School Culture: A Mindset. (part 1)

One of the things that I have been so dissatisfied with this year is our building culture.  Once I identify any problem, I find it very hard to let that problem escape from my mind without having developed and/or acted upon a solution.  My latest discovery has always been on my mind, but it has continued to become clearer and clearer with each passing day and each conversation that I have with students at our school. 

It sure isn’t groundbreaking whatsoever, but what I have realized is that all of my solutions I’ve tried or thought of over the past few months will never matter unless our students begin to view school as an opportunity for themselves, not as a chore they must do to make a teacher happy.  Our culture reflects their current attitude of school as an obligation, not as an opportunity (there are definitely bright spots, don’t get me wrong, but a few bright spots aren’t enough).

I know what you’re thinking… “how is this knucklehead just now realizing this?”  Well, I’m not, I really believe it is something that every educator already knows, but I believe it is a message that gets lost as students maneuver through their day, teachers rush to complete the curriculum, parents go off to work and cart their kids around to events, and administrators attempt to deal with all of the different challenges that present themselves on a daily basis.  School is so packed with requirements and standards and objectives and __(insert here)______ that I believe we forget sometimes to stop and take a look around and remember why we are where we are. 

Every so often I’ll randomly as a student something to the tune of, “why are you here or what do you come to school for?”  Rarely, if ever, do I get a response of “for me.”

I truly believe that this is a message that needs to begin with each staff member.  If there is ever a moment in your lesson where you realize these kids are doing something for you, not for themselves, STOP!!!  Don’t go any further until you help the students realize the benefit of the lesson for them.  Help them apply your message to their lives, and do not move on until the students know that they are learning or working for themselves, not for you.  And it cannot just be the teachers, it is a message that needs to be echoed everywhere; the office, the halls, the bus, at home. 

When students come to school equipped with the mindset that school is for them, learning will exponentially increase, and the culture will be one of excitement and opportunity, not one of lethargy and obligation. 

As I wrote this I was reminded of a quote from the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off: 

“Life moves pretty fast.  If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

If we don’t stop, look around, and be certain our students have the proper mindset, they’ll miss everything we have to say, and more importantly, they’ll miss the opportunity to invest in themselves for four of the best years of their lives. 

Take care,

Coach Mo

Signs Continued

About a week and half ago, I wrote a post that began by mentioning that when you are consciously aware of something you start to notice it everywhere (click here to read the post).  Since writing that post and receiving tons of great feedback from colleagues and my PLN on twitter, it is almost eerie how many additional signs pop up that I hadn’t noticed even when I was aware that I had begun noticing.

(If that last sentence didn’t make sense, read it again slowly, insert the correct commas, try to think the way I was thinking… I don’t know, it made sense to me)

Anyway, this blog has been about sharing experiences and realizations that I have come across during my semester of shifting the way I think about and treat my professional duties.  This past week I read The Radical Leap by Steve Farber.  It is probably the best book I have ever read.  It touched me deeply because it spoke right to me, and was overwhelmingly relevant to my current situation in which I am going out on a limb to try something new that I firmly believe is the correct way to go about my craft.  It is a book about “extreme leadership,” but because I was looking for the signs, it spoke right to my profession and right to the educational system. 

Another sign popped up just today as my colleague Jim Bibler related a quote that he just read in Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers to our methods of assessing students in school.  Now, I’ve read Outliers, and it too is one of my all-time favorites.  But, I read it three years ago and wasn’t looking for the signs of correlation to education at the time.  I’d imagine that if I read it again I’d be re-energized the same way I was when I read The Radical Leap.  I wonder if many of the books that I’ve read would yield the same result? 

This is precisely why I hope other teachers read my blog.  I hope that teachers not only take away shared experiences, ideas, and motivation to reflect, but an awareness of the signs that they see everyday, yet have no idea they are seeing.  

Side note:  Anyone who has read The Radical Leap would be disappointed if I failed to mention the connection of “the signs.”  In the book, a character named Smitty tells the author about being aware of the signs around you, and challenges him to look deeper into things to find the true meaning. 

Back to the post.  So today I picked up the next book on my reading list from the local library.  Linchpin, by Seth Godin, was recommended to me by a good friend, and I was so excited to dive into it that as my wife and I drove home, I had her read the synopsis to me. 

Think about the theme of this blog post, then read the synopsis of Linchpin that I have copied below….

In bestsellers such as Purple Cow and Tribes, Seth Godin taught readers how to make remarkable products and spread powerful ideas. But this book is different. It's about you - your choices, your future, and your potential to make a huge difference in whatever field you choose.

There used to be two teams in every workplace: management and labor. Now there's a third team, the linchpins. These people invent, lead (regardless of title), connect others, make things happen, and create order out of chaos. They figure out what to do when there's no rule book. They delight and challenge their customers and peers. They love their work, pour their best selves into it, and turn each day into a kind of art.

