Ms. B’s Thoughts

This is a reflection on my class for Dr. June Schaefer, PYTD The Adult Learner.  We met on a chilly Saturday in January, the 24th to be exact.  I am continuing the practice of posting my reflections here after I email them to Dr. Schaefer.  Writing is writing afterall…and it keeps me blogging!   Too lazy to add any links tonight…maybe I’ll come back to it…or maybe not!

Returning to the cohort group this weekend was exciting.  It was fun to see the new faces added to our group and reconnect with those from the previous semester.  As a learner, I value the social connections, community we are building and the diverse experiences of each member of this cohort.  The “conditions” in which we each learn are different, yet as veteran educators, we understand the importance of pushing ourselves outside of our comfort zones.  Since the end of class on Saturday, I have had several email exchanges with classmates communicating about email lists, the wikispace and our overall learning goals.  It is comforting to work with a group of people open to change and willing to try new things.

I enjoyed the model of learning that took place during our class time. Taking time to really get into the heart of the book while in a small group was meaningful.  Much of our conversation circled around learners in education; teachers as learners, but we found ourselves trying to make connections outside of education.  What would adult learning look like in the business world, industry, government?  Teachers as learners are important to understand, but as administrators you also have to work with support staff, secretaries, janitors, maintenance and coaches who may not be teachers.  Sometimes their learning conditions will vary greatly from a traditional “teacher learner”.  It was interesting to have these discussions.

I felt rushed through the day.  I wanted to stop more, reflect more, but when we are together it seems as though we always have so much to “get through”.  What a challenge it is to put together a program across such a great geographical span!  Hats off, June, for rising to this challenge.  At times, I crave a more traditional setting. Yet understand the fact that this is the reality we must work with.  I hope that we can continue to work together to improve communications both during and outside of class.  I’m convinced that taking some time to learn the technologies involved will help us improve communications for the remainder of this cohort program.  It is a worthwhile investment.

One aspect of learning that we discussed in our small group was the difference between theory and practice and the roles each play in teaching and learning.  Theory is the idea of how it is supposed to work, while practice is how it actually functions.  As a special education teacher, this is my world.  In theory, students have a set area of needs, we write goals, work on them, they make progress and achieve their goals.  In practice, that isn’t always the case; however without the theory, we wouldn’t be able to even attempt the practice, thus never even having a remote possibility of achieving any goals.  The question arose: Why should we even care about theory? I believe it is the foundation of learning the practice of your trade.  It is why as preservice teachers we learn about educational philosophy, learning theories and child development.  Without the big picture, we cannot begin to build the puzzle; the pieces would be randomly placed and the picture could remain undefined.

Looking forward, the creation of a professional development program is an exciting task.  I think that the lack of planning that goes into the theory of professional development in schools results in a practice that is looked upon by teachers in a negative way.  It was interesting that so many people referenced the Writing Project as a good model of professional development.  I was doing a search the other day for positive professional development models and the Writing Project model was referenced in several blogs.  The essential elements of community building, having a strong mission, a clear vision and structured protocol all contribute to the success of the model.  Much of our plan in our group will be focused and adapted from things learned through our experiences with the Upper Peninsula Writing Project.  It is interesting to think about the entire project as a whole and how they have successfully replicated the model across the nation.  I love listening to Suzanne tell the story of how Jim Gray came to Marquette when the UPWP was rebirthed and kept insisting over and over again to “do what he said!” Essentially he was telling her to follow the protocol, even though at that time he didn’t use that terminology.  “It works! You’ll see.” He told her repeatedly.  Learning through the study of best practices.  Learn from those who have experienced success, repeatedly.  That’s a good lesson.

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ED630
Advanced Educational Leadership
Dr. Dennis Stanek
The Toy Box Inside Steve’s Brain

Sometimes you find yourself at a place in the universe where everything is aligned just perfectly.  You stumble upon information you didn’t realized existed.  Opportunities present themselves at just the perfect moment.  A speaker, a book, a conversation, a conference, a class–all center around central topics and a theme is born.  That was my life in the month of September.

