Model the Learning

We just finished another three great days meeting as the Mathematics Leadership Network (MLN) - a group of educators from boards of education across Northeastern Ontario, looking to further our development as mathematics learners and leaders. Part of the learning in this latest round was centred on Michael Fullan's book, Indelible Leadership . In it, he discusses six big tensions when it comes to deep leadership. Two of those tensions - Lead & Learn in Equal Measure , and Feed & Be Fed by the System - really resonated with me. Both of these tensions underscore the importance of reflection in one's practice. When learning (a fundamental part of leading), Fullan quotes John Malloy in saying: "...there has to be...vehicles, protocols, processes to actually reflect upon the learning, to make meaning out of what is emerging from the learning and then articulate from that." In order to give new learning meaning, we need to take the time to consolidate what we l...

This year marked a shift in focus of my blogging , away from adventures in the classroom working mostly with students, and toward adventures as a board co-ordinator working mostly with teachers.  The past few years, I've enjoyed reflecting on which posts become the most-read, but this year the numbers seemed skewed - the more established blog's views were much higher than the new blog, due partially to previously-made links, and partially due to something fishy going on in the hit counter (and, I suspect, some bots). So this year, as I'm working toward my new #onewordONT goal for 2018, I decided to look at the most-read three posts from each blog. Here they are: Model the Learning: 3) BIT17 Ignite - Find Your Why - My Ignite talk from BIT2017. 2) Making the Most of Tracking Observations with Forms - Using Google Forms in new ways to track what we see in the math classroom. 1) A New Diagnostic - Looking at a new tool being developed in our board for assessing...

I'm currently reading Start with Why: How great leaders inspire everyone to take action, by Simon Sinek.  It was a book I picked up at the beginning of the summer when my position this fall was still unknown. After a year as the Renewed Math Strategy Co-ordinator for my board, I was set to rebound back into the classroom. However, there was still a possibility of my board bringing me back as a co-ordinator (which is what ended up happening). Regardless of my position as a teacher or co-ordinator, I was hoping this book could help me lead learning, be it with students or with colleagues. I'm about half way through it now, and giving serious thought to my WHY. What drives me? What makes me want to push myself? Why did I choose this as a career? Through what lens am I viewing my role(s)?  Why find my WHY? According to Sinek, if I want to motivate, if I want to be trusted, and if I want to make a difference, I have to be authentic to my WHY . The more clarity I can brin...

This fall marks four years since I started blogging.  At the time, I was just getting ready to completely revamp how I was teaching: moving away from teaching through lecturing, and toward technology-based, student-paced, and student-led learning.  I remember trying to come up with a catchy name for the blog, and settled on BYOD, ASAP . My goal was to flip all my courses that year; I was working hard to get technology into the hands of my students (hence, BYOD) while fostering equity and modelling responsible usage. While it may not have been "As Soon As Possible," I took an all-or-nothing approach to the flipped classroom and jumped right in. Most of my posts were about my trials, tribulations, and triumphs in implementing new ways of delivering content. But now, as I move into my second year out of the classroom as our board's Renewed Math Strategy Co-ordinator, my focus is no longer on equitable access to technology in my classroom, or on delivery of content to m...