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When Work Is a Struggle and More Effort Doesn't Cut It

There are times when we find ourselves searching for energy and scrounging for motivation to power through work struggles. We might put off the task and hope for inspiration, or we might give minimal effort and wait for urgency and pressure to motivate us. Neither approach is likely to be productive and satisfying.

Sometimes we need a shift in our thinking, a technique to tap our motivation, or a way to draw on an area of strength. We need a new perspective and approach to get on track and avoid worker burn-out or depression. Fortunately, there are strategies to improve our outlook, increase our confidence, and accelerate our learning and skill growth. Consider these four strategies:

Strategy:

A great place to start is focusing less on what we must do and reminding ourselves of why we’re doing it. To do lists can be intimidating and “must do’s” can feel like drudgery, thus making procrastinating a reasonable option. But if we shift our thinking from what we must do to why we’re doing it, it can make a big difference. Our list of tasks becomes more meaningful, and doing the work results in greater value and satisfaction.

In practice:

Correcting a set of essays may feel like time consuming toil. Yet, if we shift our mindset and consider the work as exploring the thinking, imagination, and creativity of our students and providing insightful and helpful feedback, grading presents new meaning and becomes more worthwhile. Similarly, we might think of lesson planning as merely an item to check of our to-do list. Or we can view our planning as designing engaging and productive learning experiences for our students that’ll ignite their energy while building excitement. Simple thought shifts can go a long way to improve our mood, as well as unleash our own renewed energy.

Strategy:

We can leverage our current strengths to support the development of new learning and skills. Learning new instructional practices, trying new approaches, and developing new strategies can be difficult and humbling work. Inevitably, early attempts will prove less than successful, leading to frustration by the slow pace of progress. Yet, if we pair what we’re learning with a current area of strength and expertise, we’ll shore up our confidence and accelerate our progress.

In practice:

Strength lies in organizing our content to make it understandable. Our goal seeks to enhance our impact and improve student learning recall by introducing new content through memorable and compelling stories. We achieve this through organizing and sequencing what students need to learn within the structure of good storytelling. While our stories may seem lame at first, the content we share becomes more memorable and impactful through story telling. Over time, our storytelling skills grow. Our organizational skills lead students to understand what they’re asked to learn, and our stories help with student recall long after we move on to other content and skills.

Strategy:

By embracing “going forward together”, we choose to move beyond “going it alone” when we face difficult challenges and when we need new ideas. Generating new approaches and developing strategies to engage our students can become a daunting challenge, especially if we try to do it alone. Even if we work with a partner or team, we can fall into habits and patterns that limit new thinking and new idea exploration. We may need to expand our network of resources and our exposure to others in our profession.

In practice:

Social media, virtual networks, and other ways of accessing professionals beyond our physical presence open new possibilities and provide rich and varied resources to expand our thinking and improve our practice. Sometimes admitting that we feel stuck and need new thinking can mean uncomfortable conversations and awkward admissions with close colleagues. Yet, reaching out to others virtually and seeking ideas can feel much safer and less uncomfortable. Meanwhile, we gain a new appreciation of our ideas, skills, and practices as we share our experiences with them and provide support to their work, as well.

Strategy:

We can have a vision for where we want to take our learning and practice, but building momentum and positioning for success are easier when we focus our attention and energy on the next step or steps. Learning journeys can easily overwhelm and discourage us when we try to grasp the entire picture and all that it might entail. We can falsely assume that once we begin something new, we should be immediately proficient. Yet, when we try something significant and new, just like our students, we're likely to make mistakes and experience setbacks. And as we do with our students, we must provide ourselves encouragement not to give up.

In practice:

It helps to shift our practice by becoming less instruction driven and more learner centered. We might start by giving students more opportunities for choice in their learning, as a first step. We maintain other elements of our current practice until we build routines. Students then develop the skills and processes necessary to take more responsibility for their learning. If we focus on the next steps we need to take, we grasp what we want to change, adjust strategy, and mark progress to prepare for more significant changes. We celebrate our wins even when our long-term goal seems far off. As the saying goes, “The greatest journey begins with a single step.”

Sometimes it’s not the work struggle that’s the problem, but our mindset toward it. At other times we need to draw on our talents and strengths to carry us through as we develop new skills and engage in new learning. Meanwhile, if we draw on the knowledge, expertise, and creativity of others, the options and possibilities available to us grow. Finally, when we focus on what we need to do next and refuse to become preoccupied and overwhelmed by the size and complexity of what we face, we move forward with clarity and confidence.

