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Growing Through the Grind: 5 Strategies for Staying Focused in a Chaotic Environment for Principal Leaders

by Joe & T.J. | Oct 6, 2021 | #SH302, Daily Habits, Decision-Making, Education, Engagement, Excellence, Failure, Feedback, Focus, Fulfillment, Goal Setting, Leadership, Learning to Lead, Listening, Long-Term Decision-Making, Motivation, Motivation & Retention, Organizational Leadership, Planning and Preparation, Positivity, Principal Leadership, Principals, Resilience, Results, Teacher Leadership, Teamwork

As avid beach lovers and goers, we often look toward nature and how it relates to leadership. There are so many correlations and lessons that can be learned, as long as we are willing to take a closer look than what meets the eye. Our favorite spot here in Delaware is Coin Beach, located just across from a kayaker’s dream, Savages Ditch.

Like so many fascinating and harrowing sea stories, the Shipwreck of the Faithful Steward ran aground after it pushed inland due to storms. Eventually it capsized, taking the lives of 181 passengers. The ship was full of coin-filled barrels that were deposited into the ocean and are said to wash ashore in heavy storms, giving the shoreline name, Coin Beach. Every fall, on the East Coast, we are hit with some incredible storms that range in force and aggression, all with the power to change the course of a ship at sea.

Although we may not be in an actual hurricane as we lead our schools, Covid19 can easily be categorized for the education community as a Category 5. It’s creating what feels like chaos, making our normally difficult challenges even greater and sending us spinning with less of a focus than we would like to have in our roles as school leaders.

The critical question that we all must ask amidst the pandemic is this: how do we keep our boat–our schools and districts–on course? The short answer: goal setting. At the surface, this may seem trite. But, well-developed, meaningful, and integrated goals serve as beacons, guiding us through any stormy weather. They offer direction, a sense of calm, and even peace.

The issue is that it’s not enough to just write down your goals on paper and hope the power of the universe brings them into existence. And, trust us, we believe in the infinite potential of our human meditative and cerebral capabilities. That said, ambitious goals are only unstoppable after you write them down and then take action to reach them, no matter the circumstances ahead of us.

There’s no doubt that the current times are a grind, maybe even chaotic. Yes, teaching and leading in schools through Covid19 is…wait for it…unprecedented. We honor that as the truth, and we also know that leading schools in times of change is nothing new. Michael Fullan wrote Leading in a Culture of Change (the first edition) in 2001. This means that there are proven strategies for making sure that you continue to grow when work and life are a grind and that we have to learn to remain focused, even when the chaos looms. The strategies below are meant to help you during Covid and beyond.

Putting Your Vision to the Test

The first thing that leaders should do is ask 4 simple questions regarding their vision:

Does the statement communicate what you desire to accomplish?
Does the statement communicate who you want the work to benefit?
Does the statement communicate why it is important for stakeholders?
Does the statement convey your purpose or the purpose of the organization?

Again, we want to acknowledge that in many ways the conversation regarding the importance of a school’s or organization’s vision is misguided and artificial. We aim to correct that by offering that the vision of an organization is the fulcrum for decision-making and the basis for accountability. Figure 1 is a quick way to put your school or district’s vision to the test and determine which side of the chart it lives. Is it hokey and too wordy or is it concise and inspiring? Vision statements should reside in the hearts and minds of those within the organization, not just on a wall or letterhead.

Figure 1

As you can see in Figure 2, we use Google, Facebook, Patagonia, and Nordstrom to demonstrate very vivid vision statements. You might like or dislike the purpose of these organizations, but their statements encapsulate their essence. They do what they say and they say what they do. That’s how a highly effective vision statement should be–both in terms of what we’re communicating with the statement and how much accountability it holds for keeping us centered when times seem disastrous.

Figure 2

Leading with Your Values

Richard Shell told us that leaders need to be resilient when they face a value-conflict scenario in life. Inevitably, leaders will be tested with decisions that could go against their core beliefs. Dr. Shell said that when people face challenges to their integrity, they need to ask one simple question: what would a person of conscience do? And, a good answer isn’t to flee or fight back. That’s too basic of an instinct. Our response should be to stop and listen to our own internal sense of right and wrong.

But even without a value-conflict at hand, we consistently encounter situations that may not align with our core values. Consider the core value that “We always do what’s best for kids,” something that many schools and school leaders espouse, and, yet, we’re often challenged by circumstances where doing what’s best for adults seems like the right decision even if it isn’t ultimately the best outcome for kids. Not that these decisions would cause harm, but adult-driven outcomes are in direct conflict with the value that we claim to uphold.

Leaders should regularly come back to their values to guide their daily work, and we need to review these values as often as possible when the ship seems to be sinking. These areas of focus should also be where we place our emphasis for growth, especially when things get tough and our strength as leaders is tested. Look at your core values this week, and find a professional learning experience that aligns to them so that you’re not just going through the grind but actually growing through it.

Don’t miss our interview with Richard Shell in an upcoming episode of our OneThingSeries podcast. Until then, check his book, The Conscience Code.

Determining Urgent Versus Important

Establishing a worthy vision that is anchored in core values helps with this third strategy for staying focused–determining and working within the important spaces. School and district leaders know the constant push and pull between spending time on important priorities versus being interrupted to handle many of the urgent issues that arise daily. This reality reinforces President Eisenower’s quote: “I have two kinds of problems, the urgent and the important. The urgent are not important, and the important are never urgent.”

The challenge is in how we prioritize our day to ensure that we are working on the important all the while effectively managing the urgent. The urgent issues will never disappear, and if they are not handled correctly, they can potentially wreak havoc on an organization, which is why the Eisenhower Matrix below is critical. We like how Check and Click Technologies designed the graphic because it illustrates the action and inaction that the leader should take based on the scenario.

Determining whether the work is urgent or important as daily tasks arise allows us to maintain our focus on the critical long-term success of the organization. Doing so allows leaders to weather the urgent items in the short-term to be able to decide the best path forward–such as delegating the task–correcting course to refocus on the important. Along with the use of the matrix, we suggest that school leaders ask themselves two key questions when new tasks arises:

Does this new task need to be done right now?
Does this new task need to be done by me?

