Zeroing in on the True Heroes

     Any time a topic can get educators communicating and the public fomenting, it must be a good topic right? The debate that has emanated from Edmonton has sparked much commentary, columns, blog posts, and angst. I purposely sat back and gave some time for examination of various perspectives. My bias is clear and this post will remove any doubt. Let me begin by highlighting three key comments that came out following the initial story. I’m thankful to Douglas Reeves for his message to me as I was thinking about the matter and sent a question to him, Ken O’Connor for his brilliant reply to the Edmonton Journal, and Bruce Beairsto for his excellent post. Here’s what I culled as essential pieces of their writings with my translation in italics below each piece:

The rationale for making grades accurate has absolutely nothing to do with "self-esteem" - but only about making grades accurate.  I believe in keeping score, including in children's sports, and I believe in giving them negative feedback when it is accurate.  But in things that society really values - like hockey - the consequence for missing a shot is not being kicked off the team, but rather the requirements for more practice and harder work.  That's all I'm asking for in the English and math class.  When students mess up, the answer is not the academic death penalty that the zero becomes, but rather the requirement that they DO THE WORK - before, during, and after school.

Douglas Reeves

The delusional smokescreen that some want to pass off as their rationale for doing the wrong thing, carries significant consequences. The only rational consequence for not doing the work is doing the work.

As soon as a student has one or two zeros they have no chance of success and as soon as students have no chance of success what do students do  – they give up trying and often become a discipline problem. This must be seen as unacceptable – schools are places of learning for children and thus it should ‘never be over till it is over;’ we must always provide hope and so opportunities for students to provide sufficient evidence of their knowledge and understanding of the learning outcomes must be available until at least the end of the school year.

Ken O’Connor

How’s that working for you as you have the most challenging students in your class disengaged for an extended period of the school year? Is there a better alternative?

Assessment is intended to provide students with feedback about what they know and what they do not yet know. Assessment is not about reward and punishment. It is not a motivational tool.  You shouldn’t get marks for trying hard, or being a great person, or complying fully with your teacher’s expectations and you shouldn’t lose them for being offensive or absent or even lazy.  You get marks for what you know, pure and simple. If a student knows absolutely nothing at all about the required content, then give him or her a zero.

Bruce Beairsto

Never mind bonus marks or penalty marks. Stick to the facts. If a student has learned nothing after two weeks with their teacher, who is that an evaluation of? (Check out my post at http://umakeadiff.blogspot.com/2011/02/zero-really-they-learned-nothing.html)

     I have looked at some of the feedback the original story generated on the Edmonton Journal website and find some of the commentary incredulous. Two general themes emerged and I have summarized them here:

     1.  The “good old days”

     This seems to be the most familiar lament out there. Folks who continue the belief that it was “all so much better when…’ are suffering from what I term “nostalnesia” or the selective recall that prevents them from seeing the realities that also were a part of long ago. Schools of the past include lots of bad practice like the strap and exclusion of any students that were “different”. They also reflected higher failure rates and dropout rates than are present today. We also have higher graduation rates and tougher entry requirements for post secondary institutions. I know my marks that granted me easy access to university three decades ago would not measure up today. Despite these advances, we still have too many students not graduating or leaving schools without the capacity to take on the next challenge. Hitting these students with the inaccuracy of a zero for socially inept behavior (that’s what late assignments, skipping school, and cheating are) does little to help them identify strengths and weaknesses and even less to close the academic gap.

     2.  “Worked for me”

     Sometimes surviving a process leads people to believe the process must be okay. “I did okay in school so the system works.” “I took a number of zeroes and made out just fine.” “I got the strap and it taught me a lesson.” The question I have is “Did it really work or was there capacity to recover?” When I ask adults to describe their worst educational experience, it inevitably revolves around a poor practice inflicted by a teacher. My audiences mostly include people who have resiliency or talents or support that allowed them to overcome the poor practice but the scars are still there. What, then, for those who don’t have that capacity? Who is speaking for those it didn’t work for and what is the cost to society? I don’t think there were many letters to the editor from those whose school experience set them back. Let’s look at why 75% of inmates are functionally illiterate and see if there’s a connection to a negative school experience. It costs more to incarcerate an adult than it does to educate a child. 

