AFL Training, or as I like to think of it, 7 hours of collaboration

Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision.  The ability to direct individual accomplishment toward organizational objectives.  It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results. ~Andrew Carnegie

A positive quote to start of a not so positive post...
I had a meeting from 9-4 today.  School day starts at 7 so I went to school before the meeting.  Being a teacher I never sat in a meeting from 9-4 that wasn't in sessions, or round robin, or related to math.  So if you can imagine...I was kind of not looking forward to it.  By kind of I mean not at all.  Sorry to the leaders-if you have some how found my blog, no offense to you, just sitting has never been my thing, listening has never been my thing and listening while sitting tends bore me.  Keep reading though, you may like the outcome...

So anyway, after being at school for 90 minutes where we had a teacher out, I had observations to complete and assessment "stuff" to figure out, I was driving to the meeting cursing at the county and running a "to-do" list in my head.  I figured I would sit in the back and complete my items and only semi listen to the meeting.  I arrived, pulled up a chair to an empty table and thought about getting to work. I was next to a table of two IF's that I had talked to before and decided to be social and sit with them...

BEST DECISION OF THE DAY!

Turns out they didn't mind being off task either.  But the screepy (scary and creepy) thing is that we were off task while being on task.  We collaborated all day long.  We discussed questions about our jobs, how we manage our school(s), what we can do to help each other, share resources, et-cet-er-a.  It was great.  We also learned about AFL, Assessment for Learning...

So what is AFL you ask?  What does it mean?  Where is it going?
Rick Stiggins is the godfather of AFL.  I'm not giving him too much credit, he knows how great he is, evident by the amount of times he quotes himself in his articles.  Why is that educators think so highly of themselves? Huh Sternberg?  Whatever, let me get back to my thoughts....

"We have reached a tipping point: We either change our assessment beliefs and act accordingly, or we doom struggling learners to inevitable failure" Rick Stiggins

Basically, AFL says that we will provide feedback for all assessments.  We cannot test, without providing meaningful, descriptive feedback.  My job is to provide the professional development and support for the teachers for them to provide the feedback.  Have you ever been a teacher?  Have you ever had someone say "AND I want you to do this..." or what about..."I would like you to take an hour and half for me to teach you something you know how to do, but I'm going to ask you to do it differently"...yeah. That's me now.  They LOVE me...

oh you didn't get that sarcasm? huh, apparently I didn't try hard enough.

What I want to do in this role, is not always I what should do, or what I get to do.  I do fully believe in Stiggin's and all's idea of AFL.  I have been using some form of it for a while.  Most teacher's do, but don't call it such, or don't have their mind wrapped around it fully.  It is a huge shift for some teachers and not all like changes.  It's funny how flexibility is synonymous with so many things about teaching, until it actually involves changing our classroom dynamics then we throw a temper tantrum bigger than a 5 year old.  Speaking of temper tantrums tomorrow is Thursday...wish me the best!

I'm asleep by 7, it must be Thursday

I've been an IF for approximately 12 school days (full time).  I have yet to manage the time of getting everything done in a working day.  I still stay up late working on things for the classroom, but this time it's not my classroom.  Finding useful resources for others to use (or throw away) takes so much more time.  I've created a website for all my "tools" and it is incredibly difficult to figure out what would be helpful for others, not just me. 


I am working with some awesome teachers, those that want to try new things, revamp ideas, engage the students using technology and games.  However, just like in the classroom, it is not those "students" I am concerned with.  I am trying to grab hold of the teachers whose classroom "works the way it is."   If it didn't work they wouldn't be teachers.  However, if we all settled for fine, or "it works", we would have a lot of mediocrity in our lives, but I Dweck-gress. 


We must keep challenging ourselves and our students.  Through showing interest in their joys, through making class interactive, and basically by loving our jobs. 


Wait, not jobs, careers.  No, more than careers, our profession.  We are professionals who strive to do better in our lives to enrich our students lives...or do we? 


My naivety has gone out the window.  But it's Thursday night. I've just woken up from a nap (I crashed at 7 with my dinner still in my lap) and I'm back to work.  The thing that I don't get about myself is that I haven't accepted defeat.  I'm still excited to go and try to make things work.  As my friend said when he learned his "easy" deployment wasn't so "easy"..."Heck yeah, let's do this."  Just to clarify he didn't say heck, he is a marine after all. 


But just to clarify again, I did say heck.  I am excited to grow professionally myself, and to help others grow and develop.  Are you?

"Be a possibility not a problem solver"

In the montessori classroom they say you are supposed to approach situations as a possibility, not a problem solver.  Do not go in with the idea you can fix things, instead open them up to what could happen.

This is incredibly hard to do and follow through with.  We live in a world of hero's, where we want to save everyone from themselves.

So what happens when you offer yourself up as a possibility, say "here I am, let me help" and they don't bite?