73, Triplets, and the Meaning of Teamwork

I've never been a basketball fan.  Maybe it's because I am not a very good basketball player.  Put on a football game or baseball game and I am glued to the television.  However, the past two NBA seasons has sparked my interest.  It's not because I am being a fair weather fan as the Warriors won their first NBA championship in 40 years or broke the single season record for wins last night.  These are amazing feats.  What has me so drawn to the Warriors success as well as the recent success of the San Francisco Giants is the way they've arrived at their championships.  They have done so through solid recruiting / drafting, player development, and the true concept of TEAMWORK.  No one player is bigger than the team as a whole.

The Warriors management has been very open about the fact that they've modeled their organizational development on that of the San Francisco Giants.  I grew up a Giants fan; the late 1970's and 1980's were dismal times (minus 1987 and 1989.)  The Giants could never put it together, played in a stadium that had some of the strangest weather known to mankind, and went through managers like most people go through socks.  The "recipe" was not working.  And even though they saw some success during the 90's and first decade of the 2000's, they were centered around one player - Barry Bonds.  We sold our souls; we were trading victories for home runs.  We looked the other way when performing enhancing substances were being used because we all got caught up in the hype, the excitement, the records.

Fast forward to 2008. The first year without Bonds and the second year of Bruce Bochy's managing of the team.  I remember speaking with a friend and we both decided that the Giants pitching staff was young and going to be good.  My friend said, "If they get in the playoffs, they will do well - their pitching staff can dominate a short series."  Throw Buster Posey into the mix and other talent - and here we are.  Three World Series championships.  Damn, I was happy with one.  Two was a dream. Three is indescribable.  But if you look at the recent Giants teams, they aren't about one player or one pitcher.  They care about each other and work as a team.  That equals success.  Think about Hunter Pence firing them up in the locker room.  The selfless approach.

A lot can be learned from the success of the Giants and Warriors. The recipe for success can be applied to any organization.  It really reminds me of the period from 2009-2013 when I was a vice principal. We worked under an amazing leader - he was secure in himself, had a shared vision for the school, was consistent, and got people to buy in.  It wasn't even that hard.  His consistency, patience, high expectations, support, and professionalism made everybody around him better.  I've never worked on a team that functioned so well collectively.  There wasn't any internal competition on our administrative team; it was all about cooperation and doing what was best for the students and the school, while staying aligned to goals.

It really is time that many people put their egos and insecurities aside and remember why they do what they do.  As an educator, I am here for the students and helping staff reach each student.  It's not about me - it's about WE.   Congratulations to the Warriors... and for the Giants, well, #evenyear .....

Student Data and Privacy

PBS Newshour has a great piece everybody should take a moment to view and read.  It discusses how Digital Education may be a double-edged sword.  Its argument is how technology has provided educators and companies with the means to personalize and individualize instruction like never before.  But what about the data?  Are third party companies using student data in another way?

One man in the video went as far to provide this analogy:  Imagine a person goes to get a life insurance policy.  Somehow, the life insurance company is able to access the person's records from when they attended public school - and they uncovered what the student purchased at the cafeteria, since that is linked to a database that has information about this person.  The person's life insurance policy may be affected based on the his/her eating habits from the third grade!  Sounds far fetched, but the level of identity theft is staggering.

Even more troubling is the fact that many educators truly don't understand data and student privacy issues.

We are at a point in history where more information is made available to us every minute - it is virtually impossible to consume all of this data and remain sane.  Tools and services, such as Twitter, have provided us the opportunity to filter (subscribe) to the data we want to view - but that, too, is overwhelming.

Is Digital Education a double-edged sword?  We need to be careful, remain alert, and keep our guards up.  Please visit this link to view the videos and article.

