Our road to 21st century learning: A brief reflection on where we’ve been and where we’re going

West Virginia Leadership Institute

March, 2009

Jerry Valentine

Our Professional Challenge

"Our challenge is to provide instruction that is not only relevant, engaging and meaningful, but that also includes the world-class rigor necessary to prepare our students to be competitive in the 21st century workplace. Students must be able to comprehend, problem solve and communicate solutions if they are expected to compete on a global level."

Dr. Steven PaineSuperintendent of Schools

Let’s reflect about our Institute and school leadership: Past and Future.

As time permits, here are four topics for our discussion:

LEADERSHIP for LEARNING

LEADERSHIP for COLLABORATIVE CULTURES

LEADERSHIP for CONTINUOUS CHANGE

VISION-DRIVEN LEADERSHIP

PAST: Learning was often passive listening and seatwork

FUTURE: Learning is mentally engaging …analytical, creative, reflective, engaging

Leadership for Learning

20th Century Leadership Studied best teaching

practices…looked at teacher behavior

Assumed learner needs were known…work skills for business and industry and skills for college and careers

21st Century Leadership Study learning…look at

student engagement in problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity

Understand future skills are not known…must build basic knowledge and the capacity and desire to learn

Leadership for Collaborative Cultures

20th Century Leadership Focused on school

climate and collegiality…create congenial work environment and social relationships

21st Century Leadership Focus on a learner-

centered culture…create professional collaboration and professional learning

Leadership for Continuous Change

20th Century Leadership Change was sporadic and

first-order…usually mandated from district or state and seldom lasted or valued

Change was made and expected it to be long term or even permanent

21st Century Leadership Change is constant and

second-order…urgency to change is ever-present and always will be

Change is a continuous progression of reflection and collaboration… collective problem solving that builds commitment and efficacy among staff

Vision-Driven Leadership

20th Century Leadership Schools seldom

developed change plans…when they did they were strategic

The strategic plan required a vision…which the principal wrote, printed, and posted in all classrooms

21st Century Leadership Comprehensive, systemic

plans are the basis for continuous change…broad in scope and engaging all staff in the development, implementation, assessment, and refinement

Change is vision driven …describing where we want to be in five years and grounded in best practices

A lighter look at leadership and visionYogi-isms for school leaders.

The future ain’t what it used to be. If you don’t set goals, you can’t regret not

reaching them. You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t

know where you’re going, because you might not get there.

We’re lost, but we’re making great time! If you don’t know where you’re going,

chances are you will end up somewhere else. If you come to a fork in the road, take it.

A Poorly Written Non-Rhyming Poem: aka…A Bit of Educational Poetic Prose

Inspiration: Robert Frost The Road Not Taken (1915)

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth

Differences/Similarities Rhyme, meter, overall quality…his is well

written, mine is not Common message about decisions and

results

Part I:What Path to Take

The principal and faculty paused…to consider their path to the future The first (order) path was worn, familiar The second (order) path was untraveled, unsure Both would require hard work and challenge.

With thought of what would work for them The first path they principal and faculty did take Content, believing they were doing their best For themselves and their students, it must be the

right way.

Part II:They Tried So Hard

Two years, three years, four went by They felt it was good, they were doing their best But they looked at the students in disbelief Where did we go wrong…we worked so hard.

They reflected back to that decisive day When the path they chose seemed the best way They could make it work, better than before But results were the same…no better, no worse

Part III:The Realization

They talked, shouted, cried a bit, then talked some more And started afresh down a new path that day Of second-order assumptions and open mind A new plan, a new way for their school to go.

They studied the world…how it had changed What did their kids need to know and do What will life be in the years ahead And how do we grow and change as well?

Part IV:The Collaborative Vision

They answered the challenge by working together They met as a whole to define their vision They set goals/objectives to guide the way Talking, collaborating, they had a plan.

Over time things changed, it was a new school Hard work together began to pay off Trust, commitment, confidence and belief They knew their work was now good and right!

Part V:The Celebration

The community, in time, saw it as well The students came to school believing they

would learn The parents and community were not sure at first But in time they realized how the students had

grown. Now it was evident, the paths they chose

The first was hard, but without results The second was harder, big challenges to meet With unending tasks they would never complete.

Part VI:The Difference

They chose the second path five years ago When they talked, shouted, and cried a bit It seems a memory now, but it was a key A point in time when it all came clear.

A new path they took and remain steadfast Together, they met the challenges of the path And that, as Frost wrote… “has made all the difference.”

About Robert Frost’sThe Road Not Taken

Robert Frost wrote “The Road Not Taken” in 1915 It was published in 1916 in a book of poems entitled Mountain

Interval. A second, revised edition of the book was published in 1920. Many literature scholars have studied and written about the poem and

speculated about Frost’s intent. It seems the most commonly accepted interpretation is that Frost

simply wanted to write about the weekly walks he took with his friend Edward Thomas. As Frost tells it, they took turns each week selecting the roads they would walk in the New England woods. When Thomas took his turn to select, he was often indecisive, taking minutes to make his choice of the paths in the road. Thus, the classic poem written about an individual taking a walk on a fall day.

Though inspired when I recalled Frost’s poem, I took so many liberties in creating my poorly written piece that it was not an effort to mimic Frost’s poem. Frost described similar roads and the traveler would never return to take the other path. I described two different roads and the traveler (school) did return to take the “better” path.

It’s all about selecting the right path and staying the course…

Additional Files

I do not plan to use the following slides in my presentation.

