Turn the Battleship on a Dime: Keys to Initiating Sustainable

Change

Eric SheningerPrincipal - New Milford High School

ericsheninger.comTwitter - @NMHS_Principal

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

What needs to change?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why Change?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why CHANGE?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why Change?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why does change not work?

Why has it failed in your school?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why is change so hard?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why is Change So hard?

• Status Quo• If it isn’t broke why

fix it• This too shall pass

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why is Change so Hard?

• Fear• Void of leadership• No vision• Lack of knowledge

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Why is Change so Hard?

• Instability• Too many initiatives

at once• Resistance• One size fits all initiatives

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Identifying and Overcoming Obstacles

to Change

Sunday, March 17, 2013

1. This is too hard

• Change is not easy• Requires work, risk-taking,

learning from mistakes, and commitment, no fear of failure

• 'The price of change is measured by our will and courage, our persistence, in the face of difficulty.' - Peter Block

Sunday, March 17, 2013

2. I don’t Have Time For This

• Most common excuse• In a profession focused on making a

difference in the life of a child

“I don’t find the time to learn and get better. I make the time to learn and get better.” - Eric Sheninger

Sunday, March 17, 2013

3. Lack of Collaboration

Sunday, March 17, 2013

4. Directives and Mandates

“You can't force commitment, what you can do... You nudge a little here, inspire a little there, and provide a role model. Your primary influence is the environment you create.” - Peter Senge

Sunday, March 17, 2013

5. Hierarchy in Schools

Result - inflexible, lack of freedom/autonomy to take risks, ideas are squashed

Sunday, March 17, 2013

6. No Support

Sunday, March 17, 2013

7. Fear of Change

Sunday, March 17, 2013

8. The Resistance (Naysayers and Antagonists)

Sunday, March 17, 2013

9. Poor Professional Development

Sunday, March 17, 2013

10. Frivolous Purchases

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Change Begins With Us

'You must be the change you want to see in the world.' - Mahatma Gandhi

Sunday, March 17, 2013

A Roadmap to Change: Essential Questions

• Where do we begin?• What are the school factors that

influence student achievement?• How do you change culture and move

past the status quo?• How to we get educators and school

systems to embrace change?

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Keys to Sustainable Change

Sunday, March 17, 2013

What the Research Says

• Improvement that fosters learning, not merely change that alters schooling.

• Improvement that endures over time.• Improvement that can be supported by

available or obtainable resources.

Hargreaves, D. & Fink, D. (2003)

Sunday, March 17, 2013

• Improvement that does not affect negatively the surrounding environment of other schools and systems.

• Improvement that promotes ecological diversity and capacity throughout the educational and community environment.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Ownership

• Issues involved• Process for achieving change• Complexity of the process

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Vision

• Coherent• Shared• Common

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Communication

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Value

• Student achievement• Research base• Social/emotional well-being

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Motivation

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Strategic Plan

• Why?• How?• Input• Measurement of success

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Image credit http://www.tamhsc.edu/oie/strategic-plan-cycle.jpg

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Embracement as Opposed to Buy-In

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Support

• Time• Professional Development (meaningful,

relevant, applicable)• Resources

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Culture Shock

• Risk-taking

• Flexible

• Give up CONTROL

• Trust

• Shared-decision making

• Respect

• Empowerment

• Innovation and creativity rule

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Do One Thing Great Instead of Many Things

OK

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Modeling

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Connectedness Matters

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Solutions, not Excuses

Sunday, March 17, 2013

The No Complaining Rule

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Linchpin Mentality

Create your own art

Become indispensable

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Become an Outlier

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Sustainable Changes at New Milford HS

• Grading

• Academies

• Teaching and Learning Web 2.0

• Independent Open Courseware Study (IOCS)

• Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)

• Professional Growth Period (PGP)

• AP Culture

• Social MediaSunday, March 17, 2013

• Realize change is necessary• Understand issues that impede

change• Identify major roadblocks beforehand

and develop strategies to deal with them

• Focus in key elements necessary for sustaining change

• Learn from other areas

Summary

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Summary - Key Elements

• Maintaining the change effort beyond initial implementation.

• Extending the change effort after its initial success.

• Adapting the change effort so that it survives—and thrives—over time

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Turn the Battleship on a Dime: Keys to Initiating Sustainable

Change

Eric SheningerPrincipal - New Milford High School

ericsheninger.comTwitter - @NMHS_Principal

Sunday, March 17, 2013