Somehow, in the midst of a conversation, a colleague laughed out loud and said “you’re such an idealist!’
I stopped, noticing that I might have (in the past) apologized for being so unrealistic. For being driven. For being relentlessly focused on the things that matter to me.
As if those are bad things…
Or I might have felt bad for being “high maintenance”…
But this time, in that moment when I stopped those apologies, I felt a wave of pride instead.
“You bet I’m an idealist!” I responded. And I smiled.
I believe in the power of teams. I believe that people want to be a part of meaningful projects. And I believe that everyone wants to rise to your expectations. So why not have great expectations?
And the very next day at WeDay, I found this tshirt:
Earlier today, I gave a job reference for someone I admire greatly. As I’ve reflected on that conversation, I find that I keep coming back to one idea in particular.
The interviewer asked me, near the end, if there’s any one thing I’d like to highlight or to say (that I hadn’t said already)? Was there a final impression I wanted to leave with the hiring committee?
I was quiet for a moment. Was there? Had I said enough and covered all I wanted to say? I waited to see what would emerge.
And something did…
I said “This may sound trivial, but I really want to emphasize that he’s just a really decent, honest, caring person. Fundamentally, I believe he’s a really good human being. And that’s what makes him so successful in any situation – because it’s not an act, he’s not trying to prove anything, and he knows what’s important to him and his community.”
It resonated (and still does) as something extremely important for a leader to be…
And as I’ve thought about those moments, my mind wanders through my memories of the truly powerful, life changing leaders (formal and informal) I’ve known. The true leaders that I admire most have all been these kinds of people!
Honest
Caring
Patient
Passion driven, clear on their priorities
Striving to live their beliefs every moment of every day
Forgiving (of themselves and of others)
Immense faith in people
Basically, just honest to goodness, really decent human beings…
Perhaps an old fashioned idea. No special business degree needed. Just the hard work of self reflection and continuous striving to be accepting, caring and trust – of self and of others. And in every thought, word and deed.
How we design technology tools and systems must be firmly grounded in all we know about learning (from both current research and educator experience). I believe that the qualities of effective learning environments must guide IT decisions and design processes.
Here are my initial ideas – what are your thoughts? Things I missed? Does it resonate?
Focus on Student Learning
The ultimate focus is always to support student learning and growth.
Learner Centered
All learning (i.e. students in a class, teacher pro-d, parents seeking info, etc…) requires similar types of supports (relevant, empowered, social, etc…)
We all need to be lifelong learners. Process of continuous improvement is critical.
The rate of change in the world is still accelerating and isn’t likely to stop, so we need to be able to continuously learn
Relevant
Connect learning to real world situations. Don’t want learners to have to ask “why am I doing this?” without an answer!
Continuous communication of the “why” of everything we do is critical
Create meaning within each person’s own context. When I can connect something new to something I already understand, learning is better retained and becomes sustainable.
Bring together and respect existing communities. People self-organize by what matters and has value for them.
Community and parent inclusion in learning strategies can both support and reinforce the learning that happens in schools.
Problem solving within real world contexts helps learning “make sense” to learners
Critical thinking is a necessary real world skill (we rarely have only the information we need – so what is relevant vs. what is needed vs. what is superfluous?)
Access to up to date information and expertise.
Empowered
Need to respect diversity of needs/abilities/learning styles, etc…
Flexibility is critical to success. Provide a variety of options and let people select their own combination of tools/techniques.
There is no “one way” or “one size fits all” solution. Asking questions and being curious is critical. We will provide a variety of tools and options that can be assembled as needed.
Support differentiated methods of instruction and access, ability for individuals to select their preferred tools
Social
Learning is social – we learn together, no one is the absolute expert, need for “co-learning”
Relationships are fundamental to all learning. Learning is social.
Every project must be approached as an opportunity to build a culture of learning that supports any kind of change (current or future)
Everything we do must provide an opportunity to build and support relationships
Trust/safety is required for risk taking and learning
How we build trust and individual comfort levels will vary
Networked Learning
Learning at all levels supports student learning in classrooms.
