“Stop, Shift, Share, Sustain, and Start”

It was timely that at the Fall District Administrator’s Leadership Institute (DALI) guest presenter, author Mr. Jamie Vollmer, revisited his five (5) “S’s” underpinning four critical understandings necessary for transforming education. The “S’s” are:

1.   Stop complaining – educators and those involved, engaged, and working for public good;

2.   Shift to positive from negative “speak” especially the aforementioned – the world is negative, cynical, sarcastic, and caustic; 

3.   Share success – consistently and constantly – it is not self-serving or “spinning” to share achievements and accomplishment – we need to be unapologetic for things that work;

4.   Sustain the effort of positive, success, and optimism for the work of teaching and learning

5.   Start now

  At Monday’s Board of Education business meeting I shared my challenge to instructional division leadership to engage in these “S’s” for 28 consecutive days.  Imagine the impact on our system, our community if leadership were to just work on the first three – stop complaining, shift to positive speak, and share successes.

We know that each individual has complete control over each of these three – it’s a choice! 

At Monday’s meeting, as BOE members came in, I asked “what positive comments did you hear today about the Anson County Schools?”  They reflected, contemplated, and shared.  However, it did not come easily. 

Why?

We know why and as Vollmer put it, “the world is negative, cynical, sarcastic, and caustic”.  But, why do we have to be that way – especially educators?  Why shouldn’t we be the most positive person that people interact with on a daily basis?

If Vollmer is correct that educational transformation will only occur with building and sustaining 1) community understanding, 2) community trust, 3) community permission, and 4) community support, the five “S’s” make perfect sense.  Isn’t this what we have been working on for the past five years – understanding, trust, permission, and support?

The Board of Education participated in a recent workshop for the purposes of mainly asking questions about instructional programming, our contract providers, and three other areas from which they desired to know more about.  Underpinning most if not all their questions were perceptions, comments, and opinions of constituents albeit current or past employees, parents, or etc. about the current work.

A reality from the evening’s conversations, discussions, and dialogue is that:

·  We have implemented a lot of programming to meet the diverse needs of our students. 

·  We have implemented a lot of training and learning requirements of staff as part of our Human Capital Development initiative. 

·  We have an incredible amount of data to support program import and effect. 

·  We have depended heavily on third party providers to build capacity and assist with organizational improvement. 

·  But …

We have not done a very good job “sharing” – connecting if you will, the “what”, “why”, “how” and “how well” – of our work.  It is not, therefore, a surprise to hear “complaints”, “negativity” or “questions”. 

There it is – a significant Homer Simpson moment –

We have to “share” – consistently and constantly the success.  And … our Board of Education, administration, teachers, and support staff have to know what they are. 

We make too many assumptions about what folks actually know – yet, every indicator reveals they don’t.

So here we go – I am challenging every one of us this upcoming week to share this fact:

The Anson County Schools Graduation rate has increased from 64.3% in 2008 to 78.9% in 2012.

In concert, I am challenging each and every one of us to stop complaining especially about the work of teaching and learning.  If the aforementioned fact doesn’t speak volumes about our dedicated, committed staff nothing will.  It also speaks loudly about our students and their parents.  Are we satisfied with almost 79% graduation rate? 

No!  We can and we will do better.

Stop complaining without a shift to positive “speak” will not assist others in hearing the sharing success.  It takes all three working together.

So, let’s start right now with creating a new paradigm for our community – that is, our schools, our staff, our students, and our parents are part of an exciting time in education – Success!

“Human Capital Development – never stops”

Our Human Capital Development (HCD) initiative is the centerpiece of our Race to the Top plan as well as integral to the School Improvement Grants at Anson High School and Morven Elementary.  The premise underpinning the commitment to developing human capital is found in the third requisite essential for connecting the dots in our efforts to transform our school system - capacity.

The first requisite (dissatisfaction) and the second (vision) without capacity cannot produce the desired or expected results.  Underpinning capacity are three critical steps.  The first step is the identification of the necessary skills, knowledge, and practices to bring about the desired or expected results.  The second step is identifying the current level of skill, knowledge, and application of practices of staff to bring about the desired or expected results.  The third and final step is a gap analysis to ascertain the distance between the current and desired skill and knowledge sets.

In our gap analysis we found that awareness, understanding and application of standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices varied significantly within grade levels, content areas, schools and the school system.  Rather than participating in the practice of condemnation, blame, or personal attacks, we made a very conscious decision to engage in capacity building.

We believed that our performance results including both student and staff were not a product of uncaring, unmotivated, or uncommitted individuals.  We concluded that until such time that each staff had access and opportunity to authentic, effective, and evidenced-based training and learning we could not accept the oft used conclusions, judgments, or education bashing common to many communities.

