A partial leadership knowledge base and skill set . . .

My questions in the previous post didn't generate much discussion, only one comment, but I will continue to share my thinking about the importance of distributing leadership in our schools.

Our school board has blessed us with both early release and waiver days to support adult learning opportunities as we continue our Classroom 10 journey. We must ensure that we make good use of this time for teachers to understand what 21st century learning looks and sounds like in the classroom. We need to provide opportunities for staff to learn, observe, practice, and receive feedback and reflection time as they engage in this work.

Who plans and facilitates these learning opportunities? There are not enough administrators to perform this function because of the numbers of teams that form on any given day. I also don't believe that building level administrators are always best positioned for success in this work. They may not have the content knowledge or understanding of the learning targets that are necessary to support the adult learning.

Since there are not enough administrators, we must utilize the expertise and experience of teachers to support the collaborative learning of their colleagues. In our system, this is one of the primary functions of teacher leaders; planning for and facilitating these learning opportunities. We have experienced varying degrees of success in this work. Some of what we have learned is that these teachers need:

• Learning opportunities to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to support effective communication. Learning to stay in skillful discussion and dialogue and to avoid debate and polite discussion. Learning how to balance advocacy and inquiry, how to make themselves and others aware of their mental models and ladders of inference, and how to bring private thoughts into the room instead of the parking lot are essential for sustaining a focus on this work.
• They need to understand the stages of the change process because we are asking teachers to make significant changes to practice. Support over time is necessary to ensure that the changes sustain.
• They also need support in creating the lesson plan for these meetings that aligns short and long term goals with active processing strategies with adult learners. Facilitating adult learners is not easy and is not something that we learn in college.

In our system, we provide opportunities for teachers to acquire this knowledge and skill set and we have observed success when they do. We have also seen a lack of success in the absence of this knowledge and skill set. Though there are many other variables that influence this work, this foundational set of knowledge and skills is essential.

Even with this work, however, we still have teachers that are uncomfortable in these roles and do not want to be perceived as a leader by their colleagues. At a time when we need to have the highest levels of support we can achieve it is not always possible because of teachers who are unwilling to assume these leadership positions.

What gets in the way? What do they believe will happen if they do assume these roles? Is it about more work and added stress? Is it about what they perceive their colleagues are thinking and saying about them? What do we do to create cultures where it is expected and appreciated when those best positioned for these roles perform them? After all, isn't this what professional learning communities do; commit to doing what is necessary to support colleagues, seeking support wherever possible, and holding each other to high standards?

Distributing leadership . . .

Sunday evening has become one of those times that I have reserved for blogging, usually with the TV in the background. Tonight, Costas is interviewing Michael Phelps and his mother, a middle school principal in Baltimore. It is refreshing to hear the success story in their words and the respect and love that they have for each other.


A lot of potential blog topics have been swimming around in my mind as we approach the start of a new school year. We have a primary election on Tuesday with the State Superintendent of Instruction position on the ballot. This could become an interesting race as there are many in our profession upset with Terry who see Randy Dorn as a formidable and worthy opponent. I could share some thoughts about this race, but I usually stay away from politics.


This year in our state we will see schools and districts not meeting NCLB's adequate yearly progress in greater numbers. I know this is the situation for our school system. So, I could share some thoughts about this potential public relations issue.


Though either of these topics may be worthy of a blog post, I want to start a conversation about teacher leadership and why it is both so important and so difficult to achieve. I make no secret of my belief that we must distribute leadership throughout our system if we are going to realize our Classroom 10 goals. There are not enough administrators in any system to provide the direction and support over time that are necessary to develop and implement curriculum and instructional practices that place young people in situations to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for success in post high school learning and work.


Some questions to consider in no particular order:

• What are the attributes of successful teacher leaders?
• Who becomes a teacher leader?
• What do teacher leaders do?
• Why is it difficult to sometimes be a teacher leader?
• What knowledge and skills does one need to successfully perform the role of teacher leader?
• What support do teacher leaders need from administrators?
• Is being a teacher leader the same as performing administrative functions with out the pay?
• Is this just for teachers or should we consider the same support for leaders in other classifications in our system?

What other questions do you have as you think about the need for distributing leadership beyond those with the title and positional authority? I'll share more of my thinking on some of these questions in upcoming posts.

Thank you OLPC . . .

I learned of this article from the Times of London on Assorted Stuff. It is about the struggles that the One Lap Top Per Child (OLPC) initiative has had to overcome from Microsoft and Intel. Though I don't see us using the XO, the latest version of the OLPC computer, we have much to thank them for. It was their initial efforts to provide lap tops to the world's poorest children that began the proliferation of cheaper lap tops that we are now seeing come on line. At some point in time I do see us finding the lap top that works on our system, that provides the access our work demands, and that is priced in a range that allows us to significantly increase access for all students in our district.

