Toxic Or Textbook, What Type School Culture Are You Creating?

Last week my daughter came home upset.  “My teacher said I didn’t hand in my homework when I did and I got a zero,” she told me.  A moment later she gave me a form to sign.  It was from another teacher outlining punishments for bad behavior; a verbal reprimand, being held after class and detention. “What’s the second one all about,” I asked.   “That is so we will be late to our next class and get in trouble with our next period teacher,”  she replied.  I have to admit I was really surprised but thinking back she was also docked grade points for missing a band concert because we went to Lincoln Center to see the ballet.

It made me ask are we teaching our children about academics and cultural arts or are we teaching them to play the game to get by?

At the tender age of 12 my daughter and her friends who all pull outstanding grades are very aware of the culture in their school.  On one hand the principal and guidance make an effort to know the children and engage them.  On the other hand a rigid standard of grading homework and unfair punishments breed a culture that encourages the children to play the game to get by and spawns accusations of favoritism in a very competitive education environment. 

To understand what is happening we need to look at education’s public narrative that emphasizes standardized testing, teachers and funding.

Examining the business models of industry looking to cash in on the multi-billion dollar education market we can discern several things.  First, we need to acknowledge that companies and non-for-profits that sell books, curriculums and testing are in business to make money not to educate students, that is a by-product. In fact, a well-educated student would put many of these companies out of business because the need to recreate the materials they provide would disappear.  In our public narrative standardized testing, rigor, and a focus on numerical achievement has taken the emphasis on growing student’s talents completely out of the picture.

Additionally, a public narrative that emphasizes numerical achievement puts stress on teachers making them responsible for student’s academic success without an opportunity to consider the student’s abilities, drive or environment.  This leads to unfair assessment of students.  I recently spoke to a mom who was upset because her child’s grade in writing was “too good.”  In looking at the essay in question it was full of grammatical mistakes, run on sentences and had poor structure, yet the student received an 87.  “I’m afraid he’s not learning,” she said.  Still, the teacher continues to give high marks presumably due to pressure to meet funding and other goals that might be in jeopardy if her students don’t achieve.

Fear that students will not be prepared for college or real world challenges is growing amongst parents.

Parents are largely shut out of their children’s education, which is a big mistake. Parents are directly responsible for the billions of dollars school systems have available to them and should have their community’s culture, values and children’s needs taken into consideration.  The current public narrative doesn’t allow that and instead de-emphasizes the individual and their unique talents creating a school culture in which children at a very young age know that they are academic failures or successes, that their ideals have no value and that their unique abilities are not part of the scholastic equation of success.  How long will parents continue to fund a system including higher education when their children are not being valued, their talents not being cultivated?  How long will they fund a system that does not grow skills that children can use in the real world, or one that results in debt, not opportunity after studies are complete?

The knowledge of academic rank affects every aspect of a student’s growth, drive and future ability to succeed. 

So what do we do?

First, we need to very boldly acknowledge that our school cultures are creating a toxic learning environment for students, teachers and parents.  Teachers need to be willing to stand up against unfair practices and hierarchies that breed resentment and diminish their ability to collaborate and grow as a professional community.  Second, we need to shift the emphasis away from numerical ranking and move toward measuring individual achievement, helping students grow their talents to become confident, productive members of society upon leaving the scholastic system.

Do not sacrifice a generation of students to the bottom line of big business. 

You are passionate, talented educators who have dedicated your life to empowering our youngest citizens with information, shaping their character and inspiring them to the greatness we all possess. You might not be able to change the system or the public narrative overnight but you can change the culture in your school.  Make it fun, bright, engaging! Change the physical environment to be more conducive to learning, exploring and collaborating. Set aside time for sharing and discussion-15 minutes a day can make a huge difference in a child’s mind. Try something new even if it puts you outside your comfort zone. And make sure you find time for creativity and play, especially in the higher grades.

 No one ever learns stuck in a box. 

Be bold, examine your school culture today and make a change with your colleagues. You have the power. Your students and their parents will thank you and so will I because today my daughters are living in the culture you’ve created.  You can build on the foundation I have given them or you can destroy it, the choice is up to you.  I hope for all of us you make a good one.

