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Long-term transformational change has four primary aspects: scale (the change affects all or most of the school), magnitude (the degree to which it challenges the status quo), duration (the change is incremental at first and then moves to exponential), and strategic importance (how ready the culture is for adapting to change). Yet schools will only see significant change when the change occurs first at the level of the individual educational leader- be that principal, superintendent, or teacher. Real change, transformational change happens when there is personal ownership of the new technologies and concepts. Today's new economy is all about human capital, which starts with the educators in a school and then extends outward to all members of the school community.

Principles for Managing Change 1. People before Things (or test scores) 2. Start at the Top 3. Everyone is a Player in the Change Game 4. Garner Buy-in 5. Can't Give Away What You Do Not Own 6. Communicate and Often 7. Know Your Culture and Predict Possible Impact 8. Expect the Unexpected 9. As the Individual Grows so Will the Collective Wisdom of the Community

"...teaming process that includes a deep recognition among individual players of the interdependency of their roles. This recognition leads naturally to early and consistent communication among formerly separate parties throughout their joint work. Once the task is completed, more communication-this time in the form of reflection and feedback-must take place."

Vermont Communities in a Digital Age brings community leaders and learners together to share what they have discovered so far. Take away lots of new ideas about how digital tools and broadband can be used in your community to: create jobs, reinvent your schools, attract visitors, improve civic involvement, and enliven your community.Thursday, February 16th; 9am - 4:30pmVermont Technical College, Randolph Vermont

"Beyond the young people the organizations directly involve, community-based service-learning benefits the people served, their communities, and, ultimately, society..."

This simple video makes the essential elements of PBL come alive and brings to light the 21st Century skills and competencies (collaboration, communication, critical thinking) that will enable K-12 students to be college and work-ready as well as effective members of their communities.

"Those who hold leadership roles within our schools must come to terms with the fact that standards, curriculum, instruction, assessments and accountability will only get you so far in improving student achievement. If you do not address the underlying issue of the student experience, these efforts might not have a discernible impact." "...if students felt as if they belonged to the school community, the more likely they would be confident of succeeding in college." "...students who feel a sense of psychological connection to their school community are more likely to be engaged in their learning and are more likely to behave in ways that promote self-development and socialization."

Simple article with profound implications for students and for working with faculty.

"There is a difference between personalization and differentiation and individualization. One is learner-centered; the others are teacher-centered."

Completely agree Adam! The chart is a little perplexing at times in its definitions/examples. How the first is Competency-based and the others must be Carnegie Unit based comparison…I just don't get. What I do like about the chart is that it makes me reflect on how I do what I do. And also on, "Do I do what I say that I do?" Sometimes I feel like I might begin implementing a strategy one semester only to have my application of that strategy drift as time goes by. Every now and then I think that it is necessary to take a step back and question each piece of my own professional practice. This approach comes from my belief that we need to question and challenge everything...especially those things we most believe in.

Excellent point! Beliefs are like clothes. If we don't regularly take them off to wash them, we often mistake our own stench for what we perceive as someone else's.

"In isolation neither the research nor the teacher seems to have much of a chance for sustained discovery, growth, and positive change." (p. 39) "Faculty members are changing how they teach and making informed choices when it comes to teaching strategies. They feel empowered and are encouraged to take risks, are fostering collaborations in their teaching and are talking about teaching. For some, the change in how they teach has been radical. For others, the change has been small but still noticeable." (p. 42) And to what do the conveners attribute this success? "We saw that we are learners together in this learning community and we are our own best resource: Our collective knowledge is an invaluable asset." (p. 43) Retrieved from: http://www.cs.kent.edu/~volkert/science-learning/files/sirum-madigan.pdf

As educators do we model those "best practices" for learning which we expect from our students? How do we... "Engage ... in active learning experiences; Set high, meaningful expectations; Provide, receive, and use regular, timely, and specific feedback; Become aware of values, beliefs, preconceptions; unlearn if necessary; Recognize and stretch ... styles and developmental levels; Seek and present real-world applications; Understand and value criteria and methods for (our own) assessment; Create opportunities for (peer to peer) interactions; ...; Promote (peer) involvement through engaged time and quality effort" Retrieved from: http://pandora.cii.wwu.edu/cii/resources/outcomes/best_practices.asp

"The model, now in practice or under consideration in states including Louisiana, Michigan, Arizona and Utah, allows students to build a custom curriculum by selecting from hundreds of classes offered by public institutions and private vendors. A teenager in Louisiana, for instance, might study algebra online with a private tutor, business in a local entrepreneur's living room, literature at a community college and test prep with the national firm Princeton Review - with taxpayers picking up the tab for it all."

