Where's the Passion?

Recently, I read Will Richardson's book "Why School?" and it has challenged my thinking and led to me question much about our education process.  Mr. Richardson discussed things like: information scarcity vs. abundance, whether standardized tests are the most appropriate measure of student success, and the skills that students will need to be successful as they move on to college and careers.  His thoughts and assertions led me to think about student motivation as that seems to be a common concern among teachers and parents.

Why do students enter school at age five or six eager to learn but then, over time, begin to dislike school?  I believe that it is because we (the system, not the people) educate the passion for learning out of them.  Think of all the content objectives that students are mandated to learn - whether they are interested in them or not.  These mandates take ownership of learning from the students themselves and have given that ownership to 'the powers that be' in the name of educational improvement.  The problem with that is that the things that are touted as improving schools and students are simply the things that are easily measurable - that is to say the focus is on more content knowledge and not more 'soft skills' for which employers are longing.  Finally, at some point in the education journey the focus for students, parents, and others shifts from the learning to the grade.  The letter we assign to the learning takes precedence over the learning itself.

So what do we do about this?  How can we move forward for students while still 'playing the game' of testing.  I believe we need to find a way to reignite each student's passion for learning.  First, we give them ownership of at least some part of their learning.  There are certainly foundational concepts with which every student must be familiar, but outside of those students should own what they are learning.   If we could provide that, what would that do to a student's motivation?  Secondly, we must make learning relevant to students.  Standardized tests, and the concepts they address, for the most part are seen by students as irrelevant.  They are asked to solve problems and answer questions that are of little value to them.  As Alan November says, "Whoever defines the problem owns the learning."  Clearly, standardized tests are not owned by the students.  Finally, we must honor individual student strengths and passions.  Each student is 'wired' differently so why are we working to make them all the same?  Students need to be allowed to work in their area of passion and on things that excite them.  More growth is possible in strength areas than in areas of weakness.  Let's work on growing each individual's strengths and managing their weaknesses.

What would this look like in schools?  I believe a start is to build at least 20% of a student's time around their area of passion.  That number could increase for those that have a solid grasp on basic skills in every content area, but even those that are behind in basic skills would be motivated by spending 1/5 of their time working on something about which they are passionate.  (Google has used this philosophy and it has worked pretty well for them.)  With technological access, much of the basic skill learning could be done virtually with support from a local teacher if needed.  Teachers must shift from the dispensers of knowledge to the facilitators of learning - not knowing everything about everything but being able to guide students to find the answers they seek.  This would require a complete rethinking of the traditional school schedule and school requirements.  What would happen to standardized test scores?  My first thought is 'Who cares?' but that is a little flippant.  However, I believe that if we allow students to develop the critical thinking skills that would be necessary for this type of learning, test scores would be just fine.  And more importantly, our kids would be prepared for success in whatever each of them chooses to do after graduation.

As I meet with my teachers, students, and other community stakeholders at the start of this school year, I will be asking them one question - "If we take away all pre-conceived notions about school and all the requirements placed on schools and we simply focus on what students need to succeed when setting up our learning structure/environment, what would our school look like?"  I hope that question generates discussion and ignites a passion in my staff and community to change the way we do business - because I want my students to know their passion and be able to design their learning around it.

We have been doing the same thing in schools for 150 years.  Now, we are trying to do the same things better to get better results.  But, as Mr. Richardson puts it so eloquently in his book, we don't need to focus on better, we need to focus on different.  Remember the definition of insanity - doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.  We have to be different for our student's sake.  It's time to stop the insanity and ignite the passion.

Yes....or No.....

