Tag: review

2024, a little photo review

Have been a little light on the posts recently having enjoyed the festive period and more recently been trying to get back up to speed with things.    That and have also been struggling with a bit of a winter cold over the festive period, with this lingering into the start of the new year.   But normal service is starting to resume, so let’s start with a quick photo review of 2024.

Its always difficult picking photos for this as I have so many photos of events, meetings and other things so apologies to those I missed out from the above.    2024 was likely my busiest year in terms of the things I got involved in.    That said I have done my best to try and pick some of the highlights which includes BETT 2024, which for me felt like my best BETT yet;  With that I look forward to BETT 2025 and actually doing a bit of speaking at the event for the first time.    2024 also included my trip to speak at Futureshots in Venice, complete with the unforgettable (although I try!) Gondola ride.   I had my first visit to the EduFuturists Uprising event in 2024, plus ran the ANME Southwest meeting in “The Castle”, as well as attending the Google summit and Schools and Academies Show in Birmingham.   I spoke at a KeyNote event, speaking on AI in education, and at the ISBA national conference on digital strategy.   And that’s just some of the events I attended or contributed to.   

On a more personal level, I achieved my plan to run 500km across the year, albeit not being as consistent with this as I would like, plus I actually attended BETT 2024 with my son, who was there in relation to Esports, which he is currently studying at college.   It was nice to have him seeing what I do, but also allowing me to support him in his interests.    Following a difficult start to the year the second half of the year saw things improve significantly with the support of my new partner, seeing me get away to the sun but also visiting Ibrox for a tour of the stadium, in less sunning conditions.   And this supported me to see the return of my Christmas madness involving a number of members of my team and inflatable festive outfits.

 2024 was definitely a varied year with ups and downs, so both positive and less than positive memories.   It was certainly a journey.    So 2025……I wonder what the journey might look like when I look back at this time next year?

Pledges – A review of 2024

And so 2024 draws to a close.  Where has the year gone?    Although I note I suspect I say that every year, and at the end of each term and half term….Is it an age thing or related to the frenzied pace rushing from one half term, term, academic year or calendar year to the next; I am not sure.    But as 2024 draws to its close I think its about time for that little bit of annual reflection and a look back on my pledges which I set out in January (Read more here).

Doom Scrolling

This was something I worried about at the start of the year, that I was spending too much time mindlessly flicking through my phone.   The end of 2023 did find me feeling a bit lost with social media being a welcome distraction, albeit not a positive one.   2024 saw me install and delete TikTok on a number of occasions in relation to this, while also seeing me removing Facebook also as I made little use of it other than to consume content, and doom scroll.   Looking at quantitative figures, in late December 2023 I was on my phone around 3hrs 20mins per week however half way through December 2024 my average had dropped to 2hr 38mins based on a 5wk rolling average, so that suggests a reduction albeit it’s a little higher than the 2hr 30mins I was looking to achieve.    In terms of increased real social interactions I mentioned, am not sure whether I managed this or not.  I certainly have been out and about a bit more recently plus professionally 2024 has seen me involved in a number of groups and projects.   Maybe my ideal view of what I think I should be doing is different from what might be possible in the digital world we now live in?   Maybe I need to manage my expectations better here?

Fitness

I managed my target of running 500km this year, with a couple of weeks to spare however I didn’t manage the longer runs or a social run as I had set myself.   I did find it challenging this year, never really building up any real momentum with my running and being quite erratic at times, but sometimes it is pushing through and succeeding when things are difficult which matters.    I suspect I will relax on fitness for next year just to give my body a bit of a breather after a couple of years of 500km+ per year of running.   Again, the issue of social activities comes up as something I fell short on, but is that as I am more of an introvert and self-motivated rather than someone who really enjoys doing activities, including fitness related activities, with a group?   With a bit of OCD, do I prefer the assuredness and ease of doing things solo, versus the messiness and complexity where it involves other humans being?    Do I need to be happier in my own solo fitness efforts rather than looking towards others?

Exploring

Not sure I really did much exploring this year, although I did venture once more to Tenerife, and maybe explored Fareham and surrounding areas a little bit.   Oh and who could forget the trauma of my visit to Venice and the Grand Canal.   This is definitely an area where I have fallen short this year, but where at least some progress was made and something I need to consider for next year.    That being said, exploring and travel requires a number of pre-requisites such as time and money, both of which I have struggled at times with during 2024.

Happiness and adapting

2024 for me was very much about adapting to changes which started at the end of 2023.  It has been a difficult year with some definite dark and bright spots, with the tail end of the year starting to show signs of promise.   I think one of the challenges for me has been, being happiest when I am busy but feeling a little lost when I am less busy and should be relaxing; This is something I need to resolve, possibly in finding a better balance between work and personal life, which is something I feel I started to in the 2nd half of 2024. It is with this thought that I want to see in the new year and start 2025, hopefully growing the things that have made me happiest over the recent months.