March 21, 2023

Six Secrets to Help Students Escape Common Thinking Traps

This is a time of the year when students often encounter multiple learning challenges. Past experiences, assumptions about their capabilities, and beliefs about their learning can hinder their academic success. As a result, they may stumble and struggle to stay focused and move forward.

Of course, we need to ensure students have access to instruction and other learning resources necessary to ensure their success. However, students can be held back by patterns of thinking and assumptions about how learning occurs and can be unaware of what power they possess to overcome some of the most common learning challenges. Fortunately, our timely and strategic coaching can help students find their way through to success. Let’s explore six of the most common thinking traps and how we can coach students to escape them.

The first thinking trap is availability of time. Students can become trapped into thinking they’ve no time for anything else because of their full schedules. They fail to see they've a choice regarding what they do with their time. They don’t have more or less time than anyone on earth. Everyone has a 24-hour day each day throughout the year. They must thoughtfully choose how to fill their schedules to increase their chances for success. Success in a changing world requires them to prioritize what they need to do and learn. They can free up time, but they can’t create more of it.

The second trap is feeling overwhelmed. When students feel overwhelmed, they’re often preoccupied with the volume of work, size, and complexity of the challenges they face. The result too often is they become paralyzed. A key counter strategy is to help students focus on where they are and what initial steps they can take. Often the metaphor of a journey can be useful. While a journey may be long and has an ultimate destination, it begins with a single step. There’ll be opportunities to adjust, arrive at decisions, and mark progress along the way, but success begins with that first step. Further, each step taken often reveals the next step to take.

A third thinking trap is experiencing failure. Students often feel as though failure reflects who they are, not actions they’ve taken. They may see a failed attempt as evidence of a lack of intelligence or talent. The trap is seeing failure as a permanent condition, not as a temporary state, relevant only until subsequent action moves them forward. A key strategy in the face of failure is to focus on what can be learned. Learning gives value to the experience and can prepare students to move forward and become successful. Failure is nothing more than evidence that there’s more to be learned and an invitation to try again.

A fourth thinking trap is feeling stuck, leading to the inability to see a solution or path forward. Students can feel as though they’re “spinning their wheels” and not making progress regardless of the effort they’re giving. Here, the key strategy is to think of being stuck as actually a threshold for learning something new. Feeling stuck likely means the student has exhausted the strategies they know and now are ready to learn more. In some cases, becoming unstuck can be as simple as reframing the challenge to help them view the situation from another perspective. At other times, an effective counter is to coach students to step back and consider what strategies they’ve tried, what other strategies might be employed, what effort they’ve given, how they might adjust their approach, what resources they’ve tapped, and what additional resources they might consider.

A fifth thinking trap is that productivity is a function of time given to a task. In fact, focus and the presence of supportive conditions can be more determinative than the number of minutes or hours students invest in studying or completing a project. The coaching strategy is to help students understand that removing distractions, such as social media, technology unrelated to the task at hand, and other competitors for their attention often contributes more to their productivity than the actual time they spend. As a strategy, short “learning sprints” featuring intense focus and effort followed by brief breaks for reflection and relaxation commonly result in more learning than long periods of study plagued by distractions and a wandering focus.

A sixth thinking trap is that creativity is best generated by focusing on a task, problem, or challenge, and pressing for ideas. Too often, pressing in a direction or pursuing a single focus gets in the way of creativity. Unlike productivity that rewards concentration, creativity often thrives with task-switching, attention shifting, and exploring a variety of approaches. We might coach students to step back and explore, engage in other tasks, and allow their thinking to wander. As they do, their minds are freer to make connections, see possibilities. and generate ideas that’ll feed their creativity.

Our knowledge of and experience with our students at this time of the year can position us to predict many of the thinking traps they'll encounter. Our anticipation, reassurance, and coaching can help students avoid many of the most common and distressing thinking traps. Of course, avoiding these thinking traps is preferable and more productive than having students try to extricate themselves once they’re caught.