In preparing for the next school year, I am constantly confronted with 'yes or no' decisions regarding pilot projects, curricular changes, instructional ideas, etc. from teachers, central office, students, and others.  As I've been thinking about some of them, I've pondered which is easier/less stressful to say - yes or no?  Which is best for kids - yes or no?  Which will move my school forward - yes or no?  Which will continue to improve our culture - yes or no?  While it is impossible to generalize completely, I've  come to the realization that many times it's harder to say 'yes' than it is to say 'no'.  Maybe it isn't 'harder', but it feels more 'dangerous'.  Human nature is to make decisions based on what is most convenient and/or easiest to manage.  Saying no may be hard initially because of the disappointment or disagreement with the individual that made the request, but saying yes is usually harder in the long term because it upsets the status quo.  Maybe the status quo needs some upsetting.....

What kind of culture do you want in your building?  Do you want a culture where teachers and students push to improve constantly or one which values routines?  Do you trust your teachers and students to have student growth and creativity as their ultimate goal?  Do you believe students should have a voice in their learning or that adults should set all the parameters in which students are to learn?  Do you want teachers and students to look for solutions to problems or simply complain that problems exist?

As you ponder these and other questions that come to your mind, think about the answer you will give when individuals or groups make requests to try something new - that answer will say a lot about the culture you want in your building.

What's Important???

As educators, there are numerous items that are important for us to spend time on to help students and teachers.  Curriculum, instruction, professional development, scheduling, activities, etc. keep us running from one place to another to make our schools the best they can be.  However, over the past 18 months I have come to realize the importance of something that sometimes gets neglected - family.

My wife, Shelley, has faced some serious health issues over the past year and half that has required me to be out of the building more than ever before.  (She is going to be fine - today is the last 'treatment' in a long series!)  As I have taken time to help her through this ordeal, I realized that I had been placing her (and my sons) behind my career success.  How unfair to them!  As I sit here with her during her final treatment, I realize how I have changed my priorities back to where they should be - God first (without Him I don't know how we would have made it through), family second, and career third.  I have come to understand that I am a better principal when I take care of things at home first. 

My encouragement to my fellow administrators - take time for your family and let them know by your ACTIONS that they are important to you.  As you work to impact the future through your career, make sure that your most significant impact is on the future of your family.

NASSP Ignite 13 - Final Reflections

What a conference!  Motivational and informative, this was the best National Conference I have attended to date!  Some thoughts from Day 3.

• Sitting and listening does not equal thinking.  Students must interact with content - 'do something' with it - to develop critical thinking.  I learned this first hand throughout the conference as I tweeted my thoughts.  Much more thought to summarize a speaker's remarks in 140 characters or less than just writing them down on note paper.
• Teacher talk does not develop student literacy.  Structuring classroom procedures to engage students with writing to start class and to end class are key steps in improving literacy.  Students should write 5-7 minutes at the beginning of the period and write at the end of the period to answer the essential question for the day.
• The foundation for everything in a school is it's culture.  That culture is built on student-student, adult-student, and adult-adult relationships.  It is impossible to motivate another individual (with methods other than fear) without a positive relationships.
• This statement hit me especially hard - "Anyone can teach some students.  It takes a special person to reach all students."  How can I become that special person?
• Teachers need feedback just like students do.  If I think it's unacceptable for teachers to not provide feedback then it is unacceptable for teachers to not receive feedback.  I've got a lot of improving to do in this area.
• How often do we answer the questions we pose during a lesson to avoid uncomfortable silence?  Students need wait time to process and think.  When we quickly answer the question we pose they are able to get by without thinking.
• I'm more convinced than ever that grades should not be considered a motivator.  While I agree that our top students may be motivated by the grades, they should be more motivated by learning.  Our lower students are typically de-motivated by grades because they don't see themselves as successful.  Grades should be used as communication, not compensation!  How do we change the culture of our students and parents to make this shift?
• Teacher improvement comes best through reflective practice.  How can we structure our observation system to regularly provide time and methods for teachers to reflect?

