Read a good book lately?

I have been reading several books lately and enjoying the conversations I am having with colleagues, as well as with my inner self. As I began to read Wagner's book, The Global Achievement Gap, I picked up Marzano's book The Art & Science of Teaching. I found the two connect quite well from the visionary leadership level down to the practitioner's application. In review of the seven survival skills by Wagner, I believe one could align each skill with a research based teaching practice in Marzano's book. Wagner mentions critical thinking & problem solving, and accessing & analyzing information as skills one and six. I believe these two compliment one another rather well. With many of us experiencing information overload due to today's technology it's vital to our livelihood that we ask the right questions, analyze the data, and create solutions to such a problem. That is just the tip of the iceberg on learning and teaching in the 21st century.
To address the two skills mentioned above I searched Marzano's (2007) book for practical teaching methods. I was not surprised to find two well defined action steps to assist me in teaching these 21st century survival skills. Marzano explained "elaborative interrogations" (p.49) and "experimental inquiry tasks" (p.91) down to the science of implementation, along with the rationale for such teaching methodologies. Classrooms must pursue the "why?" element of questioning so that students can clarify their generalizations and elicit their reasoning for such beliefs. Here's a question for all you practicing teachers. Do you probe your students and say the why word? Inquiry or experiential learning has been a buzz word for years thanks to Dewey's work. Keep in mind that it's not a skill just for the science classroom. I believe students predict, collaborate, research, redefine and create solutions all day long from many places with folks across the world. Just think about the gaming industry, cellular devices, or social media our students have been holding in their hands for years.
I recognize there is so much to do in so little time. Let's not put off for tomorrow what we can do today. I challenge you, along with myself, to begin that paradigm shift so greatly needed to engage the learners of today in preparing them for the 21st century workforce. Will you join me?

How have you touched a life today?

During our busy lives of work and play do we ever really contemplate the moments of a single person's life? It's hard to say because we usually are bustling about attempting to squeeze in every last item on our To Do List. I invite you to stop just for a minute and think about the "people" who you come in contact with each day. Ask yourself how often do you pull up a chair and listen.
Reading "People First" by Hindman, Seiders, & Grant has helped me recognize the importance of each person's contribution in our world be it school, work, or home. My task oriented mind is at ease knowing that creating relationships and valuing the time to build them has long term benefits. As our local communities expand to include global citizens it is my belief that we must invest the time to communicate effectively in cultivating a collaborative culture. As a school admninistrator this starts with the staff in our buildings and extends into our communities. To further an organizations cause a true leader begins by establishing relationships which help build trust. Being a family member, professional colleague, and leader involves trusting relationships that develop over time. How much time do you invest in building relationships?

"Make the Leap"

How many times have we all heard about great organizations and yet never truly understood what made them rise above all others? As I read Jim Colllins book Good to Great I learned that sustainable success comes to those who apply the Hedgehog Concept. Never before had I heard this term used in describing organizational leadership; yet it makes sense to know your passion, describe what drives you, and discover what it is you can be the best at. If educational institutions practice these principles they will load the bus with the right people;therefore, building a supportive school environment for all stakeholders. Some would say the drawback is that schools are slow to move forward or they lack the technology to progress. Jim's book contradicts this notion by stating "Great Organizations" ask questions, confront the facts, and often bring about change gradually. No great company, that sustained results, jumped on a bandwagon or made an empire over night. Through interviews with leaders of great companies, his researchers found the application of technology as a driving force in accelerating the flywheel.
I invite you to think about the flywheel you are on, is it gaining momentum or stalling? Are you an accelerator or extinguisher? Each of us has the responsibility in knowing our core values so that we board the right bus and become an asset to the organization we elect to dedicate our lives. "Do you have the discipline to do the right thing and, equally important, to stop doing the wrong things?" (2001, p.141).

Movie Maker

I am learning to utilize a webcam and Windows Movie Maker software to create a 2-3 minute webcast for my first parent newsletter releasing in August. My trials began when the sound did not record, a computer reboot fixed that problem. I then realized the webcam software only records for one minute, not quite the length of time I had proposed for the webcast. After recording a few one minute episodes I then turned to Windows Movie Maker to put together the two short clips with transitions and effects, along with a photograph and music. It is a work in progress but I have learned more about using a webcam and movie making software than I ever imagined. I have great hopes that the end project will come to life for all who view the broadcast and ignite students and staff in utilizing technology creatively this school year.

