Tag Archives: Educational Leadership

Transform Educational Culture and Restructure

Posted on May 16, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Andy Hargreaves introduced me to the Finnish education system, its successes, and what it offers to those educators who believe we need to transform education in our schools and classrooms. It is easy to believe what is done in one setting is a model we can overlay in our schools. There is merit in examining their educational system and applying ideas that might work and make an impact. Pasi Sahlberg, a leading Finnish educator, suggested we, and I include Canada, need to see what equal opportunity in education looks like in What the US can’t learn from Finland.

“Finland can show [us] what equal opportunity looks like, [we] cannot achieve equity without first implementing fundamental changes in [our] school system.” He included equal funding of schools, holistic and equal attention for each child and education as a fundamental human right. Teaching is a valued profession in Finland, local schools write their curriculum, and teachers are given autonomy and trusted to carry out classroom responsibilities. Although he never openly states it, the implication is that without reimagining education, teacher roles, holistic care of children as the central purpose of education, and the role the entire community plays educating children, real, sustainable change is unattainable. I think it is as important to realize that shifting towards a model of equal opportunity still will not mean our system, whether in Alberta or elsewhere, can or should look identical to Finland’s. What are the needs of our children? This is a central question to the needed conversations.

I think articles, such as What Americans [Canadians] Keep Ignoring About Finland’s School System and From Finland, an Intriguing School-Reform Model, provide more grist for the necessary conversations about transformation in education. With caution, we can use strategies which proved successful in Finland. Linda Darling-Hammond said in the second noted article. “Thirty years ago, Finland’s education system was a mess. It was quite mediocre, very inequitable. It had a lot of features our system has: very top-down testing, extensive tracking, highly variable teachers, and they managed to reboot the whole system.”

Whether as a preemptive strike or to resuscitate a failing system, there is a call to engage communities, reduce competition in schools, recruit and support the best, and trust the people we place with children in classrooms. We can learn a lot from the Finnish education system.

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Posted in Community, Education, Leadership, Progressive Education and tagged community, education, Educational Leadership, Progressive Education, teacher as transformer, transformative education. Bookmark the permalink.

Posted on May 12, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

This is a great TED speech by Sir Ken Robinson. It is about the 4th or 5th time I have seen it or a variation on the speech. If we are killing creativity among children and the high point of creative thought is in Kindergarten, what do we need to do to make schools and learning a space of creative learning and expression? The time has arrived for a true conversation about learning in the 21st Century. Have we killed the creative spirit of teachers? This is an important question in the conversation.

Gen Y Girl

I watched this video yesterday and it completely blew me away.

Do yourself a favor and WATCH IT!

This man is honest, funny, a straight up genius and his accent is awesome.

“Creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson challenges the way we’re educating our children. He champions a radical rethink of our school systems, to cultivate creativity and acknowledge multiple types of intelligence.”

–Ted Ideas Worth Spreading

Should we all be doing what we love? Yes. Is school the only way to get us there? No. We need to educate people in a way that promotes creativity and passion in our work so that we don’t end up bitter and miserable. Life’s too short.

Thanks to my twitter peeps @shawmu and @knealemann for bringing this to my attention 😀

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Posted in Education, Leadership, Progressive Education and tagged creativity, Educational Leadership, leadership, Progressive Education, teacher as transformer, transformative education. Bookmark the permalink.

The Space Should Be Bounded and Open

Posted on May 11, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I believe paradox is essential for educational transformation. Parker Palmer described paradox as a creative tension or “a way of holding opposites together that creates an electric charge that keeps us awake” in his book The Courage to Teach. He argued “the poles of a paradox are like the poles of a battery: hold them together, and they generate the energy of life, pull them apart, and the current stops flowing…and we become lifeless.” I elaborated on paradox in my posts Abundant Community and Paradox of Community. I propose paradox be used to revitalize the institution we call school and the conversations about this necessary enterprise.