Reflections from the East Coast

Washington Monument

I haven't written here for a few weeks.  During Spring Break, my wife and I went to Washington, DC for for 3+ days.  Though she's been to Europe 25+ times, she has never visited our nation's capital.  So, we hit the ground running, landing at Dulles International and heading straight to the National Mall.  First stop: The National Archives.  I felt like Nicholas Cage in the film National Treasure - the scene where he "touches' the Declaration of Independence.  Seeing a 240 year old document, as well as the US Constitution and Bill of Rights is something every American should experience.  Yep, I almost teared up.

Vietnam Wall

We then made sure we hit many of the monuments and memorials - starting with the Washington Monument, then the WW2 Memorial, Vietnam Wall, Lincoln Memorial, and Korean War Memorial.   It is truly hard, to put into words, the emotions that go through your mind when visiting these sites, especially the Vietnam Wall.

Hanging out with Thomas J

The next day, we went to Ford's Theatre, the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum, and then had a tour of the US Capitol.  Pretty darn cool stuff.  Great stories.  That evening, we visited the Jefferson Memorial - had it all to ourselves, and then the Marines Memorial (Iwo Jima) within Arlington National Cemetery.

Marines Memorial

Arlington was our first stop Friday morning - we visited President Kennedy's grave (the eternal flame), Arlington House (once the home of General Robert E. Lee), and then experienced the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  
Friday afternoon was spent at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum - so hard to take in, but a place that EVERYBODY should see.  It really makes you stop and think - and makes you realize the evil humans are capable of; I have no idea how any Holocaust survivor could overcome going through that experience.  

Eisenhower Quote - Holocaust Museum

We wrapped up Friday by visiting the relatively new Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial and FDR Memorials.  Pretty cool stuff.  I don't think the MLK Memorial does MLK his justice - he and other Civil Rights leaders deserve more.  The FDR memorial was well done - broken into four sections; one for each of his terms.  Nice tribute to his far better half, Eleanor, who truly defined the role of First Lady of the United States.  

Mount Vernon

Saturday was our last day... we decided to hit Mount Vernon and Manassas Battlefield.  We never made it to Manassas.   It started snowing... and we went to Mount Vernon, the home and slave plantation of General (President) George Washington.  It was amazing.  We even took the "National Treasure" tour, learning that there aren't any underground tunnels (though the movie seemed to make them a piece of folklore.)  Learning about Washington, his family, his impact on our country, and even his moral dilemma over slavery was very powerful.

What a trip. So much to see in our country.  I know that I am a history geek and love history far more than the "Average Joe," but every American should visit these sites and learn the origins of our country - the good, the bad, the ugly.   

MLK Memorial

Arlington House (from Kennedy's Grave)

Lisa & I at Mount Vernon

Public Shaming

I just watched Monica Lewinsky's Ted Talk from March 2015.  I guess I have arrived at an age that I have "lived" a lot of this history we are now teaching to our students or issues we are sharing with them and our own children.

Lewinsky actually makes a very strong connection between what she experienced with the "Blue Dress / cigar" scandal, the emergence of social media, and what we now call cyber bullying.

The talk itself is worth the 22 minutes; it's hard not to feel badly for her - she was only 22 years old while interning at the White House for President Clinton when the relationship took place.  It's hard to blame a young, ambitious intern for being enamored by the President of the United States.  Where this situation ended up = an abuse of his power.

I don't think many parents nor educators take cyber bullying as seriously as we should.  I am not saying this to point the finger and say, "Shame on you."  It's a world that keeps evolving and to stay on top of it is full-time work.  Young people have access to more information than ever before; and if they are not guided correctly, all hell can break loose.