I included them in this PowerPoint so you would have them at your fingertips if you wanted to reflect about the four concepts in my presentation.

Jerry

Leadership for Learning

How is our leadership for learning different now than it was 5 or 10 years ago?

What do we know about learner needs now and in the future that makes our job different?

What have we studied about learners’ needs that compels us to think and act differently as leaders?

LEADERSHIP for LEARNING THEN: GENERAL AWARENESS OF BEST PRACTICES.

Principals studied best practices in graduate school and informed teachers about the practices they expected to see during classroom observations. Students were being prepared for a future work life that was known and valued.

NOW: INTELLECTUALLY STIMULATE AND CHALLENGE. Principals know and understand existing research about best teaching and learning. They engage teachers in collaborative study sessions and support application of the practices in the classroom. They understand the linkage between curriculum, instruction, and assessment and support faculty as they design learning from assessment, not for assessment. They constantly remind staff that we are preparing students to think analytically and creatively for a life of unknown jobs and challenges.

WHAT’S SHOULD BE DIFFERENT ABOUT LEARNING TODAY AND IN THE FUTURE?

Today’s Learners Are Different

The first generation to grow up with computers, videogames, digital music players, video cams, cell phones.

Marc Prensky, Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants 2001

They think and process information fundamentally differently from their predecessors.

Core SubjectsWith

21st CenturyContent

Personal &Workplace

ProductivitySkills

Thinking&

ReasoningSkills

21st CenturyTechnology

Skills

http:/wvde.state.wv.us

Preparing Students for…

Leadership for Collaborative Culture

How long have we as principals been placing more emphasis on culture than on climate?

What’s the difference between climate and culture?

Why is a caring, collaborative culture essential in a 21st Century School?

LEADERSHIP and CULTURE

THEN: CLIMATE WAS KING. Principals knew that if they maintained a positive climate, faculty would enjoy coming to work and they would feel good about their job and school. A happy faculty was a good faculty.

NOW: CULTURE MAKES THE DIFFERENCE. Principals understand the factors that make up a school’s culture, they assess their school’s culture and they implement strategies to create a caring, collaborative culture where everyone’s primary focus is on the intellectual, social, and emotional success of every student.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED ABOUT AN EFFECTIVE CULTURE?

The outward look of a school has not changed much in recent years, but…

But the culture of the school is very different. Learning is analytical, creative, engaging; faculty are collaborative and facilitative…

Leadership for Continuous Change

What do we do differently to lead change now compared to how we would have led change 5 or 10 years ago?

Why does second-order change make a difference but first-order may not?

Why must we think of vision-driven change, not merely data-driven change?

LEADERSHIP for CONTINUOUS CHANGE THEN: CHANGE WAS TOP-DOWN. Principals were

paternalistic, deciding what needed to change in a school, explaining their decisions to teachers and others, and making sure the change was implemented. Their supervisors evaluated their ability to “make” the changes necessary to have a good school.

NOW: COLLABORATIVELY DETERMINED, DEVELOPED, and IMPLEMENTED. Principals understand first and second order change as well as the ups and downs and struggles of the change process. The change is driven by a vision and knowledge of best practices. In time, a culture that not only accepts change, but that embraces change evolves. Collaboration is a key process to implement and sustain the important changes.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED ABOUT HOW TO LEAD CHANGE?

If it’s not second order, it’s not going to make a difference for students…

First Order Incremental “Next most obvious step” Relatively quick-fix solutions Address simple problems where traditional solutions suffice Single-loop learning where previous strategies will work

Second Order Significant departure from the norm Deep change affecting values, beliefs and assumptions Slow, evolving process over time Addresses complex problems requiring new, thoughtful, and

often creative comprehensive solutions Double-loop learning where new strategies are needed to

solve the problem Becomes institutionalized in the culture of the organization

Faculty Emotions during Change

Comfort with

current conditions

Realization of needed change

Realization of urgency for change

Engagement & Problem Solving

Temporary Optimism

Frustrations of implementing the change

Persistence

Comfort w/ on-going change

TIME

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The importance of collaborative conversations… Build the Sense of Need and Urgency

Establish knowledge, understanding, and realization of need for change (collaborative conversations)

Empower Personnel Establish participative, problem-solving conversations

across teams, task groups, and whole faculty (collaborative conversations)

Build Direction and Unity of Purpose via Comprehensive Visions Establish goals and strategies involving all faculty

throughout the process (collaborative conversations) Monitor, Measure, and Assess Progress toward Visions

Engage all staff in the collection and analysis of various forms of data to monitor and change as needed (collaborative conversations)

Vision-driven Leadership

Five or ten years ago, who typically developed a school’s vision and goals?

In the future, how must we develop our school’s goals?

How do we keep ill-informed and misguided faculty values and beliefs from affecting our school vision?

VISION-DRIVEN LEADERSHIP

THEN:  PRINCIPAL ESTABLISHED VISION: Principals defined the school’s goals and were accountable to the superintendent’s expectations.

NOW:  VISION-DRIVEN LEADERSHIP: Principals engage teachers in collaborative conversations about what students need to know and be able to do as well as what faculty truly value, believe, and are committed to. Principals and teachers then collaboratively develop a vision and the goals and strategies to achieve that vision. They are accountable to their ethical/moral commitment to effectively prepare students for the 21st century.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED ABOUT ESTABLISHING A MEANINGFUL VISION?

How some people envision a good learning setting…

The vision we must realize in our schools for our students…

A new vision of curriculum and learning…

He has a vision…will our school’s vision prepare him for his vision?