Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader, Leadership | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, 21st Century Schools, Action Plans, change, Learning, Risk taking, Technology Plans
Flickr by Edge of Space
In December 2009, I used this photo in my Leadership and 1:1 Bus post and last year I used it with the Graded faculty to describe our journey to provide students with a relevant education for today and the future. This journey includes going 1:1 in August 2012. For me the photo conjures up excitement and fear. And while some people are adventurous enough to sit on top or hang on the side, others feel more comfortable inside. It doesn’t matter where one sits, the important thing is that we’re all together on the journey.
When is it exciting and often magical? When our students are using technology for learning, creative and original thinking, communication and collaboration, research and information literacy and critical thinking and problem solving.
When is it a bit scary? When we are uncertain of what is coming next or when we have to step outside our comfort zone to try something new.
We have so much to be proud because we have traveled so far in such a short amount of time. This year we have done the following to prepare for a full 1:1 rollout in August.
- Support professional development at conferences by providing faculty with the opportunity to attend the Laptop Institute at Lausanne Collegiate and Unplugged at the American School of Bombay.
- Provided all of our teachers and administrators with laptops so that we all get used to working anytime, anywhere.
- Using digital tools to help us with our work and our learning. The idea is that we will experiment and figure out what works as we do the same in our classrooms.
- Created PLCs around assessment in today’s digital environment.
- Reviewed and redesigned our curriculum in science and English with a 21st century lens.
- Encouraged students to bring in laptops to ease the transition for August.
- Defined our Information Communication and Technology standards that will be integrated schoolwide next year.
- Provided teachers with a full-time academic technology coordinator to support them with integrating technology and professional development.
- Developed our acceptable use policy and LARK guidelines so that our community members can be responsible digital citizens.
- Developed a digital toolkit that will provide us with some software standardization in our bring your own laptop environment.
- Upgraded facilities so that we have electrical power throughout the campus.
We realize that the journey is not over yet. In reality, we’ve really only traveled a short distance. The key is that we are well on our way to transforming the learning experiences for our students.
Filed under: Change Agent, Visionary | Tags: 21st Century Schools, change, Facilities, Future, Vision
It has been a blast participating in the process to help design the Graded of the future. Our school is embarking on a major rebuilding project that is expected to take 8 years to complete. During our conversations we are continually asking ourselves, “What will education look like in 2020?”. We have to keep this in focus as we help design a multi-million dollar facility. Here are just a few ideas that come to mind.
- Based on the the current model we project that the school will be able to house 1600 students. If Clayton Christensen and Mike Horn are right in Disrupting Class, then many of our students will be studying online and they may not even need to be on campus. That means that a “Graded student” may not even live in Sao Paulo. If this is the case enrollment may be much larger.
- We are designing an integrated science program in the high school and we are using this to imagine the science labs. By 2020 we’ll have already completed another science curriculum review and our courses may look totally different. What features will be needed in these new labs?
- We are committed to creating collaborative space that we’re calling “collaboratories”. These are flexible spaces that teachers can use as needed. While we are sure that these will be used in the future, I wonder if this is really true. Will we need to develop strategies for learning that take advantage of the space? A test to the idea that, ”If we build it, they will come.”
- We have decided to not increase the size of the MS/HS library even though the number of students will grow. This is based on the thinking that the bookshelves will take up much less space and that users will continue to use the resources from off site. Will we even need a space labeled “Library” when access to digital resources will be available from anywhere?
- Our athletic and physical education facilities look much the same as they do now. Well, of course they’ll be upgraded significantly. In the back of our minds we keep wondering if we should be considering adding facilities for wellness, health and life fitness. Maybe we should be considering a mountain biking track, a huge rock climbing wall, and a swimming pool.
Considering that we’re planning facilities where there are still many questions regarding education in 2020 we keep coming back to the idea that we need to plan flexible spaces. Spaces that can be modified and converted to meet the needs of students and teachers. Fascinating when you think that the buildings will be completed in 2020 and they’ll have a lifespan of 50+ years.
Filed under: Change Agent, Leadership | Tags: cell phones, change, Leadership, Physical Education, physical education classes, School Policy, schuylkill river trail, ugg boots
BTWPhoto on Flickr by UggBoy/UggGirl
As I was running on the Schuylkill River trail last week, I could not help but think how sad the recent ruling to ban Ugg boots by the Pottstown Middle School in PA was. I just don’t understand it. What do the Ugg boots have to do with a cell phone policy at school?
