We prize ourselves as being a school with a strong culture of life-long learning. You know what I am talking about- teaming, resources, professional development…
I guess there are many who see teaching/learning as a matter of doing what people already know how to do well. We spend so much time searching for (and acquiring) the best programs, the best ideas, the best materials, the best resources, and more- more is better, right? And still we continue to wonder what will make the learning deeper. But being the best in education is more a process of inquiry and innovation rather than “accumulating” resources and skills and doing more!
Our leadership team has started to have some brutal conversations focusing on what could and should be different… we have believed we were traveling down that yellow brick road only to find that we had a road map that was so busy and complicated that the directions themselves hindered our destination of deep learning. Since October we have started to bypass the “known” milestones of past success by engaging in fierce conversations about learning and the “unknown” path.
It has not been easy. There are forces that make it easier or more difficult to act in “new” ways in an organizational setting. Adjusted learning and new thinking calls for continuous openness to learning through action, brutal feedback, as well as deep, honest reflections. We have spent hours in small groups teasing out and processing our thoughts, ideas and beliefs, holding onto our sacred cows or allowing the slaughter. In this often painful and challenging path, we are truly integrating work and learning, and emulating a true learning culture.
Nowadays, our leadership meetings are starting to present authentic learning and leading opportunities through our conduct in open, exploratory, and inquiry-orientated manner. We are far from achieving an ideal culture of learning, but at least serious steps are being taken in that direction with substantial positive consequences of building understanding in our organization.
How brutal are the conversations at your team meetings? What enhances new thinking, innovations and learning? What hinders leadership for learning?
