Thursday, March 30, 2017

Risk and Organzational Continuity

I've known so many fantastic math teachers. No offense to history instructors (I was one) but math and science teachers are so darn cool. Knowing great math teachers is important to me because I wasn't the strongest math student and I struggled in math classes year after year (I do enjoy the subject!!).

One of the best math teachers I've ever known is Heather Hayden. First, you can put aside technical math competency. She clearly has the "math" part of teaching math down. Many teachers have the "math" part down and are unfortunately, wholly inept when it comes to working in a classroom. So what makes her great? As a former high school teacher (and aspiring decent human being) aiming to emulate her greatness, I have given this a lot of thought. I am a "listing points kind of guy so here we go:

1. Passion. She clearly has passion for students, math, and math instruction. I am telling you...it is obvious when you talk with her or watch her teach that she values a positive classroom culture. She loves kids and she deeply believes in their ability to learn math successfully. She doesn't even necessarily believe they should learn it for real-world application. Instead, they learn to love math because it is math. It is exciting and challenging and it pushes your brain to think in new and exciting ways. She was "growth mind-setting" before it was the "thing".

2. Innovative and Reflective: George Couros defines innovation as "new and better" time and time again in Innovators Mindset. She embodies this version of innovation. She doesn't have fancy bells and whistles in her class. The classroom actually looks rather traditional. But what you see is students excited and focused on math. Students unafraid to work with their teacher and to put in the effort to succeed. Her approach to innovation is to focus on always finding the best possible ways to instruct her students in math. She teaches, reflects, tinkers, teaches again, and so on and so forth. A textbook doesn't manage her instruction. The shiny new curriculum bundle, online math program, "rigorous" pacing guide, or latest conference dump don't sway her from her focus--high quality, responsive math practices that transcend educational waves.

3. Risk Taker: Heather is unafraid to share her mind with school leadership. While always respectful and always with an eye towards a solution, this can still be dangerous. It is easy to tag a critic as an obstructionist or someone who isn't a team player (she is clearly a team player and champion of her school, students, and peers). Heather always pushes back with an eye on her students success and with finding what actually works when it comes to fostering healthy math instruction.

While some would say we have moved/are moving away from the world of strict pacing guides, high stakes testing and accountability, and scripted instruction, not all leaders are forward thinking, Twitter addicts (because clearly you would be forward thinking if you're addicted to EDU Twitter). Many school leaders continue to cater to the lowest common denominator when it comes to school leadership. They look to make decisions about instruction that are centered on teachers who are struggling to find success and not on those who are innovative, passionate, and humbly successful.

Teachers who find ANY WAY instead of THE WAY must be celebrated, supported, and heard.

But this notion of "any way" is scary for organizations (schools, Districts, governments, companies, etc.). By nature, schools and school leaders have traditionally sought to respond to organizational failures (low student achievement, lack of student engagement, etc.) by creating systems that are focused on responses rooted in continuity. This is especially important when you think about the duty of the organization to ensure equitable access and in managing accountability, etc.

So I propose a path forward. If we want to create dynamic schools that produce college and career ready students, we must foster dynamic leaders who are able to ensure organizational continuity BUT never at the detriment of teachers who are truly grinding hard to find "a way" to make sure all students are successful. Celebrate those who are willing to take risks, to put in the work, and to champion all students. Support those teachers who need more and who are struggling to meet need. Remember, the day we drown out Hayden and the MANY risk-taking teachers (you know who you are), is the day we functionally give up on kids.

Friday, March 24, 2017

Whoa, slow the train down!

I always assume best intentions. It sometimes bites me in the behind but it is just who I am. So when a teacher seems like an obstructionist in the face of something new, I try to reflect on what is really in the way. Is it access to PD? Is it a fundamental disagreement with the change? Is it fear? Time?

What struck me in the latest part of Innovators Mindset was the thought of "over-implementing" or implementing change too fast.  If I think of this year, our District is implementing (or continuing to implement) several major initiatives. It is hard to choose a single focus when our students need so much. When you add initiatives that are important to a school, grade level, or teacher, it can be overwhelming for teachers. How do we encourage a passion for innovation without overwhelming our teachers? How do we avoid "dumping" (dumping may be the wrong word) too much on them?

I have many ideas on this but every year it always seems best laid intentions grow into a sizable number of tasks. Every year. This week, George asked us to make a video blog for the #IMMOOC. So, here it goes. It isn't perfect but my take on too much change at once:




Tuesday, March 21, 2017

A Sickness or the Best Prescribed Medicine?