“Expert Learner” Networks (learning from…)
Teacher/student, Principal/teachers, District Leadership/Principals (and VPs), Parent/student, Principal/parents (PAC), Teacher/parents, subject area experts/learners, etc…
Peer Networks (learning together…)
Students, Teachers, Principals, Parents, District Leaders, Support staff, etc…
PLN – Personal Learning Networks (self reflection, making meaning of my learning…)
We must provide tools and environments that can support all of the different types of networked learning, so that they can be used as needed.
These networks are fluid and continually shifting, depending on the topic or the expertise in the room. The “expert learner” is not always the “authority figure” – teachers sometimes learn from their students, principals also learn from their staff, etc… The “expert learner” is the one with the experience and expertise on any particular topic.
Involve Parents and Community
Learning is continuous and extends beyond the school day, so also includes families and communities
Respect that families all have different values and learning outside of school will reflect those values/interests. Work to connect, not replace, learning outside of school to the learning inside classrooms.
Financially Responsible, Sustainable and Effective
We operate within an environment of limited resources, so have to balance idealistic beliefs with the reality of available funding.
Build tools that leverage work being done across multiple contexts (e.g. the approach we implement for training users during the IT project could be used for training principals regarding leadership standards)
Clarity of purpose is required to ultimately keep the focus on supporting student learning
Every project, pilot or test must be considered from a point of view of a District wide implementation – is it feasible? Is it sustainable?
Think creativity and build in measurements of success and effectiveness (both quantitative and qualitative, re: hard and soft benefits)
Assessment tools must support summative and formative assessment (assessment of learning, assessment for learning, assessment as learning.) (e.g. self assessments, peer feedback, survey tools, etc…)
My youngest son is four years old and just started Kindergarten. He’s joyful, loving and extremely energetic!
Whenever we walk in the local park or on the sidewalk in town, he lets go of my hand and skips ahead or stops to examine some rocks. I empower him to follow his own interests, to spend some time seeking out his own learning, asking me questions about the things that interest him. I love seeing the world through his eyes – its all fresh and new and ever so exciting!! His insights or questions often surprise me, leading me to think “wow, I’d never thought of it that way!”
He’s curious and wants to explore everything, all the time, everywhere! He is the epitome of the “continuous learner” that we want everyone to be! And all I have to do is get out of the way and let him lead the way!
However, when we have to cross the street or when we walk into a parking lot, I take his hand. He hates it! Sometimes he screams, he tries to pull his hand away from me and he loudly protests that the handholding is even a requirements. “I can do it, Mommy!! Let goooooo!”
It’s important for me to recognize that there are times when he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know! As we walk through the parking lot, I stop and remind him to listen – does he hear any car engines running nearby? Does he see anything? Do any cars have someone sitting in them? I point out the white backup lights on a car about to start moving. I talk about why those lights are there and what they mean (that the car is running and in reverse). I ask him what he thinks might happen if we keep walking? When we cross the street, we look at cars that are approaching and we just stand and wait sometimes, to see how quickly cars move or how to gauge when it’s safe or when it isn’t? I talk about turn signals and what they mean – and that even when a car has their blinker on, it’s still smart to see if they’re actually turning or if they might change their mind at the last minute?
He still likes to think that he’s got it all figured out and he doesn’t need me to teach him anything. I support his independence and self confidence. And I still do my job of keeping him safe and teaching him the things that he doesn’t understand yet. I don’t need him to agree with me, in these cases. I don’t need him to like it.
There is a balance I strive for in raising my children. I strive to make sure that they are loved, that they feel safe to take risks and fail and get up and try again. I encourage them to recognize their strengths, follow their curiosity and pursue their passions. And yet, I have perspective, experience and some resulting wisdom that I apply to decide when the risks are too great. Sometimes, I can recognize opportunities to share some of my hard-won wisdom to help them think of things they hadn’t considered. And when they’re trying to do something and don’t know why it’s not working, I offer to help. After all, it’s ridiculous for everyone to reinvent the wheel – why wouldn’t we want our kids to know how to learn from each other (and from mentors/leaders)?
I choose to lead AND to empower. This is what I think of as the “push” and “pull” of learning. And the trick is to know when to step back and let someone learn their own way vs. when to step in and provide direction or guidance? It’s a very fluid way of being. It takes a willingness to allow others (even children) to do the same – to sometimes learn from us and other times to teach us.