     The other factor that’s important in this discussion ties back to the first section above in regards to the “good old days”. Once upon a time there were plentiful opportunities for unskilled labor and if you left school, you could still land on your feet. As recently as 1940 the manufacturing industry and the agriculture (including fishing/mining/logging) industry accounted for over 50% of the workforce. Today they barely combine to reach double digits and have been replaced by tertiary industries (service providers), which now account for 70% of the workforce according to “Clark’s Sector Model”. 

The “works for me” belief reminds me of the interview they always do with the world’s oldest man. Occasionally, a comment gets made along the lines of “I smoke a cigar and have a shot of whiskey every day”. That’s generally poor advice for the majority of us to live to be centenarians. 

     I am troubled by the notion that the teacher in this story is being lauded as a hero (it’s not worth my mentioning the teacher by name as he has exhausted his fame derived from ignoring the agreed upon practice and deserves the consequences of that decision). In reality, his comments speak more about a need for power and control than accurately relaying the progress of his students to the intended learning outcomes and helping them to get there. Granted, this might mean more work than just saying, “I taught, they didn’t learn”, but isn’t that what teachers are supposed to do? 

“When a teacher is a "hero" in the eyes of journalists for maintaining the right to inflict mathematically inaccurate and ineffective grading systems on children, then I wonder who the villains are.” (Reeves)

The irony here is that those who laud the teacher ignoring the rules of his workplace are often the same ones who want to inflict the zero on students who have done the same.

     Yes, we live in a day and age where superlatives are tossed out like beads at Mardi Gras  (“that was super, mega-awesome”) but let’s reserve the title of hero for those teachers who are overcoming major obstacles in helping their students achieve the impossible thereby making it possible. I firmly believe that every student is a success story waiting to be told. Thank goodness we have heroic teachers in classrooms everywhere who have chosen to push through the challenges and the easy excuses to help their students achieve. To set them up for future success rather than take the easy way out and wash their hands of their capacity to influence. Education is not about predicting the future; it’s about creating it. Let’s zero in on the true heroes in our schools – the teachers who inspire and don’t limit the potential of their students.

"I've Become Comfortably Dumb." (A First Year Student's Lament)

I know followers of this blog will recognize that the title of this post is a little tongue-in-cheek (a play on the title of a great Pink Floyd song) and not intended as a negative portrayal of every high school graduate’s experiences at college or university. As the school year heads to its conclusion, I’ve been thinking a lot about the transition that happens for some of our most successful students and reflecting on past conversations. 

Conversations that have occurred with top end academic students who have let me know halfway through their first year how much they are struggling and how they have received their first low grades. Or the recent conversation with a friend who let me know that his child was receiving a mark of 108% in a high school course. These have led me to consider if our current approach is doing enough for our most academically able students or if we are lulling them into a false sense of accomplishment. If we are, in essence, allowing them to become “comfortably dumb” knowing full well that what lies ahead will stretch their thinking and not reward “compliant behavior” or provide bonus marks.

According to a report by Statistics Canada, approximately fifteen percent of first-year students won't make it to their second year of university. Success in high school doesn't seem to translate to preparing students for university. A study by the University of Manitoba suggests that even former high achievers in high school, those kids who graduated at the top of their class with straight A's, are at a high risk. The study indicates that nearly one in four of those students will be asked to leave, thanks to failing grades. First year students are often shocked to see their marks drop as much as 15 percent from what they were used to earning in high school. Nearly two-thirds of students end up feeling uncertain about what to study, with many changing their majors.