I told myself that I would refrain from all social media during spring break. I told myself that I would take a break and disconnect this week.

Well, no such luck. My “break” from Twitter was a matter of hours.

I am not sure what it is about Twitter.

It could be that I have met new people and have made both local and global connections, or it could be the encouraging quotes, motivating ideas, and inspirational videos tweeted and retweeted by members of my PLN. Possibly, it's that my thinking is confirmed, and also challenged, by like-minded people on Twitter. Maybe, it's the monthly FSUSD friendly competitions, or maybe, it’s the #IMMOOC blogs and chat. Quite possibly, it’s that I am able to share the amazing, innovative teaching strategies and student work in my school district, while at the same time, learn about new and exciting ideas from other districts. It could also be that I am introduced to new programs and websites while on Twitter, or that I am able to receive the highlights of current EdCamps or CUE Conferences that I am not able to attend. Maybe, it's the BreakoutEDU success stories, or maybe, it’s the numerous books that are recommended and highlighted on Twitter, such as Kids Deserve It!, The Innovator’s Mindset, Start Right Now, and most recently, Lead Like a Pirate. Yet, it may simply be the funny memes and the Warriors highlights.

Or…it is all of the above. One thing is for sure, I am hooked. 

Recently, I told a member of my PLN that our frequency on Twitter is a sickness. Perhaps, though, it is the best prescribed medicine.

The Bruce Dickinson” in the “More Cowbell” comedy sketch from Saturday Night Live tells the Blue Oyster Cult, "I got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell." Well, in this case, I got a fever, and the only prescription is more Twitter.









   

Saturday, March 18, 2017

The Mirror

Those who stress the importance of failure as part of the innovation process tend to focus on failure.” This is not healthy and not where the focus should be. Failure is not the goal, however “having the freedom to fail is important to innovation.” Couros recognizes that failure is indeed a natural part of learning, but it’s not the actual failure that should be the focus, but rather the license to fail that should be encouraged. Giving our teachers this ability to feel comfortable taking risks with their lessons, to know that we support them in taking these risks, and to encourage them to engage in creative activities, that while those lessons may fail it could also enliven the learning process  and inevitably allow the teacher to run their classrooms in a direction that will spark innovation through focusing on the art of questioning, rather than answering.
From the moment teachers enter formal education, they are encouraged to teach students how to succeed. Everything that is done in the classroom is done with the hope that it will contribute to a student’s ultimate success. Students are taught the rules, expectations, and ideas that they are expected to know in order to be successful in the world. Teachers are encouraged to do whatever it takes to ensure that their students do not fail to learn what they have taught in the classroom, as well as support them in making as few mistakes as possible.
Although we do want our students to be successful, the pressure that is put on this success can often distract from the encouragement our staff may need to create lessons that push their students to think creatively, explore their possibilities, and maybe even get a little messy along the way. Learning does not occur in perfectly packaged environments where all students are listening and quiet and doing as they are told. Learning is an experience that happens through trial and error and through that process, can indeed, spark innovation.
What if lessons were designed in a way that students learned, alongside their teacher, that mistakes and misconceptions are not actually their failures or inabilities to understand or master material, but rather opportunities to begin to ask questions of oneself?  What if failure was viewed as being one step closer to success? What if we focused less on teaching our students everything they are expected to know but rather taught them how to become proficient questioners of any and all learning they encounter? What if our students were capable of seeing that simply coming up with an answer did not mean the problem was solved, but rather that the learning had just begun?       
“School should not be a place where answers go to die, but where questions come to life.” Couros speaks passionately about the art of questioning, but also recognizes that we learn to question by first establishing and understanding how grit and resiliency allows us to recover from our own perceived failures. When we learn to rise above our challenges, we begin to question what led to those mistakes in the first place and how we can correct them in the future. This type of thinking can lead our students towards establishing an Innovator’s Mindset where students have the chance to focus their efforts on creating, understanding, and innovating, where their learning  can be molded around these processes rather than being told what they are expected to learn. In these classrooms, our teachers require the support to allow their students to learn in an unrestricted environment where they can develop authentic conceptions of information that are not based on a pre-prescribed learning outcome, but rather on that real, authentic learning.
How can teachers foster this type of innovative thinking in their students? How can a site leader inspire, support and encourage our  teachers to attempt to completely change the way their classrooms look and feel, as well as the types of learning they produce?  How can we influence our teachers to take that first initial step to begin to focus more on questioning than answering, while still contributing to a student’s ultimate success?
Maker movements, STEAM labs, inquiry-based approaches, problem-based learning and other instructional approaches that relinquish control from the classroom teacher can not be successful without that idea in mind that yes, this too, could possibly fail. But what if that process of taking risks, failing, and learning from that failure created a symbiotic relationship of learning between teacher and student where the learning is happening together? What if the road to success in one class looks different in another class because the paths taken are different and therefore the learning that occurs is also different? What if this messy path to success creates a relationship between teacher and student where they are authentically learning together through every mistake they make, every question they ask, and every idea sparks curiosity towards a new one?
Yes, this is risky and there are no guarantees that this will work out perfectly.  Mistakes are bound to be made, but Couros encourages us, the leaders in this process of learning, to recognize that “Our job, sometimes, is simply to be the spark, help build confidence, and then get out of the way.” When we model for students, through looking into a mirror and reflecting on our mistakes, we help them seek those answers from within themselves rather than from us.  If we all fail together, we can grow together by trying again tomorrow, but this time with new and different inspiration.


