Sunday, December 3, 2017

Catch them doing something wrong or lead them to do something amazing?

Many educators and schools have reached out to me regarding what their students are doing online.  Unfortunately, it is often in reaction to an issue that they are trying to fix, not a plan to be proactive in leading their students.

I have even heard of schools that do some extra monitoring of students online so that they can find out when students are doing something wrong online, and that has raised some concerns.

My contention for years has been on the idea of “Digital Leadership.”  Trying to put my thoughts together, I defined the term in January 2013 as the following:

“Using the vast reach of technology (especially the use of social media) to improve the lives, well-being, and circumstances of others.”

For years, many educators like Jason Shaffer and Jennifer Casa-Todd, have been promoting and creating opportunities for students to be proactive and build opportunities for themselves to use the advantages of social media. This goes beyond citizenship, but into leadership.

As I work with students on their use of social media, they have communicated that they are tired of the “cyberbullying” talk, and I don’t blame them.  Being constantly told what not to do is not very inspiring.  Although it is an important message, what are the best results because of the focus on cyberbullying by schools?  That our students won’t be horrible online? As Shelley Wright stated, “students often defy expectations if you give them the opportunity.” Schools should focus on empowering students to do something amazing with the opportunities that lie in front of them.

There are lots of complexities with social media that adults are still figuring out, let alone students.  It is messy, but we need to be in on the conversation. We can fear the worst and react after the fact, or we can be proactive in leading students in doing something that we couldn’t do when we were the same age.  Yes, there are negatives, but we need to focus on the powerful opportunities that lie in front of our students and take advantage.

Source: George Couros



from Connected Principals http://ift.tt/2igqiNT
Posted by at No comments:

Is It Possible To Teach Grit?


In a previous post, I shared about the power of keystone habits. The ideas are based on the book The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and Business. 

So what are keystone habits? They are habits that seem to have a spill over effect. The changing of a keystone habit leads to changes in a person's other habits too.

For instance, getting enough sleep might be a keystone habit. It could also result in improving other habits like better communication, more productivity, or avoiding late night snacking. The initial goal was just to get better sleep, but it can lead to improvements in other areas too.

One critically important keystone habit is willpower. In fact, it has been shown in research to be the most powerful habit of all.
In a 2005 study, for instance, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania analyzed 164 eighth grade students, measuring their IQs and other factors, including how much willpower the students demonstrated, as measured by tests of their self-discipline. 
Students who exerted high levels of willpower were more likely to earn higher grades in their classes and gain admission into more selective schools. They had fewer absences and spent less time watching television and more hours on homework.
"Highly self-disciplined adolescents outperformed their more impulsive peers on every academic-performance variable," the researchers wrote.
"Self-discipline predicted predicted academic performance more robustly than did IQ. Self-discipline also predicted which students would improve their grades over the school year, whereas IQ did not... Self-discipline has a bigger effect on academic performance than does intellectual talent."
Sounds a lot like grit and growth mindset to me. These have been very important topics in the education community. We see this every day. Kids with willpower habits do better. But I wonder how much success schools are having with teaching these skills? And should we be doing more?

Starbucks has an intensive training program to help employees develop the willpower to handle the moments they believe will make or break the company. It must be working because we all know how prolific Starbucks has become.

They focus their training on what employees will do when they hit rough patches. Each employee develops a plan for how they will deal with an angry customer, for instance. And there are opportunities for role playing. They want to develop automatic response loops that employees can rely on when faced with a problem.

So if the Starbucks employees encounter a certain situation, they automatically use the strategies they've learned and practiced.

I wonder what that would look like in the classroom? Sometimes, I think we simply tell students to work harder or to persevere, but we aren't giving them tools they need to learn these skills. We aren't teaching the behavior we want to see.

Sure, we may reinforce qualities like grit and willpower when we see them, and that's a good technique, but could we be doing more to explicitly train students how to have willpower?

Based on the studies of willpower as a keystone habit, it seems like it should be one of our most important priorities. Most of your students who are struggling in your class have probably always struggled in school. That becomes a pattern of frustration and failure. Part of that might be attributable to a lack of willpower. How can we disrupt that pattern? That's something to think about.

I'm curious what curriculum or programs readers have been using to teach grit and willpower? For instance, I've heard some good things about Leader in Me, but I've also heard it's expensive. I would like to find a more systematic way to teach these habits in our school. Leave me a comment below or respond on Facebook or Twitter.  

from Connected Principals http://ift.tt/2AL7u4N
Posted by at No comments:

Catch them doing something wrong or lead them to do something amazing?

