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Archive for the ‘Change’ Category

A Community Working Together

Posted in Change, Leadership, Professional Teams on December 11, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

bright idea

“There is no particular substantive reform I would recommend  — because no single reform will account for much difference.  If has to be an array of reforms orchestrated at the community level and involving a joining of schools and universities, as well as a much closer relationship between community and school than we’ve been having in the last few decades.”     -     John Goodlad

As a community we continue to deal with the tragedy of losing a student to suicide. In speaking to Carol Todd recently she informed me that she was busy meeting with individuals and groups in the community to ensure that the passing of her daughter Amanda would not be forgotten and that her legacy would be improved conditions for young adults. The discussion was comforting and personal as both of us lamented the passing of a daughter but also because we were both looking for lessons learned and how to develop individual and collective responses to the tragic loss of Amanda.

We feel the loss of Amanda as a wound that continues to hurt and affect us all. We recognize the harsh reality of this wound, but our expressed hope is to encourage people to think about their experiences with a feeling of compassion and responsibility. It is only through this type of concerted action that the wound will eventually heal.

It is commendable to see the many leaders in our community trying to find solutions to the issues that many of the young learners in our community deal with. From bullying, social isolation and loneliness to mental health and poverty I see many individuals investing time and energy to find solutions to these difficult situations. Municipal leaders such as Mayor Moore in Port Coquitlam are gathering momentum in their community to deal with the issue of bullying. They are organizing a walk to raise awareness and developing a legal strategy to deal with acts of bullying.

Mothers like  Carol are raising awareness of the various aspects of this issue in ways that honour young adults but provide us with the possibility of action that will make our communities safer for all.

What is the response of a school district and its many leaders?

Our continued and ongoing efforts are to create an environment where all, including students, staff and parents feel respected and safe. We cannot create such an environment by individual acts of courage alone. We need a holistic, active and engaged set of strategies that include all of us looking at the many elements of our environment. We must pay attention to the physical environment and to the social routines of our classrooms and schools. As Cindi Seddon, a principal in our district indicated during an interview with the media, developing a safe haven for students includes building a positive and safe school climate. Such a climate requires that educators find ways to build student and educator attachment to each other, their schools, their district and their communities. This can be achieved through personal and professional relationships and by assuming responsibilities in the civic and extracurricular lives of our schools.

Currently we have a district representative committee meeting on a regular basis to develop an overarching and inclusive strategy on school safety. It will include an orientation to expectations, routines and strategies to develop safe and inclusive learning environments for all. It will look at the task from an appreciative perspective and I look forward to working with our organization in a combined effort to effect positive change in our schools and communities. 

90“  To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.”   -     Confucius

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Reasons for Learning

Posted in Change, Parents, Personalized Learning, Teaching and Learning on October 26, 2012 | 1 Comment »

another view of learning

 

“The 21st Century skills are essentially an updated version of the belief that education can actually make a big difference to the quality of life that our children will have, some from increased capacity but much coming from social contribution, near and far.”

     -     author unknown

 

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a series of dialogues providing feedback to the Ministry of Education on future graduation requirements. Participants included students, educators, parents and community partners. The orientation was to build on the strengths of our system and expand on the key elements of the BC Education Plan in providing our input.  The key elements of the plan include:

  1. Personalized learning for every student
  2. Quality teaching and learning
  3. Flexibility and choice
  4. High standards
  5. Learning empowered by technology  

From my perspective it was interesting to listen to the various responses.  The responses were not that different from those articulated by organizations such as (SETDA)  the State Educational Technology Directors Association who believe that the key to a productive life in the globalized and digitized 21st century includes:

  • core subjects (English, reading or language arts, languages, arts, mathematics, economics, science geography, history and civics) 
  • 21st Century themes  (global awareness, financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial skills, civic literacy, health literacy)
  • Leaning and Innovation Skills  (creativity and innovation skills, critical thinking  and problem solving skills, communication and collaboration skills)
  • Information, Media and Technology Skills  (information literacy, media literacy and ICT literacy)
  • Life and Career Skills  (flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction, social and cross-cultural skills, productivity and accountability, leadership and responsibility) 

It will be interesting to hear whether our input results in a similar framework that is BC made, and BC developed.  My hope is that the orientation to the framework will come with a distinct connection to the educated citizen.  Will we all be clear that the reason for teaching and learning will be directed at the “dream” of a literate and socially motivated citizen.  Such a citizen should be able to inquire, continually build on natural talent, and nourish the ability to build ideas.  I would hope that the intention of our plan would be to sustain and further develop what is good in our society. 

