Aug 03

Preparing for the return of students! Part II

This pandemic threw traditional education a major curve ball. Remote learning became the norm and this shift in instructional practice, may have been smooth for some teachers and parents but for the most part, it was a difficult transition. GOOD!

Now before anybody gets mad about my opinion, let’s be clear that the pandemic results, namely, death, infection and economic turmoil has not been positive. It has been hellish for people around the world. Nor do I want to downplay the tremendous role of educators and school systems in providing the best possible substitute for learning. Watching school divisions here in Alberta and across Canada pivot on a dime to support teachers in creating engaging remote learning was very impressive.

But even with all of the “blood, sweat and tears” put into remote learning it will always be a shallow substitute to the in class, face to face, social expertise provided by the teacher. I’m not against online learning and in fact believe it should be mandatory for all students to take at least one full course at some point and time in their education. I recognize as well that the online environment is life saving and necessary for some students and therefore should always be an option. However, the best case scenario will always be within the bricks and mortar of a school…at least part of the time.

I’m reminded of the work of Dr. Jody Carrington and the need for students (and adults) to feel connected. This connection is NOT through technology or measured by the number of friends of Facebook or the likes on Instagram. Rather, it is connections made from being face to face and side by side. In a world where we can FaceTime someone across the ocean, we barely have time to say hello to our neighbours. Schools continue to play a critical role in socializing children and helping them understand the importance of the common good, not just personal rights and freedoms. While we should always believe that our own children are unique, their egocentric behaviour doesn’t help grow a more compassionate society and sharing space with others in a school setting assists in that goal.

For many years, we’ve talked about 21st century learning (even though we are 20 years into it) and how the delivery of education needed to change. We know that any major shift or change occurs with some type of disruption, and this pandemic has certainly been a significant disruption! That is why it is good!

We now have the ability to create an educational system suited for today’s students. One that is flexible enough to allow for students who truly need to be in school everyday and for those who only need to attend on a part time basis. Not every student requires to be in a seat in school every single day- teachers know this and so do most parents. There is no possible way to social distance in most schools and this may alleviate some space issues. Smaller class sizes have always been preferred and this may actually achieve this desire even for part time. We’ve learned well from our remote learning experiment and those strategies will be able to be instituted for part time students. Learning needs to become more continuous instead of the often start and stop method we employ now. While I was a principal in a northern community years ago, we established demand and work classes that allowed for direct instruction of key outcomes and tutorial sessions as students worked through learning packets. With the support of technology, this provides a possible solution.

We have also come to realize during this pandemic, as I’ve seen from so many families out and about, the importance of getting outdoors and being active. The research is pretty clear about the positive outcomes associated with physical activity and learning. Yet, we still limit recesses, lunch hours and play times for the sake of the “curriculum.” While a strong curriculum is necessary, we cannot afford to continue to teach so many learning outcomes. Key outcomes leading to the successful completion of a grade and essential learning for the grade(s) to follow are essential but beyond that… It is time for governments to develop curriculum that allows for deep exploration of relative content rather than for skimming topics in order to “get through it.”

School needs to be real life and so experiences beyond the classroom must be part of the new normal. Hands on activities, opportunities for creative projects, collaborative endeavours and learning that connects to the local community are required. Schools are constantly chastised for preparing only “book learned” graduates but, that is how the system is measured and ultimately rewarded. We can and should do better than that!

Finally, we need to ensure that our schools focus first on relationships when students return. For many of our students, they have been living in trauma situations since COVID-19 hit. They may be seeking some routines to ground them but more than anything, they just want to be connected to the adults in the building. Teachers are professionals because they have a unique body of knowledge that allows them to teach. More importantly though, they care and that is why they are invaluable to our society. When students return, remember the three R’s- Relationships! Relationships! Relationships!

