Lectures at night, “homework” during the day.

I will never forget the story of a high school student in the district I just retired from, being bored with a lecture from a professorial teacher, and quite sure he was making errors in his data on the topic at hand, used her smart phone to disprove the teacher's lecture. She snuck her phone out of her back pack and researched the data that proved her contention, the teacher was making up data. 

Another time, as a supervising superintendent, I was walking down the hallway of our middle school and saw two boys reacting to something they were looking at on their smart phone. Seeking to find out what the gist of their discussion was about, I crept up closely behind their backs to discover they were actually discussing the Roger Clemons deposition they were reading off the NY Times. 

Both examples demonstrate the insanity of continuing to assume that kids are clueless about information, and they should be viewed as a sponge, ready to absorb information only provided via a "master lecturer"/teacher.

This week, I read an interesting editorial in the Daytona Beach News-Journal, that demonstrates my opinion about this kind of a teacher. It caused me to fall back on my never-ending appeal to move our 19th Century instructional models into a 21st Century mindset, once again. 

"Just months after the National Center for Education Statistics released its devastating portrait of a nation where less than one-third of public school children have proficiency in geography, a college professor lamented to me that his recent teacher graduates were convinced that such knowledge [geography] was unnecessary because GPS systems and Google Earth programs are easily accessible on smartphones." (Cepeda, 2012).

The image of that excerpt, once again presents the ludicrous idea that we should continue teaching children who are being prepared for a 21 st Century future using the tools of 19th Century instruction, namely, lecture, lecture, test, quiz, lecture, homework. This also brings me to remind people that the 21st Century instructional model is needed now, more than ever.

                                                                                                                 (Sheninger, 2011)

Flipping the instructional model is necessary, and school leaders need to begin pressing the model more and more. According to Bergman and Sams (2011),  "One of the greatest benefits of flipping is that overall interaction increases: Teacher to student and student to student.  Since the role of the teacher has changed from presenter of content to learning coach, we spend our time talking to kids.  We are answering questions, working with small groups, and guiding the learning of each student individually."

The idea that teachers become mentors and facilitators, and students become the center of their own learning is not unique, but a model hardly used in public schools, mainly out of ignorance and fear.  "The role of the teacher has changed, to more of a tutor than a deliverer of content, we have the privilege of observing students interact with each other.  As we roam around the class, we notice the students developing their own collaborative groups.  Students are helping each other learn instead of relying on the teacher as the sole disseminator of knowledge." (Bergman & Sams, 2011)

Bennett & Kern (2011) outline what a typical flipped classroom looks like:

• Discussions are led by the students where outside content is brought in and expanded. 
• These discussions typically reach higher orders ofcritical thinking.
• Collaborative work is fluid with students shifting between various simultaneous discussions depending on their needs and interests.
• Content is given context as it relates to real-world scenarios.
• Students challenge one another during class on content.
• Student-led tutoring and collaborative learning forms spontaneously.  
• Students take ownership of the material and use their knowledge to lead one another without prompting from the teacher.
• Students ask exploratory questions and have the freedom to delve beyond core curriculum.
• Students are actively engaged in problem solving and critical thinking that reaches beyond the traditional scope of the course.
• Students are transforming from passive listeners to active learner.

Noted author and futurist, Daniel Pink describes the idea even further, where "instead of lecturing about polynomials and exponents during class time – and then giving his young charges 30 problems to work on at home – the teacher has flipped the sequence. He’s recorded his lectures on video and uploaded them to YouTube for his 28 students to watch at home. Then, in class, he works with students as they solve problems and experiment with the concepts."

Lectures at night, “homework” during the day.

What a unique and refreshing way to get students to be the initiator of learning, motivated to create their future with creativity and innovation.

________

Bennett,B. & , J. Kern, A. Gudenrath, P. McIntosh. (October 11, 2011). The flipped classroom: What does one look like? The Daily Riff. Retrieved January 3, 2012 at http://www.thedailyriff.com/articles/the-flipped-class-what-does-a-good-one-look-like-692.php.