Many educators and schools have reached out to me regarding what their students are doing online.  Unfortunately, it is often in reaction to an issue that they are trying to fix, not a plan to be proactive in leading their students.

I have even heard of schools that do some extra monitoring of students online so that they can find out when students are doing something wrong online, and that has raised some concerns.

My contention for years has been on the idea of “Digital Leadership.”  Trying to put my thoughts together, I defined the term in January 2013 as the following:

“Using the vast reach of technology (especially the use of social media) to improve the lives, well-being, and circumstances of others.”

For years, many educators like Jason Shaffer and Jennifer Casa-Todd, have been promoting and creating opportunities for students to be proactive and build opportunities for themselves to use the advantages of social media. This goes beyond citizenship, but into leadership.

As I work with students on their use of social media, they have communicated that they are tired of the “cyberbullying” talk, and I don’t blame them.  Being constantly told what not to do is not very inspiring.  Although it is an important message, what are the best results because of the focus on cyberbullying by schools?  That our students won’t be horrible online? As Shelley Wright stated, “students often defy expectations if you give them the opportunity.” Schools should focus on empowering students to do something amazing with the opportunities that lie in front of them.

There are lots of complexities with social media that adults are still figuring out, let alone students.  It is messy, but we need to be in on the conversation. We can fear the worst and react after the fact, or we can be proactive in leading students in doing something that we couldn’t do when we were the same age.  Yes, there are negatives, but we need to focus on the powerful opportunities that lie in front of our students and take advantage.



from Connected Principals http://ift.tt/2AJcdDA
Posted by at No comments:

What a Beautiful Noise

So this week I want to talk about one of my favorite things about school…maybe my most, most favorite thing of all the things that I love about coming to work each and every day. It’s something that many of us fail to pay regular attention to I think, or even embrace, and maybe something that may be a little annoying or aggravating for some educators…something that traditionally we have tried to suppress, and something that kids sometimes get in trouble for. But if you take a step back, and drink in what it ultimately represents, then it might just become one of your favorite things too…I’m talking about the noise of a school. The beautiful noise that is the soundtrack to learning and of happiness and joy, and what a child’s life should really be all about. Creative, imaginative, messy, curious, and beautiful noise.

When is the last time that you took a few minutes and really listened to the noise of a school? Walking down the halls, or when doing recess duty, or being in a classroom when kids are working collaboratively, or just standing outside the gym when kids are at PE, or outside the music or art room…or even when they are simply spilling off of the buses ready to tackle another day with their friends…it’s something that will make your heart want to burst if you just take the time to listen. It’s not lost on me how fortunate I am to be in a position to walk from one end of the Lower School to the other several times each day…visiting classrooms, discussing issues with teachers, catching up with specific students, and being a fly on the wall watching when kids don’t think I’m paying attention. Lately I’ve been soaking it up, this noise, and it fuels my soul everyday…the singing in French rooms, the songs from the early childhood kids as they transition down the corridors, the wild excitement in the discovery labs as kids work on experiments, the math talk lessons and the read alouds and the book clubs and the students sharing their writing…it’s so beautiful to listen to the learning that is everywhere, in every classroom and school space all the time.

I have to confess that the first thing that I do after a tough meeting, or a hard conversation, or an issue that I have to deal with that takes me away from being around kids, is to pop into the library to listen to a story, or head out to the playground or the cafeteria just to hear the noise of kids…it centers me and it snaps me back to what is the most important part of my job…the kids. Nothing is more joyful than the sound of a playground, with kids playing and making friends and taking risks and finding out about themselves and others…so good. It doesn’t stop there though, I also love the sound of teachers collaborating together around what’s best for kids and their learning…the creative ideas about how to extend students, and the concerns about how to intervene with struggling students…the sound of educators caring about kids is also music to my ears, and it blares loud at full volume every day…the beautiful sound of a school…how can you not love it?

This week, as we speed toward the holiday break, and with comments and concerts coming up, and with our lives getting busier and busier, I’m asking you…no, I’m begging you, to take a few minutes to slow down and listen to the noise of a school. Take a second to listen to the kids at play, or just stand back in your classes and listen to the sounds of learning, or come down by my office in the morning and listen to the kids as they come in ready for another day with their teachers and friends…there is nothing more joyful or energizing and beautiful than the sound of a school in action. Take the time to listen everyone and it will fill your hearts like it does mine. It might just be the best thing that you can do with your days. Have a wonderful week everyone and remember to be great for our students, good to each other, and open to the beautiful noise of the school day.

 

Quote of the Week….

I think my happy is too loud  – 1st Grade student at ASP

 

Interesting Articles –

Because I’m Happy

Laughter and Learning

Happiness and Learning

Better Learners

Let them Talk

 

TED Talks –

Raising Brave Girls

Dangerous Things for Kids

Should School Start Later?

