Mile Markers

I recently returned from a trip to Boston. It's a journey of about one hundred seventy miles. A little over three hours by car, after accounting for any potential construction and traffic. The experience is not unlike the path we take in school when improvement is our destination. There's often unexpected construction and traffic before we reach our goal.

Beyond the technology that allows us to gauge our progress and project a time of arrival, there are other benchmarks that offer a perspective along the route. Many people may not recognize the mile markers that flank the median side of the highway as they whiz by these posts at regular intervals. These markers preceded the electronic devices many that motorists employ as guides, and they provide a more frequent indication of our progress than the large signs that dot the roadway and state distances until the next city. The markers reference each mile with a simple number that reflects

School improvement is an ongoing process that requires an enduring vision and unwavering commitment. There is a Chinese proverb that asserts, "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." One method of fueling progress on that path involves success by approximation - opportunities to identify and reward achievements that represent incremental steps toward the metrics defining the improvement goal. The leader must make genuine attempts to recognize and acknowledge performance, constructive changes in behavior, and persistence among engaged stakeholders. Small but meaningful ceremonies (pot-luck meals), notes (positive reinforcement), tokens (preferred parking for a week...) can serve to reinforce efforts and sustain the group's energy.

Shared Decision Making

Last Friday, January 13th, marked the initial meeting of the Molly Stark Shared Decision Making Team. The primary purpose of this group is to enrich our future by reflecting on the past and analyzing the present. Our goal remains to promote opportunities for the success of learners of all ages, at all stages.

There are two quotes that drive our pursuit - Winston Churchill's claim that, "Those who help build the house are least likely to destroy it." and "Power is the only thing that multiplies when it is divided." (author unknown)

Furthermore, Alex Pentland writes in his book, Social Physics: How Good Ideas Spread - the Lesson from a New Science, "It seems that the key to harvesting ideas that lead to great decisions is to learn from the successes and failures of others and to make sure that the opportunities for this sort of social learning are sufficiently diverse." (page 29)

With this in mind, we embarked on our with a team comprised of representatives of the following stakeholder groups: parents, support staff, teachers from all roles (special education, special areas, interventionists, and classroom) and the principal.

Parameters were outlined, informative materials were provided, group norms were proposed, expectations were expressed, and we marched forward. The first tasks of the team pose challenges - 1. re-imagine a master schedule that optimizes learning opportunities, 2. create a space-use plan that promotes a effective and efficient learning environment.

We're off and running...

Promise Keeper

As I watched the snow fall and carpet the ground one recent Sunday evening I found myself thinking of that famous Robert Frost poem, "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." Though the snow would eventually accumulate to the point that it produced hazardous conditions and an unexpected day off from school, it provided a beautiful picture as it draped a white shroud over the land.
Interestingly, Frost wrote the poem while living in nearby Shaftsbury, Vermont in 1922. Furthermore, Frost created this profound and enduring poem in just one sitting. Perhaps most unusual, Frost authored the poem in June, far removed from any vestige of snow.

What does this poem have to do with school, other than the fact we enjoyed a day at home because of the snow storm? Well, the poem emerged from a strong mental image rather than a concrete visual of falling snow. It shows the impact of a commitment to his craft and his ability to develop a personal vision powerful enough to pen one of the most memorable poems in American literature - a poem he wrote in the summer about a scene and setting that takes place in the winter. Finally, his last three lines evoke a dramatic pledge - "But I have promises to keep/And miles to go before I sleep/And miles to go before I sleep."
What better reminder of our calling as educators. We have promises to keep - a vow to promote success for all learners, at all ages and stages. And, while our burden often leaves us weary, we must sustain our progress with the same perseverance as Frost, when he ended the poem - "And miles to go before I sleep."

Social activist, Mary Harris Jones opined that "...education is a journey, not a destination." We are involved as a component in a continuous thread that brings form to the tapestry of civilization and supports its very existence. We have a professional responsibility to help build a better future by growing life-long learners. We are displaying our efforts toward that goal in multiple forms. Discipline referrals have decreased each month of the school year, which implies less time taken way from instruction to attend to inappropriate behaviors. Several grade level teams have constructed data walls in Math and/or ELA to offer a visual graphic to guide improvement. A review of template summaries of collaboration meetings reveals the teamwork necessary for us to stimulate increased performance among our learners. review and follow norms to begin the meetings. Keep the discussion and focus on path. End each collaboration meeting with the creation of the agenda for the next such meeting so we don't drift off and wander away from our purpose and direction.

