Immeasurable Impact

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I have this soft spot for music teachers.  It is interesting where you see this massive shift to focusing on “data,” that the arts tend to be cut first when they are needed more than ever.

I have a deep love for hearing and telling stories that were instilled in me by my elementary music teacher, Cindy Penrose.  I learned as much in her music class that I have applied to what I do today than I did in any of my other classes as a student, if not more.  This is not only in my work, but my love of music, drama, and movies, as well as hard work and discipline. Mrs. Penrose gave me an appreciation of these things that I would not have had without her.

Dan Pink discusses the importance of the arts in “A Whole New Mind”:

“Design. Story. Symphony. Empathy. Play. Meaning. These six senses increasingly will guide our lives and shape our world.”

The reason I bring this up is that I was sharing this with a music teacher that I had met yesterday.  She made a comment about my “presence and timing” as a speaker, and I told her that was 100% because of the influence of my music teacher as a student, and that I guarantee, as a teacher, she had the same impact Mrs. Penrose had on me on a ton of her students, she just did not know it.

Many teachers have no idea their impact on the lives of people today.  For every one positive message you have received, there are probably 100’s that you didn’t that could talk about your positive influence on their lives today.  Mrs. Penrose is not the only one to have had a positive impact on me today.  Every generation of educators wants to help their students make the world a better place and I believe that in some way, every generation of teachers has done just that.

While “data” is becoming all the rage in education, understand that your impact as a teacher is genuinely immeasurable and permeates every facet of society.  Education, in my mind, will all be the most human profession in the world, and that is not something that could ever be easily measured.

As the year winds down and stress levels can become high in education, I just want to say thank you for all that you do.

PS…I am not the only who has been impacted to this day because of a teacher. Check out some of the responses below:

Beyond Finding Information

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This is a short and funny video to help discussion on the type of learning we are seeing in our world today:

What I stress about the video is that it is less about finding information and more about what you do with it.

But, what a lot of people argue is that you can’t google everything and it is essential that we develop our knowledge, in which I 100% agree. The idea that technology gets rid of the “basics” is ridiculous; it is more about going beyond those basics and doing more than you could without access to endless information.

Katie Martin says it beautifully in her book, “Learner Centred Innovation“:

Yes, we can “google” answers, but that practice alone won’t make connections or promote a deep level of understanding of any information.  Learners will have to do that for themselves, and as Katie shares, educators are central to that work.

The Present Moment is Our Friend

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My good friend, Patrick Larkin, purchased the book for me, “10% Happier“.  I have been enjoying it, and this quote gave me pause for personal and professional reasons:

“Make the present moment your friend rather than your enemy. Because many people live habitually as if the present moment were an obstacle that they need to overcome in order to get to the next moment. And imagine living your whole life like that, where always this moment is never quite right, not good enough because you need to get to the next one. That is continuous stress.”
― Dan Harris, 10% Happier

I have a tough time appreciating the present moment because my mind seems to be always thinking and worrying about the future.  The quote doesn’t suggest you forget about the future but understand the present is not “your enemy.”

Professionally, with all of the talk about being “future ready,” we have to realize that the moment our students have in school today is something truly meaningful to them.  I think of how often I look back fondly on experiences I had in school, and the learners in front of you need to know how important the present moment is in their lives and how we, as educators, value this time tremendously.  The grade 12 student doesn’t care about your 2030 plan as much as they value today.  We, myself included, need to keep that on our minds.

Don’t ignore the future but remember to value the present. It is your friend.

8 Characteristics of the #InnovatorsMindset (Interview Questions for Administrators)

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I was asked the following question from Kim Powell on Twitter:

Although I had written a post more focused on interview questions for teachers, I had not done one specific to administrators. Below, I have created questions that might be useful to an administrator interview but could also help leaders think more deeply about their practice. As always, please feel free to use and modify to suit your specific community.

