Small Victories

A friend, who also happens to be a teacher, has recently had a serious decision to make - to walk out or to walk in.  It has been a gut wrenching decision for my friend to make, and it is not one that I relish.  While my friend's circumstances are very different from mine, they speak to my heart as an educator.  What we do for each and every student takes a tole on the heart and body, and like my friend I often find that I lose myself in the weeds of tasks and duties at times.  I don't think I am alone in this; most educators get mired in the muck at times.  We lose sight of our vision or mission, especially when we encounter struggle.  So, it is nice when small things seem to catch our attention.  Maybe it is that moment when a student with an IEP is moved to itinerant status or when a teacher tweets about a successful lesson.  These small victories matter; they can refocus us onto what really matters - the growth of students and staff in our buildings.  Recently, this was highlighted in my recent reflection around an inquiry cycle with a team of English language arts teachers.  Before I thoroughly studied the data we had collected about student performance, my gut interpretation of anecdotal evidence indicated that our work to improve instruction had not been effective.  However, the Star360 data we reviewed indicated that students had improved in reading comprehension since the fall.  The growth was not as consistent as I had hoped, but six of seven students scored high enough to move out of the urgent intervention zone during some point in the spring.  This is definitely a small victory to celebrate, particularly when I reflect on where these students started.  First, how does this affect me as a leader?  Well, it reminds me that I must celebrate the small victories for teachers because they are often too busy to do so.  Second, it reminds me that first impressions of data are not always accurate.  Third, my focus can be on success or on what is not going well.  Which of these outlooks is going to help me to be the most effective educator and principal?  Well, positive thinking should of course!  Maybe the key to focusing on the positive is public affirmation of the small victories.  By doing so, we honor each step in the right and positive direction.  And, that is definitely the direction in which we will want to get stuck!

A Commitment, Not A Promise

In a past Radical Candor podcast, Laraway and Scott (n.d.) discussed the difference between obtaining a commitment versus a promise from your boss when it comes to scheduling time for a feedback session.  When I first heard their explanation of the difference between the two, I sat back and had a "hmmm" moment.  What seemed like semantics really is not.  When you make a commitment, there is an extra layer of onus that you place on yourself to complete the task or support the work.  A promise is simply words.  If you choose to, you can slip out of a promise.  There is not set deadline or job to be done.  In essence, a promise is completely bound by your word, but a commitment... Now that is completely bound by your actions.

So, in reflection I thought about the commitments I have made and want to make as a school administrator.  Some of them were placed upon me while others were of my choosing, but in the end I am honor bound to fulfill every commitment to the best of my ability.  However, there is one promise that I want to "re-commit" to, and it is all around the "10 Things Challenge." In a previous post, I spoke about the ten things educators should say more often.  The phrases above are the promises I make to demonstrate my vision for education and leadership - to notice and respond in love.

However, if I am to move beyond these words, beyond just the promise, I felt I needed to make a serious commitment to action.  It was with a seeking spirit that I encountered the meme below and in turn had another moment of clarity.  Here were solid commitments to back up the promises I was making to my school family!  And, this is what I am challenging myself to do as our school moves into what I believe is the toughest part of the school year for students and teachers.  

So, everyday I am committing to do as many of these things as I can.  Just imagine how my focus will change because I am choosing to ruminate on the positive rather than the hectic pace of the testing season, and imagine how my teachers' outlooks may change if they see me modeling and encouraging supportive and inspiring conversation.  I truly believe a leader's behavior,  or his or her words and actions, truly set the tone for the end of year.  In fact, a leader's outlook can be characterized in these last months; it can be a powerful force towards love or towards the minutia of tasks.  So in this space and time, I plan to commit to love - one student and teacher at a time.   Do you plan to join me?