Weird that I watched this TED talk today, because just yesterday I was thinking about a situation from the 8th grade that I am not particularly proud of.  There was a student in our class, I will call him James, who many people got mad at because he started dating somebody else's girlfriend.  Gotta love 8th grade drama.  The kid took a terrible beating - everybody berated him.  Shortly after, our English Language Arts teacher (Mr. Ball) took us to the computer lab (Apple IIe's at the time) - he wanted to try something new.  He had us start writing a story - any story; after a few minutes, we rotated to the computer next to us and picked up on our classmates story.  This rotation took place several times.  I remember getting to a computer where one person started writing their story with the opening sentence: "James is a fag."  And then came my low point at 13 years old.  I kept that story going.  I wasn't strong enough or confident enough in myself to stop it.  After the final rotation, we printed our stories and went back to class.  Mr. Ball started reading the stories.  He was fired up - they were good.  But then he came to the story about James.  Mr. Ball was absolutely disgusted - rightfully so.  He threw the paper on the ground.  The disappointment in his face was indescribable.  I felt like crawling into a corner.  To this day, I am still ashamed of myself.  If I see "James" I will apologize - even if it is 32 years later.  No excuse.  I would NEVER want one of my own children or one of my students to engage in this type of behavior.  I cyber-bullied James.  His dating somebody else had absolutely nothing to do with me, but I went with the pack.  What a tough lesson in life - a lesson that could have caused major problems for James.  Somehow he never let it bother him and took the higher ground.  Good for James.  (Side note: James is now a wealthy and successful trial lawyer - good for him!)

I was a vice principal for six years and saw some of the most ridiculous cyber bullying and online "fighting."  I did my best to educate students and parents about their digital footprint.  Some students just didn't care.  Many parents were mortified.  Then came my turn.  My oldest daughter, while still in high school, wanted a Facebook account. We agreed, but on the condition that we have her password.  Shortly after, I logged into her account and saw that she engaged in a back-and-forth conversation with a boy where terrible profanity was being used.  It was an eye opening moment for my ex-wife and I.  Fortunately, my daughter understood and has since created a very positive digital footprint for herself.

We are all human and are all capable of terrible things.  I am convinced of it.  Adolf Hitler and Darth Vader were innocent children at one time in their lives.  What went wrong?  We must stand up and do the right thing - we need to continue to educate ourselves and our youth of the ramifications of misuse of technology and social media tools.  I fear it will only get worse before it gets better.

#CUE16 - it's a wrap.

The 2016 CUE National Conference has wrapped up, and again, another amazing, powerful learning conference took place.  After attending two keynote addresses, approximately eight workshops, and an energetic exhibit hall, I must say that it just keeps getting better.

Brad Montague & Robby Novak

Brad Montague (@thebradmontague), creator of The Kid President, was Thursday morning's keynote speaker.  I must admit - when I saw Mr. Montague listed as the speaker, I did a double-take.  Really?  I wonder what he has to share with educators?  Well, in typical CUE fashion, they outdid themselves - Brad Montague was the best keynote address at a CUE conference that I've seen in the past five years - and they've had some powerful people give the keynotes.  Brad's message is relatively simple, "This is a joyful rebellion - our mission is to help kids and grown-ups change the world together.  Be the educator you needed when you were a kid."  Brad had a great way of keeping it simple, yet real.  His work with Robby Novak - the Kid President - is simple, yet revolutionary.  Follow them on Twitter (@iamkidpresident) and their YouTube channel (SoulPancake).  You won't  regret it.

Friday morning's keynote speaker was Hadi Partovi - founder of Code.org  I am not kidding when I state that nearly everybody in the audience left that presentation wanting to teach Computer Science.  The relevance of Hadi's address is astronomical; and his message to young woman - a population that is under-represented in terms of computer science and tech jobs in general rings true.  Follow Hadi on Twitter (@hadip) !

My favorite session that I attended was during lunch Friday - a "Lunch and Learn" session with Burt Lo (@trubol) and Luke Hibbard (@hibbard_luke).  The examples of the SAMR model (which explains the level of technology use in instruction) provided participants with amazing takeaways - takeaways that can be put to immediate, relevant use.

