Meme: Passion Quilt

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Open Doorway, originally uploaded by ThroughTheViewfinder.  Source: Flickr (accessed 9th March 2008)

Looking at my incoming links alerted me to the fact that I have been tagged to contribute to the Passion Quilt Meme. This is a project instigated by Dennis Richards. People involved in blogging about educational issues are tagged and asked to find a picture from a creative commons source that signifies what they are passionate about in their teaching. I feel rather honoured to be tagged, especially considering that I am in the illustrious company of Jeff Utecht, from Shanghai International School and someone who I read via his blog, The Thinking Stick. One of the others is Arthus Erea, the student from Vermont, Maine, who has done some remarkable things in terms of speaking out about education today from a student perspective as well as collaborating in classrooms around the world. 

I’ve chosen this picture, Open Doorways. I love how teaching allows you to do this – to introduce your students to possibilities they never imagined for themselves. Once you’ve opened a door for them, often they find that they are able to walk through many other doors that take them places they may never have considered.

It’s made me think about the doors that have opened for me since I started writing this blog. I began this a couple of months ago and I’m still staggered by the growth I have felt in myself as a result. I remember back to my first post and the initial supportive comments I received from Alec Couras, John Connell and Vicki Davis. I contemplate the last couple of weeks and think of the connections I have made with Lindsea, Clay Burell and now Chris Watson, who I suspect I’ll be talking to frequently in the coming weeks as we hit the ground running with Project Global Cooling.  How your life can change course once a door has opened.