Teachnology Leadership 09

I have been rapidly learning this past year to utilize a variety of web 2.0 tools for the benefit of my students, school community, and family. Educators have to be willing to grow, take risks and think outside the box if they are going to embrace the tools of the future. I believe Alan November said it well in Empowering Students with Technology when he wrote, "the real revolution is a transformational shift of control from the school system to the learner" (2001). Technology is not an add-on but an integral part of the curriculum creating a change in the teacher to student relationships in today's classrooms.
Soshana Zuboff's research clearly defines two approaches to using technology - automating and informating. She explains how the automation of technology leaves all things the same such as locus of control, relationships, the work and processes leading to little improvement. However, if an organization implements informating "new technologies can leverage empowerment through access to new sources of information and relationships" thus leading to high levels improvement(1988). This fundamental shift of control changes relationships, schedules, the use of space, and places responsibility on the learner. "Informating leads to empowerment" (November,2001).
With that said it is time for all educators to select the approach that will best serve the student's of today as they prepare for tomorrow's workforce. The global economy will require employees to be self-directed and interdependent with the freedom to manage their own work. Let's get this Techno-Revolution Rolling !

Success!

Our work is complete as a team and we have forged new friendships in the process. The finished paper was a collaborative piece of work that enhanced everyone's use of Google Docs. We also plan to stay in touch and continue our relationships as colleagues. We learned more than the content of this course, but that there is much to learn from another person if only we will listen and invite them to share their story. The team capitalized on individual strengths and overcame weaknesses through collaboration. Our instructor truly guided our learning, assessing "of" and "for" learning throughout the course. We celebrated SUCCESS as a group and as a class.

Collaborative Technology To Advance Curriculum Audit

The team of educators I work with continue to share their knowledge and skills as we work towards the completion of our curriculum audit project. This project was begun several weeks ago encompassing interviews, research and professional conversations about how to develop a district wide curriculum audit that creates a sustainable curriculum review process; therefore, impacting student performance. Through email and face to face meetings we began the work of composing a document with separate pieces of writing that needed to meld together our individual ideas, yet embrace the shared vision we had adopted as a team. To further our efforts I decided to ask the team if they were interested in a way to work on one document without all the emailing and creation of a newly revised version of the same document. It sparked an interest among them, so we headed to the computer lab to establish GMail accounts for the use of Google Docs. We then practiced using Google features, assisting each other in our own areas of strength as we began to build an understanding of how this technological tool could enable us to complete our curriculum audit project. Today we are currently learning to utilize Google Docs for our team project, but the doors it opened for us all are valuable as leaders of tomorrow's future.

Curriculum Development Through Collaboration

As I worked with my colleagues on the curriculum development paper, the word collaboration came to mind. We each contributed to the paper bringing forth ideas, suggestions, research and a vision of our end product. Interviews were conducted to find answers to the guiding questions our instructor provided. We analyzed the interview responses, studied the district's achievement data and utilized McTighe, Wiggins and Hayes Jacobs research to outline a curriculum development plan. The non-threatening atmosphere allowed team members to engage in delivery of critical feedback, positive reinforcement and continuous revision of the paper. As students, we greatly appreciated our instructor's scoring rubric being available to us in producing our paper so that it aligned with the course expectations. As I continue to learn more about the use of technology, I believe Google docs would greatly assist team members in working collaboratively on projects/papers such as this one, especially when time is of the essence and members are from various regions.

Mapping the Process

Mapping curriculum, as suggested by Heidi Hayes Jacobs, aligns well with the concept Wiggins and McTighe define in their Understand by Design book. Both researchers utilize essential questions to guide the process in determining the curriculum , and share the belief that inquiry is the best practice for increasing depth of knowledge. I am sold on the idea of developing the curriculum at the classroom level, involving teachers from the ground up to truly build an implemented curriculum, not an intended curriculum. As an online mapper myself, I have learned first hand the benefits of projection mapping, diary mapping and read-throughs with staff. These stages in the mapping process have guided us in making data driven decisions about curriculum, assessments and interventions. I invite others to share their experiences with me regarding the mapping process and how it has evolved within your professional learning communities. Have you had any successes? What have been the challenges you faced as an administrator, teacher, or district leader?

A Teacher as an Assessor

How often have we started a lesson plan with the organization of activities as opposed to the assessment tool that will be used to measure student learning? Educators will need a paradigm shift to begin the planning process as an assessor, in stead of an activity planner. We all have those creative lessons we hold dear in our hearts; however, it is time to let them go and begin to design lessons that truly measure the expected outcomes. Developing assessments around the essential questions that link learning to the standards can be a shift in mindset for many teachers. Let's not forget to mention that in earning that teaching degree, courses were not structured towards creating assessors. It will take patience, courage, support and time to develop educational assessors in our schools. Today's true educational leaders will grasp the concept of being an assessor, not an activity planner.