Assessing Full Versus Fulfilling

Coupled with determining urgent versus important in terms of how we spend our time, especially when the day feels like a grind and the environment seems chaotic, is the notion that we need to assess whether our workday is full or fulfilling. The reality is that creating a fulfilling work environment for yourself and those within your school or organization is the hallmark of an effective leader. Busy and effective are too different things. We all can get caught up in the race from meeting-to-meeting without truly making a difference in what matters most–student learning and well-being in our schools.

We have heard from leaders who use a retrospective reflective approach by taking a look at their week on Fridays to assess how busy they were versus how much of an impact they had. We flip that to a forward-focused examination of your calendar. Instead of using Friday to assess the week that just passed, use that time to assess the upcoming week. A great tip we learned from John Maxwell in Thinking for a Change is to look at your calendar 40 days out. As Maxwell puts it, “that way, I get a jump on the month and don’t get surprised.”

Use this as an activity to delegate and restructure any upcoming meetings. Make sure that the work you’re engaged with as a leader is going to be about 1. your vision, 2. the people and programs (what’s working and what’s not), and 3. innovation for change and future development. Sticking to these three buckets will have the best chance at making sure you stay away from the administrivia that can hijack your time, allowing you to be effective and, most important, feel fulfilled.

Attending to the Most Important Spaces

You can only have so many priorities so they need to be limited. One way to keep the main thing the main thing when everything seems chaotic is to ask yourself what the most important spaces are in your school and whether or not you’re spending the majority of your time in that space. The answer to the first part of the question is not likely to be the office, the cafeteria, or the playground, yet school leaders often find themselves in these spaces for a large chunk of their day. The clear right answer is the classroom, with teachers and students. That should drive us to want to be there as often as possible to be in touch with those doing the teaching and the learning.

But wanting to be there–the classroom–is not enough. Strategies like time-blocking are a great start, but that also is not enough. The best way to attend to the most important spaces is to have a system in place, designed as a fool-proof way for you to visit every teacher every week. For example, last month, we focused on SEL as a key driver in our schools with getting to classrooms and making connections with staff and students a central activity.

Your plan should involve seeing all of their blocks of instruction throughout the month and doing so on different days of the week. You’ll need a Google Sheet or what we call “a big board” to draw out your map; when the system is in place and the time is blocked on your schedule, this daunting task is manageable, no matter what storm is brewing.

We can’t say enough about leaders spending time in the most important spaces of any organization (maybe a future blog post, stay tuned). This is the backbone of a positive culture and a management structure for being around when people are doing their best work. Not only does it provide critical insight into what folks are doing on a regular basis, but it allows us, as leaders, to lift the people through authentic recognition and praise. If you don’t have a working system for visiting classrooms, we need to hear from you because we can help.

Putting your vision to the test, leading with your values, determining urgent versus important, assessing full versus fulfilling, and attending to the most important spaces in our schools are the five most practical and direct ways to keep you growing through the grind and focused when things feel out-of-control. The essential role of a leader is to attend to her own growth while staying focused on the health and direction of the organization. You can’t do that if your own day is as unruly as the times we’re living in. Using the strategies in this blog will ground your work and get you back to calmer waters.

As always, let us know what you think of this with a like, a follow, or a comment. Find us on Twitter, YouTube, iTunes, Facebook, & SoundCloud. And, again, if you want one simple model for leading better and growing faster per month, follow this blog by entering your email at the top right of the screen.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.

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The 6 Significant Ways to Build Your SEL-Focused School Culture

by Joe & T.J. | Sep 5, 2021 | #SH302, Daily Habits, Decision-Making, Education, Engagement, Excellence, Failure, Feedback, Focus, Fulfillment, Goal Setting, Leadership, Learning to Lead, Listening, Long-Term Decision-Making, Motivation, Motivation & Retention, Organizational Leadership, Planning and Preparation, Positivity, Principal Leadership, Principals, Resilience, Results, Teacher Leadership, Teamwork

As schools reopen their doors to their students, welcoming over 56 million learners nationwide in our elementary and secondary public schools, two pressing questions are on every educator’s mind:

How can I effectively engage and educate every student to accelerate their learning and ensure that they are on grade level?
How can I connect with every student to ensure that they develop emotionally and socially to thrive in and outside of the classroom?

The two areas are interconnected and deeply rooted within one another. We know through the powerful work of Bandura that self-efficacy is vital for student success, including how they view their own achievement and the school itself. As much as we want our schools to be havens of personal and intellectual development, attending school is not always a positive experience for every child.

That said, we know that when social and emotional learning strategies are woven into school policies down to the lesson plan, we see improvements to student performance as well as their behavior. To be sure that this work is done well and lives within our schools in a productive and pervasive way, it’s important to first establish a working understanding of exactly what we mean by SEL.

What is Social and Emotional Learning in Schools?

Schools go far beyond the 3Rs of foundational learning and skills. At one time, reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic were considered to be the drivers of instruction. Although they serve as a good starting point, educators–from principal leaders to teachers–now realize that we need to focus on the whole child. At TheSchoolHouse302 we refer to this as “The Blend” regarding effective evidence-based pedagogy and social and emotional learning strategies.

We want our educators to be pedagogical powerhouses with a blended focus so as to offer high-level instruction along with a strong knowledge of the individual learner–a balance and blend of curriculum and care, instruction and insight, technology and tenacity, accountability and awareness. The Blend is an approach to planning lessons and school-based activities with a focus on both the academic and social and emotional side of the student.

Educators must possess a keen understanding of each student’s needs to effectively educate all students and to help them acquire skills to be able to socialize productively and effectively, this includes learning how to cope and process their own emotions and attitudes. For teachers and school leaders to optimize The Blend, it requires a culture within the school that embraces academic rigor as well as SEL. Culture is often an elusive concept so we put together 6 significant ways to build an SEL culture within a school.