Bergman, J. & A. Sams. (November 8, 2011). How the flipped classroom was born. The Daily Riff.  Retrieved January 3, 2011 at http://www.thedailyriff.com/articles/how-the-flipped-classroom-is-radically-transforming-learning-536.php.

Cepeda, E. J. (January 3, 2012). Behind the wheel, under the knife- mobile devices are here to stay. The News-Journal. Daytona Beach, FL. Retrieved January 3, 2012 at www.news-journalonline.com.

Pink, D. (September 10, 2010). Think Tank: Fliip-thinking- the new buzz word sweeping the US.  The Telegraph. Retrieved January 3, 2012 at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/7996379/Daniel-Pinks-Think-Tank-Flip-thinking-the-new-buzz-word-sweeping-the-US.html

Sheninger, E. (August 8, 2011). An open letter to principals: Five leadership strategies for the new year. Edutopia.  Retrieved January 3, 2012 at http://www.edutopia.org/blog/principals-leadership-eric-sheninger?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=post&utm_content=blog&utm_campaign=5leadershipstratgiesforthenewyear

The Flipped Classroom [infographic]. Retrieved on January 3, 2012 at http://www.knewton.com/flipped-classroom/

BE

Well, we are now over the hump of a new calendar year. 2012 has begun, and we have hopefully completed the long and draining holiday hype that began November 1, 2011 ushering in a new calendar year of hopeful success and challenges. 


This morning I caught this tweet from Tony Robbins that seemed inspirational in forming a renewed outlook for 2012:  

"BE CURIOUS, BE BOLD, BE FAITH FILLED, BE DECISIVE, BE COURAGEOUS, BE STRONG, BE AUTHENTIC, BE PLAYFUL, BE GRATEFUL, BE?1"

What an exciting way to perceive the start for a hopeful start as 21st Century School Leaders. 

Be curious:  start asking questions and inquire what your teachers are thinking, doing and reflecting.

Be bold:  try something new, daring, and different. If you have never experimented with Twitter as a feedback tool for families, students, community members, make it something you do as a new resolution for 2012.

Be faith-filled:  anyone who leads people in organizations must have a faith-based model of inspiration and values. Whether the model comes from the Bible, Koran, Dharma, Stephen Covey, John Wayne, Regis Philbin or from an inspirational movie, prioritize your values; live by a statement of belief and reflect this model in your decision-making and the care you offer your teachers, students, and parents.

Be decisive: nothing frustrates an organization more than a lack of decisiveness; a lack of commitment and movement. Yes, a bad decision may tarnish the emotional bank account from faculty and parents, but at least you will reflect a commitment to a plan of action. And, if it was a bad decision, admit it, show your humanity, learn from it and move on. Your organization will admire you for that.

Be courageous, strong, authentic: as a leader you are a unique individual that needs to work with people, not against them. A courageous leader has the strength to admit failure when a mistake is made. An authentic leader has the strength to listen to people in order to learn, reflect, and understand their concerns, ideas, and feedback.

Be playful: be humorous often and in as many ways as you can find. People love to laugh. They want to smile and have fun in their workplace or learning environment. Create a humorous weekly newsletter. Be bold enough to make a funny remark at a serious moment, and be willing to look ridiculous in order for your organization to discover your humanity and be inspired by you.

Be grateful:  learn to say thank you, often and at every possible opportunity. A favorite phrase I used often in many of my communications with the faculty became a catch phrase that others adapted, as well:

"Thank you for all you do for the children of this community." 

And, the last component of this resolution "Be". Live life to the fullest, and incorporate your actions and beliefs into a commitment for an inspired model of learning for your school community.

Have a great 2012.