Did you know that the OLPC is driven by the constructivist philosophy, the driver of our curriculum work? Negroponte was influenced by the work of Seymour Papert, the father of constructivist learning.

Thoughts from Desert Canyon

I'm sitting in our room at Desert Canyon with the Olympics on TV (women's beach volleyball) the hot tub right below me and my lap top in my lap. Can't get pay per view for my son to watch the UFC fights so he's trying you tube on the other lap top. We're having a great time, but I can't say the same for my golf game. Some good and some not so good, but god fun and beautiful views anyway.

I didn't do any blogging about our board or administrative retreats late last week and earlier this week. Both went very well. Our board is engaged in establishing priorities around Classroom 10 through our response to the Meteri study and through our technology plan. They are asking good questions that cause us to be reflective about our goals, time lines, and focus. They want to ensure that what we do is aligned with what we learned from Jukes and from our reading, that we find ways for students to use personal devices, and that it prepares young people for success after graduation. These are people with vision, commitment, and concern for our school system and for our community.

I will sum up my thoughts about our administrative team very simply. They are knowledgeable, skilled, and committed. I am privileged to have the opportunity to both support their learning and to learn from them.



I'd still like to know what you think about CORE 24 and the potential impacts on our students and on our school system.

Our state's answer CORE 24 . . .

Last week our state board voted to recommend CORE 24 to the legislature for implementation over a six year period. The changes include increasing graduation requirements from 19 credits to 24 credits with increases in math and science. Students will be choosing between three pathways each with different content requirements designed to make them ready for college, job training, and the workforce. Since there is also a significant price tag for these changes that must be included for it to become law, it should be an interesting 2009 legislative session. This, combined with any recommendations from the Basic Education Task Force on school funding may carry it beyond interesting.

Those organizations advocating for the math and science increases are celebrating as they believe these additional requirements will result in all students being better prepared for post high school learning and work. Will these changes lead to increases in the number of students who want to become engineers, one of the issues that seems to be a driver for the change? What are we not considering that may have negative consequences for students and for districts?

What are your thoughts about this recommendation?

It is not about what we are against, but what we are for . . .

I want to share this post from Chris Lehmann because he identifies one of the legacies of NCLB better than I could.

". . . Today, under NCLB, we have created the myth of the lazy teacher who, if only there was something to hold them accountable for the way they teach. The myth of that lazy teacher who could get students to achieve if only they worked harder is just that -- a myth. Are there bad, lazy teachers? Of course, but they are the vast, vast minority. Most teachers went into the profession because they wanted to make a difference. But our system is broken, and if you put good people in bad systems, the system will win more often than not. And as a result, we have lost the ability to negotiate the terms of our own profession."

It saddens me to know that this is what some people think of our teachers and that the only thing that we need to be better is more effort, time, and commitment. They simply do not understand that the shifts we are asking teachers to make will not be accomplished through more of the same. It requires opportunities to understand why we need to make changes in what students need to know and be able to do for post high school success. We must also find ways to support teachers in learning and observing new instructional strategies, in practicing them in classroom settings, and being provided with feedback and support over time. When we can do this, we can then begin to hold ourselves accountable for all students meeting standard.

Later in the post he makes this statement.

"It's not enough for educators to be against NCLB, we've got to be for something else."

He is talking about the need for a vision, a picture of a better place to be that truly does provide opportunities for success for all students and staff. A place where we can be proud of our efforts and where the community and greater society acknowledge teachers for the important work that they do. For us, that vision is captured in our Classroom 10. I believe that our journey has captured the essence of Lehman's post and will bring us to this better place.

Good responses lead to more questions . . .

The responses to my recent post have given me much to consider as I think about what I should say and what we should do on the all-district day. It makes me want to add more time so that I could include information about our Classroom 10 vision in some detail, share the journey we have been on for many years, and the importance of community in our work.

For some time now we have been engaged in the work of becoming professional learning communities at the building and system level. At its core, a PLC is a collaborative culture. I need to spend some time on this as well as on the need to expand this culture beyond our classroom walls. Have we engaged classified staff at the level necessary to understand and support Classroom 10? Does the community understand Classroom 10 and agree with this as the direction we should be taking to prepare their children for success beyond K-12? As we prepare for a spring 2009 bond measure, what should we be considering related to sustainability and the types of spaces that will support our academic journey? And again, what questions should I focus on for this wonderful opportunity with the majority of our staff in one place for the only time of the year?