ISTE Standard: Global Collaborator

Standard: Students use digital tools to broaden their perspectives and enrich their learning by collaborating with others and working effectively in teams locally and globally.

I think this is one of the best technology standards because it fits so well with our mission and especially the social aspects of this year's theme verse. It can be difficult for students, especially younger ones, to comprehend the larger world outside of their social bubble. We protect them on field trips and corral them into neat lines with established patterns. The big world can be a scary place, but it is also filled with amazing people who daily act as the hands and feet of God. As Christian school educators, global collaboration easily takes on a missional element.

In this article from 2015, ISTE Connects gives seven tips for starting a global collaboration project:

• ​Find your passion and purpose. If you're excited about the project, you are better prepared to overcome obstacles. 
• Pick your focus. Select a unit that you truly love and will put your best effort into it. 
• Check in with your students. Kids need to feel secure enough to engage with people they just met. Community must exist inside the classroom before they can connect with outsiders. 
• You gotta believe. Your passion will excite others to give their best effort. 
• Find your people. Use people you know who will come alongside and help you out. 
• Dream a little. Don't be afraid to take risks and try something different. 
• Let go. When problems happen (and they will), don't become overwhelmed but turn it into another teaching moment. 

Ideas for global collaboration projects:

• Operation Christmas Child - follow your box or interview someone who volunteers 
• Wholehearted in Haiti - followup on this project we addressed earlier in the year 
• Holiday Card Project - this project teaches writing, geography and math skills through the sharing of holiday cards worldwide. 
• Check with any missionaries you may know. A simple Skype or Facetime session can allow your class a peek into other cultures. 
• National parks often have resources to loan or set up an online discussion with a ranger.