Art as Inspiration #whatisschool

Last night at #whatisschool we shared ways to bring your creativity to the classroom.  My whole life has revolved around creative expression and its application to art, movies, television, publishing and most recently education.  As my own daughters move through the scholastic system during this amazing time of upheaval and technological revolution I continually find them, and myself, straddling a line between old and new ways of teaching, learning and expression.  What I am finding is both are needed and necessary to inspire, create and to get great ideas into the world.  Thank you ALL for your inspiration last night #whatisschool, especially my co-host @shift paradigm who also is exploring his own truth through creative expression.  I encourage you all to take a moment to pause today, close your eyes and consider what inspires you.  That one moment of quiet may give you insight and inspiration that will spread like wildfire to those you influence today.  Please support the arts and the dreamers who let their secret thoughts out of their heads for all the world to love, hate, cheer and reject.  It tales strength and it helps us grow as individuals and transformers in our communities.
-Laura

Building Skills By Building Robots

Last weekend my daughters participated in the First Lego League Robotic competition.

They got involved building robots several years ago, not through the schools but through a program at our local library.  At the time Ava was seven and in second grade while Kayla was 9 and in fourth grade.

Working in pairs with kids of different ages they learned how to use Lego Mindstorm to build robots they could program to complete tasks.  My daughters loved coming up with interesting and sometimes crazy engineering that enabled their robots to push levers, shoot hoops and open doors on a tabletop course.  They used programming language to tell the robots what to do, working together to refine their programs until the robots did exactly what they had intended.

I can't tell you what a rush of excitement they got from building and programming robots, or how happy it made me as a parent to know they were embracing critical skills they would need to be 21st century creators and thought leaders all while having fun, it was a triple threat!

This year they were ready to enter the First Lego League Robotics Competition.  There were also two teams forming at our Middle School, one for six graders and another for seventh.  After exploring both the library and middle school options my older daughter decided, along with two other six graders, one boy and one girl, to join the library team.  When I asked her why, she said the school team was all boys and she wouldn't get a chance to have her ideas heard.  That really resonated with me.

56% of girls who go into programming leave their jobs after 10 years.

I found her answer intriguing. Statistics have shown that it's not the capacity to do the work but the environment in which the work is being done that makes female programmers abandon their posts.  This is important because girls as well as boys need to be encouraged to take on positions that will shape the future use of technology, to create inventions we can't even imagine yet.  Think of all the ideas that would be lost, talent that would be wasted, if girls weren't given an equal opportunity and encouraged to enter and stay in these fields.

The other thing that intrigued me about the team was the mixed age group.

Unlike the school, the library team included kids ages 9-14.  This brought an interesting perspective to the group as the children were focused on different learning modules and different types of play.  It was a ten year old who came up with the world problem solution the team was judged on and showed the older kids how to use Scratch to create a learning game to make student's better programmers. He also showed them how to build a controller out of tacks, cardboard and wire.  It was pretty amazing.

So what's the point?  

The point is that as educators you can't be boxed in by age, grade or gender when exploring ways to help students acquire critical collaborative skills in key technological areas like programming and robotics.  And the younger you start children learning these skills, the better.  If instruction time is limited create a club, if resources are the problem enlist the help of your local library, boy and girl scouts or look for local donors.   Parents can form homeschooling groups to help their children gain the critical skills they need while having fun.  All you need is a few building kits, a computer, imagination and some commitment. 

My daughter's team went on to win an award for the best mechanical design of a robot by using sensors in its construction.  They placed in the upper tier over all and were judged on their design, robot's performance, world problem solution, their teamwork and attitude.  Going to the competition, seeing what other kids had made and working together made them eager for more. 

The skills they have gained will stay with them and make them more apt to lead and get their thoughts heard when they leave school. It sparked their imagination, inspired them to discover new ideas and acquire new skills by working on solving real life problems with other children.   They made friends and had fun.  Isn't that what learning is really all about anyway?

Laura Hill is an author and speaker who works with children and adults to get 21-century skills into their hands and great ideas into the world.  As president of her local library board she has been instrumental in helping libraries and school find niches that bring maker space learning environments to their communities.

What Is The Future Of Education?

#whatisschool January 19, 2017 6pm EST

What Is The Future Of Education?