The two books I read, Toy Box Leadership and Inside Steve’s Brain , both focused on central themes of design, human connections and user experience.  Before this class started, I read Daniel Pink’s A Whole New Mind and was also able to attend his speaking engagement on  campus.  One of his main themes was design and ingenuity.  He also stressed human connections, the ability to see the big picture and business’ ability to do something more for their customer.  So I found myself reading three amazing books within a short time period, seeing and meeting the author in person and participating in class discussions about the future of education and just what it takes to be an efficient and effective leader.  All of this weaved together to practically put my brain on overload.  I was able to see things differently and make connections among the text that reinforced my beliefs.  Then I got an opportunity to learn at one of the leading companies of the 21st century–Google.  All of this within weeks of reading these books, studying the history of great companies and exploring leadership possibilities.  Those weeks–were amazing and I felt a surge of knowledge and understanding within the core of my brain.

Inside Steve’s Brain, by Leander Kahney, is a biography of a great visionary.  Steve Jobs, Apple Corporation’s CEO,  has had (and continues to have) the innate ability to predict the future–especially when it comes to the types of technology the average person will buy, use and enjoy.  Kahney also wrote The Cult of Mac, which happens to be one of my favorite books.  In full disclosure, I am a Mac addict and find the whole company intriguing.  Even before I read this book, I was constantly amazed at how Mac products captivate a cult-like following.  It is even more apparent and understandable after reading this book.  Steve Jobs is a leader.  His strategies are, at times, unorthodox, but the bottom line is he gets results.

In the book Toy Box Leadership , Ron Hunter and Michael E. Waddell, Jr. write of not gluing your LEGOS together, that anticipating the future and that change it sure to occur.  They speak of pulling with courage and vision that allows your company to grow.  “Until a communicator with a passionate vision challenges us to do something great together, many times we struggle to find a meaningful purpose.” (Hunter, Waddell, Jr., 2008) They talk about aspirations, how to encourage people around you to reach out further, farther than they have before.  Good leaders tell their staff what they can achieve, then they recognize their accomplishments at steps along the way.  Steve Jobs does this at Apple.  He has courage and is a risk taker.  He has a vision that allows him to lead a company that develops and designs things we didn’t even know we needed and now seemingly can’t live without.

Jobs has been called the Walt Disney of this era.  He took a small company called Pixar and made it one of the most profitable movie studios in the world.  He is able to pull the best, most creative and talented people together to make magic.  He has an innate ability to find the very best person for the job.  He is a task master who uses artful delegation.  Hunter and Waddell would use the analogy of Little Green Army men and say that the success is in the setup.  The idea of a sandbox and development of strategy, understanding who goes where, how things get done, who does it and the constant reassessment of the plan in relation to progress are strategies from Toy Box that Steve has inside his brain for sure.  Stories of harsh treatment of people and employee firing in elevators are told like urban legends.  However few have actually been found to have any validity.  Steve Jobs understands that in order for a business to be successful, you need to have the right people doing the right job–and most of all they have to do it! Kahney writes of Jobs ability to “face hard decisions head on”.  Jobs has the ability to say no when needed and understands that his job is to focus on what he is good at–and delegate the rest. When he was faced with rebuilding Apple in the late 90’s, he had to strip the company down to just a few products.  Their line, at the time, included printers, monitors and peripheral equipment.  He wanted to be really good at developing just a small amount of things.  Spreading the company too thin had proved to be unhealthy for Apple.

Hunter and Waddell use Weebles as a symbol for persistence.  This is definitely a characteristic of Steve Jobs.  Apple was almost dead.  Steve Jobs successfully administered CPR and now it is one of the most successful companies of the 21st century.  Steve Jobs also surrounds himself with experienced mentors.  He doesn’t seek it out in terms of direct advice, but studies great visionaries. He has almost a “mystical reverence” for innovative people.  He speaks of meeting with Dr. Edwin Land, the founder of Polaroid.  Their meeting was profound.  Dr. Land said that he always new the Polaroid camera existed, that he could see it as if it were real and sitting right in front of him and that it was his job to make it become reality.  He could see it before it was there.  Steve Jobs related to this in that he felt the same way about the Macintosh.  “It was as if it always existed.” Both Jobs and Land, Kahney writes, had the ability to not invent products, but discover them.

Steve Jobs is without a doubt one of the mostinnovative leaders of the modern age.  His focus is always on the user experience and his stated goal from the beginning was to “create easy-to-use technology for the widest possible audience.  Elitism, perfectionism, passion, despotism, inventive-spirit, and total control have helped Steve Jobs in the phoenix-like rebirth of Apple.  This glimpse inside the company provides a good balance between the factual and the fictitious stories of legend.  It was the perfect book to read after Toy Box Leadership as I believe that the spirit of play is what sparked the desire to create, develop and invent within Steve Jobs.

