Appreciation in Spite of the Outcome

I'm feeling gratitude this season for something I didn't expect. As a teacher, it is natural to walk away from an unsuccessful lesson greatly disappointed when the outcome isn't met. But there are also times when not meeting an outcome brings wisdom and a deep appreciation for what was learned.

This season I am filled with gratitude for the courageous Utahns who collaborated on Our Schools Now, what could be considered a failed attempt to dramatically increase funding for Utah's schools. As a veteran of reflective practice, I do not regard this as a completely failed endeavor. I see this instead as a successful beginning to a long-needed conversation regarding our inefficiently funded public school system. In my 30 years as a Utah educator, I cannot remember a time when a group of such powerful business leaders, philanthropists and policy makers joined forces to share their concerns and support for the success of Utah's students and teachers.

This season I offer my genuine and deepest thanks to Scott Anderson, President & CEO of Zion's Bank, Ron Jibson, retired Chairman & CEO of Questar, and Gail Miller, owner of Larry H. Miller Group of Companies. Not educators by trade, each one of these successful business leaders recognizes the tremendous impact well-prepared graduates can have on Utah's economy. They courageously stepped into the spotlight and voiced their support for the need to dramatically increase funding for Utah's schools.

Gail Miller, Owner, Larry H. Miller Group

I am grateful for the work of Bob Marquardt, President of Management & Training Corporation, whose tireless efforts to connect with other business owners garnered great support for the Our Schools Now proposal and began a critical conversation among community members of all walks of life.

I offer my sincere thanks to Governor Gary Herbert. So many educators in other states feel constant resistance from the governor's office in both policy and voice. But Governor Herbert and Lieutenant Governor Spencer Cox, with the advisement of Tami Pyfer, have demonstrated a genuine and very public concern for the immediate need to increase school funding.

Behind-the-scenes credit belongs to Austin Cox, Campaign Manager, whose relentless determination to widen the path of this subject bolstered the pride and sense of worth for thousands of Utah's teachers. Austin's efforts focused on our teachers' dedication and the varied challenges met in every classroom - something most Utahns are unaware of and find uncomfortable to discuss.

My gratitude extends to the OSN Steering Committee, including many business owners, policy makers, local and state school board members, community members, and both current and retired educators who unselfishly volunteered their time and funds to gain support for this initiative.  I appreciate as well the passionate support of my fellow Utah State Teachers of the Year, Utah Hope Street Fellows, and members of the Utah Education Association. Your efforts have deepened my pride as an educator and given me hope for the future of Utah's schools.

Although the Our Schools Now proposal may be perceived as a failed outcome, my disappointment is overshadowed by a deep gratitude for those influential and unselfish individuals who courageously spoke up for Utah's students and teachers. I challenge Utah Legislators and community leaders to rewrite the lesson plan and differentiate our efforts to get the outcome Utah's students deserve.

More of My Discoveries about Teaching and Learning

More of my reflections on teaching and learning on NNSTOY, Edweek Teacher-Leader Voices, and educationpost:

Flying Solo: The Need for Greater Support
Every Brain Deserves a Break
No App Can Replace Mastery for Students and Teachers
The Difficult (and Satisfying) Run of Teaching Defiant Students
Creating Moments our Students will Remember
Take After-School Programs off the Political Chopping Block
Teaching, Like Golf, is "No Easy Game"
Stop Making Teaching Harder than it has to Be!
When White Teachers Avoid Conversations about Race, We Marginalize Students of Color
Move out of the Left Lane, and Let Teacher Leaders Drive Through
Peer Observation and the Novice Teacher: What You See is What You Get

The Reality of Ineffective Teaching

I should have known better

Find them at:

Edweek.org

http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teacher_leader_voices/?_ga=1.137712633.871322141.1479822386

NNSTOY.org

http://www.nnstoy.org/blogs/member-blog/
http://www.nnstoy.org/stoyblog/the-reality-of-ineffective-teaching/

https://www.nnstoy.org/stoyblog/i-should-have-known-better/

educationpost.org

https://educationpost.org/theres-ineffective-teaching-in-every-school-it-doesnt-have-to-be-this-way/

Beyond Test Scores: Why I #LoveTeaching

When I reflect on what I love most about teaching, several things come to mind. The "Ah ha!" moments, appreciative hugs, smiles, cute drawings, all the expected joys that come with the territory. But my favorite aspect of teaching is actually less tangible than those examples. What I love most about teaching is the collective team my 5th graders and I become by the middle of the year.