Remember, we are creating a new normal, not simply trying to impose what we used to do on a vastly different landscape. Years ago I heard the saying, “People would rather do the wrong thing competently than the right thing incompetently.” While we’ve not necessarily been wrong in our approach to schooling, we’ve tended to be comfortable. Creating a new normal requires us to learn to be uncomfortable and sometimes feel incompetent. Many teachers felt this way when they went into remote learning but they survived and in fact, many thrived. That is what coming through this pandemic is allowing us to do. It is allowing us to get out of our normal routines and build something even better. Let’s make sure that we take something good and positive out of this tough situation that we have endured.

Jul 31

Preparing for the return of students! Part I

When I first contemplated this article, it was going to be from the perspective of “after the pandemic.” Unfortunately, the pandemic appears to be far from over and in some areas, record infections are becoming the norm. With schools in the United States opening soon and just over a month for Canadian schools, governments are trying to provide some direction and school districts are making multiple plans given the ever changing impacts of COVID-19.

I GET the desire of government officials to have a priority of re-booting the economy. This pandemic has been disastrous in so many ways and the need to get people back to work and money flowing is understandable. But if the economy is the only set of lenses that we are looking through, we’ve lost what is most important in our society…the people! And I will be even more blunt, as some government leaders demand that schools return to “pre-pandemic” conditions, we’re not thinking very highly of our children.

It seems contrary to logic that we are being told to mask up (which I agree with), practice social distancing, avoid congested areas, limit seating capacity in restaurants and then make schools return to near normal operations. I truly believe that most government officials (especially those in Canada) don’t want to put students, educators and those in and around the school community at risk but strong leadership, thoughtful direction and planning and…here it comes, additional funding to support this transitional time are a must. I recognize how this last requirement of additional funding is difficult to swallow given the amount of dollars already expended and the lost revenues during this pandemic. But, let’s be reminded of the words of Hippocrates, “Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

These are desperate times and so we need to support measures that will foster a safe environment in schools and limit (as much as possible) the roller coaster of emotions being felt by system administrators, school personnel, parents and the general community. I know that most school divisions desire their own autonomy to make decisions but this might not be the best time. We may need more uniformity in some areas during this ongoing pandemic. For example, Plant Operations and Maintenance Funding should be increased to support additional custodial staff in order to implement enhanced cleaning protocols. Although this is generally enveloped money, many divisions squeeze out available dollars to support in-classroom teaching and supports. While some divisions may have surplus dollars that could be used for this, others may have practiced a “spend today’s dollars on today’s students” budgeting approach.” Without funding, divisions and ultimately schools can become “haves and have nots.” In education systems that believe in success for ALL students, winners and losers because of funding should not be acceptable.

We know that parents will run the gamut on sending their own children to school or not to supporting mask wearing or not. There will likely be a flux in student attendance over the first months or longer depending on infection and death rates. Schools will need to be able to support both in person and online education and those dollars must be available to provide public confidence and ensure the continuity of high quality learning. Staffing is going to be an added cost this coming year since infections typically target adults and not children. School staffs are inadvertently going to get sick from the coronavirus or other illnesses and be required to stay home. In the previous school divisions I’ve worked, substitute or supply teachers were not always readily available and that could potentially become a grave issue. Alternate solutions may need to be explored to ensure learning continues at a high quality.

The bottom line is that governments and teachers’ associations/unions need to stop puffing out their chests like bantam roosters and start working together. Every shred of professional leadership literature speaks of the importance of collaboration and when we are in these times (and really all times) COLLABORATION is a must. Turf wars cannot be fought, egos need to be put on hold and rude and antagonistic comments need to stop…PERIOD! We are in debt and will continue to go into debt due to this pandemic…that is a fact. But let’s not make decisions that revolve solely around finances lead us in the planning for a return of students to school. We can do better! WE MUST DO BETTER!

Jun 11

Losing a young man!

It has been quite awhile since I’ve put my words down, but I’ve thought about this next message since last week. Why? Well last week, a good friend of our son, committed suicide. While there is great sadness when anyone takes his or her own life, some suicides seem to be more uncharacteristic than others. This one was very shocking because quite honestly, there never seemed to be any visible signs of internal struggle. This young man, appeared to have everything going for him, was always the life of the party and a comedian extraordinaire.