Achievements

This year has been really busy in terms of engaging with various EdTech events with my involvement in over 20 different events, including an event in Venice.   I was also close to getting back out to the Middle East and contributing to an event out there, after almost 10 years since I was last out there however this proved a bit costly so I had to give it a miss;  Maybe something for next year!    I have repeatedly found myself referring to David Weinberger’s, “the smartest person in the room is the room” this year, so am grateful for so many opportunities to contribute to various rooms and to hear from so many amazing educational and IT professionals who are equally sharing their thoughts, knowledge and expertise.   In an increasingly frantic world, with the significant pace of technological change, our best chance continues to be to share with others and work collaboratively.  If acknowledging anyone the ANME and the Digital Futures Group are of particular note, as are my colleagues on the ISC Digital Advisory Group, who have all provided me so much help, advice and much more throughout 2024.

Conclusion

2024 is almost at an end, and my reflection rather than providing me answers has provided me more questions.   That reminds me of a quote I saw recently which said “the problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts and the stupid ones are full of confidence”.   Now am not saying I am intelligent, but I definitely have had and continue to have my doubts in many areas of my life, being it about my fitness, my career and work, my family and more, but maybe these doubts are normal.   Maybe seeking the answers is an eternal struggle, but where no answers will ever be found, and in which case maybe I need to be happy with the journey.    So maybe that’s a good way to leave this review of 2024, in saying its been a bit of a journey, with an unknown destination, but at least the weather here, where I am now compared to where I was in Dec 2023, is better!

2023-24 in photos

2023-24 was such a busy year with so many great opportunities and so many great people to meet and share thoughts and ideas with.   From the outset and attendance at the ISMG Cyber Security Summit then presenting on AI at the VWV conference, it always looked like it was going to be a packed academic year but little did I know quite how packed it was going to be.   Little was I to know that the year would see me speaking in Amsterdam, Venice, Birmingham, London, Cardiff, Bristol, Leeds and a fair few other locations, and never mind the locations, it was the brilliant people that I had the pleasure to meet up with and talk all things technology and education with along the way that made it so very worthwhile.    The academic year also saw me become vice chair for the ISC Digital Advisory Group and become one of the founding members of the amazing Digital Futures Group (DFG). 

This collage of some of the photos is just the tip of the iceberg which was 2023-24 including some amazing memories from BETT, the Schools and Academies Show, The Edufuturists Uprising, EdTech Europe and also an attempted murder at FutureShots in Venice.     I can only hope that 2024-25 sees similar opportunities arise and further chances to share and collaborate with such great people, albeit hopefully without the attempted murder!

2023 in review

I previously shared a blog reflecting on the autumn term, a difficult term for me on a personal level.  I note I found great comfort and support in the friends and colleagues, both past and present, who reached out to offer their support;   The education community is a great place however it is often only in difficult times this becomes quite so apparent.     

Following on from this, and from the pledges I set at the start of 2023, I thought I would now share some reflections on the wider year, 2023, ahead of setting some targets for the year ahead.   To frame the review I am going to use the same headings as I did for my pledges back in Jan 2023; You can read my original post here.

Podcasts

2023 finally saw me working with Ian Stockbridge on a podcast.  This had been something we had talked about for a while but just never managed to actually make it happen however in Jan and Feb we finally put aside some time and launched In Our Humble Opinion, releasing 10 episodes focussed on cyber security within schools.   It was a fun and worthwhile experience and I feel I got quite a bit from it.   We did very much approach it as the two of us having a discussion which led to some interesting episodes although it also meant they suffered from being inconsistent in length.    As 2024 starts it would be good to pick this up again.

Time Management

I think the challenge of the increasing fleeting nature of time is one resulting both from education, where we rush from one half term, or one term, or one academic year to the next, combined with the fact I am getting older.   I don’t think 2023 saw me get any better at dealing with this as I still felt time disappeared and questioned what I had achieved.  In fact, sitting in January back at work it is as if the festive period simply came and went.    I think the way to deal with this is to try to create unique, new experiences, so maybe this is something for me to consider in the year ahead, although it was a consideration I raised back at the start of 2023.    I also think I need to accept that my sense of time is only going to see time pass more quickly as I get older, and also as we continue to add more tasks, complexity and jobs in the name of improvement and efficiency.   So maybe rather than seeking to do something about this issue, I maybe need to become more accepting of it.

Running

My running in 2023 was very inconsistent and I didn’t reach the 600km target I had set myself, nor the regular 10km runs I had hoped for.   I also saw my pace steadily decline to around 7min/km.   I did still manage around 450km which is ok and managed to get some consistency in Dec.    I think part of this was due to other commitments, part of it due to not having short term targets and partly due to low motivation levels.     Here it is all about balancing out my commitments and working out where running sits in terms of my priorities, and then simply getting out and putting the effort in.

