You Should Never Miss an IPA Fall Conference

I remember my first IPA fall conference.  It was my first year as a principal and by October you start getting that feeling that you are now an island to yourself.  In small districts like ours, you are usually the only administrator in the building and you don't get many chances to bounce ideas off of people like you.  I was having a good year but as a rookie, you have a lot of uncertainty that you need professional networking to fix.  I remember walking into the Peoria Civic Center that first morning to the general session.  I looked around and not only spotted familiar faces but soon realized that these were my people.  A building filled with people that do what you do for a living.  They understand the ups and downs of the field and they have shared experiences with you.  Throughout my masters program, Dr. Colwell continuously preached that we should join the IPA and upon my arrival at my first fall conference I finally understood why.

As I moved from session to session and the general sessions, I could see the special-ness of the IPA playing out before me.  I was beyond impressed with the organization and the presentation of the event as well as how the IPA honors it's members.  I watched the Principal of the Year honorees accept their awards and thinking how cool it would be if that was me.  Eventually, I got my chance to walk across the stage.  I have had the opportunity to present a small group session and do an ignite session last year.  I was very motivated to get involved after that first fall conference.  I have served on state committees, the conference planning committee and I recently took on the honor of being region director for the Egyptian Region.  My experiences over the years with the IPA have been very rewarding and I credit the organization for so much of my development as a school administrator.

This conference is one you can't miss from year to year.  Yes you get to see old friends and talk shop, but the learning opportunities are top notch.  Look through the small group sessions and tell me you can't find something that is beneficial to your building.  Personally, there are many sessions I could go to that could potentially impact my building.  We are re-branding this year.  There is a session for that.  We are constantly talking about the value of homework.  There is a session for that too.  Really, there is no excuse not to make the trip to Springfield to take advantage of these and many other professional development possibilities.

If you have been on the fence for some reason and have yet to register, what are you waiting on?  Go online and register so you can see what adventures await.

My Daughter's Principal

Caution: Very personal post.

My daughter's junior high principal rarely spoke to her over the course of those two years.  That is kind of a natural thing.  Kids like her don't really get a lot of personal attention.  She was that girl that worked hard in her classes, put herself around good friends, played multiple sports and joined extra-curricular clubs.  She was the kind of kid that would just die if she had ever gotten a detention.  I can sympathize, most principals are busy putting out fires and dealing with the kids most needing adult intervention and she was not really one of them.  The problem is that I was her junior high principal and it is no longer okay for me to accept that our relationship was on hold for two very important years.

I had always been looking forward to having my daughter in my school building.  When she was in first grade, I was hired to my current position.  Before that, she was a great sidekick for me at my previous high school.  She went to my dances and games with me.  She always seemed interested in what I did.  When she was older, she would play school with one of her friends (whose mom was a teacher there) in my building until it was time to go home.  As the years ticked by, the time had come to register her at my building.

I wasn't long before my excitement about her being there would be challenged.  In the first week of school a student in one of her classes told her that the only reason she was getting to play on the softball team was because her dad buys all the equipment.  She told us this story and we laughed it off with her.  Inside, this was a huge shock to my system.  Somehow I had lost sight of the fact that kids at this age would not see her how I see her while she goes to my school.  She is always going to have the appearance of special treatment no matter how hard she worked or excelled.  She would going to exist under my shadow and this was not acceptable to me.

I started to pull away and give her the distance she needed to be insulated from me.  Junior high is tough and I never wanted to make it tougher for her.  We did not take advantage of what we knew about what was going on at school.  This was good for both of us, but it was difficult to convince others that she was never an informant for me.  Sure we exchanged small encounters but we probably never appeared to be close at school.  Thankfully, my teachers took care of the fun stuff and jokes during my fatherhood sabbatical.  She had great relationships with the staff and I am indebted to them for that.  She ended junior high with great experiences in and out of the classroom despite me having very little to do with that.

8th Grade Night

She is a freshman now and we can breathe again.  She talks non-stop about school and even though I tease her about, I kinda like it.  She is getting ready for homecoming and shopping for dresses.  It honestly doesn't bother me at all.  It takes me back to the days that she was my homecoming date at Elverado High School.  A lot has changed since then and she is a great kid.  She didn't get the credit she deserved during those two years, but now she is free from the shadow to make her own path forward.  I am truly excited for her.

