Breathing Requires Air

 4 Days In...

So I know I said something about writing every day. I think at this point, writing and reflecting might be more important than just about anything I could possibly do in this first Junemester of my EdD program. I have been a doctoral student for not even 4 days, and I have read 26 research studies and pieces of theoretical literature. In the 2 weeks leading up to class, I voraciously consumed 9 textbooks for the two classes I am taking. 

I am exhausted.

Beyond the reading, there have been some amazingly cool things to come out of these 16 hour days: my cohort (first and foremost); the baby research study that we are doing (yes, we are starting a research study in our first week); and just getting more comfortable with the process overall. Grades? Yeah, those don't matter as much anymore. It's not about turning things in perfectly. It's not about making sure that I am giving the professor what they want. It's about getting out of things I need to grow and develop.

So let's talk about the cohort. There are 10 of us, and we are all pretty unique and powerful. I have seen them shine in ways that make me laugh, give me things to think about that I never have before, but best of all, I have seen incredible support. It's just the first week of a very long and challenging road, but I see great potential for friendships. There is an abundance of kindness and professional quality. These folx are with it.

The informal research study that we are doing is really dope. We were tasked with first researching professional development (PD) through research studies to view the field related to advancing PD practices for teachers - what worked, what didn't. Then we were asked to develop definitions and practitioners for major theories related to PD and training. Finally, we were instructed to interview 5 teachers and find out what they thought was effective PD as well as what their worst experiences were. We are going to code this research and draw conclusions and present our findings. We will then create our own professional development grounded in this research. I am hyped.

I am exhausted.

But oh, am I ever excited.