Posts
This morning on the way to the airport I was talking to a friend and school leader about how things were starting out this year. He said things seemed to be smooth but he felt that he was doing some things wrong, but he didn’t know what. I asked him what he meant and he said that he knew that there were decisions he was making that other people would do differently.
I told him not to worry too much about that. We are in a dynamic, people driven business. Often there are multiple solutions to the same problem. I then reminded him of a story I had told him before.
Two of my mentors, E. Don Brown and Fred Richardson (my high school principal) are long time friends. Both are principal icons. Both are driven to ensure continuous school improvement and both agree that success is defined in terms of student performance. That is all they agree on. They led excellent schools differently and when faced with the same problem, they will come up with correct solutions that are polar opposites.
My friend said thanks for the reminder and we hung up so I could catch my plane to go meet with E. Don Brown. As I stepped on the plane, the first person I saw was Fred Richardson (who I haven’t seen in two years).
The point of this post is this:
1. Know what you want to achieve, make your decision and implement at full speed. Don’t worry
about process differences, focus on results.
2. Don’t forget the wisdom of your mentors. You never know when something the old guys and gals taught you might get you out of your rut.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
A Reader Comments
“Sean,
This blog has been so powerful - not only because I think it has brought an inner strength to people like me and made it "OK" to stand our ground and speak to 'the truth' of the expectation of instructional excellence that can and has to transcend from just 'the little 'ol AP' on the campus - whether your own focus is more passionate than those around you or they're all right along with you.
Almost every time I read a post I pull up my bootstraps and saddle up - you've given me a slap on the back and said, "Giddee up girl"!!!!
Keep up the message - we're learning and leading and supporting achievement. :)”
SC Response
I have people who ask me how I find the time to keep up with this. The answer is this. I know there are teachers and school leaders like you that are out there on an island. I’ve been there. A campus can be a lonely place when you are moving against the current. If this network of educators who want more for their students and schools can provide a little support and some fresh ideas when you are beat down and questioning yourself, then I have to keep writing.
Great coaches always coach. It is in their blood and they can’t turn it off. I’m not claiming to be a great coach, but I do find sub-par schools to be a moral travesty. It is simply wrong not to do something to help those who are trying to improve their campus. And every time I get a little tired and think that this blog is taking up too much time, I get a letter like yours, which makes me realize that I have the easy job. This reminds me to check myself and get back to work.
Thank you,
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
This blog has been so powerful - not only because I think it has brought an inner strength to people like me and made it "OK" to stand our ground and speak to 'the truth' of the expectation of instructional excellence that can and has to transcend from just 'the little 'ol AP' on the campus - whether your own focus is more passionate than those around you or they're all right along with you.
Almost every time I read a post I pull up my bootstraps and saddle up - you've given me a slap on the back and said, "Giddee up girl"!!!!
Keep up the message - we're learning and leading and supporting achievement. :)”
SC Response
I have people who ask me how I find the time to keep up with this. The answer is this. I know there are teachers and school leaders like you that are out there on an island. I’ve been there. A campus can be a lonely place when you are moving against the current. If this network of educators who want more for their students and schools can provide a little support and some fresh ideas when you are beat down and questioning yourself, then I have to keep writing.
Great coaches always coach. It is in their blood and they can’t turn it off. I’m not claiming to be a great coach, but I do find sub-par schools to be a moral travesty. It is simply wrong not to do something to help those who are trying to improve their campus. And every time I get a little tired and think that this blog is taking up too much time, I get a letter like yours, which makes me realize that I have the easy job. This reminds me to check myself and get back to work.
Thank you,
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
A Reader's Comment and a Contest
A reader's comment:
“Sean, I wanted to let you know we are using the Fundamental 5 at our campus this year. Our curriculum coaches and Instructional Specialist were so impressed with your presentation at the conference that they got the ball rolling before we even got back to school, including the Fundamental 5 in the long range planning they did with our grade level teams this summer. Attached is the poster used in each classroom.