I’m learning that leading an organization or team is no different (in this way) than parenting my children. There are some times when I seek input from everyone, strive to make sure that all have a voice and empower those around me to accomplish our goals their own way. It’s a powerful culture to develop – one where the hierarchy disappears and the lines of leader vs. team disappear.
We are all leaders when we feel ownership and pride in what we’re doing! That kind of shared ownership and collaboration results in better solutions – I have no doubt! And empowering people leads to relevant, meaningful learning for all – just like my four year old remembers all about the rocks that fascinate him so.
There are also times, though, where we see something that not everyone else does. Perhaps we have experience that others don’t. Maybe it’s an area of particular interest or research. Whatever the reason, we know something that others need to know. With that knowing comes a responsibility to share –and sometimes, the responsibility to lead or take control/make decisions. Even if people don’t like it or they fight you –just like my four year old fights to pull his hand out of mine as we cross the street.
This leadership needs to happen with integrity and respect – not from a desire for power or control. Just like I strive to make sure my children feel loved, I need to have a relationship with my team and that sense of trust before people will follow me when I try to lead.
The push and pull of learning – and of life – needs to be a cross between individualized, empowered learning and a benevolent dictatorship with caring, inspiring leaders. I believe that either, in exclusion, is insufficient – it’s the blend of the two that has always been the most powerful
I was chatting with a friend recently, bemoaning my struggles to “be” different – more authentic, true to myself, putting my beliefs into everyday action. And I was describing how distant I often feel – that despite connecting with some fantastic mentors and surrounding myself with people who are modeling what I aspire to, I still felt really lonely at times…
He thought for a moment and said “don’t forget that you don’t just need your personal truth and wise teachers, you need community too…” He then went on to explain that the foundations of Buddhism are the “Three Jewels” – the Buddha (the wise teacher), the Dharma (the teachings) and the Sangha (the community).
I’m not going to go off into a discussion of religion at this point, but this chat got me thinking about how we learn and what the dimensions of social learning need to include. It got me thinking about how I would design a system to support all of those dimensions? Because we all need a balance of all three to learn most effectively!
To start with, I believe that learning is learning is learning is learning…
In other words, what we want for students is ultimately no different than what we need to provide educators in terms of professional development opportunities, or what we need to help parents experience as they support their children’s learning. It’s an idea I’ve espoused for quite a while and it’s showing up for me now as I look at how to leverage what we know about learning in order to create a supportive technology infrastructure for all participants in our education system?
So, I believe that there are three dimensions of “social” in “learning”:
We “learn from…”
This is our “expert learner” network. I like to think of it in these terms because it really emphasizes that we are learning together – but that “experts” will arise from different places. Traditionally, this would be the teacher in a classroom, a mentor or coach when we’re looking for assistance with business or personal growth. It could be a leader of your religious community or your grandma. In less traditional terms, this is anyone who holds a level of experience and wisdom beyond the crowd and is willing to share that with others. It could be one of the students in a classroom. It is often our children, teaching us about using Facebook or how to win at Wii Mario Kart…
We all need time with our teachers or mentors because they offer us the perspective of someone who has “done” what we’re trying to do. They look at our efforts objectively and can give us feedback that we can’t see ourselves because we’re too close. They help us by knowing the questions that we don’t even know enough to know we need to ask! And they have a view that allows them to “push” us to develop in ways we don’t know we need because we don’t have the experience of completion or success yet…
We “learn with…”
These are our “peer” networks. For a student, it’s their classmates. For a teacher, it’s their fellow educators. For most of us, we have several communities we participate in (local, virtual, centered around our hobbies, interests, charities, work, sports, etc…). Twitter is probably my favorite peer learning network – oh the conversations we have and the depth of learning I experience there!! *contented sigh*
When we learn with our peers, we struggle together. Learning that contains some struggle to figure things out, and ends in the creation of meaning, is a powerful thing! We’re all in the same boat, in this case. No one has the “answers” and the process is what we’re after here. How do we work together? How do we ask questions and get curious? How do we scaffold off each other’s ideas or thoughts – creating something greater than we could have done alone?
