During this time of remote learning for our students, I hope school leaders take to heart these insights and are moved to change our schools for the better. There are gross inequalities in the opportunities for our students and we need to aggressively narrow the gap. Access to the internet is one that needs to … Continue reading What I Hope School Leaders Learn from Remote Learning
Our best remote learning, and why it worked.
The shift to remote learning presents challenges to students, teachers, and parents. Like many teachers, I have learned to use more technology in the classroom even with success of a blended approach. Still, when the time to move the learning entirely online arrived I was left scrambling like many colleagues. Here is the learning project … Continue reading Our best remote learning, and why it worked.
Curriculum: a path of learning
It is odd to hear public education leaders speak about moving focus to learner-centered or student-centered models in our schools. You would think that would have always been the focus, but somewhere we got off track. With policies to “leave no child left behind,” we double-downed on the target of getting all students to the … Continue reading Curriculum: a path of learning
Symptoms, causes, and real problems
One challenge of leaders is to sort through symptoms and causes to find the real problems an organization faces. The community will struggle to treat the symptoms or employ the wrong solutions until it is correctly identified and remedied. This video looks at a case study from a school district to help sort through the … Continue reading Symptoms, causes, and real problems
Conferences can also get in the way of change.
I enjoy conferences. Keynote speakers are inspiring, sessions are insightful, and conversations with passionate people share our purpose. Conferences can also get in the way of change. Going to conferences, quoting speakers, reading blogs, listening to podcasts, sharing research can all become ritualized behavior. It can even be like neurotic behaviors, repetitive and overt, alleviating … Continue reading Conferences can also get in the way of change.
Don’t Worry About Making Teachers Happy
Happiness workshops and growth mindset training for teachers are on the rise. These are neurotic behaviors in effort to soothe teachers’ anxiety. We are treating the symptoms and ignoring the cause. Don’t worry about making your teachers happy. Instead, do this: Give teachers a viable salary. Eliminate stressors of paying bills, working multiple jobs, and … Continue reading Don’t Worry About Making Teachers Happy