"It is a serious thing," says Lewis, "to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no 'ordinary' people. You have never talked to a mere mortal."
--C. S. Lewis, From The Weight of Glory.
This quote by C. S. Lewis is a favorite of mine...and is one we should definitely remember when we face our Esperanza students each day. We must not only see our students for who they are today but also their unlimited potential.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Awakening a Love for History
Abigail Adams, writing one of her many letters to her husband, John, who was off in Philadelphia working to put the Declaration of Independence through Congress, wrote, "Posterity who are to reap the blessings, will scarcely be able to conceive the hardships and sufferings of their ancestors."
We are the ones reaping the blessings of those who paved the way for us. We have so much to learn from these courageous souls who didn't know how things were going to turn out. They were living in their present, just as we do. Reading biographies, autobiographies, historical fiction, trade books about events, etc. will give us a much richer understanding of historical times than memorizing dates and events.
David McCullough who has a great passion and love for history and has written a number of books about history told BYU students at a forum assembly on the 27th of September 2005, "...pursue it [history] avidly, with diligence, with attention. I hope you do this not just because it will make you a better citizen, and it will; not just because you learn a great deal about human nature and about cause and effect in your own lives, as well as the life of the nation, which you will; but as a source of strength, as an example of how to conduct yourself in difficult times...But I hope you also will find history to be a source of pleasure."
We owe it to our Esperanza scholars to awaken in them a love for history.
We are the ones reaping the blessings of those who paved the way for us. We have so much to learn from these courageous souls who didn't know how things were going to turn out. They were living in their present, just as we do. Reading biographies, autobiographies, historical fiction, trade books about events, etc. will give us a much richer understanding of historical times than memorizing dates and events.
David McCullough who has a great passion and love for history and has written a number of books about history told BYU students at a forum assembly on the 27th of September 2005, "...pursue it [history] avidly, with diligence, with attention. I hope you do this not just because it will make you a better citizen, and it will; not just because you learn a great deal about human nature and about cause and effect in your own lives, as well as the life of the nation, which you will; but as a source of strength, as an example of how to conduct yourself in difficult times...But I hope you also will find history to be a source of pleasure."
We owe it to our Esperanza scholars to awaken in them a love for history.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Esperanza Scholars
It is my hope that we will call our students scholars and that we as educators can set the example. It is for this reason that I had a strong interest in Dr. John W. Welch's acceptance speech for the 2011 BYU Maeser Distinguished Faculty Lecturer Award that he gave last Tuesday.
He based his remarks on a quote by Joseph Smith: "Thy mind, o man, must stretch." Dr. Welch encouraged all his listeners to expand their minds, discover new things and seek for flashes of inspiration. We want no less for our Esperanza scholars (both students and educators). He went on to say that discoveries require hard work and going the extra mile--over long periods of time. We must continue to believe that an answer is out there somewhere.
Dr. Welch's remarks support BYU's mission statement which states in part, "....stimulating setting where a commitment to excellence is expected and the full realization of human potential is persued." We, too, want to provide this type of environment at Esperanza for our scholars.
He based his remarks on a quote by Joseph Smith: "Thy mind, o man, must stretch." Dr. Welch encouraged all his listeners to expand their minds, discover new things and seek for flashes of inspiration. We want no less for our Esperanza scholars (both students and educators). He went on to say that discoveries require hard work and going the extra mile--over long periods of time. We must continue to believe that an answer is out there somewhere.
Dr. Welch's remarks support BYU's mission statement which states in part, "....stimulating setting where a commitment to excellence is expected and the full realization of human potential is persued." We, too, want to provide this type of environment at Esperanza for our scholars.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
"Uneasy Lies the Head That Wears the Crown"
Some great words of William Shakespeare are giving me some food for thought this morning: "Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown." (King Henry IV, Part II, act 3, scene 1, line 31)
Needless to say, I have not been declared a queen with a literal crown but as the leader of Esperanza's founding group I figuratively feel the weight of a leader's crown. President Gordon B. Hinckley mentioned these same Shakespeare's words in a speech he gave at BYU on November 4, 1969 titled The Loneliness of Leadership. There are numerous times "the crown" of leadership has caused me to experience deep loneliness. Therefore, this talk by Pres. Hinckley found at http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=1131 has given me great solace.