Reading

As with 2022, I didn’t read as much as I would have liked to during 2023 although I will note I did read a few very interesting and useful books, including actually reading some fiction.   In the case of the fiction, the book was kindly provided by a colleague and my initial perception was that it wasn’t something I would enjoy, however upon starting to read the book I found I really got into it and thoroughly enjoyed it.   I think this highlights that you cant judge a book by its cover and that somethings getting over the initial perception can lead to positive outcomes, in reading but also in other areas of life.   New experiences as I mentioned earlier.

Holidays and Experiences

I think I did make more of an effort to create more memories and experiences in 2023 which was a good thing.   Trips to London, both for work and for leisure, were enjoyable, plus my trip to Amsterdam and a trip to Glasgow were all positive.    This is definitely something I need to continue in the year ahead however maybe go a little further afield.

Contributions to the wider Education and Tech Communities

I think I made significant efforts in 2023 to contribute to discussion and events related to education and more specifically technology use in education.    I was happy to be invited to speak at a number of events in Leeds, London, Amsterdam and Birmingham, although had to reluctantly turn down an opportunity in Glasgow.     I found it particularly busy in the Autumn term in particular with a number of speaking opportunities alongside a number of events I attended as a delegate.   I also got involved in a number of groups and projects including supporting an ISBA Digital survey, an ISC event and the plans for EdTechCentral.    My hope is that I can build on this in 2024 although I will need to be careful to find a balance such that I still leave time for other activities such as running, reading, etc.

Conclusion

2023 had some very positive events in it, such as a couple of days in London where I managed to get some personal time, attend one event and speak at another.    I also had EduTech Europe and the opportunity to speak in Amsterdam, but also the brilliant group of people I am now working with ahead of EduTech 2024.     2023 also saw my son turn 18 and an enjoyable afternoon taking him for his first drink (and 2nd, 3rd, 4th and a few more!).    The year also had some really low points, with these occurring in the closing months of the year.     Looking broadly on 2023 there is much to be positive about but the availability bias, focussed mainly on recent negative personal events makes it more difficult to find anything positive from 2023.   

2024 is now upon us, so writing and sharing the above marks me trying to draw a line under 2023 and start afresh.   But I do need to also try to take the positives from 2023 as there were definitely a few.   With that in mind, onwards to 2024 and lets see if I can make it a much more positive year.

Review of 2022/23 in photos

As another academic year begins I thought I would have a quick look back over the photos I have taken throughout 2022/23 to see what highlights I might be able to pick out.    The below image is some of the highlights:

August 2022 saw me having a family holiday abroad which was a pleasant way to relax and prepare for the year to come.     Following the usual busy first half of the autumn term I found myself visiting Meta’s London offices for an online safety event, the first time I had ever visited their offices, before then travelling up to Birmingham for the Schools and Academies show where Abid Patel presented me with an Irn Bru Xtra just at a point where my supplies of the Bru were running low.    Timing is everything! It was a busy couple of days and a lot of travelling but worthwhile in the end.  Later that month I then led the South West ANME meeting;  I think this was the first ANME meeting I had led.   It was enjoyable to contribute to discussion and to share with other schools from across the Southwest.  It would be nice to see more school involved however the geography of the Southwest makes this challenging.

January saw myself and Ian Stockbridge begin our In Our Humble Opinion (IOHO) podcast after over a year of discussion without getting anything off the ground.   Having started the podcast the Microsoft event in Reading proved an ideal opportunity for Ian to sport his IOHO branded T-Shirt.     March saw me in London for the BETT event, however also using the opportunity for a day off to spend in London, including a quick visit to Madame Tussauds for my selfie with a Stormtrooper.   May saw a trip up to Leeds to present at an Elementary Technology event alongside Kalam from British esports, discussing esports and schools.   A great event albeit my journey up to Leeds wasnt short of my usual challenges with significant train delays. I was then involved in a similar esports session, this time with Tom from British esports, along with a cyber resiliency session at the ISC digital event in June.   It was great to present, but also to be involved in the organising of an ISC digital conference especially given the extended delay between the previous ISC event and this one.   Here’s hoping that the ISC event once again returns as an annual event.

The end of the academic year finished with the 2nd LGfL event in London and a good opportunity to catch up with some of the ANME team, among many others.   I then, as the holiday period began, took a trip with my wife to London for a few days relaxing and exploring London, including engaging in a bit of Morph hunting.   I will admit to finding wandering around London with a limited plan other than to amble around and have a few drinks, very relaxing. The weather was also surprisingly nice which makes all the difference.

To be honest, the photos above are only a small number of highlights representing a busy academic year.   Here’s to 2023/24, new challenges, new opportunities and another positive academic year.  I wander what photos I will have to look back on a year from now?

2020, the year with the pandemic

It’s been a year that I don’t think anyone will be forgetting in a hurry.   In my 26 years working in education, including my 4 years training, I have never experienced anything like it.  As such am hoping my review of 2020 might be something I find myself looking back on at some point in the future.   2020, the year with the pandemic.