As I reflect on the full conference, three key concepts stand out.  I had heard them before, but never quite like I heard them this week.  Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships.  While I think all three are important, placing them in this order is misleading.  It is very difficult to promote rigor without first building relationships.  Could we view it in a different order?  Relationships, Relevance, Rigor.  What would happen if we started saying the 'new three Rs' in that order?  Aren't the first two  prerequisites for the last one?  Would this provide a shift in our mindset when planning instruction?  When planning curriculum?  When developing any component of a school building?

Not to go on a political rant, but I think if the 'powers that be' would begin looking at things this way it may change some thinking.  I mentioned a couple of posts ago that we are in danger of reducing each of our students into a set of data points.  Our students are humans.  They have emotions, hurts, fears, insecurities, dreams, desires, and a need to be loved.  What if our legislators and media began citing Relationships, Relevance, and Rigor in that order?  Would that change the focus on high-stakes testing?  Would testing matter if we were making sure that every student has a positive relationship with a caring adult, sees relevance in what they do at school, and then is placed in a rigorous academic environment?  I'm not sure we would have to worry about test scores - they would take care of themselves.

Back to what I can control.  As I fly home tomorrow, one question will dominate my mind - What will I do differently as a result of NASSP-Ignite '13?  I bet it will start with relationships!

NASSP Conference - Ignite 2013 - Day 2 Reflections

So much information to process from great people at NASSP Ignite 2013.  Even though one session I selected was not what I thought it would be (was good, just not what I was looking for) and one that I had planned on attending was too packed to get into (should have arrived earlier), I have taken several things away from today's sessions.  Rather than try to do this in paragraph form, I'm going to list some bullet points below.

• For a leader, 'yes' is more powerful than 'no' but not always easier.  It encourages those in your organization to take risks and be creative.  It also gives ownership to those with the ideas.  Isn't that what we want if we are going to move forward?
• We need to find ways to communicate to parents that we believe their child is special.  How do we DO things to convey this to parents on an individual basis?
• Day 1 of any school year is the day when our students are most engaged and excited.  Yet, we tend to spend the day droning over policies, procedures, rules, etc.  How can we use their heightened engagement on that day to set the stage for a great school year?  Are there things we can do through 'shock and awe' in each classroom to show students our passion for them and for our content?
• I believe our school is a special place.  How do I share that with others?
• As administrators, we have a strong tendency to use phrases like "That's the school policy" when explaining/defending decisions.  What if school policy is not what is best for kids in a specific situation?  How can we work to ensure that school policy and what is best for kids are aligned?  Shouldn't that be our goal.
• We face many decisions and problems daily in schools.  As an administrator, one of our jobs is to deal with those issues.  But, are we always the smartest person in the building?  I know I'm not in many situations. Teachers (and students) may have better solutions than we have.  Do we trust them enough to implement their solutions?  

Those points are from sessions I was able to attend.  However, through the power of Twitter and the use of #nassp13, I 'virtually' attended multiple sessions.  I have never been more convinced that Twitter is the most valuable tool for my personal professional development than I am after today.  While attending a session on leadership, I learned the following things via tweets from colleagues attending other sessions - especially from the session on grading by Rick Wormeli.  What the tweets I saw did for me was reaffirm that we are headed the right direction with our grading policies at MHS.  That is not to say we are where we need to be, but our philosophy is sound.  The trick is going to be refining our procedures so that they align well with our beliefs.  How do we keep our grading focus on student learning and not adult convenience?  One of the struggles is that no 'one size fits all' grading policy is going to motivate all students.  I believe that ours helps many students with motivation, but we need to constantly evaluate it - and probably differentiate it based on student needs - in order to continue the growth of our school.  A new phrase that resonated with me is "Grades are communication, not compensation."  That is certainly a mindset shift - even the term 'earning a grade' implies compensation instead of communication.

I encourage each reader to check out tweets from the conference at #nassp13.  There are a lot of good people with great ideas posting there.