• When Craig Kemp and I started #whatisschool in 2014, (two years ago, can you believe it!) we were looking for answers to our most pressing questions. As teachers, parents and student advocates we found ourselves in a vast and shifting landscape fueled by a technology revolution that had turned the way we communicate on its head and changed the way we purchased goods, listened to music, watched TV and read books. The traditional gatekeepers of corporate behemoths were swept away by new technology and education, a trillion dollar industry in the USA and estimated at over 4 trillion dollars globally, was in its sites.  We were wondering how this would effect education, not from a corporate "dollars and sense" stand point or from a gadget happy "got to have this" perspective.  We were both keenly interested in how this would effect the students and very aware of the rapid pace in which change was taking place.  The only solution we could see was to harness the change, making it happen from the inside progressed by teachers for the betterment of educating a student body in a world that was smaller and more diverse than ever before, that offered more opportunity for student voice to be heard at a time when big solutions were badly needed for serious global problems. 
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• We turned to you, the teachers, students, parents, educators and advocates of the world and the response of ideas-simple, elegant brilliant ideas was overwhelming.  From retooling classroom space, to integrating technological components to enhance lessons to global communication with authentic audiences we saw invention and wizardry bring sometimes miraculous results in all sectors-science, medicine, robotic, art and communication-we were all learning, reshaping the future of education in a new image.  
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• So now, two years later, I'd like to pose this question to you, 
• What have you done, and where are you going?
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• Join Craig Kemp @mrkempnz and me, Laura Hill @candylandcaper tonight as #whatisschool sharpens its pencil and takes a look back at the way technology has changed us and a look forward to where education is heading in the future.
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• #whatisschool Questions January 19, 2017

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• 1)  How does the past shape your future in education? 
• 2) What innovations have brought positive change to your classroom?
• 3) What changes do you see as most needed in Education now, compared to when you started?
• 4) We often hear “that’s the way we've always done it,” how do we shift mindsets and create collaborative partnerships in our communities?
• 5) Describe your class in the year 2025, how is it different? What's stayed the same?
• 6) What will you do now to shape the future of education?

Take a look back at the first post I wrote for #whatisschool!

June 12, 2014 What Is School?

http://candylandcaper.blogspot.com/2014/06/whatisschool-june-12-2014.html

Teach Like A Rock Star

Teach Like A Rock Star

Using pop-culture to teach your students.

by Laura Hill

Last night I brought my daughters, 11 and 13, to see a post hard-core band playing on Long Island.  We saw four bands in all who played for a total of four and a half hours.  Everyone you could imagine was there in the tightly packed but intimate, super-artsy venue that seats 1500.  Huge steel gears and pipe left over from industrial days spun in a dazzling array of colored lights.  Loft seating and stadium chairs overlooked the floor.  A mosh pit opened up, then a girl with blue hair surfed the crowd followed by a dozen others who were lifted up and thrown to the stage by strangers in an ultimate game of "trust fall."  When they reached the stage they were put down in the run by one of the half dozen bouncers on hand to keep things safe.  Kids of all different races, colors and nationalities some sporting colored hair, piercings and tattoos, others satisfied with a simple concert T-shirt mixed, some like my daughter were as young as 11.  After each band played the lead singer held a meet and greet to sign autographs and take photos with a few lucky fans.  And when the show was over we all surged into the street.

So good, you might be thinking to yourself, glad you had a crazy night of family bonding.  But as an educator what does this mean to me?  Well, here's a thought.

Music, Rock 'n' Roll, pop culture, for your generation and the one you are educating, is a vehicle that enables people to find their voice.  Poets like Bob Dylan sang songs that spoke to the changing ideals of a generation.  And you can probably remember times when you were at odds with your parents and peers about your association with Rock, Punk, Grunge, Hardcore, Hip Hop or any other style of music.  What attracted you most likely was the excitement of the musicians but underlying that is something more fundamental, a provocative mindfulness that pushes us to look beyond ourselves, to see the world in a new perspective.  

And, in a world where we all are desperately trying to define our identity online and in person, this is really huge.

