Courageous Edventures, by Jennie Magiera, is a Must Read for Educational Leaders Who Want to Effectively Support Teachers’ Use of Technology as a Tool within the Classroom
Don’t miss this vblog on YouTube or catch our Read This segment of our One Thing Series podcast–books you need to read to lead better and grow faster.
Here’s Why Every Innovative Principal Leader, Instructional Technology Coach, and Curriculum Specialist Must Read This Corwin Book by Jennie Magiera:
Courageous Edventures is a great book for all educators. Why? It’s real in that it’s written by a former teacher, and it blends the challenges that are associated with using technology in the classroom with how to overcome them successfully.
The author, Jennie Magiera, now the Global Head of Education Impact at Google, tells a common story, found within many schools–a story where technology is available, but woefully underemployed and arguably misunderstood. Fortunately, she also provides clear ways on how to excel at using these tools to transform teaching and learning.
Her story is found among many early adopters who discover the power of a new teaching tool, “terrifying and confusing.” In this case, Jenny realized early on that technology in the classroom, when used well, can radically improve student learning. However, it wasn’t an easy journey. Courageous Edventures is organized into four parts that we believe make it a great read and very user friendly.
Learning from reading is our goal, and it is why we feature very specific books for educational leaders. The four parts of this book create a journey and require readers to engage with the content as a measure of growth.
Charting Your Course
Navigating Your Problems
Sailing into the Great Beyond
Reflecting on Your Edventure
Each part of Courageous Edventures is written as a journey and carries the reader to the destination. There are very practical models introduced throughout the book, such as the SAMR model or the Teacher Innovation Exploration Plan (TIEP). These models are important because they guide the development of the reader toward something that they can actually use in practice in terms of making a difference in their classroom and school.
The SAMR Model for Innovation with Technology
Another aspect of this book that truly resonated with us is the Critical Friends section. Our friend and Chief Ruckus Maker, Danny Bauer of Better Leaders Better Schools, has long championed the power of belonging to a mastermind group for support, connectedness, and intentional growth. Having critical friends is a tremendous way to grow as a professional because, among other things, accountability is a key aspect of the relationship.
We’ll end this post on one of Jennie’s tips, which you’ll find early in the book: “Loyalty to Students Over All Else.” When our purpose eclipses everything, it’s easy to find courage to do those things that frighten us. Putting students first is really what this book is about; technology is the just one of the great ways that we can get it done!
We hope to hear from you about your favorite parts of the book, our blog, and the interview. Please comment below. Follow, like, and share.
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Learn More About Jennie Magiera, Head of Education at Google
Jennie Magiera is the Global Head of Education Impact at Google, bestselling author of Courageous Edventures, and the founder and president of the non-profit Our Voice Alliance (whose mission is to elevate marginalized voices and perspectives to improve equity and empathy in education). Previously, she was the Chief Innovation Officer for CCSD62, the Digital Learning Coordinator for the Academy for Urban School Leadership, and a Chicago Public Schools teacher. A White House Champion for Change, Apple Distinguished Educator, Google Certified Innovator, and TEDx Speaker, Jennie works to improve education globally.
She is also passionate about transforming professional learning, having served on the Technical Working Group for the US Department of Education’s National Educational Technology Plan, co-founding PLAYDATE and other conferences. You can follow Jennie on Twitter at @MsMagiera and pick up her book on Amazon.
Key Thoughts from Our Interview with Jennie Magiera
Understanding the Diffusion of Innovation Curve and how it applies to people and their adoption of innovation is profound for educational leaders who are transforming classrooms into innovation hubs. Don’t miss our discussion about Crossing the Chasm.
You have to hear how Jennie shifted her approach as an instructional coach to enable people to see how technology can radically improve student achievement and solve their unique problems as teachers.
Her insight into how educators define and see themselves provides an excellent window into why change can be so difficult.
Listen to how she is “double clicking” on the humanity of change and who she would love to have pizza with.
Her time blocking suggestion is powerful for go-getters who are looking for more space in their day.
You can’t miss why she wants to learn Korean.
She articulates how she accomplishes an enormous amount in a day, yet also knows when enough has been done.
Don’t miss Jennie’s protractor story and how she describes that technology is a tool, only to be used for the right reasons.