 

Characteristic Interview Questions (For Admin)
Empathy How do you learn to meet the needs of your staff, students and community? If they were to tell me about your leadership style, what would they say?
Problem-Finders/

Solvers

 How do you encourage your staff to develop their learning while connecting to the larger version of a school or district?
Risk Takers How do you create a culture where the community feels taking risks to support student growth and development is something that is encouraged, not looked down upon?
Networked We often hear “we want a world-class education” in schools. How do you connect outside the community to learn and grow and how will you support your community to learn from others outside our school community to provide the best opportunities for students?
Observant Tell me about something outside of education that has influenced your leadership?  How does it connect to education?
Creators We want our students to be active creators in their learning. Give some examples of how you would do that as an administrator and how you develop staff as creators as well?
Resilient How have you led others through tough situations?  How have you helped them and yourself grow through the process?
Reflective How do you create opportunities for active reflection within the work day for yourself and community?

This is not a comprehensive list of questions for every administrator interview, but hopefully, you can find some value.

What questions would you add? What would you modify? If you have questions that you think would be great for administrators, please leave them in the comments below.

Taking a moment to be kind could make an impact for a lifetime on someone else.

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Please take 90 seconds to watch this video (it is SOOOO worth it):

A few things:

1. Taking a moment to be kind could make an impact for a lifetime on someone else.

2. How many people seeing this video did something positive for someone else because of what they saw from both the elderly lady and the students? Kindness is contagious.

3. Videos like this remind me that adults can have an impact on our youth and our youth can have an effect on adults. Both are important.

Hopefully, this short video brought the same light to your day as it did mine.

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Defining Your Own Journey

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From “The Innovator’s Mindset“:

When forward-thinking schools encourage today’s learners to become creators and leaders, I believe they, in turn, will create a better world. That’s my why, and it’s the way, I believe, we must approach the what and the how of our work as educators.

Here is the thing…”Forward-thinking schools” don’t just allow teachers to find and create their own solutions; they encourage it.  We can all work together toward a broader vision but our pathways as individuals to that destination, can and should be different based on who we serve.

When I hear of “scripted” curriculums, the argument is that every student should have the same experience, but should they?  They should all have a great experience, but I would say that looks different in every classroom for every student. This is why giving over ownership of the journey matters as much as a shared destination.

In my next book, “Innovate Inside the Box,” written with Katie Novak, I discuss “The Core of Innovative Teaching and Learning,” and identify four essential areas for schools to focus on:

Here’s the deal…I explain why each is important and give some examples to prompt thinking, but I encourage the reader to find their way and make meaning of each principle.  You know your community and classroom better than I could, so what does each look like to you?

The journey, especially in a field where learning is at the center of what we do, is as important, if not more so, than the destination.  We have to encourage those we serve to find and create their own path.

“Leading” often means going first.

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One way you can think about leadership when you are frustrated with others:

Why won’t they move forward?

A better way to think about leadership when we are frustrated with others:

What can I do better to help others move forward?

In the first scenario, you are looking for ways to control others. Good luck with that.

In the second, you are looking to take ownership of your actions.  That is not only possible, but it can also happen quickly.

AJ Juliani recently shared the following:

The reason I write about this today was that I recently discussed with a group of administrators the “Core of Innovative Teaching and Learning,” one asked about what to do when you face resistance.  I suggested two things:

  1. What is assessed will drive teaching, not the other way around. If you encourage people to take risks and try new things, but only celebrate and validate “scores,” they will do what they can to get high scores.  If creativity is encouraged but shown to have no value, then you will get people sticking with what they have done.
  2. Go first. If you ask people to take risks and be vulnerable, you have to be open to modeling that as well. They won’t “jump” if you don’t jump first.

Recently, I posted an image from my upcoming book on “The Core of Innovative Teaching and Learning” and asked for feedback on an image. Not only did I change the title of the book (Innovate Inside the Box) based on thoughts and conversations, several commenters suggested different color schemes and the image became this:

 

I put it out there because I know that if I can put ideas out there and get feedback, it will be so much better than it will ever be if I limit it to my own thinking. I have also embraced that no matter how much input I consider and tweaking I do, nothing will be perfect for everyone.  I have to be comfortable with this vulnerability if I ask it from others, and I know it helps me tremendously.

I have been reading and watching a lot of Brené Brown lately, and this quote resonates:

“Sometimes the bravest and most important thing you can do is just show up.”

Our own willingness (or lack thereof) to “show up” is noticed by those we serve.  If we can go and grow first, that is always the best way to lead those that are resistant. When we avoid taking risks and trying new things, we can expect that same unwillingness from others.  “Leading” often means going first.

