Weird Thinking Workbook - June 21, 2021
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Part 3 - exercises 8 -10
Exercise 8 - Personality Post-Its
human-focused, kind, adventurous, helpful, compassionate, supportive, inspiring, joyful, inspired, dynamic, resourceful, optimistic, transformative, inventive, uncomfortable, passionate, courageous, fearless, patient, witty, sympathetic
Top 5
compassionate
optimistic
inventive
fearless
witty
Exercise 9 - Must-making
What would our movement be...
If it were a film... I don't watch movies, and i'm certainly not a fan of this movie, but I'm thinking Transformers....cars flipping into giant robots. Let's create something different out of what we have.
if it were a celebrity or iconic figure...like with movies, I pretty much suck at pop culture. So I'll go to the internet and stick with the 'transformation' theme....how about Lady Gaga...sounds like a compelling transformation over the past decade.
if it were a country (other than the us)....Australia....they seem to have done the most work in terms of transforming their education system.
if it were an amusement park ride (other than a roller coaster)...ah...I remember the Transformers ride at Universal Studios...so let's stick with the transformation theme.
As a leader...
what do you care about?
I'd have to say people...connection...relationships...starting from an asset model.
Creating conditions for people to contribute toward change, transformation, advancement of the system, advancement of everyone's learning
Mindset...it's the only high leverage entry point to transformation. Support people in shifting mindsets to think and act differently.
what won't you tolerate?
dehumanizing behavior
deficit mindset
narcissism
know-it-all attitude
where does revenue go when it comes in?
back into anything that can help the organization or individuals learn more. Learning is an investment
how do you stay sane?
Connect with other like minds.
Change environments...get outside
My principles... (I must or I believe...)
I believe...
humans come first.
everyone has something to contribute.
leadership is action.
mindset rules the day.
Exercise 10 - Dip Insurance
How we'll push through....
look to others doing the work...for inspiration. Once again, connectiion.
share the story with others....for advice, feedback and input. Learn from that feedback.
Part 3 - exercises 4 - 7
Exercise 4 - Weird kids
Activities enjoyed as a child--I'm not really remembering much that was exciting!
Listening to music - I was pretty much a geek from early on. Introvert when it was possible. I rarely listened to popular music--mostly classical and jazz. I remember getting a Sony Walkman, and it cost like a couple of hundred dollars. I still have my LP record collection. My first job was working in the classical section of a music store.
Playing music - I actually started private trumpet lessons when I was in 3rd grade. Nobody in my family was musical or played an instrument. I continue to be a big consumer of the arts, but I don't play/perform any longer.
Playing with friends outside - We lived across from a playground. When we weren't in school we were hanging out with neighbors. Always outside. The park had a summer program, and I remember attending that since very young.
Exercise 5 - Passion Cocktails
Drivers
Primary - Impact, Integrity
I think these first two are the answer to some of my struggles since retiring in January. I need to feel like I'm doing something impactful...not just sitting around or, worst, doing someone else's work. I need goals and the work around them needs to be impacting something in a positive way.
Secondary - Intimacy
I don't work well in isolation. Even though I'm hugely introverted, I need to be working on projects with other people. So the relationship piece is a very important motivation.
Last - Income
While it's nice to acquire resources from my work, this isn't a priority..particularly now at this point in my life.
Exercise 6 - BA Triangle
I would say I gather people around ideas and ideals of schooling in an effort to design and build a new, humanized system. So, MENTAL.
Exercise 7 - Purpose statement... (after numerous iterations) We exist....
Inspiring educators...
to redesign schooling...
where every learner is seen, known and valued.
REVISED - June 9th, 2021
Part I
How am I unique? Unique: being the only one of its kind, unlike anything else
Strengths:
Belief: believe every human in the system has a unique contribution to make to the world. As educators, we help people uncover that contribution and share it to change themselves, organizations, communities...the world.
Vision: I have a compelling vision for human-centered schooling based on this belief and can STOKE that smoldering internal desire in others to align the system with instincts/beliefs..
Approach:
Start with the singular and collective curiosity of individuals and community around upgrading/changing/humanizing their unique contexts.
Co-design a new story (vision) and support with strategy and tactics.
Secret Weapon:
I know the big secret: educators feel trapped in a dehumanizing system, secretly want to change it and don't know how or even where to start.
Unfair Advantage:
Experience doing the work. I've lived the work of transforming systems from several different roles!
Location: Anywhere
How are they unique?
Gender: NA
Age: NA
Location: NA
Values: The avatar values...
Transformation: The K12 system needs to be transformed. Anything less is unacceptable.
Equity of opportunity for everyone: Not all kids are served.
Learner-Centered: The system needs to conform to the learner; not the other way around.
Human-Centered: Schooling is more than preparing kids for a job; we're preparing them to be flourishing humans in a family, a community, a nation, a world.
Success needs to be redefined: Agency is at the core to breaking the stale, false narrative of success. Success is tied to individual micromotives, curiosities and passions...not a job.
The current system is filled with anomalies: We need to rethink the structures of “school” that were built to dehumanize.
