Evolve

Every so often, educators are presented with opportunities to reflect on the intersection between where we've been, where we are, and where we are going. Three recent experiences have me contemplating this. First, a skilled veteran teacher who I had the privilege of mentoring earned a promotion as a school leader. Second, a team of teachers and I collaborated to recommend a new teacher for appointment. Third, I was included as part of a college interview panel, for aspiring teachers. Through each experience, I've reflected on the the need for educators to actively embrace the evolution of our profession.

Thinking back to the start of my teaching career, I was most focused on the following:

• I was eager to teach. 
• I was a hard worker. 
• I loved working with kids.

Noticeable absent from my 20th Century mindset? The word learning. The work of John Hattie and Peter DeWitt has helped to restore and renew my perspective that for our students and schools to thrive, teachers and school leaders must make learning an individual and collective focus, each and every day.

Effect

Know thy impact. 

Last summer, I engaged in a book talk on Visible Learning for Teachers, by John Hattie. This fall, I've been involved in a fall book talk on Collaborative Leadership, by Peter DeWitt. As a result, this three word sentence has become a mantra of professional learning and educational leadership. Know thy impact. 

As both an aspiring and new teacher (and a new administrator), my view was narrow: regrettably, it was all about me. Now, as a more reflective school leader, I can see deep value in the work of Hattie and DeWitt. It's unparalleled in it's potential to support educators in becoming what Hattie aptly refers to as "expert teachers", and what DeWitt considers "collaborative leaders".   

The depth and magnitude of Hattie's work is significant:

• It encompasses over 1,100 meta-analyses looking at the effect size of over 150 influences on learning.
• When an influence has an effect size of .40 or greater, it is referred to as a hinge point, indicating that this influence can yield at least a year's learning for a year's input or effort.

Hattie knows what works in a teacher's efforts to have a significantly positive impact student learning. 

According to DeWitt, Hattie found that "95 percent of everything that teachers did had a positive effect on student achievement, and include any teaching strategies, school conditions, or home conditions that affect a student's performance" (26). However, there can be a distinction drawn between high-effect and low-effect teachers. On page 26 of Visible Learning for Teachers, Hattie cites Slater, Davies, & Burgess (2009), stating, "The effect of high-effect teachers compared with low-effect teachers is about d = 0.25, which means that a student in a high-impact teacher's classroom has almost a year's advantage over his or her peers in a lower-effect teacher's classroom." This begs a question: 

In our profession, aren't we obligated to challenge one another to maximize our impact?

Evaluation

"The ultimate requirement is for teachers to develop the skill of evaluating the effect that they have on their students." (Hattie, p. 36).

Over a ten year teaching career, I spent significant time all-too-consumed with what (and how) I was teaching, when I should have been investing in what and how my students were learning. I allowed myself to be distracted and/or consumed by how my performance was being externally evaluated by administrators. And I lost that which is most valuable and significant to the process of becoming a high-impact teacher: the impact of my efforts...on learning. This experience leaves me to wonder how I may have been a better teacher, had I considered how my instructional planning, desired outcomes, and decision-making impacted my students' learning. Despite the prevailing notion that a teacher's "gut instincts" lead to what's best for students, and sticking with my perception of "what works", I regret that I didn't dedicate time and attention to considering the impact of proven research. 

What would the impact be, if evaluation was approached as more than a just a traditional top-down mandate?

Expertise

"The results are clear: expert teachers do differ from experienced teachers - particularly in the degree of challenge that they present to students, and, most critically, in the depth to which students learn to process information" (Hattie, p.34). 

Becoming an experienced teacher requires one to return to the teaching profession year after year. 

Becoming an expert teacher, however takes time. Every teacher should aspire to become an expert teacher. 

As Hattie writes, "Students of expert teachers are much more adept at deep, as well as surface, understanding, whereas experienced non-experts are as adept at surface, but not deep, learning" (33). For our students to move past the superficial, we too must be willing to do this. A look at the tools being used for evaluation reveal domains and language that puts learners at the center of the highly effective range. 

