tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63702503798542347612024-03-05T09:21:53.463-05:00Field Notes of a Teacher LeaderDedicated to serving and leading. Passionate about positivity and growth mindset. Twitter: @maeward2311
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-36747029987472707282018-12-15T04:31:00.000-05:002018-12-31T19:01:26.601-05:00What I Wish for YouDecember is the last month of the year. In teacher world, we often think it's June. Unfortunately, the holidays have a funny way of making things unusually hectic and causing people (myself included) to always keep looking ahead for "What's next?"
In terms of leadership this week, I've been seeing clues everywhere telling me to slow down, to stop looking ahead of the curve Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-47637356592684835082018-11-04T18:25:00.001-05:002018-11-05T14:51:50.997-05:00The Necessary Balance~ Consensus vs. Capacity Building
My colleague and I were discussing the difference and importance of capacity building versus consensus building; both of which are wholly important to leadership.
Upon reflection, I am struck at how each plays such an important part in establishing and maintaining a balance in the culture of any organization.
Jimmy Casa's words come to mind:
Consensus
What I took away from Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-35130765576423123392018-10-06T19:17:00.004-04:002018-10-06T19:55:03.949-04:00A Culture Built With SynergyI was reflecting this weekend and had to blog about two powerful statements that really resonated with me this week.
David Guerin (@DavidGeurin) tweeted this statement:
D. Guerin Tweet
I have had the privilege of working in one of the very best districts in New Jersey. It is no accident that I am such a strong leader because of the many leaders (admin. and other Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-2973028101332975142018-09-27T22:07:00.000-04:002018-09-27T22:08:30.018-04:00Leaders are Readers
My PLN friend David Guerin (@davidguerin) once tweeted to me that "Leaders are Readers." The phrase has stuck with me ever since. Just this past summer, I set a goal for myself to read 5,500 pages because, after years of being sidetracked having children and life in general, I desperately needed to get back into the groove of becoming an avid reader once again.
As I read book Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-65811622016469512092018-08-06T15:44:00.002-04:002018-10-01T21:45:40.571-04:00Commitment in this Netflix GenerationMy mother who recently discovered Facebook has been sending me quite a steady stream of videos. Videos related to cooking but mainly videos of graduation speeches. It's no surprise that this past June, I found my inbox with an abundance of the inspiring speeches. I still find myself catching up on watching them.
One commencement video that stood out to me was aboutUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-2277451313534170552018-07-17T10:44:00.000-04:002018-10-01T21:49:40.415-04:00Building Capacity of Teacher Leaders
The definition of Teacher Leadership is multifaceted. The point of this blog is to encourage fellow educators to continue their work in extending themselves to be leaders inside and outside of their classroom.
Teacher Leaders have an influence on students, other teacher leaders, and administrators. Work must be done to develop and sustain them.
There is no answer to Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-15242091621629285372018-04-27T11:44:00.000-04:002018-04-27T14:00:50.611-04:00What have we accomplished this year that helped others grow? This month, the #CompelledTribe theme is about ways to renew, recharge, or rejuvenate relationships with students and/or staff during the last quarter of the school year.
This theme took me a long time to think through because it made me reflect on my own professional growth this year and it made me sad to think that the scholastic year is coming to a close. It's bittersweet Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-46707041143736725232018-04-10T22:28:00.000-04:002018-04-12T11:49:48.571-04:00Learning How to Rest and Not to Quit I'm writing this post to think through a hardship I encountered leading a PLC.
Many books on Instructional and Educational Leadership that I have read give really great advice on how to be a great leader, but very few actually give you guidance on when to stop a project because you feel like it's causing more harm than good.
I am by no means a quitter. I absolutely understand that Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-82415647880147599772018-03-24T10:19:00.000-04:002018-03-25T18:59:06.290-04:00Teacher Leadership: What We Give, Is What We Get
Return On Investment (ROI)
"Everyone is a Leader. So Then Why Doesn't Everyone Lead?" was a blog post by Jimmy Casas (@casas_jimmy) on March 11, 2018.
First, I echo Mr. Casas' sentiments completely. I firmly and strongly believe in the concept of Teacher Leadership and their ability to influence Administrators, their colleagues, and other respective Teacher Leaders (in Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-76614656534578197542018-03-11T22:06:00.000-04:002018-03-15T19:02:14.616-04:00Teacher Leadership and the Ideal Classroom
Learner-Centered Innovation: Week 2, Season 4 #IMMOOC
Image via DevOps
Dr. Katie Martin expresses that, "teacher leaders can serve as linchpins that move systems and structures to a culture of learning and make a significant impact for those they serve."
The way that I try to create and improve my innovation ecosystem is to lead and participate in a bridging committee between the Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-5130773750483172612018-03-07T23:46:00.002-05:002018-03-08T12:06:39.201-05:00Teacher Burnout and Finding a Balance
The struggle between teacher burnout and finding a balance is an absolute constant in this profession.
