Technology - it's great when it works

Opportunities for technology to stretch the envelope and help us stay more fully engaged with members across the state are increasing by leaps and bounds. Last week, I was in between a meeting in Nebraska City, NE on Wednesday afternoon and a 6 AM flight out of Kansas City to another meeting - just enough time to drive to Topeka, catch up at the office, and repack, right?

Add to that a chance to meet with leaders in the northwest quadrant of Kansas - the great educators serving as local presidents and other local leaders of Cottonwood UniServ District! Despite a few glitches in the system, teachers from three locations (and me) were able to connect via audio on Skype, and others connected using "chat" due to some problems with the audio.

The topic of our discussion was important on two levels. First, I shared news about the new KNEA Leadership Academy - a graduate-level professional growth opportunity for mid career members who want to build their knowledge, skills, and abilities to help our members achieve our mission for great schools and a great profession. I hope that some of the members in Cottonwood follow up and complete an application. UniServ Director Kathy Rome (kathy.rome@knea.org) can get you more information as needed.

In addition, as we proceed to implement more tools to enhance the teaching profession, technology that can provide distance connections, even when our schedules (or gas prices) make meeting in person difficult, will be a crucial tool to use and master. If I ever have a choice, I would prefer to be face to face in a room to hear member concerns first hand. But with technology to assist, we don't have to restrict our conversations to the times when face-to-face meetings are scheduled. We can be connected with each other any time and from any place.

It doesn't work perfectly every time... but the power and possibilities make these tools too valuable to ignore. I hope you'll join me on the journey!

Catching up - sharing the good news

This entry is a week later than it should have been... Unfortunately, my usual time to write (Saturday night) was taken on Nov. 15th with another occasional activity - preparing a sermon. In addition to my day job working on behalf of great public schools and the great educators of Kansas, I'm a layperson minister in my church and get to deliver an occasional sermon. They may think it's an NEA meeting, though. On Sunday, the 16th, I had newsprint around the sanctuary, called on congregation members, and there were refreshments served. I think those are all the key elements of a good meeting of teachers!

On a more business related note, it was my privilege to meet with the Administrative Board of Prairie Fire UniServ on Wednesday, the 12th. We had food, fellowship, and a great discussion of how our schools ought to change for the 21st century. It is so encouraging to hear the vision of teachers representing many content areas and grade levels as they talked about transforming lives through the power of public education. They made me proud to be part of this profession.

Also a week ago, I represented the teaching profession at a meeting of the Governor's P20 Council. That was also a time to hear good news from Dr. Alexa Posny, Commissioner of Education. She provided an update on the continuing saga of how Kansas schools are responding to raise achievement of all students and to close achievement gaps, where they exist. Kansas was ahead of the curve on this challenge since we were using Quality Performance Accreditation to analyze student data and implement strategies to help every student succeed long before NCLB was enacted.

With the overemphasis on the wrong kind of assessment and punishment for the past 5 years, it brings real hope that the next version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (now called NCLB) will bring back sound policies that focus on really helping our students.

If that happens, I'm confident that the great educators (just like the Prairie Fire group that met in Ottawa) of Kansas will be ready to step up to the challenges and opportunities ahead.

A Visit to Pittsburg State University: Meeting with the Future

Last week, I had a tremendous day with a series of events at PSU. Faculty members discussed issues such as intellectual property rights in this age of electronic communications and the erosion of scholarship through overreliance on part-time instructors (a money-saving strategy by colleges).

During an hour with Dean Andy Tompkins (yes, former KSDE Commissioner Tompkins), we reviewed the ongoing work of the Kansas Educational Leadership Commission – a group that is developing a new “Teacher Leadership” endorsement and degree programs that could enhance salaries and professional opportunities for teachers.

And thanks to Dr. Kenny McDougle who knew that playing classical organ music was my hobby, I enjoyed an hour playing at the University’s C.B. Fisk concert pipe organ.

The true highlight for the day, though, was a meeting with about 20 student members under the leadership of KNEA-SP chapter president Dana Beckenhauer. Wednesday, the day after our momentous national election, we talked about Kansas election results, our work ahead to influence policy makers (particularly in races where excellent friends of public education were defeated), and the underlying meaning of those results.

Often, folks talk about Student Program members as the “future of KNEA and of our profession.” On November 4, we got to see that the under-30 demographic represents the political future of our nation. With the significant increase in voting by younger citizens and minorities, states that used to be “red” were turned “deep blue.” This is a real challenge for those of us who have spent the greater part of our professional lives as educators.

You see, we have not yet achieved our vision of a great public school for every child. We have not yet achieved the level of professional recognition that should be afforded to educators. But as a new generation of teachers joins our ranks, bringing enthusiasm and a renewed commitment to grass-roots activism, I believe success is closer to reality than at any time in history. What an exciting time to be a citizen, an educator, and a colleague of the best new generation of teachers ever!

P.S. To hear selections I recently played at the Community of Christ Auditorium in Independence, MO, download the following (large) files:
http://www.klfa.org/images/musheltoccata.mp3 (Toccata by Gyorgi Mushel)
http://www.klfa.org/images/faithfulgod-kargelert.mp3 (Hymn setting by Sigfried Karg-Elert)
http://www.klfa.org/images/wondrouslove.mp3 (Hymn setting by David Johnson)
http://www.klfa.org/images/festivalprocession.mp3 (Richard Strauss Processional)

Business advice to public schools – Making it work

Many folks seem to want to tell educators how to do our jobs. Often, such advice lacks a realistic understanding of the characteristics of students and families today or the bureaucracies that govern much of what we do.

Still, there is a tremendous opportunity for positive partnerships between business, communities, families, and public schools just on the horizon. Last week, I spent two days representing KNEA members at the “Business & Education: Call to Action” sponsored by the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce, the Governor’s office, KSDE, and the Kansas Post Secondary Technical Education Authority. It was a great opportunity for me to represent the voice of k-12 educators in this discussion that would otherwise have had no teachers in the room.

As we approach conversations about business input for schools, please understand this: we shouldn’t simply transform schools into job-preparation factories for students. But we CAN and SHOULD use business partners to help integrate real-world authentic, project-based learning across all curricular areas and all grades. Our discussions at this conference surfaced the understanding that engaging, relevant activities must be used as a vehicle to teach a rich, broad, and rigorous curriculum that incorporates new skills students need for success in the 21st century. Any future discussions of these ideas should ALWAYS include teachers, counselors, other k-12 educators, and even students (when age appropriate.)

There is probably no better place to start exploring what the new curriculum for schools should be than to go to the Partnership for 21st Century Skills – www.21stcenturyskills.org. Add to this the Kansas Career Pipeline (www.kansascareerpipeline.org) and the doors of opportunity open for education and business to connect AND for our students to expand their future horizons.

Support from business, tools and resources to transform our schools, time for educators to plan and integrate project based learning: all of these elements are necessary ingredients to empower and engage our students. With smart, strategic partnerships and true collaboration, our students will be the winners!