Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about what makes learning, leading, and educational ecosystems thrive. Over my two decades of serving in many roles in education, I have been witness to receiving change, implementing change, and leading change. All are hard. As Richard Gerver shares in his book Change, “You cannot thrive alone. Innovation and …
Recently I sat in a classroom where high school students were presenting a group project. They had just read Julius Caesar and were comparing some of the main themes with other historical themes that have transpired in our world. I was excited to see students standing in front of the classroom not only bringing a …
In education we live in a sea of choices and resources. Each day can bring a new strategy to consider, a digital platform to explore, or a framework to unpack. As educators, we care deeply about getting it right for our students, so we read, we listen, and we reflect on what will continue to …
I believe one of the most important responsibilities we share in educational leadership is creating the conditions for others to do important work. Creating systems and structures may not always be the most inspiring part of leadership, but it is the work beneath the work. It doesn’t always feel visible or highlighted on a social …
We were sitting together, teachers gathered around student work from a newly designed performance assessment. The task asked students to engage in a deep study of character in literature. Instead of a single written response, students were given multiple pathways to show their thinking through a multimedia performance assessment. Students could write, speak, design, create, …
I love learning. If you’re here reading, that probably isn’t a secret and I’m guessing you love it too. I write every week about my thinking and learning, and it rarely lives in just one place. It doesn’t matter which medium it comes from. I take it all in and layer it. Books. Articles. Conversations. …
Continue reading 10 Podcasts Outside of Education That Are Elevating My Thinking
When leadership and learning feel heavy, what helps us decide how to move people forward with care and intention? This is a question that continuously rests on the shoulders of those leading complex work in schools. And if you are reading this post, perhaps this resonates with your own thinking. In his new book, Forward, …
Time is magic. It may be our greatest resource, and the one we never seem to have enough of. Yet it’s not magic because it appears out of nowhere; it’s magic because of what happens when leaders intentionally create it. When leaders carve out time to learn with teachers, meaningful professional learning doesn’t just happen. …
I still remember the first time I stepped into a classroom as an instructional coach. I had my notebook, my questions, and my curiosity, but I also had something I did not yet have language for: the sense that I was entering magical space. At the time, coaching was a role many didn’t fully understand. …
How can students show what they truly understand, not just what they can remember? This question sat at the center of our recent work with sixth-grade ELA teachers, and it pushed us to rethink what meaningful assessment should look like. While there is an important place for both formative check-ins and traditional multiple-choice measures, we …
Empower. Collaborate. Connect. 