Friday, March 17, 2017

They Won't Eat You Alive If You Dance

I've had an opportunity to work closely with dozens of educators. Very different educators. I get it...some teachers are just way more strict and rigid. And that is okay. They believe in setting strict boundaries with intricate rule routines and procedures. While it isn't my teaching style, I get it. YOU CAN achieve the same thing if you set clear expectations, give them a chance to understand/learn/practice those expectations, build strong relationships, show them you care and that you love them.  I promise your students won't eat you alive. Well, I pretty much promise.

Either way, no matter how you work to build a "safe, respectful, responsible" climate in your room, please don't strive to build compliance through instructional rigidity. So often, in the name of keeping the class under control, educators sacrifice an environment that fosters innovation and is rooted in student choice, creativity, and the critical "question finding" that George Couros discusses in The Innovator's Mindset. 

While it seems the whole education world knows it isn't okay, somehow, worksheets, pre-prescribed teacher manuals, "teacher centered" discussions, basic computer programs/apps, prescribed writing prompts and long lists of carefully crafted objectives (that kids can't even see) rule the day for many classes (yes, a lot less than even 4-5 years ago but still...). I've come to realize after so many observations that this type of class seems to be rooted in gaining "compliance over kids" but behind the veil of teacher as expert...or historically competent practices...or district mandates...or who knows. 

So if I've described your classroom (or your professional development practices as a principal), all I dream of is that you pivot one small step at a time. The pivot doesn't need to be a major change earthquake or fancy technology. Some very basic examples just from today/week/month that will help start the shift for those that are nervous about moving:

Instead of discussing objectives at the start of the lesson, ask the children to think about what the objective of the lesson was when the lesson is wrapping up. Let the students "question find" and critically think about the learning experience they just had.

Spend a whole day timing how much you talk vs. how much they talk for academic purposes. Let the data speak for itself. Or try to cover your mouth when they are having a discussion. Stop yourself from interjecting. 

Let them bring a personal mobile device for a day and provide a structure for them to use it with academic purpose. Tell them you trust them to use it appropriately. 

Do a breakout or some other type of challenge? Provide some structure and guidance but let them take their thinking and whatever recent math/science/language/history lesson you taught and apply it. Let them struggle a bit. Let them team. Let them compete. 

Buy a couple of actual sheep hearts to dissect instead of having them read a textbook and fill in some blanks on hearts. 

Take them outside to read, plant, jump, collaborate, build, race, think, challenge, or create.

Have them record a video Flipgrid describing the best (non-recess) moment of the day.

Teach mindfulness for a week and see what impact it has on how they interact and work together. 

Go ONE WHOLE week without using one worksheet. Not one. 

Give them time at least once next week where they can create/build/experiment with (or without) some structure. DO it in your classroom to show them making doesn't have to be in a special maker space.

Finally, 

DANCE with the whole class for 5 minutes. Let them pick a favorite (but appropriate tune). It's okay...I promise the instructional compliance police won't knock down your door. BUT, I PROMISE TO JOIN YOUR DANCE PARTY, ANYTIME!








Thursday, March 16, 2017

Push the Button!

Just push the button!

"WHAT IF we believed that everything that we had to make great schools was already within our organizations, and we just needed to develop and share it?" I do believe! Everything we need DOES exist in our schools.

