Different Places

An absolutely wonderful part of my job this year is that I have the ability to work with a wide variety of teachers and administrators.  The one thing that really stands out for me is how very different we are despite being in the same profession.  So, when we gather a group of very diverse people and ask them to work together – guess what?  It’s not always sunshine and light! When we get a mix of “A’ and ‘B’ personalities, extroverts and introverts, experienced teachers and newbies, we get the potential for things to go a lot of different ways.  On the whole, things go well, after all, we’re professionals right?  People are civil, they listen to each other, they value each others opinion and they are really shooting for the optimal learning in their classrooms.

This is all true for the most part but remember “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”  It takes time in working within Professional Learning Communities for the group to meld and become a solid, trusting group.  Past experiences, varied personality and old habits can get in the way of really working well together.  But when we do, lookout – SYNERGY.  Take a look at the link below and ask yourself “Where is my school at in their PLCs? Where is my PLC?  How do we get to the next step?”  All great questions that will move your group, and therefore your practice further ahead.

http://files.solution-tree.com/pdfs/Reproducibles_BPLC/stagesofteamdevelopment.pdf

 

Keep on learning.

 

Dave

Interesting Reads

Mindsets - Carol Dweck
Teaching Boys who struggle in School - Kathleen Palmer Cleveland
Drive - Daniel Pink
Outliers - Malcolm Gladwell

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  1. JPII Principal
    10/15/2011
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    I completely agree with you. Trust does not happen overnight and change can be a scary thing. When experienced teachers have been successful for years, why does change have to pop its ugly head?

    Rome certainly wasn’t built in a day but it was an ongoing surge forward – baby steps but keep working towards the ultimate goal. There is always need to continue growth and not remain stagnant….it just takes some time and sometimes a little push.

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