From Dancing to Digital Pioneer: Jordans Educational Journey with Seesaw

Transcript

Kris (00:00)

Welcome everyone to the Learning Loop Podcast, your best source for educational insights and trends. I’m Kris, your host. Today’s special guest is Jordan. She’s an educator in New Zealand and a long time ed tech advocate. During our interview today, we’ll discuss her inspiration to becoming an educator and how Seesaw has impacted her career. Jordan, welcome to the show.

Jordan (00:34)

Hi, thanks for having me.

Kris (00:36)

We’re so excited to hear all your amazing answers. You are just a bright, shiny light in the seesaw history. And so we’re excited to kind of hear your background, where you started, and kind of where you are today in regards to seesaw itself. I’ll start with like a softball question, an easy one here. When did you first realize that you wanted to be an educator? And what do you think kind of made that thought come into your head?

Jordan (01:02)

I actually originally wanted to be a car mechanic and I remember telling my mum and my mum was like, that’s not a good career for you, don’t do that. And I had been teaching dancing, so I’ve been a ballet dancer my whole life as well. And I really enjoyed teaching dancing and my mum said, what about this instead?

I was like, okay, sure. And went to university and found out that I actually really do enjoy working with children. And I’m so glad I am not a car mechanic, because that’s not really my thing. But I think I love being able to work with children and meeting all children from all over the show, from different cultures, different backgrounds, different ages. And it’s always those white bulb moments, like when that kid makes that connection and looks at you in those eyes, just going, I understand.

And that’s just the why. Like, I go home and I always tell my husband, I’m like, this child did this today. And it just brings you so much joy. It’s the best job really in the world.

Kris (02:02)

It really is, I love that. I love that testimonial and I love too where your inspiration came from. think all of us as teachers had a moment at some point in our lives where we’re like, this is why I wanna do this and this is what it feels like. And I love that the light bulb moments too are always just those moments that fill your heart, fill your educator heart completely and make sure that you can.

Jordan (02:24)

Totally.

Kris (02:25)

you can continue to feed off that until the next light bulb moment and the next one and the next one. But that’s why we do it, because we love kids and love seeing them grow.

Jordan (02:34)

Yeah, definitely.

Kris (02:36)

I’m going to ask another question here just kind of based on your history too. In what ways did your experience as a student shape your approach to teaching?

Jordan (02:47)

Ooh, I was a little bit naughty at school, just a little bit, but I definitely like to push boundaries. So for me as an educator, finding new ways of doing things, thinking outside the box, trying new ideas, I think that’s helped me now. Maybe not when I was in primary, but now it’s, you know, being able to think, okay, right, I’ve got this really great idea. How can we make it even better?

What else could I do? No, I don’t really like that. We’re going to try a different way sort of over here. So it’s definitely given me a lot more creativity. And I think just when you’re really passionate about something as well, like education and children, you’re just always wanting to do more. And at school, I just always wanted to like be in everything. I just wanted to know everyone and do more things. So that’s kind of shaped things now as well. Like I just want to be in everything because it’s just great.

And you always find new things as well. Like, I don’t know everything, but I just want to find out more and write this could work. This might not work. How else could we change that? And I think that’s how we as educators grow as well.

Kris (03:56)

like a true educator, you’re always learning, always getting better, always improving, there’s always something else to do.

Jordan (04:03)

always.

Kris (04:05)

I want to ask one more question kind of on the iteration of your career and how you have felt it’s kind of evolved over years. I know other guests we’ve had they talked about how know COVID was a big shift in their career or other things that you know potentially were impactful in changing the way that they teach. So thinking back to you know your first year teaching to where you are now being you know in a lot of different classrooms and supporting in a lot of different ways.

How has your teaching style kind of evolved over the years and can you point to any specific moment when it was like, that was a shift for me and this is why?

