My Teaching Cape/ Sweater

When I was a child I can remember watching Mr.Rogers on public access television. Each day he would walk into his workshop and put on his sweater and sneakers. It seemed weird to me and I never understood why he did it. After 21 years of teaching, I think I've got it now. I didn't even realize that I had learned valuable lessons and tools that I have added to my instructional arsenal.

Five years ago my mother gave me a black knit sweater. The building that I worked in was rather cold. I began wearing my sweater every day. It was warm, comfortable, and stylish. It made me feel like no matter what happened that day, I was going to be ok. I didn't realize that my sweater was turning into my "Teaching Sweater."

Each Day Change Your State of Mind.
Just as Mr. Rodgers changed his shoes and put on a sweater, I began to put my teaching sweater on daily with a smile. When I put that sweater on I realized that it was a new day. If I got it wrong yesterday, I was determined to get it right today.

Each Day Encourage Yourself
When I put on my teaching sweater it reminded me that I was a talented and gifted teacher. It made me want to share something new and special with my students. I wanted to open the world of science to my students. It made me want to stand on a desk and shout to the world "Today will be a good day!" My teaching sweater became my cape. It made me invincible. Yes, the invincible teacher.

Each Day Build Your Community
It's probably all in my mind, but I even gave better advice to my colleagues when I wore my teaching sweater. As I transitioned from teacher to instructional coach I kept my sweater.  My teaching sweater helped me be confident, and in turn, I was able to share my confidence with others. I could walk into a room of sad, angry, or aggravated teachers and change the mood.

I'm not sure that I really needed a teaching sweater, or that it made me a better teacher, coach, or leader. It just made me feel good and I was able to share that feeling of positivity with others.

Are You Here for an Interview?

Over the summer I have had the opportunity to interview almost 30 people for various positions. There aspects of interviewing that I thought everyone knew. However, this summer has definitely proven my theory to be incorrect.  The interview is usually to see if you will fit in the organization. The interviewer has read your resume and has researched you online ( I hope). What interviewers are really looking for is to see if you are who you proclaim to be on paper. 

Dress the Part
It hasn't happened often, but there were times when I have interviewed applicants who were not dressed for the part. When you go for a job interview you have to dress for the part. We have all heard the saying,"Don't dress for the job that you have. Dress for the job that you want." Yes, we are teachers, and our days can be filled with  messy experiments, art projects, and whatever else your profession throws our way. However, when interviewing we have to present ourselves as professionals. Whenever, you are going to an interview you have to sell yourself. We should always strive to be role models for our students in  our dress, speech, and conduct; even at our interview. In short dress up. You are being assessed on not only your competence but also on your appearance. 

Avoid Strong Odors

Strong odors can be off putting. The smell of strong perfumes and colognes, smoke, or body odor should be avoided. You may enjoy your favorite perfume but it can cause others to have headaches or allergic reactions. Just for the day, tone down on the perfume for your interview. If you smoke, keep your interview clothing away from your cigarettes. Remember, you may be used to the smell but others aren't. Do not attempt to cover the smell of cigarettes with perfume. If you have body odor, wash and use deodorant. Seems like that would go without being said, but it has to be stated.

Answer the Questions
When you get in the interview it's ok to ask the interviewer to repeat the question. Take your time and answer the question. Stay on topic. Don't try to provide more information than what was asked.  If you don't know the answer to a question be honest. Don't try to guess the answer to a question. If you guess wrong it could be disastrous. Research the organization before you go on the  interview. Be able to share that you understand some (not all) of the components of the organization.
If you say that you wrote, created, or invented something it better be the truth. You should be able to explain your dissertation, the program that you created, or the product you invented. Don't inflate your previous roles. Google has a way of helping interviewers find the truth with or without you.

Be Enthusiastic
If you love teaching it should shine through during your interview. You should be enthusiastic during

an interview or a demonstration lesson. If you are boring while talking about yourself or your profession it may be hard for the institution to believe you will deliver instruction more enthusiastically.

Name Dropping
Name dropping is not necessary! If you want others to know that you have a relationship with someone who is doing amazing things in education, then have them write a letter of recommendation. Name dropping is a gamble. The world is small, and even smaller now that we have the internet. When you name drop, you don't know how well the interviewer knows the person to whom you are referring. They may be best friends or enemies. Don't name drop. Get the job based on your own merit. You know your content area, you have worked really hard to get to this point, so go get your job.

Creating A Small Community for Virtual Learners

One of the biggest questions that middle school parents have is, "Who is this kid that lives with me?" The middle schooler is more independent than the elementary student, but not independent enough to handle the challenges of high school. Raising and teaching middle school students can be a delicate tightrope routine. Trying to find the balance between parents and teachers can be difficult. At the middle school age, students are also trying to figure out who they want to be in life.

