Online resources, the blending of instruction, and Catholic faith!

The blending of instruction and technology is upon us.  As educators of 21^st Century Catholic young men and women, we must be willing to leave our past behind and venture into the future through accepting change and combining it with the relevant knowledge of the past. 

Technology is opening all kinds of doors for our schools to better personalize the instructional program we offer our students.  We need to be open-minded in exploring all options to attract new students and better serve our current students as Catholic education institutions.

All too often I hear educators talk about wanting to hold onto to “what we had.”  “Why was it OK for me and my generation and suddenly it’s not OK for this generation?”  Others think we need to completely throw out the way things were and jump into the pool of constant information bombardment. 

The reality… we need to find the middle ground.  Tony Wagner is so correct when he says that “information is now a commodity.”  We owe it to our students to teach them the 21st Century skills that will allow them to carve their own path in this constantly changing and swirling world we live in.  We need to make sure the skills that our students are asked to master are rooted in academic foundational knowledge (math facts, reading skills, writing skills) and in our Catholic faith.  That is an incredible challenge.  Identifying which skills and techniques to prepare kids with is like trying to catch the wind with a net – we grab at the air, it feels like we caught something but really there is just air.  Just when we think we are successful and doing a great job, we have a new generation of parents and students arrive to tell us we are behind the times and not moving fast enough.  Or, and this is just as frustrating, the world of technology passes us just as we become proficient at using the tools we can afford and are comfortable with.

Education is a challenging field!  This actually makes teaching in Catholic schools is a bonus in this crazy field.  We have an anchor with which to tie our instruction – GOD!  By keeping our faith at the center of our instructional program, we can make use of any standards, pedagogy, assessment or curricula and still make sure our students exit our schools as 21^st Century citizens of faith.  In order to accomplish this, we must embrace the technology and the associated tools as a means of helping our students develop not only their academic and cognitive skills, but their ability to apply those skills through the lens of a Catholic citizen of the 21^st Century.  Many schools and school systems are struggling with this constant and rapid change.  If we can use our faith to help us remain grounded and guide our practice, then we stand a chance of offering a truly unique and exceptional learning opportunity to the students and families of Hawaii!  But we have to be willing to push ourselves in our blending of technology, instruction and faith.

Blending strong morals and Catholic dogma with 21^st Century tools to actively engage our kids in the learning process is an exciting prospect.  It is taking place in pockets across our Hawaii Catholic Schools system.  We need to increase our level of communication and recognize that through change our brand of education will grow and flourish.  But only if we are willing to change and grow.  By finding balance and supporting each other with skills and content, our system can bring the word of God to more student age children in Hawaii.  Accept the challenge and find the balance.  Work with your teaching colleagues both at your school and across our Hawaii Catholic Schools to grow and meet the challenge of 21^st Century education.

Resources:
25 Educational Web tools to Boost Your Teaching 
7 Apps that teach Literacy Skills (geared toward kids with language disorders) 

Aloha,

I have moved to foehrWARD THINKING .  Please visit my website and continue to read and comment on my postings.   I look forward to our continued dialogue!

pj

I don't want to be that parent...

My child comes home and tells me that Johnny kicked him in the privates during recess and that "...nothing happened to him."  "No punishment, and he did it on purpose."  My child told me she turned her homework in and "I don't know what the teacher did with it, but I swear I turned it in!" My child just brought home a report card full of low marks and not meeting standards and "why did I not know of this sooner?"

Almost every parent has heard something similar from their school age child!  And in many cases, we are ready to go in and bang down the doors to find out why the teacher, or yard supervisor, or principal did not "do anything."  But there are a number of us who try to deal with this at home and "support" the school either because we secretly do not trust the school, so what does it matter anyway, or we "don't want to be THAT parent."  (I even hear this one from my wife!)

Well, unfortunately both the situations stated above and the parent responses are all to frequent. I am not qualified from a psychologist standpoint to tell you the biological reasons for why these things happen, but I am qualified, after 24 years in education, to give strategies to parents on how to approach the school and why it is important you do so!

So, let's use these scenarios (but really, any situation will work).  If you follow these steps, you will feel comfortable approaching the school and your child's school will be happy they have a partner (hopefully - though I tend to be a bit on the idealistic side with schools!)