Poor and uneven funding , trauma, standardized testing, poor compensation...the list of "success barriers" is endless AND real. While I don't pretend to minimize any of these as things that need real solutions,  I contend that they don't really stand as true barriers. It is easy to fall into the trap (I do it often) of listing the reasons we aren't seeing the classrooms or student performance we dream of. But I have now worked in four very different schools that are resourced very differently and serve very different school populations. AMAZING teachers (and students) exist in all 4 schools. These teachers find unmatched levels of success. They are innovative practitioners (striving for new and better), risk-takers, creative thinkers,  resource hounds, true advocates for children, and tireless relationship builders. Some are firm and more "old-school" and some are the "new kids on the block". Regardless of teaching personality, they transcend excuse making and represent everything we need to make great schools.

BUT, it isn't every classroom for every child. And that isn't okay. Some of it rests with hiring and retention efforts. But as leaders, it really hinges on our ability to lead by mirroring the same qualities we want out of our staff.

What if we made a conscience effort to build personal relationships with each staff member?

What if we modeled staff PD and training that reflected the needs of adult learners and didn't replicate the instruction we DON'T want for our children?

What if we practiced mindfulness WITH our teachers and students?

What if we learned alongside our teachers and students?

What if we empowered staff and students to be problem finders and solvers?

What if we stopped saying and ACTUALLY PUSHED THE BUTTON!






Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Gratitude

After reading Part II of The Innovator's Mindset, and listening to the YouTube Live session, one word came to mind...gratitude.

In education, it's always easy to discuss what isn’t happening, what needs to improve, and what needs to change, but it is important to also acknowledge what is happening, what is improving and what is changing. Over the past two years, in my role as GATE Specialist, I have had the pleasure of working with GATE teachers and administrators at 23 elementary and middle school sites.  Of course, there are still things to do differently and to improve, but there always will be. What’s important to note are the positive changes that have occurred at many of these sites.

The level of empathy for students and their families has increased and there is a greater focus on relationship building. In order to meet students’ needs, risk-taking is more commonplace and the consistency of reflection has greatly improved. Instruction is becoming personalized, encouraging students to explore, question, think critically, and create as they move from engaged to empowered. Educators are interested in learning, open to networking and connecting with others on both local and global levels, and encouraging their students to do the same. 

Thank you for leading the change. Thank you for being open to making changes at your schools and in your classrooms, for your students. Thank you for allowing me to visit, tweet photos, talk to your students, ask questions, and learn from you. I have so much gratitude and I know your students do, too.


Tuesday, March 14, 2017

An Ode to Kindergarten-a lesson in passionate relationships

I started my teaching career in high schools. I started my school administrator career in a high school. I simply never dreamed of working with elementary school children. They just seemed so distant and grubby and needy. This is my seventh year as an elementary school principal and I readily admit that I was wrong. So wrong.

At back to school night this year, I talked to parents about "passion" and my path from high school to elementary. The somewhat unorthodox journey has shown me something scary. Our students enter school as kindergartners with so much passion, curiosity, excitement, and pure love for their teacher, classmates, and school. They are willing to try, to create, to build, to grow, to wonder, and to challenge. But in so many schools, the "kindergarten" mindset and passion wanes for students as they move through elementary school, into middle school, and finally into high school. What about how schools are currently constructed drains the passion from our children (and adults)? Wait, don't answer that. It doesn't matter. What matters is what we do to cultivate that "kindergarten" mindset for students (and staff) after they leave kindergarten.

In Part Two of The Innovators Mindset, George Couros focuses on relationships. He writes, "If we want meaningful change, we have to make a connection to the heart before we can make a connection to the mind." I contend that as school leaders, we have to strive to protect the time for teachers to make that heart to heart connection with their students and we have to make that same connection with teachers. I don't have any special "tricks" or "activities" to make this happen (well I do but I am going to bed soon). The best way to do it is to be authentic, humble, caring, mindful, patient, and responsive. Innovative change will happen. Sometimes slowly. Sometimes in spurts and with bumps. But it will rarely happen without a commitment to showing children and teachers how passionate you are---ABOUT THEM. So here it is, an ode to kindergarten students.



Tuesday, March 7, 2017

The Best Thing to Happen at School Today!


In the latest chapter of his book Innovators Mindset, author George Couros develops the concept of "8 characteristics of the Innovators Mindset". All 8 characteristics appeal to me but the networking concept caught my eye (plus it was the one thing the my fellow blog contributors hadn't really talked about yet). 