I’ve watched the disbelief in my son and his friends’ words and actions. That guilt question is always close to the surface, “Why didn’t I see it coming?” And, like with many tragic deaths, the “what ifs” start to spin out of control. Everybody wants an answer in order to make sense of why this young man would take his own life and yet there will never be any one that is satisfactory. He was hurting inside and nobody, neither family nor friends, knew how much and to what degree. And that is why this one was so shocking.

Being in education, it would be rare not to have been impacted by a student (present or past) suicide. Some may be more suspected”expected” than others, but all our tragic. It is difficult for me to imagine a person facing so much despair and feeling so alone that the only decision is suicide. Maybe that’s part of the problem… I, and like many don’t seem to understand that silent despair or more importantly choose not to be willing to understand it and instead continue to “sweep those issues under the table” because it is easier! Let’s just not talk about depression or anxiety or any other mental health challenge. For us it may be easier but for those suffering in silence, NEVER!

The fact of the matter is that death by suicide occurs far too often and is more prevalent in men.

The challenges around speaking up about mental health issues continues to exist in our society. We’ve made some great strides in supporting mental health in the last number of years but there is still so much more to be done. There remains a shroud of taboo when mental health issues are discussed, especially for males. This is where as a society we have to do better and stop accepting the “man up” approach to problems. Silence is not golden in this situation and in fact exacerbates the problem.

Depression, anxiety or any other mental health issue are real for people and need to be brought to the forefront and not kept deep inside or masked behind other “socially acceptable traits.” It is important that we build great resilience in our children and young adults but also help them understand and more importantly fully welcome a sense of vulnerability. This is not simply on parents but rather on all of us to build a more gentle and kind society. Suicide rates, especially for males will continue to increase without our intervention.

I feel great sorrow for this young man’s family and friends and my own heart aches for our son. One suicidal death to one too many and so we must do better.

If you are that person struggling, don’t keep it inside or mask it with other emotions but instead open up and find someone who you can share your issues with. And if you are that person who is the friendly ear, listen, don’t judge and assist in accessing the help required. Be kind, be gentle and simply be there! Even one suicide prevented is worth it!

May 03

Thanks to educators during this pandemic and beyond!

On March 29th, I wrote the following blog post, “A Personal Message to All Educators.” I’m not sure whether this is simply a follow up, or instead this next blog post is for the general public but regardless, I think it is an important piece to write.

It is easy to recognize our health care professionals and first responders as heroes during this pandemic. Their dedication has been nothing but incredible and I’m pretty confident that their status in the minds of the general public will continue to be extremely high once this crisis ends. They deserve every accolade they receive, plain and simple.

But there is another group of individuals who have stepped it up during this pandemic and should be recognized…TEACHERS! With students not being able to attend school in person, teachers with the support of their divisions, have had to initiate remote learning. The loss of face to fact contact, resources in reach and personal connection has made the majority of teachers feel like it is their first year of teaching all over again…but different! You see, even our most recent graduates from teacher institutes were never prepared to teach remotely. Practical experience was always in a classroom with students present.

Many teachers have previously integrated technology into their practice but this is at a whole different level. In pre-pandemic time, teachers planned lessons for “present” students and utilized a variety of techniques to engage students. Technology may have been used as part of whole class instruction or it may to have been used to support remedial or enrichment learning. But the vast majority of people should assume that technology or any “program” will never be a substitute for high quality instruction within the confines of bricks and mortar.

Yet, we now have teachers who have placed that assumption aside to provide learning that is not a stop gap (as some politicians have suggested) but rather a continuation of what was occurring prior to the closures of schools. It is difficult enough to deliver curriculum to students with immense diversity in learning within any class (which is generally too large) in a face to face scenario and now educators are being asked to do the same through remote learning. Delivering curriculum today is not about telling students to “Read chapter 7 and answer the questions at the end of the chapter”- That is just poor teaching whether it is face to face or remote.