With little to no oversight this would be a disaster. But, what if...

What if there were a regional "school" that oversaw these External Learning Opportunities and Diplomas with Certificates of Focus? A student would be assigned to a Mentor Teacher who would help to: Design a plan to graduation...and beyond, Give prior approval and determine assessments of learning experiences, Provide awareness and approve formal online opportunities such as VTVLC, VHS, Aventa Learning/K12, Provide awareness and approve formal online and traditional courses through Dual Enrollment at CVV and other local colleges, Connect students to local Internships, Apprenticeships, Connect students to programs such as TIPS, Medquest, etc., Guide students in inquiry-based Independent Studies, Guide students in developing and implementing Service-Learning projects, Bringing together like-minded students, community members, employers, educators together around specific college and career goals, and the list could go on. This could be a big draw for all students. This is could be a way to provide a highly individualized learning experience for students. With the right framework it could be amazing.

"A brand that stands for what all brands stand for stands for nothing much." At the first RF conference Peter McConville and Tom Sabo ran a really interesting activity where we looked at schools' mission statements from across Vermont. As a part of this activity they asked if individuals could recall their own. Not many (if any) could. It is too bad really. Coming from a corporate background myself, I understand the power of an organization having a common and driving statement of intent. To me what was striking, and unfortunate, was that it wouldn't be at all challenging to get fairly close if you just said something about students who strive to become life-long learners who are global citizens that give back to their community. Maybe it is just me, but I think that a mission statement should be as unique as the schools, communities, and individuals that are striving to fulfill that mission. It should be a mantra, a way to identify what is truly important to your school, a means of sharing your school's common sense of purpose, to communicate your school's common sense of direction to fulfill that purpose. My sense is that a mission statement should be the keystone for the very unique work that we do in our schools, it should be more akin to Dan Pink's My Sentence. But, read though most and you'll find that they seem interchangeable and ambiguous. I think that it may be better to not have one at all if it doesn't really share the message of what your individual school is about and what it specifically strives to be. Does your school's mission statement really share your school's mission?

Jason Thanks for posting this. Question - how do I copy this post over to another Diigo group I am working with? Jim

Mission statements are pretty generic... NEASC is moving away from asking schools for mission statements but instead for statements of core values and beliefs about learning in the hope of getting more school specific statements.

As school choice evolves in Vermont having a PR strategy and "brand" recognition will be a necessity. If a school doesn't define its brand...it will be defined for it. What is yours?

"While that sounds like a lot to manage, a good PR program can help you gain support for your district initiatives in some key ways: *Taxpayer support: ... *Demonstrate economic impact: ... *Ensure public engagement: ..."

Districts must manage their own PR and push out information through channels it can control, such as websites, direct mail, social media and email." "Social media has enabled anyone to become a 'citizen journalist' with the ability to sway public opinion - regardless of accuracy or intent," said Nichols. "Not only do we need to embrace these new technologies and opportunities, but we must master them to ensure that we can successfully operate our PR programs in all situations." Kleinz adds that today's mobile technology means that school districts must be prepared to respond immediately in a crisis to help manage the situation and ensure that the community receives accurate and timely information."

This is my second MOOC; I am already addicted to learning this way. I have been taking ideas on how to move the platform for advisory discussions onto a Google+ Community.

I am completely energized by the MOOC experience. One of my seniors tried it: a human physiology course out of Yale. She was overwhelmed, but grateful to experience the caliber of a "university" course. She ended up dropping after a few months. The pace and rigor were beyond her horizons, but she tried it. We had a conversation about when is it okay to fail. She was finally in a place where she hit the wall. How many of our students hit the wall when they are in a college and paying for it? How many discover only too late that they are in the wrong major?