Linchpins are the essential building blocks of great organizations. Like the small piece of hardware that keeps a wheel from falling off its axle, they may not be famous but they're indispensable. And in today's world, they get the best jobs and the most freedom.

Have you ever found a shortcut that others missed? Seen a new way to resolve a conflict? Made a connection with someone others couldn't reach? Even once? Then you have what it takes to become indispensable, by overcoming the resistance that holds people back. Linchpin will show you how to join the likes of...

*Keith Johnson, who scours flea markets across the country to fill Anthropologie stores with unique pieces.

*Marissa Mayer, who keeps Google focused on the things that really matter.

*Jason Zimdars, a graphic designer who got his dream job at 37signals without a résumé.

*David, who works at Dean and Deluca coffeeshop in New York. He sees every customer interaction as a chance to give a gift and is cherished in return.

As Godin writes, "Every day I meet people who have so much to give but have been bullied enough or frightened enough to hold it back. It's time to stop complying with the system and draw your own map. You have brilliance in you, your contribution is essential, and the art you create is precious. Only you can do it, and you must."

… Another sign!  The mindset that I have adopted allows me to implement new methods into my classroom and is strengthened by these signs on a daily basis. I’ve only read the synopsis, and I absolutely cannot wait to read this book!

Take care,

Coach Mo

Selection Sunday & The Model for Grading

Outside of Thanksgiving Day, I could make the argument that Selection Sunday is my favorite day of the year.  I can remember as a young sports lover sitting to watch the selection show and then going back to my computer, waiting for the modem to dial, waiting some more, clicking on the internet icon, waiting, finding the website, waiting, running my picks through my head as I’m waiting, refreshing, waiting, and finally finding the bracket to print off. 

Can you imagine having to do that in 2012?  The bracket will be on twitter in almost real time, and hundreds of thousands of people will have filled out their bracket before 15-year-old Me would have even been on the website.  It’s amazing to think about those ‘struggles’ we used to have (I know, I know, I can picture a bunch of my elders rolling their eyes reminiscing about the days they had to walk uphill both ways to retrieve the bracket from the local paper the next morning, in 5 feet of blowing snow).

(Without coats)

Anyway, Selection Sunday brings unparalleled excitement.  I repeat the phrase “the journey is greater than the inn” on a regular basis.  68 teams, upon hearing their name, begin a mental journey crafting their way through their region.  Fans everywhere print out their brackets, fill them out, print out more, fill them out, and then stand by the water cooler for three days discussing who they’ve got in the final four.  What is better than dreaming about going to the final four or winning the office pool? 

Those three days by the water cooler and some huge upsets are what it is all about.  You remember all of the upsets you’ve watched over the years, but each year I always find myself saying “there used to be far more upsets” when there really weren’t.  The games, more often than not, play out as expected, and then because the final four is played in a huge dome stadium with very different sight lines, the end result is a sloppy, low-scoring brand of basketball. 

The funny thing is, as the tournament rarely meets the level of expectations, we continue to come back for more each year.  We continue to pump this up as the greatest thing, and we sit down to watch the selection show to obtain that same level of excitement as the year before.  We all want the process of that journey of hope, and talk, and strategy, and…

How is this like school?  Well, it isn’t… yet.  When I sat down to compare Selection Sunday to school I thought about my class and grading.  My philosophy on grading is gaining steam with each and every day I enter my classroom.  I am grading the students on the process, not their final product.  I know it sounds odd, but after having this policy in place for 6 weeks, I get more and more upset when I hear students talk about how they are graded in other classes.  I really think our grading system as a whole needs a makeover because our students no longer take any meaning away from the grades that they receive and I don’t believe the grades they receive accurately represent their true knowledge and understanding. 

Here is my analogy of my grading system as it relates to Selection Sunday… (for the sake of the analogy, nutrition will be the unit we are working on)

- Sunday night bracket release = Introductory lessons to nutrition

- Bracket printout = unit objectives students must meet from nutrition standards

- Researching teams, listening to experts = research of topic within nutrition

- Filling out pool entry = Individual learning plan (self-made guide to project steps)c

- Water cooler talk = 1.  expressing what you have learned in a meeting with the teacher to satisfy unit objectives.  2.  Collaborating with peers/ group

- Editing pool entry = taking teacher or peer feedback and furthering research, development of project based around a nutrition topic

- Submission of final pool entry = an expression of what you know and have learned, accompanied by an explanation of “why?”  Showing you’ve met the requirements.

- The tournament, watching the games = Student project, expressing knowledge

- Upsets = setbacks (not failure, learning and moving on, improving product)

- Picking the Cinderella = Going out on a limb, trying something new, obtaining a new 21^st Century skill

- The Final Four = Submitting project to the website (The big stage.  A chance to share with a huge authentic audience). 