ED630: Advanced Educational Leadership
Dr. Dennis Stanek
Sara R. Beauchamp
As my five year old son entered school this fall, I was apprehensive.  He has a voracious curiosity and thirst for learning, yet somehow I knew he would not enjoy the traditional school setting.  His favorite thing to do is to build.  Creating new things from seemingly random objects is a task he can do for hours.  We have a recycle art box in our dining room.  Empty juice, butter, sour cream and yogurt containers sit waiting to be turned into doll house hot tubs, rocket boosters and robot feet. Cake mix, macaroni, and cereal boxes become sky scrapers, foundations and homes for Polly Pockets.  Using a glue gun and his imagination, he creates worlds and new inventions. Through play he is developing skills that will allow him to take the linear, organizational, sequential skills learned through traditional academia and combine them with the ability to see the big picture.  It has been no secret in the world of education that children learn best through play.  It is through play that we can engage them in the learning process.  It is our hook. In Toy Box Leadership, Ron Hunter, Jr.  and Michael E. Waddell take that concept one step further and take a look at how the seemingly simple toys of our childhood teach lessons that extend beyond play.  They guide us through the chapters allowing us to revisit the toys that allowed us the freedom to be creative, to problem solve, and build dreams.
Many of the concepts discussed in this book have always been core driving principles in my life.  The idea of building relationships, like in the LEGO chapter is one that is most recognizable through my work with the Upper Peninsula Writing Project.  It is a core belief of the National Writing Project that in order to teach writing in your classroom, you must first develop a writing community.  This sense of community allows writers to feel safe, secure and willing to open up.  Writing is a very personal exercise and it takes time to develop the trust to share it with others.  Good writers understand that it is only through sharing, collaboration and feedback that they can become better writers.  But first it starts with relationships, connections.  Three components of the LEGO concept that gave me a “light bulb” moment were the analogies of the misplaced, forced, isolated and unorganized bricks.  When building communities, it is important that everyone is where they need to be.  That they want to participate and that they feel needed.  Organization of the people you have in your company (or school) is critical to the big picture. Waddell suggest that we all understand that a single out of place brick can ruin an entire castle.  Leaders have to pay attention to these concepts.
Change does not just happen.  It takes leaders with vision.  Vision is the foundation for all change, all innovation.  The analogy of the Slinky Dog is brilliant.  People with vision are crucial to education.  It is so important in our field because things are always changing, moving, and growing.  The needs of our children are changing, now, more than any other time in the history of education.  If we don’t have leaders with vision, we will not grow as an institution.  If your principal or superintendent believes that it is sufficient to “always do what you have always done”, our schools are in serious danger.  Having a vision does not mean jumping on every bandwagon that comes our way.  It is understanding the core foundations of education and carrying them into the 21st Century to best serve the needs of our children.  It is about us, not about them. For me, the most powerful lesson of the Slinky Dog is that it is a tricky job to pull and be patient.  If you pull too quickly and get too far from the followers, then you are not a leader.  You are just a person out in front all alone.  As with the Slinky Dog if you pull too fast and too far, you will destroy the coils, the connections within the group.  The trick, Hunter says, is to pull and be patient.  Imagine the Slinky Dog for a moment.  Picture the physics of how the toy operates.  When you pull the dog along, the front gets out in front, then the back catches up, propelling the front forward again.  These bursts allow for growth within your organization.
Persistence.  Falling down is not the problem; it is what happens when you are laying on the floor.  Do you lie there and wait for someone to come along?  “Weebles wobble, but they don’t fall down” is a very recognizable advertising slogan from the 1970’s.  The truth is, they do fall down.  They just don’t stay there.  The power of positive thinking is a wondrous thing.  It enables your mind to think differently, changing your heart rate, your blood pressure and your overall feelings of worth.   Failure is the world’s best way to learn.  This is a good trait to possess if you are in a leadership role.  You will be faced with many challenges and ultimately fail at some of them.  If you are persistent and learn from your failures, you will be able to achieve all you are working towards.
Hunter and Waddell do a delightful job of organizing solid leadership principals in an easy to read format that makes us look at things from a different point of view.  The margins of my book are filled with notes and many key phrases are highlighted.  To me–that is a sign of a good read.  I took away concrete ideas and revisited ones that solidified my current philosophies.  This could easily be a companion book for Fulgrum’s Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. The roots of human behavior are formed at such an early age.  Toys allow us to openly express ourselves in these early stages.  Leaders of every style should pick this book up and keep it close to their desks,  along side some of the very toys discussed in the book, to serve as a reminder to connect with people, be creative, stay true to their beliefs, strive for efficiency, pull, then be patient and get back up after they have fallen.

