Well said, perhaps we have the workings of a logic model for Center programming. How, specifically will we take care of teachers? How will teachers find out about us? Keep thinking, your post was the best thing I’ve read all day.

Thank you for sharing this. The Center does need to respond to this problem by planning and providing support and outlets for teachers to debrief and refocus on the positive educational discussions. With the cutbacks on professional development spending in school budgets (caused by the need to spend more on unfunded mandates and the decrease of support by voters, schools unfortunately can’t afford to pay for professional development The Center offers nor teacher release time to facilitate these important networking opportunities. How can The Center work to help more private funders understand the need for contributions and support to help schools “take care” of their most valuable resource, their teachers? Might this be an opportunity for businesses and foundations to help us improve schools and ultimately educational experiences for students? I believe open communication among teachers and administrators on the pressures teachers face would help address this issue and build teachers as leaders in finding the solution.

Excellent, excellent! As I mentioned in our faculty meeting - the Jenning’s Scholar lecture series were not “professional development” workshops in the formal sense of teacher training, however the presentations gave me just what I needed at the perfect time to help remind me or to keep me feeling good about the work that I was doing both as a professional educator and as a human being. I wish that I could go to this year’s series!

I think that we may be effective when talking to our funders if we could talk about or have some information that demonstrates how employees who are healthy, balanced and supported actually feel physically and mentally better, thus feel motivated to keep doing or to reignight passions for doing good work. That was not artfully said, but you know what I mean.

I read something last year about reaching teachers through professional development opportunities that speak to their hearts - reignighting the emotional connections with their work.

I know that when I’m feeling run down, both physically, emotionally and mentally I am not motivated to increase my capacity at work - Forget it!

I also just read something today about yoga workshops helping teachers to feel reenergized and stimulating classroom creativity. I would love to start talking about that more formally too.

This is Good Stuff!

As I was reading this blog I couldn’t help but feel that you have perfectly described how I feel as an educator. I too love what I do and I feel energized every time I attend professional development training. In fact, I can’t wait to implement some of the new innovative things I learn when I attend training. The issue at hand is that time is a premium for teachers. In order for us to be dynamic, innovative, creative, and energized in the classroom we have to have time to plan lessons, collaborate with staff, and learn new technologies.

At the end of a school day like you described I feel pretty darn tired too. So on top of my regular day I have to find time to troubleshoot a technology problem for one of my colleagues, sift through my new lab materials, return email communications, organize the six inch mound of papers I have to grade, make out answer keys, and clean off my desk all before I go home. I FEEL your pain too. I agree that if we are to best support teachers in their efforts then an active line of communication among teachers and administrators is one way to do that. Funding is another important and necessary aspect. I can’t imagine being an administrator and having to tell a teacher who is begging for training and support….NO. The disparities of funding in Ohio are not only sad but depressing. Should schools have to wait around while the state of Ohio forms committees to “discuss” the funding problems in Ohio? I’ll probably be retired by the time Ohio gets around to that discussion.

At the same time I am not going to sit around and wait for someone else to hand it to me. If I want something I’m going to find a way to get it done. Teachers can be leaders of change in their department, building, and district. Administrators can help support those efforts. The private sector can invest in those efforts. What we do in educating young people is an overall combined effort. Lines of communication must be established, support for teachers must be provided, and funding must be acquired and allocated.

Jody:

Well said. When we initially hit on this topic, we were not sure where it was going to go. Now it appears as though there is a need for some programming in this area. Time is another theme that keeps coming up. How can we provide time for collaboration and sharing of best practices? What would have to happen to this site (or others like it)to be of value?

I need “time” to proofread my comments before hitting send. Please ignore all repeated spelling errors.

I was thinking about “time” as I drove into work this morning…I was thinking about how packed the day is as a school teacher - how every second counts…I don’t have any insights right now…just thinking about time.

Jody

I am very interested to read your comment above. You throw out an interesting challenge: “I agree that if we are to best support teachers in their efforts then an active line of communication among teachers and administrators is one way to do that.”

How would you see that line of communication take place? What would it look like? Can online discussion fora like this be a place where that communication happen. If not, what do you see as the obstacles that prevent that from happening?

Any others have thoughts on this??

John

Good question, John.

I like discussion boards and forums. I participate in several. I learn quite a bit just by listening to the conversations of others and I learn about myself through the things that I begin or respond to on the various discussion boards.

I think that people need a reason to participate in something like a discussion board or blog. There must be something there for the person - a need to be met.

For example, today I explored a forum for a technology product. Since my school district is putting Promethean boards into every classroom, I wanted to know more about the board and how others are using the software in schools. The company has a website and one of the main features of the site is their discussion forum. This forum serves a specific need - a place for users of a particular product to share their tips, tricks, advice, and experinces with other users of the product. The Promethean forum fills the need of an outlet and a resource for users of the product.

