I have always been intrigued by John Hattie’s work on what influences student achievement. Hattie and his Visible Learning team have compiled information from tens of thousands of studies which include research on millions of students. Hattie recently released an updated list of the most profound influencers of student achievement earlier this month. Here is … Continue reading Belief
leadership
Fruition
The Fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5 are ideals that I memorized long ago as a child. Galatians 5:22 and 23 share the Fruits of the Spirit as: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are character skills that I know my parents intentionally tried to instill in my brother … Continue reading Fruition
Retain Hope
In my post last week, I shared my thoughts on what I felt are the real responsibilities of my job. While the focus of the post was around building culture, and working towards improvement, I had a conversation with a student this week that made me rethink about what I wrote. While I still believe … Continue reading Retain Hope
What You See
I saw the follow video recently and it instantly made me think about our schools: If your reaction was like mine, your thoughts went to the expectations, personas, and biases we place on our students. We often say things in education like “I believe all students can achieve at a high level”, but then our … Continue reading What You See
For Something
It is an interesting time to work in a school. There is an uproar for student safety as the conversations about gun violence in our schools have once again become very prevalent. There are conversations about teachers carrying guns and students walking out. It is hard enough as an adult to process all of this, … Continue reading For Something
It Builds Character
It is time for some March Madness! Yes, I am talking about basketball, not passing periods preceding the much anticipated Spring Break on the horizon. One of my favorite parts of March Madness is the competition. Watching teams, big and small, compete. As many of the athletes are playing for the last time, there is … Continue reading It Builds Character
Lessons from Someone Who Never Had A Chance to Win
I will admit, I am currently a Winter Olympics junkie. I know, I jump on the bandwagon of watching sports that I only really care about once every four years, but I love watching people do things remarkably well. These athletes are committed, driven even, to the sacrifice it takes to make an Olympic team. … Continue reading Lessons from Someone Who Never Had A Chance to Win
Teach Like Someone’s Life Depends On It
A few weeks ago, I read a short article from a motivational speaker. The speaker discussed how he stays so engaged each time he speaks. When speaking, he states, he operates under the assumption that at least one or two of the people in the room are actively considering taking their own life. He wants … Continue reading Teach Like Someone’s Life Depends On It
Leading and Learning 