 

Inspiring Videos –

Traditional Schools

The Science of Empathy

5 minutes to Affect Learning

Design Your Own School (4 years old but still relevant)

Thinking About our new EC Playground



from Connected Principals http://ift.tt/2Anxlij
Posted by at No comments:

Saturday, December 2, 2017

Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe by Melissa De La Cruz

I can't say Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen is my most favorite book ever, but I definitely have a soft spot for it, and of course I love the BBC series version with Colin Firth.  So much so, that I bought it on VHS tape years and years ago.  And, Colin Firth remains the only Darcy in my heart.  

I thought this would be a fun read-a modern version of P&P with the roles reversed:  Darcy is a 29 year old super smart woman who has risen to partnership in her hedge fund financial corporation in New York City.  From the town of Pemberly, OH, she's avoided going home for eight years after a falling out with her father over her refusal to marry Carl, who looked good on paper, but whom Darcy just didn't love.  Instead, she left for New York City and became a very rich woman working on Wall Street.  Her life is fairly empty except for work; she can buy anything she wants, but just isn't very happy.  A family health crisis sends her flying home just before Christmas.  She's uncomfortable in her family's very plush home (Dad is a very successful businessman) and running into old family friends-namely, the Bennets, a family of men who Darcy's known all her life.  There's Jim, who makes an immediate connection with Darcy's actor friend Bingley, and there's Luke.  He's annoyed Darcy all through high school, and their drunken make out session under the mistletoe at her family's Christmas party is a shock to Darcy.  A shock, you say?  Yes, because she realizes she's got feelings for Luke.  

There are all sorts of complications, and the path to true love for Darcy and Luke isn't smooth.  I got tired of trying to compare P&P to this story, and I wish De La Cruz hadn't even tried to make this a modern version.  It would have been a perfectly good story without trying to force it into the P&P mold.  It strayed enough away that I just got annoyed, and the flimsy pivot in the plot (two Bennet boys are juvenile delinquents, and Darcy basically pays off the high school principal to let them stay in school) was lame-o.  This novel would have been heaps better if it was just about two people who discover they don't dislike each other, but actually quite like each other-without all the extra junk that mucked up the story.  I also found the nonchalant way Darcy talked about money a bit off-putting.  It was a Hallmark movie gone wrong, I'm afraid. 

Oh well.  It's a quick read, and enjoyable enough, just disappointing for me. 

Rating:  2/6 for a plot that tries to force itself into a clever, modern twist of Pride and Prejudice, but fell short for me.  I didn't much like Darcy, either.  

Available in hardcover, and ebook.  

from Bookalicious Babe Book Reviews http://ift.tt/2AlVTYQ
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, December 1, 2017

High, Mid, and Low

In a workshop day with a fantastic group of educators, there was a comment on how to differentiate for our “high, mid, and low students.”  This language is something that I have used before because when looking at what we teach, it is easy to fall into this trap.

If we look at who we teach, what we should realize that ALL of our students (as well as adults) are high, mid, and low, in different areas of life.  If we look to find the “high” areas in all of our students, the “lows” have a stronger potential of becoming better.

If you were to come to work each day and were categorized as either “high, mid, or low,” it might not be a place where you would feel comfortable being on a regular basis.  On the other hand, if you worked in a place that went looking and building on your areas of strength, and felt valued, and supported in growing your areas of weakness, you would probably be more eager to be present, daily.

A little rule that I try to follow when thinking about education. If we wouldn’t want something done to us as adults, we probably shouldn’t do it to our students.

Source: George Couros



from Connected Principals http://ift.tt/2iBzAbp
Posted by at No comments:

High, Mid, and Low

In a workshop day with a fantastic group of educators, there was a comment on how to differentiate for our “high, mid, and low students.”  This language is something that I have used before because when looking at what we teach, it is easy to fall into this trap.

If we look at who we teach, what we should realize that ALL of our students (as well as adults) are high, mid, and low, in different areas of life.  If we look to find the “high” areas in all of our students, the “lows” have a stronger potential of becoming better.

If you were to come to work each day and were categorized as either “high, mid, or low,” it might not be a place where you would feel comfortable being on a regular basis.  On the other hand, if you worked in a place that went looking and building on your areas of strength, and felt valued, and supported in growing your areas of weakness, you would probably be more eager to be present, daily.

A little rule that I try to follow when thinking about education. If we wouldn’t want something done to us as adults, we probably shouldn’t do it to our students.



from Connected Principals http://ift.tt/2BpidxW
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)