Bad Leadership

This past week I saw something on Twitter that made me think.  It was posted by the Barna Group (@BarnaGroup).  They do a lot of research on trends in our country and specifically on how the different generations look at issues like leadership, religion, ethics, etc.  I had the opportunity to hear George Barna speak a few years ago and it was very informative and fascinating.  Anyway this week I saw this on Barna Group's twitter feed:

These stats really struck me.  First, I felt personally convicted.  How many times have I lack vision and direction as a leader?  How many times have I been the most stressful part of the job for those I work with?  Hopefully I've never made people feel controlled or manipulated, but we never know how our actions are perceived.

Then I got to thinking about the classroom.  If superintendents and chief officers are the leaders of administrators, and if principals are leaders of teachers, then teachers are the leaders in the classroom.  If employees have these types of feelings about their bosses, could it be that some of our students feel this way about us as teachers?  And if so, what does it mean for them?  If 3 in 10 of our students feel this way, how would it effect student acheivement?

I was reminded of how important it is to have a moral imperative for our leadership.  As classroom teachers, we set the tone for our classrooms.  We are the leaders.  Do we create a learning environment that is nurturing?  Does it promote curiousity and excitement to learn?  Or do we create an enviroment that lacks vision and direction?  Is it stressful?  Do our kids feel manipulated?  We know that the most basic need for an effective classroom, school, corporation, is for students to feel safe and supported. 

Educators typically got into education to make a difference in the lives of kids.  Our leadership is probably the best way to make that difference!

A Call to Indiana's Educators

Here in the state of Indiana, it certainly has been an interesting week when it comes to the world of education.  Just in case you hadn't heard,  this week State Superintendent of Education, Glenda Ritz, and Governor Mike Pence and the GOP controlled Legislature found themselves facing each other off on the the issue of testing and accountability which has become their latest battlefield.  Debates on educational policy and practice are so tough because they are so complex.  The world is changing around us and the needs of students are changing with it.  We all went to school and so we come with some level of knowledge about education. So the ongoing struggle for power in education in this state continues.

We could spend all day hashing out the details and debating whose fault all this is.  That's not what I want to do here.  All I'll say about that is this, I once hear a counselor speaking to a group of church leaders about how to help couples that are facing divorce.  He said, "Two people don't get to the point of divorce without there being fault with both parties...." 

So what are Indiana educators to do? 

The calls and texts from friends in education started pouring in this week.  Friends from here in Indiana where curious about what I was hearing.  "Are we going to have IREAD testing?"  "How much do you think they're going to shorten the test?"  You get the idea.  Friends from out of state sent me messages more like this, "What is going on with your state???"  It was kind of embarassing! 

This week many of our schools here at Warsaw Community Schools celebrated Be Excited About Reading week, or better known as BEAR week.  I had lots of opportunities to read to students as part of this week.  This morning, I spent about 30 minutes reading to 1st graders at Harrison Elementary School.  I have to tell you, this was one of the highlights of my week.  Looking into all the excited faces of those 6 year olds as we read fun stories like Scaredy Squirrel and A Bad Case of the Stripes was so touching.  As I was driving back to the office, I had some time to reflect on the time I had with those kids.  I loved that time, and you know why?  Because they're why I went into education to begin with. 

As educators, it's so easy to get caught up in the political upheaval that we've faced over the last few years.  It's natural to want to watch with baited breath as people make decisions that effect our daily lives.  Not only do the details of our lives often get effected by political decisions, but now often our pay is effected by them.  But what I realized this morning was that stuff doesn't really matter.  Those 6 year olds I was with today don't know anything about state boards of education or executive orders.  All they care about is having someone who loves them and wants what's best for them teaching them what they're curious about in a way that is relevant to them.  That's the job our incredible teachers do! 

So my call to educators is this; take time this weekend to go back and remember why you got into education.  If you're like most, it's because you want to be the difference in a kid's life.  You want to be a positive impact in his/her life.  Take time to count the blessings of education and think about how you can be even better for your kids.  And when the going gets tough, or continues to be tough, go back to those things you love about education.  There will always be politicians making decisions that either help or hurt us as educators.  We can either choose to be upset, become disillusioned, and become negative, or we can focus on the real difference that we make every day and be true to our life's calling.  I look forward to continuing to watch the great things that happen in our classrooms every day!