Category Archives: 21st C Learning

GOOGLE and the JHS

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Recently, I have been struck by the number of people who are talking about Google’s “philosophy” of encouraging engineers to take up to 20% of their at-work time to pursue projects of their own. Here are a few of the hits produced if one Googles the topic:

According to many of the stories, some of Google’s greatest innovations have been born from this 20% time. Rather than assuming the typical hierarchy of organization would provide vision and mission to “require” a workplace of innovation, the admin and management merely provide encouragement for an attitude of “bottom-up” leadership (I hate that term and what it implies). The admin and management simply encourage the professionals to pursue personal interests and they provide time for that pursuit to happen at work. As I read the blogs and article linked above, I became intrigued by the idea of “grouplets.” Rather than individuals pursuing personal projects, engineers were banding together to work collaboratively with this 20% time.

At Westminster, in the Junior High School (JHS) in particular, we have been on a multi-year journey to restructure professional development. We are using the professional learning community (PLC) model and principles to create a new infrastructure for teachers (our “learning engineers”) having the opportunity to work collaboratively together. We have taken a bit of an aggressive approach, and we believe that job-embedded time must be created for such collaboration.

Typically, teachers carry a five-class student course load. For example, a math teacher, in the past, would have five sections of student classes. In the more recent history, we have transitioned one of those periods to be a PLC period. In essence, we have created something akin to Google’s 20% time. One of five sections, transitioned to serve as a PLC period for teacher collaboration, equates to “20% time.”

Through the PLCs, teachers are innovating! Just having a guaranteed time to discuss all of the complexities of teaching and learning is such a positive development. However, much more than discussion is happening. With these four hours per week (we have a rotating schedule and every period meets four times per week), teacher teams are re-exploring writing as thinking, formative assessment ideas, second-chance testing, four-point rubric development, technology integration, content understanding in various fields, and the list goes on.

But I wonder if the 42 (of 74) teachers currently involved in formalized PLCs (we plan to work toward 100% integration for ALL teachers) see their PLC period as this Google-esque 20% time. I believe some do, for sure. But do all of them? Have I exercised my leadership in such a way that it is obvious and communicated clearly that PLC time can be for assessing student learning and creating innovations for enhancing that learning?

So many opportunities, so many possibilities! By striving to “democratize” the work day for careful study of student learning and possible educational innovations, don’t we increase the likelihood for better teaching and learning? In fact, without the 20% time in schools for the commited, motivated teachers who strive for their own continued learning and that of their students, will we really improve education, in any considerable ways, during this second decade of the 21st century?

Here’s to a New Year’s resolution for “20% time” in our schools…for the countless, dedicated teachers who simply need time to collaboratively explore, discover, innovate, and educate!

Figure 1: Formalized PLC Growth at Westminster, 2007-2011

Play! Tinker!

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An important reminder from Lee Burns about the importance of PLAY in learning. As for me, I may have learned more about problem solving by finishing the basement of a house than I have learned about problem solving in any other way. And it all felt like play…well, most days!

Take some time and check out Gever Tulley’s Tinkering School, and watch his TED talks, too.

Vlogging is Thinking – PBL

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Today, my post comes in the form of a “vlog” – a video blog. The vlog is highly imperfect and is very much a working draft, but I wanted to experiment with some “thinking out loud,” some synthesis of thought, some home video, and a Buck Institute resource. Hopefully, this vlog post  can spur some continued thinking and conversation about project-based learning – something I think about rather incesantly already.

Kaizen

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For the past few days, I have been enjoying Garr Reynolds’ book Presentation Zen Design. A friend gave me the book because he knows I make many presentations and because he knows that we study and implement design in the Synergy 8 course. In short, the book is brilliant. It is one of those relatively rare reads that makes you think you have only just begun when you finish reading the last page. It satisfies while leaving one hungrier still.

Throughout the book, Reynolds makes the point of “kaizen” as continuous improvement. On page 234, he summarizes that

Kaizen is key to the steady improvement and innovation of successful companies….’Kaizen is one of those magical concepts that is at once a philosophy, a principle, a practice, and a tool.’ It’s also an approach we can learn from and apply to our own lives as we strive for continuous improvement on a personal level….Kaizen is daily, continuous, and steady – it takes the long-term view. Kaizen also requires a commitment and a strong willingness to change….The interesting thing about kaizen is that big, sudden improvements are not necessary. Instead, what is important is that you’re always looking for ideas-even the smallest ideas-that you can build on. Tiny improvements are OK as over the long term they can add up to great improvements. Each journey begins with a single step.

So, here’s to kaizen. And, on a related note, check out Garr Reynolds’ site devoted to presentation zen.
Garr Reynolds’ recent post on education and learning.

“Only Connect…”

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“Only connect…”

Before family awoke this morning, I read a few tweets and blog posts. These three are swimming in my mind still – weaving themselves together in ways that make me wish I already had developed the writing skills necessary to articulate the picture which exists in my mind.

Three tweets/blog posts:

Bob Ryshke on “Disruptive Innovations and Creating a Culture of Innovation”

Nancy Flanagan on “Digging Out”

Bill Ferriter on “One Tweet CAN Change the World”

For me, the tapestry created by weaving these three thought-provokers together can be summarized with the E.M. Forster quote, “Only connect…” For me, the most critical educational innovation to be realized in the 21st century is for administrators and teachers to work together to make possible the opportunities needed for educators to connect. Educators must be learners and must model learning, and our educational structures must be innovated to foster and promote connected learning among the adults in the buildings. We must dig out of antiquated, isolated structures that keep teachers, the lead learners, separated. We must share and we must find educators who are sharing. We need to think together. We need to connect. Our students deserve our best selves, and WE are smarter than ME.

Only connect…

A school infrastructure that allows – no, PROMOTES – connected learning among the adults is a school infrastudcture that can guide students to learning that matters greatly in the 21st century. How do we expect to facilitate 21st-century-skill development in our students if our teachers don’t live in an environment – in a mindset – that facilitates 21st century skill development?

INNOVATE for teachers and administrators to enjoy job-embedded time to learn together – to CONNECT – and I would be willing to guarantee that endless other innovations will follow. Motivation is NOT the issue for teachers…TIME is the issue. Let’s make time for lead learners to learn together…to connect.

Connect. Only connect…