Simple words can convey such powerful ideas. Continuing to read David Geurin’s great book Future Driven.
This morning I read these words.
Nothing’s going to change if nothing changes.
How simple to read. How simple to understand. How simple to enact.
Simple, powerful words. The most obvious words.
Reading David Geurin’s great book, Future Driven. Got me thinking about risk. I was recently in the classroom of a 29 year veteran math teacher. It was the first day of all of our 8th and 9th graders coming to class with brand new Chromebooks. I saw this quote about risk in action from this teacher.
This great teacher was introducing the kids to Jo Boaler. He had a great video cued up and was using EdPuzzle to ask questions of the kids as they watched. Jo Boaler talks about the fact that nothing happens in the brain when kids get the right answers. Mistakes, however, make the brain grow. Well this teacher demonstrated all of this on DAY ONE with new Chromebooks. Nothing worked like it was supposed to. And this great teacher turned that struggle into learning. Modeled. Persevered. The kids all chimed in on how to solve the problem. Collaboration. Creativity. Critical thinking. Communication. Mistakes. Brain growth.
All the result of risk. Sure. He could have just had kids take notes on their new device. Nope. Not nearly risky enough. Kids need to see educators in action. Struggling. Trying new things. Learning. Failing. Making glorious huge mistakes.
Because our students will take exactly the same amount of learning risks they see their teachers take.
Thank you Mr. Kirk Dodge for being such a spectacular, risk taking, educational leader.
Ever read something, a book, a sentence, a phrase, a passage….that you CANNOT get out of your head. Well Different Schools for a Different World by Scott McLeod and Dean Shareski just hammered my thinking. Their work is not a long read. It’s about 60 pages. Don’t let that fool you. My favorite college professor, Dr. Ruth Slonim, once said, “Good writing is not when there’s nothing more to add, rather when there’s nothing more to be taken away.” This book is lean and dead on point. A literal wake up call.
The authors share, “Our six arguments for making schools different are based on the following observations, each of which corresponds to the first six chapters.
1. Our information landscape is becoming incredibly complex and students need the skills to navigate it effectively.
2. Automation and global hyper-competition increasingly define the economy that our graduates are entering.
3. The role of teachers as exclusive purveyors of information is obsolete.
4. The tasks we ask students to perform are often undemanding and tedious, leading to boredom and a lack of critical thinking.
5. Schools are doing too little to create a culture of educational innovation that can respond to evolving student needs.
6. The digital tools students will require for future success are too often unavailable to traditionally disadvantaged groups.”
Whoa. Number 3. Let that nugget sink in for a minute. Stark and absolutely true. To try to convince oneself otherwise is folly. Kids with devices literally carry the sum of all human knowledge in their pockets or backpacks.
My favorite quote from the book is in the title of this blog post.
Yep. So as our district considers our school facilities, we are also considering how we move our programs and learning forward. This book is a map.
Thank you gentlemen.
Here we go! Brand new school year, brand new blog, getting the brain reengaged. Did it become disengaged just because it was summer? Probably not. More likely because teachers, kids, and building leadership were out and about. I figured out that I need them around to help keep me powered.
Did some serious research this morning to find my next new book to read. The research focused on Amazon and doing a search for Innovator’s Mindset. Then looking at what other books popped up. I’ve read a bunch of them already….but not this one. Shift This by Joy Kirr. Oh man. This is why I love my job. This book. This gifted educator. Challenging my thinking by 8:00 a.m.
Check this out. With 7th graders, she offers this shocker,
If I cannot answer, I’ll reconsider the lesson……WOW!
Of course, that makes COMPLETE sense. If we can’t justify the relevancy of a lesson…we ought to reconsider it. Our time with kids is way too precious to just trundle out whatever happens to be next in line in our curriculum. Reminds me of the research based effective practice of Learning Targets. And the targets aren’t the most important thing. The thinking a teacher does about WHAT and WHY the kids are learning. We talk a lot about a different question to ask kids when visiting a classroom. Instead of, “What are you guys working on?” We ask, “What are you guys learning?” A blank stare isn’t good. Just like a blank stare as we ponder the relevancy of a lesson we’re having kids do. Love it. Absolutely love it.
Also just hit this cool activity for teachers. Have a group of teachers gather and start generating questions about their students. Some that Joy Kirr and colleagues generated about middle school kids included:
Why do I have to repeat myself so often? Why can’t they follow directions? Why aren’t they checking out books? Why don’t they like to read? Why won’t they stop playing with each other’s hair? Why are they talking when they’re supposed to be listening? Why can’t they tell I’m upset and I mean what I say? Why won’t they revise their papers? Why don’t they turn in their homework on time … or at all? Why don’t they like me? Why do they keep pushing my buttons? Why are they late to class? Why do they have to take a bathroom break each day in my class? Why aren’t they paying attention? Why do they ask me questions I’ve already answered? Why don’t they care?
Why won’t the stop playing with each other’s hair? You all that have ever worked with middle school kids know this is a perfectly reasonable question, among many others.
Anybody looking to make a new and more profound impact on kids in a classroom….here’s a great book to guide your fun and journey!
Thank you Joy!
The Lighting of a Fire 