The Next Big Thing?

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At the beginning of my teaching career, I applied for a Kindergarten position, and from that interview, I was given the opportunity to teach high school technology.  The reason I was hired to teach a technology class was that I had minimal experience with technology coming out of college and that “minimal” amount was more than anyone they had encountered in their interviews at the time in 1999.  I was reluctant to take the job because I didn’t think I could do it, but my mentor teacher advised me to take any job since they were sparse at the time.

I walked into a class knowing a little bit more than some of my students, but not all.  Every time we learned something new, I would learn a program a little bit before my students, and we would work through things together. I was honest with them that this was something I didn’t fully understand, so if they had some knowledge that I didn’t, please share with me and others, so we can all help each other out.  The class was excellent, and we learned a lot together.  Little did I know that this three-month job would shape much of my thinking for my career. I understood I did not know everything, even in the course I taught. I also appreciated that my students, all had some knowledge that I didn’t, and if I could tap into that, we would all grow.

I am often asked, “What is the next big technology in education?”

My answer is always the same. “I have no idea, and neither does anyone else.”  We can all guess but something new will come and eventually go, and something better will replace it.  The key is not to think about the technology but to learn to adapt to anything that comes our way, and not only survive but thrive.    Honestly, if you knew what every day would look like, the job would become boring. 

This is why “mindset” matters.  Whatever comes our way, we will figure it out. Lucky I learned this in my first year of teaching, and because of that experience, I am still learning today.

3 Ideas for Dealing with “Pushback” on Your Ideas in Education

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On the #Drawn2Teach book study happening now over on Instagram, Josh Stumpenhorst asked the following question:

Here was the response I gave on Instagram:

Instead of answering this question with the idea that had pushback (because I have had a ton), I want to focus more on answering what I have shifted my thinking on for this context.

First of all, assume positive intent of the other person you are working within education. If you think you are the only one trying to do good things for students, you already have a disconnect.  You can meaningfully move more people forward through “influence” than you can “power”.  For influence, people need to know you value them and their contributions.

Secondly, the best answers are usually somewhere in the middle. Not always, but rarely do extremes work for our students. Find the places where you agree and work from there.

Finally, try to find a solution moving forward that leads to action. Too often people hate meetings because they are all about talking and little about action. What are the things you are going to try and come back with to share with one another the next time you connect? There needs to be accountability in creating solutions, not just discussing them.

As my friend Joe Sanfelippo always says, we are all in this together.

What We Assess Often Drives Teaching

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Thinking out loud so bear with me…

An important question that we should ask often;

What is the purpose of school? 

Is it a means to an end or is there a bigger purpose?

If you “teach to the test,” can some skills be learned in that process? Resiliency? Focus? Dedication? I have seen some posts on social media where the instruction is geared to how we do on exams and things like “pep rallies” getting students psyched up to do tests. Please know that whether I agree with this or not, I do know the intent of the teachers and schools doing this is something positive. My gut tells me that how much these classrooms focus on the “test” is usually a reflection of what leadership (local or state/provincial) is saying is essential, or communicating.

What we assess often drives our teaching, not the other way around. If you know your “effectiveness” is measured by how well students do on specific tests, you will probably place a significant focus on helping students do well, and the focus can be narrow.

So is school about doing well on tests or something more? I will always believe it is something more but if we were to ask students, what would they say? I know what many educators would say but do our students feel the same way?  I remember having a conversation with a student who was doing EVERYTHING they could to accelerate their graduation and get credits done as soon as possible.  They had no interest in staying in school and longer and saw it as a checklist to complete.

If you asked the following question, “what is the purpose of school?” to a group of teachers, students, parents, and community members, what would they say? Would their answers be aligned or close in nature or misaligned?

I am not judging, but I am asking. I have been thinking a lot about this lately and wondering where there are connections and disconnections in this question.

I would love to know if any schools or districts are asking their community the question and what they are getting back for answers. What are you doing with that information? How are you aligning what you do to those answers?

*After I wrote this post, I saw this post from Blake Harvard focused on a very similar topic where he asks “What is the purpose of education?” What is interesting to think about is what is the difference of that question and “What is the purpose of school?”  Are these different questions?