So in case you didn't notice, I love to tweet! As a fellow blog contributor said to me, "tweeting is a sickness" (and that is a positive statement).  I just can't help myself. The ability of the platform to build an endless network of committed, talented, innovative educators is unrivaled. But only 7 of my teachers are on Twitter (and of those, only a couple regularly tweet). And even while FSUSD seems to have a ton of educators on Twitter, as a percentage of the number of teachers and school leaders, it is a relatively small number. So that raises an issue...most of our teachers aren't tweeting yet. They are missing out on the PLN that is literally better than any PD/professional learning network I've ever participated in or attended. So what now? How do we build a network on our campus and District for our teachers and school leaders in a way that creates innovative culture and change. That is efficient. And safe/inclusive/meaningful/powerful/and on and on (PSSST...Twitter does this really well for educators. Not sure about safety for other topics...). 

I don't have all the answers but I am taking a leap and I am going to try to break down some walls (not literally...my secretary would likely tackle me). Today, I talked FlipGrid for staff at our staff meeting. The platform allows for users (teachers and students) to respond to prompts with a short video upload. I was going to go with this flowery question on innovative practices for our first question but instead kept it to something simple, yet powerful. What is the best thing that happened for you at school today? See https://flipgrid.com/gmwyauk. They seemed interested but I was kinda bummed when 13 responses weren't posted (though I admittedly couldn't give them time to post at the meeting. Which raises other questions about providing quality time for reflection...another post). I then introduced the #observeme movement that is sweeping our secondary schools. I am not really sure this is happening at any of the other elementary schools but #cheobserveme has begun. I can't wait to see where it goes. Our teachers are already innovative (even if its only one single innovative lesson). Can we share with each other? Can we grow? Can we document our journey (triumphs and mistakes alike)?

Lastly, I haven't given up on connecting CHE Twitter with TwitterEd. I am excited for #JoinTwitterWeek, tentatively scheduled for the week of April 17th. 

Oh, and my network is the best thing that happened to me at school today! That and kindergarten science and dance parties! 


Teaching is Hard

The Power of Reflection


George Couros notes, “Reflection, not only in innovation but also in education, is a practice to which we need to pay more attention."

Of the 8 characteristics of the Innovator’s Mindset, reflection has had the greatest impact on my role in education. Whether I am teaching a model lesson, coaching a teacher, meeting with parents, or facilitating an event, reflection is critical.

In order for me to deepen my learning and to become more effective as a leader, some questions I may ask myself are:

What worked well? Why?

What did not work well? Why?

What do I need to change, add, or modify? Why?

What aspects/elements do I keep/continue? Why?

What would I do differently next time? Why?

How would I feel if I were the students? The teachers? The parents?

This does not always come easy, however. Because it requires intention, reflection is often the most difficult (of the eight characteristics), but it has the power to be the most beneficial.

John Dewey stated, “We do not learn from experience… we learn from reflecting on experience.”  

When reflecting, I am able to self-assesses, making the necessary changes and/or modifications moving forward. The practice of reflection, and asking those valuable questions, helps me to be more effective and to better meet the needs of teachers, students, and families.

Now, imagine how powerful it would be if all educators integrated reflection into their practice, daily. What would happen if educators made a point to look back before looking forward? How would that impact schools? How would that impact instruction? How would that impact innovation? Imagine the positive changes that would occur and the effect it would have on students and their achievement?

Couros also notes, “We have a lot of schools that do variations of “Drop Everything and Read” (DEAR), a concept that encourages students to read and consume information. But few schools focus on encouraging students or educators to “Drop Everything and Reflect.”

In Visible Learning, John Hattie ranks the factors that have the greatest effect size in student achievement.  Self-assessment is one of the most effective factors. So, what if reflection was also an integral part of the day for our students? What would learning look like for them? What would happen in schools, and in classrooms, if students were given the time to reflect?




Sunday, March 5, 2017

Coloring Outside the Lines

I was fortunate to attend the #PowerfulPractices conference in San Francisco recently, where George Couros was the Keynote Speaker. The keynote wound up being the highlight for me, hands down!