This might be group projects for students. Maybe it’s teachers coming together on inquiry based learning teams. It might be parents talking over coffee about the trials of puberty and having tweens! Often, this works best when we figure out how to be a “team” (incorporating a variety of skills that are used to complement each other), not just a “group” (two or more humans interacting together). And the larger the team/group, the closer we come to being a “network” (enter George Siemens and “Connectivism”)
We “learn about ourselves…”
This is the “personal” part of learning – though I don’t think this is what we mean when we talk about “personal learning networks” or PLNs. What we learn this way is what drives the formation of our PLN, but they are two different things, in my mind.
This is the time we spend self reflecting or thinking about what really matters to us? Who am I? What matters to me? What am I good at? What would I like to be better at? What causes me grief or pain (and therefore, warrants my efforts to change)? And what do I want to develop in myself?
Often, my interactions within groups or comments that my mentors make will help highlight things personally. My patterns, my beliefs, etc… So they’re definitely linked.
In terms of the Buddhist model, this is my “personal truth”!
Without a teacher, our learning is incomplete. We quit because we simply can’t imagine that achieving our goals is possible. We lack the wisdom to even know what we need to learn…
Without our peers, we struggle to “Do it all” by ourselves. We feel isolated. We lack all the skills to accomplish the things that we want to do. We get tired of struggling alone – of feeling like we’re “the only one”…
Without time to learn about ourselves and examine who we are, we stay in reactive mode. We trust outside voices rather than our own gut feeling. We lack direction. We’re unmotivated. We make poor choices about what to do or how to do it (since we don’t understand our own strengths and motivations).
As we plan our training efforts, our classroom activities, our professional development programs – are we considering all three of these dimensions? Because they all contribute to a rich learning environment.
And if you’re tech planning, make sure you incorporate all three in the methods or tools you provide…
My youngest one is starting Kindergarten this Fall and on Friday, we attended a PALS (Parents As Learning Supporters) session at his new school. I love that the school is bringing in parents/guardians to see what kids will be doing in their classrooms and talking about the approach to learning – that we shouldn’t expect a highly academic focus, that children this age learn best by learning through play!
There will be four session in the PALS series – this first one was focused around the alphabet. We used stamps to make name tags, then stamp whatever words the children wanted. We made letters out of playdough. We played a matching game of upper case to lower case letters. And then we used “fishing rods” (with magnets at the end) to pick up “fish” (letters/pictures with paper clips on them). My son loved it all!
Then the children were ushered off to the community kitchen while the adults got a short lesson on preparing children for Kindergarten and the importance of reading. The speaker told us about making a point of talking about the parts of a book, of pointing out the title page, and of showing that we read left to right, starting on the left page. We heard about the importance of letting kids see us reading and having books in the house, so that they know that it’s a valued activity in our lives. And that, no matter what the language at home, just keep reading aloud to our children so that they are exposed to the rhythms, vocabulary and ideas that come from a variety of books. All wonderful stuff!
And then the speaker started talking about the importance of limiting “screen time” for our children – that good old fashioned books are critical for children…
I bit my tongue – didn’t want to be “that” parent on the first day, I guess!
But as I reflected on the morning’s experience, I put together some feedback via email to the Principal of the school (who I know quite well). I thought about learning through play and the role of technology in a primary classroom.
I completely agree with the importance of reading and also believe there needs to be a balance of appropriate screen time. But a recent post from Will Richardson got me thinking about what “balance” really means – particularly that balance isn’t about excluding technology…
It made me thing about the fact that, to this generation, “play” includes technology – and it should, because it is an important part of being a literate citizen. My children are not literate if they do not know how to read, write, communicate AND search for/assess the validity of information. That means that comfort with technology is just as important as comfort with writing instruments or any number of other tools that we equip our kids to use.
My point, to make a long story short, is that I believe it’s important to start shifting our attitudes to include technology as a part of play and learning, right from the beginning. Penny Lindballe tells the story of lingering societal prejudices against technology well in this post – it’s worth a read too!
There’s a reason we don’t wait until middle school to introduce a pencil, isn’t there? Time to treat technology the same way…
Having worked with and led project teams for many years, I’ve long believed in and experienced the power of diverse-group decision making.
Inevitably, teams of people, each bringing their unique perspectives to the table, come up with better, more complete, more creative and more successful solutions.
Here’s a video from YouTube that talks about this phenomenon:
In the educational realm, I think everyone has been off trying to come up with solutions by themselves – educators, administrators, parents, District management, Government Ministries.
