Friday, November 10, 2017

Growth vs Status Quo

Years ago an administrator upset me when he said that we didn't need to change anything since the system was in great shape. I was dismayed by his lack of a growth mindset and view towards betterment. Yet, now as a person who is always looking to make change and develop, I realize it's time to stay where we are for a while with some refinement but no big, big changes ahead. Why?

First, we've worked alongside many colleagues and administrators diligently to make our shared teaching model successful. The model, overall, is a great success for multiple reasons including the following:
  • Lots of positive teacher share and collaboration
  • Good results with regard to learning/teaching measurements
  • Overall happy students
  • Engaged families who all share a common program for their fifth grade children
  • A positive schedule and routine focused on good priorities related to teaching/learning
  • Good, deep curriculum and learning experiences
Rather than make any big changes right now, I'd like to take a few years to refine this model by digging into the current curriculum and refining it, updating the learning environment/routine as needed, and deepening our collaboration and collective efforts more. 

Sometimes it's okay to improve the status quo rather than make big changes, and I'm feeling like that's a good direction now. I have a chance to think about this with colleagues soon during an upcoming professional development day. I'll be interested to hear what they think.