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"If you look at four-year-olds, they are constantly asking questions and wondering how things work. But by the time they are 6½ years old, they stop asking questions because they quickly learn that teachers value the right answers more than provocative questions. High school students rarely show inquisitiveness."

1. Welcome authentic questions2. Encourage effective teamwork3. Be ready to go Big4. Build empathy5. Uncover passion6. Amplify worthy ideas7. Know when to say no8. Encourage breakthroughs

Great for teachers when we think about how to work with students. Perhaps...even more powerful if admin were to read this as "How to Turn your School into an Idea Factory" with a twist of creating a climate to foster Innovative Educators.

Dr. Tony Wagner, co-director of Harvard's Change Leadership Group has identified what he calls a "global achievement gap," which is the leap between what even our best schools are teaching, and the must-have skills of the future:Critical thinking and problem-solvingCollaboration across networks and leading by influenceAgility and adaptabilityInitiative and entrepreneurialismEffective oral and written communicationAccessing and analyzing informationCuriosity and imagination

Shared this a couple of months ago...worth another look.

And we're thrilled to have Tony Wagner as the keynote for the Rowland Foundation's 2nd Annual Conference on School Transformation! You can preview The Global Achievement Gap here: http://books.google.com/books?ei=AWNyT-eMBOXe0gG5tsW9AQ&id=_4zBmOBP9uwC&dq=tony+wagner&q=personalization#v=onepage&q&f=false

"…service-learning inherently teaches the kind of thinking skills and knowledge application necessary for success outside academia. Student products of service-learning, including comprehensive projects and analytic journals, require demonstration of critical thinking and problem solving skills in multiple contexts. In addition, service-learning often provides the right balance of challenge and support to foster intellectual growth and development (Eyler & Giles, 1999)."