- Students record their data during the workout in their portfolio.
- Students take photos and/or video of their workout and then they are able to look at their technique. The feedback is immediate and they can make corrections right there on the spot.
- Students listen to music while they are working out. Pretty important since studies have shown that music can lead to better workouts.
This has been an excellent learning experience for the students and we feel that this will set the stage for lifelong fitness. I really feel sorry for those students and teachers in Pottstown Middle School who are talking about the Ugg boot ban instead of teaching and learning in today’s world.Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader, Leadership | Tags: change, k12online, Leadership, Risk taking
My presentation, School Leaders Set the Tone by Playing, Experimenting and Taking Risks went live yesterday. While I have given many conference presentations over the years, this one is something new and different for me. The reality that my work will be on the website for the world to see for who knows how long, is exciting. At the school level is was neat to see colleagues show up for an after school session where my video was the main event. On a global level, I loved seeing educators tweeting about watching the presentation. The MS teachers at Singapore American School were probably surprised to see a clip from their assembly Flashmob video.
This process made me realize the importance of sharing ideas with my own school community and getting them involved in the discussion. In the past I may have gone off and presented without sharing with the faculty and students. In this presentation I included teachers and students in the process. While I’m not someone who enjoys self-promotion, in this case I think that it will be valuable for our school community to view the presentation and spend time discussing the ideas. The concept of risk taking for innovation is one that we all should consider. While I didn’t mention it in the presentation, I view the act of creating a K12 Online Conference presentations risky. We’re all putting ourselves out there for the world to see.
You can hear my Voicethread description of the story behind the making of the presentation at the 2011 Presenter Backstories page. Creating a video was a new endeavor for me. One that I hope to repeat in the future. I know for a fact that I’ll do a much better job of editing the final product. That’s the one area that needs the most work.
Who knows how many people will be exposed to these ideas?
Photo from Creative Commons: Boy Scouts – Gettysburg
Michael Coakley holds the new official NBA basketball, left, and the old one, at right. outside the Winstanley offices in Lenox. Tue June 27 2006 (Bonnivier)
For those of us who are promoters of change it’s important for us to step back and carefully consider how those involved with the change initiative are feeling. In 2006, the NBA made the decision to change from leather to synthetic basketballs. There hadn’t been a change to the basketball in 35 years. Talk about a sensitive subject.
The league tested out the synthetic balls for approximately 3 months. Spalding, the ball manufacturer, stated “We believe the microfiber composite ball offers many superior characteristics to leather…” After the player’s union filed a grievance and many of the players complained, the NBA decided to switch back to the leather balls. At the time, David Stern reported “Although testing performed by Spalding and the NBA demonstrated that the new composite basketball was more consistent than leather, and statistically there has been an improvement in shooting, scoring and ball-related turnovers, the most important statistic is the view of our players.”
“The only thing that we love the most is the basketball. That’s your comfort. I mean, without your basketball, it doesn’t work. That was my biggest problem, was, why would you change something that means so much to us? ” —LeBron James, Cleveland
So, the NBA decided to listen to the players and not make the change.
I’ve been thinking about this example a lot lately as we take on change at school. While we’re not going to drop our work on assessment, PLCs, and teaching and learning in today’s digital world in a 1:1 environment, we can certainly decide to slow down or backtrack a bit when necessary. Whenever we make significant changes there are always unanticipated demands on time and energy. These demands can lead to frustration, anxiety, anger and grievances among colleagues. Sometimes the leader has to press on, and act as a cheerleader for change. Other times the leader has to listen to the teachers, students and other administrators and slow down or back track a bit. David Stern certainly understood this in 2006 and the league backtracking didn’t seem to have a negative impact on the NBA.
Like David Stern, I hope that I am able to recognize when it’s time to back track on planned changes.
Photo from Jacobwolman
I’ve been thinking about Charles Babbage’s quote quite a bit lately and I think that it still rings true today.
“Propose to an Englishman any principle, or any instrument, however admirable, and you will observe that the whole effort of the English mind is directed to find a difficulty, a defect, or an impossibility in it. If you speak to him of a machine for peeling a potato, he will pronounce it impossible; if you peel a potato with it before his eyes, he will declare it useless, because it will not slice a pineapple.”
Think back to times when someone came up with an innovative and new idea and how others responded. Our first reaction is to think of reasons why it won’t work. We’re all probably guilty of it. Of course, some more than others. It happens all the time. Instead of coming up with positive ideas on how it can improve things, we focus on the negative.