Jordan (04:42)

I think definitely being a mum helps. You have to pivot a lot because it’s not just you, you’ve got your children at home and it’s constantly trying to make my job easier so that I can go home and still be a person for my family. So trying to find ways to streamline my practice, trying to find ways to save time, that’s always at the front of my mind because

I don’t want to go home and have, you know, 20 % for my children and my family because that’s not going to my cup as well. Like you said, COVID, COVID definitely helps, helped change things a lot. Finding different ways to think smarter. like around your planning, around sort of using AI to help save time, really trying to think of ways to better yourself for other people. So for me as well, that is my family.

And then, you know, moving out of the classroom a little bit more. So I’m now doing my business full time as well. So I’m still doing relieving where I am still get to be in the classroom. And a part of that is coaching and I’m using CSOL for that, which is great. But being able to use things in a different way as well is sort of like those light bulbs to sort of think differently and practically and apply the same skills that you would do in the classroom, but in a different representation.

Kris (05:59)

Yeah, yeah, I love that. When I was a technology coach, I had the same perspective where it’s like, my students are no longer the small children in the classroom. They’re now the adults who are in front of the classroom now teaching. And so you can still see the light bulb moments with teachers who you’re helping coach and helping them move along to. It still is fulfilling to have an educator heart like that in the same respect. So I love that. Yeah, yeah. I want to jump to one more question before I dive into.

Jordan (06:23)

Definitely.

Kris (06:29)

a topic that’s very close to my heart here, but I wanna hear one more thing from you about kind of your past experience. I know all of us as educators hold on to specific moments, moments that they maybe impacted a student in a really specific way, or the way that a student might have impacted you in a specific way. Could you share an experience where there was like a moment of impact that you just hang onto as a memory for your whole life, and how that kind of changed you as a teacher?

Jordan (07:00)

there’s lots, there’s so many. I think what I hold onto is those handmade drawings and cards that they bring to you that might look like a scribble to you, but they’ve poured their soul into that. They bring that to you, say, Mrs. P, this is for you. And that I’ve been on their mind, that’s the part that is just truly rewarding. And I have a folder, which is actually here in my office.

with all of the drawings and cards that I’ve been given because they are so really important and that’s the part that I hold on to and I read through and I’ve got a couple on the wall just here behind my computer and that when I’m feeling down or feeling like I’ve just had one of those bad days, I can look through those and think, right, I’ve made a difference to this child. This child thought about me, made me something, called me their favorite, and it’s those little moments that really make it special for me and I know that I’ve done the best that I can to help support that child in that time.

Kris (08:01)

I love that. I love the way that you framed it in that, you know, if a student has you on their mind, that means that you’re making an impact in their life and you’re making a positive one that they’re remembering and thinking about and making an effort to do something towards, whether it’s a beautiful, this very thorough art piece that they took a bunch of time to do and it’s very, very wonderful to their best effort piece, which might be something that, you know, some people might look at and say, well, that’s not, that’s not, you know, art, but it’s what their effort behind it and their approach to why they chose to do it matters.

Jordan (08:34)

100%. And it is for that child too. Like it might not be that they learnt anything academically during the day, but the fact that they, you know, have wanted to create something for you, that you have been there for them to support them, even in like a relationship, just checking in on them, you know, they might be having a rough time at home and knowing that you’re that stability person.

Is that connection is so important and a lot of the time especially at the beginning of the year when you get to know students It is all about who they really are, know, not about what their goals are for reading writing math says How can I support you? Is it that you need a hug? What is it that I can do to offer you support? around that definitely

Kris (09:14)

I absolutely love that. Love it, love it. I have so many more stories I can dive in there, but we’re gonna jump into the next one here. We’re gonna jump into the next question and I’ll kind of kick it off with, there was a rumor traveling around that Jordan one day was gonna get Seesaw tattooed on her arm before we decided to rebrand and change our logo just a little bit. So I’d love to hear your history around Seesaw, why you love the tool, why it kind of has made an impact. Obviously, more than just your career, also for your life itself.