At the show, despite the diversity of the audience, there was no fighting, there was no heckling, there was no injury and every band who played sent out a message of using your personal voice to create peaceful solutions to world problems.  The band fronts encourage the audience to get involved in their communities, to have faith, to believe in themselves and to make a change for the better.   The lead singer of Sleeping With Sirens, Kellin Quinn, went so far as to say you're the voice of the generation. Sound familiar?

Today, educators often find themselves straddling a line between what they know and how to interact with a technology driven youth culture that they don't quite understand.  But the truth of the matter is if you combine pop culture with lessons you're going to get a lot more bang out of your book because your students will be much more enthused about what you're teaching.

Let students lead by starting with simple prompts like designing a great a new instrument and see where it goes.  By the time the group is done collaborating and creating their instrument they will have done research, used math, engineering, art, writing, science and maybe even technology-STEAM in an optimum pumped-up application.  Form a band and record a music sample to take it a step further.  Share with other students around the world or better yet collaborate as part of the process and you're mimicking life skills students will use working together in the real world. These types of opportunities are an outlet for personal expression and collaboration with diverse student groups.  

You are giving your students a chance to expand their minds to collaborate and learn without really noticing that they're being taught.

By helping students learn this way you're also showing students how to work together.  When students go and see musicians or are exposed to other influencers that have a positive, inspirational message of hope, love and ingenuity, they will collaborate together to spread a message of hope, love and ingenuity.

This is really important because students at these ages, typically between 11 and 18, are constantly trying to define themselves and find ways to express their emerging personalities, views and interests. 

We as adults have many ways to express ourselves through the clothes we wear, the cars we drive where we choose to live and the people we choose to associate with.  Students  often don't have that much  flexibility of choice, the financing, or the buy-in of decision makers (aka parents, teachers, coaches...) to express themselves in ways they feel represent the people they are becoming.  

If you give students a learning experience that is linked to their popular culture and embeds a message of hope, love and ingenuity your students in turn will have a positive impact on popular culture and become people who can use their voice along with technology to reach millions of others around the world. Look at the opportunities created by YouTube alone.

Immersing students in collaborative experiences using pop culture will take time and effort on your part.

However it will teach them to be stronger people.  By interacting with others and exploring their cultures students will learn tolerance, to overcome adversity, to reject haters and the divisive and often destructive nature of negative messaging. 

As the world gets smaller more often we are being asked to except people who are very different than ourselves, who have different cultures, desires and motives.  If we are going to nurture students who are proactive communicators, lovers of learning, lovers of culture we need to give them a sense that it's OK to explore diverse cultures and to learn to collaborate with others who are very, very different from themselves.

And here's the real uptick- children who can't find their "tribe" in traditional school channels of sports or academics can find acceptance and success in cultural arts, something that has been cut out of many school programs but that is vitally important to creative, out of the box thinking.  It's something I've been fighting for for years and you should too.

Every child should have the opportunity to grow their talents with like minded students.  Last night at the show I saw American youth acting more mature and more like citizens of the world than I  many adults I've seen this past week.

So teachers, educators and concerned people in the world why not take a chance on the youth of today?  Help to make their voice be heard.  Help them bring their culture to life through positive collaborations that will allow them to grow the future in new and exciting ways.

You may have to go out of your comfort zone but you'll be giving voice to a generation that will shape the future and who knows, you may decide that some of the elements of pop culture are right for you too.   

Why not take a chance, what have you got to lose?

I know that going to see the show with my daughters last night was about much more than just music. It was about helping them find like-minded people that are creating a culture of inclusion and freedom of expression, of tolerance, creativity and fun.

Now it's up to you to decide how to let your students use pop culture to learn in your classroom.  How about trying a creative bottle flipping contest in which students explore the world around them creating videotapes of places where they can find the perfect bottle balance?  What about a project in which students create outfits out of recycled materials? 

Teaching children to be resourceful and to use pop culture to express themselves is a gift you can give.  Pop culture usually doesn't grow from plenty but from need and innovation.  It is the voice of the people, so let your students be heard.

-Laura

Creating Student Voice, Let Yourself Be Heard!

Yesterday, a student came to school upset.  He was questioning the election, struggling to come to terms with wars fought by Veterans, with protests and athletes who did not pledge allegiance to their country.  After some conversation it became clear that he was really trying to define why he should be proud to be an American.  This is what I told him.