For our administration to support, mentor, model, and authentically assess effective instruction we needed to focus on their individual and collective skills and knowledge in instructional leadership.  We are now beginning our third year in working with Atlantic Research Partners in training not only administration but also now whole schools in Power of Teaching.

To ensure authentic integration of digital tools we needed to focus primarily on classroom teachers but have also included building administration for capacity to support teachers.  Our strategic partnership with Discovery Education, A+ Educators, and Apple to name just three is critical to instructional capacity building.

Creating coherence as well as a deep understanding of standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessment integration and alignment has been the work of Total Instructional Alignment.  North Carolina’s own, Lisa Carter has been instrumental in working with classroom teachers, administration, and teacher leaders to build capacity in the alignment process.

Capacity building in the application, utility, and import of summative and formative assessments is created through the work found in Thinkgate, EVAAS, and soon Milepost by our new partner, Silverback Learning.   There will also be more work ahead to build staff capacity to use the state’s new Instructional Improvement System.

Specifically to address student learning achievement deficits capacity building in technology based supplemental programming was needed – especially in the area of literacy. 

The “eradicate illiteracy” initiative is steeped in building capacity of staff’s awareness, understanding, and application of programs such as Teachtown, Headsprout, Reading 3D, Fast ForWord, Reading Assistant, and our newest program Kurzweil as well as non-technology based Learning Together. Capacity building in the area of mathematics required introducing ClassWorks as well as continuing in Math Together – Get Ready for Algebra. Each of these programs is predicated on knowing how these compliment, augment, and support classroom based instruction to build, reinforce, or enrich necessary learning skills, knowledge or experience in our learners.

But when is the best, most effective means to provide capacity building for our staff?  There are generally four formats (1) during the school day requiring “guest teachers” aka substitutes, (2) afterschool, (3) mandatory work days, or (4) summer recess.  For our secondary schools we have implemented Late Start Mondays where staff have the first fruits of time on Monday for their learning and growth before students arrive later in the day. We have created Learning Development Centers (LDC) in four of our schools to provide a different experience for teachers who participate as cohorts of four in one, two, three, or four-day seminars.  This past year we implemented a series of one-week institutes for whole faculty learning.

 Suffice it to say, capacity building was the right strategy at the right time.  As part of Human Capital Development, our students are the benefactors of the learning and growth of our staff now and for years to come.

“Dissatisfaction, Vision, and Capacity”

The ability to “connect the dots” is more complex than simply telling others about the dots and how they connect.  It requires a lot more than showing others the dots.  

Akin to most if not all change efforts is a set of requisite readiness knowledge and understanding that must be present before any lines or dots are actually connected.  These requisites include but are not limited to knowledge and understanding of dissatisfaction, vision, and capacity. 

Within each of these requisites are conditions that will determine whether or not the “dots” will connect.

The three (3) conditions of dissatisfaction are level, depth, and ownership.  Without these, dissatisfaction will never exist in the way it must to be helpful in connecting the dots.

First and foremost, dissatisfaction must be based on data.  Data can take many forms albeit quantitative and qualitative.  The level of data is based on access and availability as well as the form in which data is presented.  For example, aggregate data is the most common and easily accessed information about groups of students and schools and for the most part has the least value. 

Nevertheless, data must be at a level that is specific, relevant, timely, and actionable.  This requires data at a personal level.  For data to be personal it must be within the control or responsibility of the person or persons accountable for the results.

The level of dissatisfaction drives the depth of dissatisfaction.  Simply, if someone is not dissatisfied with the level of data, you won’t get to the depth of data. 

There is always data behind the data being analyzed.   The metaphor of “peeling the onion” is fitting.  In that, as one peels the levels more data appears that eventually reveals “causes” of results.

This “peeling” creates a deeper sense of curiosity as well as inquiry or it should.  This results in the depth of questions begetting further data points and data analysis.

Yet, without the third requisite of dissatisfaction, ownership, the layer and depth of data will seldom if ever result in seeking, finding, and implementing strategies to improve.

The madness of the adage “how are we going to get different results if we continue to do what we have always done” is a reality when ownership of data doesn’t exist.

If the data is not ownership there is no dissatisfaction.  Without dissatisfaction, connecting the dots is impossible – not to mention futile. 

If dissatisfaction based on the level, depth, and ownership of data or results is present the second requisite, vision becomes extremely important.  A powerful articulated vision of what the organization will look like, feel like, and sound like in terms of relationships, relevance, and results will matter little if there is not dissatisfaction.  Conversely, if there is dissatisfaction but not a powerful, articulated vision, the organization will experience serious morale and motivation challenges.

