Excitement, hope, and eagerness are just some of the adjectives of a new school year approaching. While I certainly experience many of these same emotions, this time of year usually brings me deep thought and reflection. Today is no different. For many years now we've been hearing about the need to innovate our practice. If you've been in education for any amount of time you've heard this. Our education system is dated and was created to support an economy that no longer exists.
Today I heard a great conceptual idea from Tony Wagner. He suggested that schools invest money in Research and Design. It's ok, I probably would have rolled my eyes at this several years ago as well. I get it, budgets are tight, the needs of the kids make it tough to think about reallocating funds to such an undertaking and much of the research is done without schools having to invest a penny (not really, but more on that in a minute). There's also the underlying feeling that such a position would be nothing more than an expedited way to filter central office initiatives down to the campus level. They're all very valid concerns. Any significant change doesn't come without a reason to be concerned and/or cautious. It's the gains I believe a school district would make that make this a valid undertaking. First of all, think of how much a school district spends on purchasing the work of the research that's already been done. Think of the speakers that are paid to come, the books that are bought to be read. The list could go on. What if a school was creating all of this (and more) on their own? Not only would it pay for itself, but it would also change the daily climate and eventually the culture. Work for us (and our students), by us and because of us. Work, research and design that's tailored to what we need in the here and now. Who knows, it just might lead to some great exposure for your district on top of all the other benefits. It might not take much. Simply having a "Director of Innovation" with the ability to connect and work with all professionals from across an entire school district looking for ways to innovate our practices. "What could replace a faculty meeting?" What impact is "X" having on our students?" "How do staff feel about..." You could devote days with teachers to travel to multiple campuses in search of great and innovative practices or creating networks of district-wide PLC's You could also utilize this structure to connect to your community in ways you haven't before. Connect with businesses, community governments, and others to showcase what your students are doing in school and see if it's truly meeting the real-world application threshold. You could also get great ideas on what it is these community partners are doing daily to further the authenticity of your curriculum. I am certain that the possibilities for this are far greater than anything I could illustrate in any single blog post. Each summer we ask our employees to invest some time in R&R and we're better off for it. The same would be true if we invested in some R&D.
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I hinted at this in my last post. I am not even sure that I fully understand what I want to convey with this post, so please accept my apologies for my "published" rough draft.
Every teacher I know works hard at their craft. They are trying to create new and exciting lessons for their students. We're all well aware that the days of writing a lesson and implement it for the next 10 (or maybe more) years are gone and with good reason. We've done a great job of making education more exciting, more engaging and much more about the learning than compliance. Why then do we feel like we're bumping up against the ceiling when it comes to innovating our practice? I will submit to you that if you want innovative lessons then it's time we innovate the lesson planning process. As I wrote in my last post "Do something innovative like plan WITH your students, not for your students." I think that this is a starting place for just about anyone and everyone. I am hesitant to outline too many other steps because I have always been a firm believer in the idea that what works for you may not work for me. The inverse would also be true. You are a professional. You know what your kids need, what works for them and what meets them where they're at. What I will say is that it's time to think long and hard about the conditions in which we lesson plan. Including kids in the planning process is just one idea. What if we stopped sitting around in groupings that are homogenous by subject area when we plan? Another idea, what if we put our teacher work days in the middle of the school year, so we could have entire days during the school year to make the adjustments we need to make to the ever-changing needs of our students? There could be an infinite list of ideas to try. The bottom line, changing what you do is hard if you never change how you do it. If you've been a reader for the last year then you are probably aware that I set out to accomplish two things in 2018; write a book and start my own 501(c)3 organization. The book is still a work in progress (I'm at 15,000 words) but One Less for One More is now a reality. Looking back on it, I won't say that I can't believe it; I was quite determined to do this. What I will say is that I can't believe how much being lifelong learner played in the process and will continue to moving forward.
