Connecting Students with a Help Desks Hangout

Rockets Help Desk was invited by Jennifer Scheffer from Burlington High School to participate in a Google Hangout on Air panel discussion about how schools around New England are leveraging student genius with student tech teams.  It is all part of Connected Educator Month with the Massachusetts Google Educators Group.




We learned a lot about how different tech team programs are designed based on the needs in their particular school and district.  While we were the least experienced help desk on the panel, we felt like we both contributed to and learned a lot from the experience.

Read about what other help desks gained from the experience and learn more about their programs at their websites:

• Burlington High School Help Desk - Jennifer Scheffer
• Lynnfield High School Student Helpdesk - Janice Alpert and Jenn Judkins
• Groton-Dunstable Regional High School Tech Task Force - Audra Kaplan
• Hamilton-Wenham Help Desk - Eric Tracy
• Cape Elizabeth School Library Learning Commons E-Team - Jonathan Werner

I know for sure that some members of my own educator Professional Learning Network from around the country watched the Hangout live on YouTube: Scott Capro from New Jersey, Tammy Neil from Florida, Sarah Thomas from Washington D.C., and Jessica Raleigh from Colorado.   Some even showed it in their classes in the hopes that their students will want to start of their own help desks.  Scott sent me this quick picture he took as he watched us on his laptop from his classroom.

Rockets Help Desk was in a GEG Hangout on Air this morning! So proud of them! Thx @jlscheffer #thankateenager pic.twitter.com/5mvibrKaxq
— Kerry Gallagher (@KerryHawk02) October 1, 2014

Those of us that were on the panel are looking forward to help desk students meeting later this month at MassCUE, and doing another Hangout on Air within the next two weeks to exchange more ideas!