And here’s the kicker from the Statistics Canada report - those high school students who tend to succeed at the post-secondary level are those who have already developed good work and study habits. It’s not the students we have over-rewarded and acknowledged for being very good at what we want them to do or what they already know. Students who receive 108% might be better served by being challenged and stretched in things they don’t know and get a lower grade rather than being given more of the same. The problem of grade inflation at the high school level suggests that students have been given an inaccurate assessment of their performance and the consequence of this is pretty clear early on in their post-secondary career.

There are also financial repercussions. In 2008, Maclean’s surveyed the rate at which students who received entrance scholarships kept the necessary grade point average to maintain their scholarship going into second year. The author’s (Ross Finnie and Felice Martinello) provide data showing the rate dropping into single digits for some institutions. These two economists state, “the highest achieving group (in high school) has the largest decrease in grades.” Students entering university with an average of 90 percent or higher experienced a drop of 11.9 points. Students with averages in the 60-79 per cent range had a drop of only 4.4 points. Of course, there are the significant challenges of the entry requirements to get into university. Twenty years ago a solid B average was sufficient. A decade ago it shifted to an A average. Today, an average in the low 90’s is not a lock for entrance. This may be a contributing factor to the push by a student to maximize their results and might be a part of the grade inflation conundrum. 

So, where does this leave us?  The more information we have before us, and the more accurate the data is, the easier it should become for us to change what we are doing. In my recent book one of the central themes is this – if we can predict it, we can prevent it. This theme might also hold true as we look to help our strongest academic students prepare for the challenges ahead.

“I’m just not used to being good at stuff.”

I spent two days visiting with the students and staff at the DSBN Academy. Regular readers of this blog will recall a previous post about this newly established school (http://umakeadiff.blogspot.ca/2011_11_01_archive.html) that lives and breathes the singular mission encapsulated in two words – “We Believe”.

I visited every classroom and watched kids in action, thoroughly engaged in their learning. At the end of each visit I spoke with the teacher and gathered perceptions on the year thus far, and their personal highs and lows.  I’m not sure what I expected as my previous visit had highlighted for me some of the challenges associated with starting a new school and particularly a school for students who had experienced limited success in previous locales. I also was aware that they had embraced the key tenets of “Pyramid of Behavior Interventions: Seven Keys to a Positive Learning Environment” and was interested to hear about some of the outcomes of their approach.

Once again I was deeply inspired by the passion and commitment of the teaching staff. This team of eight absolutely gives their all and were wearing both the joy and the anguish that comes when we heavily invest in students and their success. I heard what has now become my favorite analogy to describe this:

Every day is like being at the amusement park. 

You’re exhausted and have spent the day in long 

lines, ate great tasting (and largely unhealthy) 

foods, and been over-stimulated on the rides 

but you can’t wait to get back there the next day!

I also sat in on great group conversations where strategies were debated as the teachers contemplated next steps to ensure all of their students “finish strong”. We spoke of the remaining time in the school year being the true test of the commitment and desire to let students know that this year will be unlike any they had experienced previously. Success for all isn’t a trite saying but an absolute, embraced by all whom cross the threshold to the Academy each day.

Perhaps one of the more touching anecdotes was the one that concluded with the quote that is the title of this posting. A teacher had come across one of her students who was deeply engaged in work that she had not been directed to do, but had chosen to do during her break time. When the teacher complimented her and said how impressed she was, she was met with some shyness and withdrawal. This was a student the teacher would have described as having made great gains during the year, one who had taken risks in her pursuit of learning and put herself out there. The comment “I’m just not used to being good at stuff”, made by the student was a reminder that, despite all of the successes experienced over eight months, fear of failure and a return to previously held adult views of her, were not yet eradicated. The power of negative experiences resonate so deeply with some of our students that significantly more time, energy, and positive feedback will be required until they can completely let go and totally immerse themselves in the success ALL of our kids so richly deserve.