________________

1. tonyrobbins. (2011, January 1). In 2012 resolve to: BE CURIOUS, BE BOLD, BE FAITH FILLED, BE DECISIVE, BE COURAGEOUS, BE STRONG, BE AUTHENTIC, BE PLAYFUL, BE GRATEFUL, BE? [Twitter post]. Retrieved January 2, 2011 from http://twitter.com/tonyrobbins

Building Shared Vision

 

School Leaders are constantly challenged to confront the reality of dictates and mandates from a variety of external forces, all in the name of political expediency. But the challenge to the true learning organization is to meet the vision that best affects the learning and achievement of our students.

One of the key components of 21^st Century School Leaders is the concept of ““shared vision””; the ability to create consensus around a plan to implement change and movement toward an impactful objective.

Peter Senge, in his book The Fifth Discipline describes a “shared vision” as "... a force in people's hearts, a force of impressive power....At its simplest level, a “shared vision” is the answer to the question, "What do we want to create?" " A “shared vision” is a picture that everyone in the company carries in their heads and hearts.[1] The “shared vision” serves as a collective objective to move towards in re-creating a school organization.

So what does a “shared vision” do for your school? It converts the school into 'our school'. It creates a sense of commonality and gives coherence to diverse activities. It creates excitement and makes an extraordinary school. It allows everyone to work together. It creates a common identity and a sense of purpose. It encourages new ways of thinking and acting. It gives courage and fosters risk taking and experimentation. Basically without a “shared vision”, that vision you spent time creating is pointless and meaningless. And without a “shared vision” the learning organization/school cannot exist.

The “shared vision” serves several key purposes:

·         It clarifies the general direction for a change and in doing so simplifies the direction of the decisions that must follow

·         It motivates people to move out of their comfort zone, to take the time to develop new skills and work with different levels of resources

·         It coordinates the hundreds of decisions and actions involved in change

 

So, how does a 21^st Century Leader create a “shared vision”? Where does one start?

Step #1: Get the right people on the bus

School organizations are made up of a diverse group of people, and if you had no role in hiring these people, you will be most certainly challenged by the group. But, begin looking through your faculty and staff, and start asking the right questions.

·         Can I work with this person?

·         Will they be adaptable to and collaborative in developing a new vision for the school?

·         How resistant will they be to change?

After you have taken the time to consider the potential each person in your school can offer to the enterprise, start creating a team to work on the vision statement. For the others, start finding a way to get them off the bus- moved out of your building- or developing a plan to reinvigorate their outlook. This may sound heartless, but there is nothing worse than to have an uncooperative, tenured teacher/administrator on your staff.

Step #2: Preparation

Schedule a workday for creating the vision. An off-site location is best, if possible. You want to minimize interruptions, and get people away from their day-to-day environment in order to stimulate creativity.

Consider the use of a neutral "facilitator". That is, someone trained in group process that has no biases or stake in the game. That way, as a leader, you are able sit back and focus on being a participant, and not have to worry about the mechanics of the meeting. Removing yourself as the focal point also helps open up the free flow of open dialog.

Step #3:  Determine appropriate "input" to the vision.

Schedule the meeting far enough ahead of time to allow for preparation. Send out documents to review ahead of time, i.e., relevant research, student achievement data, survey results, or any other information needed to prepare the participants. Establish the expectation that preparation is a must in order to participate, and follow-up to make sure people have done their pre-work. Following up may sound like baby-sitting, but it's also a good excuse to get a feel for where each participant is coming from, plant some seeds, and create a little pre-meeting buzz.

Step #4:  Set the stage.

At the start of the meeting, review the desired outcomes, agenda, process and ground rules. Take extra time here to check for understanding and agreement. Doing this sets the stage for how the rest of the day will flow - you are modeling collaboration and consensus. Going slow here will allow you to go fast for the rest of the day.

Step #5: Create and use a process that ensures full participation, openness, creativity, and efficiency.

A trained facilitator can help you with this, or you can design it yourself. The key is to have a plan and process - you can't just go in and "wing it" like you may be used to doing in a regular meeting. Here's a process that I've used:

- Explain to the team what a vision statement is and why they are important. You might show a few examples.

