Grades

I have recorded everyone's grade but one person.  You all did a wonderful job in class.  I learned a great deal from you.  You were a great group to work with; bright, articulate, curious, and open to new ideas.  Good luck in your careers where ever they lead you.

Sam

Marzano's Leadership Information

Please find a link to a powerpoint on the web that does a good job of capsulizing Marzano's 21 responsibilities for a leader, including an explanation for each.  Here too is explained the difference between change of the first magnitude and second magnitude.  

I would recommend getting his book, Leadership That Works and using a study group to discuss the research uncovered.  Hopefully, our group will delve into the subject tomorrow.

Sam

Home Stretch

Hello, I hope to see you this Saturday morning around 8:00 AM.  We have a great deal to get through in class.  This weekend is your turn to shine.  I hope you have put together some well developed presentations for your classmates.  Remember, you have to pay attention and hopefully will ask questions of each presenter, I know I will.

We will be in room 1 again according to the plan.  Saturday's line up is a workshop, two speakers, and four of the Theorists presentations.  On Sunday we will conduct a debate and the final Theorists presentations in the morning and do the final presentations (your area or issue) for the afternoon.  In between we will debrief on our models, interviews and the inquiry guide assignment.  

Of course I have a few energizers for you too.

I will check on the last date you can email me any work you have due.  Most of you will be able to turn in your assignments before you leave.   There will be limited time on Sunday morning to work on presentations before we start the Debate.

It should be interesting and I hope a little thought provoking.  Reviewing your circle, triangle, square, wiggle results, I need to stimulate you a bit more to get the effects I want.

Got to go. 

Sam

Randall's link

Interview Questions

Hello, I hope your Christmas holiday is going well.  A few have asked for some guidance on developing probing interview questions.   Since we did not have ample time to work on them in class, I thought I would give you some ideas.

First, select someone you with whom you have a good relationship to ask these questions:

How did the change you experienced affect your personal belief system?  (I shared in class that embracing the SOL test as the measure to further sort and select students was not something I agreed with philosophically when we changed our direction overnight)

How could the change process you encountered have been improved?

Secondly, let the person talk and you listen, do not try to write everything they say at the sitting.  Instead, listen well and summarize what they tell you.  The procedure of taking copious notes during the interview complicates the process; a few lines is all you need to jog your memory.  Develop those good listening skills, they will serve you well throughout your career.

The purpose is for you to learn how a real life change was handled by someone who lived it, not to inform me of a series of facts.   Make this assignment assist you in understanding how people deal with the changes they must face to improve student achievement.  Hopefully, the person will feel compelled to share what they have learned in their career about successfully managing change.  The only constant in life.

Hope this helps.

Write no more than two pages of your success in getting your person to share and what you have learned from the interview.

Sam

PS  if your Good to Great article is missing pages - Google it on the net, it is there.

14 words

Guys, I did not do a very good job of enunciating the 14 spelling words I dictated to you.  Below find the words the best I can spell them.

facism

dictator

appeasement

blitzkrieg

Franklin D. Roosevelt

holocaust

Hitler

Benito Mussolini

Tojo

Harry S. Truman

Winston Churchill

Stalin

boycott

anti-semitism

Sorry if I confused you by not writing them down and thinking everyone had had time to get used to my eastern North Carolina dialect.  I usually give a handout on this, but I took a shortcut with you.

Email or call me if you need me.

Sam

I am starting to get reflection papers emailed to me.  I will respond to you when I receive your work.

Reminder - read the Human Development Discourse and Academic Development Discourse for Saturday's class, we will divide into two groups to debate these points of view.

Don't forget to bring in one demographic fact (make it one that gets your attention) about the future of our nation or our educational system for class on Saturday too.  If we find the people doing the Demographics group have them covered, we will let them educate us to conserve time.

Most of you are out of school now, I went in today at 7:30 AM and managed to make it home, but kinda tired now.  I am having to retype a lot of this message.  

Our teams from my notes are as follows:

1)  Allan, George and Anthony Fullan Good to Great

2) Kris, Tonia and Tomica Spillane Brain Research

3) Bernadine, Sallie and Nicole Bennis Technology

4) Suwana, Alyce and Kathleen Deming Demographics

5) Travis, Kendra and Travis   Collins Closing the Gap

6) Nicole, Crystal and Judi Covey Poverty

7) Tarri, Linda and Cathy Elmore Challenges

8) Randall, John and Mike Brock Leadership

I hope I have these right.  If I don't it was not because Sallie did not do her best to keep me straight, thank you Sallie.  Remember the first four theorists will be presented Saturday PM, all other presentations will be on Sunday.

Looking forward to hearing from you.  Ask good, thought provoking interview questions of your subject, unless they can fire you, make them squirm in their seat.  Make them think.

All for now.  Sam