Teachers in this remote world are finding ways not just to deliver content but to also engage students. Their preparation leads to instruction through homemade videos, step by step activities for home use and differentiated assignments. They are searching for new ways to assess the progress of learning, from students who not only have diverse needs, but also within the context of great or little support at home. And most important, they are searching for opportunities to connect with the students they teach, checking on both their learning and their mental health. All these things that good teachers did pre-pandemic, are now being accomplished in a remote environment, where few teachers ever lived or were accustomed. It may not be perfect, but without educators, leading the charge, most children and especially the most marginalized would be falling through the cracks!

In mid- April, I came across actress Drew Barrymore speaking about the struggles she was having “home schooling” her own two children. In the article she states that she has learned to appreciate teachers even more. And that my readers, is the key, not only now but after this crisis is over. We must start to recognize and appreciate the overall teaching profession. It is time to admit that just because you went to school you have no understanding of what a teacher really does during her 24 hours. You may understand the joy or frustration in your own children’s learning but the teacher lives that for ALL of her students each day and often each night.

Yes, there are poor teachers out there. With the exception of two years, I’ve been “in school” since I’ve been six years old. Over that 50 year period, I’ve witnessed poor teachers as a student, as a parent, as a colleague and administrator. But those numbers during my half century educational life are few. While they may be easily remembered, sadly, it is also easy to forget all of those teachers who helped us on our learning journey sometimes overtly but most often in the background, with their influence unknown.

The famous statement, “Those who can do and those who can’t teach” is an insult to those in the educational system. It should be pretty clear in today’s scenario that trying to engage a couple of your own children at home on a daily basis is taxing at best. Teachers do this all the time and not with just two in the classroom but 22 or 32 or sometimes even 42. One of the characteristics of a professional is the possession of a specialized knowledge. For teachers, that is not just knowledge of the curriculum but more importantly the knowledge of pedagogy. Simply put, it is their ability to teach so students can learn.

So if you are reading this as a teacher, take a well deserved bow before you go back to being engaged in continuous improvement and searching for even better ways to improve student learning. If you are a parent, take a minute to contact your child’s teacher and just say thanks. And if you are member of the general public, commit to raising the status of the teaching profession and honour the vital role they play in our society today!

Apr 21

The leaders we need especially in times of crisis!

“Leaders should never engage in self serving politics during a time of crisis.”

Unless you are “very” old, you are part of a population that has never faced this type of epidemic in this lifetime. We are in unprecedented times and the requirement of leaders to lead with integrity is essential. Regardless of your political viewpoint, left, right or down the middle, politics during a crisis situation is never favoured and should never be accepted.

“Don’t be the leader who believes his only purpose after an election is to get re-elected in the next election!”

Those who believe that leadership is easy are naive at best. Great leaders make tough and compassionate decisions all the time. Often these decisions may seem to be counter cultural because they go against the flow. It is far easier to make a decision that supports the views of that small, but very loud group who disagrees. But this is where the great leader, faces the angry crowd and makes decisions based on the correct data and not based on his own ego or popularity. If you can’t make those decisions, if the heat is too much in kitchen…get out, because you don’t belong in your leadership role!

“Great leaders never throw their underlings under the bus. They always take one on their own chin first.”

“Praise in public, criticize in private.” Great leaders lead by that mantra and are probably more skilled at the act of discipline than those who simply react by saying, “You’re fired!” An old friend once reminded me that, “When you point your finger at someone, remember that you have three pointing back at you.” When you make a mistake, own it and when one who reports to you does the same, always own it in public. That is the test of true leadership. Blaming others to make yourself look better is never acceptable!

In this time of crisis, we need leaders who transcend the ordinary and assist us in getting through and getting by. Our leaders need to be honest but they also have to provide us with hope. Being political or self serving or anything that smells selfish in nature cannot be tolerated. Leaders need to be about serving the greater good and not their own good!

Those are the leaders we need!

Apr 11

Just be nice!

This weekend is tough for many people around the world. Where many would be attending family gatherings or celebrating their faith, instead, we remain (or should be) self isolated. This is certainly not the version I had in my head of my first Easter since my retirement and not the version for any. But now that we are here, I offer some simple advice…”Just be nice!”