Reference

Scott, K. & Laraway, R. (n.d.). How to get feedback from your boss [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from
https://www.radicalcandor.com/blog/podcast-episode-7/

Candor and Respect

Recently I have taken time to listen to a podcast called Radical Candor, and one episode about ruinous empathy continues to speak to me as I work to hone my skills as a coach and instructional leader.  Scott and Laraway (n.d.) describe that when you do not give people criticism when they need it you actually end up hurting them professionally and personally.  Can this be true?  You hurt them by being too nice?

This concept has weighed on me since I began listening to the podcast regularly.  I have always tried to couch my feedback in such a way that even the most sensitive "hearer" would be open to the feedback, but in my efforts to ease into the conversation have I been "too nice?"  According to Scott and Laraway, as a leader it is now my job to "Just Say It."  In other words, at times we need to be radically candid so that the person receiving the feedback can produce their best work or be their best selves.  And, it is not only the "hearer" that benefits from the radical candor.  The rest of your team benefits from the feedback as well because the work as a whole becomes more efficient or effective.

So, how does this idea of shutting down ruinous empathy to give radical candor actually apply to schools?  One connection I have made is to a recent article I read concerning irreplaceable teachers.  According to the researchers at TNTP (2012), when administrators fail to address negligent retention, we dismiss or even undermine the work of the most effective teachers in our buildings.  Furthermore, our lack of effort to address the poorest of professionals may even drive our best teachers out of the profession.  So, while we may have a teacher shortage quickly coming on the horizon, the real issue goes far beyond actual teacher retention.  The question at hand really is about how we keep our best teachers while also raising the expectations for all, even if this means we must retain fewer of the poorest performing professionals in the building.  In order to address poor performance, leaders must go back to the radical candor Scott and Laraway (n.d.) describe in their podcast.  According to Scott and Laraway, the steps for giving quality feedback is simple.  They suggested that leaders do the following:

1. Just say it.
2. Go into a criticism conversation with the criticism and the objectives written down prior.  (Go into the conversation with a "I just want to be helpful" mindset.)
3. Find someone that you trust, and practice your message.  Sharpen the message so that it lands the way you intend.
4. Accept the fact that you may not have a solution to offer in the moment.  Ask the person you are working with to help you identify a solution to the problem collaboratively.

In the end, I feel their candor checklist above is doable, especially if it is planned and executed in love and respect.  Will the candid feedback always be well received in the moment?  Probably not, but if I truly care for a person and the health of the school, I must notice and act so that all children have a chance to become their best selves.

References

Scott, K. & Laraway, R. (n.d.). Ruinous empathy and criticism [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from
https://www.radicalcandor.com/blog/podcast-episode-4/ 

TNTP. (2012). The irreplaceables: Understanding the real retention crisis in America's urban schools [PDF document]. Retrieved from
https://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP_Irreplaceables_2012.pdf 

Balancing Numbers

This past week I was gifted with a really fantastic connection; Principal Kafele followed me on Twitter.  Yeah, he followed ME!  Wow, right?  We are now learning from each other, and that really is something in my book.  He may garner something new from me like I like I do from him so often on Twitter.

So, why is this notification so momentous for me?  Well, Principal Kafele is known in education circles to challenge the status quo.  He fights for ALL children's access to education, and he cares deeply for the professionals with which he works.  In essence, he is kind of a big thing, and when he speaks or tweets or video posts, I listen.  And that is why I stopped and really noticed what he posted on Saturday.  His word for the day was balance, and his definition spoke to me.  Kafele challenged the reader to "...give the fulfillment of your dream your all, but also ensure that there is balance in your life."