I believe the grading should stop at the submission of the final entry.  The project shouldn’t be produced for a grade, but produced because it is something the student wants to do, is good at, and enjoys doing.  The project should be produced in order to educate others on what you’ve learned.  It should contain student voice, and should be completed without the pressure of meeting rubric guidelines.  The project should meet the student’s individual guidelines of excellence.  It should uncover the intrinsic motivation of the student to do the best they are capable of doing with the teacher nearby as a facilitator to keep the student on track and provide assistance. 

Teachers:  ask yourself what grading that final product or test actually tells you and the student?  If they knew it before, but made a mistake on a test, is that test really an accurate gauge?  Give feedback rather than grades once you know that they know the material.  And if you don’t know that they know, that is where your expertise as a professional comes in.  Help them, teach them, don’t test them.  Don’t accept a product less than the student is capable.  If it isn’t great, guide them to greatness by encouraging them to improve it, edit it, resubmit it, but don’t put a number on it that gives the student false closure. 

The base goal is for the student to learn the curriculum.  When they submit their bracket and have met the unit objectives the knowledge portion is over.  Take the knowledge and use it to develop 21^st Century skills.  Let the students explore, create, try, fail, and improve.  Don’t make it about grading, make it about learning.  Learning new skills that they will carry with them the rest of their lives.  An 80% should tell you that a student doesn’t know 20% of the material, not that they’ve earned a B. 

Grade the process, not the product.

Create Selection Sunday in your classrooms.  Create excitement, give students the framework (bracket), and help guide students to realizing their potential.  Make grading about the process and reasoning for picking a team, don’t penalize a student in a gradebook because Cinderella made an unlikely run.

Take care,

Coach Mo

The Signs are Everywhere (even within our students)

I find it fascinating that once you are consciously aware of something, all of the sudden you start noticing it everywhere.  You start to wonder, “where have I been?” or “is this just coincidence?” 

I’ve adjusted my classroom to manage a more project-based, student-centered, blended learning, (insert whichever 21^st century word here) type of model and every time I sign on to twitter I see someone blogging about how these models are the best, they are the future, etc, etc, etc..

Whether it is a world-renowned author, a high school administrator, or an elementary physical education teacher, great things are happening everywhere, and I am stunned at the fact that I thought I was entering untested waters, only to find that there is research everywhere, and articles of personal experience on countless blogs right on my twitter feed. 

My question the past few weeks has been how do we get students to see that this is the best way for them to learn and grow?  I thought students were mostly clueless, and that they were so trained out of creativity that we had to make them see that paving their own path in their individual educational journey is worthwhile.  That may still be the case, but now that I am looking for answers, I found some crucial evidence that has thrown me off the scent of students being clueless…

On Tuesday of this past week I had a conversation with a group of students about video games.  I prompted this conversation because I was interested in finding out more about the possibilities of creating video games as a class project, but I left out the class project part because if I even dared to enter education into the conversation, I knew I would have lost them at that moment. 

As this group of 4 young men argued back and forth about Call of Duty, Modern Warfare, PS3, Xbox, and everything else gaming, two things struck me:

1.  I’m way out of the loop!  I was never one for the adventure games, but I still knew all sorts of things about the systems.  I’m ancient (only 10 years removed from high school) when it comes to knowledge of the gaming arena.  Some of the things they talked about, I couldn’t even understand.  Here I made fun of people like me within the last decade.  What happened?

2.  A student said, “modding is the greatest thing to ever happen to video games!” 

Allow me to elaborate on point #2.  I’m not even sure if ‘modding’ is spelled right, but through inquiry I discovered that modding is the gaming word for customizing, or modifying a game.  All four students nearly scolded me for not knowing that anyone who knows how to write gaming code can go into the game and change just about anything they want to make it look or play however they want.  These four guys went on to talk about different codes they’ve learned to write and different changes to games they’ve seen and how cool it is that they can personalize things. 

STOP!!! (substitution please… education entering the game replacing video games)

How does this sound:  “modding is the greatest thing to ever happen to education!”

I’ve read countless articles in the past months that have said the new way of educating, the 21^st century education, is and will be about personalizing education for all students to actively learn what they want to learn under the guidance of the teacher. 

What I realized last Tuesday is that our students are aware that personalization is the coolest thing, we just have to find a way to get them to realize that it is OK to personalize their education just how they can personalize their video games.  Teachers must embrace the new wave of education, unlearn the styles that they were taught and have been teaching, and open the doors for the students to see the opportunities in front of them. 

Too often we blame the students and cannot understand why they do not succeed when we challenge them to think for themselves and try something new.  But, take a step back and you’ll see that they are only modeling the behavior that the majority of educators are presenting which is sticking to learned behaviors despite the overwhelming amount of push for the “modding” of our educational system and it’s classrooms. 

Educators, please don’t take this as me blaming my colleagues all across America.  But, take it as my attempt to make you consciously aware of these opportunities so that you see it everywhere you look and find the confidence within you to begin “modding.”

Take care,

Coach Mo