Please read Frost's poem below.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

BY ROBERT FROST

Whose woods these are I think I know.  
His house is in the village though;  
He will not see me stopping here  
To watch his woods fill up with snow.  

My little horse must think it queer  
To stop without a farmhouse near  
Between the woods and frozen lake  
The darkest evening of the year.  

He gives his harness bells a shake  
To ask if there is some mistake.  
The only other sound’s the sweep  
Of easy wind and downy flake.  

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,  
But I have promises to keep,  
And miles to go before I sleep,  
And miles to go before I sleep.

School Improvement Tipping Points - Symptoms vs. Causes

There are few sights more perplexing than watching a dog unwittingly chasing it’s own tail. Around and around the dog races in a chase that, while often fruitless, is even a greater disappointment when the poor dog finally realizes that it only caught itself.

Sadly, many people find themselves in a similarly misguided endeavor when they spend energy and effort pursuing solutions by chasing symptoms instead of causes. This is true in school improvement efforts. But, before we examine school improvement, let's look at the notion of identifying tipping points and differences that make a difference.

Let’s take a look at an example of an ever-present issue of concern to many people everywhere – crime. In the 1970-1980’s New York City was a poster child for crime induced fears of mayhem, mugging, and murder. The obvious intuitive response and knee-jerk reaction would focus on decreasing crime by increasing the number of police on the streets as well as the penalties for criminals.

That wasn’t the answer, and the lack of police presence wasn’t the cause.

In his best-selling book, The Tipping Point, author Malcolm Gladwell explains the “Broken Window Theory” developed by criminologists James Q. Wilson and George Kelling (pages 140 – 151). The reduction in crime in New York City during the 1990’s was attributed in part to this proposal. The basis of this theory rests on the belief that crime is contagious and spreads like an epidemic if uncontrolled. But, how do you control it???

Wilson and Kelling suggested that crime emerges from disorder, and an environment that tolerates graffiti (as opposed to public street art) public disorder, aggressive panhandlers, and broken windows (hence the “broken window”) eventually suffers from an accumulated neglect that becomes inviting for would be criminals – “Minor, seemingly insignificant quality of life crimes were tipping points for violent crime.” (page 146).

Gladwell went further and advised that epidemics can be reversed by identifying and adjusting leverage points that tip the balance of factors in an equation. In the case of crime in New York City, it was borne of minor details in the environment, such as turnstile jumping (avoiding subway fares) aggressive squeegee men (washing car windshields of cars stuck in traffic and demanding payment) and assertive panhandlers… Once those concerns were addressed it changed the environment and the context of social behaviors.

In matters of analyzing and reforming the problems of public education, we are quick to label “obvious” factors (insufficient funding, arcane policies, lack of technology, poverty, apathetic parents, underpaid staff… and the list goes on) and just as quick to confuse symptoms and causes.    

What are the educational equivalents of fare beaters, squeegee men, panhandlers, and broken windows? What are the environmental factors and leverage points that fly beneath the radar of those searching for solutions to the obstacles for success in our public schools?

Molly Stark Elementary School has suffered from the burden of low performing achievement on state measures of accountability. One website that ranks public elementary schools has identified Molly Stark as the 172^nd school out of a total of 175 schools. The first response most would exercise likely addresses instruction, as in more time in Literacy and Math, new textbooks, more professional development, and replacing staff members perceived as incompetent.

That would be like adding more police and setting harsher forms of punishment for criminals in the case of our New York City example mentioned earlier. It makes sense, but not success.

Instead, I believe improvement will grow from the same staff, the same learners, the same budget, and the same policies that existed before I arrived this past July. And, let me make it clear, I am not the difference or the answer. Nor is the answer found in some silver bullet of a new series of textbooks, additional staff, expansive professional development or any other “off the rack” solution.

School improvement warrants a tailor fit. It requires a genuine commitment of a critical mass of staff members acting in concert in a cooperative organizational culture of distributive leadership, with the clarity of a credible and purposeful vision, based on an enduring mission of shared meaning, in pursuit of common, measurable goals.  In other words, most schools already possess what they need for precipitating improvement, it becomes a matter of providing the support and conditions and leadership for success, then getting out of the way of staff members once momentum builds.

It’s like the Wizard of Oz (mentioned in an earlier Blog post) when he deferred from magically granting Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Lion, and the Scarecrow, their wishes and encouraged them to discover that they already possessed what they were searching for – the Lion was courageous when fending off the flying monkeys; the Tin Man displayed his heart when he showed Dorothy compassion and care along the journey; the Scarecrow used his brain when he helped outwit their assailants; and Dorothy always had the means of returning to Kansas simply by clicking her ruby slippers.     