Any change process should begin with a compelling story.  Let’s hope that once we complete this important work of retooling our education system there is clarity  as to our intended purpose.

 

“  Students learn skills by seeing them, understanding them, and practicing them until they become an integrated part of the students’ repertoire.  Thus, the models of teaching that fit the requirements of our time are in the inductive, cooperative, and inquiry-complex.”              -Joyce & Calhoun

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Lessons from Louis Pasteur

Posted in Change, Leadership, Personalized Learning, Teaching and Learning on October 12, 2012 | 1 Comment »

doctorsHeidi Gable, our DPAC President, recently forwarded a blog posting to me describing the author’s response to a Turner Classic Film on the life of “Louis Pasteur”.   The movie described the 40 years it took Pasteur and his colleagues to convince the world’s doctors to wash their hands prior to surgery.  Once this tiny action was  adopted by doctors the rates of infections was reduced and the mortality rate following surgery dropped significantly. 

 

The author suggested that it took so long because doctors had a view of their profession and the strategy of hand washing threatened their self-image as doctors.   According to the movie doctors had to come to grips with the fact that accepted practice was not effective in saving patients and doctors were not quite the ‘healers’ they thought they were.

 

An interesting  thesis which the author extends to our educational world.  As educators are we caught in the same trap that suffocated medical practitioners in the 19th Century?  Are we open to or ignoring instructional practices that would improve the learning opportunities for students?  Like the doctors in Pasteur’s time    are we blind to the possible changes to school organization that would enhance teaching and learning in the 21st Century context?

 

educatorsAs I   engage with the professionals in our district I feel that I can honestly say that we are moving forward in our support of learners.  We see many experiments  and new directions where the staff are reflecting on practice and finding ways to support the learners of our schools.  The question remains however, “Are we adapting quickly enough to our new historical context?  Are we as a district and profession incorporating the best and highest yield strategies to support the learners in our district?  Are we helping each other become better teachers so that we have better learning environments for learners?

 

My sense is yes to all these questions but I am sure we can do better and quicker.  My faith in the professional of this district is immense.  Through our reorganization of the CommunityLINK hubs , professional learning opportunities, invitation to parent and student voice, commitments to our Dream, and a knowledge and understanding of the possibilities of programs such as the Learning Improvement Fund we are becoming clearer on what works and how to help each other attain the inherent skills of our craft.  When I see us discussing and  reengaging around fundamental principles such as inclusion, professional learning, Response to Intervention or “Teaching Content to All”, Universal Design for Learning, Backwards Design, Inclusive Instructional practices and Assessment for Learning , and how to collaborate effectively to support  student learning I am more positive than ever that we are more like Pasteur than we are like the doctors he tried to influence.

 

In Andy Hargreave’s words and borrowed from our LIF training session;

“Teaching like a pro is about improving as an individual, raising the performance of the team, and increasing quality across the whole profession.  It is about developing, circulating, and reinvesting professional capital.  Together these things define what’s worth fighting for as a teacher and in teaching.

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SYSTEM FRAMEWORKS

Posted in Change, Leadership, Professional Teams, Teaching and Learning on June 8, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

“A teacher who understands the conditions that make people want to learn – want to read, to write, and do sums – is in a position to turn these activities into flow experiences. When the experience becomes intrinsically rewarding, students’ motivation is engaged, and they are on their way to a lifetime of self-propelled acquisition of knowledge.” – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