I can't believe how different it is in August. You see, I hate the first few weeks of school. We don't know each other. We are essentially strangers on our trial behavior. It's kind of like a blind date that lasts a month or more. There are weeks of learning procedures and being challenged to see if I will really follow through consistently. We must all learn each other's personalities, cultural backgrounds, bad habits, and the really important things like favorite super heroes, sports teams, books, and holidays. All of it. It's not my favorite time of year, because I just don't know them yet. Not well enough. Not yet.

But by January, no matter how large my class is, no matter how diverse my students' needs are, no  matter how much resistance I receive from my most emotionally challenged students...  in spite of all of that, I am so attached to these kids - each one of them! Now I really know who they are, and I truly like each one.  As much as I appreciate each unique individual, however, I am even more impressed with the collective group they have become. They are able to work as a team wherever I seat them, and they have each other's backs on the playground. I love the compassion they show for each other, and I can see the confidence they have developed working together. The new family we have become is more important to me than the test scores each student will achieve this spring.

Building a team each year is one of the things I love most about teaching!

But yes, I have to admit, I do love the Valentines... Who doesn't want to be told that "Yoda Best!"?

The Most Compelling Voices

Governor Gary Herbert speaks to the Education Excellence Commission.

Each month I leave the Governor's Education Excellence Commission with a nugget of gold that makes the time I spent making sub plans well worth it. This month it was just a comment, and it came from none other than the Governor himself. When he welcomed us to the commission meeting, he spoke of his recently released 2016 budget:

"You may like the budget, you may not. But tell your legislators how you feel!"

My first thought was, how many people actually do that? For me, I have no problem speaking with policy makers about the education bills and proposed budget each year. But for many teachers, this kind of conversation is intimidating. Inexperienced with the legislative process, most teachers don't feel that their opinions will make a difference. And given the demands placed on teachers, it's not surprising most do not engage in conversations with their representatives during the session.

My response is... I get it. I understand. And yet that, my friends, is a dangerous mind set to own.

Buck up.  Talk to your legislators!


TELL YOUR STORIES!

Most policy makers have little to no experience in the classroom. How could they possibly appreciate the challenges that teachers and students face each day? It is imperative that teachers offer legislators a detailed illustration of their daily classroom journeys. This authentic voice is best spoken by teachers themselves!  Write a brief email, take photos, or even record a short video that emphasizes the needs at your school. Connect quickly through Twitter, Facebook, or other social mediums. #talktoyourlegislator!

Utah Congressman Chris Stewart visits the 5th grade at Foxboro Elementary.

INVITE YOUR REPRESENTATIVES TO YOUR CLASSROOMS!

There is no greater time spent for a legislator than in an actual classroom filled with students. What could be more powerful than a legislator seeing the 30+ desks in your room? What could leave more of an impression that having a legislator watch a certified teacher balance the needs of students with varying ability levels, language development, and social-emotional skills? Policy makers must consider education legislation with a realistic understanding of Utah's classrooms. YOU can provide that for them!

MAKE THE TRIP TO CAPITOL HILL!

This is the hardest one, and I understand how much time is involved in making sub plans. For a teacher, however, talking with legislators on their turf during the session is a powerful experience! The Utah Education Association hosts educators every Friday during the session, which includes a briefing on the education bills and useful talking points. Walk the talk you give your students... be involved as a citizen and own your right to influence policy! 

As teachers, we have the most compelling voices and the greatest potential to influence policy but only if we use our voices collectively!

Buck up.  Talk to your Legislators!

The Greatest Barrier to Instructional Effectiveness

I am one of the lucky ones. In my 28 years as an elementary teacher, I have been encouraged and challenged by professionals who work hard to improve their instructional skills. At my current school, we share ideas, analyze data, observe one another in action, and collaborate with colleagues in other grade levels to find innovative solutions to instructional challenges. It's like being on the Dream PLC.

Unfortunately, not all teachers experience that kind of collegial support.  Many teachers find themselves left to solve the mysteries of teaching alone, especially in their first few years. The remote location of classrooms, tight schedules, and considerable work loads all contribute to a teacher's isolation at work. Teachers who work independently, often veteran teachers, may settle into a stagnant routine, one that is dangerously comfortable. This not only slows the progress of a teacher's instructional skills, even worse, it limits student learning. When instructional coaches or administrators do try to get these isolated teachers to try new strategies, they are often greeted with resistance.


For me, isolation is the greatest barrier to instructional effectiveness. However, teachers spend at least ninety percent of the school day in class with their students. How can we bridge the gap between classroom instruction and professional collaboration?