The longview: Education occurs in a context that is rapidly shifting––visions informed by strategic foresight.
We design learning, cultures and structures for memorable: autonomy, mastery, purpose.
Public education, as it is now, is fucked.
Channels:
Online - blogs, social media, education newsletters/sites
Conferences
My weird Statement (under 5 words each)
I am the only K12 education activator
Not crazy about this part...provocateur?
that stokes the smoldering desire for change...
(help people realize they don't need to be cogs, they can be leaders; and show them the how)
in school leaders.
(thinking of moving away from teachers, as my experiences may not resonate with them. I think it can be both teachers and formal leaders (principals, superintendents, directors, etc.), but I'm thinking formal leaders are my primary audience.)
Part 2
Audience backstory - the pain they feel
They feel they are agents (cogs) of the system...they want their agency back!
They feel a dissonance between their aspirations for their work (human-centered) and the structures/norms of the system (dehumanizing).
They feel they can't change it...and don't know where to start.
Audience quest - the thing they want
Acknowledgement of the secret -- they want more but don't know how or where to start.
The how...flexible enough for varying contexts...
A canvas
Launch pads
The possibility - what if....?
you could resolve the dissonance you feel and bring about relief?
you could make your context more human-centered?
we reached a critical mass of people humanizing education?
Old Version
Part I
How am I unique? Unique: being the only one of its kind, unlike anything else
Strengths:
Visionary - definitely in the field of education
One of the things that I am particularly interested in that doesn't appear to be on the radar of many educational leaders is strategic foresight.
I find that when I mention the word "foresight" people thing I'm talking about predicting the future.
I think this is because many educators have lived in a world of compliance and reacting to the rules and demands of a system.
They have surrendered their agency -- autonomy.
I would venture to say that many educators do not believe they can shape the future.
It's too complex....there are too many SYSTEMS that need to be rethought.
It's easier to just "do as I'm told" rather than imagine a transformed future that not only matches our aspirations (yes, I think educators do aspire to better) and the "real world" context outside of education.
What is that real world context?
Think SDGs ... sustainable development goals.
These are our collective problems that our kids...those kids in our charge need to solve now.
SDGs are a reason why educators need to take the longview.
If not, what are we preparing kids for?
Humanist
I do believe there is something good inside of every human -- even the seemingly most vile.
Our role in education is to advocate for this mindset and design the environments, experiences and conditions for each human -- young and old -- to find those gifts and share them with the world, for the betterment of the world and humanity.
I don't think that most educators would disagree (although some might), but there are so many instances in which we let the system operate against that.
Standardization
Compliance
Siloed curriculum
Placing content before connection, community, humanity
Not really getting to know what makes our people tick
I do believe that the purpose of education is far greater than "a job." Or academics.
We are human beings, yes, and part of that is being a producer and a consumer.
And there is also a whole world to focus on beyond "a job." And those should be prioritized.
Self-awareness
Micromotives
Curiosities
Problems you want to solve.
Learning
Agency
Making choices.
Networking....finding people with similar micromotives and curiosities
Contribution
What we do that provides fulfilment but also supports the greater good?
This is not about the ego and solely focusing the spotlight on the individual.
How do we have a fulfilled INDIVIDUAL and ADVANCING humanity?
Designer
I see myself as someone who creates conditions for other people to learn.
I'm not "command and control," implement my vision, believe what I believe, etc.
Prefer "enrollment" over "directives."
Although I understand when directives are needed.
Since I'm not commanding others, I have to design the conditions for them to see the possibilities and preserve their own agency to see the possibilities I see.
This takes time.
it's far easy to just say...here's the vision....go.
Example: years of raising the bar on expectations for changing classroom practice/school culture.
Designing professional learning, collaboration, reflection focused on our Learning Compass
Task Redesign
Universal Design for Learning
Skills: critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, communication
Disposition: curiosity, empathy, entrepreneurialism, risk-taking, persistence
Knowledge: global competence, core curriculum, digital literacy, financial literacy, health literacy
Feedback and Assessment
Conditions for learning
Competency-based
Personalized, relevant, contextualized
Agency
Socially embedded
Open-walled
RESULTING in the north star: Competent Learners
Curious
Of late, I'm curious about some seemingly divergent fields....
Leading transformational change
Flourishing as an outcome of education
Strategic foresight
Longevity/Vitality
I think these can be tools we use to design a transformed system
By transformed I mean something unlike what we currently have.
The biggest challenge to this is legacy thinking...and the shedding it; not being subject to it.
Storyteller
Definitely a skill I want to improve, but I enjoy...
Writing about the work
Speaking about the work
Amplifying others' voices.......
Approach:
See "Designer" above.
Agency is at the core of my approach.
Always want to be careful not to rob agency away from others.
This honors the individuality of others and recognizes that everyone makes change in their own time.
When change is not forced, yet expected, it will be sustainable.
Helping a system see and sense itself.
No longer turn away....turn toward.... We must embrace the current system in order to transform.
Secret Weapon:
Not sure...
I've been in the system.
Insider perspective?
Although this won't last very long....
