I have conference brain. The good kind. Where you head is so full of ideas it’s like that junk drawer you shove closed with your hip, that gets jammed because it has a Sharpie lodges in just the right spot that it won’t open. Maybe that’s just my house…
Some of these thoughts might just be that lost item I’m hanging onto in my brain that could be a whole blog post on their own. But, they’re on my mind.
1.) We know that learning is messy. We embrace that idea. But, we don’t embrace the reality. We use programs based on linear “get this, answer that” thinking. We focus on direct paths to standards and pacing guides that take direct routes.
2.) We accept that school is boring for some kids, and we blame them. It’s true. If school is boring, it’s actually our fault. Because we’re kind of, um, the ones who make school happen.
3.) I’m tired of hearing about the next big device. If you aren’t going to change the delivery, you might as well drop your money into a volcano. Actually, dropping it into a volcano would be more effective because you could observe what happens when paper falls into hot lava and learn something from that.
4.) McDonald’s, Starbucks, airports, and even hospital waiting rooms are more conducive to collaborative learning than most classrooms. Gathering areas, bright art, varied lighting, large tables, cozy nooks, choices in seating.
5.) Why do we do research in education? I mean, how often do we *actually* implement change based on it? Knowing things like about how teenagers do better when sleeping later, and how fluorescent lighting is not best for kids… yet, it’s easiest and works best for, well, for someone, but not for kids.
6.) We aren’t preparing kids for the future. The future is here. We’re preparing them for the world we are living in, because, as it turns out, they are living in the world, um, right now. Collaboration is already necessary. Technology can no longer be ‘optional’ for educators. Critical thinking is totally critical. Creativity matters because it’s essential to solving problems. Today. Right now. Now is here.
7.) Edcamps work. They don’t cost a dime because of volunteers, sponsors, and great collaboration. It’s amazing to think that, in our age of reduced budgets, we have access to the one thing, all the time, that can help us change education… EACH OTHER.
8.) There is no need to create fake problems for test practice or to use pages and pages of pretend problems on work sheets. Our world has plenty of problems. Problems that kids of all ages can brainstorm, inquire, explore, and learn across all content areas along the way. Real learning wins over fake-book-how-many-apples-will-Bill-eat every single time. Because real learning sticks. Not just sticks long enough to be proficient on a test, but long enough to be proficient for life.
9.) Schools with empty mission statements will never change. There is not a school in America that has a mission statement that reads “We just want to raise test scores,” at least I hope not. Our missions are filled with inspiring thoughts about kids, lifelong learning, real world, motivation, and so much more. Yet, when we read between the lines, the pressures on our schools are far more about test scores. We’ll never change unless our missions and actions match.
10.) Passion. It’s the basis for everything. Yeah, it’s what just woke me up at 6 am to rant about 10 things I can’t stop thinking about. I want every kid, in every school, in every little corner of our world to have the opportunity to find the ‘thing’ that’s going to wake them up early, and keep them up late, and inspire them to keep going when they want to quit. Because THAT? That’s what life is about. Filling your heart with what you love, giving back to others every single day, and well, getting the Sharpie out of the junk drawer once in a while so you can open it.