Thanks again Academy staff. You continue to teach beyond the walls of your school.

Learning is a Marathon Not a Sprint

I'm writing this after completing my 43rd marathon on a great day in Vancouver. As often happens when I have lots of thinking time (and running 42k gives you lots of thinking time), my thoughts drifted to my work as an educator. I began to compare what happens in a marathon with what happens in school.


As we lined up for the start of the race, I though about students coming in to write the “big test”. The nervous energy that flowed in the corral reminded me of what I saw with my students. Some wanted to get their exam right away, some were not 100% on test day, and some wanted to know how many questions were on the test and how much time they had. A runner approached me and asked if I knew of anyone who ran a marathon with a cold because he had a bad one and was certain it would affect his results. Others approached the pace bunny and wanted to know what they would need to do to achieve their desired time. Still others hoped Mark Donnelly (anthem singer at the Canucks games known for his unique style of involving the audience in the performance) would do his fast version of the national anthem so they could get on their way.

When the gun fired to start us off I took notice of the runners all around me. I saw a variety of clothing that spoke to personal preference and said something about each person. For a glorious sunny morning I was convinced some were overdressed and I was absolutely convinced the guy dressed to look like a fairy princess was inappropriately dressed. The eventual winner, who hails from Ethiopia, remarked how cold it was and why he needed gloves. Our schools also reflect this diversity and our students also share things about themselves with the clothes they wear. While I’m not suggesting it should be “anything goes”, I also know that the recent story of a student in Nova Scotia suspended for having a statement about Jesus on his shirt likely went too far.

As the run progressed I also noticed different running styles. Not everyone ran like I did and I couldn’t run like anyone else (even as they flew past me and I wanted to grab their speed!) as I had worked on all of this during my training. Some runners favored the uphill stretches while others thundered downhill whenever those sections appeared. Clearly no two runners were alike and it would have been wrong to expect they would all achieve the same on this day (or any day) despite the work put in prior to the event. Similarly, our students bring different strengths to each class they attend. Some have a particular passion for a subject, others have a strong desire to learn, and still others have strengths in areas one of our colleagues teach.

It also became apparent that the results of the day were impacted by the conditions of the day. While I enjoyed the sunshine, it did start to get a little too warm for an optimal run. Some of the aid stations only carried water while I must have my Gatorade to keep my electrolytes in check. This reminded me that the results of the day were just that. Taken in isolation they only offered a snapshot of any of the runners. To get a more complete picture you would have to look at results over a period of time and in other events and conditions. So too is it for our students. One result tells us something but many results and from many sources, provides a clearer picture of their capability.

As I moved into the latter stages of the race I know I reaped immense benefit from the feedback I received. Spectators yelling out encouragement helped but those who personalized it (our names were on our race numbers) and offered something deeper (“your on pace for”, “keep your stride length”, or “keep your pace on the last stretch of this hill”) meant more than the random (although appreciated) “looking good”. Some of the feedback was off base (the guy who yelled “your almost halfway there” at the eight mile mark), not effective (“you can catch her”), or just wrong (don’t tell me I have four stoplights to go on the home stretch when it’s actually seven). How much more valuable is our feedback to students when it is personalized and descriptive? When we detail how they can close the gap we help them to do just that. I also realized the value of formative assessment and the penalty one pays for ignoring the message contained within. I had my watch on and had hoped to run just over five minutes per kilometer. Despite being told repeatedly (every kilometer marker) that I was going too fast, I kept the pace high and paid for it in the second half of the marathon. It took me about fifteen minutes longer to do the second half and that was as a result of ignoring the information I had on hand. That I have run numerous marathons didn’t help as I passed on what I need to pay attention to on this particular day. If we use formative assessment to gauge where our students are, and adjust our instruction to get them to the desired end point, more will arrive having achieved their best and feeling capable of the next challenge.