As you get started building your SEL culture, we want to acknowledge the specific work that goes into it. We paint a full picture of what it means to have an SEL approach to schooling, starting with a model and the needed framework to move the work forward. Additionally, pay close attention to how these six concepts build upon one another to demonstrate a full scope of The Blend that you’ll want to achieve.

A Social and Emotional Learning Framework

When considering a framework for SEL, we don’t have to look any further than CASEL’s wheel. This is a powerful visual that identifies the essential components of SEL that many organizations work to achieve. It is comprehensive and encompasses all of the critical environments that make up a culture–classrooms, schools, homes, and communities. Each element is interconnected.

SEL Strategy #1: Assembling a Core Team

Identifying and having a core team to lead this work will support greater collaboration and representation. The composition of the group should represent the diversity and needs of the students and staff. One powerful aspect of having a core SEL team is that they can solicit input from a variety of stakeholders.

Social and Emotional Learning for Teachers

Education is an emotionally charged profession. Rarely will you hear teachers say that they joined this profession to simply teach a subject, but rather inspire kids, change the trajectory of a student’s life, develop a passion for learning among their students, and change the world. The reasons are endless and the passion is energizing. The challenge is that educators can also experience high levels of frustration, burnout, and disillusionment. That’s why the power of self care is more important than ever. Social and emotional learning doesn’t work for students if our teachers aren’t self-aware enough to take care of their social and emotional needs as well. A quality SEL culture includes everyone.

SEL Strategy #2: Improving Self-Awareness for Staff to Manage Stress

Improving self-awareness for staff is easier said than done and not typically something that school leaders think to do for teacher SEL. That said, incorporating activities, such as the following, at faculty meetings and staff gatherings is a way for staff to learn more about their own self-regulation needs. This self-awareness strategy is from Lorea Martinez’s blog post, What do you do with your stress? Building Resilience through Emotional Intelligence. We love the ERC framework and the wisdom that Dr. Martinez shares.

Self-Awareness Strategy

Reflection Question: What are the situations, circumstances or people that are causing your stress? Write them down and assign an E for Eliminate, R for Reduce, or C for Cope:

E – Eliminate. These are items that you can probably let go. For example, if you are drowning with a never-ending list of “to dos,” find volunteers at school (students or parents) to help you with the tasks that others can do for you. They might not get done the way you would do them, but you will be able to check them off your list, allowing you to feel less overwhelmed.
R – Reduce. Reducing the strength of your stressors is sometimes a more viable solution than eliminating them entirely. For example, changing your morning or evening routine to make better use of your time is something that has been called a miracle. Ten extra minutes in the morning for a quick mediation exercise can change your level of stress for the rest of the day.
C – Cope. In some cases, learning to cope with stress might be the only option and you’ll have to tap into your problem-solving skills to do so. What are some choices in a given situation? Just knowing that you have control helps with coping. Can you look at this stressor from an alternative perspective? Stress can often make us stronger in the long run. Who can help you? Identify an expert and seek to improve your skills in the area that stresses you.

To find out more about Dr. Lorea Martinez’s work, visit here.

Social and Emotional Learning Training for Your School

When schools embark on the journey toward developing a training program for the entire school to learn about SEL, one key consideration makes all the difference: SEL itself should be embedded throughout the existing programs, policies, and other training sessions as much as possible. We cannot treat SEL training similar to how we often approach other new curriculum updates and pedagogical professional development. Of course, you can do some upfront SEL training sessions for teachers, but after that, all other training and professional learning should get an SEL spin to it. We draw on the analogy of the common problems with dieting. We often look to a weight loss “program, “ which tends not to be aligned to our lifestyle. Willpower and discipline hold us steady for a while but eventually we regress back to our original way of living. We may even end up worse off than when we started. The problem is the dieting program, similar to initiatives, is that they remain separate from our day-to-day work. SEL has to be woven into the fabric of the school or it will end up being something on the agenda rather than incorporated into the lessons.

SEL Strategy #3: Taking Certificate-Based Courses

One powerful way to train individuals that can lead this work in our schools, for staff and students, is to earn a micro-credential. Although we haven’t completed this course, which is a partnership between Rutgers and the College of Saint Elizabeth, it does provide the type of credentialing that can inspire confidence and knowledge among those looking to lead this work and ensure it’s done well. As the leader, if you’re not going to get an SEL certification, consider tapping into a teacher leader to take the course and become your school’s subject matter expert.

Social and Emotional Learning Resources

A quick google search reveals a variety of different resources available for schools. We’ve already mentioned the Heart in Mind blog, which offers a ton of information for those seeking to learn more about SEL. You definitely want to read 3 Ingredients for a Strong SEL Year. We also like Cultured Kids, which has a broad focus with universal themes. This resonates with us because they focus on cultural competence, which is an employability skill. Also, be sure to sign up for LaVonna Roth’s SHINEtastic Lessons. You can get 12 lessons for every age group. LaVonna’s OneThingSeries interview with us has a ton to offer about SEL as well. Finally, sign up for our 302 Thoughts this month. We’ll be talking about SEL and pointing to great resources for your school.

SEL Strategy #4: Connecting with Meaningful Work

Connect the learning resources to other areas of focus like employability skills. Below are the top skills employers are looking for that are directly connected to SEL.

Social and Emotional Learning Curriculum

Once the team has a good understanding of the resources available, a well-developed curriculum is necessary. We don’t subscribe to a particular curriculum but rather use A.I. to enhance our current curriculum. No, we don’t mean artificial intelligence but rather Associate and Integrate.

A–Associate what is being learned to the learner so that they can reflect on themselves.

For example, if students are reading a passage, short story, or text connected to a standard “regarding relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts…” that should be connected to the SEL strategy for self awareness, which is tied to self-regulation and emotion. We really do stress The Blend rather than separating SEL from what and how we already teach.

I–Integrate the SEL standards with the identified curriculum. As mentioned before, for SEL to be effective it needs to be embedded in the lessons. The humanities courses lend themselves to this integration naturally, where the sciences are terrific fits for analyzing, identifying, and solving in systematic ways.