Parker Palmer in The Courage to Teach presented six paradoxes and identified ways in which they could serve us in the classroom through pedagogical design. I believe they serve educators and their communities as foundations for conversations and a long overdue transformation.

The first paradox is “the space should be bounded and open.” School cannot be a one size fits all approach, but it cannot be a chaotic, wide-open system. There are many ways to understand school from home schooling to traditional. In between, there is diversity. Is school a building? Could it be a virtual gathering? Could it be a combination? Rigid boundaries should be replaced by flexible boundaries. If they do, then we can ask, “What serves the child?” What serves the community?”

Over the next while, I will look at each paradox, and explore how they lead conversations towards transformation.

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Posted in Community, Education, Leadership, Learning Organizations, Progressive Education and tagged community, education, Educational Leadership, Learning Organizations, Progressive Education, teacher as transformer, transformative education. Bookmark the permalink.

Posted on May 8, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I enjoyed this critique of Daniel Pink’s book and will read the book. Earlier. Another blog suggested the work emanating from another book by this author, A Whole New Mind, was important to educators and thinkers. Bear in mind, Daniel Pink is not an educator and his last real job, from his website, was as a political speechwriter.

I agree Alfie Kohn, who taught school, or Carol Dweck, a psychologist focusing on motivation, and her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, are invaluable resources for educators.

I think a different understanding unschooling movement is extreme home schooling. Deb Meier acknowledged, in an interview, home schooled children are some of the best socialized children she has met. I think unschooling is an unfortunate descriptor and natural learning, experience-based learning, or independent learning might be less misleading. Instead of discarding the concept, consider questions about education and school’s purpose in the 21st Century. I think there is room for reasonable alternative models in a progressive and increasingly diverse world.

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21st Century Renaissance in Education

Posted on April 29, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Will we be 21st Century Renaissance people? This question emerged from a recent conversation with a Grade 8 Social Studies class. We discussed a broad, nuanced, and emergent worldview.

Specialization and expertise are not the calling cards of success. Adaptation and transformation are at the heart of contemporary education. Transformation is not just a synonym for change and is reflective of dramatic and systemic change. I understand transformation as a mindful, incremental process producing real change over time framed around evolving eloquent questions. What change do we need? New conversations about reimagining education producing compassionate leaders for a 21st Century Renaissance. What role will education play in helping young people become the leaders of this Renaissance? Is public education capable of transformation? Are there leaders capable of bringing forth tomorrow’s leadership? What will education of this nature look like?

Renaissance is rebirth and a time of metamorphosis and transformation. What emerges from the chrysalis stage? Ideas mature and become capable of further adaptation. Human endeavour requires rich, inclusive conversations for profound change to occur instead of superficial patching what the outdated models that exist. We need to prepare the soil for transformative conversations focused on eloquent questions where answers are not assumed before the conversation and invite diverse views during the course of the conversational journey.

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Posted in Leadership, Learning Organizations, Progressive Education and tagged conversational journey, Educational Leadership, eloquent questions, leadership, Learning Organizations, Progressive Education, teacher as transformer, transformative education. Bookmark the permalink.

Subversive Seuss?

Posted on April 28, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Fact is stranger than fiction. Charles Adler, in an op-ed column “We don’t need no ‘educrats'”, pointed out the sometimes subversive nature of Dr. Seuss. There is more to the story than Mr. Adler revealed in his article and a more detailed account is at “Yertle the Turtle Deemed ‘Too Political’ for Fragile Canadian Children.”

I am impressed with the dedicated bureaucratic representative of Prince Rupert [British Columbia] School District who acted to make sure susceptible elementary students were not corrupted by the seditious literature of a beloved, albeit radical, children’s author. After all, those small, impressionable beings will enroll in university level classes to learn about Paulo Freire‘s critical theory or Leonardo Boff‘s liberation theology and we could have a more just, humane world to live in. When I grow up, can I be paid to sit in an ivory tower and be out of touch with the real world? The jurisdiction representative stated “It’s a good use of my time if it serves the purpose of shielding the children from political messaging.” Oh my God, political messaging; what next? What is he talking about?

