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I really enjoyed getting the chance to speak with Michael and encourage you to consider reading the post he wrote about WA Mash.

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Mr. Morse couldn’t be here today so he asked me to step in on his behalf, and welcome all of you to the start of the 176th year here on the Hilltop. 176 years. Have you ever stopped for a moment and thought about what it means to be a part of a place that has been around that long? Go back in time with me for a moment and think about how much our world has changed in that time. Consider for a moment, that back then, in the early to mid-1800’s there were a group of creative thinkers, some would call them rebels, who were pushing the envelope by rebelling against what they saw as the current situation and what they were trying to be different from. They were call the Transcendentalists and another way to look at them is to see them as a generation of people who were struggling to define spirituality and religion (our words, not necessarily theirs) in a way that took into account the new understandings that the time they were living in made available to them. This movement brought us some of the most important and influential thinkers of their time. Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. And while this moment in history was unfolding, in real time, Worcester Academy students were taking classes and learning from one another and their teachers. It was all happening right around them.

Or think about the fact that just shortly after the civil war, Worcester Academy students were watching the Headmaster at the time, Dr. Daniel Abercrombie, slowly expand the campus to include the buildings we use today. Kingsley, Walker Hall, The Megaron. But more importantly, they were experiencing a curriculum, which he brought to the school from Europe and was considered progressive and innovative for its time. It included the study of science and mathematics. And again, while that moment was unfolding, in real time, Worcester Academy students were gathering around the quad, much like you do today. Engaging in conversations, making steadfast friendships, competing in athletic events and performing on stage. They may not have realized at that time, in fact, I am pretty sure that like most teenagers, many of them were completely unaware that they would become the leaders of tomorrow. These same students, very much like all of you, would go on to become the founder and first editor of National Geographic magazine. Or create companies that would dominate industry such as Merrill Lynch. They would help break important social and racial barriers and go on to compose music that will forever be woven into the fabric of the American experience.

But back then, they were just ordinary students, being told to tuck in their shirts and avoid being late to class, and whether they realized it or not, they were living during extraordinary times; the industrial revolution, the Great Depression, World Wars I and II.

And in my opinion how lucky they were.

Can you imagine what it would be like to be a student at Worcester Academy when amazing and profound things were happening all around you? Just think for a moment what it might be like…

Climate change, world conflict and war, global economic challenges, the first African American President of the United States, the first Latina to be appointed to the Supreme Court and here at Worcester Academy, the first latina to be elected Head Monitor. Imagine how amazing it would be to live during a point in time when we would see advances in technology, medicine and engineering bringing us iPhones, hybrid fuel efficient cars and advances in the detection and treatment of breast cancer.

It would be pretty amazing.

So here we are, at the start of a new school year. And while this moment begins to unfold, in real time, those of us fortunate enough to be a part of Worcester Academy once again have a unique opportunity. It is our privilege to be living during a moment in time that I strongly feel, and many others believe, will be looked at as historic, some might even say revolutionary. And while others might disagree with that statement, what matters and what makes living during historic times so amazing is that they stand out. They represent moments that future generations will recall and for better or worse, will define those of us who lived during them. Students looking back at this time 100 years from now, in the year 2109, sitting where you are sitting today, will either look back and remember us as having collectively risen to meet these historic challenges or having missed the opportunity to seize the moment and truly be the change we wish to see in the world. I for one, firmly believe in all of you. Every adult who is a part of Worcester Academy believes in you, all we ask, is that you believe in yourselves.

Have a historic year. Thank you.

(Presented at the all school assembly 9/3/2009)

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So today involved a variety of Sunday morning rituals one of which included attending a 10 am class with one of my favorite instructors, Shawn Shaw of Metrowest Yoga in Westborough, MA. Shawn is one of those teachers who infuses into her teaching a way for you to connect your practice to your daily life. Today she made a statement during class that stuck with me. She said “Those of you who are paying attention to the person in front of you or behind you and trying to make their practice your own, need to remember that your neighbor has his or her own story to tell.” Think about it. The person next to me has a story inside them that only they know. It might be an injury, a tramatic experience, a personal goal, triumph or victory. But it is their story to tell. For those of us who study and practice yoga, it would be misguided of us to try and make their yoga practice our own. So, the take away lesson is that for students of yoga, you should make your yoga practice your OWN practice.