Formal Teacher Leadership Roles

In my experience, it is a lack of properly funded and structured Teacher Leadership positions that has contributed to the prevalence of isolated teachers. Teaching is often an overwhelming responsibility. It is difficult for school assigned mentors to find time during the day to work with their colleagues. By creating hybrid positions of leadership, teacher leaders have flexibility to work with even the most resistant teachers during the school day when instruction is in progress. Distributed models of leadership have the power to make connections and build trust with isolated teachers in every school.

Holding All Teachers Accountable for Professional Collaboration

An isolated teacher is not always given specific feedback by administrators within the teacher evaluation process, and this enables the teacher's choice to work alone. As in most states, the Utah Effective Teaching Standards clearly specify the expectations of educator reflection and collaboration in Standard 8: Reflection & Continuous Growth, and Standard 9: Leadership & Collaboration. Administrators must hold teachers accountable for these two standards when giving evaluative feedback. While we know that punitive consequences do not always encourage participation, authentic scoring on evaluations can initiate a reflective conversation with those teachers who resist working with others. Administrators must take the time to actually have this conversation. As in any profession, all teachers should be held to the expectations of collaboration, and the evaluation process can be a useful tool.

Targeted Professional Learning

Effective schools and administrators also use Targeted Professional Learning that is based on a Professional Growth Plan and Evaluation Feedback. This process includes a collaborative grade level or subject team, formally referred to as a PLC - Professional Learning Community - that attempts new strategies by sharing ideas, analyzing data and implementing observational feedback to improve student learning. Targeted Professional Learning engages teachers in problem solving during the school day and allows them the flexibility to visit other classrooms. This kind of embedded professional development breaks the isolated tendency of teaching and can serve as a catalyst for professional engagement.

Collective Effort

Instructional practice improves when teachers are treated professionally and work in a supportive environment...but it takes the efforts of many to make the needed changes:

Administrators cannot rely on the considerate teacher down the hall who takes time to connect with novice teachers and others detached from their colleagues... they must offer time and support for teachers to observe instructional strategies during the school day.

Teachers cannot wait for hybrid Teacher Leadership positions or embedded PLC's... they must take the initiative to get out of their 'caves' and investigate strategies with other colleagues.

Policy makers, professional associations and administrators must work collectively to fund and implement distributed leadership positions and embedded collaboration time for every school.

Our students deserve models within our schools that ensure effective instruction!

Catch and Unintended Release: Utah's Challenge of Teacher Retention

Utah STOY's: Riddle '14, Beck '11,  Gallagher-Fishbaugh, '09,  VandenAkker, '12

Utah teachers are hard-working, innovative, and among the most dedicated professionals in the nation. Like many other states, however, Utah now finds itself facing a teacher shortage. While our economy continues to grow, our teacher pool is shrinking. It seems even though our administrators may make a strong cast, the best and brightest teachers are slipping from their grasp, released into the stream of alternate occupations.

Representative Carol Moss - former teacher

What is it then, that discourages our most capable teachers from continuing their careers in education? As our Utah policy makers prepare for the 2016 session, I am hopeful their legislative efforts are aimed at improving these critical issues for new teachers:

1 - Lack of Support - Our newest teachers are lucky to have a trained mentor on site; most schools have no comprehensive induction program which includes embedded professional learning opportunities. The 'nice' teacher down the hall who visits before or after school is often not an experienced mentor or coach. New teachers are left isolated, instructional performance plateaus, and teachers with the greatest potential leave out of frustration.

2- Large Class Size - Utah boasts the largest class size in the nation. In some schools even kindergarten classes are as high as 30, and many core classes in secondary schools endure enrollments of over 40. High numbers are especially challenging to new teachers in terms of classroom management, perhaps the most difficult instructional technique to master.  And like their seasoned colleagues, new teachers find it nearly impossible to give the average achieving students - those without special needs or exceptional abilities - the time and attention that would help them soar.

3- Few Teacher Leadership Positions - Ironically, teachers with the greatest abilities to impact student learning are drawn away from the classroom by the same interest that drew them there in the first place. Utah's schools have very few positions of distributed leadership, and many leave the classroom for positions of coaching, consulting, or curriculum leadership on a district level. The lack of formal hybrid mentoring positions in our schools often prohibits us from retaining strong teacher leaders who are eager to share pedagogical strategies with others while staying in the classroom.