March 16, 2023

Consider a Fresh Start for the Final Leg

Many of us have been working with the same groups of students for months. We may feel as though we know them well, can anticipate their behavior when they're challenged, can predict their reactions to dilemmas, as well as predict the commitment they’ll make to learning. We also know their growth and maturity hasn’t been static. Our students today aren’t the same individuals who joined us at the beginning of the year. One of the exciting dimensions of working with young people is that they’re constantly growing and changing. It’s important to be fully present for our students, especially now. We can’t allow our history with them to undermine our relationship with them nor underestimate their current learning potential. We need to set aside our assumptions and let go of what we've come to expect. Students can become trapped in past behavior and unable to break out of old patterns if we rely on past interactions to interpret what we’re seeing now. As our students grow and mature, we need to adjust to them. We must give them new opportunities to show who they’re becoming and explore the best ways we can support them. In short, we need to see our students through “new eyes.” Relying on history and assumptions exposes us and our students to several significant risks. We may miss the full implications of questions students ask. We may think that we know what students mean and respond in the context of what’s been. Yet, the questions we hear today likely reflect more knowledge and understanding than their similar questions conveyed earlier in the year. There may be more depth than we assume. In fact, if we assume greater depth and desire to understand, we’ll naturally nudge and coach students to ask questions that feature more depth and nuance. We can overlook fresh insights and novel observations students offer. When we hear some students’ voices, we may reflexively assume that we know what they’ll say and even tune them out. Yet, new interests and growing experiences may be shifting their thinking and opening opportunities for new growth. Our recognition of what students are becoming can offer welcome support for and build new confidence in students’ thinking. We may miss the full richness and creativity of student humor. We may be familiar with their sense of humor, but listening and appreciating what students have to offer is an important sign of respect. Further, our full-throated appreciation in response to humor can be a great way to wash away past conflicts and repair our relationship. Our expectations regarding the capability of students can be lowered and limited based on past behaviors and previous performance. We may think that we know the potential of our students, but what we really know is what they’ve done in the past. And the past isn’t necessarily predictive of the future or what’s possible. Our willingness to encourage, take a new look, and shift our approach may be what’s needed to help students break out of old habits, take more pride in their work, and deepen their learning commitment. Try this: After a calendar break or when students return from a weekend, make a conscious effort to see students through new eyes. What do we see and what might we anticipate if we didn’t know and have a history with our students? We might even have students introduce themselves to us as a symbol of a new start. We might ask students to respond to questions such as, “Who am I today that I wasn’t at the beginning of the year?” “How have my interests changed?” “What am I able to do that I couldn’t do at the start of the year?” “What am I even better at now than I was at the start of the year? Of course, we might ask ourselves similar questions. How have we grown and what implications does our growth have for our students and our practice? What can students expect from us that might not have been possible early in the year? What commitments will we make to our students in the final leg of the year?

March 09, 2023

Common Characteristics of Life-Changing Teachers

Can you recall a teacher whose influence changed the way you think, ignited a passion, or opened in you a vision for what was possible and who you could be? If so, you’re very fortunate. Many people experience an entire educational career, never having the opportunity to learn from a life-changing teacher. They may have been exposed to committed, well-prepared teachers who supported their learning and provided guidance and advice. Yet, they didn’t encounter a driving force that led them to see possibilities and open doors to learning beyond their imagination and aspirations. Of course, not every life-changing teacher is life-changing for every student they encounter. Also, life-changing experiences aren’t always recognized during the time students are with these teachers. Sometimes the impact isn’t realized until years later when students find themselves recalling and reliving experiences that shaped their lives. Let’s explore the common characteristics of life-changing teachers. We can start by noting that life-changing teachers tend to the basics. They build strong relationships with students. They’re skilled in their craft and are professional in their approach. In addition, these teachers typically possess and practice some, or all, of a shared set of characteristics and behaviors. Life-changing teachers hold a belief in the potential of students at levels that exceed what students often dare to believe. These teachers are talent scouts, gift seekers, and expectation lifters. Being in their presence makes students feel brighter, more competent, and more committed. They give students hope to dream and strive for more than they imagined they could achieve. These teachers nudge and challenge students at the leading edge of their skills and beyond. They’re never satisfied with what students already can do. They search for what might be the student’s next level of learning and how they can awaken an interest and emerging passion that students will own. Regardless of where students may be when they encounter life-changing teachers, these teachers are committed to nurturing growth and expanding learning. They have an infectious passion for what they do. Students find it almost impossible to not be energized and excited by what these teachers care about. What may sound boring and mundane seemingly comes to life in these teachers’ presence and is compelling to learn. These teachers have a voracious learning appetite. For them learning is like breathing. They’re curious, inquisitive, and engaged. They’re always searching for something interesting, new, and sharable. Life-changing teachers often have a level of persistence bordering on tenacity. They refuse to give up on students, even when students may be tempted to give up on themselves. These teachers possess a combination of patience and confidence that sustains their efforts. They believe students will eventually respond to their faith, nudging, and influence, even if it takes weeks, months, or longer. Uncommon teachers hold uncompromising standards. These teachers have a commitment to have all students be successful. The question never is whether standards should be lowered. Rather, they search for paths and processes that‘ll help students meet them. Their mantra often is “Whatever it takes.” Interestingly, life-changing teachers frequently are famous with their students for their quirkiness, often even bordering on eccentricity. These teachers may have unique sayings, engage in unexpected behaviors, or share surprising insights and perspectives. Often students discuss with each other and treasure these aspects of their experience with these teachers long after they’ve moved forward in their own lives. The good news is that being a life-changing teacher is something to which we can all aspire. In fact, the characteristics of life-changing teachers are learnable, achievable, and practicable. Further, not every life-changing teacher must possess and practice all the characteristics that are common to these teachers. Every student deserves to encounter a life-changing teacher. We can be that teacher.

