Posts
Yesterday, my Uncle Mike lost his battle to cancer. He had numerous great qualities. He served his country honorably as a Marine, he was a successful small business owner, he raced stock cars, he was an outdoorsman and most importantly he loved his family. To me, he always seemed a source of calm and quiet dignity. I learned a lot by watching Uncle Mike. Much of what I learned from him boils down to this:
1. Work hard.
2. Be decent to people, especially the people who rely on you.
3. Don’t take yourself too seriously.
As I get older, Uncle Mike’s lesson have become ever more relevant and powerful.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
A Reader Writes... (It's all About the Conversation - Part 2)
In response to the post “It’s all About the Conversation,” a reader writes:
“Listen to Cain on this one. I have done maybe 5,000 classroom observations over the last few years. It took me quite a few to start recognizing quality instruction. It took quite a few more to develop the level of competence needed to coach teachers towards better instruction. Along the way I made almost every mistake possible, even though I had the personal mentoring of Cain, Brown, and Brezina.
I will tell you this; keep your written feedback to yourself for a while. Also, don't give teachers copies of the form for every visit you make to the classroom. As I said before, after a bit of practice, anyone can spot bad or good instruction. If you spot bad instruction and you can't provide detailed solutions on how to improve the instruction, keep your mouth shut until you can. And I don't mean vague comments to teachers like "you need to increase rigor". No kidding. But, HOW? If you can't give specifics on how to fix the problem, keep your mouth shut, lest you become part of the problem.
Once you have the required expertise, read the book, “Crucial Confrontations.” This book will help you address the problems you run into professionally and effectively. As Cain said, it is all about the conversation, or the purposeful confrontation.”
SC Response
The reader is not exaggerating about the number of classroom observations that he has conducted. He is one of the early adopters that I reference when I present on the topic.
The process of understanding what you are seeing in a short observation is almost Zen like. First, you think you know everything. Then, you know you know nothing. And then, finally you start to know something.
We definitely have a translation issue at work. The short walk-thru pioneers and early adopters were hand crunchers. That is, we would conduct hundreds of walk-thru’s and then crunch the numbers by hand, using either legal pads or Excel worksheets. There was an organic quality to the knowledge we were gleaning. As we train new people on the process, in many ways we make it too easy. We now have field tested observation protocols and tools that instantly aggregate and disaggregate data. People have the ability to go from zero to full speed in one day. The problem this creates is that the long journey striped away your preconceived notions and ideas. On the express bus, you arrive with all of your misconceptions and baggage intact and fully functioning.
I spend a lot of time working with administrators to get past the “teachers should just know,” mode of leadership. Teachers should not “just know.” Our job is to identify what works and what does not work. Then we have to help teachers replace the “what doesn’t work” and successfully implement the “what does work.”
Right now many teachers are the equivalent of the playground sports superstar. They have lots of talent and energy, but because of the lack of a system, they "make it up" as they go along. These “playground superstars” need structure, systems and coaching to become world class. That is the responsibility of leadership.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
“Listen to Cain on this one. I have done maybe 5,000 classroom observations over the last few years. It took me quite a few to start recognizing quality instruction. It took quite a few more to develop the level of competence needed to coach teachers towards better instruction. Along the way I made almost every mistake possible, even though I had the personal mentoring of Cain, Brown, and Brezina.
I will tell you this; keep your written feedback to yourself for a while. Also, don't give teachers copies of the form for every visit you make to the classroom. As I said before, after a bit of practice, anyone can spot bad or good instruction. If you spot bad instruction and you can't provide detailed solutions on how to improve the instruction, keep your mouth shut until you can. And I don't mean vague comments to teachers like "you need to increase rigor". No kidding. But, HOW? If you can't give specifics on how to fix the problem, keep your mouth shut, lest you become part of the problem.
Once you have the required expertise, read the book, “Crucial Confrontations.” This book will help you address the problems you run into professionally and effectively. As Cain said, it is all about the conversation, or the purposeful confrontation.”
SC Response
The reader is not exaggerating about the number of classroom observations that he has conducted. He is one of the early adopters that I reference when I present on the topic.
The process of understanding what you are seeing in a short observation is almost Zen like. First, you think you know everything. Then, you know you know nothing. And then, finally you start to know something.