4- Disproportionate Focus on Assessment - Heightened standards have shifted instructional focus to mastery of tested content. Novice teachers are often not prepared for the data analysis required to improve test scores. This increased accountability has also weakened emphasis of the arts, history, physical education, and character education. Many early educators leave the classroom disenchanted by the pressure of student test performance - tests that don't measure emotional growth, grit, perseverance, empathy, and other critical life skills.

5- Under Appreciated Role - Perhaps the most frustrating and yes, surprising reality for a new teacher is the lack of respect and voice given to educators in our state.  Many teachers I have mentored have expressed their disappointment in the attitudes of parents, policy makers, and community members. Layering expectations of paperwork, changing curriculum, behavioral challenges, and testing accountability are intensified by the seeming lack of support in a state whose economy is strengthened by the work these teachers do. Increasing pay is one obvious remedy, but pay alone will not keep new teachers in this profession.

Utah must develop structures that will attract, support, and retain excellent teachers!

Governor Gary Herbert

As a member of Governor Herbert's Education Excellence Commission, I am fortunate to discuss these issues each month with Utah's business leaders, policy makers, and education experts. I am encouraged by the Commission's work and the Governor's understanding that a strong education system has a great impact on Utah's economy. I am concerned, however, by the lack of teacher voice in the problem solving process.

As an awarded teacher leader with 28 years of experience in Utah's classrooms, I have two suggestions:

• To Utah's teachers: Take the time to share your stories with your elected representatives. 

• To Utah's Legislators, State Board members and State Office leaders:  As you focus your efforts on teacher retention, I ask you to carefully consider Governor Herbert's recent observation:       

"We need to listen to the teachers and give them the respect and appreciation they have earned."


Well said, Governor.

Dualism in Learning: Fast and Slow have Equal Value

During my recent fellowship in Peru, I learned of the Peruvian culture’s appreciation for dualism.  Man and woman. Life and death. Day and night. Light and dark.  Peruvians believe opposite values are to be acknowledged for their strengths and importance in the cycle of life. For me, the idea of dualism extends to teaching and learning.  In particular, the relationship between fast and slow acquisition of skills.

The students in our classrooms today, referred to as Generation Z students, learn faster and are tech savvy.  Comparatively they have a short attention span.  They are comfortable multi-tasking, networking and are used to the convenience of acquiring information quickly.  They can instantly send and receive messages to friends and loved ones who are in the same room or thousands of miles away.  They have high expectations for automaticity in most parts of their lives.

When considering the idea of dualism… we must emphasize to our students and parents that no matter how quickly information can be retrieved, acquiring skills may take time.  We must remember the values of both fast and slow. Not everything can be acquired quickly.  Mastering basic reading and math skills takes effort, focus, application, and yes, time.

In the last ten years or so as a 5th grade teacher, I have noticed a change in student and parent attitudes about the mastery of basic facts.  Too often parents, frustrated by their child’s lack of mastery of times tables, have expressed to me their frustrations and the idea that they have given up trying.  “Oh, yes, those times tables.  We tried those.  We just couldn’t get them memorized.”  For me, there is a connection between the nearly instantaneous retrieval of information and the lack of patience for mastering basic facts and skills.  Our Generation Z students are used to retrieving information and entertainment almost instantly, but the mastery of basic facts takes time.  Time that many in this generation have not developed patience for.  I understand that some students have learning disabilities that may interrupt the process of storing basic facts into long term memory banks.  That aside, even those students who understand the concept of multiplication and could demonstrate it using an array or other method, often struggle to master those precious multiplication facts needed to analyze and solve mathematical problems.  For the Generation Z students, I see a strong connection between the convenience of technology and the lack of patience in mastering basic facts and skills.

Staying in line with this idea of dualism… I have experienced some positive results in spite of this frustrating issue.  Often times by simply describing the conflicting ideas of automaticity and time intensive skill mastery, many of the parents in my class have become inspired to create regular blocks of time for practice at home.  Taken in by the expectation of instant information and resources themselves, parents often overlook the need to spend time playing math games, using rhymes or music, running flash cards, and connecting math used in cooking and other projects at home with their kids.  Too often parents of Generation Z students assume fact mastery will happen easily by using the newest downloaded app.  Emphasizing the benefits of making emotional connections and using verbal and kinesthetic skills with your child while practicing basic facts is very helpful to parents. By simply making them aware of the somewhat slower process of acquiring fact fluency, I have seen many parents make a renewed effort to spend more time helping their children to master those precious facts. 

Fast and slow.  The Peruvians have it right.  Both have value, but when mastering basic facts, slower is definitely more powerful.  After facts are mastered, that’s when the speed begins…