March 09, 2023

Build Long-Term Learning Skills with Five Coaching Questions

Students typically see us as the ultimate “answerers” for their questions. Of course, many questions they have, such as classroom expectations, routines, assignments, etc., are our purview. Our timely and efficient responses can move classroom activities along and minimize confusion and distractions. Students also frequently have questions related to the learning tasks, challenges, and projects that support their learning. These questions can be important to moving learning forward, but we’re not always the best person to answer them. In fact, when and how students wrestle with these questions can help their learning to grow, inject greater meaning into their learning, and build learning-related skills for the future. In the interest of time and convenience, we may tell students what their next steps should be, how to find the answers to their learning questions, or we may simply give them the resources they seek. Yet, when we do, we may be helping them to solve today’s problem, while neglecting some of their most important learning. Rather than supplying ready answers, the learning interests of our students are better served by our helping them to find answers, develop strategies, and tap resources available to them. Our positioning shifts from being the “chief answerer,” to coach and co-explorer. Rather than immediately answering the learning-related questions students pose, we might respond with coaching questions to help them see options to finding answers and alternatives to pursue. Here are five coaching questions we might employ. First, what do you think? Students often come to us without having given much thought once they encounter a barrier or are not certain what to do next. We might have a “try three before me” expectation, but even so, students may have ideas and perspectives they’ve not considered or pursued. By asking students what they think, we send a message that their ideas and perspectives matter, and they may have answers they’ve not recognized. At the very least, this question reminds students that learning is what they do. We can’t do it for them. Second, what else might you try? The typical response to this question is, “I’ve tried everything I know.” We might explore with students the attempts they’ve made and what they’ve learned from doing so. We also can coach students to think about additional steps and strategies that have worked for them in the past that might be useful. The goal is to have students “mine” their experience and develop additional options and steps they can try. Third, what do you know that doesn't work? With this response, we’re coaching students to reflect further on what they've tried. Even though previous attempts weren’t successful, they may have encountered an element or aspect that could be part of the answer they’re seeking. The underlying message is that failed attempts can contain information they can use and be valuable learning experiences. Fourth, how else might you think about this? Sometimes the answer lies in backing up and starting anew rather than pressing harder and pushing farther. This question invites students to reframe the problem or situation and consider it from a different perspective. When approached from a new direction, the answer may be clear and immediately useful. Fifth, who else could you ask? Students can become trapped in the mindset that they must solve every learning problem on their own. Yet, classmates often can be good resources. Other people in their lives may have insights and ideas. Even experts in the community and beyond may be helpful resources. In life, success is less often determined by how intelligent we are and more by the intelligence we’re willing to tap. Of course, we need to place our questions in a coaching context, so that students understand our purpose is to build their learning skills and flexibility, not torment them. Our questions can provide valuable opportunities to remind students that the work they’re doing and the support we’re providing are intended to prepare them for future learning success, not only to complete today’s assignment or this week’s project.