We definitely have a translation issue at work. The short walk-thru pioneers and early adopters were hand crunchers. That is, we would conduct hundreds of walk-thru’s and then crunch the numbers by hand, using either legal pads or Excel worksheets. There was an organic quality to the knowledge we were gleaning. As we train new people on the process, in many ways we make it too easy. We now have field tested observation protocols and tools that instantly aggregate and disaggregate data. People have the ability to go from zero to full speed in one day. The problem this creates is that the long journey striped away your preconceived notions and ideas. On the express bus, you arrive with all of your misconceptions and baggage intact and fully functioning.
I spend a lot of time working with administrators to get past the “teachers should just know,” mode of leadership. Teachers should not “just know.” Our job is to identify what works and what does not work. Then we have to help teachers replace the “what doesn’t work” and successfully implement the “what does work.”
Right now many teachers are the equivalent of the playground sports superstar. They have lots of talent and energy, but because of the lack of a system, they "make it up" as they go along. These “playground superstars” need structure, systems and coaching to become world class. That is the responsibility of leadership.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Thursday, January 21, 2010
A Reader Writes... (It's all About the Conversation - Part 1)
Please note that I have heavily edited this comment to prevent the identification of the writer, the principal, or the school.
Related to the post, “It’s all About the Conversation,” a reader writes.
“Cutting into a teacher’s re-direction of a student is like throwing a rock at the teacher when the principal does that in front of a teachers' class. Principals don't know each and every class that is in their buildings as well as the teacher of an individual class. Principals who are in the habit of cutting in and thinking they can do a better job of disciplining a class should keep their place and allow the teachers to do their job.
It is really sad when a principal does not realize they have thrown stones and hurt teachers with their words of anger or astonishingly cutting remarks on evaluations that are used to degrade a teacher’s educational skills and can harm a teacher’s ability to attain a job elsewhere, if need be.
Principals really need to come off their pedestals, put themselves in their teachers’ shoes and really reflect upon what they are thinking and their remarks. Being more positive and complimentary goes a long way to aid a student, so it also does for teachers."
SC Response
This is a difficult comment to respond to since it obviously revolves around specific incidents that have affected you directly. But since you wrote in, I’m going to give it a shot.
1. “Stepping in between a teacher and a student during class.” This is always a dicey proposition. You have to balance to need for the teacher to maintain effective classroom management with the need to provide a healthy learning environment for the student. These two needs are generally not mutually exclusive until the teacher has been pushed to a frustration or breaking point. If a teacher is verbally tearing down a student and/or belaboring a point of discipline, then any nearby professional should step in to improve the situation. We train staff to have a code phrase to share with the teacher when this happens. The fact that it happens generally is neither a good nor a bad thing. We are in the people business, we sometimes get our buttons pushed and we sometimes need assistance. It is the frequency in which this occurs that makes it a good or bad thing. Also, whether we like it or not, as the person ultimately responsible for the entire campus, the Principal has both a right and duty to step in if he or she thinks that it is prudent. That is the job of a Principal
2. “The Teacher written evaluation.” Again, you are obviously writing about specifics of which I have no knowledge. But I will say that most teacher evaluations are as worthless as the piece of paper that they are written on. A primary reason for this has everything to do with your comment. Principals know that if they put down anything other than a glowing review that they will be dealing with hurt feelings and an angry teacher. So most of them just go through the motions. When it comes to formal evaluations, most of us don’t want honest feedback (me included). Honest feedback often hurts. The worst and best day of my career was when Brezina told me I wasn’t ready for a promotion. It was the first time that someone told me that I wasn’t automatically the best. This forced me to quit coasting on a decent talent base and actually start working for the first time. If you don’t like the evaluation, change something. As for it hurting your ability to get another job, it might be a set back in your current district (though probably not), but it shouldn’t effect you at all in another district. Staff evaluations are like student transcripts. They are reviewed so infrequently that they might as well be mythical.
3. “Principals need to put themselves in their teachers’ shoes.” I agree that principals should be more involved with coaching and supporting their staff. The primary vehicle for this is frequent classroom observations with regular coaching and feedback. Unfortunately, when this is first introduced on a campus, there are often hurt feelings. In the absence of feedback, people create their own. If the newly introduced feedback differs from the self-created feedback, the discrepancy can cause conflict. The answer is to just push through it. When the feedback drives improvement to instruction, which then improves student performance, the pain quickly goes away.