We as Americans are not the sum of our leaders, our President or policy-makers, we are the guiding voice behind the leader.  And real change does not come from tears and protest but from action.  So today you need to find the truths, perhaps brought forth by candidates in our recent election, heroes, Veterans and role models, and meld those good ideals into your own personal mantra.  This is mine:

I am not pro candidate,

I am pro student, youth and all who seek knowledge.  

I am pro working families. 

I am pro education. 

I am pro freedom. 

I am pro equality. 

I am pro the values of love and kindness, 

And the freedom to choose how I will use them. 

I am pro America and pro all peaceful countries of the world, and I am proud to be an American regardless of what anyone says.  Today, I stand with my fellow Americans, side by side, a nation of all races, colors and ideas. Today, I will work to make this country the best place it can be for myself my family my neighbor, even my enemy.  And if I see something I don't like, I won't walk by but will change it peacefully.

We are the voice of the nation, the voice of future generations. We are the voice of yesterday, tomorrow and today! If we listen to each other we can build the brightest future, one we can be proud to say we had a hand making.

We are Americans. 

We do not cry. 

We dust ourselves off.

We pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and we get busy.

All of our parents came here to start a new life, whether they came by ship, by plane or walked the Bering Straight.  It is our job to make sure that life is inclusive of all people, an idea that is fundamental and written on the heart of every American yet challenged at every turn. 

Ignite your passion let it burn! Build a country you that you can be proud of!

Today, put aside your arguments and stand up for your rights. Decide how you will make a difference then unite, and go after that change with a passion and integrity that is unparalleled!

I'd like to note at this time that the student I was working with is of color and at risk.  Not that it should matter but it seems that today more than ever before students need to understand that they can use their words and ideas to effect change and make a better life for themselves and others in their country regardless of their race, sex or any other unique qualities they possess.  I've helped this child and proudly watched him change from a person who used his fists to a young man who has found passion for activism reading about Rosa Parks, MLK and Harriet Tubman, who has seen dreams launch with Amelia Earhart and P.T. Barnum, who has fought in the Alamo.  By empowering our students with a lust for history and showing them the successes and failures of others we can teach them to see trends in the world, we can show them there is value in acting-not just getting upset and raging, that they can band together to create real change.

Students today have more opportunity to be heard than ever before.  

It is our duty as teachers, parents and people of all nations to let the voice of our youth be the "shot" heard 'round the world.  After all, it is their world to inherit and at this tipping point of globalization, war and ecological change they have a right to speak and be heard.  Be the teacher that facilities the change, you can do it!  And who knows, the student you are teaching may in turn change the world for the better for all of us.

God bless you all 

God bless America

Remember our Veterans today.

-Laura

Growing Your Brain By Changing Your Mindset

"Don't worry if you're bad in math, you're a really great writer."

We've all said something like this before or heard colleagues, parents, even students portraying themselves as "good" in certain academic areas and “bad” in others.  During extra curricular activities and in our personal lives we divide ourselves into athletes, artists, nerds, brainiacs, failures, successes, good kids and troublemakers. By defining ourselves we define our ability to grow academically and as a person by putting restrictions on what we can accomplish. Defining ourselves this way is characteristic of a fixed mindset, a way of thought that for decades has defined generalizations like boys are good in math and girls are good in writing.

21st century teaching defies these stereotypes presenting the opportunity for students, teachers and parents to foster increased cognitive abilities through a new way of thought, the Growth Mindset.

Researchers studying the brain have long known that neural pathways are carved into the surface of the brain by repetitive actions causing habits to be formed.  These habits are no more than fixed pathways for stimulus to travel on, stimulus that make us wake at a certain time or feel the urge to eat desert after a savory meal.  It has been shown that these neural pathways can be rerouted by changing the repetitive action, creating new paths and new behavior patterns.

So why is this so important?

In a growth mindset students are taught to understand that the brain grows with learning making them capable of achieving more.  It’s widely known that students who play an instrument grow a portion of the brain that remains completely undeveloped in their non-musical peers! Teaching students that their brains can grow with learning and that they can become better, even strong in subjects they haven't mastered produces students who are more motivated to learn, exert more effort and take charge of their own success

When students focus on improvement instead of worrying about how smart they are, they become better students, learn more academically AND learn how to position themselves for success outside of the school environment.  