You see, I don't have a business/organization-building background. I didn't study it in college, I've never started a business before and until about a year ago, I didn't know the first thing about being "entrepreneurial." In fact, most people would have said a year ago that I just "didn't have the skills." That's where they would be wrong. You see, I have the greatest skill someone in the 21st century can have, I can foster my own learning, growth, and development. I didn't just learn a lot about building an organization. Indeed, my organization at its current state is still small. I'm still learning about building it. What I learned, as follows, was about learning itself: 1. Passion May Be The Most Powerful Learning Tool I'm doing what I'm doing because I'm passionate about it. Please don't confuse this with like it, intrigued by it or even enjoy it. I'm passionate about it. That's one of the first things I learned; passionate people can do something they know nothing about just because of their passion. You can't ever underestimate the power of a person passionate about a cause. They'll learn whatever they need to in order to bring that cause to life. 2. I Didn't Need Anyone to Guide Me, Just Cheer Me On Nobody told me what to do, how to do it or when it was "due." In fact, it's never going to be due because it's always going to be growing, evolving and becoming better than it was before. I didn't need someone telling me the way they'd do it or asking me to choose from a few options on how to do it. I didn't even need someone to assign it to me. I was going to do it. What I needed was people that believed in me, people that could act as a sounding board for when I needed to talk things out. People that new that because of my passion, I was capable of doing it, even on the days when I didn't feel like I could. 3. There's No Wrong Way to Learn Something I didn't follow a learning process. There was no pedagogy of how to do this the right way. I did it the way it worked for me. I researched (without a card catalog I might add), I read, I talked to people and I took risks. Somedays I did each of those things each day, others, maybe one or two. I also didn't repeat a whole lot. I might have read or researched some of the same things a few times but the takeaways were different each time I did so. I also didn't make Monday a research day, Tuesday a reading day etc. I did what I need to when I needed to and how I needed to. I've learned a lot from this experience and I know much more is to come. Being a 1-man 501(c)3 is not the easiest job I've ever had. I work late nights and on the weekends, the Christmas Party is pretty lame and the view from my office looks a whole lot like a kids playroom. So why do I push on? Because I'm passionate, I've got some great cheerleaders and I'm conquering this mountain in way that I have full ownership of, not at the behest of someone else. I love professional learning days. 50% of you probably think that I'm crazy for that stance but that's about the amount that thinks that of me on a daily basis. Yes, it's a lot of work, planning etc. but I am always amazed at where the learning leads. Today was no different. I found myself in a session at the end of the day today discussing how we can embed study skills into our daily lessons. The takeaway for me was far greater than just study skills being embed into lessons.
The conversation two teachers and I found ourselves engaged in evolved over time. We talked about using the entire lesson cycle, how we don't have to start teaching a concept on grade-level from the word go. Then, the big "WOW!" moment of the day. Learning standards are where we are going, the ultimate objective of the learning and too often we approach them as if they were the point of origin for our teaching. The timing couldn't have been better for this reminder/realization for me. We talk so much about rigor, holding kids to high standards and using higher order thinking skills that we often times forget that Bloom's pyramid couldn't be built without a stable base. It's ok for us to scaffold. It's ok to start by teaching a concept below grade level. In fact, one of the best lessons I ever taught on note-taking (a study skill by the way) began with a hook and some modeling from me using "Green Eggs and Ham" as my model. Let go of the myth that learning standards are a point of origin. Let go of the myth that everything you do must be at or above grade level. Above all, remember that we have to meet kids where they're at and most of them don't come preprogrammed with all that they need. Learning standards aren't where you are, they're your destination. It's where you need to be at the end of the journey, not the gas that should already be in your car when you set out. I've come to realize lately that the people I enjoy working with the most are the one's that don't always share my same opinions, approaches or solutions. Sometimes we agree, sometimes we disagree. As long as we can do it respectfully, disagreement usually works out for the better in the long run. For me, this is particularly true for the people I supervise or do performance reviews with.
I know it's intimidating to most people to think about disagreeing with their supervisor. Honestly, experience tells me it's intimidating for most people to come to ask for a reference so I can't imagine how most people feel the first time they actually voice a difference of opinion, As intimidating as it may seem, experience also tells me it's essential in ensuring the process and performance continue to operate at a top-notch level. Yes, there's a small art-form to it but there's a lot to read on the subject about how to do it like this Harvard Business Journal Article. Henry Ford, maybe unintentionally illustrated my point better than anyone in history when he said "If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses." This quote is often used when citing innovative practices, and rightfully so, but it also illustrates a simple truth about those innovative practices: we can't innovate if we simply exist as "yes bobbleheads." We might just end up with a bunch of faster horses that have simply been genetically modified, and nobody likes GMO's; at least according to my favorite TV commercials. Go ahead, have some polite and courteous disagreement. We work well together when we truly understand where one another is coming from. We will never fully learn about each other by biting our tongues and withholding our own solutions. Learn how to contribute your thoughts and ideas. Together we'll learn how to approach complex situations and we'll never be afraid to address and correct the elephant in the room. Always being agreeable leads you down the path of least resistance, but that path doesn't ever bring you to the top of the mountain. Before going on vacation, a long weekend getaway, or even just to a day-long meeting, many people will set their out of office auto-reply up on their email. Well, I'm thinking of doing this permanently. No, I'm not resigning my position or going completely off the grid (but we've all thought about doing that before), I'm thinking of doing some of my more "daily" functions that don't require strict confidentiality etc. outside of my office next school year. Specifically, I'd like to find a teacher or teachers that would allow me to come into their rooms as a shared space.