In the cyber education model, it can be challenging to help guide students through this stage in their development. I have attempted to develop experiences in my school that will help students develop relationships, tap into small social communities, and to develop a sense of self.
Homerooms
The brick and mortar educational experience utilizes an advisory or homeroom experience for students that is generally intended to track student attendance. I have seen the homeroom misused and is really just a holding period for students where they simply sit for 15-30 minutes a day with no real purpose to the time. The time is more of a social experience. I have also seen some amazing character building programs implemented during a homeroom period. My challenge was to find the balance between the two. 

I had all of the students in my school assigned to an advisor. The advisors were required to meet with their students at least once per month for thirty minutes (this will be more next year). I gave the teachers time from our 3 hours of Thursday professional development time to meet with their students. During their meetings, they were asked to talk to their students and to let the students talk to each other. Some of our students are home with just their immediate family all day. It is important for them to learn how to socially interact with other children and adults.  They were asked to celebrate their birthdays, important accomplishments, play games, and just have fun. 

Yes, there was pushback by the staff, but I know that this is best for the students. They really thought that it would just be one more thing that they needed to do in addition to all of their other responsibilities. I know that the program has not been implemented consistently across all grade levels. My goal is to continually provide these small community interactions for students. At the end of the year, we will compare the number of students who withdrew from our school, and who cited communication or being disconnected as reasons for leaving the school with the number of students who cited these reasons in previous years. Changing culture can be a slow process, but providing opportunities for social interaction is important.

A Message to My Students

As I plan for my second graduation speech as a principal, I am trying to narrow down what I want to say to my students. What could I possibly say to students that will help them move to the next phase of their life? What could I say to let them know how proud I am of their accomplishments, and how excited I am for the possibility of their future. I want to say something profound. I want to say something relevant. I want to say something that will make them want to keep fighting even when they don't want to fight. 

While teaching high school I was responsible for the senior class. I enjoyed reading the book Oh the Places You'll Go to my seniors. They would all roll their eyes and sigh at the beginning of the reading, but by the end, we would all be in tears. Last year, I read an excerpt to my first graduating 8th-grade class as principal. Of course, this year I will read an excerpt from the book, but I also want to offer something more to my students.

So here are three things that I would tell all of my students. Yes, this message would be for my students from 21 years ago and my students from this year.

1. Keep moving forward. Don't ever stop questioning, learning, and helping others. Just when you think you know all that there is to know, as yourself,"But what don't I know?" Then go figure it out.  

2. Know that my expectations of you when you were in my school are greater when you leave school. I will always expect for you to be a scholar, involved in your community, and a leader.  

3. I did not teach you because of where you came from, but for the hope and possibility of where you could go in life. Your future is bright and will be determined by the work and effort that you place on being the best you that you can. Leave this place better than you found it!

Change

Education is changing. Technology is ever-changing. What children need to know to be productive citizens has changed. Why change is important? It's simple. If you don't change you get left behind. How many times have you seen someone with a flip phone with no graphics? Most of us would snicker and at least think, "They need to update their phone." When I began teaching the rage was to have students use a computer in the classroom. There were two or three computers in the back of the class for students to use. Now many schools are a one-to-one institution ( one computer for every student.). My current school is a two to one institution ( providing a laptop and an iPad for students). Frequent reflection on what's working and what's not is necessary for any institution. With the use of the internet, the world has become smaller and changes are happening faster. Before change occurs some questions need to be asked and answered:

1. Why do we need to change?
2. What will happen if we do not change?
3. What are possible change solutions? What are the pros and cons of these solutions?
4. How will we include others in the change processes?
5. What will we need to do to change?
6. What is our timeline for the change?
7. How will we know that the change was beneficial?

Change is necessary, but it is difficult in any organization. Change may require people to change, resources, to change, or even be eliminated. Once the change is deemed to be necessary, a team needs to determine the best path of execution. In my school, I work closely with a parent advisory group, teachers, and other district administrators when looking at change. Change is not and will not be accepted by everyone. What happens when they don't buy-in to change? Allow those who have not jumped on board with the change to express their thoughts. They may be the voice of reason that you need to see the picture of change clearly. They may have some perspective that you may not have considered. Have an open dialogue and try to help them understand the purpose of the change.

However, if the resistance to change will hinder the progress of students, the resistor may have to leave the organization. Moving forward and making progress should never be based on teachers or administrators. I know that it is hard to think or do, but at times it may be necessary to exit someone from your school. If someone is preventing student achievement then they should be eliminated from the equation.

Changing culture can be a slow process. Waiting for things to change may be hard to do. In a time where we have access to information and resources immediately, waiting for change can be almost painful. However, we must give time to see the full results of the change. For example, we have moved from one LMS (learning management system) to another because the original LMS became obsolete. Changing from one LMS to another in a cyber school is a huge undertaking. We needed to present to the school community why the change was important (this took months). We implemented a test group. My 6th-grade students, teachers, and parents were chosen to pilot the new LMS. We then had to train the rest of the staff/parents/ students. I believe that we made the correct choice in switching the LMS, but the true evidence of the change may not be realized for at least 3-5 years after implementation.

Change will happen. Change is necessary. Well-planned and organized change can produce amazing growth.