I recently spent a day in a workshop examining leadership and governance and the associated communication required to keep a team invested, knowledgeable and connected.
During the day I was impressed by the level of discussion and surprised at times with the discovery of solutions through collaborative processes. Through our work I was reminded:
• Developing and sustaining a community of learners is continuous, and rewarding work
• We should remember to review and renew our community and its processes for newer members
• Educational communities have a history and should continually evolve and co-create knowledge
• Never forget the power of appreciative inquiry
• 90% of accountability is affirmation
These were valuable reminders for leaders charged with helping develop a high achieving school system. Luckily, in my position I get to see manifestations of each on a daily basis. While they do not form a framework for leadership they do form part of the orientation our school system has accepted as part of its development going forward.
Following our workshop, I was motivated to review lessons learned by others involved in systemic organization and growth. McGuinty (2012) reminds us:
Lesson 1. The drive to make progress in our schools can’t be a fad
Lesson 2. Education reform is not important to your government unless it’s important to the head of your government – personally
Lesson 3. You won’t get results unless teachers are onside
Lesson 4. To succeed you need to build capacity
Lesson 5. Settle on a few priorities and pursue them relentlessly
Lesson 6. Once you start making progress, you’ve got permission to invest more
Lesson 7. You’re never done
Lesson 8. The best way to sustain your effort to improve schools is to keep it personal
While McGuinty doesn’t propose a framework, his lessons do provide guidance to our collaborative actions.
If we continue to learn and build on the appropriate ideas of others and connect people’s hearts to the work we do we will continue to develop collaboratively a system built on a “Dream”.

“The secret of change is to focus all your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” – Socrates

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GREAT TEACHING – ANY CENTURY

Posted in Change, Leadership, Personalized Learning, Teaching and Learning on April 13, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

“Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Being willing is not enough; we must do.” – Leonardo da vinci

Tony Wagner in his book The Global Achievement Gap (Basic Books, 2008) articulated Seven Survival Skills for students learning in the 21st Century. They include:
• Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
• Collaboration Across Networks
• Agility and Adaptability
• Initiative and Entrepreneurialism
• Effective Oral and Written Communication
• Accessing and Analyzing Information
• Curiosity and Imagination
His list is similar to many reported in books, articles and frameworks. If we accept his, or develop our own framework our challenge becomes one of implementing instruction and assessment to support the framework.

Focusing teaching and learning on a thinking framework will involve a different professional approach. We will need less standardization of curriculum and assessment and more reliability on collaborative approaches to instructional pedagogy, active engagement of learners and better formative assessment.

Each school in our district is committed to improving the learning condition for each student. That is the basis for our Dream of “Learning Without Boundaries”. Annually we review and prepare our school Codes of Conduct designed to ensure safe environments for students. As we move forward with our Dream and the Ministry’s Education Plan is it time to review and make explicit our habits of learning or as in Reggio philosophy our image of learners and their abilities? We should actively commit to habits such as inquiry, collaboration, active involvement and self reflection as parts of our commitments to our students and ourselves. This commitment should be in reference to how we reflect on our practice and how we organize activities and interactions with learners.

What do classrooms committed to habits of learning look like?

Anne Reeves in her book Where Great Teaching begins (ASCD, 2011) provides some guidance and articulates a student and learning centered instructional design for classes, units and courses. She lists the following as questions to be answered as part of instructional design.
1. What will students learn?
2. To what degree will they learn? To what depth and breadth?
3. How will they acquire their learning?
4. How will they demonstrate this learning?
These questions are similar to many other frameworks.

She also suggests that our intentions or objectives need to be developed or evaluated with the following in mind. Objectives should be:
• Clear and specific
• Focused on thinking
• Measurable
• Aligned with standards
and
• Their mastery can be demonstrated

Reeves clearly articulates a need to shift our focus on teaching that is designed for learning in the 21st Century as we continue to grow as professionals and further enhance our skills in a 21st Century context. We would be wise to remember that as we reflect on and adopt new pedagogical approaches we are involved in a change process.

Michael Fullan in his book Motion Leadership: The Skinny on Becoming Change Savvy (Corwin Press, 2010) reminds us of the “Ready-Fire-Aim” metaphor with its change savvy ideas.

The elements of the strategy include:
• Relationships first
• Honour the implementation dip
• Beware of fat plans
• Behaviours before beliefs
• Communication during implementation is paramount
• Learn about implementation during implementation
• Excitement prior to implementation is fragile
• Take risks and learn
• It is okay to be assertive

The learned lessons for me continue to be that we need to focus our teaching on the development of learning and thinking skills. We do so by sharpening our pedagogy and implement collectively our approaches. Great teaching continues to support and develop great learning, no matter what century we teach in.