Jordan (09:47)

Again, so that’s a true story, true story. I think I told Angela when I was in America at ISTE. So I came across Seesaw on Twitter. One day I was scrolling on Twitter when I should have been doing my job and I was going through and I saw this amazing app with children taking photos. And at that point in New Zealand we are using Blogger and it’s of like, it’s okay but the kids can’t really use it. It’s not really as friendly.

And I remember thinking, this is life changing. love this. want children to post themselves. I was really into it and jumped on one of the live webinars. Then it was, PD and your PJs. And I was the only New Zealander. It was some crazy time at night. And I remember Angela messaging me back saying, are you actually in New Zealand? And I was like, yes, this is amazing. And I just sort of started trialing it in my classroom. My kids loved it. They loved back then. It was only the drawing and the camera tool.

So they were just taking really basic photos and drawing on their pictures. And I went to my principal the next year and I was like, look, we’ve to use this. This is like life changing for children. You know, we’re all about advocates for technology, know, real great creative opportunities. And she was like, yeah, sure, go for it. And it is life changing for children in the classroom to be able to give them that voice. Like we talk about being creators and their learning opportunities. They’re taking…

advantage of the tool to post themselves to take photos to talk about their learning and I love that they can do that without me you know scaffold them show them how to use it give them the iPad say cool off you go let’s see what you can do and the way that they actually know more than me sometimes is quite scary because they’re like I already know this Mrs. P I’m like really okay off you go and just the way that they engage and it’s another opportunity to connect with families I know like all across the world

Parents are busy, families are busy. We don’t have time to come into school as much. Like my daughter, I don’t think I’ve gone into her school once this year because life is just so busy. And Seesaw really allows for that partnership between home school teacher and that learning loop, you know, because it is so powerful being connected, having those opportunities. And I’ve used Seesaw now, I think, I want to say it’s like seven or eight years now. And I have Google tattoos on me.

Jordan (12:07)

And I was committed to getting the Seesaw original logo because I love Seesaw. It is fantastic. And then you guys decided to rebrand and I was like, well, I’m not getting a big S on me now. So that’s where that stopped.

Kris (12:19)

Yeah.

I love it. I love it. Yeah, it’s amazing to hear the iterations that you explain how CSUN has changed over the years, listening to teacher feedback, and how we’ve kind of molded away moving forward to just empower families, empower students in classrooms to be able to share their learning, and just bring everybody together around focusing on learning as they go and growth and development through that.

It’s really like I’m in the same journey as you. I’ve been watching it and using it since it first started and it’s truly inspiring to see the impact that it has for young students. like you were saying that the independence that it can grow within kids to help them just to blossom and showcase who they really are and what they really know.

Jordan (13:08)

And also for teachers too though, like it was life changing in lockdown. Schools in New Zealand, we wouldn’t have been able to do half of what we could have done without Seesaw. And also the time it takes, it saves for us as well, know, finding the lessons, the activities, having the resources there and being able to, you know, quickly edit them to make changes. It is really a tool that everyone should use. And that’s just not being biased. It really is fantastic.

Kris (13:35)

Love it, love it. I wanna ask you a question that you hinted at earlier and I wanna dive into that one a little more. You talked about when you go and you’re in classrooms and you’re coaching teachers, you’re helping to improve their practices. You talked about focusing on saving time, being more efficient, streamlining their work. How have you found Seesaw to be a way to do that for these teachers and what are maybe a couple ways that you just try to share every single time when you go and talk to a teacher about that?

Jordan (14:04)

So definitely the main one is the power of the microphone and a really great photo. You know, a child taking a photo of their art, their learning, their writing and recording themselves talking about that. It’s so extremely powerful. When it comes to assessment, having students explain their thinking, save teachers time. You know, there’s one of me, 25 of you, connecting one-on-one can take a while. Having children use the tools in CSO can definitely help save time there, which is really important.

