Impact

Unlearning Leader – Podcast Interview – EduTalk Radio

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“Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.”
– A.A. Milne

The Unlearning Leader: Leading Schools for Tomorrow Today is about how today’s leaders need to connect for success. The premise of this book is that we all need to unlearn. In order to change and prepare for tomorrow, the authors submit that much of what leaders have learned must be unlearned as we aim to create a new tomorrow for our nation’s children.

The learning purposes of this book include:

  • Energize people to think, act, and lead differently
  • Embody innovative mindsets
  • Model and share new ways of leading from within the organization
  • Put forth the power and positive impact and legacy for leadership
  • Unlearn old truths to lead in new ways
  • Leverage connection opportunities like #suptchat to lead and learn for tomorrow

The Unlearning Leader: Leading for Tomorrow’s Schools Today is a book that will make a difference. Unlearning implies relearning, and that relates to change. The once constant in education today is change. Leaders must know how people learn, communicate, and think. Nick and Mike are energetic, innovative, creative experts in promoting effective leadership that embraces today’s vastly different environment. This book is not an option – it is fundamental to building educational attitudes and behaviors that produce exceptional learners.
Jim Burgett, Author, Speaker, President of the Burgett Group, IL Supt of the Year

Please listen to a Podcast interview (below) with me and Nick Polyak (the authors) with

 

The Unlearning Leader: Schools for Tomorrow Today will include a series of unique elements, including:
(a) Reflection questions that will generate thought and conversation around each chapter;

(b) a unique end of chapter feature SUPTCHAT: Stop, Understand, Plan, Think –where suggested actions and reflected questions will help readers take action and connect with various Twitter chat communities

(c) a relationship between new learning and leading methods related to the five exemplary practices of leadership, evidence based practices from Kouzes & Posner

(d) Chapter Featurettes – guest commentary from successful educational leaders at the end of each chapter. This provides additional voices on the topics on unlearning.

Getting Ready for New Teacher Week – #Engage109

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“Celebrate what you’ve accomplished, but raise the bar a little higher each time you succeed.”
– Mia Hamm

It’s back to school time! This week we prepare for our New Teacher Orientation and Induction Programming. In addition to the bus tour (new this year) and the workshops and the meetings and the time to set up classrooms and work spaces, we are also going to share messages, philosophies, writings, readings, and ideas about who we are in DPS109. We will share how our motto: Engage, Inspire, Empower guides our work and reflections, we will share our initiatives, successes, curriculum resources, instructional expectations, and we’ll help get ready for the first day with students the following week.

There are many wonderful messages about the power and impact of teachers on students’ lives. It never gets boring or old or stale for me to read new and previous posts, articles, quotes, ideas, and musings about the power and value of education and the educators who work tirelessly and selflessly to make the lives of students better and more informed! There is a great deal to be said about the first few days and weeks of school. These essential relationship and culture foundation building days and weeks can make or break a school year – it is essential to get off on the right foot so to speak on behalf of our students.

For many yearjourneys in another district and in another position of leadership we distributed Harry Wong’s book The First Days of School to all new teachers. In the district where I currently serve, we distribute another excellent book Doug Lemov’s Teach Like a Champion. While we focus on all teachers and all employees and all learners, annually we pay special attention to our new teachers through new teacher orientation, induction, mentoring, professional learning, etc. As we prepare to go back to school, our aim and emphasis includes helping folks mentally prepare for the first days of school! It’s an adventure and it’s a journey and it’s quite rewarding to start the school year fresh each year!

One of the articles I read each year was originally published by the AASA in 2011 (click the links for the original article) by Tom Guskey – a leader and educator who I respect and whose writings and messages I follow. Guskey was a keynote and a presenter in our District.

 The School Administrator August 2011 Number 7, Vol. 68 – Guest Column – Starting the School Year Right

by THOMAS R. GUSKEY

We soon will experience the most important time in the school year for all children — the first two weeks. What happens during this critical period pretty much determines how the rest of the year will go.
 
When children return to school after the summer break, their perceptions about school and about themselves as learners are mostly uncertain. It’s a new year with new teachers, new books, new classes, new schedules and new friends. All of these novelties come with the hope this year could be different and better than all previous years.
 