As I get older I love the challenge of doing a marathon and the training that goes into getting ready for the event. I also love the learning that each race brings. You can’t fake your way to the finish line of a 42-kilometer event. You also can’t fake your way to being a competent learner. But in both cases you can benefit from all of the factors present each day and from the value offered by a good coach.

Mentors - Paying it Forward

We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.

Winston Churchill

     One of the really exciting aspects of being an educator has been the willingness of others to serve as mentors. A mentor is defined as someone who imparts wisdom to, and shares knowledge with, a less experienced colleague. A good mentor has the ability to listen. My colleague and friend, Ainsley Rose, says a mentor "asks questions that allow a person to arrive at answers rather than be told." That requires a strong capacity to recall detail and build on previously shared conversations. Many times the mentor role also expands to one of friend.

     As I have moved through my thirty years as an educator I have had the good fortune of being helped by some incredible teachers. As I added consulting and writing to my experience this has expanded even further and I feel so fortunate that folks like Wayne Hulley, Rick DuFour, Larry Ainsworth, and Rick Curwin have seen fit to offer their insights. Even as I write those names out I have to pinch myself to ensure I'm not just delusional.

     Sometimes the role of mentor is for an extended period of time. Wayne Hulley offered his insights to me for the first time almost two decades ago and remains to this day the single most significant educator and colleague in my career. Other times, the mentor appears when you open yourself up to the experience. I'll admit to being intimidated by Rick DuFour the first few times I had the opportunity to present alongside him. Not because of anything he did but because of the high quality and impact of the work he does. Yet, when I first approached him with a question he was so generous in time and spirit that I now count him as a trusted advisor when I need some deeper insights. Similarly, Larry Ainsworth and I connected at an event in Corner Brook and I was thrilled that he stayed for my keynote address. That he wanted to talk further at dinner that night and has subsequently guided me in my own professional growth has been a real blessing. Finally. mentors may come into your life over a shared belief. Rick Curwin is someone I've admired and quoted in my writing and presentations for a while. Technology allowed for him to see some of my work and reach out with some positive feedback. We have exchanged books and a commitment to stay connected.

     So, why share all of this with readers of this blog? I feel a debt to those who have aided my growth and think the best way to pay it forward is to offer the same assistance to colleagues and novice educators. Let me be clear - I don't consider myself to be in the league of those folks I've identified above. I also don't think it's necessary if the intent is to offer the best I can. I have been thrilled in recent presentations in Prince George, Ottawa, and Vancouver to have former students who are now educators come up and chat with me and stay connected after the event. It may not amount to what I have received but it is, and will continue to be, my pledge to add value to our profession and work towards paying down that debt of gratitude. I know I have many outstanding colleagues who, in doing the same, would ensure the high quality of education we are accustomed to, will carry on.

De-myth-tifying School

The great enemy of truth is very often not 

the lie – deliberate, contrived and dishonest – but 

the myth – persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. 

Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion 

without the discomfort of thought.

John F. Kennedy

     This week began with an opportunity to work with some incredible educators in West Haven, Connecticut as they designed complete lesson units using the rigorous curriculum design approach developed by Larry Ainsworth. His work on RCD began with the educators in this district and it was good to see how they have refined and utilized the steps in creating engaging units. Watching Larry working with the group was also insightful as the focus kept returning to those things that were in the control of the group and not on those over which control resided elsewhere. My conversations with teachers kept reaffirming that notion. They focussed their time and energy on the realities before them not the myths that occasionally bog us down. Close by the facility where the sessions were being held is Yale University where President Kennedy delivered the commencement address from which the quote above came. It resonated with me as I thought about the approach the teachers were taking despite some of the rumoured challenges (or myths) that were awaiting them as a result of the upcoming common core and changed associated with the new standards.