One Thing Series Summary
Jennie’s interview is a powerful blend of technology and human performance. She eloquently describes that a people-first mentality is needed to successfully lead an innovation revolution in our schools. We are grateful that she discussed how she was not always an innovator but sought disruption to improve the student experience.
We hope to hear from you about your favorite parts of both the blog and the interview. Please comment below. Follow, like, and share.
Use #onethingseries and #SH302 so that we can find you. For more great leadership content, follow theschoolhouse302.com.
This episode was brought to you by GhostBed, a family-owned business of sleep experts with 20+ years of experience. With 30K+ 5-star reviews, you can’t go wrong with GhostBed. Their mattresses are handcrafted, and they come with a 101-night-at-home-sleep trial. For a limited time, you can get 30% by using our code — SH302 — at checkout. And, even if you tell someone about GhostBed, you can earn a $100 referral reward. Go to Ghostbed.com today and use SH302 at checkout.
Learn from Women Leaders: A Look Into Top Female Innovators
There is no substitute for effective leadership and taking the time to read and learn from diverse people from all industries only helps to expand a school principals’ ability to view complex issues through a broad yet critical lens.
We’ve discovered that innovation in schools can be limited by the culture of the organization. Fortunately, it is well within the scope of any leader’s reach to become more innovative by implementing a few key practices. Below is our School Innovation Leadership Model.
Topics We Cover Regarding Innovative Educator Leadership:
We discuss how to be innovative even during times of uncertainty and mass change. The Dual Pandemics of Covid19 and Racism have created opportunities to seize change and to be innovative in schools and the classroom.
We highlight that innovation can be incremental and that small adjustments can eventually make for major changes. We pointed back to Society Nine from our blog this month.
We talk about how values can create an environment that welcomes and embraces new ideas.
We hope you like this month’s 302 Thoughts as we continue to discuss leadership and the impact that you can have on your community.
Stay tuned for more nuggets of wisdom, podcasts, books to read, reflection sessions, and the best resources for leading better and growing faster in schools. Follow us at theschoolhouse302.com to join thousands of leaders who get our content each month. Send this to a friend.
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.
This episode was brought to you by GhostBed, a family-owned business of sleep experts with 20+ years of experience. With 30K+ 5-star reviews, you can’t go wrong with GhostBed. Their mattresses are handcrafted, and they come with a 101-night-at-home-sleep trial. For a limited time, you can get 30% by using our code — SH302 — at checkout. And, even if you tell someone about GhostBed, you can earn a $100 referral reward. Go to Ghostbed.com today and use SH302 at checkout.
This is TheSchoolHouse302’s monthly #review&reflect, wrapping up our focus on Creativity.Our review and reflect series embraces the powerful sentiment from Soren Kierkegaard: “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” Take time with this post as we take a deep dive into our leadership content so that you can develop the skills you need to lead better and grow faster.
Skills I need to develop for improved creativity…
This month we focused on creativity, and we introduced the topic through our low-level leadership series. We truly espouse the notion that finding “bright spots” and “soaring with your strengths” are keys to accessing and duplicating superior leadership qualities. However, there is tremendous value in identifying key behaviors that thwart a desired result as well. We often need to know what not to do first, before we can explore what to do.
We liken our low-level leadership series to that of the great vehicle app, Waze, which informs travelers of all kinds of potential obstacles and issues that lie ahead during a drive. By identifying the three surefire “waze” to crush creativity, we provide leaders a navigational tool to help them avoid common hazards.
Passing judgment, over-prescribing recommendations, and limiting risk-taking are all creativity crushers. An effective leader simply responds differently than using any of these three low-level methods. Rather than passing judgment, she supports her subordinates to gain a greater understanding. Instead of restricting thoughts and controlling situations, she collaborates and creates a space to think. Lastly, she rewards the people who are taking calculated and thoughtful risks to support the core of the vision.
If you find yourself thinking, “well, it really depends on the person,” then we encourage you to dive into the following great reads. Organizational cultures should not be situational, and organizational norms should not fluctuate based on individuals.
Great leaders are avid readers…
Review: In our #readthisseries we featured books that highlight real people who we can emulate and real wisdom for the courage we need to succeed as leaders.