Final Reflections - NASSP Day 1

Keynote speaker Scott Klososky made a compelling case regarding technology. Look at the business world to see how a failure to embrace technology can kill a business. For example, Kodak had digital photography knowledge before many other companies but didn't promote it because they thought it would hurt film sales - they have filed for bankruptcy. That can happen in education too.  We have to expand our thinking from being 'low beam' thinkers (next 12 months) to being 'high beam' leaders (3-5 years away). Education is at an inflection point - we either begin looking ahead with technology, or we will be overtaken by those that do.

We (Monett R-1) are considered a leader among our peers in integrating technology as part of the learning process.  However, can we articulate where we want to be in five years as technology moves from mobile to wearable?  (Do a search for 'google glasses' to see what a wearable is.)  When we have our first student arrive at school with a 'wearable' how will we react?  Will we be prepared?  What about when the transition from wearable to 'implantable' happens?  It is coming whether we want it to or not. Do you think that will change instruction?

Finally, technology provides us with the ability to gather and track more individual student data than ever before. How can we use that data to reach each student?  How do we make sure that we continue to see the student as human and not a collection of measurable data points?  How does this data focus help or hinder the relationships we need to build with students?

At MHS, we have learned a great deal about how technology can enhance the learning process. How can we continue to be on the leading edge (not the bleeding edge) while returning to a relationship-driven school culture?

Thanks for reading. I welcome your thoughts and reactions in the comment section.

NASSP Convention - Reflections from Thursday AM

Ok, this is my first attempt at a blog entry.  I'm not very good at reflecting this way because I haven't reflected this way very often.  I'm sure I'll ramble and ask lots of questions.  Just try to remember that I'm asking these questions because I need to clarify my thoughts.  Hopefully, they will provoke some 'out of the box' thoughts in those that read this too.

School is about relationships first - content second.  If we are to truly improve our school and do what is best for kids (not what is convenient for adults), we must start with building relationships with them and among them.  At William E. Hay HS in Alberta, Canada, the students and staff have designed a school setting where each student is purposely connected with an adult on campus.  Additionally, they have reorganized their time around fostering these relationships.  How did they get students, parents, and teachers on board?  They let them design the entire system.  The students had input into how often and how long classes should meet.  How often should we have advisory?  How often should we have 'Flex Time' to get extra help from teachers?  By turning the design of these over to students, students feel valued.  They feel trusted.  They feel respected.   How can we promote this at MHS?  Better question - How can I promote this at MHS?

Guess what, at Pierce County HS in Georgia, it's about relationships too.  At PCHS, the standard for all students is excellence.  Let me say that again - the standard for ALL students is excellence.  How can we demand excellence from students if we don't know them?  In our test driven school culture (and I'm talking nationally), have we lost sight of getting to know our students?  If we surveyed our students tomorrow, how many of them would indicate that they had a positive relationship with at least one adult?  We have a good school, but is that what we want?  Or do we want to be great?  When starting a new semester or school year, how much time do we devote to building the relationships?  Do we jump right into content because we have so much to cover?  How do we demand excellence and foster relationships at the same time?  What would happen if we asked each student to reflect on this question before submitting any work for grading: "Is this the best I can do?" At PCHS, this is on a poster in every room!  How can we organize our support systems to make sure that students can be successful?  If we have 'pep rallies' for athletic events, why don't we have 'prep rallies' before EOC, AP, and ACT testing? 

Neither of the schools I heard present this morning discussed this next item, but I had an interesting conversation with a colleague about it.  Why don't we celebrate student success more?  I've always had the thought that performing at school is the student's 'job' - it's what they are supposed to do. Why would we celebrate somebody doing their job?  My colleague challenged my thinking.  He asked something like, "When the running back on your favorite NFL team scores a touchdown do you celebrate?  He's just doing his job."  Wow - that hit me upside the head.  We celebrate what we are passionate about.  If we really want to see our schools improve, we must become passionate about it and celebrate it when it happens.  And to do it right - we should probably have students planning the celebrations!