It is amazing how many in our world have expressed gratitude and kindness to friends and strangers alike. Everyday, there are touching examples of people reaching out and sometimes in the most simplistic gestures making a difference in the lives of others. Mainstream media has been very good at highlighting these individuals and the many examples of kindness and gratitude are constantly exploding on social media.

Sadly, the opposite is true as well. Social media trolls, as I like to call them, are also present to complain about things and berate others. Finger pointing is their mode of operation and neither gratitude nor kindness are anywhere to be seen. For me, what might be most frustrating is that many of these gutless people would seldom make those comments face to face but choose to hide behind an often invisible platform.

In the 10-80-10 principle, 10% of the people out there account for the positives while an equal percentage tend to be always negative. The rest of us fall into the middle category and can be swayed one way or the other.

10-80-10: A Model for Leading Change | Atomic Learning Blogs ...

In this crisis situation, we need as many people as possible to swing to the positive and lift up, not put down others. This “lift up” action doesn’t take much more than to just be nice and those who especially can, to demonstrate an “attitude of gratitude.”

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We have many in our communities who are being severely impacted by COVID 19 and deserve our support. But there are others who are just plain negative and unable to see the many blessing they have compared to others. To you I say, “Shame on you! Your cross is not that burdensome!”

As we come out of this Easter weekend, share the hope that has been provided in the resurrection. Smile a little more, send a message or make a phone call to someone who might be in need, but most of all… JUST BE NICE!

Mar 29

A Personal Message to All Educators

January 3rd was my last day as Superintendent of Schools and the end to an almost 35 year career in education. It was the right time for many reasons and I have not regretted the decision. However, since the COVID 19 pandemic has hit, there has been a pit in my stomach, a certain uneasiness when I reflect on the impacts of the staff left behind and the students and parents who are so dependent on those people.

A local businessman, whom I respect deeply, posted a video about the difficulty of laying off the majority of his staff. His message was emotional and demonstrated tremendous vulnerability, care and compassion for the plight of his employees. He would be “okay” but there was great concern for the well being of his staff. In today’s times, that care and compassion for those less fortunate in our neighbourhoods is essential. This is a time to pick up and serve others.

From a solely “I” perspective, the pandemic has had little impact on me. While most would never know it when I was working, I’m an introvert at heart and so spending time at home, eating meals with my wife, going for walks, etc has been a welcomed change. But having been married for almost 37 years, there is no room for only “I” and rather it is “we” and “us.” We, as a mom and dad, have been impacted by the pandemic, worrying about our son, who is a realtor in perhaps one of the worst markets in the last 50 years and our daughter, who is a first year teacher planning online lessons for Pre-Kindergarten and having the uncertainty of a continuing job hanging over her head. While “we” in this household are going to be okay, we, like many others, don’t need to go looking very far to see the impacts of this pandemic on those around us.

Which leads me to a personal message to the educators in the system, the leaders, teachers and support staff. None of you signed up for this and there wasn’t a course offered somewhere to prepare you for life in a pandemic. And yet, as I review my social media and see what is being offered to bring some sense of normalcy to the lives of students and families, I can’t be more proud. I say this not just because of what you are doing but more importantly who you are! You’ve picked up and you are serving others and I know that it is damn hard because you are doing it at a distant, knowing that in education (like most things) it is always the relationships that count. You were built to engage with kids, face to face, to foster trusting relationships where learning flourishes. Now, you’re trying to do the same with buildings closed. It won’t be the same…it can’t be the same, but what you are doing is amazing!

What people forget is that while you are being amazing on the work front, you are also worrying about the home front. You are juggling your own life and worrying about those in your family who are being negatively impacted by COVID 19. I hope that when this is over (and it will be over one day) that the general public and governments as a whole will finally begin to recognize the importance of the education system and ALL those who are in it. The work you are doing will become part of history and each of you will be a key part of the success of overcoming the impacts of this pandemic.

Please look after yourselves. Take time (even in moments) to decompress. Hug your spouse or partner and your kids a little more and tell them that you love them. Care for each other. Go for a walk and enjoy the fresh air. But mostly, be proud of what you are doing because… YOU ARE AMAZING!