- Ask the group to imagine what this team, organization, or project could look like 3-5 years from now. What would success look like? What could you achieve? What would they love to achieve? If they were to pick up a newspaper 3-5 years from now, what would the headline say about what this group has accomplished?

- Either individually, in pairs, or in groups of 3-4, have people create those headlines on flip charts. Tell them to include pictures, phrases, or anything else to describe that desired future. Give them about 30 minutes.

- Ask each person or team report out to the larger group. If you are the leader, go last, so you don't bias the rest of the group. This also gives you the opportunity to incorporate other's ideas into your vision.

- The facilitator or leader should be listening for and recording on a flip chart key phrases that describe each vision. This is the time to listen and to ask clarifying questions, but not to evaluate.

- add up up the number of phrases (n), divide by 3, and give everyone that many stickers to "vote" with (n/3). Explain it's not really a decision making vote, it's simply a way to quickly take the temperature of the group and see how much agreement there is.

- Start with phrases that received a lot of vote, discuss, and check for agreement. Do the same thing for phases that received no or few votes, and ask if those items can be crossed off. Work your way to the middle items, using the same process - circle it or cross it off.

- If there are any issues where consensus can't be reached after everyone has had a chance to state their case, then the leader needs to make the final decision.

- You end the meeting with a list of phases that will form the vision statement.

Step # 6:  Do the "grunt-work" off line

Group time should not be wasted creating the vision statement and wordsmithing it to death. The leader can do this off-line, and/or ask for 1-2 volunteers to do it. I've even seen it done during lunch to present back to the team in the afternoon.

Step #7: Talk to the outliers

If there was anyone who disagreed with the output, or who's favorite idea was not incorporated, talk to them privately to make see how they are committed to the vision. Explore ways to make connection of the vision to their interests and needs.

Step #8:  Re-convene the group and review the draft vision statement. 


Step #10:  Review the draft with key extended stakeholders that were not at the meeting.

This is the time to review the vision with other. It's a chance to get input and make it better, and to begin to build a broader coalition of support.

Step #11:  Communicate the vision and begin to make it a reality.

This format is very basic, and there may be other ideas that people have experienced that are much better. But, the main concept is to pursue the development of working through a collaborative process to create that “shared vision”

Here’s hoping that 2012 will be the start of an exciting year to create that “shared vision” and the change you need to enhance learning for your students.

---

[1] Senge, P.M. (2006). The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New York: Doubleday.

5 New Years Resolutions for 21stCentury School Leaders

I hate making New Years resolutions, probably because I never end up keeping them!! My all-time worst resolution to break a promise with is losing weight. Oh well, I will keep trying.

But, some resolutions are worth keeping, especially if you base your entire career working with children, in these perilous times. Keeping the faith and maintaining resolutions to guide us through these times makes sense. So here are some resolutions suggested for School Leaders:

1) Experiment with a new 21st Century Instructional concept each week and model it for your faculty, students and the community.
Ken Kay, founder of EdLeader 21 has created the 7 steps for creating a 21st Century school community. It's direct and applicable to any school community leader, and it forms a basis for outlining a step-by-step process for establishing a direction for all school leaders.

1. Adapt your vision of 21st Century vision, outcomes, expectations
2. Create community consensus
3. Align your system.
4. Build professional capacity.
5. Embed the 4 C's in the curriculum.
Critical Thinking
Communication
Collaboration
Creativity
6. Support teachers in the classroom.
7. Improve and innovate. (from EdLeader 21, http://www.edleader21.com/approach.html)

2) Assimilate a mobile device in your supervision and administration of your school/district, and model what you are doing for your building faculty and school community.

Smartphone and tablet technologies are wonderful tools for school leaders to use in leading their school community. Whether using it for observations, dictation, or student attendance and behavior management, mobile technologies have come a long way since the Palm Pilot. I use an iPhone and iPad in my daily work as a superintendent, and I model this for my school community, regularly.

