out time for writing his book, “Digital Leadership”.

Burst of Knowledge Round:

Q. Favorite type of music in your teen years? Eric Sheninger: Rock & Roll, Bon Jovi

Q. Favorite quote or saying Eric Sheninger: “Be the change that you wish to see in this world” by Gandhi which I change to “Be the change that you wish to see in education”.

Q. What blogs do you read regularly? Eric Sheninger: There’s a bunch. I read Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Berne, teach thought, Edudemic - these are some of the mainstays these days and always fascinated by the work ofGeorge Couros.

Q. What podcast or radio shows do you listen to somewhat regularly? Eric Sheninger: I will be honest. I don’t listen to podcasts regularly because I just have not found the opportunity to work that into my finite schedule.

Q. Something you are willing to share that not many people know about you Eric Sheninger: I have an identical twin brother who lives in Houston, Texas who is not in education.

Q. What was the best piece of advice that you got early on in your career? Eric Sheninger: I think the best advice that I was ever given, was to not take criticism to heart, personally and really use that as a catalyst for further growth and innovation. You have to use that as fuel to even become better.

Q. If you are going to be invited to one–on–one dinner, who would you want you meet? Eric Sheninger: I wouldn’t mind having dinner with Ken Robinson, most popular TED talk of all time but outside side of that’s tough to answer that, there are so many people...

Q. In less than 10 words, how would you define Success? Eric Sheninger: Success is not telling people what to do, but taking them where they need to be.

Q. In less than 10 different words, how would you define Failure? Eric Sheninger: The number one pathway to learning.

Q. Two or three words that you dislike in the English language? Eric Sheninger: Ain’t and Um.

Q. Two to three words that you think have negative connotations but shouldn’t? Eric Sheninger: “Rigor”, because I think many people misunderstand what it really means and “Achievement” because I think achievement is narrowed to scores, when it really focuses on learning.

Q. Define passion. Eric Sheninger: Passion is being able to follow your interests while making a difference in your profession or your career, it really is about the drive to make the world a better place. 

You can reach Eric in the following ways: Website: http://ericsheninger.com/ Twitter:  https://twitter.com/E_Sheninger Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/EricCSheninger Delicious: https://delicious.com/ESheninger Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/eSheninger/ Google+:  https://plus.google.com/+EricSheninger/about LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/eSheninger Educators PLN: http://edupln.ning.com/profile/EricSheninger Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/people/eSheninger / Diggo: https://www.diigo.com/user/eSheninger

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