January 4, 2019
“It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.”
Truer words were never spoken.
As I reflect on my professional journey, a few observations immediately surface.
There seems to be two sides of the coin: kids and content (and in that order). How amazing it would be if we not only built strong, healthy relationships with kids and colleagues, but that we also knew our stuff really, really well.
Why is it beneficial to know exactly what we teach and learn? Fluency with standards and literacy in learning processes help us personalize curriculum, differentiate instruction, and facilitate learning experiences for individual learners effectively. As our familiarity with kids and content specifies, we can begin bridging the gap.
And there’s a huge gap between kids and content.
Major obstacles that prevent educators from bridging the gap are considerable, including not knowing our kids in the first place; excessive paperwork; lack of time; the high-stakes testing environment; and resource access, allocation, and curation.
I’m super passionate about bridging the gap between what we’re tasked to teach and the resources with which we’re doing it with efficient communication.
Done well, teaching is hard work. Speaking the same language, creating and accessing user-friendly platforms, and growing literacy in our curricular products and processes can help us invest less time in resource-fetching and more time in building relationships with kids.
The more efficiently we communicate our teaching journeys, the more potential we may have for facilitating quality learning experiences. Maybe sharing is caring, but purposeful sharing can change lives.
As I reflect on my 110 #HamstraHighlights blogs so far, themes are trending in how to say the message and how educators can work together more efficiently to make teaching and learning better for kids.
Therefore, I find myself researching how the message is being marketed. It’s not just about having the right message, it’s about getting the information to the right people when and how they need it. They have to hear it.
What is a message sent if not merely received? It’s not communication.
When the tree falls in the forest, I’m not only begging that we hear it, I’m pursuing eye-witnesses who were there and can relate to exactly what it looked like in action. When I find these educators, I’m adding them to my network to learn and grow alongside them. We know of our standards, objectives, targets, and competencies, but do we know what they look like in action?
Sometimes in education, I wonder: Are we even in the same forest? Or, maybe we just often can’t see the forest for the trees.
It’s 2019. Can we work together to make teaching and learning better?
It’s 2019. Our message means nothing. Unless it’s heard.
"Your job as a leader is make sure that people get the information they want and need, when they want and need it, and in a form they can use and understand (Kouzes & Posner, 2010, p. 87)." #ecumsa
— Kyle Hamstra (@KyleHamstra) October 15, 2018
Teaching's hard. Let's help each other! Sharing resources efficiently can make learning experiences better and maximize time to personalize. #Hashtag180 #GridSciNC #FlipgridFever #nced #NCDLCN #wonderwake #ncties19 #iste19 #ncdpi #HamstraHighlights: https://t.co/FCbC2I89fs pic.twitter.com/ebDoVG7Uy8
— Kyle Hamstra (@KyleHamstra) September 15, 2018
We have the same standards, but haven't collaborated? I have no idea how the educator down the hall, two miles away, in the next district, or four hours away is teaching and learning the same standards. It's 2019–Is that okay? I'm trying #GridSciNC. #HackNetworking #Hacklearning https://t.co/FTD08468PK
— Kyle Hamstra (@KyleHamstra) December 23, 2018
I asked @gcouros this Q (see pic) in an #InnovatorsMindset IGTV. He answered: "The disconnect between what educators know is right, and what they're tasked to do. How we teach both kids & curriculum is the innovation. It's how we think. It's about the process." #HamstraHighlights pic.twitter.com/KsvdUrcwSY
— Kyle Hamstra (@KyleHamstra) July 6, 2018
The biggest challenge in schools today is curriculum. We try to teach too much content. It kills differentiation. @robertjmarzano #Empower17
— Kyle Hamstra (@KyleHamstra) March 27, 2017
Do you agree? Why or why not? The quality of relationships between staff members ultimately affects the quality of student learning experiences. #joyfulleaders #weleaded #leadupchat #relationshipsmatter #edchat
— Kyle Hamstra (@KyleHamstra) January 2, 2019
1-Teachers Demonstrate Leadership, 2-Teachers Establish a Respectful Environment for a Diverse Population of Students, 3-Teachers Know the Content They Teach, 4-Teachers Facilitate Learning for Their Students, 5-Teachers Reflect on Their Practice, 6-Teachers Contribute to the Academic Success of Students
Kyle,
I stopped by to read about your #oneword and it strikes me that this is – in part- what I was talking about in our Voxer thread the other day. You have an uncanny knack for “having the right message” … “getting the information to the right people when and how they need it.” I for one really appreciate that about you!