3) Find ways to use social media in your leadership role, and model it for your school community.
Twitter and Facebook are synonymous with mainstream social media, and they become excellent tools for communicating and sharing all that is possible and exciting in our schools. Consider having a Twitter site for your blog, and school activities. Engage the community with Facebook and keep the positive things, and some of the challenging concerns, in front of the community regularly.

4) Write a weekly blog for your school community.
Writing a blog on your 21st Century School Community is a great way to advertise, share information, and live the model of leadership transparency for the community. It helps to know a school administrator has feelings, and ideas, and desires to nurture an open school community.

5) Model, model, model everything and anything for your school community.

Finally, be a model for everything you desire from the members of your school community. Whether it is using mobile technology, PowerPoint, social media, wiki's, portals or blogs. Model the vision, walk the talk.

Here is hoping 2012 will be an exciting your of 21st Century learning and inspiration for your school community.

Chicken Little and Drug Use in Schools

“Chicken Little,” the dubious children’s fable of a hysterical chicken running hither and yon, yelling that the “sky is falling,” represents, to some degree, the level of hysteria and fear-mongering that can come about when things are blown out of proportion.

In the past week, at our high school and throughout the district, fears were raised when it was announced in the media that a student at BCHS was arrested for selling methadone to two other students, and kids were rushed to the hospital. Realizing that this was a serious situation, the high school principal and I felt that we needed to send a note home to the school-community regarding this situation, sooner rather than later. Our purpose in doing so was to inform parents of the seriousness of this issue, and to ask families to hold those difficult conversations with their kids about drugs, and potential abuse.

You might say that we received some angry responses from some parents that our letter was tantamount to a “chicken little” response and that “kids will be kids,” or that the school is at fault for turning its head to the issue that has been prevalent in the school for many years, “so why do anything about it now?”

Fueling the media rush even more is the Time Union blog on the subject that has been focused on smearing the school district’s reputation and selling more newsprint, rather than holding a serious discussion of the issues plaguing kids throughout the region, or the YNN news team confronting parents and students on the school campus to drum up even more hysteria.

The purpose of this posting today is to set the record straight and provide information for the school-community:

1) We had a series of drug busts and issues where some students were held accountable by enforcement of the Student Code of Conduct as well as charges being processed by the legal authorities of the county.

2) DARE programs at the elementary level have been important in promulgating understanding to the seriousness of alcohol and drug abuse. Unfortunately, as students get older, access to drugs and alcohol are easier.

So, what is a school district to do when children are allowed to use drugs and alcohol throughout the community? How do we manage to teach and re-teach the ideas that drugs and alcohol are dangerous, inhibitive, and harmful to their health, welfare and safety?

1) Parents need to be actively involved with their children about these issues, as well as the school district. Having regular conversations, checking their clothes, backpacks, and personal effects is not an invasion of privacy, as much as it is a monitoring of their safety and welfare.

2) Be concerned about your child’s social activities, and whom they are meeting with afterschool and on the weekends. Be interested in what they are doing when they are not home.

3) If you notice signs that there may be drug use, work with your family doctor or the school counselor for advice and direction. Allow others to work with you to get your child back on course. Don’t sweep it under the carpet or turn a blind eye to what could evolve into an episode of personal destruction.

For now, the district will be intensifying efforts to proactively supervise and manage a difficult situation through enforcement of school rules and regulations, continued education of the student body to reinforce the seriousness of drugs and alcohol abuse, and to provide information as to what the district is attempting to do in keeping our students safe.

For those people that think these issues are nothing more than “kids being kids,” remember, that when a student is suspended from school for an extended period of time for this infraction, or has a police record that follows him into adulthood, or overdoses on a controlled substance, it will be too late to say “let kids be kids!”

What global competition?