The good news is that when done well, SEL supports learning and retention of key concepts. Because a major component of SEL is self-reflection, when students are reflecting on the learning–meta-cognition–they get The Blend of SEL and the standards in a way that unlocks the science of learning.

SEL Strategy #5: Using a Simple Table for Lesson Organization

Unit
Learning Standard CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.3	Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.

SEL Standard	STANDARD 4 – SOCIAL AWARENESS – Individual has the ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others from diverse backgrounds and cultures.

SEL Objective	Students will be able to recognize the various beliefs and values of the characters in the story and understand the aspects of a healthy and constructive relationship.
Instructional Activity	Students will engage in a socratic seminar, identifying the key attitudes, behaviors, and conditions that led to certain actions and the more productive decisions that the character could have made.

Setting Social and Emotional Learning Goals

Lastly, we want to anchor all of this work and effort with explicit goals that are aligned to the school and district’s SEL vision. Random and intermittent offerings for staff and students that are not rooted in the established systems of the school will not last or make any notable differences. Your SEL goals should drive the work of the core committee mentioned above. When setting goals consider Who, What, and How.

Who is the goal targeting? We’ve mentioned throughout this post that the SEL schoolwide culture should encompass the staff and the students so it is necessary to create specific goals for each group.
What are we trying to achieve? Each goal should be explicit and measurable.
How are we going to achieve the goal? Each goal needs to have a basic plan that outlines the process for accomplishing it and the action steps necessary to gain momentum.

SEL Strategy #6: Reinventing the Wheel is Unnecessary

There are a great deal of resources online with standards and guiding principles. For example, we found California’s DOE to have a comprehensive document. The advantage of following principles versus something overly prescriptive is the flexibility that you have to work within your resources and identified needs. Every principle you pick, such as “Students and adults must have opportunities to practice, demonstrate, and reinforce social and emotional skills within the context of supportive relationships” can be achieved through the Who, What, and How exercise we outlined above.

Teachers and students thrive in appreciative, nurturing, supportive, and goal-driven environments. Developing a schoolwide SEL focus that is designed to build a positive human-centered culture transforms environments and, frankly, is life-changing work. Just remember that this work doesn’t have to be done overnight. SEL in modern times dates back to the 1960s, it’s just now amid a pandemic and social injustices that we are relying on ideas that we know build productive students and citizens. Take your time, be strategic, develop your core team, find the right resources, set goals, and make a difference. Let us know how it goes.

As always, let us know what you think of this with a like, a follow, or a comment. Find us on Twitter, YouTube, iTunes, Facebook, & SoundCould. And, again, if you want one simple model for leading better and growing faster per month, follow this blog by entering your email at the top right of the screen.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.

6 Ways that We Should Think About Student Engagement in the 2021-2022 School Year Because of What We Learned During the Pandemic

by Joe & T.J. | Aug 2, 2021 | #SH302, Daily Habits, Decision-Making, Education, Engagement, Excellence, Failure, Feedback, Focus, Fulfillment, Goal Setting, Leadership, Learning to Lead, Motivation, Motivation & Retention, Organizational Leadership, Planning and Preparation, Positivity, Principal Leadership, Principals, Resilience, Results, Teacher Leadership, Teamwork

Leading within a Disruptive Environment

The last 18 months have brought nothing but disruption to schools and the students they serve. And although there have been many hardships and catastrophes yet to come, we believe that the crisis strengthened education as a profession and provided all educators, from the classroom to the principal’s office with abundant opportunities for growth.

When we think about leading during a crisis, we typically picture leaders in two opposing vantage points. On one hand, a crisis can paralyze people. The pressure of any conflict can cause a chemical reaction in the brain and bloodstream that produces the flight or fight response in humans. This can cause uncertainty, fear, and even panic. It slows things down to a dark helplessness.

But that response is not inevitable nor is it unavoidable. In Becoming Bulletproof, Evy Poumpuras, describes how she and her United States Secret Service colleagues responded, in real time, to the harrowing attacks on the North and South towers of the World Trade Center. She details how their training kicked in and took over. Trained leaders–those who have had practice in crisis situations or who have gone through serious leadership programs–learn to capitalize on a crisis and it’s possible outcomes. The CDC names several positive reactions dependent on effective management and communication, including a “sense of strength and empowerment,” “new resources and skills,” “renewed sense of community,” and “opportunities for growth.”

When leading within a disruptive environment, the greatest leaders choose to use the situation as an opportunity for growth for themselves and their team. ~ @TSH302

The problem is that although our best leaders choose growth and renewal as outcomes of a crisis, the worst choose to blame and to create distrust and a false sense of safety as they try to “return to normal.” The truth is that crises precipitate change, and every leader’s job is to embrace new developments, innovation, and transformation.

John Hattie Reveals the Learning Loss Fallacy

As educators look to move forward in the wake of a post-vaccinated society, there are several issues to face–from social and emotional trauma to the learning needs of our students. “Learning loss” is definitely the new buzz in education, but let’s take a closer look. We had the distinct pleasure in attending and presenting at this year’s Annual Visible Learning Conference. It is always awesome to watch Dr. Hattie as he presents new data, sometimes shocking his audience with revelations about how students learn and how teachers should prepare their lessons.

John was pleased to note that there are already meta-analyses that apply statistical tests to the effects of learning during the pandemic. In particular focus is the idea that students lost some or much of the learning that would have taken place if they had been in school. From what John showed during his presentation, it’s simply not true. In the aggregate, the greatest losses are in writing, not reading or math. And, some students made gains, especially in math.

Hattie had a great deal to say about why students aren’t showing the losses that everyone expects, including the amount of online math practice that students experienced versus watching teachers model problem solving in the classroom. This is not to say that we don’t have students who missed opportunities to learn. It simply means that we need to diagnose learning loss, not assume it. And it also means that there were a number of practices that improved, some of which improved learning outcomes for students.