With the unrealistic demands made on teachers and leaders alike, (oversized classes, grading, paperwork, and duties, etc.) the need to find ways to cope with how to spend our time and energy needs to be brought to the forefront when we examine school culture.
Teacher-student Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-75834218080418080852018-03-01T16:14:00.002-05:002018-03-01T19:04:51.566-05:00The Greater Purpose of Schools#InnovatorsMindset Blog Challenge Week 1
What do you see as the purpose of education? Why might innovation be crucial in education? "Change is an opportunity to do something amazing." How are you embracing change to spur innovation in your own context?
Picture From George Couros
It can be said that morality encompasses fairness, altruism, and empathy.&Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-69234367073011986442018-02-28T22:19:00.002-05:002018-03-06T13:19:01.829-05:00Twitter Bootcamp! Grow your Professional Learning Network
This is an amazing opportunity to grow your PLN. Every Educational Leader, Instructional Coach, and Teacher benefit from Twitter because it is such an amazing tool to use for professional growth.
It also puts you in contact with experts in the teaching field from all over the world, offering fresh ideas for everything from student engagement to differentiated instruction to Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-78494672198113301192018-02-27T10:33:00.000-05:002018-03-30T14:23:13.967-04:00PLCs: It's okay to hit the "reset" button
My district is in year 3 of PLCs. I love the concept of a PLC. Maybe even borderline obsessed with a hint of crazy about it.
Since our district is at its nascent stage of the process, I used Learning By Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work (DuFour, DuFour, Easker, Many, 2010) to help guide me.
Here are the main takeaways from this Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-56269534264056748222018-02-22T14:10:00.002-05:002018-03-15T19:03:27.757-04:00My Message to My Younger Self: Know your "Why?"
Dr. Amy Fast tweeted this on January 21, 2018. I loved it so much that I went back on her twitter feed just to search for this quote and after what felt like going through a thousand tweets, I found it. Yup, I know. I'm crazy.
But I have to tell you. This question has been and probably will be permanently stuck in my mind.
A couple of months ago, our Instructional Supervisors ledUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-77801253712146451012018-02-19T09:54:00.000-05:002018-03-13T10:46:09.290-04:00Teacher Leadership: Is Your District Striving or Sustaining?
The Art of Teacher Leadership is asking teachers to master the following:
1. The Art of Teaching
2. The Art of Leading
3. The Art of Coaching
Teachers lead every day. It's a vocation that embraces leadership as its core. They make instructional choices in their classrooms to best fit the needs of every one of their students. Those who do the job well are always reflecting Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-77443908417867718572018-02-14T10:03:00.000-05:002018-02-15T11:13:00.446-05:00Empathy. What is Your Superpower?In order to be an effective teacher leader, you must be able to collaborate as well as facilitate.
Empathy in its purest form is the ability to connect and relate to others. A leader who grounds their interactions on empathy has the ability to harness creativity, growth, and innovation from those they lead.
This skill is not only being a good listener but also extends to being able to adapt andUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-18964457558534278152018-02-12T19:19:00.001-05:002018-02-15T11:13:47.406-05:00Global Competency and Being Future Driven
Global Competency. If you haven’t learned or heard of this term yet, go ahead and google it. I’ll be honest, I never of this term until today, but when I read the description, I know that I do embrace this philosophy. I’m no expert, but I invite you to learn along with me.
I’ve started reading David Geurin’s book Future Driven and I am hooked. When I get hooked onUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-78230220871201583812018-02-11T21:11:00.000-05:002018-02-15T11:15:53.989-05:00No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
Tweet from Jimmy Casas (February 10, 2018)
Yup, this is so me. I’m not going to even hide behind any pretense that it’s not. This three sentence tweet not only put me in my place but admittedly pointed out my biggest leadership gap.
I just recently finished Lolly Daskal's The Leadership Gap, that describe this exact archetype. The Navigator, whose leadership style is to Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-57287346097703465132018-02-11T07:25:00.000-05:002018-02-15T11:14:58.596-05:00Be Your Own Life Coach
Those who are motivated, find ways to motivate themselves.
These people are the embodiment of the Indiana Jones protype. I’ll provide you with an image of what I think this “uber achiever” does: Imagine a plane about to crash into a hot fiery volcano.
They are the ones that are not only piloting the plane; they are the ones simultaneously fixing it. Other people don’t know how they do “Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6370250379854234761.post-87891721963722971112018-02-10T18:14:00.002-05:002018-02-15T11:16:45.023-05:00Field Notes
These are some thoughts that I gathered during my process of becoming and accepting the role of a Teacher Leader. Below are quotes that helped me refine my own set of core values of teaching and leading.
Field Notes of a Teacher Leader #1:
Know who you are. The first step in people taking you seriously is that you know what your principles are, what you stand Unknownnoreply@blogger.com