The issues you cover in the blog always make me think. Thanks for your dedication to kids and teachers.”
SC Response
Thank you for the kind comments. I’m going to address your points in reverse order.
First, I love my job for any number of reasons, but one of the big ones is that I get to pay forward the incredible gift that my teachers and principals gave to me. I wasn’t the easiest student to deal with, easily spending as much time in the office as I did in class (I’m lucky there were no DAEP’s then). But each year at least one teacher found a way to ignore my considerable faults and keep me somewhat on track. By the time I got to high school, if it was not for one of my coaches and my principal, I would have dropped out numerous times. Schools and teachers change futures. We see proof of this everyday. I am driven to ensure that this occurs less by luck and more by design.
Second, the issues that I cover in the blog are the issues of the LYS Nation. I ceded control of the topics a couple of months ago. Now, I write about what we are discussing in the field and follow up to comments. Which is what I envisioned. I recognized that I was having conversations that no one else was having, solely due to the fact that I was mobile, a luxury not afforded to those on a campus. So the blog is the tool for expanding the conversation. As the conversation expands, not only does it get more interesting, but learning curves are accelerated, especially mine.
Third, I’m glad that you and your staff are as excited as we are about the Fundamental 5. When theory, data and practice align to maximize effort and performance, it makes going to work fun.
Fourth, the poster is awesome! There is another campus that also has made posters which leads me to believe that there may be other ones out there. So here is the contest, send me a copy of your Fundamental 5 poster by September 18th, 2009. The winning school will have their poster displayed on the blog and have pizzas delivered for the staff. So for rest of the LYS Nation, get to work, two schools have already entered their submissions.
Contest Rules:
1. E-mail an electronic version of your Fundamental Five poster to the blog (if you don't have a poster yet, make one).
2. Deadline for entries, September 18, 2009.
3. Submissions become the property of Lead Your School.
4. Prize – Pizza lunch for staff
5. Winner announced by September 25, 2009
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
“Sean, I wanted to let you know we are using the Fundamental 5 at our campus this year. Our curriculum coaches and Instructional Specialist were so impressed with your presentation at the conference that they got the ball rolling before we even got back to school, including the Fundamental 5 in the long range planning they did with our grade level teams this summer. Attached is the poster used in each classroom.
The issues you cover in the blog always make me think. Thanks for your dedication to kids and teachers.”
SC Response
Thank you for the kind comments. I’m going to address your points in reverse order.
First, I love my job for any number of reasons, but one of the big ones is that I get to pay forward the incredible gift that my teachers and principals gave to me. I wasn’t the easiest student to deal with, easily spending as much time in the office as I did in class (I’m lucky there were no DAEP’s then). But each year at least one teacher found a way to ignore my considerable faults and keep me somewhat on track. By the time I got to high school, if it was not for one of my coaches and my principal, I would have dropped out numerous times. Schools and teachers change futures. We see proof of this everyday. I am driven to ensure that this occurs less by luck and more by design.
Second, the issues that I cover in the blog are the issues of the LYS Nation. I ceded control of the topics a couple of months ago. Now, I write about what we are discussing in the field and follow up to comments. Which is what I envisioned. I recognized that I was having conversations that no one else was having, solely due to the fact that I was mobile, a luxury not afforded to those on a campus. So the blog is the tool for expanding the conversation. As the conversation expands, not only does it get more interesting, but learning curves are accelerated, especially mine.
Third, I’m glad that you and your staff are as excited as we are about the Fundamental 5. When theory, data and practice align to maximize effort and performance, it makes going to work fun.
Fourth, the poster is awesome! There is another campus that also has made posters which leads me to believe that there may be other ones out there. So here is the contest, send me a copy of your Fundamental 5 poster by September 18th, 2009. The winning school will have their poster displayed on the blog and have pizzas delivered for the staff. So for rest of the LYS Nation, get to work, two schools have already entered their submissions.