The year started of normally with January including the usual BETT event that I briefly attended, plus an EdTech conversations event which I had the privilege to speak at.   I must admit I enjoyed the EdTech conversations event in particular, with my visit to BETT a little bit rushed plus, to be honest, I now find BETT to be similar year to year and lacking in any new ideas.   Obviously, my journey to London had its usual missteps and calamities as seem to regularly befall me when I travel by train.  This almost goes without saying.

In March I found myself in Birmingham speaking at the Digifest event.  This was an excellent event with the signs of the pandemic just starting to show in hand sanitising stations and the lack of the usual handshake welcomes at the conference.   Will admit my presentation was far from my best however overall, I found the event to be both useful and interesting.This is definitely an event I would like to revisit.

As we approached the half term, in school, we had to accelerate our training and support for staff in relation to using Microsoft Teams as it became likely that schools would be forced to close.   Teams had been identified as the key tool in continuing to support learning during lockdown, allowing resources to be shared but also supporting synchronous lessons.    Thankfully we had already started using Teams mainly in an administrative capacity for teaching and support departments, so we already had some training resources plus understanding as to how to use Teams.    For me personally, it made me glad that I had been pushing for moving to the cloud and to Office 365, as it put us in a position to quickly move to online teaching when the lockdown kicked in.   It does make me believe, in education, we need to be braver about our decision making and pursuing what we believe to be the right direction.   Too often decisions are overthought and overanalysed to the point that no action, and therefore no progress is made.   Yes, education is important, yes we want to avoid making the wrong decisions, but if 2020 has proven anything it has proven we cannot predict the future, so we therefore need to braver and avoid being paralysed or slow to progress, and focussing too much on predicting and planning in minute detail in an unpredictable world.   Only then can we provide students with the skills, the knowledge and the character traits needed for the future.

And in late March the lockdown did just that, kicking in, and forcing a move to online teaching and to remote working.   It was strange finding myself at home day in day out, working from my PC with the only social contact outside of the family being via Teams video calls.   This period highlighted that working from home was possible and even beneficial in some situations, however also highlighted that equally face to face interactions are beneficial and even required in other situations.   From a teaching point of view, I still believe face to face is the best way to deliver teaching and learning, however that this can be augmented and supported through the use of technology, online teaching and online learning.  Its about finding a balance.

The period from March to August was hard, as we ran with a reduced IT Services department, supporting teachers delivering online teaching largely from their own homes.    It was made harder by the lack of the social interaction which would normally occur in our office, where members of the team would support and encourage each other, and occasionally have a laugh.    Remote working didn’t quite provide for this and it made everything feel that much more difficult and draining.   Additionally, working at home without driving too and from work led to the distinction between being at home or at work, being eroded.   This led to work bleeding into home time, and also a difficulty for me in turning off in the evenings and on taking time for myself and for family. Will be honest and say I previously have always struggled with turning it off, however the pandemic and working from home only amplified this issue.

August was meant to see our long-awaited family trip to the US, something we had wanted to do for a large number of years and something we had finally booked to prevent us once again missing out.   Sadly, despite booking and making the plan concrete, Covid19 had other ideas and the trip never happened.   This was a big disappointment.

September saw the launch of the new academic year and getting students back on site but where there would be occasions where some students would be attending lessons online.   This was the birth of the “hybrid” lesson.     For me this was also a return to more regular teaching as I took on a couple of year 9 classes in addition to my lower 6 sessions.   September as the start of new academic year is often a very busy period but this year it was significantly busier and more challenging.  

During September I would receive an unexpected offer in relation to a new job role.   It would be weeks and weeks of exploring the options, of stress, of will we or wont we as the opportunity would have once again taken me and my family abroad.   The idea of a return to expat life was definitely appealing however the context of a global pandemic was far from ideal.   This was one of the most difficult decisions I feel I have had to make in recent years however having considered my family I eventually decided the option in hand was a great option however sadly presented itself at the wrong time.  It is interesting, when looking back to my pledges at the start of 2020, I mentioned seeking a new challenge and this would certainly have been it;  Sadly this therefore was the right opportunity but clearly at the wrong time.

September also saw me undertake a challenge to complete 100km of running within the month as part of an online group.   Must admit am really happy with myself for managing to complete this challenge as it meant running 5 or 6 days within each week.   This was way more in terms of health and fitness than I had achieved before so I am very proud to have been able to stick at and complete the target.  Sadly, I then let things slip in October and November however I again started to run in December and hope to build up once again into 2021. 

October saw me come down with a cough and temperature which instantly got me worried re: covid19.  Thankfully the NHS testing service was excellent and I quickly got a test and my results back, indicating a negative;   It was a common cold rather than the corona virus.   It still took it out of me and led to a couple of days off ill.   I suspect the stress of the job offer and the cold/wet mornings running throughout September all played their part in me coming down with a cold and my resultant lack of energy.