There is a larger context. The British Columbia Teacher’s Federation and the province of British Columbia are involved in a bitter labour dispute. The teacher was not reading a book to students in the classroom, but the quote was taken by a teacher to a meeting with management.

If there is a political statement being made here, it is in the impact on children’s learning. The book’s line “I know up on top you are seeing great sights, but down here on the bottom, we too should have rights” points to those with the least. Dr. Seuss spoke to the greatest measure of servant-leadership. What growth do we see in those with the greatest needs? When will someone speak for the children and serve and lead at the same time? Will adults need to grow up first so that growth can be fulfilled and measured? Neither side gets a pass here.

Part of the problem for children’s learning is the use of polarizing language in the dispute. Do the children care if there is a management side or teacher side? Are adults locked in a political game replete with childish behaviours to gain real or imagined political advantage while using children as pawns? This suggests questions, not answers. Are these not someone’s children? What are parents doing? What does this say about the state of public education? We talk a good story in education and say all the right things, but I am embarrassed and angry, as an educator and as a citizen in a purportedly democratic country, when I read articles of this nature. What drew us to this vocation? Or is it just a job now? What are the qualities exemplified by great teachers: compassion, caring, collaboration, etc? Are we living up to those when we talk and act this way?

Mr. Adler has this mostly right. What is missing is the following question, “When was the last time some people were in a classroom, rolled up sleeves, and taught children?”

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Posted in Leadership, Progressive Education and tagged democratic education, education, Educational Leadership, Leadership. Servant-Leadership, learning, teacher as transformer, transformative education. Bookmark the permalink.

Paradox of Community

Posted on April 17, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Several themes emerged in the World Cafe conversations about learning and an important one was community. The group used various connotations for community and qualities to describe community, but this theme resonated throughout the mindful and reflective conversations.

The concept of team often served as a corollary for community. Teams strive towards common goals in sports, business, or education. A component of successful teams is ‘shared vision.’ Rather than leadership being vested in a person or a small group of people in a hierarchical structure, successful teams have the anchor of a vision and share the values that support the vision. A critical first question in a learning environment would be “What vision and values energize learning?” The common goal and energy bring to life the acronym: Together Everyone Achieves More [TEAM]!

Humans share. It reveals who we are and what is important to us individually and allowing us to connect to the collective. We are affirmed as others listen. The World Cafe group suggested sharing was central to learning by revealing what is important and what is learned. The sharing may reveal gaps in learning or reveal more than one way to solve a problem and learn. Sharing in a safe environment, or community, focuses learning past the expert knowledge of one person, the teacher, and shifts it to the broader collective. Risks are more readily undertaken because there is support, and everyone can both teach and learn. We live in an increasingly complex world where the paradox of teacher and learner calls strongly for sharing.

The idea of connectivity arose several times. A complexity of today’s world is a burgeoning need to connect with others in both new and traditional ways. We face paradox as we seek community. Community is no longer defined solely by where we live, as in a digital world, connections are made across the globe and communities shaped in radical ways. This encourages different and emerging views of community: where we live, where we work, and, how we connect.

Community suggests paradox. The World Cafe group felt being face-to-face with others was essential at times, but suggested face-to-face might include digital platforms such as video conferencing or Skype. A benefit of on-line instruction is the ability to pause a video or audio file, reflect on material, take notes, and return to earlier points in the file. We cannot pause teachers in real-time to repeat exactly what was said, but we can in the digital world. Wise, prudent, and mindful use of technology serves learning if safely implemented. How do we use technology in traditional classrooms? What role can it or should it play in moving learning beyond the walls of the traditional and sometimes outmoded classroom?

Healthy, vibrant, and safe communities give time and space for solitude. A common criticism of school and classroom scheduling is the lack of reflection time for teachers and students. Busyness is the order of the day in schools and classrooms. Time is necessary for learners to process the reams of available information to connect it to subject matter and make it meaningful. We observed this in the four World Cafe sessions; there were times when the room was quiet, as people processed and reflected on the questions or comments. Community brings us together and, at the same time, paradoxically allows personal space and time.