Contest Rules:
1. E-mail an electronic version of your Fundamental Five poster to the blog (if you don't have a poster yet, make one).
2. Deadline for entries, September 18, 2009.
3. Submissions become the property of Lead Your School.
4. Prize – Pizza lunch for staff
5. Winner announced by September 25, 2009
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
A Reader Writes... (The Problem with Programs - Part 7)
In response to the discussion on “Programs,” a reader writes:
“I agree programs are not the answer to solving a school's problems and that leadership which insures effective teaching is what a school really needs. However, I do hope that people do not equate working with highly qualified consultants as the same thing as programs.
My school works with 3 consultants on an on-going basis that have provided both the teachers and the administration with training that has led our school to outperform most of the schools in our district. As with most professions, teachers and administrators need on-going training to improve their skills in order to be most effective, and training provided by consultants is not the same as a program. By providing our staff the opportunity to work with these consultants, our staff has grown tremendously in their knowledge in best teaching practices and how children learn best. None of these consultants are selling a "boxed-program" or a "product", but they are providing us with research, data, and training to be the best in our field.
Of course, it is the school's leadership that must make sure that the training is implemented, so as always, school success is based on leadership."
SC Response
Great comment and excellent points. I’m familiar with this school. In terms of value added performance it is always in the top three in its district. A Title 1 school, they may be poor, but they are scrappy, out performing many of the surrounding, more affluent, schools.
There is a difference between coaching, tools and plug-in programs. For example, consider Read 180, an excellent tool. With the proper teacher training and appropriately selected student, the program is very successful. However, when the tool is used inappropriately (as a program), usually by administrative mandate, it diminishes the capacity of the teacher and can slow down the progress of students.
My rule of thumb is this, if the tool makes better use of teacher time – considered it. If coaching makes staff more effective – consider it. If a program fits a specific and narrow niche of students – consider it.
But if you are taking action in order to succeed in spite of teachers, you are wasting your money. If you are buying a program because working with a certain segment of students is hard and/or uncomfortable, shame on you. And if you are buying a program because you believed the sale people when they told you that it would solve all your problems, let me know how that works for you. Or you could just…
Think. Work. Achieve
Your turn...
“I agree programs are not the answer to solving a school's problems and that leadership which insures effective teaching is what a school really needs. However, I do hope that people do not equate working with highly qualified consultants as the same thing as programs.
My school works with 3 consultants on an on-going basis that have provided both the teachers and the administration with training that has led our school to outperform most of the schools in our district. As with most professions, teachers and administrators need on-going training to improve their skills in order to be most effective, and training provided by consultants is not the same as a program. By providing our staff the opportunity to work with these consultants, our staff has grown tremendously in their knowledge in best teaching practices and how children learn best. None of these consultants are selling a "boxed-program" or a "product", but they are providing us with research, data, and training to be the best in our field.
Of course, it is the school's leadership that must make sure that the training is implemented, so as always, school success is based on leadership."
SC Response
Great comment and excellent points. I’m familiar with this school. In terms of value added performance it is always in the top three in its district. A Title 1 school, they may be poor, but they are scrappy, out performing many of the surrounding, more affluent, schools.
There is a difference between coaching, tools and plug-in programs. For example, consider Read 180, an excellent tool. With the proper teacher training and appropriately selected student, the program is very successful. However, when the tool is used inappropriately (as a program), usually by administrative mandate, it diminishes the capacity of the teacher and can slow down the progress of students.
My rule of thumb is this, if the tool makes better use of teacher time – considered it. If coaching makes staff more effective – consider it. If a program fits a specific and narrow niche of students – consider it.
But if you are taking action in order to succeed in spite of teachers, you are wasting your money. If you are buying a program because working with a certain segment of students is hard and/or uncomfortable, shame on you. And if you are buying a program because you believed the sale people when they told you that it would solve all your problems, let me know how that works for you. Or you could just…
Think. Work. Achieve
Your turn...