Purpose is key - we can have a great tool like a blog or a wiki or whatever…but if there isn’t anything on there that people need…what’s the purpose!?

I also wonder if some people may be afraid to write - speak and share - to make public their thoughts in an online forum. I wonder if they are afraid of putting their ideas into writing, then leaving these ideas out in cyberspace where anyone - ANYONE - is able to read, review, think about AND critique those ideas. I wonder if some people may fear sharing their ideas in such an open forum.

Kate Bunsey

John & Katie,

I just had a chance to come back to this blog conversation and read up on recent comments. I was thrilled to see some additions particularly since this was my first experience in blogging. Since time is the premium I continue to struggle with let me make a few comments on your thoughts. John said, “How do we provide time for collaboration?” and Katie’s comment on how “every second of the school day counts…” I guess the most logical answer is to make better use of the time we do have. I have sat in countless department meetings where the topic of discussion could have been sent in a memo. I want those 45 minutes of my life back!!! Hah. I don’t want to downplay the importance of department meetings and staff meetings but I do want to say that some of this time can be put to better use and dedicated to collaboration. For example, I recently helped two colleagues set up the Smart Board hardware and software for their classroom. I did this during my planning period and during my duty period. My colleague volunteered to cover my duty so I could continue to set up the hardware. Another example, I have had several problem solving discussions with another colleague who happens to share the same duty period as I do. As the UDL coordinator for my building we set up a master roster of UDL members and their lunch, duty, and prep period times. This allows any member to contact and collaborate with any other member who shares the same open time.

To respond to John’s question of “…how can we make this of value?” The best sharing of ideas I have seen is among teachers who can immediately apply it to their classroom and their situation. I’ve shared ideas with colleagues who have said to me “I don’t think that will work for me” where other colleagues will say to me “How do you use this in your classroom and can you show me how to do it too?” The value in time is that a teacher must see how something new can be applicable to their situation, provide the most benefit for their students, and will have support to back it up. The investment in time then has value.

Responding to the statements about communication…I agree with you Katie that there is a reluctance I believe in participating in open public forums such as blogging and skype sessions. I believe people are reluctant to have their comments hanging out there to be critiqued and commented on by others. It opens you up and makes you feel vulnerable to attack. I think I have learned that participating in these forms of communication makes me feel like I’m not alone in my ideas. There are others out there that believe these ideas are worth exploring and problem-solving. I also believe that one of the main reasons why teachers are reluctant to openly have these kinds of conversations with administrators is for the same reason we don’t want to take place in blogging and skype…a fear of being judged, a fear of being criticized, a fear in some cases of retaliation. Some of the best open conversations I have experienced with colleagues, administrators, and business professionals have been at the UDL networking sessions at the Center For Leadership. Why is that fear not present at these meetings? I think it’s because we are all present for the same reasons. We are all there because we want to be there. We are all participants because we believe that what we are doing will help our students achieve to the best of their abilities and beyond. It’s all about breaking down barriers.

I decided to respond to some posts on a different thread, “Accessing Learning Opportunities,” in this thread because I see a definite link between the two.

When I first got out of college I had perhaps the most terrible job a person could have; I worked in the Fiscal Services Department of University Hospitals, it was my job to call people who just got home from the hospital and tell them that their insurance company denied their claim, that they owed us $8500, and that we wanted it in thirty days. You can imagine the new words that I learned. The point to the story is that I never once took the yelling and profanity personally. At five o’clock I stopped being that guy. That job was what I did, it was never who I was.

Fast forward three years to the start of my teaching career. That job was never what I did, it was always who I was. When I developed what I thought was going to be a terrific lesson, only to find the information sheets left on the floor of my classroom, or crumpled up in the hallway, I was crushed. There was no other way to take it but personally. I don’t ever recall hearing about “bank teller burnout,” or “Wal-Mart greeter burnout,” as a syndrome in our country. I have heard a lot about “teacher burnout.”

In his book The Courage to Teach, Parker Palmer writes “…good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher.” Parker also notes that “We rarely talk to each other about teaching at any depth-and why should we when we have nothing more than ‘tips, tricks, and techniques’ to discuss. That kind of talk fails to touch the heart of a teacher’s experience.”

I hope that this site does not become about doing this instead of that, being positive instead of being negative, or facts instead of strategies for self learning.

I hope that it becomes a site where educators, and those who are passionate about educacation can take their ideas out for a “test drive” and get feedback about the merits of their strategies. By doing things as a community, I hope that the successes are somehow sweeter, and the failures are somehow less painful.

More importantly, I hope that people who come to this site are somehow more thoughtful, reflective, and aware as a result. For me, the site is about the questions, not about the answers.

Jeff,

Can these blog sessions include emoticons? I’ll send you a warm fuzzy. Have a great day.