I've tried this before with using flex spaces and other types of areas but the disconnect between the pulse of the school and myself still feels the same. I want to go into classrooms, possibly even when their in the middle of something. I don't want to distract or take away from the learning, I just want to see what that days to my perception and understanding of the school environment. Will I feel or view things differently? Would it do anything for the way a teacher views an administrator? Hopefully, I will get some takers for this little experiment of mine. There was a really interesting article I read in the Los Angeles Times by Brian Caplan today. I came across it after it was shared by George Couros (@gcouros) on Twitter. I've linked to the full article at the end of this post. There was one paragraph in particular that I found very interesting, slightly controversial but just about 100% accurate in its' assessment. It reads: The last line in that paragraph is what really grabbed my attention. As I thought about that statement, I couldn't ignore the way it resonated with me. It sadly seems all to true. Thinking back on my college days I think Mr. Caplan's assessment is spot on. I don't remember a lot of people checking attendance, making sure that you had paid the appropriate tuition to attend a class or anything of the sort. In fact, I don't dare say I could have taken 80% or greater of my classes without having paid one nickel to the school. I could have learned nearly everything I learned as a paying college student with the one exception that is identified, I wouldn't have left with a diploma.
Truthfully, the diploma is what I was there for. The diploma was the essential ingredient to getting employed, and that's coming from someone who chose to be an educator; a profession in which we allegedly value the learning above anything and everything. Interestingly enough, after 13 years in that profession I still have never been asked a question on a job interview about what I learned. I've been asked to review my credentials, certifications and diplomas, but nobody has ever asked me about the learning. I think the sad truth is that we don't value the learning. We value the networking, the credentials, the licensure and certifications, but the learning seems to fall by the wayside. As Mr. Caplan writes "most of education's payoff comes from graduation, crossing the academic finish line." I think this is the reason why we hear about so many successful entrepreneurs, President's and many others having been "C" (or worse) students. They didn't conform. They got by but they actually applied what they learned in a way that it resonated with them, not the way someone else wanted it to resonate with them. Personally, I value the learning. I don't feel validated by having a degree nor do I believe that having a degree means I have accomplished a great deal. In fact, I believe I have learned more in my last year or so since I started engaging in Twitter chats, blogging and other on-demand learning activities than I did in six years of undergraduate and graduate school combined. That's what makes me proud of where I am; the way I have challenged and grown my own thinking on this journey. FULL ARTICLE: www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-caplan-education-credentials-20180211-story.html You've probably heard some iteration of the quote "Behind every student success story is a teacher or principal who championed for that student." It's a great quote and certainly one that many of us would find to be motivational. However, we're about moving forward, improving on things. Making them better. So my question is simple. How can we move from the singular (teacher, principal, student) to engage the power of the plural (teachers, principals, students)?
Just imagine the impact we would have had if that quote read "Behind every student success story are teachers and principals who championed for all students." Please know that this post is not a critique of the quote but rather a way to think about things. If a student walks out of our school system after attending K-12 and they can only identify one teacher that made a difference in their lives have we really done our best? Our calling is to educate all students and ensure that every student has a success story. That story should have several chapters written in it and his or her teachers should each be the author of one of those chapters. If you haven't written a chapter in someones story yet this year, tomorrow is a great time to start. I was driving home the other day when I pulled up behind a nice Cadillac XTS. I like cars so this one definitely caught my eye. The other thing that caught my eye was the vanity license plate on the car. They read "2ND2NO1" (second to no one). While I'd like to think that license represents that persons struggle to overcome obstacles and make something from their life in less than ideal circumstances, I couldn't help but hope that was not how that person approached life.
I'm not going to advocate for self-deprecation here as that can be equally as unflattering. It's ok to acknowledge and accept praise for a job well done. What I will say is that seems a lot more likely to come your way if you approach many situations as being second to everyone. It's easy for me to say this as an educator because it's what we do. Our job is to make those around us better; to help them grow in ways they didn't know were possible. Anyone can do it though. You don't have to be an educator, work for a church, non-profit or the like, you just have to approach things with the benefit of others in mind. I hope that person is experiencing success beyond their wildest dreams. I hope they have an opportunity to be second to someone someday. It's a humbling experience to put others before yourself. In a world where we hear we've "got to get ours" I can honestly tell you that the best I've ever gotten came from being second to someone; putting them before myself. I made my own little vanity plate below. Maybe someday I will get one just like it to go on my car. #2ND2EVRY1 I was participating in the #tlap (Teach Like a Pirate) chat on Twitter last night and I came across the following tweet from @The_Groffice: "Modeling a 'glass half-full' approach to problem solving changes mindsets. Yes, there are challenges, but we overcome them positively facing challenges as opportunities." It's a great point and a point that got me thinking, which is why I love Twitter chats as a form of professional learning, they really make you think.
She got me thinking that if we use the metaphor of the glass, and we view challenges as opportunities, then life truly has free refills. Think about a problem, obstacle or anything you've overcome in life. Do you remember the feeling you felt when you reached that pinnacle of success? It's euphoric. It's that feeling of being able to do anything no matter what gets in your way. That's life giving you a refill. Your glass is no longer half empty or half full. It's full and in many cases it's overflowing. In some ways the best part is that more challenges will come. While that may seem like a dreary outlook to some, think about it. Overcoming challenges is what leads to the free refill. We need challenges in order to get the refills. As the world around us tells us more and more that Adversity and challenge should be responded to with anxiety anger and conflict it is more important than ever that we remember to meet these challenges head-on with our very best. It is equally important that we teach our students to do the same. After all, who does not like a free refill? |
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