In his speech, George was not only engaging but he empowered us to participate through a back channel via Today's Meet, as well as on Twitter (check out #PowerfulPractices to see some Tweets). George barraged us with personal family photos, his personal background, and entertaining anecdotes
​ which quickly established credibility, rapport, engagement, and empowerment. Couros asserts that if we want to
inspire meaningful change, we must make a connection to the heart before attempting to connect to the mind. What a great lead-in to the #IMMOOC (Innovator's Mindset Massive Online Open Course) that is certain to continue paving the way for transformation in FSUSD.

I​n my endeavor to make meaningful change within FSUSD, our students, teachers, and leaders, I​
look to my colleagues, including my invaluable PLN (Professional Learning Network), for inspiration on a regular basis (whether some know it or not!). I find that collectively they are communicators, innovators, critical thinkers, risk-takers, and they maintain a global perspective of learning and its purpose. These are all qualities that have driven each of them to function successfully and intentionally within their various capacities. I'd presume that those qualities are success indicators across career-fields; in fact I can't think of a single situation where communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and innovation would be frowned upon. When we look at our students and teachers in classrooms, we may see content-heavy direct teaching practices that once were praised as the standard of education. Shifting a mindset can be difficult​; ​as George Couros pointed out in his keynote​, "i​t is often nostalgia that holds us back from change.​" ​
Are we nostalgic for teaching that unit on pilgrims, or for teaching cursive handwriting​, or running a sage on the stage model of staff meeting?​ Or do we honestly believe that cursive handwriting will make that student a better problem-solver as an adult​ and that lecture will build staff capacity? Couros made two more excellent points that stuck with me: 1) "If you're standing still, you're falling behind," and 2) "If you do not know what a hashtag or handle is, in this world today, you are becoming illiterate." We should be ensuring that our students and teachers are provided ongoing opportunities for innovating, collaborating, thinking critically, and risk-taking at school; if not, we are doing them a disservice. I remember when my niece was in kindergarten she colored inside the lines on all of her assignments, but at home she always scribbled outside the lines. When my sister asked her why she scribbles outside the lines at home, her response was wise beyond her years: "because at school we have to color inside the lines, so sometimes I just like to scribble when I can."

                                                                           Photo Credit: http://karenoakleydesigns.com/color-outside-the-lines/



"The world only cares about--and pays off on--what you can do with what you know (and it doesn't care how you learned it)" - Thomas Friedman

Are we providing students and teachers opportunities to innovate, communicate, collaborate and to think critically? Or are we boxing them in to the world of academia and compliance thereby forcing students to leave school less curious​​
than when they started?

​According to Liz Wiseman, Lois Allen, and Elise Foster's book, The Multiplier Effect, leaders who bring out the genius in others, thus building collective, viral intelligence within organizations, are called multipliers. Multipliers focus on building capacity by tapping into and extracting the genius of others, which is akin to doubling staff size at no cost; as you may have guessed, this is called the Multiplier Effect. Imagine the innovations and successes that could be accomplished from staff operating at more than twice their current output!

Disruptive innovation is imperative for societal progress. If we are standing still, we are failing our students by holding them back from creating a future that exceeds status quo. If we are forcing our students and teachers to color inside the lines, then we are demanding compliance instead of fostering innovation. It's up to us to create an environment for innovative thinking and relevant learning through risk-taking​ and to create a multiplier effect within FSUSD. ​
What is one thing you will do tomorrow, as a result of today? Scribble on.

Follow me on Twitter: @A_Klein09

Saturday, March 4, 2017

The Importance of Sharing

The Innovator’s Mindset Massive Online Course (#IMMOOC) started this week, and I am beyond grateful that I chose to participate. The reading, the YouTube live session, and the Twitter chat were all incredibly powerful. Many people, from around the world, came together to discuss the importance of innovation in education.

Throughout the week, I had many aha moments, moments of validation, and moments of reflection, but there were two quotes by George Couros that resonated with me more than others.

“If someone feels uncomfortable because you’re doing good work, you are not the problem.” This came up as a response in the live session when discussing the importance of sharing your learning and someone asked, “How do we ensure that this is seen as sharing and not bragging?”

In my current role in Fairfield-Suisun, one of my responsibilities is supporting teachers. In doing so, I encourage them to share the amazing, innovative practices that are happening in their classrooms. Many are unwilling to do so because they don’t want to be seen as showing off or bragging by their colleagues.

I also have teachers who refuse to go and observe other teachers because it makes them feel and/or viewed as less than or not as good as those they are observing. The fact that they want to observe instruction in other classrooms is somehow seen by them as a reflection of their inadequacies.   