Studies on growth mindset training, where students have been taught that they can become better academically through increased effort and focus on personal growth instead of benchmarks has played a role in increased performance on standardized tests, in decreasing gender gaps on performance in math, and academic improvement in racial arenas where students exhibited an increased enjoyment and value of their schoolwork.

Adopting a growth mindset at your school may come in many forms.  For administrators you might see an honest response to feedback and a willingness to learn from teachers, parents, staff and students. For teachers, an increased collaboration with peers and parents, a desire to strengthen skills and a belief that all students can succeed. For parents a growth mindset allows us to support our children's learning inside AND outside the classroom focusing on challenging children and encouraging them to put in the effort they need to grow.  Finally, students take charge of their own success, they enjoy the process of learning more and create a skill set that will serve them outside the classroom helping them meet challenges they will face as adults.

Changing from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset will not be always be easy.  Sure there will be pitfalls, failures and frustration as students strive to master difficult subject areas but the payoff of having students who are self motivated, productive, confident citizens is so much greater. So what are you waiting for?

-Laura

#whatisschool The Interactive Classtroom

The Interactive Classroom

Interactivity in the classroom, building stronger teacher-student 

and student to student relations.

Thomas sits at his desk and picks up his entry ticket, today's question is on whether environmental changes are effecting the local marine life population.  Halfway around the world Maria studies for a test by playing Kahoot with her friends while Adam, an elementary autism student, used Nearpod  to explore a 3D immersive panoramic of a farm and answer questions with his classmates. These are just a few examples of the ways educators are pairing interactivity with education to enhance learning, get feedback and gather data on student learning.

Classroom interactivity increases student's ability to think critically, problem solve and analyze.  It can provide important feedback for teachers allowing them to adjust pacing or teaching style to better engage their student community.  It creates stronger bonds between students and the teacher-student community and allows children to practice team building strategies in low risk settings.

Diversified learning models and technology have increased opportunities for classroom interactivity, but can also leave educators pressed for time and faced with mounting class loads wondering how to most effectively blend traditional and technological platforms  to increase interactivity in the classroom.  

This week #whatisschool explores the interactive classroom.   Join me, Laura Hill (@candylandcaper) and co-host Mark Weston (@shiftparadigm) , as we take a closer look at ways to engage students, foster community and build collaborative classroom platforms using technology. 

#whatisschool Questions

Q1: How can you engage students to foster community amongst peers and with teaching staff?

Q2: What types of interactive strategies (enter/exit tickets, pair/share, debate, role play) have you used, how did they work out?

Q3: What technologies have you employed (Nearpod, Kahoot) to increase interactivity, what were the results?

Q4: How can traditional strategies and technology be blended to enhance lessons and provide critical feedback to educators?

Q5: What tools, training or environmental enhancements would be most helpful to educators creating an interactive classroom?

Q6: How can interactivity foster skills that will help students succeed in school and post school life, and cope with a sometimes isolating technological world.

#whatisschool July 16, 2015 Making Community Connections

Making Community Connections


#whatisschool Thursday July 16, 7PM EDT

Gwen Pescatore @gpescatore25

For the last few weeks #whatisschool has been talking about ways to infuse your lessons with technology and open your mind to new ideas, especially new teaching strategies.

This week #whatisschool looks at ways that you can tap into your community, inside school walls, outside where your students live and on a global scale!  

Joining us is classroom connection expert and personal friend @gpescatore25, a leader in parent in edu-conversations at #PTchat, @Edutopia Community Facilitator #ParentCamp, Co-host of #ParentED (http://goo.gl/lS1xDu ) & Marketing Mgr @MomCorps (Check Gwen out at www.parentschoolpartners.wordpress.com)

Questions #whatisschool 

Thursday July 16, 7PM EDT

1). How have you connected students with their community? 

2) How can students collaborate and learn from others in the scholastic community? 

3) What community resources can you use to enrich lessons, with information, services or technology?  

4) How can you tap into cultural and real world experiences for your students? 

5) How can parents facilitate bringing real world experience into the classroom and getting student driven ideas into the community?