4. Finally, I will give you the same advice that I give every Teacher, AP, Principal, Director and Assistant Superintendent who is upset, angry, and/or frustrated with their supervisor. If you have a problem with your boss, it is your problem. Either do what the boss wants or find a new boss.
Good luck.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Related to the post, “It’s all About the Conversation,” a reader writes.
“Cutting into a teacher’s re-direction of a student is like throwing a rock at the teacher when the principal does that in front of a teachers' class. Principals don't know each and every class that is in their buildings as well as the teacher of an individual class. Principals who are in the habit of cutting in and thinking they can do a better job of disciplining a class should keep their place and allow the teachers to do their job.
It is really sad when a principal does not realize they have thrown stones and hurt teachers with their words of anger or astonishingly cutting remarks on evaluations that are used to degrade a teacher’s educational skills and can harm a teacher’s ability to attain a job elsewhere, if need be.
Principals really need to come off their pedestals, put themselves in their teachers’ shoes and really reflect upon what they are thinking and their remarks. Being more positive and complimentary goes a long way to aid a student, so it also does for teachers."
SC Response
This is a difficult comment to respond to since it obviously revolves around specific incidents that have affected you directly. But since you wrote in, I’m going to give it a shot.
1. “Stepping in between a teacher and a student during class.” This is always a dicey proposition. You have to balance to need for the teacher to maintain effective classroom management with the need to provide a healthy learning environment for the student. These two needs are generally not mutually exclusive until the teacher has been pushed to a frustration or breaking point. If a teacher is verbally tearing down a student and/or belaboring a point of discipline, then any nearby professional should step in to improve the situation. We train staff to have a code phrase to share with the teacher when this happens. The fact that it happens generally is neither a good nor a bad thing. We are in the people business, we sometimes get our buttons pushed and we sometimes need assistance. It is the frequency in which this occurs that makes it a good or bad thing. Also, whether we like it or not, as the person ultimately responsible for the entire campus, the Principal has both a right and duty to step in if he or she thinks that it is prudent. That is the job of a Principal
2. “The Teacher written evaluation.” Again, you are obviously writing about specifics of which I have no knowledge. But I will say that most teacher evaluations are as worthless as the piece of paper that they are written on. A primary reason for this has everything to do with your comment. Principals know that if they put down anything other than a glowing review that they will be dealing with hurt feelings and an angry teacher. So most of them just go through the motions. When it comes to formal evaluations, most of us don’t want honest feedback (me included). Honest feedback often hurts. The worst and best day of my career was when Brezina told me I wasn’t ready for a promotion. It was the first time that someone told me that I wasn’t automatically the best. This forced me to quit coasting on a decent talent base and actually start working for the first time. If you don’t like the evaluation, change something. As for it hurting your ability to get another job, it might be a set back in your current district (though probably not), but it shouldn’t effect you at all in another district. Staff evaluations are like student transcripts. They are reviewed so infrequently that they might as well be mythical.
3. “Principals need to put themselves in their teachers’ shoes.” I agree that principals should be more involved with coaching and supporting their staff. The primary vehicle for this is frequent classroom observations with regular coaching and feedback. Unfortunately, when this is first introduced on a campus, there are often hurt feelings. In the absence of feedback, people create their own. If the newly introduced feedback differs from the self-created feedback, the discrepancy can cause conflict. The answer is to just push through it. When the feedback drives improvement to instruction, which then improves student performance, the pain quickly goes away.
4. Finally, I will give you the same advice that I give every Teacher, AP, Principal, Director and Assistant Superintendent who is upset, angry, and/or frustrated with their supervisor. If you have a problem with your boss, it is your problem. Either do what the boss wants or find a new boss.
Good luck.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
A Reader Writes... (Anonymous Letters - Part 6)
In response to the posts on Anonymous Letters, a reader writes:
“Good luck on finding a ‘Brezina type’ leader. I have only worked for one who was close to the archetype and accept for a personal tragedy that would break any man, I never saw him weaken. Every other Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent that I have worked for have paled in comparison to that man and Brezina. As Cain points out, Brezina always walks the talk. Most leaders like to think that they do, up until it is inconvenient to do so. What is inconvenient? For some it may be an anonymous letter, for others it may be whispers heard at church on Sunday. What is your breaking point? Have you been tested by fire? Have you ever had to fall on your sword? If yes, you are not unlike the old school LYS clan.