Now think about this for a moment. How often to you hear people in schools say “Did you hear what they are doing over at Xyz Academy?” or “Such&Such Day School has this new program in _________, we should really look into that for our school.” It’s common. It happens all the time. How quick was your school to set up a Facebook or Twitter because the school across town did it? Or rush into a new 1 to 1 laptop, service learning or multicultural education initative because they had heard about some other school having achieved some success because of their journey in a new and exciting direction? So let’s stop there and let me take you back to my yoga metaphor. Vinyasa yoga is a breathing exercise, which incorporates a style of breathing called Ujjayi breathing, and requires that you take deep and long breathes in and out of your noise, making an ocean sound while you inhale and exhale. It is said that Ujjayi breathing is a balancing and calming breath, and having experienced it, I for one can attest to its calming power.

In looking back at my last post, I am sure it may have appeared that I was on mission to wake schools up. A rant so to speak to bring attention to the need for schools to stop talking and start doing. And I was and still am. So the point of this Sunday afternoon’s post/reflection? Schools should consider taking a deep, long, cleansing and calming institutional breath, and remember that they cannot and should not try to replicate their “neighbor’s” story. They should instead, realize that they have their own journey to make and that the end result will be an amazing story of their own, unique, personal and very much rooted in who they are.

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I blogged earlier in the summer that the warm (albeiet not so warm this summer) months are where I find the best time to refuel the creative tank and get my own brain thinking and churning in new ways. It’s when I find the time to try new ways of working personally like my recent re-adoption of Evernote, which is fantastic by the way! To spending time reading, researching and engaging with my extended network of colleagues through a variety of social networks online and in person. And as the summer starts to turn the corner, it dawned on me that through all of these conversations, it isn’t that we can’t engage in new models of teaching and learning, and it isn’t even that some of us haven’t, with success. I have come to believe that the issue is that as institutions and living organizations, the reality is that unless the critical mass is ready, we will have but small and modest success in rethinking how our schools should look. By critical mass I mean a majority of the people in our schools must embrace a new way of looking at themselves as teachers and professionals. They need to embrace the notion that their roles have changed. As Wendy Drexler put it in her wonderful video “The Networked Student” are teachers going to start seeing themselves as synthesizers of knowledge, connected learning incubators, modelers and information sherpas? Or will they continue to see themselves as content driven authorities who must cover material in order to reach the “end” of the book?

If you take Howard’s comment that his role is NOT about integrating technology but about leading the use of digital tools and practices that enhance, extend AND support the teaching and learning process, you need to be ready to rethink what technology means in your school. You need to be looking at resources like Creative Commons so that you can reassess how students understand the use and remixing of content. You need to be engaged in the conversation about how your graduates obtain and demonstrate the skills needed for our “new media culture” and the media literacies that will be required to not only be successful in the workplace, but to become thoughtful, creative citizens.  Your curriculum committees need to be reading the work of Henry Jenkins and his work in New Media Literacies and your humanities departments need to see themselves as HUMANITIES departments and not isolated islands. They must engage in a rethinking of what the New Humanties are and explore the work of Richard Miller at Rutgers University.

It is simply not enough for us to sit back and start having conversations about this brave new world. It’s here and we better start doing something, because I for one don’t think we have the luxury to wait around and keep talking about it.

Photo Credit: Pete Ashton

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Can we harness the power of social media to provide students with a vehicle for exploring and creating original content? WA Mash (Worcester Academy Mashup) is an online magazine where the power of social media is captured to provide creative writing students with a platform for exploring ideas and fostering and contributing to the larger global conversation. By exploring the possibilities offered by the use of social media tools, we explore how one teacher is defining the New Humanities at the secondary school level. Built off the work of Richard E. Miller at Rutgers University, students blog in a timely fashion about a wide variety of cultural, political and economic issues. Most importantly, it is about creating original content and redefining the role of student and teacher. They compliment their work with audio, video, photos and micro-blogging by integrating social media tools like YouTube and Vimeo, Twitter and Flickr. Think Slate or Salon for high school. The conversation will explore the nature and role of the New Humanities in education. How do we define it? What does it look it? What role does it play? And how do we move forward with implementation?