When educating children is our dream, so much of what we do then engulfs our waking and sleeping hours.  We worry over teachers and students, we work to meet a menagerie of deadlines, and we reflect over practices and policies constantly.  We facilitate great work in our buildings, and we dedicate our hearts to the service of our students and staffs.  Untold numbers of hours are spent on this good work, and that is what we love to do.  So, when Kafele posted an article about a principal who had passed away at her desk shortly after he posted his definition of balance, I took notice.  In the article about Trish Antulov, the author quotes an alarming statistic.  “On average, 53 per cent of principals worked more than 56 hours per week during term, with 27 per cent working upwards of 61 to 65 hours per week" (Miner, 2018).  Miner (2018) proposed later in the article that principals often work so many hours that they cannot maintain a healthy lifestyle.  My understanding about the need for balance for all educators - not just principals - weighed on me in that moment, and I believe any leader and educator who leads from the heart will feel the same way.  


So in response I began to ask myself a variety of questions.  How do I lead from the heart professionally while balancing my personal needs as well?  Furthermore, how can principals help one another so that the profession is not so lonely and the work not so heavy?  I am not sure that I have an answer yet, but I know that we cannot do this work alone.  It is going to take a team to figure out how to balance the numbers so that we are ALL resilient enough to do the work ahead.   Finding the right leadership team is certainly going to be crucial, and leveraging shared leadership practices is also going to be a must.  But, I think even more important will be my ability to find that critical friend, that one person I can trust, so that I may share my worries AND my joys in a candid way.  Ultimately, as a principal I must find ways to balance the numbers - the tasks, the hours, the joys, and the hardships - so that I can truly be the servant leader I want to be.  #balancematters #resiliencematters

References

Miner, K. (2018 February 21).  Principal dies at her desk. The West Austalian. Retrieved from https://thewest.com.au/news/kalgoorlie-miner/principal-dies-at-her-desk-ng-b88751578z 

The Ten Things Challenge

Image from: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c5/61/02/c561023460b0f9ded29cc847f8f198ef.jpg

Recently on Twitter, I came across the ten things every educator should say more often.  As I read them I kept thinking, we really should be saying these every day and all day - not just more often.  For if we begin with "I believe in you" and "I won't give up on you," how different would the reaction of the listener be?  How would their response to the feedback change if we led critical conversations with these statements?  How different would my own tone, stance, and reaction to a person's response be if I led with the "you count" mindset?

My attraction to these statements should not surprise me.  See, I have been wrestling with what radical candor sounds like, particularly when you are about to have a truly tough conversation.   I think many of us in the education business tend to care personally more than we speak candidly.  We never want to hurt feelings.  But, Scott (2017) espoused in her recent book that even when we are speaking candidly, we can show that we care for others personally by being critical when work is not "up to snuff."  I think that the language, however, must be crafted in such away that the listener can hear, and this is where I slightly veer away from Scott's assertions.  I believe that we should always be radically candid, but the heart of the conversation should always come from love.  So, when I am opening even my most critical conversations, they should begin with "I believe in you" or "I care about you."  However, we must move into "and that is why I am calling you and myself to a higher standard here.  What truly is best for kids, and how can we work together to make sure that happens?"  (Notice, I am not using "But" in the statement above.  That's intentional.)  Having these kinds of conversations will always be difficult, but we still must have them.  The hearer may not "feel" my intentions; however, I still must show that I care by holding us all accountable.  In a "Radical Candor" podcast about ruinous empathy and criticism, Scott and Laraway (2017) suggested that a manager draft and practice these kinds of conversations prior to sitting down with the employee.  I cannot agree more.  Moving forward, I will prepare for the tough conversation just like I am doing my teacher observation debriefs.  I have will have a set agenda with prepared questions.  I will move into the refinement and offer help and suggestions as best I can.  We will then land on a plan of action with specific steps for myself and the employee.  This is forward thinking and forward leading, and I am excited to begin practicing it as I continue my work as an aspiring principal.

Reference

Scott, K. (2017). Radical candor: Be a kick-ass boss without losing your humanity. New York, NY: St. Martins Press.