“The nature of relationships among the adults within a school has a greater influence on the character and quality of that school and on student accomplishment than anything else.” – Roland Barth

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HARGREAVES & FULLAN, REVISITED

Posted in Change, Leadership, Teaching and Learning on March 30, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

” Trust…. has important consequences for the functioning of a school and its capacity to engage in fundamental change.” —–Bryk & Schneider, 2002

Andy Hargreaves and Michael Fullan will be publishing a new book in the near future. It will be interesting from an educator’s perspective to see if their ideas regarding school systems have changed or been amended.

As you recall, Coquitlam worked extensively with Andy over the last several years. His introduction of his Fourth Way framework helped spark the conversation around our “Dream” and “Mindful Leadership”.

Andy’s passionate guidance around building an education system with a moral purpose, community connections and thoughtful improvement strategies was much appreciated. I would like to remind us of the Fourth Way framework.

Six Pillars of Purpose and Partnership
1. An Inspiring and Inclusive Vision
2. Public Engagement
3. No Achievement Without Investment
4. Corporate Educational Responsibility
5. Students as Partners in Change
6. Mindful Learning and Teaching

Three Principals of Professionalism
1. High Quality Teachers
2. Powerful Professionalism
3. Lively Learning Communities

Four Catalysts of Coherence
1. Sustainable Leadership
2. Integrating Networks
3. Responsibility Before Accountability
4. Differentiation and Diversity

I appreciated Andy’s ability to present the major cultural and organizational shifts in our recent educational history and point in a direction that made sense to me and was supported by his research and observation.

As we began our investigation of our “Dream” and collaboratively developed a draft set of pillars in support of that “Dream”, Michael Fullan’s recently published work in system change struck a chord. The paper he wrote for the Centre for Strategic Education in 2011 is a reminder of how to better influence systemic change. In his article “Choosing the Wrong Drivers for Whole System Change” he clearly articulates;

“Wrong Drivers” for change
1. Accountability
2. Individual Teacher and Leadership Quality. (Promoting individual vs group solutions)
3. Technology (Investing in and assuming technology will carry the day vs instruction)
4. Fragmented Strategies
He supports each with examples from observation and research. He also takes time to review implications of each driver from his perspective.

What are his positive appropriate and alternate strategies to support systemic change?

“Right Drivers”
• Capacity Building instead of Accountability
• Group Work instead of Individual Quality
• Instruction Supported by Technology
• Systemic Solutions instead of Fragmented Strategies

We would be wise to pay heed to his drivers and recognize that we need to implement these within our framework of relationships, trust and culture.

“Good schools are intrinsically social enterprises that depend heavily on the cooperative endeavours among various participants who compose the social community.” – Bryk & Schneider, 2002

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REMEMBERING WHAT WE LEARNED IN THE RECENT PAST

Posted in Change, Leadership, Teaching and Learning on January 19, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

“Little things make big things happen” – “Don’t mistake activity for achievement” – John Wooden

As we move forward as a district leadership group it seems like an appropriate time to review some of the individuals who have provided guidance, direction and provocation to our personal and district growth and development. Please accept my notes from sessions in the recent past where other leaders and presenters have shared their thoughts and ideas with us. Any errors in content are mine and not the presenters.

Leadership Mindsets
(Kaser & Halbert, 2009)

In order to initiate change the following elements must be addressed:

1.  Intense Moral Purpose  

2.  Trust and personal regard of the community members

3.  Relationships, relationships, relationships

LEADERSHIP DIMENSIONS connected with Improved Student Learning
(Vivian Robinson, 2009)
- Establishing goals and expectations

- Strategic resourcing

- Planning, coordinating and evaluating teaching and the curriculum

- Promoting and participating in teacher learning and development

Ensuring an orderly and supportive environment
Creating Breakthroughs
(Wayne Hulley, 2009)

1. Be precise
- What exactly do you want to achieve?
- Gather critical evidence
- Establish SMART goals
2. Professional Growth
- What new strategies might support our efforts?
- Implement High Yield strategies
- Monitor and adjust
3. Breakthrough
- How will we know we have a breakthrough?
- Gather critical evidence
- Celebrate
- Refocus

WHAT’S WORTH FIGHTING FOR IN THE PRINCIPALSHIP – Guidelines for Principals
(Fullan, 2008)