Mar 14

Results and Outcomes…What do they truly mean? Part II

In part I of this series, I spoke a little about how results and outcomes can be manipulated to prove one’s point. In this blog, I want to discuss how to start looking beyond simple results and outcomes and begin moving a culture towards learning and continuous improvement. While this is my journey, I believe that it can be adjusted to fit the needs to most divisions…the desire and follow up commitment just needs to be there.

When I took over as Superintendent of Schools of the division in 2009, the culture was fairly toxic. There was tension between school administration and senior administration and the lack of trust throughout the system was more than evident. Some parents and especially school council chairs had little to say positive about the division as a whole and board members were typically on the defensive anytime in public. Let’s be clear, this is not a finger pointing exercise as everyone in a division owns the culture.

One other piece of history is that the division (like many others) was highly focused on Alberta Education’s Accountability Pillar Summary Report with special attention given to Provincial Achievement Tests at grades 3, 6, 9 and Diploma Exams in high school. Because of the poor relationships throughout the division, my mandate from the Board was to certainly build better relationships while still maintaining or finding ways to improve overall results.

I’ve written about this before, but I can’t stress enough about the importance of “presence” in building trusting relationships. Getting out of my office and into schools, meeting with school leaders and all staff and simply listening was the first step in building a better culture. Schools held the perceived notion that mistakes were never to be made and certainly not shared with the “higher ups” and their only measuring stick were standardized tests. Even though as professionals we should be always looking at ways to improve ourselves, continuous improvement was seen as a swear word!

After building some relationships in the division, I had two main hurdles to overcome moving forward. The first was to work with a willing Board of Trustees to redefine student success beyond simple achievement and move them to a better understanding of learning and the importance of the 7 Competencies for learning and leading. My work with C21 Canada and the document Shifting Minds 3.0 was extremely helpful in broadening their perspective. However, one of the most powerful exercises was when the trustees looked at two anonymous accountability pillar summaries (one with high standardized test results and one with only average results) and had to choose which school they wanted to send their own children to? Common sense (given only that much information) proved right in that trustees chose the school with the highest results. However, when I provided the names of the schools, most of the trustees changed their vote because the “average” school had far greater student and parent engagement, more innovative practice and a much stronger standing in the community. What this illustrated to the trustees and should be evident to governments and the general public is that looking at achievement scores alone is often a poor predictor of overall school success and student learning.

The second hurdle, which was far more difficult in the beginning to get over, was removing the pressure of results and allowing teachers and schools to begin to focus on overall student learning and success. In multiple communications, I told our staff not to worry about exam results and focus on teaching practice. An example of one of my messages is below:

“I truly believe that the more intellectually engaged our students are, the more student learning will occur. I’m all about student learning!  We need to be able to measure where students are currently (benchmark) and where they need to get to (outcome). We need to measure improvement. We need to measure learning on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis and we need to celebrate that learning. There is no possible way that PAT’s written every three years can measure the learning we need to measure in education. We need our teachers to recognize and eliminate mythical barriers and provide them with freedom to explore opportunities.” – Mythical barriers to transformation (April 2012)

This work continued throughout my tenure as superintendent and I’ll share some further strategies in future blog posts on working with results and outcomes to support a culture of continuous improvement. I would be remiss however if I didn’t share my two great advantages in this work. The first was a Board of Trustees who believed in my work and a more holistic definition of learning and student success. The second was the trust extended by my staff and especially our school leaders to walk alongside me in this journey.

Stay tuned for Part III…

Mar 09

Results and Outcomes…What do they truly mean? Part I

A number of years ago, one of my most respected principals made the following comment (paraphrased), “Why is it that when our results are good on a standardized test we applaud the work of our staff, but when our results are poor, we blame the exam?” This statement is becoming increasingly more important given the labour strife we are facing here in Canada. We like to use results when they suit our case, which means, ALL of us tend to speak out of both sides of our mouth!

