The Ripple Effect of Teachers Last week was a big one to face the facts of my recent medical condition. For those who do not know, in mid-2022 I was diagnosed with seronegative autoimmune encephalitis. On Wednesday of last week, a pair of Launch Medical and Health Care Strand students presented a personal narrative about my experience. Their presentation was a personal narrative combining a personal interview and research on the disease. Although the slideshow doesn’t do their presentation justice, it will give you a general overview of the narrative. They covered many aspects of the condition from the factual to the personal narrative, and the lessons learned. They did a wonderful job of capturing a human story rather than listing a clinical definition. At the end of the week, Brookfield Central High School had our annual career day. I was lucky enough to have the ICU neurologist Dr. Gregory Rozanzky who handled my care while I was in the intensive care unit attend and present t
As educators, we face change every day. That change comes from many different sources outside and inside of our classrooms. In the first chapter of Learner Centered Innovation, Katie Martin asks a simple question:
In the face of change, there are two ways to react:
The primal response: How can I maintain the status quo and protect myself from risk or failure?
The evolutionary response: How can I learn from my surroundings and adapt to improve? What do I need to stop doing? What might I start doing?
Martin, Katie. Learner-Centered Innovation: Spark Curiosity, Ignite Passion, and Unleash Genius (Kindle Locations 602-605). IMPress, LP. Kindle Edition.
When asking myself how I face change, my response is dependent on the type of change I encounter.
I am open to change in my classroom. I embrace it fully and head on. When asked by my district in 2013 to give learners more ownership over their learning in the classroom, I couldn’t wait to make learning more personal in my classroom. That doesn’t mean I could change 100% of my instruction on day 1. It has meant taking small steps and changes to my practice.
Yes, the change message started with my administration. But, the message for change is now coming from my learners. In order to change my classrooms to meet the needs of learners, it needs to be driven by learner voice. So the message for change to my practice starts with my learners. Their feedback is when drives my change from week to week, unit to unit, and year to year. It’s a journey that am still on and always will be on as new learners enter my classroom and as their needs change over the course of a school year.
So when do I find myself in a primal response?
I have openly embraced the ability to share my practice via my blog and digital communities. But, I am most likely to retreat when it comes to sharing with peers in my own building. Having been in those same seats during PD, I am always afraid of how I will be perceived. My building is full of great professionals who are all good at what they do. So what am I afraid of?
Am I afraid of coming off as an “expert” who is judging them and telling them their current practice is wrong? Yes. I don’t have the answers. I am still finding solutions within my own classroom.
Am I afraid of others judging my practice? Yes. If I am so open to suggestions and criticism from my learners,why is it different from my peers?
Am I afraid of turning people off to the practices I’m advocating? Yes.
I am willing to post my reflections to the world via this blog. But in my school, my practice is still trapped in the 4 walls of my classroom. Clearly, I need to evolve my response to change in some spheres. But, like all great movements recognizing the need to change is the first step.
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