In NYS yesterday, our beloved Governor Cuomo once again, lashed out against the education system of NYS public schools when he was asked a question in a news conference regarding the lack of a tax on millionaires. This is a typical tactic of political leaders when asked a question they do not wish to offend certain people, they divert the answer to punish the helpless and more needy programs so that they can sound tough and masterful.

"The fact that everyone wants it ... doesn't mean that much," Cuomo said. According to the governor, the exodus of wealthy New Yorkers could be an issue if the tax is extended. Cuomo said the people of New York are not being honest with themselves if they think New York can have a reputation for high taxes and being "anti-business" and still have a "rosy" future as a state.

The governor went on to say that more money doesn't mean better services. "My answer is better performance."[1]

And with that remark, he launched himself into another attack on the public education of the NYS students, emphasizing that a NYS education is 34^th in the nation. Taxes are high and we are not doing our job as educators. So, preserve the millionaires in the state, and raise the tax levy on middle class Americans that are just basically getting by, while shouting that it costs too much to provide a world class public education.

World class education?

First of all, the global competitiveness we all seek is overrated. What are we competing against? The cold war is over. The mentality of the 60’s where the USA needs to be the best at everything has given way to absurd and reactive behaviors among what we are truly producing. Americans only need to be better than themselves. There is no global competition, just a global networking of the best minds in the world attempting to forge a new enlightenment of knowledge, research and education.

Second, the standards that predict global competitiveness are skewed. We are one of the only nations that takes into consideration all of our children in these competitive assessments, such as the TIMMS evaluation. Special education or children with identified disabilities are as much a part of the education of this country as other children are part of the equation. Countries such as Belgium, Indonesia and other so-called “economic powerhouses” avoid mentioning their special needs children. So, it appears that the standards for comparison are not stacked equally.

Lastly, when a political figure such as our NYS governor attacks education, he is also attacking himself, and his predecessors that have done nothing more than favor the wealthy with their elaborate tax breaks and loop-holes, and demoralized the educational system of the state to bare bones insanity. The fact that we are 12 years into the 21^st century and there is not a common sense approach to funding public education without burdening the middle class is astounding to say the least.

And still, Andrew Cuomo has the temerity to insult our state and our schools into implying there is some ratings list in the sky that pigeon-holes our educational efforts as inferior. It’s as if the great Carnak has reappeared to enlighten our leaders.

The reality is there are too many bad assumptions being espoused by our political leaders about our educational systems. In a wonderful blog comment by Michael Paul Goldenberg he outlines the mythical assumptions that distort the realities very nicely:

… education and our "global competitiveness" have not been shown to be causally linked? That, while we continue to win more than our reasonable share of Nobel Prizes, dominate the world politically, economically, and militarily, none of the folks who can be counted on to tell us that "the sky is falling" in US public schools have EVER credited our world dominance to our public education system? Neither have the generations of doomsayers before them going back at least to the 19th century and likely much further. And that the insanity of using international test scores that are not comparing similar populations from many other countries to those being tested here only further invalidates the premise that our schools are failing and that our children are woefully under-prepared.[2]

But, as I have referred to in previous blog entries, education remains the “whipping post” of politicians. It’s the only issue they can use to divert attention away from the real matters they can do nothing about, such as the economy. And, still we bear up to the same attacks facing our responsibilities to educate every child that walks into our schools, regardless of the rhetoric and the attacks.

Oops. Time for another lashing!!

---

[1] Krieg, F. (October 17, 2011). Cuomo: Millionaires Tax To Expire. Legislative Gazette. Retrieved October 18 at http://www.legislativegazette.com/Articles-c-2011-10-17-80938.113122-Cuomo-Millionaires-tax-will-expire.html

[2] Goldenberg, M. P. (2011, October 8). Globally challenged: are us students ready to compete? [Web log comment] Retrieved from http://myednext.org/events/globally-challenged-are-us-students-ready-to-compete.

What we learn from Steve Jobs?

Steve Jobs was an amazing individual.