We find this data to be encouraging. It demands a level of precision as we approach the school year, more personalized than generalized. We do know that the pandemic adversely impacted low-income areas and communities of color worse than other demographic groups. Coupled with 1.2 million fewer students in the public education system, our strategies below are designed to prioritize learning needs, target key classroom practices, and provide support for all students. We picked 6 practices that we believe all schools should focus upon for growth and renewal in the upcoming months as we return to whatever format of learning we’re expected to implement.

6 Classroom Practices that Need to Change and Why

Grading and Assessment Practices Have to Continue to Evolve

Grading and assessment practices, from policy to classroom structures, are maybe the single most controversial topic in education today. Prior to the pandemic, the evolution of grading improvements was moving along at a snail’s pace. Now, more educators are rethinking grading than ever before, and that has to be a focus for all schools. Ultimately, the 100-point scale and averaging are two of the biggest problems with how we calculate grades, but small changes in the way we look at assessment practices can make all the difference in supporting learning.

Two grading and assessment books to consider reading as a school community:

Grading for Equity by Joe Feldman

Assessing with Respect by Starr Sackstein (listen to our podcast interview with Starr here)

Student Discourse Has to to be Top Priority

The more students are able to talk in class and engage in reasoning aloud, the better they perform on content areas assessments. We need our students to get more of the air time in the classroom than have traditionally been granted. The average teacher talks anywhere between 60 and 70 percent of the time allotted for learning in the classroom. It’s also startling to think that during this talk-time, teachers ask between 200 and 300 questions a day, most of which are clerical and clarifying in nature. Student discourse and creative communication have to be a top priority for every teacher and every school leader. We can promote more talk time by instituting specific strategies that help with it and by tracking how often students get to talk and the types of questions with which they engage.

We recommend TeachFX as a classroom talk-time tracking tool.

Check out TeachFX if you don’t know about the tool already. Make sure to tell them that we sent you. (Disclaimer: we don’t make any money from our recommendation of this product; if we did, you would know it).

Learning Management Systems Need to Stay Organized

When we plunged into remote learning, asynchronous time, and the virtual classroom, we saw right away that alignment across systems in the use and structures of a learning management system (LMS) were inconsistent. In some schools, not every teacher was using the available LMS, in some districts the LMS wasn’t consistent from K-12, and some teachers didn’t even have access to use one. We don’t have an LMS recommendation, but we do strongly recommend that schools develop clear expectations for how the LMS is used by every teacher. When students enter the LMS, the setup should be logical and coherent, and this should be true from course-to-course and teacher-to-teacher. Gone are the days when we can do classroom walkthroughs without also doing gradebook and LMS walkthroughs to accompany them, providing teachers with candid and compassionate feedback about the improvements we expect them to make.

Evidence of Learning is the Key to Professional Learning Communities

With assessment practices, including the alignment of course-by-course tests and projects, and a congruous use of a learning management system at the forefront of our thinking this fall, we should be able to use the evidence of our students’ learning to drive conversations in PLCs better than ever before. This means that we can use data to support lesson planning along with an item analysis of the standards that students are meeting and not meeting. We appreciate the model below from Broward County Schools, which encapsulates the elements of effective PLCs.

The best PLC book for school leaders.

Tons of books have been written about PLCs but none are as powerful as Leaders of Learning by Richard DuFour and Robert Marzano. If you don’t have this book on your shelf, buy it today.

Teacher Reflection and Strategy Implementation Can Be Faster

Teacher reflection and strategy implementation can be faster than we thought prior to the pandemic and shouldn’t slow back down as we enter a new era in education. Teachers were forced to try many different ways to connect with students, and the growth that educators experienced during the pandemic was down right impressive. From teachers mastering Flipgrid to the use of Google Classroom, there was a necessity to explore and try new strategies and tools that resulted in positive changes to the way students engaged with content. This freedom to explore and the speed at which educators shared new ideas accelerated teacher development. Through practice and reflection, a learning culture emerged whereby teachers didn’t hesitate to try something new and then reflect versus our old model of reflect-first-then-shift. The reality is that we should be trying new strategies all the time, and we hope that this cultural shift continues in a supportive and constructive environment where risk-taking is rewarded.

Reflective teaching is a key component of a learning culture in schools.

Take a look at David Kolb’s learning cycle, depicted wll by Cambridge Assessment International Education. In the menu bar, notice “Reflective practice in practice” and “Checklist,” both game changers!

Learning Is Social and Emotional

Classrooms are incredibly complex. Embracing the learner’s experience complicates teaching, but it’s a necessary aspect of a quality learning environment and one that the pandemic made abundantly clear. There must be a balance between the curriculum, as to what must get taught, and ensuring that the students actually learned. This requires teachers to be nimble with how to teach but still laser focused on teaching all the key learning targets. It’s unfortunately easy to think that adding social and emotional learning (SEL) into the classroom is daunting and one more thing for teachers to do. However, without the social and emotional side of teaching, learning and retention are less likely to take place. The key to understanding the power of using social and emotional practices in the classroom is in the realization that learning is social and emotional. Without the social aspect of the classroom and the emotional regulation it takes to engage, all the “teaching” in the world won’t stick.

For a great resource on SEL, visit the CASEL site. It provides a litany of resources, like their Guide to Schoolwide Social and Emotional Learning.

The Buy-In Myth that We Find within Our Circle of Nice in Schools

As leaders work to change culture, using any of these 6 practices–from grading to running a proper PLC–as an example, we see that conflict arises. The definition of leadership is influence, the challenge of leadership is conflict, and the result of leadership is change. You can’t have change without some level of conflict, and conflict is not always unhealthy. We close this blog with three major sentiments that prove helpful when trying to make a change within an established culture.