So to my daughter's principal, you are getting a good one.  I promise to be a supportive parent now that I can feel like one again.  She really likes kidding around with the teachers if you could make time to do that with her.  Her mother and I will do our best to guide her from here, but we need a great principal to guide her in there.

Social Studies Teachers Rejoice

I remember when I was a social studies teacher at Mt. Vernon Township High School.  That's way back when we were on the Prairie State Exam.  Yes, social studies was on the state exam.  These days we test math, English/language arts and science but somewhere we were left out.  Was it because the social sciences such as history, civics, and economics were not important?  Of course not.  Our subject matter was just not a legislative priority and we didn't make the cut for state tests.  Don't feel left out fellow social studies teachers, it is time to rejoice.

Most of the legally required subjects to be taught in school are social studies topics.  It's true.  I remember being told this long ago when Dennis Overturf was mentoring myself and other student teachers at SIU Carbondale.  I just thought it was because he was proud to be a social studies teacher.  Years later when I began to study the School Code, I learned he was right.  I wondered back then if all these statutorily required units were the result of our legislature being frustrated with what students didn't know.  It is comforting that the law making process was executed to make sure kids learned about the Holocaust, the US Constitution and African-American history.  It seems that our lawmakers over time wanted our kids to have well-rounded social studies education experiences and I'm happy for it.

The fact that social studies has been de-emphasized on our standardized tests does not mean teaching social studies is not important.  Anyone could argue that it is more important now than ever.  As I watched the news a few night ago I wondered, what if Frank Hartman got to evaluate me teaching a lesson on fake news?  What if I had to evaluate a teacher trying to wade through the student debate and discussion over border control?  We live an a point in history that is unprecedented and will certainly re-write all of the textbooks we teach from (if we can afford them).  Social Studies teachers are incredibly important right now.  Not to tell kids how to vote or what party to belong to, but to move past asking them to memorize the preamble and start inspiring them to exercise it.



Look at the graphic above and you will see why great social studies teachers are pivotal right now.  In the general sense, we are talking about the issues but where is the action?  We need strong civics education now more than ever.  Some say the 2016 election is the result of not engaging students in civics and the democratic process.  While that is a matter of opinion, the fact that voter turnout remains low cannot be ignored.  There's no better way to prepare students for the real world like practice.  Providing students with opportunities for participation and simulations in democracy is a great way to engage our students in the process.  This is one of the essential missions of schools.  We have to make more citizens and preferably some that are informed and ready to participate.  So yes social studies teachers, you matter.  You will be the ones that inspire students through knowledge and practice to be our next voters and difference makers.  Social studies teachers, rejoice and embrace this role.

Raising the White Flag on Cellphones

We are approaching a new school year and people like me start to get excited.  The promise of a new year and new opportunities is always something to look forward to.  You spend a summer fixing old challenges and creating new programs or policies.  As we approach August I have been seeing a lot more reports of schools banning cell phones from the classroom and I am now running across research support on the topic as well.  It seems that schools are beginning to raise the white flag on phones despite some earlier excitement about BYOD.

It is surely no secret that I am a BYOD supporter and that I lead a BYOD school.  I recognize that all schools are different and have unique needs.  It is completely within their scope to design their own policies when it comes to what takes place in their buildings and how they use the technology resources they have.  I would like to offer a couple counter points for those schools that simply see them as a distraction to classroom instruction.

My fist question would be, What is your policy climate like?  If your policy is as simple as they are allowed or not allowed, maybe the big picture is being missed.  BYOD is not as simple as the existence of personal devices in a school building.  It is an ed tech instructional initiative.  Your policy should include how students will use their devices as learning tools and the teaching staff has to actually model and support that activity.  Instructional initiatives take planning and follow up after implementation.  Sustaining BYOD is hard work and requires commitment.  Just like any other curriculum or instructional endeavor it takes dedicated people to make it work. 

My next question would be, Are your classrooms engaging?  When I was a kid, there were plenty of distracted students and we didn't have cell phones.  Kids were passing notes, doodling in their notebooks, carving in desks or just plain sleeping.  Those kids, and sometimes me, were simply not being engaged in learning.  I taught once upon a time and I know you can't reach them all, but I never stopped trying.  An engaging classroom environment will prevent distractions.  Lets not forget that a good set of classroom procedures for devices will help too.  Teachers, with proper administrative support, are the key to every success in a school building. 