As we progressed into November and December I was involved in an esports project to try and launch an interschools competition among independent schools like ours.   Its all in its infancy at this point, with a small number of schools planning to partake in the initial pilot however am hoping that after a successful pilot in the spring term it may be possible to grow this project.   Esports is something I am passionate about as there are many opportunities out there for our students, plus this area is only going to grow in the coming years.

November also saw the introduction of a puppy to the family. This was another things which had been discussed for many years but for which I was reluctant. With everything that has happened I relented and Ziva joined the family initially a shy puppy before becoming the devil dog she now is.If it can be ripped to shreds, scratched, eaten, chewed, etc, then it has been, and all while maintain a cute, butter would melt in my mouth outward appearance. Am not sure if we are training the dog or she is training us.

Christmas has now came and went and as I am my son have often reflected, it didn’t feel very Christmasy this year.   I suspect this is due to the year as a whole lacking some of the normal markers of a year such as a holiday away or the clear distinction between working and being on holiday;   Its not very different when your working day involves being at home all day, in the same way as your holidays, with little options available for activities due to lockdown.

2020 for me was meant to be about balance or at least that what I decided when I wrote my pledges back in January.    Looking back 2020 has been anything but balanced.   Its been crazy, its been frantic and ever changing.  Its been some year, a year which looking back seems to have disappeared in a blur, its been the year with a pandemic in it.    I suspect things will be different as we move into 2021, with some changes for the better however others less so.    This is a year I don’t think I will be forgetting anytime soon.

2020, the one with the pandemic!

2019 in review

I need to state that for me 2019 is a year I would probably prefer to forget.    It is not with any great ease that I say this however some of the events of 2019 have caused much stress, upset and difficulty.   On the other hand, and trying to take a positive from the year, myself and my family have progressed beyond the issues of the opening few months of the year and hopefully learned from them.   I hope that we are stronger for them but either way, they are now in the past and it is time to progress onwards.

So, looking back to my pledges as stated at the end of 2018 (You can read these here), what have I or have I not achieved.

Family

As mentioned above, as a family it was a very challenging year.   My hope had been to spend more time together and build more opportunities for memories, etc however this didn’t happen.   Time was spent however some of it building memories that would be better forgotten.   Sadly, I am not currently comfortable going into more detail on this topic but maybe some day in the future I will share more.

It is worth noting however that we did have our eldest down between Christmas and New Year which was very nice.   As he is now in his 20’s we don’t see him as often as we would like but he does have his own life to lead so it was very nice that he took time to travel down to us for a couple of days.

We did also have our 2nd annual holiday away which was very nice and something, for a large number of years, we lacked as a family.   It is now our hope that in 2020 we do something particularly special in terms of holidays and to avoid this becoming a wish/dream only we have actually went ahead and booked significantly in advance as opposed to our usual act of last minute bookings.

Exercise, Wellbeing and Reading

Finally completing Couch to 5K

On the exercise front I achieved my plan for completing couch to 5K, in fact I almost completed it twice, so I am very happy I managed to get into a constructive exercise habit.  I even ended up going for a run on both Christmas Eve and on Boxing Day which is something I didn’t foresee happening at the outset of the year.   For me this was significant progress as I have never really been a sporty or fitness person.  Sadly, following recent testing, it seems my blood pressure may be higher than it should be which means I clearly need to do more on the exercise front.

Again, I achieved my target of reading 12 books and a number of them I very much enjoyed and think they added to both my knowledge and understanding.   My library of books is starting to look quite impressive in my eyes at least.  The one issue I have had however is that my reading has not been constant enough throughout the year, instead being made up of a number of smaller sprints through books.  This is something I want to consider next year.

And feeling happier; That was an ambitious target.   Sadly, with everything that happened at the start of the year, various stresses throughout the year and my more recent concerns I am not sure I have achieved this.   And sadder still is the fact, if there was anything important to achieve this was probably it.   I suppose the challenge becomes asking what makes me happy and do I even know what makes me happy?   Not an easy question to answer.   And from my recent reading there is also the question of whether seeking to be “happier” is actually something I should be doing or whether I should be focusing more on taking all that I can from what I have.    Possibly a little too deep and meaningful a question for so early in the calendar year but maybe something for a future blog post.

Professional development

I think I have developed as a professional this year on several fronts albeit I haven’t done many Udemy or other courses and haven’t picked up many certificates.   What I have done however is read and explore topics, ask questions and challenge ideas and try to get more involved in communities discussing areas which I find of interest.   I have also attended and event presented at some excellent events.

Work

Development of an IT Strategy was a key focus of a lot of the year however as the school sought to clarify and launch a vision of its own, I decided that the IT strategy take a back burner.    Discussions on mobile devices were ongoing and some progress made including starting the trialing new devices.   We have also been made progress in relation to deploying One-drive and Microsoft Teams.    If I was trying to sum up the year, I would possibly use the word “momentum” as I fell a number of projects which had been slow burning for some time gathered pace and made reasonable progress in 2019.   Clearly in the year ahead this is something I need to build upon.