Scott, K. & Laraway, R. (2017, January 24). Ep. 4: Ruinous empathy and criticism [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radical-candor/id1188489488?mt=2&i=1000380337619 

Happiness and Mercy

It has been quite awhile since I posted to the Oz Buzz.  This was a fairly regular practice of mine when I was a Technology Integration Specialist many years ago.  As a school leader, I essentially got out of practice sharing my learning in a public forum, but boy have I learned in the last six and a half years!  So, I wanted to begin my new journey on the Oz Buzz with a reminder about happiness and mercy.  I wish you all much learning and happiness in the new year.  Thank you for joining me on my journey!

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January has been a difficult month.  It has been a month of loss and has been full of goodbyes, tears, and ample hugs from family, friends, and students.  But... even in the midst of sadness, it has been a month of laughter and love.  It is this juxtapose relationship between happiness and sadness that has taught me so much about my own personal and professional journey in resilience.  More importantly, my journey in January has taught me that mercy and happiness are the keys to taking the next step when resilience is waning.  This has particularly been poignant in the final steps I have taken with my student "B."  Those that know me well know that "B" and I have a special bond born out of struggle and caring.  It had been my ardent wish to make my school the first one "B" was enrolled in for the entire school year.  However, his needs were specific and better met in another location.   In his last two days, "B" struggled to function in our setting.  He was reeling from the news that he was to be moved once again, and he struggled to understand why.  In that last day, I had a decision to make.  Was I going to chose mercy and happiness for his sake, or was I going to take a hard line?  And in those moments when I felt the pull of mercy or consequence, I remembered my own feeling of loss, and I chose mercy.  I chose to hug him and play checkers; I chose to work on a puzzle and play legos.  Looking back on my last day with "B,"  I am thankful I chose happiness and mercy.  And, you know what?  I want my character and leadership to be remembered by these two characteristics - both happiness and mercy.  Because if they are, my discussions around consequence and expectation will be softer and more effective, and in turn the hearer will be more ready for the critical feedback.  In some cases, this is the first step, really the only step, we can take towards resilience as a team.

Spying 21st Century Skills: March A Edition

Here at the beginning of March, teachers have had kids spending a lot of time on making judgments and decisions based on content knowledge.  The skill of evaluating, or making judgements based on criteria and standards through checking and critiquing, is the second highest category in Bloom's Revised Taxonomy.  Our teachers here are making GREAT strides to give kids a safe environment to practice this skill.

1.  EF (Gr. 5 - ELA) has posted an LMS Discussion Board where she has students evaluate the movie trailers for popular books.  She asks kids to answer the following questions: What do YOU think movie makers are thinking when they transform a book into a movie? What are their motives?.
(Make Judgements and Decisions: Interpret information and draw conclusions based on the best analysis)

2.  JP (Gr. 5 - Soc. Studies) has posted an LMS Discussion Board where she has students read a passage about Adolf Hitler and explain what they think "Anti-Semitism" means.  As part of the process, Mrs. Palen is responding to each child's post validating their answers and asking further questions for clarification.
(Reason Effectively:  Deductive Reasoning; Make Judgments and Decisions: Interpret information and draw conclusions based on the best analysis; Communicate Clearly: Articulate thoughts and ideas effectively using written communication & to communicate for a range of purposes )

3. SL (Speech) is having students record themselves as they speak using the program Audacity. Students use these recordings to assess their own progress on speech skills, and Mrs. Lunsford is using these recordings as evidence for progress monitoring.

(Make Judgments & Decisions: Reflect critically on learning experiences and processes)


Teachers have also spent time having kids reflect on their own learning and progress!

4.  JP (Gr. 5 - ELA) has asked students to create their own LMS Quiz Show and Crossword Puzzle games based on major themes they have studied in language arts.  This has included games about figurative language, point of view, etc.  Students crafted their own questions and answers and with the help of the teacher created the game on the teacher's LMS page.
(Collaborate with Others; Be Self-Directed Learners: Go beyond basic mastery of skills to explore and expand one's own learning and opportunities to gain expertise)