The Team

For the better part of my life I have belonged to a team. At an early age I joined sports teams, played on them in school, and carried this out through my working life. I've captained them, played supporting roles on them, and coached them. I've enjoyed successes, experienced some setbacks, and learnt a great deal along the way.

It was with some trepidation that I faced a recent surgery- a relatively minor correction to a long-standing knee injury. No doubt the injury owed something to the many years of playing team sports. Soccer, basketball, football, and other contact sports can take their toll on the body.

Upon arrival at the hospital it was clear that the entire operation (pun intended) would be a team effort. From admission to release there must have been no fewer than 12 people who played a direct role in the proceedings of the day. Each had her or his own unique task, and each performed that task well. Even the volunteer staff of the hospital that provided simple things like the offer of a drink or a minute's conversation, did so as part of a larger team. It was appreciated.

The team approach was evident in the moments leading up to the surgery itself with the lead nurse even calling a timeout just prior to the start of the procedure. A check to confirm- with my assent- the area to be operated upon, the procedure agreed upon, and the degree of readiness all ascertained. It was impressive.

Indeed, in so many aspects of modern life a team approach is taken, and I believe, the result is beneficial to all concerned. Teamwork fosters collaboration, and collaboration fosters teamwork. Improvements and suggestions can come from many points of entry. These are all good developments, and should be embraced in an age that is more democratic and meritocratic. 

Can a team approach be applied with success in a field as traditional and resistant to change as education? I believe that it already has in the best schools and in the environments where learning is rich. A process by which a group of committed people dedicated to achieving a common purpose is very much like the teams I have enjoyed the most success with. Leaving aside trite comments, and hollow mottoes, there is no doubt in my mind that a committed team can achieve much.

Sharpening The Saw

Of course, I cannot claim to have invented the term, "Sharpen the Saw", it is the purview of the late Steven Covey of 7 Habits fame (https://www.stephencovey.com/7habits/7habits-habit7.php). However, an impending surgery got me thinking about this phrase. Is there any wonder? Surgery brings everything into sharp focus.

Sure, it is a routine surgery, if you can call anything routine that forces the body and mind into a temporary state of anaesthesia. The prospect of such things forces one to put everything into perspective, and to prioritise what is really important. That is the essence of sharpening the saw. Family, faith, and relationships come to mind for me.

Without doubt the most important aspect of my life is the family that I have been born into and helped create. One part of the equation is reaching an advanced stage of life, while the other has the balance of years ahead- hopefully. We can never be guaranteed what the future will bring, so taking full advantage of the time afforded to us is imperative. This is especially true of the ones we love the most, and spend most of our time with.

Faith is a highly personalised and uniquely individualised word. It means different things to different people, and there are certainly many to choose from in an increasingly diverse world. The important thing is to have faith. Faith that the universe will unfold as it ought to, and that people will do their best with what they have been given is part of the ethos I subscribe to. I trust and have faith that the medical community, especially the doctors and nurses I will be working with, will do best what they have been trained to do.

Relationships also come into clear focus at such moments. I am acutely aware that we have time for only a certain number of interactions or interpersonal relationships during our lives. This isn't meant to be morbid, it is just a fact of life. So, what is to be gained by having any of these interactions be anything less than optimal? Taking the time to ensure that I am positive, respectful, and fully engaged in all of the relationships I find myself in is important. Appreciating that others have a great deal to offer, and that I must add to, rather than detract from, the quality of relationships is fundamental.

It really shouldn't take moments like this to bring these priorities to the fore, but sometimes it does. It also shows that we can never take anything for granted in this life, and that every day should be lived to its maximum. Sharpening the saw. indeed.

Oh, and if I don't make it back safely from the hospital, please let this missive stand as a testament to all.

 P.S. I did make back o.k., and the message still stands.

Coming Full Circle

Although the work is not yet done, there was a sense of completion evident last week when I had the opportunity to present my Next Step project that I had been working on for the past 18 months. We often talk about relevance and rigor in the classroom and this was an opportunity for me to experience just that. The CAIS (Canadian Accredited Independent Schools) Next Step program invites candidates to produce a change project within their school, chronicle it, and then present the work publicly. While the formal completion of that process occurred for me during the summer when I was able to share my change project (Introducing the MYP at Ridley College) with colleagues and staff, I was invited to share my project at the CAIS Senior School Leaders conference.

Hosted at the Kingbridge Centre ( http://www.kingbridgecentre.com/#home )in King City, Ontario, this was an excellent venue for any presentation. It was also terrific to see many former colleagues who had moved on to other schools and were participants at the conference. The venue was perfectly set in the rolling hills north of Toronto, a fall snowstorm covering the area in white.