Sunday, September 6, 2009
A Reader Writes... (The Problem with Programs - Part 6)
In response to the discussion on “Programs,” a reader writes:
“Often it is not the program itself that makes it difficult or unsuccessful. Class sizes and the number of different programs we are being asked to use make it impossible.”
SC Response
Class size is less of an issue than most people think. However, the number of programs has the potential to be a much more critical issue. Bob Brezina (retired Superintendent and retired Green Bay Packer) still reminds me that Lombardi only had 6 plays. It was the execution of those plays that separated the Packers from the rest of the league.
Teachers have to be experts, but they cannot be experts in everything. The only chance that teachers have to develop true expertise is for leadership to be very protective of what goes on their plate. When leadership keeps piling stuff on, it actually decreases teacher effectiveness.
Simplify, simplify, simplify. The Foundation Trinity, the Fundamental Five, carefully selected tools and purposeful work and analysis. These are the building blocks of instructional expertise. Until these are executed at a high level, staff can work harder, faster and longer, but they are generally not working smarter.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
“Often it is not the program itself that makes it difficult or unsuccessful. Class sizes and the number of different programs we are being asked to use make it impossible.”
SC Response
Class size is less of an issue than most people think. However, the number of programs has the potential to be a much more critical issue. Bob Brezina (retired Superintendent and retired Green Bay Packer) still reminds me that Lombardi only had 6 plays. It was the execution of those plays that separated the Packers from the rest of the league.
Teachers have to be experts, but they cannot be experts in everything. The only chance that teachers have to develop true expertise is for leadership to be very protective of what goes on their plate. When leadership keeps piling stuff on, it actually decreases teacher effectiveness.
Simplify, simplify, simplify. The Foundation Trinity, the Fundamental Five, carefully selected tools and purposeful work and analysis. These are the building blocks of instructional expertise. Until these are executed at a high level, staff can work harder, faster and longer, but they are generally not working smarter.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Blog Posts and E-Mail: A Reveiw of Functions
Some of you have seen a version of this post before, but since I wrote it, the number of Lead Your School readers has more than doubled. Therefore, I thought a refresher might be in order. The following is my attempt to explain the features that are embedded in the blog site and the e-mail updates.
Note: This section relates to the blog site (not the e-mail updates).
On the left side of the page: If you enter your e-mail address in the subscribe box, you will get a daily e-mail update of all the postings within the last 24 hours, after you respond to the confirmation e-mail (a spam preventative).
On the left side of the page, under the e-mail subscription area: Links to the Lead Your School campus support site and Cain Notes.
On the left side of the page, under the Lead Your School Resource area: Current School News. Click on any of the four key words and the most current news stories that relate to that key word will be displayed.
On the left side of the page, under Current School News: Google Education Ads. These are advertisements that are supposed to be related to the topic of schools, school improvement and school leadership. This is a Google thing. I have no opinion or say so on the ads. Click on an ad and it will take you to that site.
On the left side of the page, under Current School News: RSS Feeds. I don't have a clue. The tech guys just said it needed to be there. Can anyone out there explain it?On the left side of the page, under RSS Feeds: Followers. Again, no clue (just following tech guy instructions). Some of you do this, care to explain it to the rest of us?
At the bottom of the blog page, under the last post of the week: Blog Archives. Click on a week, and all the posts from that week will be displayed.
Note: This section relates to the actual posts (on the blog site).
If you click on a post title, it will pull up a comment box at the end of the post. Just type in your comment and click the "post comment" button.
At the bottom of each post, click "comment" and you can leave a comment or read comments others have left. However, the majority of the comments, I post under the heading, "A Reader Writes."
At the bottom of each post, click the envelope if you want to e-mail that post to another person.
At the bottom of each post, if you click a "Label" work, it will pull up all the other posts that have the same label words.
At the bottom of the post, there are reaction boxes. You get to rate the post.
