I'm speaking at a CILIP Event, they asked me for a bio and the title of my talk. It sums up what I'm about..
Mike Downes, Teacher, Broadcaster, Google+ Hangout Specialist, Media Educationalist
After spending fifteen years as a school teacher, Mike moved to local media by starting whatsinKenilworth.com in April 2010. After getting noticed by mainstream media (by blogging about Library closures and local Policing), Google+ opened in June 2011 allowing a whole new experience. Mike quickly saw Hangouts as a realtime video tool that connected people. Anoek Eckhardt, Communications and Public Affairs Manager at Google said: “Mike is a great ambassador for Google+. His interaction with thousands of people from across the world to share knowledge, advice and learn together highlights the collaborative power of Google+.
Realtime Communications - When will LIVE Video become Natural and Commonplace?
In this talk, Mike will outline Google+ Hangouts and Zoom.us while giving many examples on how others have used LIVE at YouTube to engage with the Communities they serve. Mike's been in 1,800 Hangouts including Usain Bolt London 2012, The British Ambassador in Lebanon and helping US Anchor Sarah Hill win an Emmy.
On posting, I was asked how much time I spend doing things and my ideas behind it. My reply ..
For me, it's doing what's in my nature. I'm told I'm a natural teacher and an altruist. I started teaching informally twenty one years ago at Summer Camp in the states, that inspired me to get a degree and spend another fifteen years in the classroom. Teaching was rigid, as all UK schools are. I outgrew the classroom as had ideas way beyond my job title. Google was albeit rejected in school.
On being myself, I'm Curious, Creative and hopefully Consistent. If security and earning money was my number only concern, then I would never had quit my day job in the nineties and gone on an adventure. I always think of JK Rowling sat in a freezing flat or penniless in a coffee shop in the process of writing. I also think of Catcher in the Rye, where the message seems to be find your own level.
I also think of Larry and Sergey getting kicked out of the Uni campus as they kept blowing fuses, and leaving everyone without power. Then on renting a house (for all their computers), Sergey learned to pick the lock of the meter cupboard, so he could reset the fuse box without going to the landlord. There are endless stories of people doing the wrong or risky thing - and ending up somewhere else.
I did not start my blog for anyone else, I did it for me. I did not expect people to read it or people like the BBC to invite me in for me to givethem guidance. All I do know, I never hesitate to get involved if I think a gap needs filling. I had no plan in place for UK Policing, just knew it did not seem fair that my local force was not on twitter, but the neighbouring force was.
So, as you can see, I can write for hours on this topic. I will admit to reading What Would Google Do? by +Jeff Jarvis and seeing how Anyone Can Become their Own Media Company .. Google is both My Classroom and My Broadcasting tool.
I have been offered many opportunities to make money or speak. Those who know me, also know I turn down 99% of them. Most are from businesses, something I have no interest in. My attention is on worthy causes. I share a similar timeline with +salman khan When he make short video tutorials sat in his jogging pants in the corner of his walkin wardrobe, he was dipping into his savings. He'd already quit his high paying day job.
I have been asked hundreds of times in Hangouts about what I do and how I make money. The short answer is I don't. Then if I build something of value, then I do. For me, a few exits include writing, speaking, lecturing and broadcasting. I have more meetings in private to help people, than I can ever say in public.
What's for sure, since Google+ came along and I started seeing the whites of people's eyes in Hangouts, I cannot go back.
Hangouts On Air are found as: #hangoutsonair #hoa and 'hangouts on air', help always appreciated to find the quality from the stream, read more at my blog
For PRESS enquiries, see the three links at the base of this page ..
Anoek Eckhardt, Communications and Public Affairs Manager at Google said:“Mike is a great ambassador for Google+. His interaction with thousands of people from across the world to share knowledge, advice and learn together highlights the collaborative power of Google+.” press release doc
Note, I do not edit this page that often .. so what you find here are a few notes .. my resume is my stream and whatever you find at google ..
This is the most honest thing I've done all year, define what I do .. in three images and eight words .. I take complex stuff and make it simple .. so people understand fast and learn quick .. simple is Complex well done .. read the post ..
From a comment on a post .. 'Twenty years ago I travelled from England to teach black and white photography at Summer Camp in North Carolina. I taught children from age 6 to 18. From that experience, I settled on ages 7 to 11 as the age group that I could help the most.
When I came back I went to University and became a qualified teacher. What sealed it for me, was knowing that children have no idea what tomorrow has in store and nor do I.
All I had in mind was to help them cope with what may happen to them as they grow up and having the skills to deal with it. It was in my nature, children liked me and I was a total altruist, I still am.
If there was ever one thing that kept me going, it was the children. If there was one thing that turned me off the school system, it was the adults. The way they clung to tradition and rejected rapid change, especially in ICT (Information and Communications Technology).
So, yes Unions are every where. A great teacher will see that it takes years for a lesson to sink in to people. And that adults are still children, they just look bigger ..
Created +Mike Downes and Hangout Rangers™ an Education Service for TV News, Broadcasters and the Media.
At Google Plus from the start when we used to spend 25 hours a day in Hangout. I've been in over 1,500 Hangouts ..
For me, you will find me doing the news with KOMU, Fox and many others. There are 1,904 in the US with only 4 using hangouts. Help me track down TV, Radio and Newspapers in hangouts. You know it makes sense..
I created whatsinKenilworth.com and which is Real Time Digital First New Media. This site now has spread to the rest of the globe. I'm seldom on twitter as @mikedownesmedia. By the way, Kenilworth is a small town in Warwickshire, England.
I also have themikedownespage which is a sandbox blog housing notes on what I find useful in social media. Normally, I will link to it from other places.