Summer offers me a time for reflection. As we head into hot summer nights, what weighs on me is how so many extraordinary ideas are missed, not because they aren’t abundant in classrooms everywhere. These remarkable methods, strategies, tips and tricks remain discreetly thriving in corners of our schools.
Why exceptional teachers often drop their ideas
The biggest crime is letting them die out, so consider how you can eliminate this loss. Note that such ideas are missed because of two unintended roadblocks.
- Compliance and humility. Experience informs me that most teachers, by nature, consistently demonstrate tremendous humility and compliance.
- Isolation. Most teachers are isolated from their colleagues due to the structural boundaries within school schedules. They arrive in the morning, greet the office staff, flash a smile and disappear for seven hours once they close the classroom door behind them.
Teachers commonly exhibit compliant, humble behaviors because they were good students themselves. They stayed quiet when their teacher spoke, answered when called on, stood perfectly in lines and had their homework completed early. I know this generalizes, yet I have worked with nearly a thousand teachers in my career, and I can say with near certainty that this is true. It is not a negative stereotype. It just is.
This is why great ideas often remain hidden in quiet, exceptional spaces in schools. The teacher with an incredible idea is happy to benefit his or her students. Yet they are petrified at the thought of standing outside their own humility to “brag.” Teachers also thrive on schedules. Bells, periods, units, quarters, semesters, seasons. You name it, these are the consistent patterns that fare well for their compliant nature. The very traits that help them thrive in their classroom sanctuary are what keep them so utterly concealed. We must help teachers navigate through their fear and reluctance in ways that are safe and rewarding.
Awakening and sharing the ideas
Sleeper cells of excellence lurk in every corner of your building. How do you uncover these brilliant ideas and not allow a great idea to die? This is a pivotal leadership skill. We must propel classroom teachers into each other’s classrooms — and not just once, but as often as possible. Unfortunately, time and resources tend to stand in the way. It is well worth finding ways to make it happen, and to start, you have to stop looking at the limitations.
One of the greatest gifts a school leader can give back to their teachers is time, and we should do so liberally, even when others question it. This reaps far greater dividends than the 10 minutes you let a teacher go early for a family emergency or the duty you covered when they did something far more valuable, like offering turnkey professional development to other teachers.
Sure, you’ll encounter challenges, like the loser support group or a mediocre person who doesn’t care if you did something nice. And the ones who blindly ask, always, “Are you following the contract?”
These kinds of land mines are inevitable, but they shouldn’t make a school leader stop, ever. In fact, these should be the springboard for looking for and celebrating those great moments in corners of your school.
I have found success, even in faculty meetings that were unconventional, such as the Edcamp meetings. Edcamp-style meetings empower teachers and help others feel the inspiration of leading a great idea into networked existence. This is because they can choose and drive their own professional development topics based on their immediate classroom needs. Doing so boosts teachers’ motivation to collaborate, share innovative strategies and actually implement those ideas with their students.
If you start small, with an open-ended, generous approach to time that invites teachers to drop into one another’s classrooms, most teachers will help you move the idea-sharing needle. Don’t wait to get everyone on board, especially the contract-preacher, or you’ll be stuck in neutral forever.
As you work around the complexities of the schedule, get as far away from contract language as you can when you offer them this time. You can start by facilitating these visits, and then let them expand their options, always with a supporting hand. As teachers start to visit other classrooms, they’ll gain new perspectives. It starts slow but, over time, becomes a common, desirable practice.
Arrange for idea extravaganzas
Getting teachers into each other’s classrooms and at Edcamp meetings are not the only methods to energize a group with fabulous ideas. Once some teachers find their way into each other’s classrooms, schedule mini idea-sharing extravaganzas with intermittent frequency during the school year and an Innovation Expo at the end of this year or the beginning of next year. Recruit teachers whom you or others have observed doing something amazing — big or small — and offer them time to share their ideas. Teachers always enjoy learning from colleagues.
The expo format is a best-practices sharing opportunity. Just be careful with wording, so it doesn’t embarrass your humble teachers. Standing up in front of colleagues requires a gentle, encouraging nudge. Write a private letter of commendation to include with their evaluation that recognizes their professionalism and their efforts to strive for the best, learn from others and share.
This isn’t just an end-of-the-year opportunity either. You can implement these methods to share across your school all year. It can be a great kickstart to the year, building great momentum and sparking excitement throughout the seasons.
Schools become better, exciting and energized learning spaces when teachers exhibit grassroots leadership like this. By breaking down the walls of isolation and gently nudging our humble experts into the spotlight, we shine a light on brilliant innovations sparked in the corners of our classrooms — because when teachers share, our students win.
Opinions expressed by SmartBrief contributors are their own.
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