Failure is not an Option

As teachers we are entrusted with the duty of educating EVERY child that enters our classrooms.   A query I ran last week identified that we have thousands of our students in middle and high school failing their classes, yes I did say thousands. What does that mean for each of us? What does that mean for our teachers? What does that mean for our parents/guardians?  Most importantly, what does that mean for our students? 

What does a grade truly reflect? A poignant statement by a student the other day sums it up quite well in my opinion. The student said, "Grades are really stressful for students. When a student receives a poor grade on a test, it makes them feel like they are dumb. It would be so much better if teachers used the results of tests to show what they need to teach a student and then teach them that. If you don't know how to do something, isn't that when someone is supposed to teach you how to do it? Instead our teachers tell us we are failures if we don't know how to do something." If I were still in the classroom I would definitely want to employ this approach and mindset in my classroom. That is truly a growth mindset! A grade can make such an impact either positive or negative on a child's psyche and future. 

It is our moral obligation to ensure EVERY student receives a quality education and we cannot give up on any student. There are multiple layers to the reasons why a student may have received an F, but as leaders we must lead the charge right now to uncover why and to work to rectify this epidemic that we cannot be complacent or okay with. 

I have run reports, looked at individual students in Aeries, and asked myself hundreds of questions about how we could allow this to happen. Here is my response today that I want to scream from the rafters, we CAN'T allow this. Each principal and each teacher needs to look into what is going on and develop plans of action to work together to rectify the problem. Our children deserve to be respected so much that we do all that is possible to assist them in growing and learning. 

I know each of you cares deeply about your students and you want them all to be successful. So, let's link arms and come together to solve this problem. Kids Deserve It!

 

Gratitude....

Today is the final official work day before the week long Thanksgiving break begins. It is a time that many people ponder what they are thankful and grateful for in their lives. The holiday forces us to have gratitude in the forefront of our minds but it can be so easily forgotten when we move past this holiday season. I remind myself as much as I can that I need to pause and reflect on the many things in my life that I am grateful for and that give me joy. My family is my core and without them I would not be who I am today. I value and appreciate what each person in my family has provided me throughout the years. Every interaction, both positive and negative, have helped to shape the daughter, sister, wife, and mother I am today.

What I do recognize is that life moves fast.....

We are all connected in the interesting framework of our world. We don't always recognize the importance of the moments we have with one another. Think about how much time you spend passing others on the sidewalk, in the store, at work.  Did you make the best of those moments? I know that I could do much more. Just a smile can make a difference.  Every interaction we have creates a ripple in our lives and that ripple carries out and touches others. The decisions we make on how we respond to the interactions we have is what is so important. Do we respond with positivity and spread that light?? Or do we respond with anger or negativity and spread that darkness??

I am truly grateful for where I am at this moment in my life. I am grateful for everyone that has been a part of my life even if only in a minor way. I am grateful to be alive and to have an amazing husband and two beautiful girls. I am grateful for my parents and my siblings and my nieces and nephews. I am grateful for my friends.

The Next Six Weeks

This is an exciting time. We have six more weeks until the end of first semester. Each school has the opportunity to take advantage of this time to work on improving student outcomes. Think about the positive school culture you would have if all of your students passed their classes first semester! Think about how encouraged and motivated each student would be to persevere and try even harder next semester. When we feel success we are more creative, motivated, and energized to keep going.

As school leaders I challenge each of you to use every minute school is in session for the next six weeks to improve outcomes for ALL of your students. Final semester grades are permanent and despite what any student might say, they are important to them and impact their futures.  Don't wait for students to fail!! Progress reports were done last Friday, use those to identify students that need targeted help and respond NOW so that each student has an opportunity to show what he/she is capable of. Don't discount anyone, each student can improve.  However, students can't do it alone. Struggling students need caring adults to respond and support them to overcome any barriers in the way.

Each secondary admin responded to a reflection prompt at yesterday's level meeting. "In September you completed an LCAP Gap Analysis to determine if your SPSA was in alignment with the LCAP, in October you reviewed progress report grades and MAP results to determine student needs and develop your actions. It is now November and you have six more weeks until the close of First Semester. Please reflect on your progress of your actions you identified in September and October. Are there any changes you need to make for November to improve your student outcomes?" Don't let that be a moment that passes you by. Take what you said to heart and use it to fuel your actions for the next six weeks. Trust me, your students will be grateful that you did!!

We must graduate every FSUSD student and ensure that they leave FSUSD college and career ready!  Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!!

Defeat, Support, and Being a Caring Adult...

I have written blog posts in the past regarding "failing forward." I do believe at my core that we learn from our failures.  I also do believe that we become more and more resilient to adversity as we encounter new challenges along our journey of life.

