Monday, July 26, 2010
Stargirl with a side of Glee
I was reading a novel by Jerry Spinelli entitled Stargirl. It is a wonderful coming of age story about a young non-conformist who forever changes the people of small town Mica. Leo loves Stargirl; however, he is more concerned about fitting in and ends his relationship with her. As my small group of students began an amazing dialogue about the key themes of the book, it was no surprise that conformity was a topic of conversation. They talked about school uniforms, expected dress and even the expected work ethic at their school. No one was different at this school for fear of not being accepted. (At this point I will clarify that these students are not students in the US and this course was part of a global exchange through Meredith College. I was fortunate to have a small role in facilitating this class.) I then showed a brief clip from Glee where the Glee Club embraces their inner Gaga and performs Bad Romance. As we began to discuss the classic theme of conformity, I began to think about teachers I have encountered over the years. There will always be the idealistic Mr. Schuesters of the classroom and the cynical (and often very humorous) Coach Sylvesters. There are wise teachers like Archie (from Stargirl). But in many schools there are a few too many Charlie Brown kind of teachers.....the same old thing in the same old voice. Are we too comfortable with being regular old teachers? Are we, like the students of Glee and of Mica High, afraid to be different? What would happen if we were all a little more willing to teach outside of the box or be a little Gaga? Certainly I don't mean we should all show up in very theatrical costumes to teach class, but I sometimes wonder if we are all a little too comfortable being the monotone voice of Charlie Brown's teacher? Are we afraid of what our co-workers would think? Are we afraid that learning can't be "different"? What exactly makes us afraid to be different in our classrooms?
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Fish Philosophy
From national conferences to the local teacher workroom, we have all heard much discussion about improving student achievement. Whether we talk about Marzano, quote DuFour, or discuss Tomlinson, all of us have at likely asked or been asked the question: "What are the biggest factors that affect student achievement?" Is it peer pressure? How about low reading skills? Maybe it is environment? There exist a vast array of ideas and answers to that question. Sometimes I get too caught up in the research that I forget to look in the mirror. One of the biggest factors that influences student achievement (in my humble opinion) is the teacher. Most of us start our careers with an unbridled passion and an unparalleled idealism that makes every student a future doctor, lawyer, teacher or nurse. And then somewhere along the way (usually by our 5th year) we seem to loose that focus. We get into a "rut" and we become oh so comfy in our routine. We begin see the glass as half empty rather than half full. Morale declines and turnover begins to rise. WHY? Somewhere along the way, many teachers forget how FUN and REWARDING our job can be! Recently I was given a book entitled "The Fish Philosophy" and I must admit, I was not in the know! With my curiosity peaked, I was shown a video about a group of workers at Pikes Place Fish Market in Seattle, Washington who decide to change the way they operate to make work more enjoyable.
There are four key parts of The Fish Philosophy:
1. Play - You must have fun! Of course this does not mean leave your students unattended while you play Bananagrams with the teacher across the hall, but this does mean to make your classroom educational and FUN! What are some ways you do this at school?
2. Make their day - Sometimes we may be the first adult interaction a student has in day. Do you greet your students as they enter our class? Do we always take the time to make our students and/or coworkers have a better day? Sometimes we may be the only positive adult interaction for a child in our classroom. And let's face it we are all happy when someone is sincere and genuine in his/her effort to make our day a little better. How do you make their day?
3. Be there - It is easy to be physically present, but are we always emotionally present? We must be emotionally present for both our students and our coworkers. Do we see the "big picture" for that individual? Are we really listening - even if we don't like what we hear? What are ways you are there for your students and colleagues?
5. Choose your attitude - I once taught at school where every day after morning announcement, the reader would say, "Make it a great day or not. The choice is yours." My students always laughed and over time many grew frustrated with the the daily quote. I had never thought about it in that way, but it is so true. Whether it is a great day or not is up to us. How do we react? What attitude do we choose to embrace? Certainly there are going to be some days that are less than fabulous. However, isn't it exciting to think that we have the power to choose to have a positive day regardless of the series of events. What's your attitude? More importantly what is your attitude when the attitude of others is negative?
How much difference could we make in student performance if we embraced the Fish Philosophy rather than Dory's idea to just keep swimming?
There are four key parts of The Fish Philosophy:
1. Play - You must have fun! Of course this does not mean leave your students unattended while you play Bananagrams with the teacher across the hall, but this does mean to make your classroom educational and FUN! What are some ways you do this at school?
2. Make their day - Sometimes we may be the first adult interaction a student has in day. Do you greet your students as they enter our class? Do we always take the time to make our students and/or coworkers have a better day? Sometimes we may be the only positive adult interaction for a child in our classroom. And let's face it we are all happy when someone is sincere and genuine in his/her effort to make our day a little better. How do you make their day?