For example the latest PISA results demonstrated the strength of the Canadian system, which by the way, educates 90% plus of students within public education. Here’s the issue linked to my former principal comments: On one hand, teacher organizations applauded the results, citing the strength of the local system while still expressing disdain for standardized tests for many appropriate reasons including the ranking of divisions, schools, students and ultimately teachers. Governments also highlighted the results to demonstrate their commitment to education and then always had a “but…” Most times the “but” is that outcomes haven’t improved compared to “all” of the money invested into the education system.

I’ll address the issue of standardized testing in a future blog but for right now, let me talk about outcome improvement. One of the biggest issues with outcomes is they tend to focus strictly on achievement and seldom take any local context into consideration. That local context or those data stories as I call them have a significant impact on “outcomes.” For example, if 22 out of 25 students are not at grade level going into a standardized test, it shouldn’t surprise even the most dense individual that most of the students are not going to meet the outcomes. But does that mean that learning didn’t take place and in all likelihood at a very high level? Absolutely not! That is one of the reasons why looking solely at achievement is not one of the best indicators of overall student success.

Outcomes are easily reached and improvements on standardized tests are easily accomplished albeit if scruples don’t count! In a previous life, I remember reviewing the results of a high performing school based on their tests results. During the data dive however, I found that all of their special education students (proper name back then), who were able and willing to write the test were being excused. The results looked great but morally, this was not acceptable! The reason for this less than inclusive approach to testing was simply “pressure” to perform so that the school ranking would remain high! Unfortunately that same pressure remains in many areas which doesn’t bode well for any system (national, provincial or local) that wants to become more not less inclusive.

I understand why governments and the general public wants to ensure that there is good bang for their buck when it comes to education funding. But if simple achievement or other narrow outcomes are our only goalposts, we will continue to have only a superficial understanding of learning and overall student success.

This is a complex issue and only when ALL involved speak and understand the same language will we be able to start to address it. Stay tuned…more to come!

Mar 03

Integrity in leadership

It is a sad statement of our times, but I truly believe that the level of integrity of our leaders is depleting at a record rate. Some (not all) politicians, national or provincial/state reek with integrity flaws But, it seems that the crisis has crept into many areas of leadership that had one time, had been impervious to such behaviour.

Merriam-Webster defines integrity as: (1) Firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values: INCORRUPTIBILITY (2) An unimpaired condition: SOUNDNESS (3) The quality of state of being complete or undivided: COMPLETENESS.

Does that definition resonate with the leader you are most familiar with or maybe just as important is that the type of person you are or wish to become? While integrity should be easily evident in our leaders and at its highest levels, it should be a “must” for ALL people.

Let’s focus on the importance of integrity at the leadership level. Integrity builds trust. People or employees should know what the likely actions of any leader will be and most importantly know that the actions are always based on sound, consistent principles and simply are the right thing to do! For me, the last part of the above statement, doing the right thing, is essential in demonstrating the highest level of integrity. Doing the right thing has never been an easy task but people will (should) always follow someone who does the right thing. An issue here however, is that some leaders are so daft in their own impressions of themselves that they always believe they are doing the right thing. HINT- Integrity and Ego rarely mix!!!

In my many years as a leader, I’ve always believed that you never expect more from any of your employees than you expect from yourself and this includes integrity! Every enhanced management position typically yields added rights and therefore requires increased responsibility. In other words the integrity quotient raises as you move up the food chain! This doesn’t mean that leaders become or are expected to be infallible but errors because of a lack of integrity should be minimal at best. This is what we should expect of any of our leaders and especially those who are considered at the top!

What is possibly even more disheartening however, is that the general public seems to have little interest in holding leaders to any significant level of integrity. I don’t believe it is because we don’t really care but rather we feel unable to “fight the system” of corruption, dishonesty, and harassment which exists. Yet, if we as a general public don’t start taking a stand against a lack of integrity both within our own lives and the lives of our leaders, our faith in leadership will continue to dwindle.

Most positive changes in our world started with one person walking with integrity and challenging a flawed idea or decision. That one person needs to be everyone of us and it would be most helpful if our role models and key supports to walk with integrity were our leaders.