I often wonder how CUE does it.  Seriously.  About 12 years ago, the organization was on the brink of collapse.  Conference attendance was down, their annual fall conference was canceled, and things appeared dismal.  Bringing in Mike Lawrence (@techmaverick) as Executive Director (now Chief Executive Officer) was the beginning of amazing things to come.  CUE provides the best and most meaningful professional development opportunities I've experienced in my 21 years of public education.  I am looking forward to CUE 2017 - for many reasons, but mostly because CUE continues to set the bar high and exceed it every time - the networking and learning that takes place should be the model of professional development for all school districts.

Gearing up for #CUE16

At this time tomorrow I'll be getting ready to fly to Palm Springs for the best conference of the year - the CUE National Conference.  Once again, the event has sold out.  I won't be surprised if this conference has grown to 6,000 attendees this year.  And to think, circa 2005/2006, CUE was not doing very well. What a rebound.

One challenge I have as I review the sched and selection my sessions is that there are so many great ones to choose from.  I have to narrow it down to what I can hopefully implement upon my return, which again, is not always easy.

But the bigger challenge I feel is the lack of leadership - superintendent staffs and board of trustees members - attending these types of conferences.  I do think a teacher can start a movement, but the vision needs to be shared and come from the top. We cannot live in a world where we are anti-conference.  Anti-conference = anti-professional development = anti-growth.  One of the biggest benefits of attending conferences such as CUE is the networking opportunities and the opportunity to learn best practices other districts and schools are implementing.  We all have similar challenges, so why are some schools and districts really making instructional technology work when others are not?  I think you can read the paragraph I just wrote an answer that question yourself.

Lately, I've been reading  Principal Professional Development: Leading Learning in the Digital Age (Corwin Connected Educators Series.)  This is a very easy read, and the points made are quite simple in regards to today's principal and school leaders:

• Effective principals can manage the organization as a whole and the implementation of curriculum as long as they have the appropriate professional support and development
• There will never be extra time in your day.  Lead learners model learning by integrating the learning into an already full day.
• Social media plays an important role in the professional development of school leaders
• A professional learning network (PLN) can help support the personal and professional development of school leaders.
• As an educational leader, you must take control of your own learning and personalize it in a way that works for you.

Why are so many school leaders late to the game?  Is it because we are creatures of habit?  Fear of the unknown?  Not willing to take a risk?  I once read a quote, "The biggest risk is the one you don't take."  Think about that for a little while....  #CUE16   #bethechange

As The Polls Open....

Super Tuesday #3 today.  Or is it #2?  I can't remember.  This is the strangest and scariest presidential election season in my life.  This November will mark the seventh time I have had the right to volte in an election and I feel it's the most important one of my lifetime.

As a history major, I learned how easily history repeats itself.  It's not rocket science.  It's pretty simple.  Similar to the days of being a vice principal.  We would catch a few students doing something ridiculous and illegal; the message would spread across campus, but after awhile, another student or group of students would step up and do something equally or more ridiculous.  History repeats itself.  Some politicians feel they are above the law.... but time catches up to them.

The rhetoric spewing from Donald Trump's mouth is simply insane.  Sure, there will always be a group of individuals who are angry with how the government is working so they will listen to somebody hard-talking with "fresh" ideas.  Being angry is one thing, but to discriminate against others and have a "get them out" attitude is simply un-American.  Trump is doing a brilliant job playing on the emotions of people who feel they have been "wronged" or people who do not like what Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders stand for.

As an American, I do understand that people have the right to express themselves and have their own opinions.  However, to discriminate against others to the level that the Trump "coalition" has been is absurd.  It is embarrassing.  There have been comparisons to his campaign and to the propaganda of Adolf Hitler - and I understand why.  What these "followers" of Trump don't understand is that he has not proposed one solution; he has never held an elected office; he does not understand the ins and outs of government.

History can repeat itself.  If we are not careful, we will be the country that is seeking a "Final Solution to the ______ problem."  I may regret writing this one day.....if you know what I mean.  There's never been a more important time to vote - and to do so in an educated manner that doesn't strip the rights away from others......