Although I understand the reasoning, both situations are concerning to me-the fact that teachers do not want to share and the fact that teachers are not interested in improving their craft by observing others. In order to improve practices, move forward in education, and build capacity, both need to occur. 

“The positive shifts we have seen in education in the last few years are not because we have access to information, it is because we have access to each other.”

When I was a teacher at Rolling Hills, I was a member of a Professional Learning Community (PLC). One of the most powerful elements of a PLC is the collaborative piece. Members of a PLC don’t just collaborate weekly; teachers share ideas and observe each other daily. If this is practiced, and teachers are completely open to the process, instruction improves and as a result, student achievement follows suit.   

Collaborating as part of a Professional Learning Community was my experience, but one doesn’t need to be a member of a PLC to share with, and learn from, his/her colleagues. The secondary schools in our district are participating in the #ObserveMe movement. This a friendly challenge that includes welcoming colleagues into their classrooms to observe and sharing their daily classroom practices on Twitter. Educators are collaborating with one another, while at the same time, building both local and global connections.

Teachers should not feel badly or so cautious about sharing their innovative practices, just as teachers should not be embarrassed or less than when wanting to observe/learn from others. When one shares, it not only impacts the person seeing/hearing the idea, but also the one sharing it.  It is not about being perfect; it is about collaborating with the same collective goal of continuous improvement in mind. Through the collaboration and connections with others, educators’ practices continue to improve. As educators, we need to be open to sharing with, and learning from, one another (whether it be in a blog, on social media, or in person) in order to effectively support our students.

Thursday, March 2, 2017

A Fat Plate of Bacon

Hi everyone! Up to this point, staff and parent blogs have been informational but this new foray into blogging begins with #IMMOOC and an excitement to share  thoughts and responses to growing and supporting innovative practice across Fairfield-Suisun Unified and in all schools for all children and teachers!

Decision Time!


I run every single day and the running times serves so many purposes. Time to reflect, zone out, de-stress...Tonight on my run I finally came to a decision about a potential opportunity in another District. SO many former colleagues, friends, and school leaders  asked me to apply to be superintendent of schools of my former District. I contemplated it for the last month and had privately told a few that I had planned to apply. Ultimately, I decided it was the wrong decision. I'm not ready and am not the right person for the job right now. Fairfield-Suisun is my new home and the opportunity for growth and change here is powerful and exciting. FSUSD represents a chance to really learn what it means to be an innovative leader.


#IMMOOC
Several of us with FSUSD have joined hundreds of educators for the Innovator's Mindset Massive Online Open Course, or IMMOOC that started earlier this week. The foundation for the course is based on the work of George Couros and his book The Innovators Mindset. It has been an exhilarating first week of the course. One thing is clear--as school leaders, so often we are failing our students because we are failing our teachers. We demand so much of our teachers but we offer little in the way of regular and meaningful professional development, collaboration time, and resources. One quote from the book stuck with me. George writes:

"Many teachers are bored with the profession because they know there is a lot more to learning than what schools offer today. These teachers want to be innovative, but, instead of connecting and learning from others around the world, let alone with colleagues in their own schools, they spend time in staff meetings that often seem irrelevant to the heart of teacher. They are constantly told that if they want to be innovative, they are going to have to find time to do it."

Even if a teacher is comfortable with the status quo, a strong vision of change and growth isn't encouraged by the current model of development, compliance, and demand to teach the "common cores" (as some call it). 


If you know me, you know I LOVE BACON, especially crispy bacon! I dread staff development and staff meetings because for so long the model has been anything BUT a heaping pile of crispy bacon. After my first staff meeting this year, I walked to my car thinking gosh, that was about as boring and dull as it gets. The meeting had important "information" but I thought at the time that I wasn't going to inspire a snail or turtle to move, let alone teaching professionals. So I pledged to make every staff meeting a plate of bacon. I think I've done better, with a couple of meetings being the best pile of crispy bacon you've ever seen (I even had a couple of teachers cook a ton of bacon dishes). Some of the other meetings were more like a half plate of leftover turkey bacon. Nevertheless, I know my staff deserves more, every time. Our students deserve more. 

George writes, "If students leave school less curious than when they started, we have failed them." I say the same thing about my teachers and to my District. If teachers or administrators leave training and meetings less curious, we are failing them (and our kids). There is so much more that goes into creative a culture of innovation, but for me, it starts with a huge plate of crispy bacon. EAT UP!