Does your breaking point leave kids vulnerable? We know that everyone will breaks at some point, but if your breaking point is so low that it will put kids at risk, get out of leadership roles.”
SC Response
This post touches on one of the reasons why the modern principalship is such a great incubator of true leadership. Accountability forces you to choose between the greater good (student success) and the path of least resistance (adult comfort). Those who choose the greater good, move from the ranks of manager to leader. And the skills and experiences gleaned through the actualization of that course of action translate in subsequent jobs and positions. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. That is why I am always initially suspect of the central office administrator who was promoted from a stagnant or declining campus. Sometimes that person made the best of a no win situation (a good thing). Sometimes they were simply demoted up (the worst thing).
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
“Good luck on finding a ‘Brezina type’ leader. I have only worked for one who was close to the archetype and accept for a personal tragedy that would break any man, I never saw him weaken. Every other Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent that I have worked for have paled in comparison to that man and Brezina. As Cain points out, Brezina always walks the talk. Most leaders like to think that they do, up until it is inconvenient to do so. What is inconvenient? For some it may be an anonymous letter, for others it may be whispers heard at church on Sunday. What is your breaking point? Have you been tested by fire? Have you ever had to fall on your sword? If yes, you are not unlike the old school LYS clan.
Does your breaking point leave kids vulnerable? We know that everyone will breaks at some point, but if your breaking point is so low that it will put kids at risk, get out of leadership roles.”
SC Response
This post touches on one of the reasons why the modern principalship is such a great incubator of true leadership. Accountability forces you to choose between the greater good (student success) and the path of least resistance (adult comfort). Those who choose the greater good, move from the ranks of manager to leader. And the skills and experiences gleaned through the actualization of that course of action translate in subsequent jobs and positions. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. That is why I am always initially suspect of the central office administrator who was promoted from a stagnant or declining campus. Sometimes that person made the best of a no win situation (a good thing). Sometimes they were simply demoted up (the worst thing).
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Monday, January 18, 2010
A Reader Shares... Lesson Framing
The following is an excerpt of a message from a teacher at an LYS school.
"Here are a few things that I noticed about Lesson Framing over the last couple of days.
1. It's NOT as time-consuming as people think because you can give the kids hints on what you are doing and they will give you suggestions on what to do next. I feel like it creates a little anticipation about what is going to happen (and so what if they know what you are teaching... why keep it a surprise?).
2. It makes me wake up SUPER EXCITED about my lesson that day. Why? Because I KNOW it is darn good and I can't wait to show it off to the kids. But, my excitement is now becoming a mirror image as I watch the kids. It is such an AMAZING feeling! The research is very true, I'm sad, they’re sad. I'm boring, they’re bored. I'm quiet, they’re quiet. Or, I'M HAPPY, THEY’RE HAPPIER! I'M INTERESTING, THEY’RE INTERESTED! I LIKE TO TALK, KIDS LOVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEE TO TALK, SO WE TURN AND TALK! Why did someone have to actually research that? It’s common sense, right?
3. Now it is easier to start off with the Engagement part of my lesson (This is what I thought I would only use it for). But then I kept planning my lesson and I started to extend my Engagement into my Exploration. Then I thought, maybe I can just make up a question in TAKS format that goes with this and use it for my Explanation part of my lesson (there's my anchor chart and the strategy is on it too). Lastly, I only need to EVALUATE my students on their EFFORT and ability from the lesson - (that is really the easiest part of the lesson), EXIT TICKETS!! Hit them with the real world, “Elaborate on the information you learned today. Give me examples of why you this is important to you? What made you feel successful in math today? What do you need more assistance with from today's lesson to make you feel successful?”
I’ve already shared this with my team; I thought I would share it with you also."
SC Response
What can I add of value? Not much? It’s like we say in our introduction, great teaching is well within the grasp of every teacher. Once you consistently execute the fundamentals, your passion and creativity will take care of the rest.
You go, girl!!!
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
"Here are a few things that I noticed about Lesson Framing over the last couple of days.
1. It's NOT as time-consuming as people think because you can give the kids hints on what you are doing and they will give you suggestions on what to do next. I feel like it creates a little anticipation about what is going to happen (and so what if they know what you are teaching... why keep it a surprise?).