Cellphones are not going away. They represent a skill set to be managed. They are not a fad that will go away so we should be addressing them and finding a way to leverage their power in the school setting.  I've said before that you have to find a way to win with what you have.  If the kids are on devices, then we should be beating them to the punch make them relevant tools in school.  We also complain that they behave horribly on their phones and they have poor habits.  That's very true, but shouldn’t we be the change we want to see in them?  If we are modeling that devices as tools and not toys, the students will respond.  We need to be catalysts of change and progress and not throwing up a white flag.

Lessons from the Matheny Firing

Last week the St. Louis Cardinals fired manager Mike Matheny.  Despite this being a game, it is a business at the professional level.  Decisions have to be made and people have to move on.  The organization decided that we would be better off with a new manager.  Let's be clear, he is not the type to bring shame to the Cardinals and he did not exhibit behavior that demanded him be fired.  Don't forget, hall of famer Tony LaRussa was arrested for DUI back in 2007.  Mike was fired for the well complained about poor game decision making that led to tough losses despite having a talented team.  Other rumors were that he had lost the confidence of the locker room and it was time to part ways.  I'm happy that it was not because he has compromised his values in any way.  From what I understand, he is very good man.

In Cardinal Nation there was jubilation and joking over the firing.  People see this move about wins and losses and in some ways see this firing as an indication that Matheny is a terrible baseball manager.  After the firing, new reasons to dislike Mike surfaced.  Look at the Tweet on the bottom right.  Remember when Matheny was hired, people liked the notion that he was a man of faith and it gave him credibility and we had confidence that he would uphold the Cardinal way.  It's funny how our perception of coaches can change with wins and losses.  I think fans have been a little unfair.

It's not all bad.  There are some reasonable people out there.  For all the guys with jokes there are people that do care that he will land on his feet.  Matheny has been very gracious in his exit and says he is thankful for the opportunity he was given.  He for sure has a ton of class and I'm sure he will find new opportunities in the MLB.

To my fellow school administrators, lets examine ourselves as people that could some day meet the same fate.  You can do everything right, lead with your values, genuinely care about people and give everything you have but still become a victim of a "change in direction".  In a lot of ways, we would suffer the same treatment.  If you were to be let go, there would be some that feel it was deserved and make their objections to you suddenly known and then there would be some that are sympathetic to your situation.  What creates an unfair scenario for us is that the most vocal seem to be those with objections to your leadership style or approach and they obviously do not know what you deal with and what you sacrifice for your position.  These are the people that shape public opinion and that is a painful experience for people like us.

Matheny was aware that if things did not improve, he was going to be let go.  He was aware that he was not longer a good fit for the organization.  We are very familiar with the word "fit".  We are taught early that fit is everything.  When we look for a job we are making sure that we fit the school or district so we can serve at the highest level and positively impact the students.  The critical element for us is to recognize when the fit is no longer there, we still must serve with our values and integrity just as Mike Matheny has.  His firing doesn't mean is a bad manager.  He obviously has something to offer if he has been successful at the highest level.  He will just have to find the team that can benefit from that the most.  A parallel we can relate to and learn from.

The Older Guy

I recently celebrated my 42nd birthday.  I had to do the math on that because I wasn't really sure.  When you get older, you don't really seem to know how old you are.  I remember when I started teaching meeting the "older" guys in the school and being a little envious of them.  They all seemed to have their stuff together.  They owned homes, had children with full and busy lives, they seemed to be comfortable in their profession and had that wisdom that only age can give you.  I used to look at them and think, I wonder what I will be like when I'm one of the older guys.

Well, here I am and there are sure fire signs that I'm an older guy.  These were not the things I thought I would be thinking about but here is how I am sure that I am one of the older guys now.

I miss the days when hip hop music was not on the radio.  The art is more special when it is not in the mainstream.  Now, you can hear a rap verse on every pop song on the radio and to be honest, it will never be as special as Eric B. and Rakim or Boogie Down Productions.  You had to go look for hip hop back when it was special.

Nobody cared about Lebron's next move back in my day.  I grew up watching Cal Ripken spend his entire career with the Orioles regardless of their level of success.  People compare him to Jordan and Bird, but to me, there is no comparison.  All this moving around for championships, makes an older guy frustrated.

I do enjoy the new super hero movies, however I am critical of little differences.  When you grew up with Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, it is really difficult to watch this new guy.  I am watching these movies closely only to be able to explain what they were like when I was a kid to my kids.  And whats up with all the attempts at Batman and Spiderman movies.  It seems like we could get these right. 