The resource wiki for this presentation can be found at educon21.wikispaces.com/211-3

Using Social Media to Define the New Humanities Classroom from Antonio Viva on Vimeo.

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This is my first time attending EduCon and I must admit that it has on the whole, delivered in every way. As I sit here in a Starbucks trying to catch my breath and enjoying a Vanilla Rooibus Tea latte I am thinking about the depth and breadth of conversations I have been able to have over the last two days. From our arrival on Friday afternoon, our tour of the Science Leadership Academy, the panel discussion at The Franklin Institute, the Saturday sessions, my presentation, the networking gathering and Sunday morning panel, the experience has been superb.

While I am still gathering my collective thoughts and trying to process much of what I have learned and heard over the past few days, I wanted to capture some of the enduring understandings that have left a mark on me.

• Part of the purpose of school should be to foster creativity, collaboration and courage.
• Schools should be a place where students generate ideas rather than just regurgitate them.
• We should strive to create environments where students have the ability to try out new ideas and test creative ideas.
• Working towards fostering new humanities rich environments where teachers can help “capture and harness student energy in order to shape it.”
• Schools should try to provide opportunities for students to convey concepts and original ideas through thoughtful, technology rich collaboration opportunities.
• “Schools should be about communication.”
• “A teacher has not really taught unless the student has learned.”
• If schools looked to the Mars Rover Mission for inspiration, they could see that any decision that they are about to make that does not meet the mission of the school is expendable.
• Schools should serve as the anchor and social hub for young people; they should be “the place to be” and have access to cool creative tools where students can create.
• As school administrators, we should strive to accept and embrace change with courage and confidence to challenge the status quo, and work toward fostering this mindset among all members of our school communities.
• Schools should work hard to become partners in the local economy where they can provide authentic, real-world experiences that allow students to take their original ideas to market.
• Small “schools” can exist within larger school structures. Meaningful relationships where no child falls through the cracks.
• “Transforming schools is not a mystery. What is needed is the moral courage to do what we know is right.”
• Gary Stager “As the richest country in the world we should provide every student with a computer and a cello.”
• Mandating systemic change has failed our schools, at what point will we truly honor diversity by seeing every school as unique?

I am sure that this partial brain dump is only a portion of what I have been able to digest and I hope that it provides you with a flavor what EduCon has done for my thinking around what education can be. I will be sure to process a more formal response once the conference is over.

In the meantime, have I left anything off the list?

Photo Credit: christopherl

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One of the first things I remember learning in my graduate work in education was that no matter what I did or how well I planned, there would simply never be enough time for me to get everything done. It just wasn’t possible, there were too many demands, too much work, not enough time. In the 14 years since, not much has changed. Regardless of the school you work for, or whether you are a teacher or administrator, the same mantra pervades most discussions that there is just not enough time to get everything done. The demands on students have not decreased, if anything, they and/or their parents inflict additional stress to be in every club, to compete at the highest athletic levels, to take 5 AP courses. It feels like not only has life gotten more complicated, but we try to pack 27 hours worth of “stuff” into a 24 hour day.

I am sure many schools have spent countless hours in faculty meetings discussing this schedule over that schedule and in some schools, the way we use time with students looks more or less the way it did 20, 30 even 50 years ago. Let’s face it. With the exception of a few schools around the country, the majority of schools function on the old agrarian based calendar where students were sent home for the summer months to work on the farm or in the fields and then sent back to school after the harvest in the fall. in fact, prior to the Great Depression, a few year-long schools popped up in mostly urban areas but they quickly lost favor in light of tough economic times. And since WWII our society has become less agrarian with each passing decade.

