If you do what you’ve always done …
Anthony Robbins has a quote that resonates with me:
“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.”
I think the quote is very appropriate to promote reflection in classroom teachers in terms of what we hope to get from our students. If you find that your students aren’t being successful, what are you going to do differently to change that? If you find that your students don’t work as hard as they used to, what changes will you make to address that? If you feel your students do not have critical thinking skills, or research skills, or communication skills, or a passion for learning, or … the list goes on. Ultimately, we need to be asking ourselves, what am I doing to bring about the change I want to see in my students?
This past Friday was a Ministry of Education professional learning day — Every teacher in the province of Ontario was receiving some form of professional learning that day. I was privileged to present sessions at two different high schools in my district, both of which I feel did a great job of facilitating an engaging professional learning day for their teachers. Thinking about the Anthony Robbins quote in terms of professional learning is equally valuable. For example, if you’re an administrator, were you happy with the learning that happened on Friday? Do you believe that your teachers were inspired, or took away practical skills, or changed their mindset, or contributed meaningfully to some initiative? If so, keep up the great work. If not, why not? And, more importantly, what are you going to do differently next time to produce different results?
Photo Credit: jeffsmallwood