Every Student Deserves a Connection With Their Teacher

Most teachers have a student prototype that makes this job really, really easy. For me, it's a student who does all their homework, asks amazing questions in class, plays sports after school, recites 90's movie lines, and tells me that they want to go to Marquette. When that student walks in my classroom, we already have a relationship and it's gold.

Few students fit that description. Many of my students don't do their homework or enjoy asking questions in class. Most of them could care less about sports or my movie lines. The truth is, the sooner I learned that my students aren't me, the better teacher I became. That's not to say I did all the work, but its more to say, relationships are created and nurtured over time.

I have a student this year that I share very little in common with...

On the first day of school, she visited me in my office to tell me a sob story of why she did not have her summer homework. She was terrified and embarassed. Usually when AP students don't do their summer homework after 11 long weeks to complete it, I'm already raising the red flags.

From that moment, she went about her work quietly and never said a word in class. Her grades on tests were above average and I could see that she was internalizing our system and benefiting from the dilligence to her work. I began to regard her as a serious contender for a 4 or 5 on the AP test, despite knowing all along, that I had invested very little in her success. I hadn't tried hard enough. I did not forge a relationship with this quiet, sweet kid.

A few months ago while grading her notebook, I wrote her a short note apoligizing for not getting to know her better. I told her how impressed I was with her work and how I wanted to be a bigger part of her journey to getting college credit on this exam. I told her I believed in her, because I do. I made sure she read my note. When she did, she shook her head and smiled.

Two weeks later, I was returning tests to my students. As I approched her desk, I looked at her score and was shocked. I handed her the scantron. She looked down and saw her score. It felt like that moment in the movie where the music stops and the audience is left hanging.

She looked up at me with the most amazing smile I've seen. We gave each other a high five and I turned away to avoid welling up in front of my entire class. For the first time all year, she acheived the highest score in the class.

In many cases, we aren't teaching who we are, we are teaching who we aren't.

And while we don't always have a lot in common with our kids, we can create commonalities and value success together. We share in each other's learning and collective success. This particular student of mine has taught me a lot more than I could ever teach her.

Maybe this is a story of neglectful teacher. Perhaps it's a nod to the power of a hand written note. Hopefully as you read this, you feel inspired to reach out to those students who you may not share a lot in common with. Students like her make me realize that if we are uncompromising about anything in our profession, maybe it should be-

Every student deserves a connection with their teacher.

Student Driven Leadership

I recently interviewed with an independent agency whose goal was to find out what kind of leader I am. Through a series of what seemed like 60 questions, we spoke about various topics including handling disputes, navigating resistance, and how to motivate staff towards student achievement. I approached the interview with one goal in mind- keep the focus on the students. That's a very "teacher-y" answer, I know. As a school leader, sometimes its easy to lose that focus the further removed from the classroom we are and the more focused on managing adults we become.

Amber Teamann recently addressed this topic noting most of the decisions we make in schools are geared towards what is best for adults. She posed the following scenarios as evidence:

1. Master schedules are largely based on adult preference.

2. Some teachers will threaten to transfer if they do not get their classroom or schedule they want.

3. Administration will not address average or below average lessons for fear of rocking the boat.

4. Administration will look the other way if a teacher has poor methods but test scores are "fine."

If we look at our schools, we can probably find some evidence of decision making that is best for adults. There is nothing wrong with this. However, it's important that we continue to steer conversations back to what is best for kids. Here are three ways I think we can do it.

1. Support the staff in any way we can.

The moment I experience some sort issue at school, administrators usually respond with, "Let me know if there is anything I can do to help." I appreciate that stance. A supported teacher or staff member has the ability to do what is best for their students. If our ultimate goal is to swing conversations back to what is best for kids, we have to provide the support and the structure to allow the adults to be creative in their own domains.

2. Motivate the staff to be the better versions of themselves.

As a teacher, I believe that successful academic outcomes start with motivated students. Often times, we have to create the energy and drive for our kids. I think the same applies for a school leader working with the staff. Providing positive reinforcement that is both personal and genuine goes a long way in motivating teachers. Teachers deserve credit for incredibly well designed lessons. We should acknowledge our staff when they run through a wall for our kids. We work in a profession of extraordinary effort. Our praise and encouragement of these efforts should be extraordinary too.

3. Manufacture contact with kids whenever we can.

Supporting the initiative of a student driven school starts by listening to the students. Leaders who are in touch with their students can fully understand the pulse and culture of the building. Like a stock, the culture of the building can trend up or down. Its important that school leaders can "hedge" the trend by showing a genuine interest in students' voice. I think this interaction has to happen with student leaders, but also with overlooked groups of students too.

By supporting and motivating staff and keeping a pulse on what students are saying, I think school leaders can continue to shift the pendulum from a focus on their building, to a focus on their students.

Patience, Evaluation, Reflection

In my opinion, the silver screen has experienced a huge renaissance in the last few years. Trying to decide which film I enjoyed the most between Argo, Silver Linings Playbook, The Ides of March, Zero Dark 30, and the Hunger Games is an exercise in futility. Most of those movies, however, are not the type I can watch over and over. Moneyball, the story of a small market baseball team, whose general manager tries to win more by spending less and maximizing his existing talent, is. Moneyball really makes me think.

Recently, I discovered a scene at the end of the movie that provides great insight into our profession and gives us some guidance towards better teaching and leadership. 

 

When I first started teaching, I wanted to hit home runs everyday. I was blessed with confidence and new ideas from my cooperating teacher, and when I finally got my first job, I was ready to light the world on fire. At the end of that first year, I probably spent more of my time putting out the fires that I created. Even today, I think conscientious and ambitious school leaders want to create groundbreaking changes in our schools. We want to be the ones with the next pioneering idea that changes the game. If Steve Jobs and Bill Gates did it in their fields, maybe we could too.

But in education, the most innovative changes often are enacted with patience, consistent evaluation, and most importantly, reflection.  

Rounding first and heading for second might be something we have never done before. Experimenting with a new lesson can be frightening for a teacher just like presenting a new initiative  might be nerve-racking for an administrator. Even professional development can be intimidating. When I first started using Twitter, I told my wife that this new commitment, "could easily take an hour of my time every day to do it right." Talk about the fear of the unknown. 

The truth is- we don't have to hit home runs every day. 

Educators who are patient with their students and adapt to the changes in education are exhibiting an important skill in our profession. If we consistently evaluate the effectiveness of our lessons or our initiatives and back it with strong evidence, we can be confident that our ideas are making a difference. Finally, through reflection and conversation, we can humbly assess what needs to change and how we can change it. 

By doing so, we are going to hit plenty of home runs, and not even realize it.