If you're an idealist like me, you may have to reach out to ask about what is reasonable.
Idealists see potential and promise. For idealists, we see few obstacles to what's possible. Idealists believe, "If you can imagine it, it can happen."
That's why reasonableness is an important consideration.
What is reasonable with respect to effort, result, expectation, time, materials, and support?
Reasonableness is a good point of thought and discussion for students, parents, educators, and administrators.
For example, what is a reasonable rate of growth for a student that struggles?
What is a reasonable timeline for the implementation of a new unit of study?
What is a reasonable amount of time at the start of the year to spend on team building and community?
What is a reasonable amount of time each week for teacher planning and collaboration?
What is a reasonable set of protocols and mandates?
What is a reasonable budget for school supplies and equipment?
There is a bit of disruption between the concept of reasonable and ideal--that's the space I learned about during the "hosting conversations" presentation--a space named the "chaortic field." This is the space where innovation is born. It's a valued space, but not always an easy space.
When schools adopt inclusive, transparent collaborative processes they open the door to the chaortic field, the space between reasonable and ideal, a space that fosters greater innovation, team, and opportunity.
