“Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars”

Reposting this today in honor of Dr. King: 

I am grateful for the reminder in church this morning of the powerful words that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. shared in his last speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” on April 3rd, 1968.   His inspiration, support, and leadership lives far beyond the generation of people who knew him, and our world is much changed for the better as a result of his work.  I believe the greatest leaders articulate thoughts in a manner that resonate across many generations, peoples, and circumstances, and today King’s message of hope – in an incredibly difficult time – has a special ring for me.  In this speech he shares his desire to be in that place, at that time, to face those difficult issues even if given the opportunity to be anywhere else.

What are Instructional Rounds?

Today was an exciting and challenging day full of great learning work in #ISD186.  Six of our teacher leaders opened their classroom doors to a team of colleagues and administrators so we could take a deep dive into the Marzano Instructional Framework.  Using just 1 of the 61 elements in the framework, our learning was focused on what to look for, how to ask good coaching questions, and how to facilitate peer observations in a safe and trust-building manner.  The learning discussions were rich and the willingness of the team to take risks and dive into learning together was admirable.  

Good at School?

I don’t know about you, but I’m hoping my children move beyond needing tuition payments.  I love this slide from blogger, teacher and author Bill Ferriter.  As usual, Bill (@plugusin) is stirring up some good conversations with a quote from author Seth Godin.

Do we really want our students to be great at doing school?

Teacher Appreciation Week

Thanks to elementary principal Melinda Miller, I’m sharing this playlist of videos in honor of National Teacher Appreciation Week.  I was in high school when I realized the impact that some of my teachers had on my life throughout childhood.  The way they loved me and coached me through difficult times ultimately led me to dedicate my life to the same great – and demanding – profession.  To those who teach, thank you for touching the future.  Every decision you make in your day to day dealings with students has an impact on the future of each student and on the future of our great nation and world.  Thank you for dedicating your life to a career that challenges us in mind, body, and spirit.  May this be a week that you feel appreciated and honored!

A Small District PLC?

Moving from a district of 10,000 students to one of 1,600 students this past year has made me reflect quite a bit on how to structure collaborative teams to do the meaningful work of a Professional Learning Community when there are fewer teachers to team up.  The research on effective schools is clear that collaborative teams of teachers focused on common formative assessments and implementation of interventions/enrichments to ensure all students learn at high levels is essential, but how to structure those teams for success is always a challenging leadership question.  As often happens, my Twitter feed offered some “just in time professional development” this past week as I ran across an excellent presentation by author and 6th grade teacher Bill Ferriter (@plugusin) focused on this very topic.  The ideas and options he shares are relevant to a school or district of any size.

Rick Wormeli on Formative Assessment

This is the sixth post in a series of short YouTube videos by Rick Wormeli, author of the book Fair Isn’t Always Equal.  This episode focuses on the power of frequent formative assessments and tying that into a standards based grading system.  I wish I had learned about the power of formative assessments and a standards based approach to grading when I was teaching…  Might you take what @RickWormeli has to offer and implement it in your classroom tomorrow??

Gradebooks… by Rick Wormeli

So I’m asking some questions in #isd186…   Do we count late work?  How much is homework part of a grade? Do we average points out of points possible to determine a grade?  Is it better if we categorize grades into assessments, homework, projects, etc…?   At some point in a career every teacher struggles with the sacred cow – the GRADE BOOK…  How do we record points – or better rather – how do we record the level at which a student has demonstrated mastery of a standard in order to communicate those results and use them for instructional planning?

These are thought-provoking questions and not ones that our college courses prepared us well for.  So… Here are a few thoughts from respected expert @RickWormeli on grading:

So how do you calculate grades?  Does your software get in the way?  How can you work around that?  Guskey says – if there is one thing he would get rid of it’s using averages.  How will you get rid of averages in your grade calculations?  How do you define what a grade actually is?

Rick Wormeli on Redos, Retakes, and Do-Overs

This is the fourth post in a series of short YouTube videos by Rick Wormeli, author of the book Fair Isn’t Always Equal.  If you’re willing to ask honest questions about your practices and rules about late work – you’re golden and will love the questions posed by @RickWormeli.  If you aren’t courageous enough to ask honest questions, this one might not be for you.  My expectation: anyone teaching our children must be able to soundly defend all decisions about practice, resources, and delivery with research and evidence.  So…  What are your answers to Rick’s questions?  Do you provide opportunities for redos?  Late work?  Do-Overs?  How does this calculate into a quarter or semester or final grade?  I encourage a deep dive into Wormeli and Guskey’s work and some reflection on how to make it happen in your classroom!

Teaching Students to Love – or Dread – Learning?

Slide_TeachingtheBored, a photo by William M Ferriter on Flickr.

How are we doing in our district? Do our students love to come to school? Do they love to learn? What happens between age 5 when they walk in our doors as sponges soaking up every opportunity to learn and age 15 when they might dread being asked to engage in school? How might we tackle being relevant to adolescent learners?

“Vulnerability is the Birthplace of Innovation and Change”

Thanks to @DCheesebrow I ran across this powerful Ted Talks video presented by Brene Brown titled “Listening to Shame.”  Shame isn’t a frequently mentioned topic in discussions around leadership, however the picture she paints of this “epidemic” seems to breath deeply into the work of leading in the public sector.  Effectively leading with noticeable authenticity demands a character rooted in vulnerability – the “birthplace of innovation and change.”  One must address shame to be vulnerable.  Whether we can and/or will admit and talk about it, this message hits mighty close to home for all of us…

 

 

How do you hold yourself accountable to addressing shame and leading with authentic vulnerability?