March 02, 2023

Six Keys to Designing Life-Changing Learning

Recall, if you can, a time when you had a powerful learning experience, an experience in which the way you thought, assumptions you made, and perspectives you held were challenged and changed, or became more nuanced. You may recall problems you confronted, struggles in which you engaged, and new learning that emerged. If you can recall experiences such as these, you’re a fortunate learner. These special learning experiences can have a life-long impact. They can ignite life passions, define driving missions, and create new clarity and commitment for learning and life. Unfortunately, too few of these learning experiences happen within the context of the school curriculum. When they occur, they often emerge by coincidence, or they may happen in response to an incident or experience that cannot be ignored or set aside. Yet it seems the mission and context of school should be the place where life-changing learning happens often and with intent. An important recent research review at the University of Pennsylvania distilled five decades of research involving over 7000 studies on learning to define a set of characteristics associated with learning that has a lasting impact. The defining characteristics of life-changing learning are more closely related to the experience than to its duration or even its specific content. In fact, life-changing learning experiences can be the result of a project, extended engagement over the course of weeks and months, or in some cases the experience may span the course of a full year and beyond. Interestingly, for students to experience a profound, life-changing learning experience, not all these characteristics must be present. Depending on the situation, as few as two or three can be enough to drive the learning experience to new depth and breadth and create a life-long memory. Let’s explore these characteristics and how we might use them to design learning experiences that can have a life-changing impact. The first is a supportive environment in which mistakes are accepted, even expected. Students need to be free to explore, examine, experiment, and take risks. Learners need to experience a level of trust and autonomy that invites them to take ownership and invest in their learning. Second, life-changing learning experiences often result from learning that involves service to others, especially people who have a particular need. Teaching, tutoring, mentoring of others who need support are examples. The key is for the learning activity to extend beyond oneself and provide a meaningful benefit to others. Third, these learning experiences may include exposure to ideas, beliefs, or perspectives that are different from those held by the student. However, the experience must be more than something minor that might be ignored or something so overwhelming that it may be rejected. The key is to open the door to a broader perspective and deeper understanding. The goal is for the student to gain a more complex understanding of something significant and the ability to differentiate among things that previously may have seemed indistinguishable. Third, profound learning comes from active engagement, giving energy, and making a commitment. Life-changing learning requires an investment, features a level of learning risk, and presents a meaningful challenge. The greater the commitment and involvement, the greater the return in learning. Fourth, life-changing learning almost always involves real problems, or at least simulations that are sophisticated enough for students to take them seriously and engage authentically. These learning experiences often come without clear answers and existing solutions. As a result, the experience promotes critical thinking, evidence examination, generation of novel ideas, and tolerance for ambiguity. Fifth, powerful learning experiences typically benefit from collaboration with peers, educators, mentors, or others. Profound learning experiences can occur in isolation and with the engagement of a single student. But more often, the thinking, assumptions, approaches, questions, and perspectives of others add richness and depth to the experience. The dialogue, support, and even conflict can move learning forward and generate new insights. Sixth, life-changing learning experiences benefit from opportunities for reflection and meaning making. Reflection can support examination, testing of insights, and adjustment of thinking. Reflection opportunities during these learning experiences can help students to clarify and assign meaning to what they’re thinking and feeling. Discussion, debate, and dialogue with others can provide opportunities to test new assumptions, try out new perspectives, and explore new beliefs. The range of topics, issues, and phenomena that might be the focus of life-changing learning is almost limitless. Of course, we must take into consideration the maturity and readiness of our students and the extent to which we're prepared to support the learning experiences we design. However, the opportunity to make a life-long impact on the learning of our students is a special privilege and shouldn't be ignored.

February 22, 2023

Share Your Tips & Stories

Share your story and the tips you have for getting through this challenging time. It can remind a fellow school leader of something they forgot, or your example can make a difficult task much easier and allow them to get more done in less time. We may publish your comments.

