Shaking Up the Status Quo of Learning and Engagement

Kasey Bell, the CEO and Digital Learning Coach at Shake Up Learning, is a former middle school teacher and self-proclaimed “middle school survivor.” She loved working with students and other teachers but, over time, found she lacked the passion for being a language arts teacher. When she decided to get her master’s degree in education technology, her career pursuits lined up. “It was a great transition for me. I moved into a coaching role at my school district, where I was helping teachers learn how to integrate technology,” she says.

 

Student Engagement

It was during coaching sessions with teachers that Bell realized blogging would be an avenue to consider. As she explains, “In my training with teachers, I mentioned, ‘Oh, you should follow these great bloggers, and you should be blogging with your kids in the classroom and doing all these things.” Then I [realized], ‘Okay, if I’m saying this, I really should be making an example of myself, and this is something I should do.'”

She developed Shake Up Learning with the idea to increase students’ learning and engagement. As the title suggests, Bell looked to shake things up in the learning space and watched her idea snowball to the success it is today.

The Power of You

Bell never dreamed that her commitment to edtech and learning engagement would lead to a successful blog or even a high-profile speaking engagement at a conference like FETC. Through it all, she has remained humble and excited to share her story and ideas.

“I talk a lot in my book, and when I speak of the power of your voice, that everybody has something to share, something that’s unique to them that teachers and others can learn from. I encourage teachers to do it; to reflect and share. [I encourage them] to pass it on to students. It’s a powerful message that students often don’t get to focus on. There is a power to sharing learning online as opposed to just a Snapchat filter.”

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