Why is it that we don’t talk to each other as much as we could? From the outside, I get the sense that there’s a bit of that “leave it to the professionals” attitude.
Is it too much effort to try to coordinate schedules? Are we worried that it takes too much effort to include people uninvolved in the day-to-day operations of our schools? And then they can’t add value anyways? After all, what do parents know about what it takes to run a school? Or a District? And what do students know about what they really need from education?
And it’s hard to have completely open conversations and doors – because that might expose your weaknesses, or open things up for criticism. We are, often by nature, defensive – we want to put our best foot forward, not parade our challenges and weaknesses out for all to see! Do we really want the world to know that we don’t know how to solve a problem? Doesn’t everyone expect the “experts” to have all the answers? And really, doesn’t everyone have enough to do without opening another can of worms by asking people theiropinion??
But are we sure that external partners don’t add value? Why would we think that kids are incapable of contributing to solutions about their own education? Another quote from Starbucks is that “the person who sweeps the floor should pick the broom!”
How much effort is it worth to come up with solutions that work? What if we had increased odds of finding successful ideas that everyone is invested in and working together on?
What if it resulted in kids engaged in their own learning? What if they were excited to come to school – to learn and create and work together?
What if parents felt involved and knowledgeable about what was going on in classrooms? What if they were passionate about supporting their children’s teachers? What if they could support and reinforce at home what their kids are learning in school?
What if teachers felt trusted and safe to make mistakes in their own learning and change efforts? What if they felt supported and valued by the parents instead of judged and attacked? What if they already had relationships with all the parents in their class and could easily call one up to discuss their child’s learning – without it feeling like “cold calling” someone you don’t even know (and who doesn’t want to hear from you!)?
What if Principals had time to build the team and the learning community relationships instead of being overwhelmed by the myriad of administrative tasks that swamp their days? What if they could do the same thing at the school level that they used to do with their classrooms (encourage, support each child’s learning, coach, bring out the best in everyone)?
How much more powerful would that make our education system?
And, as a result, how would that change education (having something taught TO you) into learning (participating in the learning process and learning WITH you)?
The way I see it, we can keep complaining about how the Government just doesn’t get the whole picture.
We can complain about how they just don’t understand that you can’t measure successful education using standardized tests.
We can gripe about how the teacher’s not helping MY child and nobody cares.
We can shake our heads at all the parents who never even come to parent-teacher interviews.
We can work all hours just trying to get all the forms filled out, the lockers assigned, the reports completed, the i’s dotted and the t’s crossed.
Or we can choose another way and actually TALK TO EACH OTHER! BUILD RELATIONSHIPS! COLLABORATE! AND LISTEN TO EACH OTHER!
I spent the evening yesterday at the retirement dinner for my District, representing our parent organization (District Parent Advisory Council – or DPAC). I was so pleased to be able to attend and to have the opportunity to speak to the group for a few moments – mostly because I think it’s important for all of the partners in the education system to celebrate together!
Here’s the speech I presented:
I’d like to thank the Board of Education for including DPAC in tonight’s event. Too often, we make the time to complain about all the little stuff but forget to celebrate all of the great stuff that’s going on!
So I appreciate this opportunity to be here on behalf of DPAC and the parents in this District, to say a few words about how much we appreciate the teachers, administrators and staff in our children’s schools.
I’m going to stick my neck out a little here – I’m pretty sure you weren’t in it for the money. And it certainly wasn’t for the fame! Which leaves me to believe that you did it because you care about the kid!
Every interaction with a child brings the opportunity to support, to coach, to teach, to care.
I remember one of my teachers who, while I was writing my final exam, leaned across my desk and whispered “I expect great things from you.” I was horrified – sitting there looking at the answer to my essay question, thinking “oh man, this isn’t great!!” But his words have often come back to me over the years, reminding me to take risks, to take on challenges, to expect more of myself – because he showed me that he believed in me.
I have no doubt that every person in this room has had that kind of lifetime impact on children’s lives – often without even realizing it. It’s the natural result of caring – of taking a moment to listen, to encourage, to expect more, and to believe in young people who don’t know how to believe in themselves yet.