2. It makes me wake up SUPER EXCITED about my lesson that day. Why? Because I KNOW it is darn good and I can't wait to show it off to the kids. But, my excitement is now becoming a mirror image as I watch the kids. It is such an AMAZING feeling! The research is very true, I'm sad, they’re sad. I'm boring, they’re bored. I'm quiet, they’re quiet. Or, I'M HAPPY, THEY’RE HAPPIER! I'M INTERESTING, THEY’RE INTERESTED! I LIKE TO TALK, KIDS LOVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEE TO TALK, SO WE TURN AND TALK! Why did someone have to actually research that? It’s common sense, right?
3. Now it is easier to start off with the Engagement part of my lesson (This is what I thought I would only use it for). But then I kept planning my lesson and I started to extend my Engagement into my Exploration. Then I thought, maybe I can just make up a question in TAKS format that goes with this and use it for my Explanation part of my lesson (there's my anchor chart and the strategy is on it too). Lastly, I only need to EVALUATE my students on their EFFORT and ability from the lesson - (that is really the easiest part of the lesson), EXIT TICKETS!! Hit them with the real world, “Elaborate on the information you learned today. Give me examples of why you this is important to you? What made you feel successful in math today? What do you need more assistance with from today's lesson to make you feel successful?”
I’ve already shared this with my team; I thought I would share it with you also."
SC Response
What can I add of value? Not much? It’s like we say in our introduction, great teaching is well within the grasp of every teacher. Once you consistently execute the fundamentals, your passion and creativity will take care of the rest.
You go, girl!!!
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Sunday, January 17, 2010
An Ageless Quote
“Almost always, the creative dedicated minority has made the world better.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
It's all About the Conversation
I’ve been listening to a lot of chatter about classroom observation feedback. The most confusing to me has been coming primarily from assistant principals. It seems that many AP’s want to leave some form of written feedback with teachers after every short classroom observation. There are many reasons why this belief is incorrect, but I’m going to focus on one of the primary ones.
When one conducts lots of classroom observations, collecting data is just a positive by-product of the practice. From an Assistant Principal standpoint, the value of the walk-thru is to increase your ability to distinguish excellent instruction, from average instruction, from sub-par instruction. This can only be done through the observation of a lot of instruction. Once one can recognize what excellent instruction looks like, then one can coach a person to better performance. The power of coaching is the power of conversation.
It’s not that I don’t want teachers to get feedback, I do. I just want to ensure that they get good feedback. That requires the observer to be able to translate what they saw into meaningful advice and instruction. If you think you can do that after just one short classroom observation, you need check your ego. Over the past 5 years, I have easily conducted over 10,000 purposeful classroom observations, and I don’t make decisions and give advice based on what I see in just three to five minutes.
I’ve tried to put myself back in my old AP shoes. As an AP, I had lots of responsibility but little authority. Much of my ability to execute my job effectively was based on speed, energy, proximity and bluff. A skill set that I imagine is even more important now than it was then. Luckily, speed, energy and proximity lend themselves to the practice of frequent classroom observations. But leave the bluff in your office. Slow down, look for patterns and then reflect on what you have observed. After you have done that, talk to your teachers. That’s how you will improve your school and improve the craft.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
When one conducts lots of classroom observations, collecting data is just a positive by-product of the practice. From an Assistant Principal standpoint, the value of the walk-thru is to increase your ability to distinguish excellent instruction, from average instruction, from sub-par instruction. This can only be done through the observation of a lot of instruction. Once one can recognize what excellent instruction looks like, then one can coach a person to better performance. The power of coaching is the power of conversation.
It’s not that I don’t want teachers to get feedback, I do. I just want to ensure that they get good feedback. That requires the observer to be able to translate what they saw into meaningful advice and instruction. If you think you can do that after just one short classroom observation, you need check your ego. Over the past 5 years, I have easily conducted over 10,000 purposeful classroom observations, and I don’t make decisions and give advice based on what I see in just three to five minutes.
I’ve tried to put myself back in my old AP shoes. As an AP, I had lots of responsibility but little authority. Much of my ability to execute my job effectively was based on speed, energy, proximity and bluff. A skill set that I imagine is even more important now than it was then. Luckily, speed, energy and proximity lend themselves to the practice of frequent classroom observations. But leave the bluff in your office. Slow down, look for patterns and then reflect on what you have observed. After you have done that, talk to your teachers. That’s how you will improve your school and improve the craft.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
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