Our vision, “All means all” is very powerful.  The acknowledgement that each of our students, staff, parents, and community members are of inherent worth and value and therefore are deserving of our very best, day in and day out, is or should be compelling in every way – if – dissatisfaction for current performance is authentic.  Our vision, “All means all” is inclusive, unwavering, and relentless or should be to constantly, continuously, and consistently seek ways to rise about our circumstances to achieve the results we desire.  Our vision, “All means all” is intended to be proactive, personal, and purposeful in all ways and at all times.  It is both a process and mindset.

Our vision, “All means all” coupled with dissatisfaction leads to the third requisite, capacity.  A key to capacity is assessing the present skill, knowledge and experience of our staff compared to the necessary skill, knowledge and experience to achieve not only the mission but make our vision a reality.  It is capacity or lack of that undermines dissatisfaction and vision and that ultimately prevents both the dots and connecting lines from forming the desired picture or coherence of initiatives, programs, practices, and etc.

Capacity building is time consuming and costly.  It requires an investment in our staff, of our staff, and by our staff.

Next week I will develop, in much greater detail, the Human Capital Development initiative as part of our capacity building strategy.

“What do the dots form?”

Do you remember playing “connect the dots”?

Officially, “Connect the dots is a form of puzzle containing a sequence of numbered dots. When a line is drawn connecting the dots the outline of an object is revealed.” Further, “The puzzles often contain simple line art to enhance the image created or to assist in rendering a complex section of the image.”

We use the phrase "connect the dots" as a “metaphor to illustrate an ability (or inability) to associate one idea with another, to find the "big picture", or salient feature, in a mass of data.”

We also understand that for the “picture” to be completed we had to draw our lines in sequential order albeit numerical or alphabetically.  Skipping or missing a dot resulted in a distortion or incomplete picture.

Connecting dots required understanding patterns, sequencing, order and knowing numbers or the alphabet.  It also required fine motor skills to hold and use a pencil, the ability to draw a line, and of course, patience.

Complexity as well as conflict are created by past experiences, context, culture, circumstances, to name just a few of the factors that inform, influence, or impact the “dots”, the “lines” and the “picture” we are attempting to form.

Though we generally understand the concept as well as construct of connecting dots, the order of our dots is not sequential adding further challenges.  Further still, our work is not linear, concrete or sequential. The pattern or puzzle we are solving is more abstract than concrete.  Yet, we must “connect the dots” to make sense of what we are doing.

The starting point in “making sense” or connecting dots is our Strategic Commitments.  The Commitments include the Key Success Factors that articulate the work that must be completed to achieve our commitments as a school system.  It is in the Key Success Factors that all work albeit programs, initiatives, or purchases are aligned.  Simply put, if a success factor is not the impetus or purpose behind “what” we are doing it cannot be justified or defended and should be abandoned.

We have for the past five years introduced several programs, initiatives, and practices.  Each of these can without hesitation connect to a success factor.  The “Factors” are the “whats” and the “dots” are the “hows”.

For example, Key Success Factor 1.1 reads, “Our Curriculum is vertically and horizontally aligned, rigorous, and relevant; and is congruent with North Carolina Standard Course of Study” – a “what”.  A “dot” or “how” connected to this success factor is Total Instructional Alignment (TIA).  TIA is the means to ensure alignment of the North Carolina Standard Course of Study to content.

Another example is Power of Teaching.  It is a “how” or “dot” that connects Key Success Factor 1.2, “Our Instruction incorporates “effective practice”, leverages time effectively and efficiently, and is in an atmosphere conducive for maximum learning.”  Discovery Education, A+, Learning Development Centers, and Co-Teaching are additional “dots” that connect this success factor.

In Key Success Factor 1:3, “Our Assessment of student learning is congruent with curriculum and instruction and is used to assess for learning as well as an assessment of learning” the “dots” Thinkgate, District Formative Assessments, and Benchmarks Assessments connect.

The “dots” Teachtown, Headsprout, Fast ForWord, Reading Assistant, Learning Together, Kurzweil, Classworks, Math Together, Pistco, to name several supplemental programs connect to Key Success Factor 1.4 “Student Achievement is planned and predictive” and the more specific sub factors with Key Success Factor 1.4.

Key Success Factor 1.5, “Our Professional Learning and Growth model reflect student achievement results, curriculum, instruction, and assessment needs, as well as the professional interests of staff” is where the “dots” Human Capital Development, Learning Development Center, and each specific training designed to improve teaching, learning, and leadership connect.

Neither I, nor anyone else, in leadership can assume the “dots” connect for everyone at the same time or in the same way.  Nor can we assume that the “dots” once connected form the picture we desire let alone stay connected.  Rather, we must assume and therefore act as if “connecting the dots” is continuous and never ceasing. It also requires a clear picture of what we work to accomplish.

The picture we see when connected?

“All means all”.