Upon entering the convention area you could not help but be inspired by the remarkable surroundings. Everything about the centre placed those present at ease- speaker and participants alike.  Before presenting I had the opportunity to reflect upon the journey that this project had taken. In its formative stages I was still coming to grips with what the MYP itself entailed. Given that the MYP was going through considerable changes with the Next Chapter phase being introduced, there was a great deal of new information to digest. As well, understanding that change is a long, slow process was also part of my learning curve. Taken together, there was much to unpack over the two summers that the program ran.

It is said that the teacher arrives when the student is willing. Thus, I was both student and teacher over the duration of this project. It was at this stage that I felt that the project was truly completed, and very much looked forward to sharing it. I enjoyed the moment tremendously, was inspired by speakers I shared the lectern with, and gained an appreciation of what it means to come full circle with a project.

In part, this blog was meant to be part of the change project itself. It served as a means of recording the process of change. As stated at the outset, the work of the change is not yet complete, and there is much work to be done in terms of implementation. Where we go next will be interesting, and the journey continues. No doubt there will be plenty to write about as the months unfold, but this phase is now complete and the circle is now complete.

Who Reads Newspapers, Anyway?

Early this school year the following exchange occurred:

Teacher: Who reads newspapers?
Student: Old people.

The context was the important role that newspapers played in the role of communication of ideas during the pre-Confederation of Canada. That is, the period just before Canada became a country in 1867. Many will be familiar with the influential position that George Brown held as editor of the Globe newspaper, forerunner to the Globe and Mail,  self-proclaimed as Canada's "national newspaper."

Turns out, the precocious teenager was spot on. She identified a key change as supported by the following article:  http://www.people-press.org/2012/09/27/in-changing-news-landscape-even-television-is-vulnerable/
Relevant statistics show that younger people are less inclined than previous generations to get their news from traditional media outlets, newspapers, and television stations included.

It will come as no surprise that print newspaper readership is down, while most people get their news from online sources, many of which do not fall under the umbrella of traditional media. The classroom exchange prompted a great guffaw, with me leading the laughter.

For full disclosure, I do have a subscription to a daily print copy of the Globe and Mail, and I consult it regularly, mostly for analysis and depth. I am also more inclined to get my news online, with Twitter feeds from all over the world providing the primary sources of information. To be sure, it is an eclectic mix of news outlets, each providing a nice cross-section of relevant news from around the globe.

Some have described this phenomenon as disruptive media. There is certainly nothing routine about this way of staying up-to-date. News can be accessed at any time, often from unconventional sources, including from observers who may or may not be employed by the media source reporting on the news. Students have even more inventive ways of staying au courant.

From a pedagogical perspective, and using the lens of MYP, the discussion above pointed out the value of teaching concepts as opposed to content. Even the concepts of time, place, and space were broadened in the classroom exchange which led to a discussion about communication, change, and continuity. Indeed, the narrow limitations of content were broken wide open in that one classroom moment that prompted a much richer discourse that was not confined within the usual parameters.

Final thought: I wonder if my students will be more inclined to read this article given its online source.

One thing for sure, they won't have to wait for it to be potentially published in print and delivered to their home. They can read it off of my Twitter feed or blogspot, if so inclined.

Scottish Independence and Canada... Finding Connections

It seemed strange to students that I started our Canadian history course this week with a discussion on Scottish independence. At first, the class thought that it was due to the not insignificant contributions that the Scottish made to the foundation of Canada. Our first Prime Minister was born in Glasgow, Scotland, just like I was. But, no that wasn't the hook. We started with a current article featuring the leader of the Scottish National Party admonishing his country folk to seize the moment and make history. A map exercise to engage the visual learners was undertaken, and a recent version of the national anthem "Flower of Scotland" was played to stimulate the environment. Even the Simpsons were thrown in for good measure. https://time.com/3372547/the-simpsons-groundskeeper-willie-scottish-independence/

The point of the exercise? To demonstrate that people come together in different ways in order to form nations. Furthermore, that nations come and go, and that concepts such as Time, place, and orientation and related concepts such as Change and Power, are lasting and transferable. This is an approach that teachers of the IB Middle Years Program (MYP) are quite familiar with. They are used to teaching concepts that are applicable across many settings.

It was a moment of real satisfaction when one student clearly made the connection between the topical issue of Scottish independence and the content of Canadian history that deals with the period just prior to the formation of the nation known as Confederation. The formation of nations is both global and timeless. This student recognized that the concepts of change and power are applicable across the globe.

Canadians are particularly interested in how this referendum will be settled given the many historical ties to Scotland and the United Kingdom. As well, Canada grapples with the challenges associated with Quebec separatism which has historically held referenda on its continued union with the country.

How will Scotland vote? That's too close to call for now, especially on the eve of this historic moment. As an educator, though, I am pleased now that my own students have a better understanding of how nations are formed, and sometimes taken apart.