Yet, we continue to try and pack 10 lbs of potatoes in a 5 lb bag. We are pressed to find time to making meaningful changes in teacher practice; be it integration of technology, service learning opportunities, real-world experiences and multicultural education. Many schools regardless of their public or private designation are driven by standards based testing pressures, MCAS, SAT, AP exams etc. Students and parents are told by colleges and universities that they must have a breadth and depth of extra-curricular and co-curricular activities on their high school resumes as well as multiple AP courses and a commitment to community service. When will we pause for a moment and reflect that it is simply not possible for us to do it all.

Here in the New England we are only about 6 weeks into the winter season and many schools have lost significant time due to ice and snow, some as many as 8 to 10 school days. It has reached a point where the Massachusetts Secretary of Education is needing to weight adding school days to the year. The point is this; we need to rethink how we devote time to teaching and learning. Continuing to try and do it all in a 160 or 180 school days is only one component we must look at. Rethinking what we do with students during the school day is the second major task. Segmented, structed blocks be they rotating or non-rotating create learning environments that more accurately reflect the industrial age rather than the information age. Starting classes prior to 8:00 am for teenagers and after 9:00 am for elementary school aged children seems backwards to me. Rethinking the priorities and expectations parents and colleges place on young people also needs equal time in the conversation.

Regardless of your opinion of year-round schooling, breaking up the year into smaller and more reasonable chunks of time with breaks spread out over the entire year rather than during the winter, spring and throughout the bulk of the summer months would address issues of summer learning loss, provide extended time for meaningful real-world experiences and field trips and lastly, remove the pressure those of us in education feel to “cram” it in or “get it all done.” Embracing the notion that learning can occur outside the confines of the four walls of a traditional classroom and beyond the hours of 8am and 3pm will allow us to embrace the reality that is the 21st century we are now fully living in and can no longer simply continue preparing for.

Photo Credit: ToniVC

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Occasionally I find time to browse through some of my favorite websites looking for some good reading or an interesting resource I have yet to encounter. As I browsed through the NAIS website, I came across a letter written by John R. C. Sumner, who in 1951 was a teacher of modern languages at the Webb School of California (Claremont). That winter, he gave a talk in the school chapel which was entitled “Of Course the Future is Uncertain.” In it he describes how at the time, the uncertainty of what the future held for this chapel full of boys (Webb has since continued single-sex education in a co-educational setting by adding a girls school in 1981 ) was not an excuse for inaction.

Sumner goes on to add that “I ask you to consider the unchallengeable fact that never, in the history of the world, has anybody known what was going to happen. Whatever may be new about your situation, your inability to foretell the future is certainly not it.” Seems fitting some 57 years later does it not? For my generation we have never been in a time when the uncertainty of it all seemed more real to us. The daily barrage of news and media reports of falling investments, unemployment, falling house prices seems almost to grand to take in at once. A truly perfect storm. Sumner continues;

There seems to be a recent doctrine, which is apparently gaining more and more adherents, that man is entitled to an easy life, to get what he wants, to have things go his way, and that if life is not easy, he doesn’t get everything that he wants, if things do not always go his way, then he is underprivileged, discriminated against, and unfairly treated, and has just grounds for complaint against fate, or against the social system, or against somebody or something. I know of no basis in philosophy or religion for any such doctrine, and I can think of no better way for you young gentlemen to insure your future unhappiness than to adopt it.

Powerful rhetoric at time when many would argue we have in all likelihood seen the end of a similar era of “I am entitled to my fair share!” and the reality of economic uncertainty in the world, political turmoil and unrest as seen in Mumbai and a country on the cusp of a new era of leadership, taking a step back to reflect on that which we are thankful for may be in good form. Many colleges and universities healthy from years of large and fat endowments are now finding that they must re-examine what is central to their mission and re-evaluate the unnecessary excess that is in their operating budgets. Secondary independent schools with similar tuition driven, endowment supported operating budgets must also rethink where their priorities are in terms of mission and program. Public schools are facing decreasing budgets due to shrinking town, city and state wide budgets. Regardless of what field you are in, things feel a bit uneasy and it is natural and human to focus on that feeling.