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Want to Improve Your Outlook and Sense of Well-Being? Diversify

This is a time of year when it’s easy to feel as though we’re in a rut. We can feel stale and uninteresting. Our energy level may be ebbing, and we need a lift to reset our attitude and outlook. Life often has a way, especially during the winter months, of becoming routine and repetitive. While routines and repetition can bring a level of comfort and predictability, they can leave us feeling flat and unmotivated. Fortunately, the shift in outlook we need may be easier to achieve than we think. A study published in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science suggests a practical solution to counter boredom and unhappiness and a way to open the door to new energy and greater fulfillment. In the same way the strategy of diversifying our financial resources across different types of investments can protect a healthy financial condition, diversifying our social engagements and relationships can lead to healthier, more vibrant encounters and a more optimistic outlook on life. While stable, long-term relationships are important to our health and well-being, interactions with others beyond our immediate circle can add variety and stimulation and connect us with others who have a wide range of experiences, outlooks, and perspectives. As a result, our thinking is challenged, we’re exposed to new ideas, and we gain new appreciation for our experiences, insights, and ideas. The answer is as simple as reaching out to former colleagues and childhood friends, contacting a distant relative, and engaging in conversation with people outside the education world. The benefits will be surprising and more than worth the effort. Of course, a similar diversification strategy can be impactful in other areas of life, too. For example, we might diversify our learning and entertainment activities. We can change up what we read or listen to. We may shift from exclusively reading print materials to exploring podcasts. We might shift from fiction to biographies, try science fiction or history. We might explore some new magazines, try some new television networks, or a new movie genre. Live concerts and theatre also are good options. Similarly, we might consider varying the activities in which we engage. If we normally walk for exercise, bicycling can be an option. Or maybe we just choose a new route to explore. We might explore hiking, biking, swimming, or cross-country skiing. Now might be a good time to rediscover jigsaw or crossword puzzles. The variety can increase our stimulation while challenging new muscles and areas of our brain. Another area worth exploring is the foods we eat. We can change up our “go to” menus. We might try new some new foods or return to some that we've not experienced in a while. We can explore foods from different cultures. Or we might expand our cooking and baking repertoire with new recipes. Of course, we also can try a new restaurant or two to expand our eating experience. Still another area to explore for potential diversification is our daily and weekly routines. Now might be a good time to change the time of day we set aside for exercise. We might try completing our lesson planning and related activities before leaving for the day, or at least spending less time at home in the evening doing school related work. Or we might commit to adding to or subtracting other activities from our routines. The options and opportunities for introducing greater diversification to our lives are nearly limitless. However, they only offer benefits if we're willing to step out of our routines, rituals, and ruts to give them a try.

February 22, 2023

Five Superpowers We Can Employ Every Day

The routines and seeming predictability of this time of the year can lead us to ignore the power and opportunities we have each day to shape the experiences of our students. The decisions we make, the lessons we design, the strategies we employ, and even the assessments we administer determine how our students will experience their day, how they’ll engage in learning, and what they’ll do with the learning they gain. We can either create an exciting learning challenge and opportunity or assign students to an experience of repetition, compliance, and boredom. Here are at least five superpowers we can access every day in our work with learners. How we choose to use our superpowers determines not only what students experience, but also shapes how students view the learning we offer and shapes their value of it. Let’s explore these five superpowers and how we can leverage them to open possibilities and shift the learning trajectories of our students. Our first superpower is choosing the tempo, mood, and expectations for learning. Our attitude, energy, and excitement aren’t just one of the influences on the temperament of the class, it’s the driving force establishing the daily climate. When we expect an energetic, exciting, uplifting day, chances are high our students will respond in kind. The opposite also is true. When we project low energy, frustration, or boredom, students pick up our signals and respond accordingly. In fact, students typically spend the first minutes of class tuning in to the mood and energy of the teacher to determine what lies ahead. A second daily superpower is the design and structure we create to support the intended learning. If our design is an interactive investigation of an important learning concept, the exploration of an empowering skill, or expansion of an emerging area of competence and we invite students to be partners in their learning, we create spaces for inquiry, ownership, and sense-making. If the day features information sharing, students listening, and notetaking, we create conditions more likely to generate quiet compliance and fought-for attention. The structure we establish and the design we create drive how students engage in and respond to the learning we present. A third superpower resides in how we choose to listen and respond to our students’ interests, questions, and confusion. When we treat questions as interruptions and distractions to be handled quickly and efficiently, we signal to students that they should confine their questions to cleaning up confusion and clarifying expectations. On the other hand, if we use our attention and responsiveness superpower to invite inquiry, explore implications and possibilities of questions, and even open new paths for learning, students are more likely to think, reflect, and imagine in response to what they’re learning. Of course, when questions are honored, respected, and explored they invite additional questions and even more learning. Still another superpower available to us daily is the focus, depth, and purpose we bring to the learning we plan. When we choose to treat learning as information to be absorbed and skills to be practiced and demonstrated, our students are likely to respond by focusing on what they'll be responsible for and how to meet our expectations. Conversely, we can use our superpower to inquire and examine, press for deeper learning and application, and support students to generate their own insights and generate new learning. When we do, we open the door to an unlimited quest for learning that’s not fully dependent on our knowledge and interpretation of what’s significant. Our fifth superpower is how we choose to approach assessment of learning. If our focus is on determining whether students can repeat what they’ve been told and demonstrate that they can do what they have been shown, we can expect students to give their attention to what’ll be on the test, what type of questions they’ll be asked, and what sort of problems they’ll have to solve. Alternatively, we can treat assessment as an opportunity for students to integrate what they’ve learned, demonstrate their understanding and capacity to use new skills, and even push beyond what we taught to gain new insights and make additional observations. When we do, students shift from being consumers of information to appliers of skills and from repositories of adult knowledge to generators of new ideas and possibilities. An additional observation about these superpowers: The more we use them to open learning doors, inspire inquiry, build confidence, and learning ownership, the more power they possess. Of course, they also enrich and expand our influence on our students and our relationships with them.