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Posted in Progressive Education, World Cafe Events and tagged community, education, Educational Leadership, Progressive Education, teacher as transformer, transformative education, world cafe. Bookmark the permalink.

The Heart of a Teacher

Posted on April 13, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

A colleague from Gonzaga sent me this video and fit the World Cafe conversations about learning, the best environment for learning to occur within, and the changing face of education in the 21st Century.

The video is Heart of a Teacher. I apologize for using a link and not the video upload, but I did not have the latter uploaded yet and wanted to get this out there.

I need to add this is another first; there are three postings today.

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Posted in Progressive Education, Reflective Moments and tagged education, Educational Leadership, learning, Learning Organizations, school, teacher as trasnformer. Bookmark the permalink.

What Was not Said at the World Cafe Events

Posted on April 7, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

I intentionally let the World Cafe Events and results lay fallow to provide reflective space so new ideas could emerge. What surprised me was it was not what was said explicitly, but what went unsaid—no reference to the importance of subject matter in learning and teaching was made. I considered this and arrived at possible explanations.

First, perhaps the group saw the area of expert subject knowledge as unimportant. This is the most unlikely assumption. There were educators in the conversations and I imagine they think this is important. Teachers train to deliver material in specific subject areas. I have a Physical Education major and a French minor. I chose those areas and, while I no longer actively teach either subject on a regular basis, I enjoy both and feel they contribute positively to my teaching. I cannot generalize my experiences or conclusions to the work of all teachers, but one still could see it as important to teachers, as professionals.

Second, it could be, in education, life-long learning is a given; by definition educators are life-long learners. This is also hard to generalize, but I can speak from personal experience. Currently, I teach Science, Social Studies, and English Language Arts in a multi-grade junior high classroom. I consciously chose to shift from earlier subject area training. To be personally successful and for student success, I actively and purposefully upgrade. There is evidence teachers serve as models of life-long learning for students when they engage in life-long learning themselves. A question here is, “What does life-long learning mean in this context? Is it different from other professions and work settings?” Defining life-long learning is hard to do. so my conclusions are, at best, specific to me and my experience.

Third, and I think the most likely explanation is based on the adage, “Students care how much you know as a teacher, if they know how much you care about them as people.” The ethic of care in education might be more important than it is given credit for. The World Cafe group acknowledged that mastery was based on meaningful and purposeful learning that prepared and motivated students to learn. Those observations suggest subject matter is important but, at the same time, a real focus on qualities such as communication, compassion, reciprocity, community, affirmation, mutualism, etc. require greater attention. It is easy to dismiss these characteristics as soft, but educational luminaries, Nel Noddings, Deb Meier, and Parker Palmer, have pointed out these are challenging and critical aspects of teaching and learning. Mike Seymour devoted the book Educating for Humanity to building healthy, vibrant, and truly democratic communities in schools. These purported ‘soft’ qualities build positive environments with relational trust and commitment only found in true community (a link to an article by Anthony Bryk) and suggests we should know students, their parents, and our colleagues. Engaging in and building caring, compassionate, and supportive relationships is hard work, but worthwhile. Why do we avoid this effort?

My reflections led to a hypothesis that teachers are expert in chosen subject matter and, when given choice, do continuously work at life-long learning. This means deep, mufti-layered, nuanced learning as opposed to superficial simple attendance to the latest fad. To make real differences, adults should care enough about students individually and collectively to reach and grow beyond themselves. This carries a responsibility with it that educators need to learn about students, their needs, and their environments outside school walls. That is relational and commits teachers, by the nature of a variety of choices, to be learners and co-creators of knowledge with students, families, and community.

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Posted in Uncategorized and tagged Deb Meier, democratic education, education, Educational Leadership, leadership, life-long learning, Mike Seymour, Nel Noddings, Parker Palmer, Progressive Education. Bookmark the permalink.