Overall

A year ago, I summed up my plans for the year with one word; Balance.    Sadly, I don’t think I achieved this as early in the year events threw things so far out of kilter that it most likely wasn’t until the middle of the year that I got close to achieving any balance.   From then it has simply been a fight to catch up.

As I said at the outset, 2019 is a year I would rather forget however to forget is to lose sight of the number of valuable, albeit at time painful, lessons learned.    I need to take as much as I can from 2019, one thing helped by my keeping of a journal through large parts of the year.    Maybe reflection will be something I need to spend significant time on in 2020.

And so with this it is on to 2020, with my plans for the year ahead to be shared shortly…

 

2019, another new year

It is that time again to write my new years resolutions, my pledges for the year ahead and once again I face the same challenge.   I could select SMART targets such as to read 12 books but in picking something so easily measurable there is a danger that I focus on the target, and select 12 books which are shorter and easier to read rather than picking more challenging reads, which may take more time to read however in the long term will be more useful.    There is also danger that I pick a target that I then quickly achieve early in the year, leaving me to look back at the end of 2019 having achieved everything in the first couple of months.    The other option is I pick bigger goals such as to develop my understanding of learning and how individuals learn.    This is a much bigger goal however is difficult to measure in terms of my success in achieving it.

For 2019 my plan is to set some over arching strategic targets, which are big goals, but within each to also indicate some initial shorter SMART targets.   My hope is this should give me a balance of micro and macro level goals.

And so onto the new years resolutions, pledges or goals for the year ahead:

Family                                 

A key target for the year ahead is to have a family holiday together.    This is something we haven’t done for a while, other than last summer.   As such I think this should now become an annual event as it gives the opportunity to spend some uninterrupted family time together, to decompress and to relax.

A wider target would be to make more family time together.   This needs to involve actually sitting down to dinner together, to playing football with my youngest, to going out as a family on the occasional weekend.   Myself and my wife will also need to seek to make more time for each other, with “date night” a clear possibility however given our working patterns we will need to work on resolving the logistical issues.

Exercise, Wellbeing and Reading

This year rather than having separate targets for exercise and readings I have decided to roll them all up into a single area for focus.

In terms of SMART targets, my key targets will be to complete the 9 weeks of Couch to 5K before the end of the calendar year and to read my usual 12 books, one book per month.

Looking towards a wider target, I want to feel happier in myself at the end of the year.   This will mean trying to strike a balance between work and personal life.    In with work I include my efforts in blogging and posting on social media.   My work doesn’t just include my job but includes other tasks and activities which I do as part of my wider professional contribution to education and to IT.  I would also like to start podcasting during 2019 however I need to be conscious that I need to achieve a better work/life balance and to be more comfortable taking time out to relax.

Professional Development

Having achieved certifications in each of the last three years, and conscious of the fact that I will need to re-certify which will require me to repeat my exams, I am not going to set myself a target of a specific certification in 2019.   Instead I am going to focus on some specific areas of interest with these being cyber security and data analytics in particular.   I hope to be able to use Udemy courses and various books as my method of study with a view to being knowledgeable and experienced in relation to these topics by the time 2019 draws to a close.

Work

I have found thinking about work targets a little difficult as I have a number of projects currently underway which therefore could all make for good, SMART, targets.   It is therefore key for me to think about what is most important and for this I think the development of a key statement of the schools IT strategy, to be shared with all staff and pupils, is most important.   Linked to this will be our approach to staff training on EdTech and also our device strategy for the next couple of years.    As it stands we are using 1:1 iPads however with these devices up for review in the next couple of years, now is the time to consider alternatives and make a decision as to the devices we will be using for the next 4 or 5 years.

As a more strategic goal I think my key area to work on in 2019 will be empowering my team such that they can lead on various projects across the school.    I think this year I need to make more use of my middle leaders and their skills, experience and knowledge and support them to be more proactive.

Overall

I have noted on social media a number of people identifying a single word to symbolise their plans for 2019.    I have given this some thought to try and identify what word I would most identify with and in my case it would be:

Balance

I need to reach balance as I seek to engage in social media, contributing to both the education and IT sectors, deliver as a Director of IT, be successful as a family member, father and husband and continue to develop as a professional and a person.    Balance therefore seems like the most important word.    My hope would be that next year when I get to the end of the year I can be more positive on what has been achieved having actually built in time to sit and reflect throughout the year, rather than rushing to cram everything in and finding the year has sped past in the blink of an eye.

And so 2018 draws to a close and 2019 begins.   I look forward to the year ahead which would be my 21st year working within education.    I have worked in international schools, further education, higher education, state schools and now independent schools.    I wonder what new opportunities and challenges I can find or create in the year ahead.