1. Get clarity (as much as possible) from your child as to what the problem exactly is.  Have them repeat the story and listen for subtle changes.  Even ask them to write down notes for you.  Ask them if they want to work it out or if they need your assistance. (If they are too quick to respond that they want your help, be on the look out for landmines! This may be made up!)
2. Identify a starting point of who to speak with at the school (teacher, principal, or VP or secretary).  Ideally this person should be closest to the specific situation you are addressing, but sometimes it can be a person you have a strong relationship with and you can ask them advice on who to approach regarding your situation.
3. Whichever you choose, how you open the conversation can determine the complexity or ease with which your problem gets resolved.  
1. "I wanted to relay some information that my (son/daughter) gave me.  I'm not sure who I should speak with, but I think it is important that the school knows about it.  My child told me about (explain situation) yesterday.  Now, I wasn't there, so I don't totally know what happened, but I want to make sure I have the right info so I can assist my child and support the school in effectively handling this. (This gives the school personnel an opportunity to find out what happened and at the same time they hear a positive, supportive parent who wishes to cooperate.) (My experience is that most schools respond positively to this form of parent approach - as opposed to the nasty, long email!
2. Listen for clues to how to proceed.  If the person blows you off, then use the same approach with a person higher up the ladder and do not throw the unresponsive person under the bus.  If the person engages you but denies anything happened, ask advice on how you can follow up with your child.  If the person says they will look into it, get a specific date when they will get back to you and what you can do in the meantime to support your child. (REMEMBER:  schools cannot divulge punishments of other students to you.  do not expect to find out what happened to the student who committed any offense on your child.  It is against the law for them to tell you that information.)
4. You can complete step 3 wither in person or by phone.  Monitor your tone and be positive and cooperative even if you get a "nothing happened" reply.  Follow up in a positive tone looking for ways to help your child deal with their perceptions towards these actions.

It is important to bring these situations to the school's attention in case they do not know about it.  Though our schools make a valiant attempt at monitoring all things all the time, it is not always possible.  When a situation like those above arises, do not hesitate and immediately let the school know.  Just do so in a more partnership tone instead of an accusatory tone.  Remember, your goal is more than just resolving the issue.  You want to gain a respected partner in your child's education.  You have the ability to control the situation by using a positive tone.  In the long run, the school wants to help you and your child just as much as you do.  This may not be apparent some times, but it is true.  The more both sides begin to view difficult situations through that lens of cooperation, the greater the chance of successfully forming a positive collaborative that supports your child's needs both academically and socially.

Next Week: How to create a collaborative relationship with parents...

The communication triumverate - Parent, School, Student

In all of my years at school as a teacher and as a school administrator, I can count on one hand how many calls began with "Mr. Foehr, I want to thank you..."  I believe there are people out there who, given the inclination and time to make that call, would do so.  However, in this 21st Century environment that is based on speed and quick solutions, the phone calls that get made generally begin with "Mr. Foehr, I am the parent of (student x) and I have a problem with...Call me back today at this time so I can..."  Already I am dreading that phone call and am now eagerly searching for anything to happen at school that requires my attention for a long period of time!!

The flipside scenario to that is, as a parent, I can count on one hand the number of phone calls I have received (I have three school age children) that began with "Mr. Foehr, I wanted to let you know that your child has done a great job...."  It happens more than the parent phone calls I described above, but nonetheless, the more frequent call is more like "Mr. Foehr, I'm calling to let you know about something that took place at school...Please call me..."  Now mind you my children are pretty good so I have not had to make many of those calls, or receive them.  But, having been in the education field my entire professional life, I know that is how many conversations with parents begin.

Email has thrown an entire new wrinkle into this ongoing communication challenge.  Though we certainly are able to send and receive messages more rapidly and in greater volume, we are reading the print with our own background information that is adding inflection where we want to based on either current mood, prior interactions, or information that was given to us before the message was delivered.  In general, any of those three paradigms can, and do, sway the meaning of the message.

I want to make sure we change our communication processes so that every interaction we have as parents, teachers, administrators, and students results in a positive step to creating a great learning experience for all students.

How we begin our messages - in person, in print, on the phone - sets the tone for the entire problem solving cycle.  Over the next few weeks, I will blog about steps that I have used so that all parties can ensure everybody's goals are met.  It has been my experience that no matter how sour meeting begin and even how they sometimes end, all the people at the table agree on one thing - they want something good for the student(s) in question.  We simply let our personal viewpoints or perspective cloud our vision and this causes impediments to achieving a positive solution.  I have practiced this style of communication as a teacher, a parent, and as an administrator.  I can help anyone engaged in a school related situation, walk through the pros and cons, brainstorm and identify the goal of an initial contact, and frame their conversation so that it begins and ends effectively.

