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It starts with committing to creating a caring and nurturing environment

by Tamara Fyke

My son was about eight years old, and he was in second grade. I found him one day upstairs in his room crying.

“What’s going on, sweetie?” I asked with great concern.

“I’m stupid. The other kids are reading chapter books, and I can’t. They make fun of me,” he confessed.

I promised him that we would get help, figure out what was going on. I held him and reassured him of my love as he wept. I whispered the truth to him that he was the most special little boy in the world to me.

From that moment, we began the investigation with reading specialists and tutors. He even got glasses. We were on our way to a better school experience.

But the teasing didn’t stop. Now my son was laughed at because he wore glasses. The kid just couldn’t get a break!

We had another tearful conversation, and I encouraged my boy to stand up for himself. “Tell them to stop. And if they don’t, ask a teacher for help.”

My son’s story isn’t unique or particularly severe, but it affected his heart and his view of school. To this day he tells me that his favorite experience was preschool because he got to ride the bikes in the gym. That makes sense because he’s a boy and an athlete. However, I wonder if the fondness of that memory is also because he was in a nurturing environment.

According to stopbullying.gov, “Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior — verbal, social or physical — among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time.”

The current popularity of the Netflix hit show 13 Reasons Why is evidence that this is a story that resonates with kids. Additionally, a recent social media post about bullying on our Love In A Big World FaceBook page prompted the greatest response we’ve ever seen. That tells me that people are looking for answers.

First, bullying is not relegated to childhood. As an adult, I have experienced bullying in relationships and in the workplace. Often, schools that have the biggest problems with bullying are the ones where teachers don’t get along. We owe it to ourselves and our kids to get our act together. The gossip, backbiting, and meanness must stop. Instead, let’s get to know each other and cultivate healthy relationships both in and out of the workplace.

Second, as in my son’s case, bullying often hurts us most when it targets areas in which we feel weak. Therefore, it behooves us to increase our own self-awareness and do the personal work we need to do to better love ourselves. We needed to find out the root of my son’s problem so we could get him the support he needed. Whether the challenge is intellectual, mental, social or physical, there are resources available to assist us on our journey to wholeness. There is no shame in asking for help.

And last, we all know bullying is a problem; this is nothing new. Years ago, bullying was often regarded as a right of passage experience. When the underdog stood up to the bully, he or she  became the hero. What I think is different now is that the stakes are higher. This is no longer about a bloody nose on a playground; this is about life and death, in some cases homicide or suicide. Therefore, we must take action.

From a positive youth development approach, it is about decreasing risk factors and increasing protective factors. This does not mean putting up posters that say “No Bullying Zone.” It means rolling up our sleeves and doing the hard work of having the critical conversations with adults and kids that need to be had because relationships matter… people count!

We must choose Kindness — treating others the way we want to be treated. Yes, what I’m advocating for takes time… it’s neither glamorous nor complicated. We must be committed to creating a caring and nurturing environment, starting with a smile, a positive attitude and kind words. We need to build each other up, not tear each other down.

The simple truth is we all want to be seen and safe; we have a need to belong. So, let’s challenge ourselves to experience life with our whole heart engaged — and teach our kids to do the same.

1. Daily News – Bullying on the rise in NYC schools, reports jump 10% compared to 2016: survey
2. ESPN – Once bullied, David Johnson now touts anti-bullying campaign
3. Dodge City Daily Globe – Bullying is a problem

Transcending the status quo: How do we know we’ve arrived?

by Dr. Sonny Magana

“Evidence matters. Implementing evidence-based practices matters more. Evaluating the impact from implementing evidence-based practices matters most.” –John Hattie

The Myth of Final Attainment

If you are reading this final post, then you have likely read my previous posts in this article series. As such, you hopefully have a clearer idea of the evidence underpinning the unhappy state of technology use in education (Part 1), how we arrived at this ill-chosen status quo (Part 2), the desired future state of education (Part 3), and how we might achieve it (Part 4). The purpose of this post is to offer some thoughts and guidance to help determine if we’ve indeed arrived at the future state of education that would be considered highly desirable.

