After helping to organise Teachmeet Bett 2011 a few companies spoke to me and wanted to get in on the Teachmeet bandwagon. Now some will be doing it for promotional purposes and some will be there because they see it as a positive step forward for teachers’ development and networking. The Times Educational Supplement (TES) is the latter of those two.
On the Saturday following Bett I spoke to Magda from the TES and we discussed ways in which Teachmeets could be shared with the thousands of people who visit the TES website and receive the magazine each week. I must point out that although I offered my ideas and my opinions, I did check with Teachmeet founders and regulars such as Ewan McIntosh and Tom Barrett as well. Yes, I helped with TMBett11, but decisions about Teachmeet need to be made by people other than me!
So what will the TES be offering? As part of a revamp of the magazine they will be featuring a calendar of CPD events including Teachmeets. They will also ensure that there is a similar page within the online resources area of their website. I will also be updating my ‘How to run a Teachmeet’ document that many organisers have used as a starting point and this will be shared too. The revamp sounds exciting as they have also announced they will be showcasing a ‘web star of the week’. This is intended to introduce non-ICT people to the world of blogging and Twitter in which many of us inhabit. I have already nominated a few teachers for this showcase and you can too by emailing resources@tes.co.uk
To keep up with the huge number of Teachmeets that are happening, there will be a TES logo and email address on the main Teachmeet Wiki which will enable organisers to email the TES so that they can include it in their magazine.
So this all sounds very exciting and it should hopefully mean that more ‘newbies’ attend Teachmeets. As Tom Barrett suggests in his blog post, we should be trying to encourage new people to come along to Teachmeets. Bring a friend or two! Those that have been to a Teachmeet know that they can be hugely powerful.
There are of course some possible drawbacks to the Teachmeet name spreading and there will be events like ‘Teacher Meetups’ or ‘Teacher Meetings’ where similar things are promised but may have a hidden agenda or a sales pitch, but hopefully the Teachmeet name will stay true to the original idea and ethos.
So as Teachmeet moves towards its fifth birthday in May (#tm5), it looks like it is growing up and spreading to the masses. It’s going to get exciting!
Hi Ian, I’m both excited and worried about this.
Excited, because I can see the potential for sharing great practice with lots of other people.
Worried, because I think there’s a real strength in growing the network in a slow and steady way through word of mouth – I’m not worried about any hidden sales agenda, more the idea that if we get the kind of people who comment on the TES site (90% of whom sound really negative), then it will really change the teachmeet dynamic. The strength of the current set-up is that if you go along with a friend for the first time, you’re positive because they’re positive. If you go along because the TES tells you too, or worse some SLT member has seen it and assigned it to you for professional development, then, well… I don’t think it will work out.
I completely agree about the often negative vibes of the TES website forum, however I would love to meet some of these people in person and see what they make of an exciting, passionate Teachmeet!
I have just joined the teachmeet wiki and am intending to go along to my local meet next month. I signed up after reading about it in the TES. Not all of us are negative. I reckon that people who have a negative attitude won’t be bothered to come along to meets anyway.
Fantastic news! I am very pleased that this is working. There are so many teachmeets and great ideas around that you will love it. May I ask where your local one is?