And I think just the flexibility of having, you know, your lessons, your activities already created. I’m not having to go away and think, right, I need to find this, make this. They’re already there. We can, you know, edit some of the numbers or edit some of the info on the actual lesson. But in terms of it being there, why would I need to go somewhere else? It’s already there. So definitely working with teachers, it’s…

Yes, the basics, but the basics are so great. Like you don’t have to go off and, you know, do a two page multi-level activity, you know, with all of these fancy tools. Take a photo, have students explain their thinking and you’ll get some really rich conversation and evidence, which you can continue on.

Kris (15:13)

I love that example. it brings me back again to my coaching hat when we talked about things like app smashing and using a bunch of different apps. And the beauty of Seesaw is that’s all together. You you taking a picture and layering on top of it and drawing on it too. You don’t have to bounce around to a bunch of different places. It’s all right here in Seesaw. And then the best part is that it goes, yeah, so kid friendly. It goes into the journal. It’s shared with families in the classroom and they’re off and running.

Jordan (15:33)

And it’s so kid-friendly. Yeah, and then those parents have that instant feedback. They’re like, my child’s posted this and they go home and you can be like, hey, what did you do today? And being able to have those conversations, it really is such a game changer for connection. And in New Zealand, we talk a lot about like whanau, which is family and whanau ngatanga, which is creating relationships and using seesaw just brings it and elevates that to another level.

Kris (16:05))

Love it, that’s so amazing, so amazing. We have time for like one more question before we kind of close things up. And I want to make sure that we’re really purposeful with, you know, anybody who’s listening, they might’ve already gleaned a lot of great things, but I want to always close up with just some quick, actionable steps for somebody who’s maybe new into their seesaw journey. I know, you you, myself, we’ve been using seesaw for, since the very beginning, seven, eight, nine years. What advice would you give to somebody who’s like,

brand new, they were scrolling through Twitter or X, whatever it’s called now, and they get to, they see Seesaw, what kind of things would you tell them to start with so that they can get on that journey to have the knowledge that you do and have the impact in their classroom like you’re seeing.

Jordan (16:39)

Not yet.

Jordan (16:53)

If it was someone like me just do it like just get in upload your children have some photos and like explore with it because you your children learn by doing and you also need to learn by doing too so creating a demo class for yourself practice using the tools having an exploration time to just see what it is and what it can do for you and

Alongside that, also starting small if you are rolling it out with your class. So not doing 700 things. It could just be simply, let’s take a photo of something we’re doing one day a week. Let’s just get into that habit. Modeling with the class, let’s go together, airplay your iPad up to the TV. Let’s take a photo, let’s take a photo before we use the next tool. think definitely, you know, like with anything, you’ve got to learn by doing, but also learn through scaffolded small chunks because

It is great, but it also can be quite overwhelming for new people. So really just trying to find one little thing to begin with, to start off your journey, but definitely jump in because the only way you’re going to learn is by doing.

Kris (18:03)

Love it. And using that photo tool is definitely such a powerful way to start. There’s so much power behind photo. Literally, there’s photos worth a thousand words or whatever the phrase is. You can definitely use that and have that be something that’s impactful, even from day one. Just taking a simple photo of what you did, what you built over in the station, what you wrote on a piece of paper, and having that be something you start to share with all of your classmates. I absolutely love it.

Well, Jordan, we could talk all day about just the amazing things and how much Seesaw has been impactful and all the history we have around house supporting kids and all those beautiful light bulb memories that we have inside of us, but we are at time. So I just want to say thank you for being here today. Thank you for taking time to matchmake across the entire world here. Having an episode from the United States to New Zealand is such an amazing opportunity. And we just thank you for sharing your expertise with us today.

Jordan (18:59)

Thank you so much for having me.

Kris (19:01)

Yeah, have a wonderful rest of your day.