Shelley Rossitto

We have begun to reach new heights in what we are being told as being “important” for our students to be successful. How many roads have we gone down and how often can we be expected to adjust instruction to respond to those ideas? Well read and study carefully because now I would say we are being asked as educators to stay current, research, and understand how we are connected to the rest of the world. I have had to be a life long learner as I assume the position of technology director for 15 years. My job is to stay current and be extremely well read and knowledgeable about what is and how to engineer for it. I have had little professional development and my job requires me to think critically and find the answers I need. School provided me with the ability to read but the rest has been up to me including the ability to build teams, get along, work in a collaborative environment where everyones contribution is necessary, create something that is useful and navigate through information constantly. As I listen to Tony Wagner and Milton Chen in a webcast from this year I am reminded that schools work in isolation of the world. There is a template or list of standards that we are to follow but we do them in isolation of what students need to know to be successful. Tony and Milton will say that our students learn and are motivated in totally different ways, they need to be connected and learn to think critically. Those connections will lead to collaborations and the creation of something that is meaningful and purposeful. So what is the deal with our classrooms? Are we afraid to merge or “crosswalk” the two? Do we think that if we don’t teach to the test our students will not succeed? In my job I would never be successful if I didn’t have a full understanding of where I want to go and what the end or outcome is. Tony and Milton are high level researchers and companies telling us what the end needs to be but we make excuses like the state wants this, I can’t do that because our students can’t think, I have too many students, I need more help and professional development. All of those reasons are valid but many many teachers are succeeding in bringing the two worlds together. What will you do to make that happen? Do schools need to retool a bit to help this along. Are our teachers also isolated and not given ample time to reach out. They are required and want to be with students allday. I agree their desire is there but how do we look at the structure to get them “out.” They are at the mercy of what we bring to them. There is little opportunity to seek, discover and find this understanding on their own because their jobs are so defined and prescribed. When watching the webcast I am reminded that we need to understand our clients and what their needs are. Tony talks about “new skills” and why we can’t avoid them. Every job expects this level of skill. In the past it was elite to have this level of sophistication but now every company wants their workers to think critically and contribute. Not every student has to go to college and if they don’t the training comes from us. But so we model that for our teachers and encourage them to think.
I am torn by think that teachers can make the differences they need to without looking at our physical infrastructures they work in. “Common planning time” is a nice attempt at promoting collaboration and communication between colleagues but what are we doing for them so they learn and be global themselves. Leaving them allday in a classroom with 125 students teaching and trying to keep up doesn’t provide the structure that will work. I think we need to begin with our teachers and administration to retool what a school looks like physically and philosphically. It would look so different and you can bank on the fact there would not be “4 walls!”

The Northwest Regional Education Lab- quality and teaching division, created a guide to develop professional learning teams to bring teachers together as leaders in their own development and growth. High need districts were selected for the study. Teachers were put into teams to look at data, determine instructional strategies based on that data, use research based strategies, collect classroom data and reflect as a team to improve. The process also includes developing teams, resolving conflict, developing trust, and improving communication.

This model puts teachers in the drivers seat and administrators provide them with the resources they need to succeed. Those resources might be access to the data they need, professional development and meeting time, bringing in experts as they identify areas they want to improve, etc. Teachers drive the change by their own research which is what we encourage our students to do. Our teachers become learners, educators and decision makers in their own destiny with a common goal of improving student performance. With this vested interest teachers develop a process for growth and “life long learning” that we so desparately want to instill in our students.

This article provides a guide which I highly recommend. Administrators become supporters and gatherers of resources and teachers implement their plans as teams to provide constant feedback, improving of practice, and reflection.

The article is Improving Instruction through Professional Learning Teams, A guide for school leaders. November 2005, Dr. Susan Sather. I have provided you with a link under other resources.

It is time! I have the need to move. I brought my husband to Morocco last fall – we went back packing and 4-wheeling. The cultural encounters and scenery was beautiful. My mind always makes it back to our children. I wonder how different the world would be if we could come together. I aspire to try and do this with technology. It is difficult to promote that when teachers themselves might not have had these experiences. You have to feel it to understand it. How can technology bring us closer together? There is a place for everything but technology can help us bridge that gap. Back to the trip though- what is next – any ideas to help me out for an adventure.