His innovative and creative spirit spawned the Apple Corporation and he blazed a trail into all the areas of personal computing and technology that we use in our everyday lives. He embodied a truly unique spirit and was instrumental in changing the manner schools use technology to support instruction.

And I write all this on a PC computer. What a tribute!

As Superintendent of Bethlehem Central I work to meet the demands of the State in implementing the mandates of testing, testing and more testing in order to prove whether our school district is doing an excellent job of teaching students. And, then I am struck with the realization in the form of a question:

Will our schools ever produce another Steve Jobs?

Do we inspire children to be creative? Or, do we deny them this opportunity due to the structure of how our schools run currently?

Last week, on ABC's 20/20, Chris Cuomo did an excellent piece on the life of Steve Jobs. He summed up the inventor's life in seven rules that guided his work and achievements. These were derived from his comments, actions, and presentations. In many ways, they sum up the direction we need to move as a school district. Allow me to paraphrase his thoughts.

Steve Jobs' rules for life as applied to schools:

1) DO WHAT YOU LOVE TO DO, NO MATTER WHAT IT HAPPENS TO BE.

Teachers are highly trained individuals that can offer so much to children through their knowledge and capabilities. Whether it is reading, writing, math, science or technology, teachers can truly be an inspiration to children if they work in an unfettered manner free of the assertions and assumptions of educational testing and the mediocrity it breeds. They entered the profession to do what they do best, and that is to motivate and inspire children. In spite of the demands from our politicians, they try every day to do just that.

2) PUT A DENT IN THE UNIVERSE.

Despite the budgetary problems BC had last year, we developed a "bold vision" to immerse our students and the school community into 21st Century learning by employing personal devices wherever and whenever possible. We have committed ourselves to preparing students to be the next inventors of the newest technologies and to be ready for a future that will soon envelop us.

Unfortunately, the community rejected our idea to make this dream a reality, but the school district continues to find a way to make this dream a reality in everything we do, say and teach.

3) SAY NO TO A 1,000 THINGS.

In other words, simplify our profession. This will be difficult given the interference of the politicians that care more about winning votes than preparing students for the 21st Century challenges. But, as a school district we need to thrive to push back against the absurd demands that come to us from the state, even though we must test, test and test more to make this standard of mediocrity conform to the political rhetoric in Albany and Washington.

In another time, we hope to say no to the 1,000 mandates that were supposed to be curtailed in March, and still haunt our inability to fund the other things that will truly make a difference for students.

4) KICK START YOUR BRAIN BY DOING SOMETHING NEW.

Many of us, teachers, administrators, support staff and students are stretching our comfort levels to learn new things. No matter what the venue is, we need to encourage organizational learning and that includes all of our school-community members. If everyone experienced one new idea each month we would be light years into the future of preparing children to do their best.

5) SELL DREAMS, NOT PRODUCTS.

In schools we should be selling dreams of educational success and creative opportunities, and not the bill of goods found in a report card or testing manual. With over 38 years in education I can confidently say that children learn best when they are challenged to confront a new reality. To do that we should mandate time each week in class for children to confront creative projects and problem solving activities.

6) CREATE INSANELY GREAT EXPERIENCES.

Schools are great learning environments for super experiences that challenge and motivate people. From Nature's Classroom in grade 5 to Lab School active learning and research environments in high school, our district is filled with many "insanely" great experiences. We need to do more of them and encourage some risk taking in the process.

7) MASTER THE MESSAGE

When Steve Jobs presented the idea of the iPhone, he changed the face of telecommunications and smartphone computers forever. In education we need to master a similar message that attracts the creative genius of children to master their potential in order to confront new realities.

The message in what I have presented is that public school districts need to unshackle themselves from the mediocrity of what the established bureaucracy have created and be allowed to reach for the stars. For, I am quite concerned that if we do not, there will be little chance of inspiring the next innovator of future challenges.

Let's hope we all learn something from people like Steve Jobs.