However, an actual point of arrival at such a lofty destination is an artifice. It’s a myth. There is no “final attainment,” no proverbial mountain top from which one can rest on one’s pedagogical laurels and proclaim, “I’ve made it!” Letting go of the myth of final attainment is the first step into the much larger world of mastery.

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus wrote that we must embrace a constant state of becoming to reach the optimal realization of our human potential. A reasonable implication of this philosophy implies that mastery is not a final destination but a lifelong process of continuous growth and development. The journey’s the thing. As we travel along the road towards mastery, it is critical that we receive meaningful feedback to help us determine if sufficient progress is being made towards our desired future state while simultaneously enacting course corrections as needed. In the case of the future of education, we would do well to have a road map with crystal clear goals and just enough mileposts to allow creativity to flourish over-prescriptive, lock-step compliance. This is perhaps the most valuable element of the T3 Framework for innovation in education; it is a tempered guide designed to stimulate the realization of the collective efficacy of whole learning systems.

Shifting from PD to OD

Such a philosophical approach demands a shift from professional development to organizational development. Educators have received professional development focused on building technology skills for four decades, with alarmingly little impact to show for the effort. A key factor contributing to the disappointing results of teacher training on technology rests with the transfer;. In contrast, much of the research on teacher training focuses on skill acquisition. Few studies have measured transfer effects from the training room to the classroom. Helping teachers transfer newly gained skills into their practices holds great promise for improving instructional quality and student achievement. Joyce and Showers (1988) report:

“In studies that have asked the transfer question (e.g., did participants use new skills in the classroom, did they use them appropriately, did they integrate new skills with existing repertoire, was their long-term retention of the products of training), several findings emerge. First, the gradual addition of training elements does not appear to impact transfer noticeably (ES [effect size] of .00 for information or theory; theory plus demonstration; theory, demonstration, and feedback; ES of .39 for theory, demonstration, practice, and feedback). However, a large and dramatic increase in the transfer of training—ES 1.68—occurs when in-class coaching is added to an initial training experience comprised of theory explanation, demonstration, and practice with feedback. (pp. 71-72).”

These findings strongly suggest how important it is for organizations to leverage system-wide support, leadership, and ongoing instructional coaching during the implementation phase. Implementing evidence-based practices is a team sport. This shift is necessary to ensure that all teachers in a learning system transfer new evidence-based knowledge and strategies into their classroom practices.

Evaluating OD Impact with the T3 Framework

Finally, it is important to continuously evaluate the impact of implementing evidence-based methods. This is particularly true when building collective efficacy with educational technology use. Learning systems would benefit from using the T3 Framework for innovation to guide this process. The first step is to assess the current level of technology use within the three stages of the T3 Framework— T1: Translational Technology Use, T2: Transformational Technology Use, and T3: Transcendent Technology Use.

It would also be helpful for teachers to use a proficiency scale to reflect on their current levels of technology use on the T3 Framework (see Figure 1.0). To be actionable, proficiency scales should be clear, precise, and contain only three competence points. Adding additional stages makes such scales less usable as a tool for reflection-in-action during instruction. We can agilely reflect upon our efficacy using a simple scale such as (1) Beginning, (2) Developing, and (3) Mastering. Using this nominal scale in the aggregate, teachers across whole schools, districts, regions, or states can more accurately self-assess their current use of technology, providing a clearer picture of the here and now.

With these incremental stages in mind, teachers can more accurately establish meaningful growth goals and track their progress with elements in the T3 Framework. Evaluating the impact of evidence-based practices ideally includes instructional staff, coaches, and building leaders to evaluate impact and provide sufficient guidance and resources as needed to ensure continuous growth towards mastery.

Building collective efficacy with educational technologies will help guide our work at hand and move the needle of technology impact forward. Embracing a mastery mindset will help school systems realize their potential collective efficacy—and model that process for students. The T3 Framework and proficiency scales were designed to aid in mastering digital tools in a modern teaching and learning context. We will only transcend the status quo of low-impact technology by disrupting the current trajectory. Arguably, that matters most of all.

1. Village Voice – To Fight Institutional Racism, Teachers Are Going Back to School
2. EdScoop – Colorado partners with video platform for interactive professional development
3. Education World – Study: Teachers Feel Left Out of the Conversation When It Comes to PD