At the bottom of the very first post, Google Education Ads. These are advertisements that are supposed to be related to the topic of schools, school improvement and school leadership. This is a Google thing. I have no opinion or say so on the ads. Click on an ad and it will take you to that site.
Note: This section relates to the E-mail updates.
If you click on "Lead Your School", it will take you to the web site.If you click on a post title, it will take you to the post and there will be a comment box at the bottom of the screen. Just type in your comment and click the "post comment" button.
Note: This section relates to Reader Comments.
This is how all comments are handled:
Your comments, opinions and question are welcomed and encouraged. Keep them coming.
All comments opinions and questions are reviewed by me.
Comments, opinions and questions, where it is asked that the information not be shared, receive a private response from me. Send me your phone number and I'll call you directly.
One liners and comments that do not require a response are just posted as a comment.
Comments opinions and questions of merit are posted as, “A Reader Writes…” They are posted in a first come, first serve fashion. So sometimes it takes a while to get to yours.
I don’t know if it is proper blog etiquette or not, but I spell and grammar check comments before I post them.
Post format:
Purple text is the comment of the reader.
Black text are my comments.
Your turn… This is your invitation to weigh in and join the conversation.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Note: This section relates to the blog site (not the e-mail updates).
On the left side of the page: If you enter your e-mail address in the subscribe box, you will get a daily e-mail update of all the postings within the last 24 hours, after you respond to the confirmation e-mail (a spam preventative).
On the left side of the page, under the e-mail subscription area: Links to the Lead Your School campus support site and Cain Notes.
On the left side of the page, under the Lead Your School Resource area: Current School News. Click on any of the four key words and the most current news stories that relate to that key word will be displayed.
On the left side of the page, under Current School News: Google Education Ads. These are advertisements that are supposed to be related to the topic of schools, school improvement and school leadership. This is a Google thing. I have no opinion or say so on the ads. Click on an ad and it will take you to that site.
On the left side of the page, under Current School News: RSS Feeds. I don't have a clue. The tech guys just said it needed to be there. Can anyone out there explain it?On the left side of the page, under RSS Feeds: Followers. Again, no clue (just following tech guy instructions). Some of you do this, care to explain it to the rest of us?
At the bottom of the blog page, under the last post of the week: Blog Archives. Click on a week, and all the posts from that week will be displayed.
Note: This section relates to the actual posts (on the blog site).
If you click on a post title, it will pull up a comment box at the end of the post. Just type in your comment and click the "post comment" button.
At the bottom of each post, click "comment" and you can leave a comment or read comments others have left. However, the majority of the comments, I post under the heading, "A Reader Writes."
At the bottom of each post, click the envelope if you want to e-mail that post to another person.
At the bottom of each post, if you click a "Label" work, it will pull up all the other posts that have the same label words.
At the bottom of the post, there are reaction boxes. You get to rate the post.
At the bottom of the very first post, Google Education Ads. These are advertisements that are supposed to be related to the topic of schools, school improvement and school leadership. This is a Google thing. I have no opinion or say so on the ads. Click on an ad and it will take you to that site.
Note: This section relates to the E-mail updates.
If you click on "Lead Your School", it will take you to the web site.If you click on a post title, it will take you to the post and there will be a comment box at the bottom of the screen. Just type in your comment and click the "post comment" button.
Note: This section relates to Reader Comments.
This is how all comments are handled:
Your comments, opinions and question are welcomed and encouraged. Keep them coming.
All comments opinions and questions are reviewed by me.
Comments, opinions and questions, where it is asked that the information not be shared, receive a private response from me. Send me your phone number and I'll call you directly.
One liners and comments that do not require a response are just posted as a comment.
Comments opinions and questions of merit are posted as, “A Reader Writes…” They are posted in a first come, first serve fashion. So sometimes it takes a while to get to yours.
I don’t know if it is proper blog etiquette or not, but I spell and grammar check comments before I post them.
Post format:
Purple text is the comment of the reader.
Black text are my comments.
Your turn… This is your invitation to weigh in and join the conversation.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
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