August School Bells

It used to be that Labor Day in Canada signified the (immediate) onset of school and the start of another school year. For me it is now the August Civic Holiday- a holiday weekend that isn't even recognized in all provinces of the country. But it is in Ontario, and that is where I teach. So, with the passage of the unevenly observed Civic holiday on Monday, it is now time to turn my thoughts back to the world of work. Sure, there will be leisurely times ahead in the month of August in the lead-up to the start of school in September, but the month now signifies that a portion of time needs to be set aside for academic matters. In order to be ready for the challenges of a new school year, the mind needs to get back into the discipline of thinking about the year ahead (2014-15).

This morning I enjoyed a lazy second cup of coffee and looked out upon gardens that were being soaked by a steady summer rain. It afforded me time to gather my thoughts about the year ahead and think about some of the imperatives that it will entail. An immediate priority for me will be our school's application to become MYP authorized. This will be a major undertaking that involves a great deal of work and the efforts of many faculty members. It will also be a great opportunity for our school to re-examine curriculum delivery in grades 7-10, plan collaboratively, and further develop a professional learning community with a unity of purpose. This will be a busy and exciting time.

When I was a student I gave little thought to the work that teachers did over the summer. I probably assumed that they just showed up at the same time as students and got to work on what they knew best. Sure, I saw the cars in the school parking lot prior to Labor Day, but really thought little about how much thought and attention went into the preparation stage of teaching.

As a teacher I came to know that a great deal of a school's success depends upon that preparation phase. As an experienced teacher, I now know that the time for such preparations arrives earlier and earlier. I look forward to the formal week of professional development that takes in the last week of August. I also have started the daily discipline of setting priorities, keeping administrative tabs, and giving thought to the framework of the school year.

Yes, there will be time for a few more leisurely second cups of coffee, but in my mind the August school bells have started to ring.

Changes Lessons

Throughout the year I have been chronicling the process of changing our school's intermediate program in this blog. I have examined several aspects of this change project, mostly from a programming perspective.

What I have not yet examined is how the process changed me personally. This is an aspect of the process that I was asked to consider as the formal part of the CAIS Next Step program draws to a conclusion. The actual work of implementing the program is ongoing, but I was asked to consider three ways in which I was personally impacted through the change process.

For me the following three things have been noticeable.

time
trust
self

Of course there are time constraints upon the completion of any project, and generally I was able to meet the guidelines (and sometimes deadlines) that were required to complete the work. The most compelling lesson about time was that it is a critical component of any project or work-related activity. The simple take-away is that time is a valuable commodity, and one that must be respected throughout the process. There were moments when it was clear that more time was needed in order to complete certain tasks. I needed to back away from my own timeline and respect that others needed more time to absorb the change. This was especially true during the MYP unit planning meetings that were established. Colleagues needed more time in order to fully complete the tasks.

There were other moments when urgency was required. A degree of pressure needed to be applied in these instances so that we could move along in the authorization process. This was especially true of the need to get online and use the MYP unit planners on Managebac in order to at least become familiar with IB terminology and the correct manner in which to develop units. The final product could be developed over time, but a start needed to be made. Whether it was allowing colleagues more time, or pressing matters forward, the commodity of time was most valuable in this project. Like an elastic band, sometimes it needed to be stretched out, and sometimes it needed to be snapped back into shape.

A second realization that became apparent is that the project is bigger than me. As Coordinator, I had an integral role in the development of the MYP program, but I was by no means the only one involved. School administration, staff, teachers and students, parents and the wider school community each had a stake in the unfolding of this major school change. Thus, it was critical to develop trust.

Trust in others was required throughout the year in various ways. At points in the year it was important for me to let go of the ideas that I had, and to accept that another plan might be a better course of action. This was especially true in the area of collaborative planning. While IB does not compromise on the need for collaborative planning time for all MYP teachers, various scheduling models needed to be considered in order to achieve this end. I needed to trust in the process, and trust that those tasked with the responsibility of making the changes would make good on their commitment. I am happy to report that this came to fruition and I am grateful for the support that was provided. It was an exercise in trust and collegiality. Many colleagues stepped forward just as they had promised.

The final personal takeaway should, perhaps, have been the first. It was clear to me early on in the process that in order for me to be successful with this project, I needed to be in good shape. Yes, that meant taking the time for exercise, better nutrition, and finding balance between my various commitments. To do that I needed to place self first. I know that it seems counterintuitive in our driven workplaces to place self before work, but that was nonetheless true. Before I could commit to a full day of work, attend to various tasks, and complete this project, I needed to be healthy and ready to face the day. Regular exercise, healthier diet, and dedicated down time helped put me in a proper frame of mind. This provided me with the strength, stamina, and focus that was required in order to see this project through to its conclusion.

In effect, the lessons of time, trust, and self will be the most important elements that will guide my future work on this project and all others to come.