3. Be there - It is easy to be physically present, but are we always emotionally present? We must be emotionally present for both our students and our coworkers. Do we see the "big picture" for that individual? Are we really listening - even if we don't like what we hear? What are ways you are there for your students and colleagues?
5. Choose your attitude - I once taught at school where every day after morning announcement, the reader would say, "Make it a great day or not. The choice is yours." My students always laughed and over time many grew frustrated with the the daily quote. I had never thought about it in that way, but it is so true. Whether it is a great day or not is up to us. How do we react? What attitude do we choose to embrace? Certainly there are going to be some days that are less than fabulous. However, isn't it exciting to think that we have the power to choose to have a positive day regardless of the series of events. What's your attitude? More importantly what is your attitude when the attitude of others is negative?
How much difference could we make in student performance if we embraced the Fish Philosophy rather than Dory's idea to just keep swimming?
Thursday, July 1, 2010
NCCAT and Leadership - part II
In continuing our look at leadership, we looked at and discussed "Management vs. Leadership." Kimberly Fifer gave us some great ways to think about the differences in those two.
Management
Icon: clock
Speed
Works IN systems
Reactive
Number cruncher
vs.
Leadership
Icon: Compass
Direction
Works ON systems
Proactive
People developers
It has been interesting for me to reflect on the two words: leader and manager. Certainly after twelve years in education I have encountered both leaders and managers at the school and the district levels. You can almost guess whether a leader or manager is at the helm of the ship simply by talking with faculty and staff of the school. A positive school environment where teachers are treated professionally, feel empowered to help make important school decisions and help fulfill the vision of the school always seem to have true leaders as administrators. Schools that are "led" by managers often have created negative environments where teachers become frustrated and pessimism becomes the norm. Sadly, too many of our school leaders at all levels choose to focus on managing schools rather than leading these schools in the right direction. Fortunately, many of us teach in schools with leaders who have encouraged us to grow as leaders ourselves. Hopefully, as our school leaders begin to develop more effective leadership skills and more teacher leaders are given the tools and support to thrive, we will see continued improvement in our schools. Thank you to the many administrators who truly lead. You make such a difference in the growth of your teachers and in the education of your students. What are ways we can help our managers become more effective leaders?
Management
Icon: clock
Speed
Works IN systems
Reactive
Number cruncher
vs.
Leadership
Icon: Compass
Direction
Works ON systems
Proactive
People developers
It has been interesting for me to reflect on the two words: leader and manager. Certainly after twelve years in education I have encountered both leaders and managers at the school and the district levels. You can almost guess whether a leader or manager is at the helm of the ship simply by talking with faculty and staff of the school. A positive school environment where teachers are treated professionally, feel empowered to help make important school decisions and help fulfill the vision of the school always seem to have true leaders as administrators. Schools that are "led" by managers often have created negative environments where teachers become frustrated and pessimism becomes the norm. Sadly, too many of our school leaders at all levels choose to focus on managing schools rather than leading these schools in the right direction. Fortunately, many of us teach in schools with leaders who have encouraged us to grow as leaders ourselves. Hopefully, as our school leaders begin to develop more effective leadership skills and more teacher leaders are given the tools and support to thrive, we will see continued improvement in our schools. Thank you to the many administrators who truly lead. You make such a difference in the growth of your teachers and in the education of your students. What are ways we can help our managers become more effective leaders?
My Week at NCCAT
What an amazing week! If you have not had the opportunity to visit the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) I encourage you to do so! As in right now....get off of this blog and look for a seminar! I have been calling it “Teacher Paradise” because it is truly a place to renew yourself as an educator. You are recharging your “teacher battery” when you can spend time in seminar and reflection with other amazing teachers!
We have spent this week in great dialogue about leadership. We read and reflected on Donald Phillips’ book Lincoln on Leadership. What an incredible book! Many of us talked about the leadership qualities we see in our superintendents and our principals. Then we shifted the focus to the leadership qualities we have in ourselves. It was interesting to compare and contrast our experiences as leaders and with the leadership in our school districts.
Lincoln believed in four key parts to effective leadership.
People - Get out of the office and circulate among the troops; get to know the people with whom you work and build strong alliances; and persuade rather than coerce
Character - Honesty and integrity are the best policies (never loose the trust of the people); never act out of vengeance or spite; have the courage to handle unjust criticism (which can sometimes be very difficult); and be a master of paradox.
Endeavor - Be decisive; lead by being led; set goals and look for results; keep searching until you find the right person; and encourage innovation.
Communication - master the art of public speaking; influence people through conversation; and preach a vision and continually reaffirm it.