In the Bible Moses was feeling the heavy weight of his leadership responsibilities when his father-in-law gave him some wise advice about delegation. (Exodus 18) Jethro counseled Moses that he would surely wear away and all the people with him unless he learned to delegate because he was unable to do the work alone. As I learn to improve my delegation skills there are also some things others can do to help lift the load:
Disclaimer: Although I have a made references to the Bible and to an LDS (Latter-Day Saint) prophet in this BLOG posting it is not my intention to mix church and state. I only use these references because they so perfectly represent the points I am wanting to make.
Needless to say, I have not been declared a queen with a literal crown but as the leader of Esperanza's founding group I figuratively feel the weight of a leader's crown. President Gordon B. Hinckley mentioned these same Shakespeare's words in a speech he gave at BYU on November 4, 1969 titled The Loneliness of Leadership. There are numerous times "the crown" of leadership has caused me to experience deep loneliness. Therefore, this talk by Pres. Hinckley found at http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=1131 has given me great solace.
In the Bible Moses was feeling the heavy weight of his leadership responsibilities when his father-in-law gave him some wise advice about delegation. (Exodus 18) Jethro counseled Moses that he would surely wear away and all the people with him unless he learned to delegate because he was unable to do the work alone. As I learn to improve my delegation skills there are also some things others can do to help lift the load:
- Apply the principles from the story A Message to Garcia
- Remember the phrase--"Do more, better, and before expected"-- when asked to do something
- When something is not completed at the requested time, say when it will be done rather than give an excuse
It will take the work of many people to make Esperanza an exceptional school. I, like Moses in Exodus 17:11-12, am so appreciative of the times those around me have stood beside me and held up my hands when they were heavy so that our work can go forward.
Disclaimer: Although I have a made references to the Bible and to an LDS (Latter-Day Saint) prophet in this BLOG posting it is not my intention to mix church and state. I only use these references because they so perfectly represent the points I am wanting to make.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Serendipity
Chocolate chip cookies were invented by Ruth Wakefield when she attempted to make chocolate drop cookies. She did not have the required chocolate so she broke up a candy bar and placed the chunks into the cookie mix. These chunks later morphed into what is now known as chocolate chip cookies. Because of a serendipitous experience we now have a favorite cookie.
I first heard the word serendipity when I was doing my student teaching many years ago when our student teacher supervisor, Della Provost, introduced it to us. I have loved the word—not only for the way it sounds but for what it means. I like these two definitions:
1. discovery of something fortunate: the accidental discovery of something pleasant, valuable, or useful
2. gift for discovery: a natural gift for making pleasant, valuable, or useful discoveries by accident
The first noted use of "serendipity" in the English language was by Horace Walpole (1717–1792). In a letter to Horace Mann (dated January 28th 1754) he said he formed it from the Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip, whose heroes "were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of".
It has truly been a delightful serendipitous experience to discover how Dr. Purkey’s Invitational Education, Dr. Glasser’s Quality School, and Dr. Haberman’s STAR teachers are intertwined since we have chosen the three to be the foundation of Esperanza Elementary.
I first heard the word serendipity when I was doing my student teaching many years ago when our student teacher supervisor, Della Provost, introduced it to us. I have loved the word—not only for the way it sounds but for what it means. I like these two definitions:
1. discovery of something fortunate: the accidental discovery of something pleasant, valuable, or useful
2. gift for discovery: a natural gift for making pleasant, valuable, or useful discoveries by accident
The first noted use of "serendipity" in the English language was by Horace Walpole (1717–1792). In a letter to Horace Mann (dated January 28th 1754) he said he formed it from the Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip, whose heroes "were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of".
It has truly been a delightful serendipitous experience to discover how Dr. Purkey’s Invitational Education, Dr. Glasser’s Quality School, and Dr. Haberman’s STAR teachers are intertwined since we have chosen the three to be the foundation of Esperanza Elementary.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
The Most Powerful Predictor For Success
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700138197/Teachers-at-top-schools-cite-collaborative-efforts.html?s_cid=fb_share
The above is a link to an article published by the Deseret News on May 23, 2011 about the top ten and lowest ten performing schools in Utah. The schools that performed the worst attributed their scores to high poverty, high mobility, high percentage of minority students (mostly Hispanic), high numbers of students who are English Language Learners. Five of these schools came from the same school district. The Executive of Curriculum and Instruction of this district said that no other district that even comes close to the demographics of their district.
We at Esperanza will be intentionally addressing similar issues because of the population we want to serve. It is extremely important that we not blame the victim which has become an accupational disease of education according to Dr. Martin Haberman in his book Star Teachers: the Ideology and Best Practice of Effective Teachers of Diverse Children and Youth in Poverty.