Jody

Jeff and Jody:

I appreciate everything that you both say here and take the comments to heart.

I want to know when I can meet Jody at the Center. Jody, you sound like the type of teacher and person with which I want to network. I especially like your comment about powerful conversations happening at CLE during UDL sessions - breaking down barriers through a unity of purpose.

Jeff’s last few sentences make me think of something else that I’ve learned, The Power of Intention.

Thank you for all that you do.

Since the meeting the the Center Faculty in February I have been wondering what “taking care of the people who take care of kids” might look like. At first I thought that it was idle chatter on a cold Saturday morning, along the lines of “wouldn’t it be nice if…”

Since that time, the idea has not gone away. I am wondering (specifically Kate and Jody) what it might look like if we could make such a program appear in the world.

I guess I could ask what teachers need, but then I might get answers like more money, better behaved kids, and more computers. Those are not the things that I am thinking of. What do teachers need in a less obvious sense. I am thinking of things like a place to come together to discuss tough issues, re-energize themselves, consider new strategies, and get thoughtful and caring feedback about issues of practice.

What do teachers need?
How do we offer it?
How do we maintain it?
If we build it, will anyone come?

I enjoyed reading this blog conversation as I believe this is a CRITICAL question. Taking care of teachers really is the job, first, of the school’s leadership to create a culture of collaboration, trusting and open communication, and efficacy. This takes time and much labor and patience. But in buildings where the teachers are understood and cared for, collaboration of ideas increases, genuine partnerships form and this trickles down to the classroom where it serves the school’s mission. The school’s culture and climate are often overlooked by those who are increasingly about “accountability.” The A-word is so often top-down and sets up a we-them culture that no one really wants.

Collaboration is what is needed in the workplace, in our communities, in the home and, really, in the world. Thus, our teachers and school leaders should be the models of opennes, caring and collaboration. When a teacher feels understood and valued by her/his building principal and district office and given enough latitude to make important instructional decisions (AND live a balanced life), productivity goes up! And, this caring and collaboration extends to the students and even to their parents.

I have been in hundred’s of schools and it doesn’t take long to get a feel for the culture there. When the adults are properly taking care of each other, seeking to understand each other, learning from each other and granting grace towards each other, this has an amazing effect on how students view learning.

A final, practical thought, is that teachers need to work in teams, not isolation. They should be getting regular time away from the school for creative, collaborative planning, team training and figuring out the needs of their students. What if they were paid in the month of August to plan together and lay the groundwork for an incredible year? If teachers were really given the time and tools to implement Universal Design for Learning, for instance, significant change would take place — and it has in many schools, but far too few.

Earnest Boyer said, “I know how idealistic it may sound, but it is my urgent hope that in the century ahead students in the nation’s school will be judged not by their performance on a single test but by the quality of their lives. It’s my hope that students in the classrooms of tomorrow will be encouraged to be creative, not conforming, learning to cooperate rather than compete.”

How can we achieve this unless our teachers are also encouraged to creative, not conforming, and cooperating and not competing?

Hello Jim. That was beautiful! Thank you.

I also feel that it is helpful and healthy for teachers to mingle with teachers who are from other school districts - networking.

It is sort of a sad situation in public education that teachers are not encouraged or able to make changes in work locations, i.e. working in other school districts. We’re trapped, more or less in one district. This is the case in Ohio at least as far as I am aware. Once we get into a district, begin working, find success, and establish tenure - we are pretty much stuck in one place for the reminder of our careers. We then become accustomed to doing things the way that this one school district does things, which is good and allows for stability and consistency within the district - no one wants high teacher turn-over. However, I also think that it tends to become a barrier to teacher and student growth. We sort of stagnate and perhaps become a little too comfortable. At least I wonder if we do.

And not that comfort is a bad thing. Who wants to be uncomfortable all the time? This blog thread was started on a call to help support teachers.

I learn so much from meeting other teachers, listening, sharing, touring different buildings and visiting teachers in other districts. I am fortunate to be able to do these things through professional development and the various library organizations, but I wonder if classroom teachers do not have as much freedom as I do.

I wonder how many teachers are permitted to explore new ideas and visit other schools of innovation only to return home to their district and are told, “We can’t do that here” or “That’s a great idea, but it just won’t work here.”

It doesn’t make sense and honestly it is very frustrating when you are the teacher wanting to do, try, investigate and learn more because you are so aware that the status quo just isn’t enough.

I think networking is a beneficial service that the Center for Leadership fosters through the UDL sessions and other communication methods such as this blog. I think it is so healthy for professionals (and people in general) to see what else is out there and I feel like sometimes we simply cannot.

I know we are all crunched for time and we need to be in our buildings working with the students, but we also need opportunities and encouragement to get out there, see what other people are doing, to learn and bring great new or different ideas home to our classrooms.

I think these are healthy things.