- De-privatize teaching
- Model instructional leadership
- Build capacity first
- Grow other leaders
- Divert the distracters
- Be a system leader
- Invest in instructional leadership
- Combine direction and flexibility
- Mobilize the power of data
- Use peers to change district culture
- Address the managerial requirements
- Stay the course

Given that we learned these lessons well how would we apply them to our new context? Lawrence Marazza in his book  “The 5 Essentials of Organizational Excellence”  (Corwin Press, 2003) suggests that school leaders will be called upon to develop new skills and attitudes that facilitate the development of the collaborative learning organizations required in the 21st Century. He suggests the following skills are necessary to meeting the challenge of the future.
1. Recognize that human resource development is the cornerstone of the implementation of all programs and services necessary to increase learning opportunities and student achievement.
2. Develop a tolerance for ambiguity necessary to break with traditional organizational forms in order to create new and improved organizational systems. It is the combined wisdom of stakeholders and leaders that will offer the most potentially effective initiatives for improvement.
3. Teach and allow others to lead. Encourage all members of the organization to be innovative and collaborative.
4. Understand the differences between personality types within the organizational members and lead to those differences.
5. Employ public engagement principles to authentically incorporate the best thinking of all stakeholders.

Hargreaves and Fink (2006) lay out principles of sustainability inherent in leadership skills as the directive that systems should investigate in dealing with a learning agenda. These include:

1. Depth (sustainable leadership matters)
2. Length (sustainable leadership lasts)
3. Breadth (sustainable leadership spreads)
4. Justice (sustainable leadership does no harm to actively improve the surrounding environment)
5. Diversity (sustainable leadership promotes cohesive diversity)
6. Resourcefulness (sustainable leadership develops and does not deplete internal and human resources)
7. Conservation (sustainable leadership honours and learns from the best of the past to create an even better future)
There are many from our past whose ideas can have impact on our personal performance as leaders and therefore positively impact our efforts to collaboratively implement our Dream of “Leadership Without Boundaries”.

“To know what to do is wisdom.
To know how to do it is skill.
To know when to do it is judgement.
To strive to do it best is dedication.
To do it for the benefit of others is compassion.
To do it quietly is humility.
To get the job done is achievement.
To get others to do all of the above is leadership.”
- Author unknown

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BEGINNING A NEW YEAR

Posted in Change, Leadership, Personalized Learning, Professional Teams, Teaching and Learning on January 6, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

  • “The secret is to work less as individuals and more as a team. As a coach, I play not my eleven best, but my best eleven.” – Knute Rockne

Happy New Year and welcome back from your vacations.

As we begin a new year I thought it would be interesting to reflect on my recent aha moments as a professional. This will be a random review of some memorable items I have read or heard. I hope they have some use for you the reader.

From Steven Johnson who wrote “Where Good Ideas Come From” I was reminded that innovations are rarely a result of a solitary imagination at work. Most of the time innovations are the result of a slow hunch, influenced by many others and lots of ideas that percolate over time.

From Michael Fullan through presentations and his recent books I have been reminded that our work as educational leaders is very complex. He always so clearly articulates the work of leadership for me. As he suggests we need to identify the few things that matter most; know how to leverage our skills in ways that benefit our entire organization and how to act with purpose and empathy. In observing our district at work, I can clearly visualize his thoughts in the way we organize professional learning, motivate each other and learn by doing.

From the work or of “Strong Classrooms, Strong Schools” project I observed the power of intense collaboration and the importance of leaders participating as learners. I hope to help others learn of the work of these terrific educators.

From our collaborative work with Principals, Vice Principals and District Leaders who are working on a Professional Growth Plan Model, I am again reminded that good ideas need to be implemented properly. However I must always be aware of the implementation dip. Through deliberate practice and resolute focus on our ultimate aim of developing this process properly, we will have impact on learning and teaching.

From our collaborative work on “Learning Without Boundaries” I am always struck by the power of our work. Our focus on learning success for every learner, every day, and without exception is the basis for our successful collaborative efforts. Our outcomes as a learning organization that has achieved a student completion rate of 91% is testament to the power of capacity development and the harnessing of potential as learners and teachers.