ED640
Reflection 9/20/2008
Sara R. Van Abel

When I was a senior in high school almost (GASP!) 20 years ago, I was almost completely obsessed with American politics.  My best friend Jen and I had two notebooks we wrote in continuously.  Amongst the doodle of our latest loves and the typical school girl gossip was the serious discussion of issues and policies pertinent to the presidential election and our great country.  (Fall 1988).  This stemmed from serious Equal Rights Amendment discussion and reports on the suffrage movement written in our 6th grade curly cursive.  We were passionate.  We held strong views and were vocal in our pursuits to make our causes known.  Over the last twenty years, my passion has ebbed and flowed.  At times I am intent on knowing all I can (Thanks, TimRussert !) and then at other times, it fades, the stress of motherhood and life turn my passion to apathy.  Today an old passion merged with a strong familiar steady one.  Politics and education.
Although short in time, this semester has already provided me with a glimmer of light on a path I didn’t know existed.  I thought it was there, but wasn’t sure how all of the footprints and the ruts fit together to show me the way.  It is all coming together.  In our first meeting and as outlined in my first reflection, I felt the light bulb brighten with the new found acknowledgment as to the importance of school policy.  Now this week–dust off that old passion for politics and combine it with my vision and passion for change in our schools and ZOWIE! I am seeing a path laid out before me I haven’t seen before.  Bob Nardi did a fantastic job of highlighting the importance of “knowing your universe”. I love this concept.  It makes perfect sense.  I have been living in a narrow universe for far too long.  Room 120 belongs to the basement which is housed in Negaunee High School which is part of the Negaunee School District which is in Marquette County, which has ties to MARESA, which is connected to the State of Michigan where much, much, much of the policy is decided.  The state of Michigan is one of 50 members in the great United State, where even more of the policy is determined.  I am a teacher.  First committed to the children who walk through my door.  But I am more.  I am a member of the special education staff, the high school staff, the district staff.  I belong to a larger group of teachers, those that teach in Marquette County.  We have a vested interest.  Then the county becomes the Upper Peninsula, the Upper Peninsula becomes the state and the state our country.   And then when you see the big picture, I am a teacher in the world.  One of many, millions that believe in the power of education and that each and every day, the decisions we make impact human lives.Hmmm…how can change truly be implemented?  Where does it happen and how best can we impact the policy and standards that directly affect students in our classrooms?  We need to know our universe. Understand the system in which you work.  This is power.  Knowledge of the system, understanding how it all works together gives you an glimpse behind the curtain and with that comes the confidence, the knowledge to impact greater change.

“When things are bad; people can only see them getting worse. When things are good; people can only see them getting better.” –quote shared from BobNardi during our class today.

I believe Bob when he said that good times are ahead.  I think that along with the ability to have a vision, the ability to lead, the motivation it takes to be a good leader, we need to have a positive outlook on the future of education.  I need to believe that we are going to figure this all out.  I was reading once about shifts that have occurred in our history.  The different eras that people have had to adjust through–the one constant that has held strong is education.  That in times of great shift, the people look to the educational systems for guidance.  The one difference right now that poses an enormous challenge is that the change itself is occurring within the educational system.  It is probably, now, more important than ever to be involved at a state and national level in the conversation on educational change.

“Remember that your cause, is not necessarily everyone’s cause.”

Yet another quote from Bob Nardi shared during his visit.  This is one I need to post above my desk.  I often approach things in a “head on, straight ahead,  get out of my way, listen to me” kind of manner.  Keeping that big picture in your view and realizing that everyone has their own passions that are equally important is so very crucial to maintaining a positive environment in educational leadership.

It all boils down to keeping your eyes, your mind and your heart open to all that is going on in our world.  Trusting that you are doing the right thing for children.  Our communities are putting their faith in us.  They believe that we are going to do what is best.  Each and every day they entrust public education with the very thing that matters most to them in this world: their children.  We cannot misuse that trust.  Each and every teacher, regardless of their position in the school, must do their best to participate in ongoing sustainable professional development.  We must do our best to do as Mr. Nardi said: Be involved, understand the system, be prepared to take action, see the world from a global perspective and work with our legislatures.  Teachers should be the prime example for the importance of life-long learning.