Eloquent Questions in Education

Posted on March 31, 2012 by ivonprefontaine

Since attending the Servant-Leadership conference at Marylhurst University in Oregon, I am thinking more about eloquent questions in education. Eloquent questions assume no obvious answers and grew out the work of Giambattista Vico, an 18^th Century Italian philosopher. Eloquent questions were expanded on by Hans-Georg Gadamer, a 20^th Century German philosopher. Without obvious or assumed answers, dialogue and community take on new and important roles in responding to eloquent questions. When asked eloquent questions, I have to be aware of, mindful about, and attentive to my thoughts and feelings and to those of others who are present in conversation.

Several things contributed to this rethinking. Firstly, Dr. Shann Ferch, a keynote presenter at the conference and author of Forgiveness and Power in the Age of Atrocity: Servant-Leadership as a Way of Life, spoke about eloquent questions. “Gadamer’s notion of the eloquent or elegant question forms a philosophical bridge into the kind of assured personhood that opens real dialogue, develops authenticity in self and others, and forwards a view of human relationships that helps us transcend our own hidden self- and other-annihilation” (Ferch, 2012, p. 29). Dialogue and community set aside the personal agendas that so often drive discussions. Setting aside agendas calls forth authenticity that helps reveal a safe space and path forward to share what is important and common within a community centred on eloquent questions.

Secondly, Gen Y Girl Kayla Cruz began following my blog, for which I am grateful. She triggered questions with postings touching on generational differences that impact society in general and education specifically. I was already asking, “What reasons are there to build 400 new schools over the next 10 years in the province of Alberta? What areas will these schools serve? What conversations yielded those numbers to Thomas Lukaszuk, the Minister of Education and the workers at Alberta Education? What costs will result from building these trophy-schools? What does that mean in terms of school closures? Was there a conversation about the need for school as a building?” Initially, I thought these questions might be strictly based on infrastructure, but, thanks to Kayla, I am increasingly aware of other questions based on generational differences. “What impact will a different understanding of personal and professional life for Gen Y adults have on teachers in the classroom (I use that word classroom guardedly, because what the classroom will look like or be is also an important question)? If, as Kayla pointed out, there is a blending of life expectations for Generation Y or the Millennial Generation, “what does that mean in terms of teacher preparation, teacher recruitment, teacher retention, teacher satisfaction, etc?”

I have no concrete evidence, but, as I talk to members of Gen Y, including our sons, I get the impression that work of any form, without meaning and a feeling of real input, is not in the cards. The questions here are, “What purpose does work serve? Do we work to live? Or do we live to work?” Kayla, in several blog entries, linked articles that provided insight. One that caught my attention was The Beginning of the End of the 9-to-5 Workday in a section called Work-Life Balance at Time.Com Moneyland.

It seems an education degree prepares young people for more possibilities than just being a teacher. What should this uncertainty suggest to the movers and shakers who think they can predict a need for 400 schools over the next decade? The above-noted article inferred going to school will not be going to school for everyone. What will school look like in the next ten years? What role will the increasing ubiquity of technology play? These are not simple questions to be answered with a mechanistic process that has been failing for some time. Eloquent questions ask us to not have pat answers, but to continue to ask each day, “What does this mean today?”

We drove back from Sedona to Phoenix yesterday. In spite of my terrible fear of heights, it was an enjoyable three days touring the Sedona and Grand Canyon areas, with the spectacular scenery and their Native American ruins. The visits to three ancient Arizona dwelling sites of Native American Indians were interesting and provided yet another source of rethinking the need for eloquent questions. During an explanation at one of the sites, I was struck by the uncertainty around the possible reasons that led to that village being deserted.

Retrospectively, we look back and speculate and pose eloquent questions, knowing and accepting we can not provide an answer. Looking forward, we are ready to ask eloquent questions “in order to gather greater understanding” (Ferch, p. 29). There is no certainty looking forward just as there is no certainty looking back. Eloquent questions do seem to fit an unfolding, emergent, increasingly complex and uncertain world.