That uncertainittakesavillagety in their perceptions continues only until teachers administer the first quizzes and assessments around the end of the second week of school. When teachers assign grades to those first quizzes, the grades put students into categories. Getting out of a category is really difficult.
 
Students who receive a C on that first math quiz begin to see themselves as C students. Their uncertainty suddenly becomes fixed, and they begin to accept the idea they are likely to earn C’s in math for the rest of the school year.
 
When the second quiz or assessment occurs, they expect to receive another C. When they do, it reinforces their perception. Similarly, if they receive a failing grade on that first quiz, they think all ensuing grades will be the same. But if they succeed on that first quiz and receive a high grade, that too is their perception of all that might follow.
 
Student Persistence
For school leaders, this means doing everything possible to help teachers ensure students’ success during the first two weeks. At every level and in every class, they must press teachers to do whatever is necessary to help students experience successful learning during this critical period — and not fake success, but an accomplishment on something meaningful and challenging. leadimageIt should be something that makes students feel good about what they have achieved and confident in their abilities as learners.
The key to motivating students rests with that success. Students persist in activities at which they experience success, and they avoid activities at which they are not successful or believe they cannot be successful.
 
This is the reason truancy and attendance problems rarely occur during the first two weeks of the school year. They begin to occur after the first graded quizzes, papers or assessments. In students’ minds, the grades they receive on these first quizzes and assessments establish their likelihood of future success. And why come to school if there is so little chance of doing well?
 
Parent Understanding
School leaders also must help parents understand the importance of this time and how essential it is for them to be genuinely involved in their children’s education during these first two weeks. Routines established at home in this critical period profoundly affect the likelihood of students’ success.
 
Daily conversations about school activities help children recognize that their parents value success in school. Providing a quiet place for children to work on school assignments and limiting the time they spend watching television or playing computer games further increase the chances for success. Checking with the teacher to ensure children are well-prepared and ready to succeed also can help.
 
Successful experiences during these first two weeks of school do not guarantee success for the entire year. But they are a powerful and perhaps essential step in that direction. School leaders, teachers and parents alike need to take advantage of this critical time and use it well. It can make all the difference.
Thomas Guskey is professor of educational psychology at University of Kentucky in Lexington, Ky.

Another great writer, and one who is closer to home, Dr. Jeff Zoul, recently pdownloadosted a back-to-school article on his blog and it is also a great read and a powerful reminder to us all about the impact we have as educators and about the power of relationships!

 

 

ENGAGE, INSPIRE, EMPOWER
ENGAGE, INSPIRE, EMPOWER

 

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Sharing a post from another blogger – Dear Teacher,

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I had to share this inspiring post as we prepare to go back to school!

News and Notes from Oklahoma Educator Rob Miller

Dear Teacher . . .

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Dear Teacher,

Hi, you don’t know me yet, but I will be a student in your class this year.

For the next nine months, you will be one of the more important people in my life, though I will never say this to you or anyone else.

On some days, you will be the MOST important person.

Thank you for being my teacher.

Thank you for giving me and other children enough hope to continue struggling against the poverty, prejudice, abuse, alcoholism, hunger, and apathy that are a daily part of so many of our young lives.

Many of my fellow students, who come from homes where they are loved, will come to school ready to learn.

Others, like me, will come to school first to be loved.

I know you went into teaching to make a difference. I am here to tell you, I am that difference. I am a child who needs you. I promise, if you reach me, you will change my life. You might not see the difference today or tomorrow, but if you stick with me, you will make a difference in my life that no test can ever measure.

I must warn you. It will not be easy.

I will sometimes be hard to handle and I may take every ounce of patience you have. I have learned to push buttons well in order to get attention from adults. There will be times that I challenge you in ways that make you second guess what you are doing. But I need you. I need you to keep pushing me. I need you to set limits and help me understand them.

I will also pretend like I don’t like school to avoid admitting that I am not as book smart as some other kids. Yet school is the most stable part of my life. I don’t know how I would survive without it.

I know you don’t know me. If you did, we would get along a lot better. I look and sound like many of the other kids, but I am different in so many ways. To survive in my world, I will always portray myself as tough on the outside. It will take work to discover the softness inside me. I hope you can do it.

