Several months ago I completed a quick online test from Project Implicit that was designed to measure implicit stereotyping and biases. The process was really thought-provoking and it led to several good conversations with colleagues about how we interact with students. One thing that I hadn’t considered at the time was how dramatically an educator’sContinue reading “Racial Bias in Parent Communication”
Category Archives: Leadership
What’s your passion?
We talked about the makings of a great leaders this week. The discussion started with an examination of James Kouzes and Barry Posner’s list of “Ten Truths About Leadership.” The truths they list are helpful but not surprising. They mention things like believing in yourself, building credibility, developing relationships, sticking to you values, etc. AsContinue reading “What’s your passion?”
Another List – Teacher Traits
I had fun writing last week’s list but I didn’t think that I’d make a habit of it. But then someone posed this question yesterday to a group of educators I’m a part of: “What traits make up a good teacher?” If this doesn’t lend itself to another list, I don’t know what does. TheContinue reading “Another List – Teacher Traits”
Teaching on purpose
My 9 year old is obsessed with soccer right now. It seems like he’s constantly dribbling a ball around the house, trying new moves to get by his brothers and sister, passing the ball off the walls over and over, and seeing how many times he can juggle the ball without it touching the ground. Continue reading “Teaching on purpose”
The Art of Feedback
I meet with a group of educators each week to talk shop, and this week our conversation turned to how to give effective feedback. We started the conversation by watching a video of a 6th grade teacher delivering a lesson and then talked about how we would offer feedback to this particular teacher. The conversationContinue reading “The Art of Feedback”
Don’t Get Body Slammed by a Lowland Gorilla
Just last week a student of mine alluded to one of those ridiculous old Direct TV commercials. Remember these? “When you pay too much for cable, you feel down. When you feel down, you stay in bed. When you stay in bed, they give your job to someone else…” The scenario quickly devolves so thatContinue reading “Don’t Get Body Slammed by a Lowland Gorilla”
Pull, Push, and Nudge
“In the end it’s best to pull whenever you can, push whenever you must, and nudge all the time.” That’s the closing (and the best) line of an article that someone sent my way this week. The article is called The Power of Professional Capital – adapted from a book written by two Canadian EducationContinue reading “Pull, Push, and Nudge”
Instructional vs. Transformational Leadership
John Hattie points out some key distinctions between Transformational Leadership and Instructional Leadership in education: Transformational leaders lead around a common vision; their focus tends to be on getting teachers and students to buy in and commit to that vision. Once they have the buy in, they turn their attention to creating an environment inContinue reading “Instructional vs. Transformational Leadership”
The End of the Story – Will Ferrell, Jim Stockdale, and Educators
There’s this movie with Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson, and Dustin Hoffman called Stranger than Fiction. Have you seen it? If not, you should watch it; it’s excellent. Will Ferrell is a character in a book that Emma Thompson is writing and there’s this interplay between her story and real life that is creative and thoughtContinue reading “The End of the Story – Will Ferrell, Jim Stockdale, and Educators”
What’s a Growth Mindset?
“If you started at a school where the teachers were not familiar with the concept of a ‘growth mindset’ how would you introduce the concept?” Someone posed this question to group of educators I’m part of. Growth mindset has been a hot topic in education recently. The concept is simple but profound. People with aContinue reading “What’s a Growth Mindset?”
Mr. Zerwas Teaches Here 