ED640
Interview with Mr. Jim Derocher
Superintendent of Negaunee Public Schools
Sara VanAbel
September 2008

Mr. Derocher was kind enough to sit and discuss school policy and procedures with my colleague Abby Standerford and I for approximately 30 minutes one afternoon.  It is interesting, as well as enlightening, to focus on an aspect of teaching I took for granted.  Mr. Derocher was well informed and confident in his answers.  It was easy to see he has a deep understanding of the policy and procedures set forth in the Negaunee District.  The following narrative provides answers to specific questions, addtional information he offered as well as my reflections upon the experience.

Questions:

1.  How were the policies for your district developed?
Our school board works with NEOLA, a company that specializes in board policy, school by-laws and administrative guidelines.  He said that when he first started in administration, there was a time when they actually wrote policy, had it approved by lawyers, etc.  With all of the changes in school law, the liability schools face, they now rely solely on NEOLA and their group of lawyers to help them maintain policy standards.

2.  How frequently are they reviewd for potential revisions?  How are updates communited within the organization?
Mr. Derocher said that everything is in continous reviewing.  They recieve frequent updates as laws change, as court cases are held, and as the times change, wording, addtions and subractions to the policy occur.  He actually communicates with NEOLA, receives the changes then presents them to the board for review.

3.  How do the adminstrators differentiate between policies, by-laws and administrative guidelines?
He described it as the board sets or adopts policy, the by-laws help describe or define the policy and then the administrative guidelines are written by the supertindent as to how the board policy is going to be implemented.

4.  What other information was shared regarding the implementation of these policies, by-laws and administrative guidelines?
Mr. Derocher shared with us information regarding a current look at policy in regards to food allergies.  He spent time with NEOLA and did his own research looking into how other districts are handling the rapid increase in potentially life-threatening food allergies.  Then he presented the information to the school board, worked with the staff at the elementary building, and developed a plan with our school nurse and the parents of the children in question.  It was determined that we would not have peanut-free buildings.  That we would encourage parents not to bring nut products into the buildings.  He stressed that there was no change in board policy.  The policy is to work with parents of students with special dietary needs to develop a plan that is safe for all students.  It is a plan.  Not a change in policy.

Reflection:

When I first stumbled upon the thought of pursuing an advanced degree, I never gave a minute of thought to the actual topics of the classes I would be taking.  Educational leadership.  Simple, right?  School Policy and Governance.  I really never thought about the importance of school policy.  It was there.  It annoyed me at times and I was thankful for it at other moments.  I have always been that squeaky wheel.  An advocate for staying current, always learning and looking at ways to improve our educational systems.  After speaking with Mr. Derocher and listening to Dr. Schafer tell stories of the great educational change experienced in special education I realized that the way to solid sustainable change wasn’t through the grass roots efforts of my classroom door-to classroom door campaign, but through change in policy.  If I could help people see that a change in policy was necessary.  That change would occur.  district wide.  It is still important to collaborate and communicate with colleagues as you all work towards fine tuning the educational system to meet the needs of the every changing clientel.  I believe this.  But this method is so often met with skepticism and with apathy, that I often find myself frustrated.              
Teachers come together with a myriad of ideals, skills, energy, passion and motivation.  We don’t always all see the big picture or share the same goals.  Change is difficult in a culture that has maintained virtually the same status quo for the last 100 years.  Add to that the fact that teachers are constantly being pressured to increase student performance, to add huge chunks of information and skills to their curriculum and to meet the ever changing needs of students challenged by the changes in our society.  It is no wonder many of them feel hopeless about the future of schools and are content to always do what they have always done. It is enough to gather their paychecks and go home to their families.
Sometimes those of us who are able to see the big picture–need to lead.  There needs to be changes that occur on a grand scale.  Those that affect the big picture–that allow that very picture to come into a clear focus.  It is through changes in policy that we can get most (if not all) of us looking through the same lens, working toward the same goals and providing a clear, efficient and meaningful education for all students.  That’s part of what I am starting to realize.  It is all coming into focus for me.  Listening to Dr. Schafer speak about the her history of being champion for progress, the vision we share for all learners, the ability to see, sometimes what is unclear to others–that has made me think differently about school policy.  And I am motivated to learn more.