Our second recommendation is from Eric Sheninger and Trish Rubin,BrandED: Tell your story, build relationships, and empower learning.This is a terrific book for school leaders looking to brand their school or district and truly bring their story to life. It offers practical yet creative advice.
Our final recommendation comes from Sir Ken Robinson,Creative schools: Revolutionizing education from the ground up.The bottom line is that Ken’s message challenges us as educators. Only read this book if you are serious about change, creativity, and alternative to the current system of schooling.
You can’t miss our #readthisseries on 3 books you need to read now.
Who should I follow…
What does an expert have to say about creativity? If you want to dig even deeper into the mind of a creative thinker, you’ll want to listen to our #onethingseries this month, which featured creativity expert and author of Steal Like an Artist, Austin Kleon. One simple but magical act you can do each day, according to Austin, is to take a walk. We champion this sentiment because it encourages the need to find our center, to find “me” time, to enjoy nature, and to open the mind to creative thought.
Action: This month we asked you challenge yourself through TPA: A Framework for Growth Through Reflection
To learn more about supporting the people you lead, complete this #ThreeMinuteChallenge.
Please subscribe!Listen to the entire podcast on iTunes, One Thing Series, and please rate and like (it helps).That’s our #review&reflect for Creativity. 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.
It’s not because things are difficult that we dare not venture. It’s because we dare not venture that they are difficult. ~ Seneca
Organizations that drive innovation, and feed people’s creativity to think in new and challenging ways, reward risk-taking to create new boundaries. And although leaders often realize the importance of creating a culture of innovation and creativity, their day-to-day actions and reactions to the business side of things can communicate the contrary. For creativity to be a norm, people require time and space, which can quickly be compromised in any fast-paced, bottom-line driven environment. Instead of lifting the talented rebels (who were hired to catapult the company forward), leaders can put people in a position to protect the status quo, favoring basic levels of control and compliance.
It’s unfortunate, but creativity is more often stifled than sustained. Even in organizations that do well with innovation, creative minds can learn quickly that real risk-taking will only be questioned to death. Unless leaders are truly willing to support and reward risk-takers, most people will succumb to conventional thinking. In most cultures, the risk, then, becomes in taking risks versus the other way around.
The problem is that without innovation and the freedom to explore, human capacity is diminished and workforce engagement is stemmed. No one enjoys working in a stale environment with the humdrum of tedium. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be this way. With the right focus on creativity, leaders can bring innovative ideas to the surface. It starts with a creativity framework for growth through reflection and change.
Challenge Yourself–TPA: A Framework for Growth Through Reflection
Think: When was the last time someone presented an idea that contradicted the current program of work? What is your general response to discord and objection? When someone does take a risk, do you admonish, ignore, or reward it? If you want others to stick their necks out for the sake of doing things differently, you have to do the same.
Plan: Pick one initiative, activity, or program that needs new life breathed into it. Assemble a team of people and push their thinking to make improvements. Then, support the ideas they generate. Being supportive of new ideas is the way that leaders model their expectations for creativity, not necessarily by having new ideas themselves.
Act: Be sure to reward risk-taking by being vocal and supportive of the people who push the existing conditions. You cannot just “allow” creative people to exist, they need explicit support. Next time someone has a new idea, use public praise to back them up.
Stay tuned for more challenges, reflection questions, leadership models, podcasts, and more by following theschoolhouse302.com. It’s our job to curate, synthesize, and communicate so that you can lead better and grow faster. In a world plagued by nothing but noise, we help you by getting to simple.
TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.
Don’t miss this vblog on books you need to read to lead better and grow faster. We recommend three titles that are must-reads on the topic of creativity (for yourself and your organization). You can find our catalog of great leadership books at theschoolhouse302.com — click on #readthisseries.
Doing a book study with your team? Check out Passionate Leadership. We would love to hear what you think…connect with us on Twitter. Buy 10 copies, and we’ll join you for a book-talk via Zoom.
Claim Your FREE Copy to Our Praise Practice- Practical Praise Giving Tips for Principals
Learn how you can give practical praise each day as you lead your school to develop a better and more positive culture through this complimentary eBook we use in our workshops to help principals all over the nation and subscribe for more resources like this one delivered to your inbox.
Congratulations on claiming your copy - you may download it here: https://theschoolhouse302.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Technical-Tip-Praise-Practice-A-Model-for-Specific-Praise.pdf