Summary: My 2018

And so another year comes to an end.    2018 has flown by although as I think back I realise how much has been accomplished during the year.   That said the year hasn’t been without its challenges.

In reviewing the year I am going to use the same headings I used when I created my new years resolutions and pledges a year ago.   These seem to make for a sensible framework for writing this review.

Family

During the summer of 2018 was the first time in around 10 years that myself, my wife and our youngest went on a family holiday abroad.    We have each been abroad separately for various reasons, including school trips or returning to the UK while we were living out in the UAE, however we never did these together.     Our week away in Tenerife was both enjoyable and relaxing and something which hopefully we will repeat either this year or next.   The weather was very warm and we went for daily walks, plus had a few beers as well.   The fact that the world cup was on at the same time was also a benefit as we went and watched a few games in a pub on the seafront.   It was all an opportunity to decompress, relax and reorient towards what is important.

During the year I have also spent time out on the football park with my youngest.    This has been nice in spending time together as opposed to both of us sitting on our respective computers either gaming or watching TV or doing work.    It is something I need to do more of.

Looking back on the year though, other than the holiday I don’t think we made enough time for each other as a family and this is something we will all need to consider and work to resolve in 2019.

Fitness

Fitness has long been something I have wanted to improve albeit with very little improvement being made.   I have acknowledged this lack of progress in my review of the year over the last couple of years.   This year I finally made some progress engaging in Couch to 5k.    I managed to get quite a few weeks of running in, running every 3 times per week.    I only managed to get to week 5, however managed to get to this point on multiple occasions before the winter weather and dark mornings kicked in.    In the grand scheme of things only getting to week 5 isn’t a massive achievement but considering my lack of progress over multiple years means it is a major improvement and major progress on my previous level of fitness.   Week 5 means running 3 times per week, for over a month, a level of consistency I have never previously got close to.   I hope to restart my couch to 5k efforts early in the new year as soon as the dark morning cease.

Reading

I continue to enjoy reading and 2018 was no different with me once again working my way through more than 12 books throughout the course of the year.   As before I have tried to pick books across a number of different topic areas, however continue to focus on non-fiction as opposed to fiction.    I think reading across different topics makes the experience of reading more interesting plus is more useful in that it allows me to see different viewpoints on various topics and concepts.   This year neurobiology, digital citizenship and psychology have been just a small number of topics which I have read about.   I have, as I did last year, already started filling my book shelve with my books for 2019.   Christmas marks a great opportunity to get some titles lined up for the year ahead.

Professional Development

2018 saw me complete my CRISC exam and receive certification.   This means I have now achieved CISA, CISSP and CRISC in consecutive years.    On considering my next steps I am conscious that each of these certifications will require me to redo the exam and therefore I am reluctant to take on CISM or CGEIT which are the other two certifications I might otherwise consider.

During 2018 I also started some non-certificated PD in a couple of areas including cyber security and also data analytics.   Sadly in both cases I didn’t make much progress which I suspect was largely due to the lack of a fixed exam date or something to help me maintain my motivation.    This is something I need to bear into consideration in future.

Throughout the year I also engaged in a number of smaller professional development activities relating to specific work areas or areas of personal focus.   This included spending time learning how to better use PowerBI plus learning about GDPR in preparation for the May 2018 implementation date.

Work

GDPR was a significant area of focus during 2018 and I think largely this went well.   There are obviously ongoing requirements in relation to GDPR but I think this is in hand.

It has been a very challenging year for me as Director of IT and I think these challenges will continue into 2019.   That said, if things were easy I would suggest that maybe I am not being innovative enough or seeking new solutions with sufficient vigour.     I need to try to remain more positive and focus on the fact that time often solves issues in a way that simple effort cannot, or at least cannot as easily achieve.

I also need to accept that frustrations will occur especially when dealing with the views and perspectives of others.   I need to be conscious that my “truth” may not necessarily be the truth of others and therefore I need to more appreciative of their views and their truth, and use this to help me in bringing them around to my view or to reaching a negotiated viewpoint.

From a teaching point of view I continue to work with Lower 6 students.   I need to acknowledge that my role and therefore the significant reduction in the time I spend in a classroom has meant I don’t feel things go as well as I would like.    This is something I need to work on in the year ahead, redesigning the way I approach the sessions I deliver.

Conclusion

2018 draws to a close and 2019 is almost upon us.   2018 has been a busy year and in this it has flown by.   I find myself a little bit depressed at the moment and I think that is simply the result of realising I have reached the end of the year, and realising that maybe despite being busy I haven’t achieved as much as I would have liked in the areas I would consider to have been important.   This focus on that which is important is something I will need to be more cognizant of in 2019.    It may also be related to a deflated feeling having reached the end of the year and not being quite so busy, having spent the whole year being very busy.   A lack of a to do list, lessons to do, meetings to attend, etc, leaves me feeling as if something is missing, leading me to feel a little depressed.   I need to be wary of this as life is more than just work, blogging, etc, and sometimes you need to stop and simply enjoy the scenery.