These were simple ideas that can make a big difference in the way our schools operate. It would be interesting to have faculty discussions about these. How do you model Lincoln’s leadership in your school or school district? I would love your input on leadership!
We also spent the day with Kimberly Fifer and she is so amazing and inspiring! She had great tools for us to use to help promote better leadership in our schools and to involve everyone at our schools. We also talked about the following lessons we can learn from Lincoln.
Share a vision
Be a great communicator
Learn from failure
Be a role model
Be a decision maker
Be a team leader
Do the little things
These are all important qualities in a leader. Which lesson do you feel you best exemplify? Give some ways you demonstrate that quality. Which lesson from Lincoln is most important? When you are looking for a team leader or a school leader, what are the most important two? What makes a good leader?
We had such wonderful dialogue and we are all ready to go back to our schools and implement new leadership strategies. As we began to talk about ways to do this, some of my classmates wondered if this would be well received. Some of us have really strong leadership in our schools and school districts. Others find the school leadership is lacking. What are ways we can ensure good, strong leadership in every school in North Carolina?
We have spent this week in great dialogue about leadership. We read and reflected on Donald Phillips’ book Lincoln on Leadership. What an incredible book! Many of us talked about the leadership qualities we see in our superintendents and our principals. Then we shifted the focus to the leadership qualities we have in ourselves. It was interesting to compare and contrast our experiences as leaders and with the leadership in our school districts.
Lincoln believed in four key parts to effective leadership.
People - Get out of the office and circulate among the troops; get to know the people with whom you work and build strong alliances; and persuade rather than coerce
Character - Honesty and integrity are the best policies (never loose the trust of the people); never act out of vengeance or spite; have the courage to handle unjust criticism (which can sometimes be very difficult); and be a master of paradox.
Endeavor - Be decisive; lead by being led; set goals and look for results; keep searching until you find the right person; and encourage innovation.
Communication - master the art of public speaking; influence people through conversation; and preach a vision and continually reaffirm it.
These were simple ideas that can make a big difference in the way our schools operate. It would be interesting to have faculty discussions about these. How do you model Lincoln’s leadership in your school or school district? I would love your input on leadership!
We also spent the day with Kimberly Fifer and she is so amazing and inspiring! She had great tools for us to use to help promote better leadership in our schools and to involve everyone at our schools. We also talked about the following lessons we can learn from Lincoln.
Share a vision
Be a great communicator
Learn from failure
Be a role model
Be a decision maker
Be a team leader
Do the little things
These are all important qualities in a leader. Which lesson do you feel you best exemplify? Give some ways you demonstrate that quality. Which lesson from Lincoln is most important? When you are looking for a team leader or a school leader, what are the most important two? What makes a good leader?
We had such wonderful dialogue and we are all ready to go back to our schools and implement new leadership strategies. As we began to talk about ways to do this, some of my classmates wondered if this would be well received. Some of us have really strong leadership in our schools and school districts. Others find the school leadership is lacking. What are ways we can ensure good, strong leadership in every school in North Carolina?
Thank You Flow Honda!
We all know the difficult economic times many states are facing. Even in the midst of this, many businesses are continuing to support education in many ways and for this we are grateful. As I have spent the week at the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) with other regional and district level Teachers of the Year, I have learned of many businesses across our state that have stepped in to help with educational programs and support. Thank you to all of the businesses that recognize the hard work and dedication of so many great teachers across our state. From providing automobiles for the tenure of local Teachers of the Year to funding programs to help at risk students in our communities, many of you of stepped up and we appreciate your help!
Flow Honda out of Winston-Salem was kind enough to donate a beautiful new Honda Accord for my personal use this year. I love it...and the new car smell! Greg Ralston and his staff at Flow Honda have been supporting their local TOY program for five years now and I am thankful to Greg for supporting the State TOY program this year. Greg and Maggie, you guys are great! Thanks so much for your help and your continued support of education.
There's No Place Like Home!
May was a very busy month in Sampson County! I am so thankful to live and work in such a wonderfully supportive community. My hometown has been so amazing! I have received so many thoughtful notes and encouraging words over the past few months and for that I am truly thankful. I have also been honored in such kind ways. Our local Board of Education along with Sampson County Schools honored me in May and presented a beautiful plaque and a new laptop! Local businesses also donated some fabulous gifts such as luggage, stationary, and a family portrait session. I thought I knew as a child what a great place Sampson County was, but only in my adult life and after returning back home can I truly grasp the warm hospitality and graciousness of the people of Sampson County. You are all such giving people and I am glad to call you my friends and my family. When we decided to move back home in 2006, you welcomed us as though we never left. Dorothy says it best....."There's no place like home!"
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