From some very innovative teachers I have observed that you get better through practice, you provide opportunity for learners to make their learning public, provide opportunities to excel, and reap greater outcomes for students.

Building collaborative cultures is so important as we communally develop a school system focused on learning. Our leaders, coordinators, support staff, teachers, parents and students work together on precise goals. In Kindergarten I learned the value of working together and I sincerely hope that we continue to apply these collaborative skills on a daily basis.

From McKinsey in his study ( http://www.mckinsey.org ) “How the World’s Most Improved School Systems Keep Getting Better” I was again reminded of interventions that lead to success. Capacity development, flexible and thin plans that guide others, communication, a focus on learning, and collaboration are all important aspects of our work as a good organization working to excellence.

Christopher Doyle surprised me with his suggestion that educators make bad prognosticators of the future. His argument suggests that much of our zeal for 21st Century Learning is fueled by business and political leadership . According to Doyle we would do better by asking artists, psychologists, environmentalists and physicists to be part of the debate on where we are headed and how to get there.

I was intrigued by the white paper written by Valerie Hannon and others for Cisco. In “Developing an Innovation Ecosystem for Education” they reminded me that there are contextual pressures on education as we enter the 21st Century. Their framework suggests that we respond to the pressures by re-engaging in learning and not just with and through school, that we mine our present landscape for successful innovations, find new innovations to support learners and develop networks to share and learn from each other. I feel we are moving in the right direction in Coquitlam.

I would like to finish this blog with a reference to the strategy I learned from my examination of Reggio Emilia philosophy. Prior to organizing a Reggio influenced classroom, program or school, the community must come together and make explicit their “image of the learner”. This strategy helped me to better frame my individual orientation to schooling and learning. By a public expression of a view of the positive elements of children and learners, we are better able to focus on our Dream of “Learning Without Boundaries”.

“However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.” – Winston Churchill

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SUCCESSFUL SCHOOLS THROUGH COLLABORATIVE LEADERSHIP

Posted in Change, Leadership, Professional Teams on November 25, 2011 | 1 Comment »

“I look at each year in basketball as an integral part of life. Each season is a journey. Every journey is a lifetime.”
- Mike Krzyzewski

I recently reviewed an impressive list of achievements of student athletes in our district. It was very impressive indeed. Their success is the result of talent and commitment, family support and a collaborative team of teachers and coaches. These teachers and other professional staff are the same group of professionals who also develop communities to support learning in our district.

It takes a village to raise a child. Many leaders have communicated these words of wisdom. They remind us that we can envision, implement and achieve much more when collaboration is a key factor in our everyday participation in society. Collaboration is an important key to success for all students. It is an essential ingredient in an educational environment that demands nothing less than that every student can and will learn in our classrooms. That is the essence of our DREAM. We must work together to build communities that are conducive to sharing ideas, knowledge, theories and information. Only within these communities will our system develop to its optimum and further help our students achieve at their optimum level in all instances, and reap the benefits of the experiences of those around them. We must openly communicate about what is working well and about areas in which we need to improve – in our pedagogy, instructional practice, assessment and all components of student and adult learning.

Randi Stone and Pru Cuper in their book, Best Practices for Teacher Leadership, (Corwin Press, 2006) proposed the following activities and actions for members of Collaborative Teams.
1. Create a Vision Statement and Strategic Plan

If we want to know the path on which we will travel, we must first choose a destination. This is an opportunity for educational leaders to engage in a dialogue with the other members of their school and district community. We have collaboratively developed out DREAM statement which for us encompasses all that we will work to change, improve and maintain over the course of the next few school years. Our DREAM of “Learning without Boundaries” speaks to our commitment to the success for all learners in life and not just in school.

2. Implement Your DREAM

Once a community has created its DREAM, it is incumbent on the team to collaborative implementation of that plan. We are extremely blessed in our district to have such a large group of leaders which includes administrators and teachers in our schools. We are also extremely lucky to work with the strong group of coordinators of Staff Development and Student Services. They continually remind me of the power of competence and knowledge tempered with the appropriate process and theory. It is the appointed and self proclaimed leaders of our district that help guide us to implement our DREAM.

