The point of telling you this story isn’t to say a thing about me. I’m a normal educator, like you. I do normal work, like you. I’m on a journey to professional excellence, like you. The point is to tell you something about us. The other day I went to the grocery store in town, […]
The Teacher’s Journey
It seems like the teacher’s journey goes something like this: I like this better than the two bottlenecks language from a couple weeks ago. A few reasons for that preference: This shows that the journey is cyclical. Good days can follow bad ones, and bad ones can be followed by good ones again. It’s applicable […]
The Change to Come
Community AND content. Humility AND boldness. Curriculum AND instruction. Hard work AND deep rest. The most impactful teachers in the world are masters of embracing paradox. They’ve got an eye for what Jim Collins calls “the genius of the AND.” Where do they acquire this sense for nuance? In their dogged pursuit of first principle […]
The Two Bottlenecks
So here’s the good news: a lot of teachers have experienced rich, rewarding careers in education, and a lot of teachers are even doing that right now in the midst of all the topsy turvy. On most days, I count myself among this group. Despite its difficulty, this work remains an excellent way to spend […]
Highly Qualified < Highly Competent
(Forgive me if what follows is obvious.) What we’ve called “highly qualified” since No Child Left Behind is not a super useful construct for deciding who should do what in a school building. It’s a way of making sure that the people leading the classrooms once passed enough classes and tests and practica to earn a […]