Maslow claimed that the self-actualized person was not someone with something added, but someone who had nothing taken away.

In summary, school improvement can be achieved by identifying the essential tipping points in the effort and observing the what, why, and how of Maslow and the Wizard of Oz.

Prepared and Ready Wins the Game

Throughout my career as a soccer player in high school, college, and beyond, and extending my view as a spectator, I have noticed something peculiar about goals tallied in certain time frames of a soccer game.

I have come across statisticians that have confirmed my perception. That is, there are a disproportionately higher rate of goals scored in the first and last five minutes of each half of a game. What does this mean? And, what does it have to do with education and instruction???

First, there are many possible reasons for this anomaly in soccer goals - and we will transfer that perspective to a school setting later in the Blog. 

However, one primary attribution points to preparation and readiness. Teams that are well prepared for the game, mentally as much as physically, and  focused at the sound of the opening whistle to start the game or second half, will have an advantage over an opponent who is prepared but not ready. In other words, teams at risk for winning may begin the contest with an objective and strategy, but aren't at peak alertness in the first minute.

That may account for the percentage of goals scored in the first five minutes, but what about the last five minutes of the half or game?

During that time, goals scored are largely a function of which team is yearning for a break at halftime as a refuge for the physically exhausted and/or an escape for those emotionally weary of the persistent attack or momentum of their opponent, and which team exhibits endurance physically and a relentless commitment to pursue success.

It's a difference between a team playing "not to lose" as opposed to a team that "plays to win." They both reflect an aversion to losing, but their perspectives reveal their potential outcomes.

How does that work in school?

At this time, schools are all preparing for the fragmented November (Veterans Day and Thanksgiving and half days for Parent Conferences) and entering December within view of an eagerly anticipated holiday break of at least a week.
The school staff that limps through this time period, hoping to make it to those days off, is less likely to achieve the gains made by a staff at a school that recognizes the advantage of consuming every minute as an opportunity to advance learning experiences and leverage progress toward instructional goals.

Conversely, how schools re-start after a weeks vacation, be it holiday, winter, or spring break, determines how far they will go toward attaining yearly objectives. Does your school instantly re-focus and pick up where it left off before the break, or do they slowly assemble and eventually stumble to the starting line? 

The moral of the story is to be prepared, ready, and willing to optimize success in school by sustaining focus and intensity each and every day without wasting the valuable resource of time by resting and easing into these breaks in the school calendar. The most affluent and high performing schools have the same limited amount of time as the most impoverished and lowest achieving school. Among the distinctions between the two is how they use that available time. 

Be game ready! (but enjoy the holidays too) 

Facts and Figures - Faces and Feelings

I once read someone muse that nobody gets inspired by charts and graphs. These conveyors of data inform, but they lack the emotion that comes from a narrative or story.  
There's much to be gleaned from educational data, particularly if we can breathe life into the inert data and convert it to informed decision making that makes a positive and constructive difference. Yet, the more compelling forms of motivation that provoke people to invest their full energy and effort emerge from personal sources, like the faces and feelings of those involved with, or effected by, a crisis or a need for improved services/products...

Schools must avoid allowing facts and figures to obscure the faces and feelings behind that trove of collected data.

Understand the stories behind the faces. Be sensitive to the feelings of those embedded in the graphs and charts. Don't lose sight of what's most important, and remember - "Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted."

The Sights and Sounds of Learning

Spy novelist John le Carre once opined that it's dangerous to view the world from a seat behind an office desk.

I would agree that a comfortable chair behind a grand desk in the principal's office is not a great vantage point for assessing the atmosphere of a school. I try to be in the office as little as possible. Interacting with staff and learners increases visibility, accessibility, and relationship building. These are all important elements for anyone leading a human service organization.

Walking through the hallways of Molly Stark Elementary School affords me an opportunity to experience signs of teaching and learning. I most assuredly do not station myself outside a classroom to collect information. That's "snoopervision." However, by merely walking along the hall (Tom Peters and Robert Waterman introduced the concept of "Managing by Walking Around" many years ago) I can hear exchanges among teachers and learners as active participants in learning, and see engaged learners who are not merely slouched in their seats as passive receptacles of lectures.

Walking the halls, visiting the lunchroom, attending recess, welcoming children to school each morning and supervising dismissal all provide a reassuring experience.