Early in my career as a teacher, I was introduced to the work of John Glasser by my mentors. Glasser, better known for his theories on student discipline and self regulation, also examined effective collaborative teams. In his book Leading Through Collaboration: Building Groups to Productive Solutions, Glasser describes great teams as those with a particular chemistry, based on such qualities as:

a) Joint commitment to shared goals
b) Trust of all members to understand their roles and get the job done
c) Shifting leadership based on task and circumstance
d) Excellent communications
e) Understanding each other’s needs and perspectives
f) A sense of humour
g) Willingness to set aside differences and to work together for the greater good

According to Mr. Glaser, none of these qualities suggests an unusual alignment of dynamic elements, but the combination of the characteristics implies that there is something happening that causes each individual to let go of his or her view of the world to become part of something bigger and broader. He further suggests that there are four fundamental elements for creating coherence within teams and groups. Acquired en masse, with the appropriate tools, they offer some powerful skills for producing agreements in groups of all kinds. The fundamentals include:

a) Aligning the team
b) Focusing on the vision
c) Searching for solutions
d) Reaching agreements.
Glaser offers a comprehensive set of tools leaders can use to facilitate powerful processes that help diverse constituencies generate and own solutions. Glasser could have been describing the dynamic, collaborative, teacher led teams that support student athletes and all learners in our district.

“Enthusiasm, that certain something that pulls us out of the mediocre and commonplace, and fills us with power. If we have it, we should thank God for it. If we don’t have it, we should get down on our knees and pray for it.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

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CHANGE DRIVERS

Posted in Change, Leadership, Personalized Learning, Teaching and Learning on November 10, 2011 | 2 Comments »

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters in the end.” – Ursula K. Le Guin

Have you ever wondered how a single conversation can start you on a journey that pushed you to consider a more and deeper response to an issue than you had previously held? I have had an interesting journey since talking to John Talbot, a facilitator who we have the good fortune to work with in our district on the change process.

John was working with some administrators on the issue of change. His premise was that leaders need to have a personal understanding of their change process prior to implementing any change in their context. While his argument may seem completely logical I am not sure that we have always considered our complete understanding of a change process as a prerequisite to the implementation of initiatives  in our schools and our districts.

A review of change theory has taken me back to many authors and researchers from my past.

Hattie (2009) articulates the critical change agents from his perspective. These include:
- Knowledge and skills
- A plan of action
- Strategies to overcome setbacks
- A high sense of confidence
- Monitoring progress
- A commitment to achieve
- Social and environmental support
- Freedom, control or choice

There are many other processesand theorists to consider. Some that you might recognize include:
- Bill Moyer’s “Four Roles of Social Movements”
- The 4-D Process of Appreciative Inquiry
- The Kuebler-Ross Model of Change
- John Kotter’s Change Model
- The Change Journey

Michael Fullan has again forced me to think more critically and deeply about educational change. In his recent article “Choosing the Wrong Drivers for Whole System Change” Fullan forces us to look critically at the elements of change and which ones work in our present context and in our present circumstances. He clearly articulates that there are many elements of change and that at times all have influence on large scale change. However he cautions us that if used alone or as central drivers, they may get us to a better place systemically but not as far as we think we need to go.

His thesis is that there are certain drivers that will get better results than others. He suggests we should focus on four systemically related big drivers that work.

1. The learning-instruction-assessment nexus
2. Social capital to build the profession
3. Pedagogy matches technology
4. Systemic synergy

For me he is reminding us that we are about teaching and learning and the more we focus on that as a system the better will be the results for learners and for the system. He reminds us to build capacity of all learners and members of our community. He reminds us that it is the pedagogy of teaching that is important and that the use of technology should be viewed as an important support but cannot replace good pedagogy. He finally reminds us that change should include everyone. We need to find ways to include, motivate and support all in the organization.

Fullan’s belief that whole system change is the name of the game and that the four drivers above have the greatest impact is much appreciated.  He has coerced me into an analysis of what works in certain situations and not in a check list approach to change.   When I examine these in relation to our district I think we have great promise for continued support of the learners we serve and can be a compelling  example of “Learning Without Boundaries”.  Our approach, as Andy Hargreaves continues to articulate must be about whole system growth and improvement and not about individual schools.  Fullan’s essay has helped reinforce that lesson for me as an educator.   

“Show class, have pride, and display character. If you do, winning takes care of itself.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant

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