However, despite the ease of of writing and talking about failing forward and being resilient, there is a different feeling of angst when someone you love dearly is handed a major blow or let down.  In some ways it is harder  to see your loved ones go through heartbreak as you have no control over the situations and yet you want nothing but happiness for them.  I believe our role as adults is to provide encouragement, stability, and love through the difficult times.  I am blessed to have two girls that I can support and love through their many trials life will bring their way.

Let's all pause for a moment and think about all the students that will walk through our doors today and tomorrow.  What potential heartbreak or adversity did they endure the day/night before?  Did they have the luxury of having a caring, loving adult in their home to provide them reassurance, love, and support? Some of our students would be able to answer yes, but others are not so lucky and are reliant on themselves to get through the challenging times.  Please think about each of your students INDIVIDUALLY as you welcome them to school each day. Take the time to Know Their Face, Know Their Name, and Know Their Story.  It is our OBLIGATION and our mission to support EVERY student.  We must treat ALL students with Respect and Dignity. We also have the obligation to support them, meet their needs, and ensure they leave our schools better than when they entered.

We must not forget our work and our purpose. We are here for the STUDENTS!!

Teamwork and Communication

You can learn a lot from spending time watching youth soccer games. I am super proud of my daughter and her select team. They won this past weekend's Halloween Tournament in Folsom. But, I think we ALL can learn a lot from team sports.

Soccer is such a TEAM effort. It is essential that each player is skilled in his/her position but is also adaptable and able to sub in for a player in a different position when needed. Each player understands the rules of the game and learns the most effective way to capitalize on one another's strengths. Additionally, they adapt their plays on the field to respond to the other team. One element that is critical is COMMUNICATION. On the field it is a necessity that the players communicate with each other to announce if they are open for a pass, if a player is behind them about to approach the ball, or if their teammate is getting close to an off sides call. It all works beautifully when both TEAMWORK and COMMUNICATION are synced.

Were you making a mental analogy between the soccer field and the work that you do in your department and/or school? We each must hone and refine our craft in our immediate position, but we also must be well versed in our FSUSD policies and procedures so that we can "sub" in and help out the larger team when needed. We must adapt and adjust according to our students needs and without a doubt we must continually and effectively communicate so that we can truly work as a TEAM unit!! We each play a role in the success and/or failures of FSUSD. Let's focus on ensuring a WIN for our students. That WIN is graduating high school!! We can do this! We must do this! #TOGETHER

We must graduate every FSUSD student and ensure that they leave FSUSD college and career ready!  Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!!

Being Intentional At the End of Each Day...

I have been able to spend some more time reading When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel Pink. I am excited to share another excerpt from the book that has so much relevance in our field of education.

Chapter Five is entitled, "Time Hackers Handbook" and has a section titled "Four Areas Where You Can Create Better Endings" one of the areas that I want to share with you is: The Workday.  Below is a direct excerpt from the book on page 172.

The Workday

When the workday ends, many of us want to tear away-- to pick up children, race home to prepare dinner, or just beeline to the nearest bar.  But the science of endings suggests that instead of fleeing we're better off reserving the final five minutes of work for a few small deliberate actions that bring the day to a fulfilling close.  Begin by taking two or three minutes to write down what you accomplished since the morning.  Making progress is the single largest day-to-day motivator on the job.  But without tracking our "dones," we often don't know whether we're progressing.  Ending the day by recording what you've achieved can encode the entire day more positively. (Testimonial: I've been doing this for four years and I swear by the practice.  On good days, the exercise delivers feelings of completion; on bad days, it often shows me I got more done than I suspected.) 

Now use the other two or three minutes to lay out your plan for the following day.  This will help close the door on today and energize you for tomorrow.

Bonus: If you've go an extra minute left, send someone--anyone-- a thank you e-mail.  I mentioned in chapter 2 that gratitude is a powerful restorative.  It's an equally powerful form of elevation.


😍I think this practice could help me a lot!!  I am committing to making it part of my way to close each of my work days. I will do a progress check in a month to see what impact it is having on me.-KW

Remember how important your words and actions are on all those that you interact with!

We must graduate every FSUSD student and ensure that they leave FSUSD college and career ready!  Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!!

Take Time to Reflect

I encourage everyone to take some time to reflect on their past month of work and look at your actions and your words and determine if you have been LEADING or MANAGING. True leadership is such an important element to the success of a school, business, home, etc. Your work will contain elements of management, but in the absence of leadership, managing work will maintain status quo and ensure things happen as they always have. If you want fundamental change and improvement, you need both leadership and elements of management.  There is a difference between leadership and management. Leadership entails establishing a clear vision, sharing that vision with others so that they will follow willingly, and providing the information, knowledge and methods to realize that vision. Management is a set of principles relating to the functions of planning, organizing, directing, and controlling, and the applications of these principles in harnessing physical, financial, human and informational resources efficiently and effectively to achieve organizational goals. 

As the leader of your campus, ask yourself these two questions:

1. What is the vision or direction I am setting for my school?

2. How am I spearheading that vision or direction?