Next week: Let's begin as a parent reaching out to the school!

Cooking and Educational Leadership - No really!!

I love the analogy of cooking and school leadership.  Many of us in education have heard the Ben and Jerry story about returning the damaged fruit if it does not meet quality control standard and how we in education don't get to do that.  Sure it makes sense if we are approaching our students, or staff, from the "whoa is me" mindset.  But what if we were to to turn that into a view that says here is my meal, I am ready to cook and serve the dish of my life and, oh no, one of my ingredients is different than what I thought it was.  Now what?  Do I quit and give up on the meal, or do I adjust and use my culinary knowledge to find a solution that is not only palatable but is beautifully presented.

We choose our perception of the "fruit" we work with.  Whether as teachers or as educational leaders, our self generated image of the people around us shapes how we decide to tackle problems.

As a leader I choose how and where to allocate my time.  The dilemma is that there are so many areas to put that time into and not enough time in the day to get to all of those who are asking my time.  My perceptions of the people around me will at some point affect, and quite possibly dictate, where my time is spent.

"I hate all the paperwork and forms!"  "There are so many meetings!"  "Yard duty...." "This evaluation process takes so much time..." "Oh no, here comes..."   I have heard these from every school administrator I have ever met.  I have even said and/or thought these myself.  It comes with the territory.  But these statements, if repeated consistently will eventually lead us onto a path of negativity and excuses.  And in my experience, once a school leader begins on that path... well, it's kind of like overcooking the chicken a bit - you need to do a lot of work to help it taste right and regain its tenderness!  If I am in a bad mood or seeing things through negative lenses before I begin to cook, chances are my food will come out tasting like I feel.  Every time I cook I get excited about creating a meal for my family and friends.  My goal is to help school leaders and the people I work with approach our jobs in the same manner and with that same enthusiasm!

When thinking about school leadership and preparing a meal,  the book Strengths Based Leadership written by Tom Rath and Barry Conchie comes to mind.  Their bottom line is to make sure you know yourself and your strengths (think cuisine and technique - I love to grill and barbecue), and build on those.  Then, get to know the people involved in your work environment  (know your ingredients) and what their strengths are (think flavors).  How you as the leader (chef) put that together is the key to a great experience.  One more layer is knowing which tools to use given the situation.  If you know what you want to produce in the end, choose the tools that will allow you to accomplish that vision.

A meal is an experience and school should be the same.  In the end, when I am preparing a meal for people, I want them to have a good time, enjoy the experience and want to come back for more.  If we can get the people at our schools (students, teachers, and parents) feeling the same way think of all we could accomplish!! Bon appetit and good leading!
 

Education matters

In my work I have been lucky to meet many people in and around the field of education. People with deep knowledge of effective pedagogy for both classroom practice and school and system leadership. I am thankful of the opportunities I have had to engage these people in the dialogue of improving our chosen profession and committing to the helping our educators grow and gain respect for the quality work being done around our country.

 I spoke with a colleague, Dan Yahata, who brought up the Hawaiian word Kina’ole - which means “doing the right thing, in the right way, at the right time, in the right place, to the right person, for the right reason, with the right feeling…the first time.” It struck him, as we were at the School Improvement Innovation Summit in Salt Lake City, that much of what we were lisdtening to from leading education experts across the United States resonated with this thought in mind.  

Kina'ole is what we need to be modeling. We need to model this with our students if we are teachers. We need to model this with our staff if we are principals. We need to model this with our site administrators if we are district level leaders and all the way up. It is imperative we act with their best interest in the forefront of our mind. All that being said, we must embrace the challenge that lay in front of us in education. The world has evolved into a rapidly paced, ever evolving living creature and education, in general, continues to remain the slowest to respond. We cannot afford, for the sake of our students, to do that anymore. We must, as an educator friend of mine once said, "jump into the deep end of the pool" or else we will fail these students who are all counting on us!

I borrowed this from a teaching friend whom I respect tremendously (with permission of course)  We were pondering...how to integrate really learning to read, which means reading with comprehension, curiosity, creativity, and love of learning with performing well on standardized testing, which seems to have become the goal.  as opposed to viewing standardized assessment as a tool to help guide us toward effective reading instruction. Need other ponderers...