Patrick Lencioni reminds us that the healthiest organizations are not democratic. The leader sets the vision, communicates the change, and pushes the work forward.
Trust is often counterintuitive. Leading through relationships doesn’t require a “culture of nice” in schools. Setting clear expectations, holding everyone accountable, and confronting reality are as important for trust as supporting the people where they are. In fact, support without a level of pressure results in the status quo. Just remember that pressure without support is unfair.
We learned from Douglas Reeves that “buy-in” is a myth. Buy-in occurs after you’ve made a change, not before. It’s unlikely that any of these 6 practices will be agreed upon and implemented by your entire staff without pushback of some kind. You don’t need everyone to believe in the beginning for a deep change to occur over time.

Don’t hesitate to reach out for support in making these 6 changes in your school. We hope that the resources here and the ones to come this month will make a difference for you. Register for our Fireside Chat on this topic by clicking the link to receive your Zoom code.

Stay tuned for more nuggets of wisdom, podcasts, books to read, and the best resources for leading better and growing faster in schools. Follow us at dereka206.sg-host.com to join thousands of leaders who get our content each month. Send this to a friend.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.

#SH302: Resilience–Six Techniques for Bouncing Back

by Joe & T.J. | May 5, 2019 | #SH302, Failure, Leadership, Learning to Lead, Passion, Positivity, Resilience

Being resilient, possessing the ability to withstand various challenges and then quickly bouncing back from setbacks and adversity, regardless of their magnitude, is something we all desire to have in our leadership toolbelt. Life is a maze of new ground to traverse, and if we are not careful, we can quickly lose perspective, dwell on a mistake, or become overwhelmed with doubt and fear. We all want to be resilient, persevere, and endure the shots. Despite circumstance, we want to stay laser focused on our values and purpose. Fortunately, it is possible to have the capacity to be resilient. There are tons of examples throughout human history, and we can use those examples to create our own techniques for bouncing back when things get tough. Although we offer a formula for helping you learn the needed skills, one thing that remains pivotal in our own understanding of resilience is that some of the most talented people, both living and dead, have suffered tremendously. There are stories of terror and defeat and yet so many leaders still find a way to move forward. As an example, Lincoln is heralded for his unwavering courage and steadfastness in one of the darkest periods of the United States. We often look to him with inspiration and admiration. Rarely discussed, though, is the fact that,

During a bleak winter in 1840, thirty-two-year-old Abraham Lincoln fell into a depression so profound that his friends feared he might kill himself…Most troubling to Lincoln was the realization that his reputation had been compromised. (Goodwin, 2018)

After Lincoln had promised a better economy for Illinois, the state experienced a devastating recession and much of the community infrastructure that he guaranteed fell through with Lincoln shouldering much of the blame. As time passed, and with the help of key people, Lincoln rebuilt himself, started a law firm with a partner and soon thereafter married. The incredible lesson we learn from this story is that even in the darkest times we can survive and position ourselves to make the impact our communities need and deserve. Lincoln, and many others, show us that resilience is primarily a product of our ability to resist our own faults and fear becoming our personal prison.

The truth is that we may not face the grim reality that Lincoln encountered, but as leaders we are constantly subjected to pressures, conflict, and resistance that can become a heavy burden that can negatively impact our performance. In the profound book, Flow, by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Me-high-Cheek-sent-me-high), the primary message about resilience is clear: “of all the virtues we can learn, no trait is more useful, more essential for survival, and more likely to improve the quality of life than the ability to transform adversity into an enjoyable challenge” (2008). To offer some insight into how to develop the qualities necessary to enhance this ability, we offer six techniques housed within the acronym R.E.S.I.S.T. to serve as a mnemonic to call upon in times of need. The goal is to resist falling into states-of-mind and negative behaviors that are unproductive and potentially damaging to ourselves, our careers, and the people around us. These tools are gleaned from various sources and incredible experts on the topic, such as Martin Seligman from the University of Pennsylvania’s Positive Psychology Center. Learning to find your focus, gain perspective, and remain or quickly re-enter a resourceful state is what we are trying to achieve at all times, especially when we hit a period of interference with our goal attainment.

Regulate your self-talk by using positive and forgiving language.

In Jon Gordon’s The Positive Dog (2012), he discusses the notion that we should talk to ourselves in a positive manner versus listening to our negative self-babble. The difference is profound. We can either choose the words we use when we address ourselves or passively listen to whatever comes to mind when we make a mistake. We have two dogs gnawing away at our souls, a positive dog and a negative dog. You need to choose which one to feed (Gordon, 2012).

Challenge: Next time you make a mistake and you find yourself kicking yourself, take a quiet moment to: 1. Identify the error and its “real” impact, 2. Expose how or why you made the mistake, and then 3. Decide what to do differently in the future. Write all three down on a piece of paper, then crumple it up and throw it away. Tweet #MasteredMyMistake @TSH302 to let us know that you used this technique.

Exercise discipline over the things you can control and let go of the things you can’t.

International bestselling mental strength author, Amy Morin reminds us that “you can’t force your spouse to change, you can’t prevent a storm from happening, and you can’t control how other people feel…sometimes all we can control is our effort and attitude” (Morin, 2017). That’s actually good news, especially for control freaks who often try to control everything but find themselves unable to control anything. Resilience, especially in the worst of times, is often defined by how a leader responds in terms of their work ethic and/or their positive outlook. When times get rough, leader often try to control more, micromanage the situation, or frustrate themselves with what everyone else is doing, thinking, and feeling. Resist the urge, and let it go.

Challenge: When we feel out-of-control, we must be reminded that our best point of control is own effort or attitude. We must learn to let everything else go. Next time you find yourself trying to control a situation when you can’t or worrying about something incessantly that is out of your control, take a deep breath: 1. Realize what you are trying to control, 2. Note that it is not helpful, and then 3. Identify the space where your effort and attitude will mean the most. Write all three down on a piece of paper, then crumple it up and throw it away. Tweet #ILetItGo @TSH302 to let us know that you used this technique.

See potential in every situation to make a positive impact.

“In the face of uncertainty, people who conform pull away to a safe place to protect themselves. Adaptable leaders who make leadershifts lean into uncertainty and deal with it head on” (Maxwell, 2019). The biggest difference between leaders who accept the status quo versus those who push forward for positive impact is in the ability to see potential even when faced with fear and uncertainty.

