NO GROW ZONE!

At ACEL conference, I had the pleasure of having several thought-provoking conversations with some very well known educators and some…well not so well known. Both were very interesting, rich discussions. And by rich I mean the conversation had me connecting various ideas and concepts; it had me asking questions; it ignited my curiosity. One of the conversations I had really got me thinking… why are some educators so well known, while others not so much? Is it about gender, culture, race, experience (or lack of), having a platform, being connected or having the support of others?

Reflecting on this question, I drew on my own experiences.

I remember one principal sat me down and asked me where did I see myself in five years and what was my passion? She wanted to help me achieve this. This conversation has always stayed with me. She said she believed that someday I would become Dr Stringer. I laughed out loud! The deputy principal shared that she could see me working with beginning teachers one day. I laughed at that comment too! What did they see in me that I couldn’t see? What I do know is that these leaders expressed their belief in my potential. Without me realising it, they were building my self-efficacy and over the years they built my capacity.

In the last few years, I’ve spoken with some educators about doing my PhD. I’ve had various responses. Why would you want to do that? Ah, but you have a husband and three children. Where are you going to find the time? Very rarely did I receive any encouragement...until recently. When I attended Harvard, I was encouraged to ‘Go for it’. The support and encouragement from many (even strangers) was surprising. I was fortunate enough to met Maria there. Maria is a lecturer from Monash University in Melbourne. There are some people who come into your life when you most need them. We connected instantly. She read my blogs and continually encouraged me to pursue my dreams. Just this week, I was fortunate to be invited to #EdCoachRES that provided more support and encouragement. Being surrounded by ‘You can do it’ people really makes a difference. I need to be more like that for others. I need to pay it forward.

So I wonder…Do we support each other enough in education? In Australia, we have the Tall Poppy Syndrome (see below). Does this affect our Australian educational leaders and presenters? Do we promote and encourage our newest teachers to be ambitious, to become leaders, to reach for the stars? Do we model or advise them to play it safe? Do we mentor, support, coach and guide? Do we encourage risk taking? Now change all these questions to 'how'. Asking 'how' generates more reflection. Personally, I want to further develop my ability to support and encourage other teachers, as so many continually support and encourage me.

According to a Chinese friend, they have a similar saying- chū tóu de chuán zǐ xiān làn This means: rafters that jut out rot first. And another: the nail that sticks out gets hammered down. We should encourage our educators to jut out and to support them, so they don't get hammered or cut down. 

And the learning continues...

  

For those who aren’t Australian or familiar with Tall Poppy Syndrome, here's some background information.

Wikipedia

Tall Poppy-Business Psychology

Tall Poppy - Controversial?

Can you measure the effectiveness of Professional Development?

I was fortunate to attend the 3-day ACEL conference in Sydney thanks to generosity of my school. I was really looking forward to this, as I thought it would be the highlight of my holidays. And it was! I’m not going provide my thoughts on all presentations or workshops but here are the storifies from Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3.

I’ve been thinking about the direction professional development is heading...TeachMeets, Edcamps, Twitter. I’m reflecting on Alma Harris’s presentation when she stated, “You have everything you need within your system”. I wonder if we have everything we need within our schools or between all of our schools? How has professional development changed over the last few years and where will it be in the next few years? Do we need to physically come together to learn and connect? Some people get their energy from being quiet and in solitude. I love being around people as it energises me. It always has. What are the professional benefits of PDs and how would its effectiveness be measured? I do think there are personal benefits of attending an event like #acelconf2015.

"Hello"- I got to finally meet many of those I’ve connected with on Twitter face to face. While some I had met before, many were for the first time. I was able to thank David Ivers personally for helping with my Harvard application. Meeting wonderful educators face to face made the conference so much richer. Some of the awesome educators I met are listed so you can build your PLN with more inspiring educators. Thanks all for making the event even better!

@edu_ivers

@Mj0401Mary

@JenEng

@Lilylauren

@carolynarhodes

@JohnGCI

@chriscawsey

@ZeinaChalich 

"Thank you"- I got to personally thank Alma Harris, Andy Hargreaves and Yong Zhao for being guest moderators on #satchatoc. These generous educators are so giving of their time, knowledge and advice. I also got to spend time just chatting with them. Would I have been confident enough to go and introduce myself before I connected with them on Twitter? I’m not sure, but I did introduce myself to Michael Fullan... although Andy continued the introduction. I enjoyed spending time with Yong as we talked about my children, education and the future (with a few laughs as well). It was great meeting Alma who was instrumental in the Women in Educational Leadership chat. Listening and learning from Alma was definitely a highlight and I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to speak with her.

