CHANGEd: What if we “called the electric company” more often with gratitude? 60-60-60 #45

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Can you imagine working in an industry that achieves great success yet receives a disproportionate number of calls of complaint? I bet my electricity works 360 out of 365 days of the year. But when do I call the power company? When things aren’t working. I wonder what it’s like to work at the power company? Are we too much a culture of “no news is good news?”

Do we celebrate success enough in schools…in our colleagues…in our students? Do we spread those positive stories enough and amplify the many victories? Do we mark papers and give feedback that is more mistake and “fix this” oriented or more bright spot and “build on this current strength” oriented? What do we highlight on report cards and progress reports? Do we “pick up the phone” enough when things are working?

My lights are shining, my coffee maker is brewing, and my refrigerator is keeping things cold. I think I’ll go make a call.

CHANGEd: What if…60-60-60 Project Explained

Related Work that I Investigate for Relevance to this Idea:

CHANGEd: What if we slowed down and let strong bonds form? 60-60-60 #44

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Has the new American greeting become, “Did you get my email?” Have we unintentionally resolved that “Busy” is the standard response to “How are you?” Have agendas become more driving than relationships? Is the working lunch the result of crowding time at the margins? Do five minute pass times really allow people to shift gears and catch their breaths? Is it healthy for a student to have a 7:00 a.m. meeting and remain at school until 7:00 p.m., or later, on a regular basis?

What if we slowed down? What if we gradually and purposefully replaced some quantity with quality? What if we served fewer items from the buffet to our plates, but what if we served more of fewer items? Would we stop and talk to each other more? Would we look each other in the eyes rather than walking by with that “I gotta get somewhere fast” gaze on our smartphone screen?

What if we offered fewer “subjects” because we understood that they are all connected and integrated anyway? What if we realized that the BIG issues in the world will not be solved through one siloed discipline…and what if we realized that they will ALL be solved through empathy and relationship?

CHANGEd: What if…60-60-60 Project Explained

CHANGEd: What if we schools collaborated more purposefully? 60-60-60 #43

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In all of the talk about 21st Century learning, one would be hard pressed not to hear “collaboration” mentioned. We expect students to learn to collaborate, and we structure more opportunities for students to co-labor. Certainly, we expect our teachers and faculties to collaborate more deliberately. What if we schools collaborated more purposefully? Isn’t more intentional school-to-school collaboration the next (and critical) ripple in the pond? [Maybe it should have been the first!] When do we put aside unique branding, competition, rival mascot bashing, and realize that deep, systemic educational transformation will demand that we work together.

When Hollywood has a big issue to address – an humongous asteroid hurtling towards Earth or an evil Empire building a Death Star that can destroy planets, for instance – they always create a crackpot team of amazing strength-diversity, and they co-labor to save the day. When might “School Wars” hit the big screen…not because we are battling each other – public vs. private, private vs. private, etc. – but because we are teaming and collaborating to make big, needed change in our universe?!

“Use the Force!” (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)

CHANGEd: What if…60-60-60 Project Explained

CHANGEd: What if we taught history backwards or offered “war and peace” course? 60-60-60 #42

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For many years at my current school, I held membership in the History Department. In a newsletter one year, I proposed the idea (don’t think I am the originator!) of teaching history backwards – start today and work backwards in time tracing connections and interesting linkages. Dr. Lamplugh even did it one year (said he loved it)! One could weave this approach together with thematic teaching in a course like “News.” Or even better, one could employ Steve Goldberg’s deep-digging approach detailed in his recent post: “Why not teach about war? We’re fighting two right now….”

I think it’s about making connections, don’t you? Connections with “what’s going on today” and “how did we get here on this issue?” Connections with the PEOPLE living this news and emerging from these histories. Connections among the things that we overly silo…called departments or disciplines.

The spider cannot weave a web except by leaping from where she currently resides and connecting to another anchor. From these anchors emerge the threads that last when the wind blows most viciously. From these anchors empathy blooms.

CHANGEd: What if…60-60-60 Project Explained

CHANGEd: What if teachers and students swapped roles more often? 60-60-60 #41

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Empathy and EQ (emotional intelligence) may just be the most critical character traits of the present and future. As my students have recently defined it in Synergy, empathy is putting oneself in another person’s shoes. I wonder if we do that enough in schools – actually placing ourselves in other people’s shoes. On September 30, 2011, I published a post called “Freaky Friday – just an idea for a student-teacher switch.” This weekend, friend and colleague John Burk sent me a post entitled “Make Teachers Classroom Students.” What if teachers and students swapped roles more often? What if we wove these practices into the fabrics of our schools?

CHANGEd: What if…60-60-60 Project Explained

[Author’s Note: Before finally hitting “schedule” on this post, I turned to my book shelf to reference Dan Pink’s book, A Whole New Mind. Sure enough, “empathy” represents an entire section of the book – one of the six highlighted senses. But I knew that. What struck me was this  – until I referenced the table of contents, I did not realize how much I was mentally utilizing the six senses as the themes for these 60-60-60 posts. A major “AHA!” moment for me.]