And yet, in the midst of all of this, I remain optimistic. We are entering a point in history where the future rests squarely on our shoulders and in our hands. I hold firm to the idea and concept that education serves to not only teach us what we need to succeed in college, or how to go out into the world and become successful, but also about life itself. Never before has it been more important to take a moment to reflect on the amazing opportunities we have to inspire and engage one another as colleagues, and more importantly engage our students. We come together daily with the hopes that our graduates will go out into the world ready, eager and prepared to tackle the complex and difficult interconnect global problems and issues facing us in the future. If those of us who work in schools believe we can put an end to terrorism and war, or if we want to solve global warming, and preserve and protect our beautiful and amazing planet— if we aspire to help those struggling with poverty, hunger, fear, hate and disease we must believe in the power of education. If we are to tackle the great challenges and obstacles facing our 21st century world, then all of us need to be critical thinkers and creative problem solvers, grounded in many disciplines. The there is no doubt in my mind that education holds the answer to many of these seemingly unanswerable challenges.

A final word from Mr. Sumner “The future is uncertain. It always has been, and always will be. You will meet with some hardships and disappointments. No one ever lived who did not. But uncertainty, disappointment, and hardships crush only the weak person; they make the strong person stronger.”

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I have recently found myself needing to reaffirm my belief that comprehensive school reform is a failed concept. In my previous work with the US Department of Education, I worked with schools that had been identified as low performing and as such, in need of comprehensive school change. While the goals of this project were admirable and in many ways, would have resulted and did in some cases, improve the experience of teachers, students and parents, the overall approach in my opinion is flawed. Mandating substantive change to occur in our classrooms by expecting that the approach be universal and common fails to recognize the unique nature and culture that is a school community. Walking into a school community is different than running a business or company. Many of you who read this blog will say, but wait, did you write about what schools can learn from Google and Apple? I did, you can read it here and I do believe that schools can draw from innovative and creative companies a great deal of inspiration and new ideas. However, when it comes to making school wide mandates that are intended to foster change, in particular, curricular reform, the whole school, comprehensive approach just doesn’t work.

Any school program needs to draw on the strengths, talents and passion of its faculty. Schools that encourage and support teachers to find the “innovation” that they are passionate about, and find ways to weave that experience into their classrooms create the “growing conditions” needed for organic change.  More often than not, schools will decide to embrace a new initiative; technology, diversity, differentiated instruction, etc.  We turn to our faculty and tell them that we want them to weave diversity and multicultural education into all their classes. This approach often fails because it mandates that change happen across the board and does not take into account that we must connect the need for change on a personal level.  Faculty cannot be expected to do it all.  Our contributions should each make up a part of the greater whole for any given student, making each student’s experience richer and fuller as a result of our ability to “innovate.”

By honoring these differences in each of us, it becomes possible for each faculty member to be able to connect with at least one key area of change. Be it technology, diversity, service learning, every teacher connects to one area of innovation, as a result, making the experience of each student rich and diverse.  As this process continues to unfold, schools will find that they are on their way toward meeting their institutional and strategic goals, while at the same time, creating a dynamic, meaningful and collective twenty-first century student experience.

Some guidelines for schools:

1. Comprehensive school change mandates do not honor the diversity in our schools. Technology mandates in particular, create anxiety, fear and self doubt.
2. Strategic vision, mission driven decisions and institutional goals are non-negotiable. How we get to the final destination is filled with possibilities, open to conversation and collaborative.
3. Establish a culture where creativity, innovation and the appetite to try new things are the norm. Never fear making mistakes enjoy the beauty of learning from it.
4. Support the inventors, creative thinkers, risk takers, self-described “artists” and innovators with resources, professional development and public accolades.
5. Don’t follow trends, create them.

So I ask those of you out there that have been in school settings where comprehensive change efforts have been implemented what were the results? How was it received and did it accomplish the goals it set out to? I look forward to your thoughts.

Photo Credit: Meredith_Farmer

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