February 16, 2023

Five Responses to Misbehavior We Must Avoid

The mental health of young people is a serious concern. We see evidence and hear reports about the nature and extent of the problem daily. Our students face unprecedented pressure and stress ranging from traditional sources, such as fitting in and friendships, family issues, social media pressure, the need for learning catch up, and fears about the future. We need to do what we can to help our students cope with the issues they face and learn how to manage the pressures and stresses they face. Above all, we need to do what we can to avoid adding to the mental and emotional weight our students carry. For example, when students engage in unacceptable behavior, we must be thoughtful in our response. We want students not to repeat the behavior, but some of our choices in response to students’ actions can risk harming their mental health. Consider the difference between discipline and punishment. Discipline approaches misbehavior or poor choices as an opportunity for teaching and learning. Our goal is not just to stop the behavior. We seek to have the student learn how and why to change their behavior. Discipline is guided by our commitment to help our students grow and be able to make better choices on their own. Punishment, on the other hand, seeks to stop the behavior by exacting consequences or implementing a reaction that'll lead the student not to repeat the behavior. Pain and discomfort - emotional, social, or physical – are frequent tools for punishment. Avoiding further consequences and practicing compliance are the assumed outcomes. Unfortunately, many means for punishing misbehavior can also harm the mental health of students. The damage can be profound and lifelong, especially when punishment is exacted in anger. Many of us can clearly and painfully recall times when and how we were punished, even though many years have passed. Our position of authority in the lives of students makes our responsibility in this regard even greater. Punishment that can cause mental harm comes in many forms. However, there are at least five ways in which students often are punished that teaches little and can result in significant harm: Ostracizing. When we intentionally ignore and encourage others to not interact with a classmate, we risk causing feelings of isolation and depression that can lead to significant and lasting damage. Students may not repeat the offending behavior, but the cost can be high. Humiliation. When we intentionally embarrass a student, especially in front of peers, we risk creating a wound that'll be slow to heal. Students may regret what they did, but they'll not soon forget how we made them feel. The combination of pain and resentment can result in loss of confidence and significant depression. Holding a grudge. Students say and do many things about which they may have not given much thought. We can be offended and angry. We may feel humiliated and embarrassed. However, once we've handled the situation we need to let it go. Our students are still learning and growing. They need the opportunity for a new start without our lingering resentment damaging our relationship with them. Expressing disgust. Disgust is an expression of revulsion or strong disapproval. Few things students do should raise this level of response from us. Expressions of disgust are especially harmful when the object is something over which students don't have control. Physical characteristics of the student, the student’s family status or behavior, or ethnic traditions are examples. Being the object of someone’s disgust can create a lasting and unpleasant memory even if the student does not fully understand what caused it. Negative predictions. What we predict about the future of our students can carry far more influence than we imagine. In a moment of anger, we might predict that a student will never be successful, not graduate, ever amount to much, or another negative prospect. Long after we have forgotten the incident, we likely will find that the student hasn't let the memory go. In fact, the student may refer to our words whenever they fail or fall short. Only rarely will a student use the experience to propel them to success. However, even if they do, it'll be despite us, not because of our inspiration. We must do all we can to help our students and never consciously or intentionally add to their mental health load. Our focus must be on how we can help students learn to behave in acceptable ways, and not rely on our threats, comments, and emotional state to keep them in line.