The most important reason, according to Haberman, that STARs want to learn more about their students' out-of-school lives is they want to make learning more meaningful and relevant rather than a reason as to why they can't teach them. How a teacher explains and thinks about these issues is the most powerful predictor of his/her success in teaching diverse children.
The above is a link to an article published by the Deseret News on May 23, 2011 about the top ten and lowest ten performing schools in Utah. The schools that performed the worst attributed their scores to high poverty, high mobility, high percentage of minority students (mostly Hispanic), high numbers of students who are English Language Learners. Five of these schools came from the same school district. The Executive of Curriculum and Instruction of this district said that no other district that even comes close to the demographics of their district.
We at Esperanza will be intentionally addressing similar issues because of the population we want to serve. It is extremely important that we not blame the victim which has become an accupational disease of education according to Dr. Martin Haberman in his book Star Teachers: the Ideology and Best Practice of Effective Teachers of Diverse Children and Youth in Poverty.
The most important reason, according to Haberman, that STARs want to learn more about their students' out-of-school lives is they want to make learning more meaningful and relevant rather than a reason as to why they can't teach them. How a teacher explains and thinks about these issues is the most powerful predictor of his/her success in teaching diverse children.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
A Culture of Reading
Dr. William Purkey says that he only needs a “whiff” to know if a school or classroom is inviting. I want that to be true of Esperanza as well as the fact that it will be obvious from a whiff that everyone at Esperanza loves books and learning.
To create this kind of environment is not sufficient for students to only learn how to read. Studies show that half of America is aliterate which means the quality or state of being able to read but uninterested in doing so. One third of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives and 42% of college graduates never read another book after college. (Source: Jerold Jenkins, www.JenkinsGroupInc.com)
We want our Esperanza students to love books and be lifelong learners. The educators at Esperanza must set the example. Educators who are avid readers their enthusiasm flows from their personal lives into the classroom. Yet, research is indicating that teachers don’t read any more often than other adults in the general population. One study of 224 teachers pursuing graduate degrees found that only half had read one or two professional books in the previous year, and an additional 20% said they had read nothing in the last six months or one year. (Source: www.trelease-on-reading.com)
I feel that we should start now with those who hope to work at Esperanza to become avid readers by doing the following:
The principal/instructional leader needs to talk about and share books and professional journals for research shows that teachers read more who have principals who do this.
On the Generación Floreciente website (www.generacionfloreciente.org) there is a professional Book of the Month.
Invite teachers to join me on Goodreads (www.goodreads.com) I have been introduced so many great books by friends on Goodreads. It’s similar to what I remember as a young woman doing-- a friend and I found a list of suggested books and we spent one summer challenging each other to read them.
Encourage teachers to participate in a book discussion group—maybe meeting from 7:00-8:30 one day a week (or month).
The love of reading is something that is caught, not taught. Therefore, we need to first develop this love ourselves.
To create this kind of environment is not sufficient for students to only learn how to read. Studies show that half of America is aliterate which means the quality or state of being able to read but uninterested in doing so. One third of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives and 42% of college graduates never read another book after college. (Source: Jerold Jenkins, www.JenkinsGroupInc.com)
We want our Esperanza students to love books and be lifelong learners. The educators at Esperanza must set the example. Educators who are avid readers their enthusiasm flows from their personal lives into the classroom. Yet, research is indicating that teachers don’t read any more often than other adults in the general population. One study of 224 teachers pursuing graduate degrees found that only half had read one or two professional books in the previous year, and an additional 20% said they had read nothing in the last six months or one year. (Source: www.trelease-on-reading.com)
I feel that we should start now with those who hope to work at Esperanza to become avid readers by doing the following:
The principal/instructional leader needs to talk about and share books and professional journals for research shows that teachers read more who have principals who do this.
On the Generación Floreciente website (www.generacionfloreciente.org) there is a professional Book of the Month.
Invite teachers to join me on Goodreads (www.goodreads.com) I have been introduced so many great books by friends on Goodreads. It’s similar to what I remember as a young woman doing-- a friend and I found a list of suggested books and we spent one summer challenging each other to read them.
Encourage teachers to participate in a book discussion group—maybe meeting from 7:00-8:30 one day a week (or month).
The love of reading is something that is caught, not taught. Therefore, we need to first develop this love ourselves.
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