Challenge: Work hard to see the potential positive outcomes versus the negative repercussions in any situation. Next time you are faced with an unpredictable or particularly worrisome scenario: 1. Don’t retreat no matter how strong the urge may feel, 2. Look for all potential outcomes and silver linings, and then 3. Pick the most positive impact and work toward that as the goal. Write all three down on a piece of paper, then crumple it up and throw it away. Tweet #PotentialPositiveImpact @TSH302 to let us know that you used this technique.

Interpret challenges with a measured perspective and a belief that the situation can be improved.

“If we want to be able to select the reality that will lead to greater productivity, engagement, and revenue growth, we first need to recognize that we have control over how we choose to interpret the objective facts in our external world” (Achor, 2013). Using a measured perspective that any situation can be improved means shutting out the thoughts and preconceived notions that you have about any scenario before entering into it. Achor (2013) tells readers to battle their perspective by pursuing the most valuable reality, which means that we must recognize alternatives. Realizing that there are more vantage points than the first one that comes to mind is the first step to measuring multiple perspectives and choosing the best option.

Challenge: Let go of your predetermined beliefs about what the world should look like (Achor, 2013). Next time you feel yourself interpreting a challenge in one way: 1. Realize that your first perspective might not be the only reality, 2. Conjure up as many alternative perspectives as possible, and then 3. Pick one that best matches an improved future. Write all three down on a piece of paper, then crumple it up and throw it away. Tweet #MultiplePerspectives @TSH302 to let us know that you used this technique.

Solidify your core values and key principles.

“High-performing, values-aligned teams and companies embrace the promises they make to each other and to customers” (Edmonds, 2014). By solidifying your core values and key principles, you can hold yourself and others to the behaviors that are associated with the actions that you need to take to move forward. We can often become paralyzed by the ambiguity of day-to-day operations. We resist the emptiness of the mundane by having solid principles by which to live.

Challenge: A huge step in resisting the negativity that holds us back when we need to be resilient is in a reconfirmation of our core values. Next time you feel like your work or life is not making sense: 1. Reflect on the thing that seems to be distracting your work, 2. Go back to your core value statements or principles and highlight what matters most right now (write them out if you don’t have them already have them), and then 3. Identify a key next step and move forward based on your passion and purpose. Write all three down on a piece of paper, then crumple it up and throw it away. Tweet #PassionateLeadership @TSH302 to let us know that you used this technique.

Take decisive action with purpose and clarity.

“Strategic decisiveness is one of the most vital success attributes for leaders in every position and every industry, but few leaders understand where it comes from or how to find more of it” (Tasler, 2013). The best way to make a solid decision is to go back to your purpose and clarify your next set of critical action steps. In times of doubt, leaders can easily get stalled and find fault in every decision they might think to make. The best course of action as a resilient leader is to take action and move forward.

Challenge: Resist the desire to back off or back down. When we doubt ourselves, we can be left with inaction. Instead take massive action. Next time you feel yourself questioning what to do: 1. Identify the decision that needs to take place, 2. Weigh your options with a clear list of pros and cons, and then 3. Pick the action that best aligns with your purpose and do it. Write all three down on a piece of paper, then crumple it up and throw it away. Tweet #MassiveAction @TSH302 to let us know that you used this technique.

Learning to resist is a process that takes time. Like learning to meditate or practicing any other process in furthering your mental acuity, it takes preparation, training, and tons of hard work. But resilient leaders know how to bounce back from even the most difficult circumstances in life and at work. The key is in using these six qualities to enable yourself to push past whatever is in the way of reaching your goals. We hope to hear from you regarding our model for R.E.S.I.S.T. Next time you feel the need to be resilient, use this model to bounce back with the best of them.

Let us know what you think of this #SH302 post with a like, a follow, or a comment. Find us on Twitter, YouTube, iTunes, Facebook, & SoundCould. And if you want one simple model for leading better and growing faster per month, follow this blog by entering your email at the top right of the screen.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.

References

Achor, S. (2013). Before happiness: The 5 hidden keys to achieving success, spreading happiness, and sustaining positive change. New York: Random House, Inc.

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2008). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper Row.

Edmonds, S.C. (2014). The culture engine. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Goodwin, D.K. (2018). Leadership in turbulent times. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Gordon, J. (2012). The positive dog: A story about the power of positivity. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Maxwell, J. (2019). Leader shift: 11 essential changes every leader must embrace. HarperCollins.

Morin, A. (2017, May, 13). 6 Ways to stop stressing about things you can’t control. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/amymorin/2017/05/13/6-ways-to-stop-stressing-about-things-you-cant-control/#4497024130db

Tasler, N. (2013). Just make a decision already. Harvard Business Review.

#5thSunday: Year-End Reflection Infographic–R.E.F.L.E.C.T.

by Joe & T.J. | Dec 30, 2018 | Communication, Daily Habits, Data, Disruption, District Office Leadership, Education, Energy, Equity, Excellence, Failure, Feedback, Fitness, Focus, Fulfillment, Goal Setting, Innovation, Leadership, Learning to Lead, Listening, Long-Term Decision-Making, Modeling, Motivation & Retention, Networking, Organizational Growth, Organizational Leadership, Planning and Preparation, Positivity, Principal Leadership, Professional Dialogue, Reflect, Relationships, Self-Efficacy, Service Leadership, Systems Thinking, Teacher Leadership, Teamwork

Every month at TheSchoolHouse302, you get a blog post with a leadership development model, a podcast with a leading expert, a “read this” with three book selections, and a review and reflection tool–all on a particular topic of leadership to help you lead better and grow faster. Posts are always blasted out on Sundays so that leaders can think and prepare for the week ahead. In months when we have 5 Sundays, we also provide an infographic to help visualize and solidify the concept. This month, as we end our year, we want to R.E.F.L.E.C.T. on several powerful concepts to propel our success into the future of 2019. We hope you enjoy and Happy New Year.

