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Discussed teachers doing Learning Walks of each other's classrooms. A sign of courage...

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Society seems to see it as a weakness, but leaders see it as a sign of courage.  Powerful statement, "The first thing that I look for in you is vulnerability.  The last thing that I want to show is vulnerability."  We believe vulnerability, the willingness to be vulnerable and real, creates an environment where we and learners can grow.  We see the difference in leadership teams and in classrooms where people are willing to be vulnerable. Being vulnerable = connection!

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Being willing to be vulnerable increases authenticity and influences how we react to mistakes. Being vulnerable = positioning oneself as a learner who continues learning in the face of mistakes.

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A lot of the cultures that are experienced within school systems have a sense of weakness associated with vulnerability.  The past couple of years have added to that.  School size also have an impact on the ability to build culture.

Vulnerability supports innovation and creativity- they thrive in this setting.  Learning Walks- Sept. and Nov. teachers visited others' classrooms, and most recently, teachers are selecting the setting where they'd like to visit.  One system- feels as though people's sense of being encouraged to engage in risk-taking.  It's seen as a strength.  "We're being encouraged to try new ideas."

Reluctance of educators to work with instructional coaches.  This is seen as a sign of weakness.  The coach is feeling challenged with respect to being able to connect with teachers.

Learning Walk protocols- focus on core values in the first Walk and notice student production behaviors- notice what students are doing.  This helped to reduce a sense of intimidation.  (Maybe have coaches walk around with teachers to have that be a launching spot for further conversation.)

Tracy will share the protocols that her district has used for this process.

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Benjamin Zander, How to Give an A (fabulous video about risk-taking and vulnerability).

We (and others) too often expect expertise without errors and so revolt at vulnerability.  Teach and model risk-taking, vulnerability, and growth mindset.

Real vulnerability coupled with commitment to others (i.e. not just admitting what one doesn't know or messed up, but also committing to figuring it out and fixing it) is great leadership. However, this is very hard in a hierarchy where you don't have decision-making authority. You try to be vulnerable with teachers but don't know what the decision-maker might actually decide. In other words, need vulnerability at all levels of the structure.

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Random conversation with the educators' union- asked about different language around initiatives - shift to the name innovations. This was not met with a positive response.

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We think the pandemic has reduced people's willingness to take risks. People emphasize the learning loss. People are capped out with all this is unfamiliar. Worried that the pandemic risks leaving us all much more risk-adverse than we were before. Need to take it to the group, name it, and explicitly talk about how to move forward.

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Recognizing that insecurity needs to be addressed.

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What are some concrete strategies that create a culture where people are okay with discomfort as they pursue innovation? This is not easy!

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The reflection - changing cultures in schools is incredibly challenging.  Why aren't people willing to share more?  Those who are out in front can be perceived as threatening by others.

The sense is that it takes a long time, and sometimes it takes a special group of people. Getting into people's classrooms to see what's going on- focus on student learning has really helped to tear down the barriers. Used to be primarily administrators doing walkthroughs, but there was a recognition that others should see the good things that are going on. The Learning Walks have led to great discussions. For those settings where this hasn't worked as well, there's more work to be done to have people feel comfortable, be risk-takers, etc.

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We should be creating a standard of vulnerability for our teachers. Learning is uncomfortable. We need to normalize this. This should be expected. We need to model this and not be afraid when it arises. It's not a sign to contract, it's a sign you're learning

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This topic seems similar to literature about how ego can get in the way of being effective leader or an effective team.

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"Numb vulnerability"- openness to engaging is critical- embrace vulnerability= community, connection, etc.

Allowing others to see us- our authentic selves- is so important in creating a culture of growth.  Brings up the need to reflect on how our egos impact our decision-making.

Language of love- how to bring that into the workplace- how to engage with individuals throughout the school context.  Figuring out how we want to be communicated with is important.

Providing people with anonymous kudos- writing a note to the principal who then  shares with staff- recognizing the # in the school on a given day, and then the kudos are shared individually with the person who was raised in the email to the principal.

Affirmation box- staff use a box to collect kudos and then revisit these when they're feeling challenged.

It's important to ask people if they want feedback during a Learning Walk or not- to honor the individual.

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It is bothersome that there's a sense of competitiveness, unwilling to share, and has an impact on culture.  Strategies need to be tried to address this challenge.

Finding a way to connect with each person is really important.

Courage=worthiness- need to make sure people have a sense of worthiness to support their willingness to be/feel vulnerable.