I recently started wearing glasses again.  I don't think I care if I look like an older guy.

What is up with television content?  I cannot get over how much is allowed on television compared to when I was a kid.  I feel like I can't watch anything in prime time with my kids in the room.  I'm always a little anxious about what might come up in the show.  Most shows these days have suggestive language or sexual content in them and I'm talking about network TV.

I love mowing the lawn.  I get super aggravated when it is too long or it takes me a couple extra days to get to it.  That is a sure fire, older guy thing.  The only item missing is a funny hat while I mow.  Not that I am unwilling to wear one, I just haven't found one that I like yet.

I am an older guy now, but its not all bad.  I work in a profession that keeps me current with the kids these days.  When I see them wear a Bob Marley t-shirt, I make them name at least one song by him.  Only one student in the last seven years has done it.  It's fun to make those connections with them.  I have a younger staff and I often wonder if I come across as one of the older guys.  Maybe they look at me the way I always looked at them.  Minus all of the old guy quirks of course.

Cheating is a Symptom and not the Problem

My daughter plays travel softball and I take some comfort in being out of town for tournaments.  I get to "check out" as far as being the principal goes.  Nobody knows who you are in these distant lands and parents and their kids speak freely.  There are lots of times where you are just waiting for the next game to start and you sit in the stands and listen to how the kids talk and act.  This is the only time I get to be undercover and do real recon on what's current with kids.  Often these kids come from various states and they don't know me from Adam.  This season I have overheard a few conversations about cheating in class on tests or homework.

Of course I cannot react to this.  I may blow my cover and ruin it.  Sure, I am immediately aggravated by the discussion, but I had to talk myself down and consider a few realities.  The reality is that cheating has gone on forever.  Kids used to cheat off of me all the time.  I wore glasses so people thought I was smart.  This does not make it okay, but lest consider that due to the need to make good grades, students will do what it takes to get there.  Some call this cheating, some may call it innovation but we have to face some facts.  Students see cheating not as wrong, but as a means to an end, to pass or to get ahead for example.  According to one recent survey of middle schoolers, 2/3 of respondents reported cheating on exams, while 9/10 reported copying another's homework.  Cheating is not just a behavior for the "bad" kids, the "good" kids do it too.  It used to be more common among boys but now at the college level, there is no gender difference for cheating.  Think back to me eavesdropping on the out-of-state softball players.  All were girls and all reported that they made good grades every year.

Maybe the dependency on grades is the real issue.  I remember reading a student blog once that really opened my eyes.  She stated that she used to love school in the elementary grades because it was always about what she was learning.  When she entered junior high and high school, there was an insistence on getting good grades and having a high GPA.  She stopped liking school at that point.  (I apologize for not sharing this post but I could not locate it.)  We tie so much of a kid's life to their grades.  Participation in extra curricular activities, college admissions, awards and a lot of times parental approval all get tied to a student's grades.  This causes stress for our kids and it does lead to behaviors like cheating. 

Another reality is that grades often do not measure what a student can do.  When I am working with students to help them raise their grades, our strategies more often are targeted at changing habits in the classroom and do not aim at resolving some cognitive or skill deficit.  Let's be honest with each other, grades mostly measure compliance and not what has been learned.

So what is the alternative to letter grades?  The brave have already tested the idea of standards based report cards.  This is the practice of not assigning a letter grade but reporting what learning standards students have met or are still progressing towards.  All of us in the education field know this has caused some parental push back.  Traditional letter grades are what we have known since we can remember.  Parents often report that they cannot understand the standards based reporting system and push their districts to go back to letter grades.  Another argument is that colleges do not speak the language of standards when it comes to admissions.  Some districts are reporting both in an effort to win their communities over with the idea.  Schools have accepted that letter grades are no longer a good measure and see the implications of student stress, but it is very difficult to convince others.

While cheating and academic dishonesty are easily agreed upon as wrong by adults, kids often see nothing wrong with it.  It is a means to an end for them but a symptom of a larger problem.  We either need to find a way to make letter grades meaningful or find a way to report student learning that will change the culture around letter grades.  The pressure of grade performance is becoming too much for kids.  So I challenge educators and parents alike to answer the following: what is the biggest predictor of success, a high GPA or a love of learning?  I know how I will answer that, but can we all ever get to the same place?