Synthesis of divergent areas?
Experienced? More than a thought leader...someone who has actually done the work, continues to think about it and can speak to those experiences.
Unfair Advantage:
There aren't too many people in the field of education that have decades of experiences across different roles from technology to CEO-type leadership (Superintendent).
I have the evidence from experience to give back to the field and others on the path of similar transformation.
Technology - 1:1 programs and using technology in ways that reinforce a human-centered system, not necessarily the old school-centered paradigm.
System transformation
Profile of a Graduate
Project Wonder - school within a school - grades 6-8
Paradigm shift: school-centered to learner-centered
Connection before content
Curriculum - co-designing learning experiences with young learners, starting with their interest and curiosities.
Supporting teachers and leaders with the required mindset shifts (Mindshifts) (Profile of an Educator??? Profile of a Transformational Educator???)
A mindshift is a deep change in life that occurs thanks to learning.” ~Barbara Oakley
Explore possibilities.
Inquirer - Just be curious.
Humanist - Put the human first.
Futurist - Get your head out of the present.
Make a choice
Leader - Lead from anywhere.
Make your choice your reality.
Designer - Design for memorable.
Researcher - Leverage your insider perspective.
Storyteller - Tell a new story.
Location:
Anywhere!
How are they unique?
Gender: not specific
Age: not specific
Location: US
Values: The ideal avatar is anyone working inside or outside the system that agrees with these as pain points.
Transformation: The K12 system needs to be transformed
Equity of opportunity for everyone: Not all kids are served
Learner-Centered; The system needs to conform to the learner; not the other way around
Human-Centered: Schooling is more than preparing kids for a job; we're preparing them to be flourishing humans in a family, a community, a nation, a world.
Success needs to be redefined: Agency is at the core to breaking the stale, false narrative of success. Success is tied to individual micromotives, curiosities and passions...not a job.
Our system is filled with anomalies: We need to rethink the structures of “school.”
The longview: Education occurs in a context that is rapidly shifting––visions informed by strategic foresight.
We design learning, cultures and structures for memorable: autonomy, mastery, purpose.
Public education is fucked.
My weird statement (under 5 words each)
Updated...still don't really like it....
Swapped second line (that...) and third line (for..).
"only" feels a bit uncomfortable...
I am the only K12 thought leader
helping those hungry for new education systems
to develop the key mindshifts for change.
Previous version
I am the only...k12 thought leader with the richness of insider perspective experiences
thought leader
insider perspective
arts teacher
formal leader
technology
teaching and learning
operational
superintendent
that...serves the educational community through producing content, speaking and coaching
thought leadership
speaking
coaching
for...those aspiring to design/create a new human-centered K12 educational ecosystem.
pick one, right?
leaders
teachers
students
parents
board members
policymakers
entrepreneurs working on solutions aligned to transforming schooling
Part 2
Audience backstory - the pain they feel
Agents (cogs) of the system
Agency is very much in the hands of the system...not in the people on the ground....teachers, students and families.
The pain comes at the rub between the natural human desire for agency (think Dan Pink's trifecta of motivation - autonomy, mastery, purpose)
Two negative outcomes (pain points) - lack of fulfillment on the job; lack of fulfilling experiences for young learners
Dissonance between ASPIRATIONS for their work, those in their care and the system...and an overwhelming FEELING THEY CAN'T CHANGE IT.
The work happens to them instead of them co-designing the work.
Too many constraints
Too many people with power that use it to reinforce a lack of autonomy
Bottom line: They current system was designed to dehumanize, not humanize!
Audience quest - the thing they want
Why
Why is the system set up this way?
It makes no sense (from a human standpoint...we're here to serve humans after all) there is this dissonance between our aspirations for the system and the way it currently operates.
What are some entry points into the HOW of changing the system?
People don't know where to start.
They want a technical solution to an adaptive change -- checklist to follow.
But that's kind of a problem...changing the system is highly contextualized...each learning environment has a unique solution, but that solution is based on principles.
The answer to HOW is simple; it's just not easy to implment.
Not something people want to hear.
The possibility - What if...
What if you could change the system?
Where are the places that have overcome a system that robs agency from the people on the ground and allows them to create a new system that matches their aspirations?
What have those people done?
How have they done it?
Think through 2 seemingly contradictory archetypes that help describe your unique offering (i.e. Rambo meets the Dalai Lama)
Dewey meets Da Vinci (Doesn't feel too contradictory...)
Dewey - ideas about progressive education progressive education
Sets the guardrails
the WHY of education
Outcomes such as flourishing/well-being (HUMAN) as opposed to...
Dehumanized - "winning" the learning game (high grades), sole focus on being a consumer/producer (cog in the system), NOT focused on learning (a uniquely human endeavor).
Da Vinci - model learner
Man of action
Humanist
Took principles of multiple areas and designed "solutions"
The value of context...
Principles are universal (WHY); Pathways (solutions) are personal and contextualized (HOW)
Context requires us to be learners...no scripted solutions; no checklists; no step by step
Be a chef...not a line cook...
You first need to understand the ingredients and how they interact before you can design new.