I can't wait to hear about your experience at our meeting. (Maybe with the extra time I have on my hands now I will give one a try...I've signed up for two, but never got started.) You have my gears spinning about MOOCs and the VTed community. First, I wonder how many schools would be willing to allow students, with oversight and guidance, to participate in a MOOC for credit? Second, what could a Rowland led VTed School Transformation MOOC look like? I see different fellows leading separate sections, sharing ideas and school transformation experiences with class participants who in turn share their own thoughts, inspirations, and challenges. Could have real potential to bring voices together from across the state.

1. Set Important Goals 2. Create Powerful Learning Experiences. 3. Manage Productive Learning Environments.  4. Know Students. 5. Promote Growth.  6. Leverage Teacher Talent. 7. Build Community.

Here is a challenge to my fellow fellows...let's continue to move our work forward by sharing it beyond the #VTed borders. "The 2013 WISE Awards Submission period now open until March 31, 2013 The 2013 WISE Awards will celebrate six innovative educational projects for their positive contribution within a community or society. WISE seeks to share best practices world over and inspire others to spark change in education. The WISE Awards thus highlight today's most innovative solutions and approaches that are addressing educational challenges confronting the world at large. Project holders from any region, educational sector or level are encouraged to submit applications which demonstrate the quality and impact of their activities in accordance with the criteria.  Whether you are involved in a project that provides access to quality education, creates new opportunities for lifelong learning or develops innovative educational technologies, WISE invites you to apply for the 2013 WISE Awards."

Traditional summative functions. This is using badges to indicate that the earner previously did something or knows something. This is what the educational assessment community calls assessment of learning. Newer formative functions. This is where badges are used to enhance motivation, feedback, and discourse for individual badge earners and broader communities of earners. This is what is often labeled assessment for learning. Groundbreaking transformative functions. This is where badges transform existing learning ecosystems or allow new ones to be created. These assessment functions impact both badge earners and badge issuers, and may be intentional or incidental. I believe we should label this assessment as learning

ISTE - International Society for Technology in Education ... ISTE 2012, "Expanding Horizons," will be held June 24 through 27, 2012, at the San Diego Convention.

Mentioned by Lauren Parren & Karen Budde in Ning. Check in with them through Ning if you are interested!

http://www.classroom20.com/events/socialedcon-2012 SocialEdCon is the fifth all-day unconference held the Saturday before ISTE, and it's a great event for beginners and regular attenders alike! Come join us for an amazing community experience filled with interesting conversations in a highly social environment. SocialEdCon is free (thanks to the amazing generosity of ISTE). There is no formal signup, but for planning purposes and connecting with others, it's helpful to have you indicate your attendance here. SocialEdCon is part of a series of community events at ISTE.

These films look specifically at ways in which school leaders and educators are testing and proving project-based models for a new, student-centered model of learning.

Lauren and Laura, You'll be interested in the video on this page called "Designing Schools for 21st Century Learning" featuring Randall Fielding. The "...focus of his work is to lead communities in the design of environmentally responsive campuses that foster personalized learning and strong connections to the community."

Is the student who organizes tag during recess or chooses to help a classmate with math on track to be a senator, a CEO, or a community leader? He-or she-may well be.

Here are five resolutions from the article...with my personal take on them.

1. Find a trustworthy mentor. (Regardless of your position or how successful you are there will always be others out there who you can learn from.) 2. Form a leadership development group. (Why not two? One among leaders from multiple schools and another among the leaders and potential leaders within your school.) 3. Volunteer in a civic or service organization. (How have you formed connections between your school and the community in ways that the school isn't the primary beneficiary? How do you know the perceptions and expectations of the community unless you are truly engaged with them?) 4. Work in or travel to one new country. (Or, simply visit schools in your district. Have you visited with the admin and teachers from your sending schools? What could you learn from them? What could you learn from other high schools in Vermont that are similar to yours?) 5. Finally, ask more questions than you answer. (If you think that have all the answers…then you aren't even aware of all the questions.)