     The theme continued with a visit to Saint Patrick Regional Secondary after I returned to Vancouver. I had the distinct pleasure of meeting some incredible students and dropping in on a variety of classrooms. My bond with the fraternity of Science teachers compels me to share that the best snippet of instruction I saw was in the Physics class. Bias aside, it truly was an engaging and stimulating piece for the students and for the observers. As is often the case, the conversations with colleagues yielded the best insights. Talking with Principal John Bevacqua (@johnnybevacqua) and Vice-Principal Gab Donnici (@GABDONN) allowed us to dispel some of the myths that arise when people talk about faith based schools and the conditions found within their walls. The conversations were the same as any I have had in "regular" schools as we talked about students that struggle, students that excel, students that have profound special needs, and students that have incredibly unique talents. I was particularly impressed by the commitment to create meaningful relationships and a culture of caring. From my viewpoint that's the biggest reason the school has a 100% graduation rate, not because of some mythological belief that their students are drawn only from the elite end of the spectrum. The visit reinforced for me many of the tenets my co-authors and I shared in our book PBI: 7 Keys to a Positive School Culture. As I sat in the cafeteria at lunch I saw numerous examples of positive interactions involving students and staff. The gentle nature of the student interactions with John and Gab also let me know one of the secrets to their success. 

     While I understand that some myths have enduring value and that not all myths have as their core a desire to misdirect, I also know that schools and educators face enough real challenges without having to slay mythological dragons as they move forward with their work in the service of students. 

Professional Development - Variety is the Spice

"Learning is not done to you. Learning is something you choose to do"

     This Seth Godin quote (part of his brilliant manifesto "Stop Stealing Dreams") was in response to a question he posed about what schools are for but I think it equally fits in the debate about the role of professional development in the careers of educators. As I continue in my latest role in education as a consultant and author, I often think about how I can continue to learn and grow as an educator while also contributing to the learning and growth of colleagues.

     One thing that is certain is this - when I facilitate a workshop for educators I learn as much as I present. Each visit brings a different context to an issue in education and each colleague offers an insight that adds to my knowledge. I love this form of professional learning, particularly as I don't have a full time job in a school or district. I also know that not everyone in the audience benefits in the same way and so a variety of formats for professional learning seems the most appropriate.

     I have always enjoyed attending conferences and have tried to take something beneficial from each one. I have to admit that there were times when the benefit was not as tangible to others, but the break from the ordinary was what I needed. I know I always returned more energized and eager to get back to my role. Conferences, however, need to change from simply being experts presenting for two or three days with little formalized time for sharing to more interactive forums. But, I firmly believe there is a need to have conferences headlined by some of the best thinkers in education. I also know that I enjoyed the edcamp I attended and think this might be a piece of the new conference model. I envision the keynote address being followed by a chunk of time where topics generated by that keynote could be debated and facilitated by interested participants. Follow-up could take a variety of forms but a recording and sharing of the information would be a key component with the possibility of the keynote presenter offering some feedback to the gathered information.

     I have also enjoyed other informal forms of PD such as conversations with colleagues through venues like book clubs, breakfast meetings, or coffee chats. The ebb and flow of both the participants and the topics are inspiring and prompt future conversations. Recently, I have also taken advantage of visiting schools and appreciate the welcome extended by teachers as I sit in their classes. Teachers are incredibly thoughtful about their lessons and passionate about promoting success for kids. One area of PD that I fell behind in, and am now trying to recapture, is reading journals, books, and current research. I admire many of the leading thinkers in education and like to have my thinking challenged as I move forward. As an aside, I often take full advantage of some of these thinkers when I have the good fortune to share the stage with them at conferences.

     One area of sensitivity that seems to be emerging is the notion of who "owns professional development". I think it's the wrong question and I refer you back to the Godin quote above. PD can't be done to you, it has to be something you choose to do and see value in. I also believe that PD can't be done entirely in isolation and benefits greatly from collaboration and pursuit of collective, as well as individual, objectives. As you move forward in your careers, commit to highly effective, quality professional development. The type of PD that comes with a variety of approaches.