I also think I need to be more conscious of my own feelings and of how to manage these.   The cold wet winter combined with the dark days seem to have made me feel down during the opening months of 2018 when looking back on my journal, and as we again are in winter the same appears to be occurring now, and therefore is likely to continue into the start of 2019.   I need to find a way to manage this in myself possibly through treating myself or finding another way to lift my spirits.

So 2018 is almost finished.   Bring on 2019.   Let me wish you all the very best for 2019.

A quick review of 2017/18

The 2017/18 academic year has drawn to a close.  OK, so it actually drew to a close a while ago, it is just I am only now getting to finishing writing and posting this.   Looking back it feels as if the year has just flown by.    I can remember Christmas like it was yesterday.   I can remember the inset session I did on cyber security which included reference to GDPR.   I now find myself in July (and almost in August) with GDPR in effect.  Where has the year gone?

A key part of the year has been spent experimenting with Office 365 and how it could be used in schools.    Initially it was looking at Microsoft classroom and SharePoint but by the end of the year we had Microsoft Teams.   PowerBI has been an area we have been exploring throughout the year however by the end of the year I had developed a better understanding of how PowerBI works and therefore a better understanding as to how it could be set up and used.   One target for the year ahead will be to build on this and to make better use of Office 365 and of PowerBi within the school.  We also had a little bit of a play with Flow and also with Stream.    I am sure Flow has potential however at the moment we are only scrapping the surface of what it might be able to do.

This year saw me take Digital Citizenship sessions with Lower 6 students.   Some groups were highly engaged and contributed thoughtful ideas and questions whereas other groups were not as engaged.    I enjoyed the experience however I now need to consider the programme in more detail to see how I might make it more engaging for the students in the sessions.    The fact I find it interesting and thought provoking is clearly not enough.    My ultimate aim for the sessions is to get the students engaged in discussion around the topics of privacy, ethics and the future in relation to technology, among other areas.    I don’t propose that I have the answers to these issues.   What I do hope is that through the sessions myself and students can explore the various factors, benefits and concerns together so at least we all leave the sessions having developed our own personal understanding and viewpoint.

During 2017/18 we have been busy with a number of IT projects related to our 1:1 mobile device scheme and also in relation to the overall network capability and its longer-term ability to support the schools tech aims.     The mobile device scheme originated in 2012 before I joined the school, meaning that 2018 makes for the 6th year of the scheme.    We last examined our direction back in 2016 when we renewed the schools iPad fleet however we now need to consider where the school is going in the future.    Device upgrades or even changes in device represent significant change projects.    As such I suspect we will need to spend the next 2 years exploring options ahead of planning and then deploying our eventual solution.   As such the work started recently, but mainly due to shape up in 2018/19, will all be building towards what we do in 2020/21 and going forward from there.    Related to this, it was with interest I read about the recent launch of the Surface Go device by Microsoft.    I am left wondering how this new device might fit into the schools overall IT Strategy going forward.

The start of 2018 saw me achieve my CISSP status which I feel was an achievement.   I was convinced having completed the exam that I wouldn’t pass.    I have now decided to take the ISACA CRISC exam in September however studying so far has been patchy at best.    This is something I am currently working on, trying to allocate time every couple of days to do some exam revision and practice testing.    I suspect September will be upon me quickly so I need to make sure I am ready.

Throughout 2017/18 my engagement with social media has been patchy however I have still found it to be useful and a valuable source of ideas and resources.   I have very much enjoyed various twitter based discussions on a variety of educational subjects including testing and assessment, school culture and educational technology use to name but three.   On reflection I think patchy use of social media is acceptable.   Sometimes it is filled with useful discussions and ideas however sometimes it becomes a bit of an echo chamber filled with negativity or complaints.   For me the key thing is to regularly keep an eye on social media and to participate when appropriate and when I feel there is benefit in doing so.

My reading so far has been reasonably steady.   I think I have managed 9 or 10 books so far in 2018, yet we are only just finishing month 7.     Am hopeful to be able to keep this up plus am glad of the various educators on twitter who are sharing their reading lists and recommendations.  This is ensuring that my library of books yet to be read remains full.

Blog posting is another area where I feel I have been reasonably steady.  I have posted a couple of guest blogs on various websites and publications which has been good plus have managed to post at least a single post per month to each of my two sites, www.ub81ndk9d.com and www.beingdigitallyliterate.wordpress.com.    Again this is something I want to maintain in the new year ahead possibly with an increase in guest posting if possible.

And so, another academic year has drawn to a close however after a period of opportunity to reflect, reassess and regroup, otherwise know as the summer holidays, I hope to be ready to meet the new challenges and opportunities which 2018/19 will provide.    Here we go again………