As always, please like, follow, and comment. If you have topics of interest, guests you want us to interview, or books that we should read and recommend, please let us know that as well. Joe & T.J.

#review&reflect: Learning to Win from Failure

by tjvari | Aug 26, 2018 | #review&reflect, Failure, Learning to Lead

This is TheSchoolHouse302 monthly #review&reflect, wrapping up our focus on how Great Leaders Win from Failure.

Skills I need…

The only way to to grow and achieve great things is to take risks, which at times is met with failure. The question is, how well do you plan your steps forward to ensure you can bounce back from setbacks and failed attempts?

Review: This month we focused on how successful people endure major setbacks, both personally and professionally, as life presents a series of challenges that can crush some of our greatest goals and desires. Our message is that you should learn from failure, and more importantly, learn how to mitigate risks through key steps. Our three-part model is designed to help you uncover how to NOT fail by taking calculated risks in life and business. We introduce the three Fs of failure that you don’t want to have on your leadership report card.

F#1: Failure to Launch–you can’t fail, if you don’t try.

The harsh reality is that inaction crushes any chance of success. Too often we are paralyzed by fear and uncertainty. Don’t become burdened by your goals but rather simply gain clarity by breaking down the goal into manageable steps and then take the first one. Once you take the first step, you won’t be disappointed. Don’t let another day go by.

F#2: Fear of Not Making a Massive Contribution–small steps lead to long treks.

We need to be sure that we use the right yardstick to measure what we are looking to accomplish and detail the incremental steps along the way that reinforce that we are making progress. It’s common for our goals to be so lofty that when massive change or when intense contribution are not immediate and apparent outcomes, we lose track of the fact that small steps are the mile markers that indicate that we are moving forward.

F#3: Fixating on the Wrong Measures–avoid thinking about the product, and focus on the process.

Setting goals and having clear targets are keys to success because if you don’t know where you are going, you have no chance of getting there. However, we tend to overlook the daily inputs, tasks, and behaviors that need to be done throughout the journey that are necessary to finding ultimate success. Essentially, the day-to-day activities that will lead to accomplishments are what should be our cherished moments and not the mere accomplishment itself.

The model is straightforward and designed to help leaders learn how to not fail but to take calculated risks in life and business, knowing that failure is an option. Avoid earning yourself these three Fs on your report card of success and you’ll fail forward with the greatest leaders of all time.

Reflect: Each aspect of the model is critical for overall success and maximum effectiveness. While reviewing and considering each, determine which one you need to focus on to take calculated risks to achieve new heights. For example, you may start many new things without really taking the time to lay out what is truly required to achieve your goals. Each part of the model is designed to prevent you from making critical mistakes that often lead to failure. The idea is that you decide on what you really want to accomplish and have clarity on how. We heard from Rand Fishkin on the importance of perspective and how we have certain ideas about business and success that are misleading and misguided. His thoughts on failure, and really on figuring out what you want to achieve, are powerful so don’t miss his One Thing Series leadership podcast interview. He walks us through his own growth process as a leader and as a entrepreneur. His wisdom is critical in advising listeners that you should not be fixated on the wrong measures, using the wrong determinants of success. He also reminds us that we are not perfect and that we need to learn to forgive ourselves so that we can thrive in a self-reflective state where it is okay to takes risks.

As a leader, are you willing to take the initial steps to lead yourself and your organization to greater achievement? What fears do you need to overcome?

How do I learn those skills…

What should I read to continually learn and grow if I want to win from failure and learn to take calculated risks?

Review: In our #readthisseries we featured the work of authors who embody what it means to learn from failure and grow to be an effective leader:

Lost and Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World by Rand Fishkin

Fearless at Work: Timeless Teachings for Awakening Confidence, Resilience, and Creativity in the Face of Life’s Demands by Michael Carroll

Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes Into Stepping Stones for Success by John Maxwell

You can’t miss our #readthisseries on keeping failure in perspective and ultimately learning from mistakes to move forward in life and work. Watch it again here.

Reflect: Do I have a firm grasp on what my organization needs to accomplish? Do I have clarity around the steps we need to take to achieve our goals? How well are we prepared to handle setbacks? Of the three parts of the model, which one do I need to start doing differently today?

Great leaders understand the power of thinking big and moving forward in calculated ways. They know that in order to reach new heights, achieve great things, and accomplish major goals, there are beacons–clarity and purpose– to guide and steer the ship. They are also crystal clear on the potential challenges, setbacks, and possible failures that loom. This month, reflect on how well you and your organization are setup to take calculated risks to achieve your goals. Based on the 3-part model, and using a 5-point scale, 1 being ineffective and 5 being highly effective, rate yourself and your team:

Who should I follow…

What does an expert have to say about learning to win from failures as a leader?

Review: For our #onethingseries, we interviewed Rand Fishkin, founder of SparkToro, previously co-founder of Moz and Inbound.org.

Throughout the interview, Rand emphasized how failure is not the end of an idea and challenged many of our preconceived ideas around American business culture. He stressed the need for diversity in people, thinking, and ideas to help us see multiple perspectives to lead better and grow faster. He emphasized the importance of growing and how “you learn more when you’re uncomfortable than when you’re comfortable.” His thoughts on failure and his approach to life emerged throughout the interview as he talked about forgiveness.

Reflect: Rand reminds us that life is how we perceive it and diversity helps us gain greater perspective so that we can experience all of the life’s rewards and challenges. The objective is in looking at life through the right lens.

Do you have a group of people who you can rely on to give you honest, challenging, and different perspectives?

The definition of leadership is influence, and by learning how to mitigate risks and learn from failure, you can find success, which improves your ability to influence others. By expanding your influence, you can be helpful to more people, and that’s one of the most important characteristics of any great leader–the desire to help others.

That’s our #review&reflect for Winning from Failure. Take a look back to take a step forward.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple and maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Please let us know how our leadership posts are working for you, what you are reading to improve yourself, and your thoughts on leadership and growth here on our blog and Twitter. Follow our #onethingseries podcast on iTunes and our #readthisseries on YouTube.

Joe & T.J.