One of the things I've had the privilege of contributing to in terms of the organisation is the upcoming Connected Educator Month which will launch here in New Zealand for the first time this year. My colleague Karen Melhuish Spencer (in the video above) has done an outstanding job leading the organisation from the NZ end. 

Connected Educator Month began in the US two years ago, using online communities help educators share effective strategies, reduce isolation, and provide "just in time" access to knowledge and expertise. In 2013 nearly 200 educational organizations participated in Connected Educator Month in the US, providing a variety of interactive activities, such as webinars, live chats, open houses, contests, projects, and badges for connected educators to earn.

This year we are bringing the opportunity for teachers to participate in these sorts of professional learning experiences to New Zealand – joining with the Connected Educator teams in the US and Victoria, Australia, to make this a truly global event. 

To find out what's available, check out the Connected Educator Month group on the VLN for more information, and the Calendar of Events on the Connected Educator websites. The calendar provides you with the opportunity to contribute workshops or events if you want to also – great for those in our education community who are doing some great work in their schools and who can share these experiences so that others can learn from them. You can also check out what's happening in the US Connected Educator Month calendar and joing those events if you wish.

Because Connected Educator Month is being run in October across all three countries, we're also integrating ULearn into the month, with several workshops and events there being shared as a part of the month's activities.