Coffee with a Geek: Remembering the Alamo

My picture of the Alamo on my arrival in San Antonio

I want to begin my reflections on ISTE 2013 by talking about the Alamo. Alamo, you say? This is a tech conference!

Yes, the Alamo. (Stay with me... hopefully it will make sense)

After arriving at my hotel, I quickly unpacked my things, went down to the concierge and asked about the Alamo. He told me that the Alamo was a 10 minute walk from the hotel. Perfect!

And so without wasting a moment, I started my journey to San Antonio's most famous landmark. I had a vague understanding of the history and appreciated its significance, but seeing it in person gave me some profound and deeper understandings.

When I first visit historical locations my general preference is to avoid crowds and scripted tours and focus on the scenery, text markers, and artifacts. In this solitude, I want to listen to ghosts of the past whispering their sacred truths. Gathering in the scents, and walking along the Alamo buildings and grounds, the spirits and story are strong here indeed.

The Alamo ... or the building that is known as the Alamo began as a Mission Chapel, a place of peace, a place of conversion. Of course years later, the Alamo finds itself at the heart of a bloody conflict between rugged independent minded Texans against the strong willed Mexican General, Santa Anna, and his massive army. This "epic" failure in American History lead to a massacre for all the Texans daring to fight on. The story of course doesn't end there. The Alamo stirs other Texans to action and brings it yet independence and then statehood to the United States. Today, the Alamo returns to a place of peace with a touch of awe and respect.

As I walked along the streets of San Antonio and its famed Riverwalk, I noticed that there is strong Texas Pride. While I think New Yorker's may love their state, I'm willing to guess that many may not ever recognize their state flag or its symbols. Texas however, shares their flag boldly.

So not to blather on into the realm of faux historian, let me tell you what the ghosts of the Alamo shared with me. Determination is needed in times of strife, hardship and yes, even failure. If one falls for a noble cause, another must take the flag and run with it, displaying it proudly. A new day of peace only comes when people are willing to work for it, and strive for it.

So how do these lessons take me back to ISTE 2013? Well the comparison of warfare and education is not a particularly apt one, so please let's taper it with caution. I do feel however that after talking with so many educators at ISTE, there has been trying times in education of the past few years. Tight budgets, teacher layoffs, heavy handed reforms, have left us all weary and overwhelmed. And yet, I found a renewed energy and purpose here in San Antonio. I felt a powerful sense of determination and stubborn pride to be educators. To not give in but continue the blending of old practices with new innovative ones.

We may not all be Texans, but we are teachers, and yes... we are proud and we don't give in easily. We will keep on innovating and working, because our cause is indeed noble. We love our profession, we love education, and we will do everything in our power to persist in educating a new generation of students.