February 10, 2023

Feeling Stuck? Tap Five “R’s” to Regain Momentum

These are times when there’s much in our world that causes stress, frustration, and confusion. The past two years have been disrupted. Hopes that everything will return to what we used to think of as normal haven’t been realized. Strategies on which we formerly relied may no longer work. Students often respond in ways that are different than prior to the pandemic. We, too, are different than we were two years ago. Meanwhile, we feel pressure to perform, but may not have the energy, enthusiasm, and commitment we used to possess. All these factors can leave us feeling stuck. When we’re stuck in a cycle of frustration, confusion, and resentment, our natural reaction can be to continue to press, hoping things will get better. Yet, doing so can make things worse and even more difficult to change later. Doing more of what’s not working rarely is a good solution. Rather than continuing to push and persist, it may be time to take a new tact. We can start by accepting that no one is likely to fix the situation but us. While this is a statement of reality, it’s also a statement of empowerment. We may not be able to change the elements and factors that drive our situation, but we always have the power to change how we think, interpret, and respond to what’s happening around us. For things to get better, we may need to disrupt the cycle of emotion and action that’s holding us back and making us feel stuck. Here's a five-step process to step back from our frustrations, re-evaluate our situation, re-position ourselves, and re-engage in our lives and work with new perspectives, strategies, and commitment. First, we can relax. We don’t do our best thinking or make our best decisions when we’re stressed and pressed. We only make ourselves more tired, angry, anxious, or frustrated. We risk experiencing a cycle of unproductive thinking and unhelpful behaviors. Continuing to do what hasn’t been working and expecting a different outcome, in the words of Albert Einstein, is insanity. It’s time to slow down and take a break from doing and reacting. We start by setting time aside. Reserve a weekend day, or schedule a getaway weekend to pause, reflect, and explore what we’re experiencing. Second, we need to reflect. We begin this process by examining primary drivers of our stress, anxiety, or confusion. We can explore how we might look at the situation from another perspective. What assumptions are we making that may be getting in our way? What patterns can we see that may provide hints for how we can disrupt and shift our thinking and behavior? How might our thinking and what we’re doing contribute to what we now experience? The key is to focus on ourselves and what we can do rather than becoming preoccupied by factors and forces we can’t change. Third, we use our insights to refocus. We capture “nuggets” of clarity and opportunity from our reflection to identify what’s important to shift in our thinking and modify our behavior. Next, we consider what’s doable and what’ll make the greatest difference in how we feel and experience our life and work. The key isn’t to add on or cram more into life and work. The answer isn’t working harder. The solution is letting go of what isn’t adding value and satisfaction and replacing those things with what offers meaning and purpose. Our focus should be on what can lead to clear progress and promises meaningful accomplishments. If this step leaves us struggling, we consider enlisting a friend or colleague to help us sort our reflection and look for clues and insights we can glean to nourish our refocusing. Fourth, we recommit to our work and purpose, capturing the energy provided by the hope of changing our approach, making progress, and accomplishing what’s important to us. It’s time to let go of what’s been holding us back and embrace our new vision of what’s possible with new insights and a new approach. We step up to embrace the power we’ve claimed and clarity of purpose we’ve created. Fifth and finally, we reengage in our work. This step asks us to convert our insights and intentions to action, challenging ourselves to commit to what we can do today that’ll move us forward and closer to the vision we’ve created. Importantly, we also need to pay attention to what we’ll stop doing that’s been getting in the way. What choices we can make that’ll break the cycle that’s been holding us back? What can we do to be sure that every day we do something to make things better? How can we leverage the next two weeks to see clear progress? If we struggle, we might ask, who should we enlist to help us stay committed and provide coaching and encouragement when we need it? The truth is that we can’t always change our circumstances. Yet, we always can shift how we think and how we respond. Now may be a good time to relax, reflect, refocus, recommit, and reengage to become unstuck and find the success and satisfaction we seek.

February 10, 2023

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