Connecting & Networking- So we all know the benefits of connecting, as you are most likely reading this via Twitter. Twitter & connecting go hand in hand although some are more comfortable lurking on Twitter. Networking is interacting with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts. Meeting people face to face not only makes it easier to connect but you can also have deeper conversations about topics of mutual interest. Sometimes you feel that connection straight away. The next time someone asks how do you find the time to connect on Twitter, I will share how I've grown both personally and professionally and how my students benefit.

Grateful- I am so grateful for the relationships I’ve developed with educators and the friendships I’ve made. It was very humbling to receive the Keith Tronc Award and I'm very grateful to ACEL for this recognition. My daughter noticed I got a little overwhelmed while Dr Tronc made his moving speech. I was also amazed by the number of congratulatory tweets and postings on Facebook. Thank you! When I was a beginning teacher in Marin County, I remember seeing in the paper a teacher receiving an award. I thought how awesome it would be to win that award as it would confirm that I was doing a good job and that my students were benefitting from my efforts. As a beginning teacher, I needed others approval. I remember I had my daughter film me on a flip camera, so I could analyse my own teaching. I think this is why I enjoy working with beginning teachers as they need to know they are doing a good job and have their feelings validated. It was also inspiring to see ACEL support emerging voices in educational leadership by awarding the 'New Voice Scholarships'. I think we need to support new teachers and new leaders. While the goal to recognise teachers as professionals like doctors and lawyers is wonderful, all the teachers I've met aren’t in it for the money or recognition. We are all here for the students and that for me, makes all teachers 'superheroes'.

Andrea

More than just my #PLN

A colleague is moving interstate and I gave her some advice …”Get on Twitter”.  Not because it is free professional development and provides wonderful opportunities but because she could meet some amazing and very caring people. You could say I’ve done my share of moving (Canada, US, Australia etc) and in every new place, I would join a gym. I found it a great way to meet people. The gym not only provided some ‘me’ time but also provided my children the chance to interact and socialise with other children. If you haven’t moved, you may not understand but making friends takes effort and time. Without work colleagues or friends of friends to meet, it can be isolating if you are not comfortable putting yourself out there.

Honestly, it’s hard moving…finding a house, doctor, dentist, school-all those things. It’s especially hard when you don’t know another soul. So I reached out to my Twitter friends in Canberra who were only too willing to connect with my colleague. I feel better knowing that she has some support there, as these people are wonderful educators and ‘good’ people.

Last night I met with many tweeps I have gotten to know through Twitter. You could say these people are part of my PLN but that would be incorrect. These people have become more. They have become my friends. We all go through times when we need a little more support, and the friends I've made through Twitter and TeachMeets have texted, Voxed, Direct Messaged or phoned to provide just that. Getting together face to face is the best but a short message or a lengthy conversation goes a long way too. From a person who knows that making friends takes effort, I appreciate the friendships I’ve gained from Twitter & TeachMeets.

The definition of social networking is the use of dedicated websites and applications to interact with other users, or to find people with similar interests to one's own. Twitter is social networking with social being the operative word. To recharge my battery, I surround myself with positive, passionate people. By definition, that makes me an extrovert. I’ve met people face to face who are quite introverted but this is not reflected on Twitter. 

While life will always provide some challenges, I believe these challenges reveal what and who to be grateful for. So yes, they are part of my PLN but they are so much more. With no family in Sydney, I feel I can always call on many of these friends, which brings me and my family a great deal of comfort. 

So thank you friends,


Andrea

A Good Work Ethic?

I started work as an apprentice when I was 15 years old. The manager of the salon created a very strict work environment-being timed in the bathroom, taught how to hang the towels ‘correctly’, work day ends when the manager says. Any monetary bonuses were based on targets. It was typical practise to give the apprentice the children and men as they took longer and your percentage per client was always below the target. When I complained to my parents, they said it was developing a strong work ethic and I would be the better for it. We were always told to never quit! My dad was a hard worker and my mother too. Mum continues to keep herself busy today. 

One day my mother called the salon and was told that I was too busy to speak and that personal phone calls were not allowed. My mother (who never phoned the salon) replied, “Could you please tell Andrea that her dad has had a heart attack and was being taken to the hospital”.  The only form of empathy I received from my manager was when she said that her Dad had also had a heart attack. But I think she said this more as a way to say, it’s quite common.

After four years I got up the courage to ask my boss for a transfer. It was hard as we are always told to never quit and never give up. However, I was offered to manage another salon but it would be in a four weeks time. I was so excited! All that ‘hard work’ had paid off. The only problem was that my boss told my manager that I requested to be transferred. So for the next four weeks, my manager would make comments like, “You only have to work with me for two more weeks”.