As a parent, I know that my children may drive me nuts sometimes – actually, they’ve probably driven their teachers nuts sometimes too! But I also know that they are these amazing little miracles that have been entrusted in my care for a short while. Bringing them to school and having them out of my protective arms is difficult sometimes – even though I know it’s a part of the “letting go” that has to happen as they grow to adulthood. It makes it easier to know that they are with staff, administrators and teachers that are both professional and caring!
Parents aren’t perfect, teachers aren’t perfect – we’re all human. But what matters is that we care and we keep learning. Because that is an incredibly powerful gift that we can give to the next generation – a living example of how to be perfectly imperfect human beings!
On behalf of all the parents in this District, I’d like to thank you! Thank you not only for caring, but for choosing a career that put that caring into action every day.
Aside from being the place that I often meet with people to talk about education, leadership, kids & life – I’ve also been learning a whole lot from Starbucks Coffee lately.
The first time I noticed this brochure was in 2003 and it was the best mission/guiding principles document I had ever seen!!
It started with a clear mission statement that explained WHY this company was in existence.
It included six guiding principles that directly related to HOW they were going to focus their efforts in order to deliver on the mission statement.
The inside of the brochure then went into detail for each of the six guiding principles – saying WHAT things they were doing and how they would tell they were succeeding.
What was so powerful to me was the fact that the mission was translated right down to what each person in the organization was doing on a day-to-day basis in order to contribute to that mission. Every person in that company, from the CEO all the way through stores all over the world, knows what they’re supposed to be doing, how they’re doing it and why they’re doing it – which translates into a sense of purpose that is incredibly inspiring.
This is what we all talk about doing – in project management seminars, in leadership training, all over the place on websites and in books. But it’s so darned HARD TO DO successfully!! I can’t say I knew how to achieve that clarity of vision for a team or organization, but I certainly recognized the power & possibilities.
So often, a mission or vision statement is too complex or so high level that it leaves everyone in the company thinking “well, that’s great but what does that mean?? What am I supposed to do? How does that relate to the work I do every day??”
I’ve watched Starbucks over the years to see if they walk their talk. Everything I’ve seen and heard has been completely consistent. Their staff are enthusiastic and committed. Their stores are definitely making money (which is, in fact, one of their guiding principles), but they’re also giving back to their communities, working to protect our environment, providing amazing customer service, and supporting diverse and sustainable coffee farmers.
I get a sense sometimes that educators dismiss the “corporate” world – thinking that “things are different” in education. Perhaps there is a sense that educators are serving a higher moral purpose than business – after all, schools are educating our next generation, not just making money like those big corporations.
But we don’t have to judge the global relevance of their purpose or even like the coffee in order to appreciate the lessons that we can learn from Starbucks! And there is so much knowledge out there that we can apply to education’s challenges. In fact, I think that this kind of diversity and open-minded thinking is what will allow education to move forward most effectively.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” – Albert Einstein
The current Starbucks brochure caught my eye again, right with the first paragraph:
“It began as many good things do, with some heartfelt conversations. Sincere, forthright, perhaps a bit idealistic. We took a good hard look at our most cherished values and asked ourselves just how we’d integrate them into this new company we were about to create.”
As Pete Reilly mentioned recently, these passionate, slightly idealistic conversations are happening more and more in education these days. These are exciting times!
It’s overwhelming when we start looking at EVERYTHING that needs attention and funding and work in our public education systems!
I’ve been feeling a theme developing and I’m pursuing it with vehemence in my district.
It takes a community to raise our children – not one of us has the solution by ourselves and we’ve been spending too much time individually (or as separate groups) trying to fix it.
Collaboration and a single unifying vision will take us to the next level.
So, what I’m working on is:
1) Bringing every discussion, every planning exercise, all data collection, every tech plan back to a comparison of how it helps us move toward the best intellectual, social and emotional learning environment FOR EVERY LEARNER. Does this proposal enhance or detract from that vision?
2) Building bridges between partner groups (teachers, administrators, students, school boards, support workers, District management, parents, community groups, etc… When we all understand our roles in the system and the value we bring towards achieving our vision, then we can work together to find the REAL solutions that will work for everyone!
There is no ONE solution, no magic bullet.
We cannot do it ALONE.
The COLLECTIVE PASSION of educators, students and parents is more powerful than the bureaucracy that often stands in our way. Once we focus that passion, nothing will be able to stop us!