Fredrik Haren in The Idea Book suggests that the first thing a group should do is to listen to 50 ideas without saying anything negative about them. I’d love to try this with a group when a new idea is presented. Ask the group to only think of positive implications of the new idea or innovation.
Think about how it will change the tone of the discussion. Some interesting ideas may even have a chance.
Photo by Chellabear
Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader, Leadership | Tags: 21st Century Schools, change, Leadership, Vision
During a leadership team discussion on Graded in the future, one of my amazing colleagues came up with the quote of the year. She was explaining how she made the decision to develop the skills and knowledge necessary for leading in today’s 21st century landscape. She decided that she either needed to “learn or retire”. Her testimonial provided all of the members of our leadership team with inspiration and motivation to move forward. For educators, it doesn’t matter what stage of your career, you either “Learn or Retire”.
Filed under: Change Agent, Instructional Leader, Leadership, Visionary | Tags: 1:1 Laptop Programs, 21st Century Schools, change, Essential Conditions, Planning, Vision
Something very exciting happened when our leadership team met for a leadership retreat to work on our vision for Graded. For the longest time we have been focusing on our 1:1 initiative in the middle school and amazingly enough, during the entire retreat, technology never entered the conversation. We even framed our learning around five of ISTE’s Essential Conditions to Effectively Leverage Technology for Learning. The five that we chose were Skilled Personnel, Curriculum Framework and Student Centered Learning, Ongoing Professional Development, and Assessment and Evaluation.
I think that we owe the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) and their “A Guide to Becoming a School of the Future” for this accomplishment. I highly recommend it as required reading for any school that is planning for the future. I think that we spent so much time focusing on the core of a our school in the future, that it was just assumed that technology would play a major role in the teaching and learning process.
What does the guide have to offer?
The first section is entitled, “Making the Case for Schools of the Future”. Even if you don’t need convincing, I suggest that you read it and share it with those who need to be convinced.
“We can choose to adapt, accepting that we do not know this world as well as our children and look to them to help us learn. Or, we can be infexible immigrants, focusing on how good things used to be. If we are to reach our children and help them learn, we must adapt, we must face the fact that our students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.”
The second section is, “Essential Capacities for the 21st Century”. We linked this to a curriculum framework where the main categories are Analytical and Creative Thinking and Problem-solving; Complex Communication —Oral and Written; Leadership and Teamwork; Digital and Quantitative Literacy; Global Perspective; Adaptability, Initiative, and Risk-Taking; Integrity and Ethical Decision-Making. There are many frameworks out there that describe what students should know and be able to do. This is just one that provides food for thought.
I love the third section and think that it is the core of the guide because it provides schools with a variety of models and resources for change. It’s great that they start the chapter off by saying:
“The intention is not to provide a formulaic approach to the challenges of teaching and learning in our times but rather to encourage exploration, innovation, and transformation within each school in a manner that is consistent with the school’s mission and the needs of its students.”
One can spend hours in this section exploring the ideas and the links to resources from a wide variety of school and teachers. The Stories of Excellence guide has examples of classroom units where technology is used (unfortunately, It looks like they have blocked it to non-members). This is one resource that is teaching and learning with technology focused.
The authors identified the following unifying themes:
- The schools are academically demanding
- Project-based learning, as an integral part of the school’s program, is woven throughout all grade levels and disciplines
- Classrooms extend beyond the school walls, actively engaging students in the world around them
- Digital technologies and a global perspective infuse all aspects of the curriculum
- Vibrant arts programs help promote creativity, self-expression, self-discipline, and fexibility
- The adults are actively engaged with one another and with the students in a process of continuous learning
- A culture of engagement and support invites participation, innovation, and a “growth mindset” on the part of teachers and students
- Transformational leadership challenges the status quo, draws out the issues, navigates through confict, and mobilizes people and resources to do the adaptive work necessary to create and sustain effective change.
Finally, the appendix has additional resources to use in your planning.
If you haven’t studied this guide, you’re missing out. It’s a must in my book.
Filed under: Change Agent, Leadership | Tags: 21st Century Schools, change, Creative Tension
I know that Scott McLeod has cornered the market on the Irrelevancy of education today, but here is what Dilbert had to say this week.
Related to the theme of relevancy. Take a look at some of the top supplemental videos that students included in their application to Tufts University. Are we preparing our students for this type of presentation? It won’t be long before other schools follow suit.