Years later I opened my own salon and one night I ran into my previous boss. Ironically, I was told that I was the only apprentice who had not asked to be removed from working with this manager. Because I had never shared my concerns, I remained in the same context. I had hoped that my exiting that situation had caused my manager to reflect on her practise. But I also wonder if hoping was enough? Had I made it any easier for those coming through as an apprentice?

I expect many of you have worked with those who support and encourage your professional growth. Yet I expect some may have also worked with those who may also impede your success. These people- 
·      may not work as collaboratively as they could
·      may not share information or documents that make work less stressful
·      may not share your triumphs and successes but always freely share your challenges and mistakes
·      may not allow you any autonomy

And so I wonder …
·      when does your resilience create a precedent for others?
·      when should you speak up and say it’s too much?
·      how do you work with those who you believe are not promoting your success?
·      why do people act the way they do? (Insecurity, modelled & experienced behaviour)

And the questions continue...
Andrea 
@stringer_andrea

"We need gender mix in leadership. We're all stronger & wiser for it." - Peter Holmes

Yesterday on #satchatoc we had many women and some men chatting about ‘Women as Educational Leaders’. I had previously noted numerous tweets about women not being prominent in the education industry. With the support of Alma Harris and many of her colleagues, we created this chat. Our purpose was to unite and support aspiring female leaders or women in leadership roles. Could we support, mentor, coach, and encourage more women to enter leadership? What I learnt from this chat is that globally, female educators believe we should support each other more.

What impressed me yesterday were the men who joined the conversation. In my opinion they see this as an issue for all and not just women. If you think about it…many male educators could educate female students, have wives and/or daughters and therefore are invested in this conversation. This was made evident in Matt's first tweet. Here is the storify from the chat
 https://storify.com/stringer_andrea/women-as-educational-leaders-satchatoc/preview

Matt Esterman @mesterman

• @debsnet @ShiftParadigm I am the person and teacher I am because of the women, and men, in my life - everyone needs champions!
• A2 #satchatoc consistent message needs to happen for us to assert that leadership is not a thing men 'do' and women 'get to do'
• A2 #satchatoc a lot of capacity building needs to be done in men to break down old assumptions & then establish better ones together.
• A1 - supporting young women to 'lean in' on issues rather than wait until they are already in the workforce. #satchatoc

Peter Holmes @airprincipal121

• We need gender mix in leadership. We're all stronger & wiser for it. TY @TiffanySinton for your work & making such a difference. #satchatoc
• @jennyluca Leadership lies in self-belief, passion & desire to help others improve things. It's in all of us; nurture it in all. #satchatoc
• @stringer_andrea Empathy certainly develops. It's what we try to foster in kids every day. Aust needs to show more for @adamroy37 #satchatoc

Louka Parry @loukaparry

•  A10 - Women are often more reflective and continue to seek feedback over time, one advantage. Read more ln.is/businessinside… #satchatoc
• We all need to play a role in shifting ignorance and implicit sexism for women in leadership ln.is/www.youtube.co… #satchatoc

Peter J. LeBlanc @LeBlancPeter

• A6 - We make sure our classrooms & schools are free fr gender bias & sexism. We encourage & foster leadership in our young women
• A3 Men have a responsibility to speak up & against when encountering sexism, especially those in leadership positions. #satchatoc
•  A2. Ed can be an example 4 areas lacking in female leadership like the political & corporate spheres. These spheres shd pay attn! #satchatoc

Michael Graffin @mgraffin

• @EduSum very much so ... Some have been the most inspirational I've worked with #satchatoc

Stuart Kelly @stuartkellynz

• @NicoleArchard #satchatoc Excellent and relevant point now and in the future. When women, girls see other female leaders, becomes reality!
• @MelanieSSpencer #satchatoc I agree but in terms of child rearing schools should be accommodating of this or valuable staff will walk away.
• @stringer_andrea #satchatoc A5 Be visible in aspects, levels of school leadership and fight for equity through evidence and numbers.
• @jenniferabrams @bbray27 A2 - I accept joining panels or doing keynotes for the optics of women in front as much as my personal strengths - #satchatoc

Richard Olsen @richardolsen

• @jenniferabrams Maybe you downplay your strengths, while other overestimate theirs? @bbray27 #satchatoc
• A2 I think all schools and other education organisations should have diversity as an explicit goal. #satchatoc
• @CarolCampbell4 The recent DLTV conference was a fantastic example of proving women with equal time and billing as keynotes. #satchatoc 

I wanted to say ‘Thank you’ to all those who participated in #satchatoc, including the gentlemen. I am so fortunate you are in my PLN and are educating our students.