With each teacher-student interaction, consideration of this idea of expertise should consider the value of:

• responsive scaffolding and tiered questions to promote deeper learning (as well as modeling for students how they are expected to develop questions that promote their own "thinking about thinking"). 
• lesson design and how embedded tasks lean towards the desired outcome. 
• the role assessment plays in informing learning (Did the students learn what was intended?) 
• the role assessment plays in and in informing instruction (Did I deliver instruction that advanced learning for individual and groups of students?) 
• student feedback to determine the degree of "learner responsive" teaching.

A focus on how students learn will open us to pathways that reveal the strengths and learning preferences of students. 

With the data to guide us, what stops us from committing to take the first step towards becoming "experts"?

Evolution

Make no mistake. while I am fascinated with the work presented by Hattie and DeWitt, I am at best, a novice. But I can't help but marvel at what I am learning and am eager to continue to dive deeply, to integrate professional learning into my leadership practice. The challenge is to evolve daily and to share this reflective process with the teachers with whom I work. 

If progress is a daily expectation for students, what impact would result if we applied this thinking to our evolution as educators?

26 Days of Learning Leadership
Day 1: Accountability

Day 2: BRAVO

Day 3: Collective Wisdom
Day 4: Designing Conditions

Designing Conditions

Lately, I find myself reminiscing about my first teaching experience. It was student teaching with a veteran teacher, of 35 years. Heading into the first day, I can still recall being consumed with eager anticipation. The knowledge that would be bestowed upon me from a master teacher and veteran coach that'd forever change me, and shape my future. I was ready to change the world. I couldn't wait to get started.

Then it happened. My cooperating teacher assigned three tasks to me, which he said would create conditions for success, for me as a new teacher, and down the line, for the students in my class.

1) Each morning, make the coffee for the Teacher's Lounge.

2) For each lesson, write the objective on the chalk board.

3) Each weekend, make the time to organize a weekly plan book.

As a new teacher, full of enthusiasm, ideas, and limitless time and boundless energy, this was not exactly what I expected teaching to be. And as a kid in his early 20's myself, I didn't drink coffee let alone know how it was supposed to taste.

Being a rule follower, I fully embraced the assigned tasks. What I didn't realize was what made this valuable to an aspiring teacher: it familiarized me with the importance of "the basics". In the years that followed, I came to appreciate the importance of foundations and the value of predictability. Without them, how can we grow roots, that anchor us for future risk taking?

Throughout that semester, I came to love working in that classroom. Seeing how my cooperating teacher went out of his way to foster a safe learning space for his students, how he built in structure and fun, and how he connected with his kids on such a personalized level. These were all things I wanted for my own classroom someday. And this formative experience stayed with me, well into my first years of teaching.

Recently, the above image was shared via Twitter by an innovative Middle School leader whose work admire, Anthony Davidson (Follow him at @ajdavidsonsr). It got me thinking, how when I encounter teachers of today, my heart fills with doubt that I could compete with the talented innovators of today's education force. Now responsible for hiring future teachers, I think and smile at the notion that I don't think I could make it past a first-round teacher interview, if I were interviewed...by myself.

Thinking back on what worked in that 20th Century classroom, it came down to the teacher being firmly planted at the center of the classroom, with the charge to create conditions for success. This leaves me to wonder, if not for the teacher creating these conditions, would students not succeed? There was a time and a place for that. Today is different.

Today, if one adult, whether leading a school or a classroom, is responsible for creating conditions, what happens in the absence of that adult?

Maybe it's a matter of semantics, but what might happen if, instead of creating conditions in our schools we shifted our mindsets to begin embracing the idea of designing conditions?

There are so many institutions we've come to live by  in our schools that we've historically accept as "the way it's done" in school.

Back-to-School Night is one of those institutions.

It gives me great pride that this year, as a school community, our team pushed back on "the way we've always done it". The following is what we did, how we did it, and why we did it. But first, let's begin...with the why. Why change?

Do I like the teacher?

I've facilitated Back-to-School Night, from the classroom, I've attended it as a parent, and I've organized and implemented it as a school leader. In each of these experiences, there seems to be an overarching theme: Do I like the teacher? I've approached these situations coming to expect that I'd come out of it with a judgment on a teacher, a classroom, and a school year. And while good educators can sense good teaching from a mile away, why was I always satisfied with the superficiality associated with this experience? As a parent, I should've dug deeper, developed a relationship, and committed myself to a year of learning something new, from someone new.

This year would be different, because, this year would be the year I was committing myself to working with our team to design conditions to see something familiar with new lenses.

The night itself began like any other Back-to-School night. Our Welcome Back PTO meeting. Four class meetings separated by grade level. And 15 coveted Advisory period minutes. This first series provided parents with predictable comforts that they'd grown accustomed to over the years. It gave them something familiar to relate to, heading into what would be a busy night.

The next phase is where we shifted gears.

In years past, we've had parents progress throughout a truncated version of their child's daytime schedule (an A-Day). Nine separate stops, each lasting nine minutes. Tired parents were left to interpret a student schedule and then expected to find their children's classes in an unfamiliar setting.

As an alternative approach, we set four distinctly different 20-minute stations, having parents travel together, by grade level. The stations were as follows:

1. Two-Way School-Home (and Home-School) Communications

2. Humanities Grades 5-8

3. Math-Science-Technology Grades 5-8

4. Special Area Courses Grades 5-8

In the planning that led up to this less than three-hour event, is that the most important elements aren't what you'd necessarily expect. And thus far, the rewards are tenfold. In reflecting on what made this a success for our community, moving forward, here are ten questions I will ask myself.

10 Questions School Leaders Should Ask

When Implementing a Complex Change:

1) Are we engaging in enough one-on-one conversations?

2) Are we seeking out the input of divergent thinkers?

3) Are we bringing small groups of people together?

4) Are we open to listening to constructive and honest feedback?

5) Are we committed to removing obstacles for one another?

6) Are we seeking out more than just "yes people"?

7) Are we prepared to under-promise and over-deliver?

8) Are we establishing safe and predictable feedback loops?

9) Are we ready to "go for it" and prepared to "own" the outcomes?

10) Are we honoring people's courage to try something new?

As one might expect, much like those first imperfect pots of coffee, our evening was not perfect. But nor was in fatal. This experience reminded of the words of Sir Winston Churchill, who said, "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts."

Being intentional with time, clear communication and a relentless willingness to work together and to improve together; that is what made all the difference.

26 Days of Learning Leadership
Day 1: Accountability
Day 2: BRAVO
Day 3: Collective Wisdom

Collective Wisdom

September seems to provoke lots of open dialogue on the topic of professional development and professional learning. In some circles, "PD" seems to have become a four-letter-word.

You don't have to be in the education field long before you can speak in detail about "the worst PD" you've ever experienced. It's a sad phenomenon that flies in the face of the many prevailing positive things happening in our classrooms, our schools, and in public education. But why?

A few themes associated in historically "bad PD":

A laser-light focus on...proving you were there. This includes signing in, signing out, and collecting a piece of paper that shows you attended.

One presenter, one voice, one clicker.

This expert generally stands at the front of the room and uses a power point presentation for the better part of seven hours, while attendees sit, trying to resist daydreaming...or checking email.

A binder full of "really important papers". Historically, these papers wind up in a file folder, a file cabinet, the circular file, or a binder. Binders wind up on a bookshelf, never to be touched again, collecting dust and taking up space.

A one-size-fits-all desired outcome.

"We need to do this, so we get that."

And...a burning essential question for the recipients:

What's for lunch? (And will there be cookies?)

Now for the PD purists out there, rest assured not every PD, every training, or every workshop is bad PD. The intent here is not to knock traditional PD. Rather, I'd like to to challenge readers to find a way to make your next PD session relevant and one that exceeds typical expectations.

But how? Well, I'd suggest you begin by attending an edcamp!

On Saturday, October 1, Edcamp Long Island returns for the third year. We expect 700 attendees. As one of the founding team members, I'm proud to be associated with a group of people like this who value a movement like this, a movement that's about one thing only: learning.

You may think you can see where this is headed next - a sales pitch to attend an edcamp. Now I could easily sell it, and before you know it, you'd be registered for Edcamp Long Island. Your life would be forever changed. You'd be spreading the word, telling others about it, inviting them to join you next year.

instead I'd like to issue a challenge: to exchange your traditional PD mindset for a Professional Learning (PL) mindset.

The difference? Collective wisdom.

Let's be honest. For those of us who have been around long enough to see how we've "done school", traditional PD is likely here to stay. So rather than try to change it or become frustrated, why not try to change how you interact with it...and at it?

How to Embrace Collective Wisdom:

Before your next organized learning experience, be it professional learning at edcamp or the more traditional professional development option, here are five things to consider.

DO begin with the end in mind. Remain firmly anchored in results. Heading into a day of learning, set some desired outcomes for yourself. Keep in mind, it's not about the devices as much as it is about what they can accomplish. Technology encompasses a wide array of tools - for designing rigorous lessons, fostering meaningful engagement, and high-impact formative assessment to inform teaching and learning.

DON'T make it about your devices. If you are a connected educator, you'll likely have an iPhone, an iPad, and a Chromebook ready for action. But don't fall prey to looking down at a screen instead of looking up, looking around, and engaging fully in face-to-face meaningful dialogue.

DO approach learning with an open mind. Be ready to try something new and to consider how it may fit into what you're already doing. For example, three years ago, I struggled with the idea of fostering high-impact school-home and home school communication. So I connected with people who value this priority and are even also challenged by this. Because I gave myself the space to admit this is an area in which I struggled, I learned more about how others perceive this struggle, modified suggested practices to match what works in my school community, and I graciously accepted the resources and support shared. And I remained patient, as I anticipated the positive results that followed. These conversations, in a room full of people, created these conditions for collective impact.

DON'T make it about trying to do everything. You will encounter lots of amazing people who do lots of incredible things. Keep in mind, however, that we are each members of a unique school culture, with varying District priorities, and avenues of opportunity. We can find strength in celebrating our differences and our similarities, because having a value for learning is universal.

DO remember that everyone has something to learn and something to contribute. We are all at varying stages of learning, of growth, and of progress in our relative personal-professional pathways. With this in mind, sit at lunch with someone you've just met, grab a cup of coffee together, or catch up at the last session. Stay connected by phone, email, Twitter, Voxer, and Google Hangouts. You will find the people you meet at events like Edcamp Long Island also frequent other more "traditional" local and national events. This is where the collective wisdom lives, grows, and thrives - in our ongoing interactions.

DON'T make it about who you want to meet. If you're attending an edcamp, you're likely, on some level, a connected educator. This mindset will naturally afford opportunities to interact with some of the best and brightest educators in the field. These are innovators and learners, who are passionate, knowledgeable, and you will find, extremely generous with their time and attention. Getting caught up in a game of "who's who" may lead to feeling unfulfilled.

DO treat yourself to some quiet low-tech or (no-tech) reflection time in the hours and days that follow. Jot down your takeaways and a "to-do list". Include things you can test out in your classroom or your school on Monday. Add to your list things you'll talk to colleagues about this week. Add to your list things you'll meet with your Principal about this month, or your Central Office supervisors this quarter. Create a wish list for yourself to revisit this year. Just do it.

DON'T make one day of learning...about a single day of learning. Remember, it's an incremental process, not an isolated event. Don't leave your learning where you found it. Take it with you. Share it. Celebrate it.

DO remember: It's about one thing and one thing only: learning. And best of all, it's happening right alongside others who share the same priority.

This post is dedicated to my friend, mentor, and 2016 Principal of the Year, Dr. Donald Gately and our Edcamp Long Island Team. 

Read Don's most recent blog post, entitled "Edcamp is the Better Way": https://dfgately.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/about-professional-development-edcamp-is-the-better-way/.

Hope to see you on Saturday, October 1 for Edcamp Long Island: http://edcampli.weebly.com/ . 

----------
In the summer of 2014, I took a leap of faith and started a blog called Learning Leadership...

In the summer of 2016, I have eagerly taken another leap of faith - involving a blogging project through the BAM Radio Network.

Thank you for reading 26 Days of Learning Leadership. Comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated.

26 Days of Learning Leadership

Day 1: Accountability
Day 2: BRAVO

BRAVO

This post also ran as a Review in MiddleWeb on 12/29/16.

Do you remember your administrative internship? While I don't recall the day-to-day tasks with any level of specificity, I'll never forget that this was when I first realized the importance of strong mentors. While my sponsoring mentor played a significant role in shaping the leader I was learning to become, he also had a way of modeling why it's important to seek out every opportunity to grow as a leader. 

In one particular instance, he and I were responsible for initiating a new program in our school district. The outside liaison for that program was not necessarily who I expected. He was an accomplished former coach and teacher, who went on to become the principal, and eventually superintendent of a large school district. He had a physically imposing presence with a deep baritone voice. In this next phase of his career, he chose to work in an organization responsible for introducing formal education to three and four-year old children and their families, through Universal Pre-Kindergarten.  

Connecting with this unlikely mentor was well-timed, because I distinctly recall questioning my decision to leave the classroom for school administration. I regularly woke up in the middle of the night, wondering if I had what it took to be a school leader. 

Over the course of the program planning sessions, my mentor consistently sought ways to bring me and this veteran administrator together. My mentor saw my struggle and knew I needed to listen to the wisdom of others to shape my decision.

We held countless meetings on programming logistics, budgeting, communications, among other items, and my mentor brought me to the point of asking a question I had been wrestling with on my own: 

What does it take it be a successful school leader?

It took quite some time for me to muster the courage to ask, mostly for fear of hearing an answer that would disqualify me from ever becoming a success.

The answer from this hulking presence, was one I will not soon forget. He looked me in the eyes and said:

"Anyone can run a school, sign paperwork, and manage a budget. But school leadership is about one thing, and one thing only: RELATIONSHIPS. If you make that your focus, every day, you will be a successful administrator. It ALL comes down to RELATIONSHIPS".

Ten summers later, now a seasoned administrator myself, I read BRAVO Principal written by Sandra Harris. The acronym BRAVO, which stands for Building Relationships with Actions that Value Others, took me back to the moment I asked that question, and got an answer that remains with me each day.

According to Harris, BRAVO Principals do 8 things:

Establish trust.

They model and celebrate the vision of a learning organization, centering first and foremost on the success of all students. They provide time and space for collaboration, trusting teachers to determine, with one another, what this looks like. Rather than use power to force decisions, they empower teachers to work collaboratively to make decisions, that keep students at the center of the school vision. BRAVO Principals give away power and in turn, earn trust.  

Support others.

Regular and ongoing reflection on just how personal our profession is, BRAVO Principals value the notion that being visible and present in the lives of others is directly correlated with investing in the emotional accounts of others. Making themselves available, having a sensitivity to how communication is processed, using tools to "meet communities where they are", and opening and encouraging strong lines of two-way communication are all marks of a BRAVO Principal.  

Respect others.

Simply put, BRAVO Principals make kindness the centerpiece to their actions, even when there's a need to confront behaviors that don't align with the school culture. They recognize the role creativity plays in arriving at difficult decisions in challenging times involving students, staff, and community. And they place a premium on working together in the spirit of continual growth and improvement.

Demonstrate cultural responsiveness.

BRAVO Principals confront their beliefs about themselves, value diversity, and challenge assumptions and mental models. They strive to build a community that fosters a sense of belonging, through their actions. And they fearlessly engage in challenging conversations. BRAVO Principals recognize that school is a place to practice leadership that transcends the school walls. 

Challenge the imagination.

Leadership isn't often credited for being creative. However, school leaders who embrace solving problems or alleviating concerns before they become problems reap the benefits of what results: relationships. While change is a constant in education, it's also one of our greatest challenges, because it is so highly personal and personalized. BRAVO Principals focus on planning, listening, resolving conflicts, and embracing "next steps" together for the sake of growth, they model making decisions in the best interests of students.

Nurture achievement.

BRAVO Principals are focused on leading the learning, nurturing achievement, and supporting educators' risk-taking in pursuit of high standards. Being willing to push outer limits on taking instructional risks is a quality that BRAVO Principals embody in their every action, recognizing that modeling risk-taking raises questions that challenge the status quo.

Demonstrate courage.

Leadership is not about being perfect; it's about being a work-in-progress who strives for forward motion and continual improvement. By modeling this relentless pursuit of progress with integrity, BRAVO Principals are true to themselves and in turn, are true to the vision of building a culture that's centered on what's best for each student and his or her success.  

Make the world a better place.

Leadership is about serving others in a learning community. Leaders who embrace this honor not only serve students and a school community, but their actions become their impact. The results of when school leaders focus on trust, support, respect, cultural responsiveness, creativity, achievement, and courage is what becomes their legacy. 

In this time of increasing unprecedented demands on schools, it's easy to abandon things that do not yield immediate tangible results. However, the best school leaders realize that attention to the human details involved in our work is what will become the catalyst for positive outcomes, for our students. The book BRAVO Principal, and it's reflection questions and support exercises is an effective resources for keeping school leaders centered on what matters most to promote the success of each of our students in our learning organizations. 
----------
In the summer of 2014, I took a leap of faith and started a blog called Learning Leadership...

In the summer of 2016, I have eagerly taken another leap of faith - involving a blogging project through the BAM Radio Network.

Thank you for reading 26 Days of Learning Leadership. Comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated.

26 Days of Learning Leadership
Day 1: Accountability

Accountability

Twenty years ago.

Twenty years ago, I set foot in my first classroom. I remember it like it was yesterday. And just as much, I can vividly recall the high level of accountability I had.

For myself.

As a new teacher, I had the weight of the world on my shoulders. Every. Detail. Mattered. The signage that adorned the classroom door that greeted "my" students. The arrangement of the books in the classroom library, desks, tables, and learning centers. Bulletin boards, posters, and name tags. 

The lesson and unit plans for the day, week, and month to come. All carefully scripted, nearly to the word, for that fateful first day - the day I had been waiting for since being offered that first opportunity, to make an impact on the lives of children.

I'll never forget the level of accountability I felt. To be the best teacher I could be, for students, who deserved the best teacher and learning experience they'd had to this point in their school lives.

Ten years ago.

Ten years ago. I set foot in my first office. At times, I still smile recalling the feeling of dragged from the classroom I had come to know and to love. The safe space where young people grew to become who they were meant to be. And for me, the space where I could be who I needed, for them. That uncertain feeling that I couldn't put a name to was that of being recruited - for leadership.

I was in a position in which I wouldn't always see to the direct immediate impact of my decisions, moment-by-moment. But, if I could get it right, I would be among a team dedicated to making a greater impact on more people. Students and their parents, teachers, stakeholders, and a learning community. 

Ten years later, the rest is history.

But the accountability still exists, and has intensified, feeling all at once, more complex and more sophisticated.

We have allowed our perceptions to shift, tempting us to move from a proactive to a reactive stance. Top-down mandates. If/than scenarios. And messaging by way of fancy websites, presentations, and speeches, all laden with buzzwords, threats, and promises. The result is a system struggling to adjust it's 20th Century approach to produce 21st Century results. 

Some perceive external pressures as a threat to invade what is still pure and good - in our schools. The trust and relationships we build. The sweat equity that goes into being a great teacher. Despite the push of external priorities onto and in some cases, into, our schools...we continue to prevail.

But why? And how?

The best schools and the best educators know that:

• We are accountable
• to ourselves.
• to the students we serve.
• to the adult members of our communities: our parents and teachers, our community stakeholders and our community partners.
• to our learning organizations and school communities.

• And we are accountable to our profession, ensuring that it's reputation remains honorable and adaptable, evolving to stay relevant.

The best schools and educators don't wait for external forces to hold us accountable. 

We hold ourselves accountable.

This summer of learning affirmed my belief personal accountability. Its gotten me wondering how we might design accountability systems for ourselves. Here's what has worked for me...so far.

1. Extend the invitation to learn.

Surround ourselves with three kinds of people: those with whom we share common values and interests, those who challenge us and our belief systems, and those whom we emulate because each possesses qualities unlike ours, that drive us to achieve our personal best. I have found that blending a rock-solid core District team in combination with being involved with a diverse team who embraces the "Edcamp mentality" has brought me in contact with people who put learning and leading first. Some of the most rewarding learning experiences have come quite spontaneously. And to think, there are are so many more waiting out there.

2. Accept the challenge to learn.

Embrace situations that make us feel uneasy. Because risk-taking helps us grow. This summer, being part of the AMLE Leadership Institute as a facilitator introduced me to unfamiliar situations that, at first thought, made me feel uncertain. But jumping in, with good people, reminded me that without risk there's no reward. The unexpected reward is, seeing how we rise to the occasion and grow when first faced with a challenging situation. Choosing to do this keeps us versatile and dexterous, ready for when there is a need to handle unplanned situations. 

3. "Team up".

When asked, tell others we would "love to". There's an exhilaration associated with "going for it". Commit to a book talk or a blogging group. Facilitate a webinar or co-facilitating a presentation or a conference. The impact of learning intensifies when the responsibility is shared. Asking others to join you in making it happen sets the stage for that impact. The personal-professional fulfillment that comes with a shared learning experience is like no other.

4. Start the conversation.

If all of this seems overwhelming or intimidating, there is a fourth option: start small...really small. Start one conversation with one person about one topic that matters. Then build on it. Determine action steps and how to indicate and measure progress. Check up on one another as a reminder that we are not alone. Celebrate risks. Dissect mistakes. And share small victories - the milestones - along the way. Knowing there's someone else there with you serves as a reminder that all things good in education come as a result of clear and consistent communication and an unwavering commitment to learning together.

This school year can be the best school year yet. And the first step in making that happen is being centered on how YOU will hold YOURSELF accountable. 

But this is what works for me. And it's not an all-inclusive, exhaustive list of ways in which I hold myself accountable.

What is this that YOU do to hold YOURself accountable?

----------

In the Summer of 2014, I took a leap of faith and started a blog called Learning Leadership...

In the Summer of 2016, I have eagerly taken another leap of faith - involving a blogging project through the BAM Radio Network. 

Thank you for reading 26 Days of Learning Leadership. Comments and feedback are welcomed and appreciated.

Risk

Do you remember the last time you took a risk? 

Think not about the moment you took the risk, itself, as much as the point right before you made the conscious decision to try something new. Something that would challenge you. Something that would open you to being vulnerable. Something that would reveal weakness, that would expose flaws and insecurities, and that would open you to judgment and to criticism. 

This blog post is my 20th. 

When I think back to July 27th, 2014, I recall it as an important day in the evolution of my personal professional learning. This was the day I clicked "publish" on my first blog, as part of a new venture...on the road to Learning Leadership.

My first post, 5 People and the feedback I received, shifted my thinking on what it means to be a reflective school leader. That being said, I'll never forget the months leading up to making the decision to start blogging. I was roughly one year new to engaging using a personal-professional account on social media. I had been following and learning from so many educators, with so many perspectives, who were willing to connect with me. Outside of my professional circles in my local region, this was all new to me. After all, I got my start like so many others, deeply rooted in the foundations of 20th Century teaching and learning.  

My curiosity was triggered by others around me, who had either started their own blogging journey, or who were carving the path for me and for others. These people before me not only set the example, but they also invited, welcomed, and embraced my willingness to engage. I studied their platforms, merged ideas, and modeled mine style after their combined influence. I arrived at a theme (Learning Leadership) that I could consistently stand by, after reading examples set by others. And when it neared the time to click "publish", I shared my draft with great anticipation, and received honest, constructive, supportive feedback. In some cases, this came from people who I either had yet to meet or had only met or spoken with in limited context, either through social media exchanges, on the telephone, or via Google Hangout, or in-person at regional conferences. Nonetheless, the consistently high levels of generosity was all-at-once cautionary, hopeful, and inspiring, leaving me to wonder, "How this was possible?"

See, the timing of this new venture and experience coincided with an uncertain time in education. The valuable potential role of assessment and evaluation was at risk of being tainted by external influences with disingenuous motives. The threat of compromising "the good" in education was real for those who understand and appreciate it's core values. And for those who live and work outside the education bubble, our profession was at-risk of being judged for being inadequate, inefficient, and ineffective, among other damaging judgments. And it was being manipulated, in a manner that broke trust and was damaging to the reputation of the profession and any progress it had made to that point. 

So what was maybe most intriguing about taking this risk, to be transparent, to share openly and vulnerably, it seemed to run almost completely counter to an educational landscape that had been devolving rapidly, into a downward spiral, and at the hands of those who had little to do with having a direct impact on our most important "stakeholders"...our students and their families. 

In the connected education world, collaboration, support, encouragement, communication, and eternal promise of growth, and progress seem to be celebrated. And in the "real world" of education, lines were being drawn, posturing based on assertions of beliefs, political negotiation, threats, and competition would seek to determine "winners" and "losers". 

I found myself challenged, often considering, which one more closely resembled the values of a thriving learning organization?

Embarking on the journey of Learning Leadership not only kept my focus on what matters most. It made me realize, there are so many others who found solace who were inspired by hope, in this space as well. And for that, I am thankful.

--------------------

July 1, 2016 will be the first day of my 20th school year as an educator. While, on some level, I am proud of the risks I've taken, I can also say with certainty, that I have also learned a great deal about the value of being reliable, predictable, dependable, and steadfast, especially during challenging times. 

I've also learned that having these qualities and being a risk taker are not mutually exclusive. 

And being a risk-taker is not only reserved for the 21st Century.

This time of year, when we welcome new teachers and bid others a sentimental farewell to embark on the next phase of life, I always look forward to retirement celebrations. I enjoy these because I am hopeful for these all-too-rare occasions when we seize opportunities to bridge generations of educators who can share wisdom of what it means to be a great teacher "then" and "now". There's one teacher in particular who I've always looked forward to seeing at these events, Mr. Peters.

As I look back on 10 years in the classroom and 10 years out of the classroom, I fondly recall regular conversations I used to have with the grandmother of one of my students...conversations about Mr. Peters. She would tell me, often, how I reminded her of him, when he taught her now-grown children. And while she'd explain, we were similar in our teaching approaches, she said we were never afraid to take risks if they were in the best interests of children.

One time, this grandmother shared a poem with me, which I keep to this day, and find myself reading every so often. It's a poem that reminds anyone willing to read it, the importance of taking risks. It was appropriate for Mr. Peters a half-century ago, it resonated with me over a decade ago, and it's as valuable, if not more, for educators in 2016.

If 

Rudyard Kipling 

1865-1936

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing their's and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or being hated don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim,

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same

If you can bare to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, 

And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings,

And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

Mr. Peters has not likely ever used any form of social media, nor will he ever. But I am grateful for his influence, leading the way with taking risks, to better the lives of others and to better our learning organizations. And I am equally as thankful for "My 20 Favorite Bloggers": My 20 Favorite Bloggers .  Connect with them today, and be prepared to take risks and to grow.

And if you're not blogging yet, today's the day to start. You will not regret you decision to take the risk and will be amazed by what you learn.