You might be the only one who can get to the real me. It will take time and patience. It might even take learning about something you know nothing about. But, teacher, I need you. I need you to give it your all to see me—the real me.

I will be bringing a lot of baggage to your classroom everyday. I am dealing with things someone my age should not be expected to handle. Yet, I will fight to keep my personal life a mystery to you because I have to learn to trust you first. I have to know that you won’t use this information to judge or embarrass me. I have made this mistake before.

I know you have 25 other kids in class. All of them will need you sometimes too. I will need you every day. I need you to find my good qualities because those other kids won’t see them. My teacher last year didn’t see them, and most days, if not all, I don’t even see them.

But, please, teacher, I need you to fight to get to know me. I can’t tell you with my words what I need you to know, so I might act out instead. Take that as my sign that I need you. You might be all I have.

I know I throw fits. I’ll talk when I am not supposed to. I will fidget because I cannot sit still for very long. I know I will occasionally disrupt your class and the lesson you had planned for that day. But teacher, I need you to believe in me. I need you to believe that my actions are a cry for help, not an act against you. Please don’t take it personally. I need you to believe that I want to fit in, but just don’t know how.

Finally, I want to thank you for consistently giving respect to children like me who don’t know what to do with it and don’t realize what a valuable gift you are offering.

And for caring about children whose own families don’t care — or don’t know how to show that they do.

Thank you for spending your own money on pens and pencils, erasers and chalk, paper, tissues, bandages, birthday gifts, treats, clothing, shoes, eyeglasses — and a hundred other things that your students need and don’t have.

Thank you for raiding your own children’s closets to find a pair of shoes or a sweater for a child who has none.

For spending sleepless nights worrying about children like me, wondering what else you might do to help overcome the obstacles that life has placed in our paths.

For putting your own family on hold while you meet with my family or that of another struggling student.

For believing in the life-changing power of education.

For maintaining your belief that I can learn if you are patient and learn how to teach me.

For risking your job to give me a much-needed hug instead of just a high-five.

For taking on one of the most difficult, challenging, frustrating, emotionally exhausting, mentally draining, satisfying, wonderful, important and precious jobs in the world.

Thank you for being YOU and for loving ME!

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  3. Rob, may I share this with the other teachers at my school? This is SUCH a good reminder for August…and September…and October…and every day of the school year.

    I have those students who remind me of the Herdman’s. Remember those kids from _The Best Christmas Pageant, Ever?_ Every year I meet a new cast of Herdman’s kids…eager, but bossy and awkward, unaware of certain morays or traditions or what not. These kids are wise beyond their years, but no test can EVER score their intelligences.

    And as the mom of a kiddo with learning differences, I feel it is so very important to reveal each kid’s gifts to them — to show them and their classmates what geniuses they all truly are! This is how I see maker spaces enter into a system driven by testing data. As librarian, I can offer a place where students can come and create and problem solve…and perhaps even open up to me in the process.

    So, thank you, again, for this incredibly moving blog entry. ((Sniff. Sniff. Please pass me a tissue!))

    Reply

    • Of course you can share, Cathy. I love your example. The maker space movement is one of the best things to come to media centers since the dewey decimal system!

  7. Rob, I read this before I realized this was from you. It resonated with me so much with the work I do at KIPP every day. I hope it is ok to print n share with my peers. Thank u for the mrssage and I hope you have a great year.

    Reply

Leading Innovative Change

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“We must look for ways to be an active force in our lives.  We must take charge of our own destinies, design a life of substance, and truly begin to live our dreams.”
– Les Brown

Since taking the helm of a school district as the superintendent in 2010, I have made it a mission to “walk the walk” with regard to instructional and communication technologies. I’m humbled to have been nominated by a colleague as someone whose practices are worthy of recognition:

“We at EdSurge and Digital Promise are delighted to inform you that your colleagues have nominated you for consideration for the Walk the Walk Award for the first annual Digital Innovation in Learning Awards! The awards have been created by EdSurge and Digital Promise to spotlight great practices in education–and to share those practices with others. So thank you for all the great work you do!”

