The leadership authors and researchers, Kouzes and Posner wanted to learn about the behavioral dimensions admired leaders earned. Kouzes and Posner asked people to give them specific examples of what the leaders they admired the most did to gain their respect, trust, and a willingness to be influenced. How did they behave that help them [...]
If You Are Interested In Organizational Change, You’ll Be Interested In Richard Beckhard’s Famous Equation C = D x V x F > R Change = Dissatisfaction X Vision X First Steps > Resistance C = Change What change do you want for your organization or for yourself? D = Dissatisfaction with Current Situation On [...]
How might all individual students be served if schools, families and communities were to strengthen a shared commitment directed toward the goal of: Schools should be places where all students can and do learn? a student who was highly stimulated with language, social, emotional, nutritional and physical opportunity from ages of 0 to five, a [...]
A bright future for student learning isn’t just a dream!! For effective and helpful leaders – having a clear vision or dream is an essential! In a very simple sense – developing a shared dream or collectively embracing a clear vision – is the work of leadership. “Shared dreams” or a “common vision” provide for [...]
Martin Luther King Jr. wrote in the Morehouse College newspaper The Marion Tiger in the January – February issue of 1947 about his concern for what it means to be truly educated. Among his comments were these: “To think incisively and to think for one’s self is very difficult. We are prone to let our mental life become invaded [...]
Dads and Moms, Grandpas and Grandmas Consider Reading to the Young People in Your Life about Martin Luther King Jr. Here are suggestions for three books that I suggest would be good read alouds about Martin Luther King for to the children in your life. Obviously, these are not the only good ideas of [...]
Superintendent David Britten of Godfrey Lee Public Schools in Michigan writes in his blog: That many people seem to think that when it comes to student learning in Public Schools that “the solution in America involves (1) give more tests, (2) fire more teachers, (3) destroy the unions, and (4) open the market up for [...]
That Used To Be Us: How America Fell Behind In The World It Invented and How We Can Come Back by Thomas L. Frieman and Michael Mandelbaum (2011) was the book that made the biggest impression on me this year. I see this book to be an honest analysis of the America we are living [...]
America’s economy, infrastructure (airports, ports, bandwidth, bridges, rail system, etc.), educational system, open door to immigration, and safe guards to the natural environment and intellectual (encouragements to increase capital flow and innovation) environment have been what Thomas L. Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum have labeled as America’s historic “pillars of prosperity”.* These pillars are less than [...]
Think. Believe. Dream. Dare. — Walt Disney It is wisdom to know others; It is enlightenment to know one’s self. – Lao-Tzu The world we live in is complex. Knowing how to make a difference in today’s world can be complicated. There is no one correct way to make a difference and contribute. One step [...]
Adults are learners. We don’t stop learning as we age. Yet, we learn differently then we might have in our youth. Thus, for those that want to see adults learn, change and grow in their thinking – might want to learn about Andragogy. Yes, Andragogy not Pedagogy. One might want to think of a continuum [...]
America’s students are and will continue to be compared to students around the world. In 2009 there were many surprises. Here is some of what Chest E. Finn had to say about the situation. Fifty-three years after Sputnik caused an earthquake in American education by giving us reason to believe that the Soviet Union had [...]
That title gets me thinking. I am betting when you watch the video you will be thinking about: The need for courageous leadership Education taken as a given Disengagement by students and teachers An age of networks Students having access to powerful tools of learning Shifting some roles Becoming learners together Transformation, flexibility, celebrating Start [...]
It’s all a matter of framing. The language we choose leads to the way we think about and approach things as well as work through the realities of our lives. If we frame situations as problems then we tend to look at trying to solve them. If we frame situations as opportunities then we tend [...]
I Used To Think . . . And Now I Think . . .edited by Richard F. Elmore (2011) is a book that is causing me to ponder and reflect. I like that. It contains twenty essays from leading educators about things they used to think … and things they now think. It is a [...]
An organization’s culture is made up of its folklore, it rituals, its group norms, and its meeting protocols. All of these cultural ingredients influence the organization’s adaptability. Heifetz , et la: Adaptive Leadership 2009 p 57 ~ Understanding the culture is paramount to being able to help change it for the better. The culture of [...]
Employees Wanted . . . that can combine software, art, math, creativity, writing, gaming, education, composing, and marketing Thomas L. Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum the authors of That Used To Be Us, 2011 p.70 -71 make the case for how fast and dramatically the world of work can change. They explain that it is clear [...]
The main goals of this initiative were to provide up to 300 members with portable, Apple iPad 2 mobile devices to: Facilitate their communication with their district staff Provide experiences with the use of real-time data in the decision-making process Promote interdistrict, superintendent level, collaboration and problem solving on a variety of educational issues and [...]
We school leaders know that some of our students are tech savvy and we know that many of our students are without access and opportunity for adequate technology experience. We also know that the adult world our students will enter will be full of technology. Thomas L. Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum the authors of That Used To Be [...]
Many Americans are unaware of the young minds around the globe who are competing and will complete with American graduates. As Americans and as educators 0 globalization and technology expertise can not be taken lightly! 1 Zhejiang University 2 University of Michigan at Ann Arbor 3 Tsinghua University 4 St. Petersburg State University 5 Nizhny Novgorod State University 6 Saratov State [...]
Roland Heifetz, Alexander Grashow and Marty Linsky in their book -The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World (2009 p 13-17) write about how Adaptive Leadership has roots in evolutionary biology. I think they make a lot of sense. This information can help us as we lead our systems toward more [...]
Sometimes we think we need to fight through a problem or an issue Sometimes we are almost compelled to ‘not be swayed’ by the thoughts of others Sometimes we are not able to see the value of the thinking of others We need to get good at arriving at ‘thought through’ not ‘fought through’ outcomes [...]
Leadership is working with others. Obviously. Otherwise it wouldn’t be leadership. As a new school year starts your work with others and especially with those who report to you will be a measure of your success. It has been my experience that each of us can always improve our relationships and our communication skills. Continual [...]
Greater opportunities to apply literacy Stronger motivation to use literacy behaviors Strategically reading to learn and/or to be entertained Strategically writing to make meanings and/or to accomplish purposes Thoughtful reading for meaning Greater expression and clarity in writing Reading and writing with confidence Speaking with precision and clarity Actively listening with comprehension Persistent thinkers demonstrating [...]
COLLABORATIVE ENDEVORS > parallel play FORWARD MOTION > being stuck APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY > traditional problem solving CREATE THE FUTURE > status quo OPPORTUNITIES > problems AUDACITY > Accepting Status Quo HOPE > fear STORIES > lectures AN IMPROVED FUTURE > the status quo ADAPTIVE CHANGE > status quo NAMING THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM [...]
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