 As part of the application process, I produced a short video as required (password to watch  is DILA). In the video I show examples of how I use digital innovation in my daily practice of leadership to support our mission. In addition, colleagues of mine share comments about how I (WE) support the growth and progress of students and staff through digital innovation. To me the video is a great source of pride because it showcases how our community is impacted by digital innovation in support of the District motto: Engage, Inspire, Empower.

Over the years I have made it part of my personal and professional mission to Model the Way and Inspire a Shared Vision and Challenge the Process and Enable Others to Act and Encourage the Heart in support of innovation and progress!

Examples  of digital innovation impacted directly by my leadership  are shared through a video presentation made for the state superintendent’s association that details the initial journey in the first District I served as superintendent. In support of innovative digital leadership, I/we also support and/or use  Facebook, Twitter, my blog, use of Present.me, slideshare, Podomatic, AudioBoo, VoiceBo, and HaikuDeck. These also serve as examples of regularly integrated hands-on digital innovation and usage in “real life” in my practice of leadership as an elementary superintendent of schools.

In addition, I proudly share District implementation of digital innovation by classroom teachers – this is about which I am most proud – paying it forward and modeling that which I support and expect for all members of our learning community. The award nomination is secondary or tertiary and truly it is really for all of the teachers, administrators, students, and community members who carry the torch of educational success every day! I am but one of many (e plurbus unum) and my hope is for the spotlight to shine on everyone else and not on me!!

The long lasting impact our collective journey towards transformative communication, learning and teaching for the learners in DPS109 is also shown in professional development and those seeking us out. Some numbers that reveal the lasting impact in terms of communication reach: # of followers FB 881 DPS109 page, # of followers on @DPS109 541, District hashtag #Engage109, # of followers of @mikelubelfeld 1843, # of Subscribers to this Blog 134.

In addition, as we approach the start of school this August, we are proud of the planned transformation for all of our classrooms into 1:1 Transformative Learning Environments. This year all students in grades K-2 will receive an iPad and all students in grades 3-8 will receive a Chromebook just like we used to issue textbooks. methods for today’s learners.  Other long lasting impacts can be seen in the voluntary professional development in which our teachers have engaged this summer in anticipation of changed learning environments.  This summer we offered 17 two hour sessions. More than 110, or 38% of our (out of our 290) teachers have signed up to attend one of these voluntary “kick starter” 1:1 transformative learning environment sessions.

Our teachers are committed to the success of their own learning as well as the learning of our students. Another example, or “metric” of change impact is found in the number of teachers who already have signed up for a new (free) learning management system (LMS): 100 teachers or 34% of our teachers have already signed up for Edmodo – this is not required until school starts. Change happens when people are committed to the changes! I’m proud to share and report that our teachers are part of the solution, part of the progress, part of the change process and part of the solution! I am so proud to be part of this progressive and modern minded learning organization!

 My work encompasses the award for which I was nominated; I truly do walk the walk when it comes to digital innovation in learning! I support the notion that all children can learn and grow and they each deserve learning environments with high expectations and no limits.

Please share how you are leading innovative change, please share how you are participating in innovative change.

Teachers Impact Learning – More from Dr. John Hattie

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From time to time I share information from essential researchers in education and learning. Through this blog, in several earlier postings, I have shared information from John Hattie’s research. In this short blog post, I share images from Hattie’s findings and messages – these are good reminders and graphic representations about what his research is all about.

It’s also tied to our mission and beliefs in DPS109 and it’s part of the foundations upon which our professional development and summer preparations are based. With evidence showing us what works we can take our students to the highest levels of challenge and engagement in each and every subject each and every day. All students deserve opportunities to know that we educators believe in them and that we educators are “with it” and current about what works in education.

In previous blog posts I have shared findings from and information about John Hattie. Dr. Hattie is one of the best – perhaps the most influential educational researcher of our time. He and his teams of researchers have studied millions – yes, millions, of students focusing on the effects on their learning that teaching methods and other variables (acceleration, class size, feedback, etc.) have.

The major findings - distilling from millions of studies on what works.
The major findings – distilling from millions of studies on what works.

From Hattie’s book, Visible Learning for Teachers, a short video about 8 Mindframes (this blog post relates to #8)

A little more from Dr. Hattie … an example of clear meaningful feedback: