Inspired Teaching Institute Day 10: I will

"A teacher who is attempting to teach without inspiring the pupil with a desire to learn is hammering on cold iron."
-- Horace Mann

What a tremendous ten days the Inspired Teaching Institute was! And once again, I'm delighted by the purposeful use of our activities. As Inspired Teachers and allied staff work to support childrens' desire to learn, the Inspired Bookfair has provided one more chance to share our own interests and learn independently.

I'm looking forward to seeing all of the Institute participants at the Inspired Teaching Alumni Conference on August 18, but in the meantime I'll keep everyone in mind while I check out A is for Ox, Imagined Communities, Last Child in the Woods, and more! Thanks for the recommendations and for contributing to this great learning environment.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 9: The roil we

An Inspired Teaching Institute Vocabulary List

Review:

preternatural

incendiary

Introducing:

roil we

noun: The first-person plural pronoun used by educators to reinforce the notion that they are part of a community of individuals who continuously hone their craft, exhibit and share a preternatural excitement about education, and stir up students’ innate desire to learn.

[Usage note: This term refers to any educator who embodies the qualities of an Inspired Teacher. It can include participants of the Inspired Teaching Institute as well as others who do not have a formal connection to Center for Inspired Teaching.]

An original poem by Inspired Teaching Institute participants led to an impromptu vocabulary lesson today. I learned preternatural, and a teacher inquired about incendiary. This new one, roil we, is my attempt to capture the community I sense among other Institute participants, despite the fact that I’m not a teacher or facilitator in any formal sense at the moment. As we discussed today, this community and all of the epiphanies that have germinated during the course of the Institute are the result of at least two things: absolute engagement on the part of participants, and dynamic, highly intentional facilitation.

I have had the privilege of better understanding that these two elements are dependent on each other, much like the members of any learning community. And I look forward to hearing about the new Inspired Teachers’ experiences and the students they inspire.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 8: Are we there yet?

After a fruitful discussion about lesson plans, an Inspired Teaching staff member referred to the list of questions that we used to consider the plans as a new “measuring stick.” With guidance from these questions, a teacher might take a lesson plan from active to engaging, from just an opportunity for students to express their answers in many ways to shaping the questions that direct classroom activity.

I imagine that if I were in the place of an Inspired Teacher, I would feel a bit relieved to see an example of an Inspired lesson plan on paper. Reading it in black and white might make it seem more real and more like something I could do. The space between participating teachers’ perception of their potential and this idea of an Inspired Teacher seems to decrease with exercises that are closer to teachers’ daily activities, but when will it close completely?

(Here comes the ever covetted and rarely granted straight answer.)

Never! The work of an Inspired Teacher is motivated by, as we’ve heard, a “divine dissatisfaction.” It won’t happen in two weeks, nor in a year because there is no finish line. And the awareness that one can always improve and become more radically creative means that a teacher of any level, in any subject can be Inspired as long as that teacher is willing to continue striving for the goal.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 7: Leaving the door ajar

“Scientists are used to dealing with doubt and
uncertainty. I believe that to solve any problem
that has never been solved before, you have to
leave the door to the unknown ajar.”
-- Richard Feynman, Theoretical Physicist

Learning, like life, can become a habit. We start to only bring as much excitement as the day before or as the people around us. We develop hang-ups and complexes. You may believe that understanding physics is something other people do. Or maybe you have convinced yourself that you’re incapable of learning how to yo-yo.

Each day at the Institute has reinforced for me the idea that being out of one’s comfort zone, of relinquishing control can open* the “door to the unknown.” And just look at what’s sneaking in! Creativity, deeper motivation, renewed curiosity—what’s coming through it for you?

There seems to be an unstated alternative step in the Inspired Teaching Five-Step Process: letting one’s old philosophy unravel.

Let it fall or disappear along with any complexes, right along with any labels—whether chosen or assigned—that limit you from discovering how you can be the teacher and person that you want to be. The new philosophy that you find for yourself just might make you the teacher you dream of being.

This afternoon we discussed possible explicit and implicit meanings in posters. From our conversation, I gather that a statement like “You have two ears and one mouth for a reason” might take on a more moving meaning (less authoritative too) if it were borne out of a collaborative effort to guide a classroom or school as a community, than manufactured by some pereson or business that has never known your learning community. Likewise, the new philosophy of teaching that one grows after letting the old one unravel can have a greater impact in the classroom.

Let it.


*In this era of the linguistic blend, I think the word that I first typed—“hopen”—could be an apropos new term that also just happened to be a Freudian typo.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 6: Inspiration through adaptation

How can I bring “Inspiration” to a subject that is traditionally taught through direct instruction because people believe it can't be taught any other way--like biology?

I was so excited when an Institute teacher posed a question similar to this one. To me, just asking suggests that one believes it’s possible. Although this question will manifest in an upcoming Institute discussion, it’s been on my mind enough that I want to process it here. After the Institute today, the appeal and potential in changing feels so palpable. But how does one make it happen?

While the other participants and I choreographed dances using mathematical concepts as our foundation, I wondered how the activity could be adapted to suit other subjects. Creating a dance or a pantomimed skit to demonstrate literary devices might have kept me more alert and helped me to retain more of the concepts in some of my high school English classes.

And quite frankly, I can imagine the challenge for a biology teacher. Biology was one of the areas in which I most needed something more interactive than direct instruction. I loathed lectures and homework in that class, and I couldn’t conceive of many real uses for what I was learning. It’s sad to say, but coloring anatomy drawings was probably the highlight for me.

Even in my school though, there were teachers whose classrooms were far more engaging than mine, and I wished I could be a part of them. As we’ve touched on at the Institute, I had the curiosity of any child or learner, but I focused on passing tests when I realized the instruction wasn’t going to leave a lasting intellectual impression on me.

So what Institute activities could my biology teacher have adapted to enrich our classroom? The question, I suppose, could be reframed a number of ways, and starting with the end vision in mind might show an educator the way. What are the qualities of an Inspired Teacher? What qualities of an Inspired Teacher can I embrace, and with practice, where can such a shift lead me and my students?

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 5: Getting the rhythm

All of the music that accompanies the Inspired Teaching Institute has already been carefully selected, but I would like to propose another song for this unofficial soundtrack: “Three-Four Vs. Six-Eight Four-Four Ways,” performed by Max Roach and the Legendary Hassan.

It’s characterized by portions in varying meters, or the basic rhythm that notes are played over. From a waltz-like three-four time (ONE two three, ONE two three) to the straight-forward four-four time of a march (ONE two three four, ONE two three four). The composition and its name illustrate what teachers do all day—change gears.

It’s almost unbelievable how many different factors a teacher must be cognizant of at any given moment. Hours of intensive preparation only take one so far. One Institute participant shared that an administrator at her middle school believes teachers need to be able to scan a room and in ten seconds assess students’ moods and possible situations—who is happy, who didn’t get enough sleep, who was just dumped in the hallway, and who’s texting under a desk? Ten seconds would be quite a challenge, I imagine, but however long it takes to develop and utilize, this skill could determine how a teacher would pose the same basic question to, say, the one who was dumped versus the one who is texting. And if there’s any hope of proceeding toward the objectives of a lesson, it all needs to flow like music.

In the song, the sections in different meters play out with a strange synergy. They sound distinct but not oppositional. On the contrary, they make the whole piece more interesting.

Now, I’ve written a song or two in my day, and composing is hard enough in one time signature. Why would I go out of my way to compose or even improvise in three different meters in a single piece? For some of the same reasons, I suppose, that teachers at the Institute may have decided to participate in this professional development opportunity: to take one’s craft to a higher level, infusing it with a new element of interest.

All of the my new ideas catalyzed by this experience are beginning to reveal their own pattern with a call to action. In step three of Inspired Teaching’s Five-Step Process, we explore the connections between one’s philosophy of teaching and one’s classroom practice. This weekend we will grapple with questions that will allow us to strengthen this relationship and make our classrooms truly inspiring. Fortunately, we have at least are five more days of the Institute and many practicum sessions left to support each other along the way.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 4: Greater gratification

What’s your cardinal orientation? Yesterday, I learned that I’m a solid “South-East,” so I care that everyone in a group is involved (South) and I’m driven by my intuition (East). I enjoyed brainstorming the strengths and weaknesses of Souths with others who share the work-style type. Much more than usual, I wasn’t the only one taking special care to include all voices. And for the rest of that day, I paid even closer attention to the Institute group dynamic.

Enter today’s debate. Pro-rewards versus anti-rewards in an imaginary new school. The planning discussions moved quickly once the rules were outlined, and I was asserting myself and interjecting like I did before the seventh grade, when something switched. I paid more attention to getting the job done, as a “North” would, and finding out all of the details, the who/what/where/when/why, like a true “West.”

Extrinsic rewards—incentives that are outside of the individual, like money or pizza parties—can take many shapes, and in this situation, my desire to win was propelling me more than my interest in considering the potential effects of incentives. Would a decision from the debate jury in my team’s favor have been an extrinsic reward?

I’m glad the jury didn’t declare a winner, because I might have lost sight of this jewel of an epiphany: I chose to argue in favor of rewards, even though I generally don’t support them. Call it an intellectual exercise. But just before the jury posed questions to my team, we took time to explore our personal beliefs about extrinsic rewards, more than we were willing to earlier in the activity. We only had a few minutes left, and at least as a group, our focus wasn’t on winning or losing or demonstrating any more to the jury that we wanted to convince them, because our simmering ideas needed to be addressed. That is intrinsic motivation.

I only realized this because I seemed to be the one person a bit antsy to get back to preparing our next argument. My whole student history was reflected then. What faded in the seventh grade and only came back during college was an unslakable curiosity. In the end, I let that very strong desire and my South-inflected concern for group members’ experience win by not protesting, just listening.

I say, Dan Stinebring, Pam Brooks, Tom Reid--eat your hearts out. My college professors moved me with their own passion, and not just for astronomy, African American history, and bowling. They taught me to love learning, and I'm delighted that so many Institute educators share their goal.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 3: Inspired Teaching is reacting

After day 1, Julie, Inspired Teaching’s Director of Research and a linguist by trade, marvelled at the Institute leaders’ skill. Two in particular have led the Institute for years and have heard the same responses to similar questions over and over again. Yet somehow they are able to respond as if they’re hearing it for the first time. They took this skill from their theater backgrounds straight to the classrooms in which they taught. Now, in the classroom that is the Institute, they demonstrate it so flawlessly that we forget that our epiphanies and quandaries are nothing new to them.

So while we played an intentionally repetitive game, I followed their lead.

This is a horse.
A what? A what? A what? A what? A what?
A horse. A horse. A horse. A horse. A horse.
Oh, a horse.

Basically, everyone sits in a circle and takes a turn offering a random object to the person beside him or her, and saying that the object—which is not at all horse, much more likely a cell phone—is indeed a horse. The person responds by asking, “A what?” and the individual offering the object confirms, “A horse.” “Oh, a horse,” the recipient answers. If it were just one round, it would be so simple. But as the game continues, the question and answer must return each time to the first person who offered the object.

Too much information? Confused? Well, imagine 20+ people playing with both a “horse” and a “cow” circulating in opposite directions!

I confess: Other than feeling some anxiety when I had to simultaneously receive and pass two messages different ways around the circle, it got to be a bit dull.

Fortunately, we took time to unpack the activity, looking at what lessons could be taught through the game. Then we journaled in response to questions about the entire day. As a teacher, what do you do when you’re out of your comfort zone or are in the unknown? Co-teaching with a colleague whose mental processes are very different from yours. Engaging students during the last few days before a standardized test. Maybe fielding some of those curiosity questions: “Are you married? How old are you? Who’s that lady in the hallway?”

Or being bored. During the game I tried to do what Kaneia and Aleta do—to react genuinely to each statement as if I didn’t know what was coming because I had never heard it. It was a fake-it-till-you-make-it tactic, and it kept me amused and thoroughly engaged.

A teacher can show their students how to ask and answer questions, but over time, the magic might fade for the teacher. Remaining open increases the chances that everyone involved—teachers, students, families, principals—won’t get bored with school. Instead they might be inspired again and again by opportunities to learn.

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 2: Where self-care and play connect

Over a tasty lunch, I spoke to a few teachers about how they care for themselves. One maximizes summer break, building relationships with other educators through professional development opportunities. They all agreed that prioritizing whatever matters to them is essential. They make sure that their loved ones and hobbies are nonnegotiable, because the rejuvenation, they said, that these can provide help them to stay balanced. In turn, their teaching is enhanced because they can be 100% present.

Complete presence is also what the Inspired Teaching Institute facilitators asked of participants for day two. A variety of warm-ups led us into the “meat” of the day, which focused on observation. And what better way to practice tuning our observational skills than playing?

Yes, playing. Turns out that some of the games that I played at school and church growing up are excellent “Petri dishes” for observing myself and others. We dove into better understanding how we learn, building upon the unique space created yesterday of peers who care deeply about students.

In the quest for improving education, it can feel like there isn’t time to take care or to note that teachers, just like students and all people, see the world in a distinctive way. A couple of participants told me that their colleagues used to joke about who will have the next bladder infection from not maintaining their own heath. At the Institute and at school alike, many teachers struggle to “stop the cop” from stifling creativity and self-care in the class.

But this second day of the course and last night’s homework led me to another question that I now leave with you: Regardless of the subject matter, how inspiring can school be—for students and educators—if teachers are so distracted by their own needs that they can’t build relationships with students and allow creativity and observation of play to catalyze change and growth?

Inspired Teaching Institute Day 1: Let the questioning begin

One of our friendly facilitators led a 20-person warm-up.

“Now pull your shoulders up beside your ears, inhaling, pull up to the top of your head and up to the ceiling.”

We stretched, head to toes, and swung our arms with increasing imaginary weight until we were spinning in our spots around the circle.

As the last participants arrived for the 2008 Inspired Teaching Institute, I smiled and wondered what they were thinking. I continued to speculate during the next exercise that involved a magical scarf similar to talking sticks I’ve seen used to facilitate group discussions. The scarf, however, has the power to make people observe and mirror the actions and energy of the person wearing it. So instead of an individual making faces and toggling their hips and shoulders to a funky ‘70s tune, a full room of adults did it.

That’s what made me sure of my mind-reading abilities. I could almost hear their shared thought: “What does this have to do with teaching?”

Fortunately, two other facilitators, Kate and Aleta, spoke the issue aloud during staff introductions. What do stretching and mirroring exercises have to do with teaching a traditional, pre-K through 12 class?

They asked that we sit with the question and trust that all will be revealed during the two-week intensive course. But by the afternoon, I had my own answer: these activities have everything to do with teaching.

Pointed inquiry is an essential practice of an Inspired Teacher. The right questions help students find their own way to complex understandings and more questions—a hallmark of engagement. During this first day of the Institute, teachers’ questions wandered from “what in the world are we doing?” to “how can I bring these first elements of the program—play, observation, inquiry, 100% engagement, community—into my classroom?”

Furthermore, how can a new way of teaching transform the impact that teachers have on their students?

None of us has all the answers. Instead these Inspired-Teachers-in-the-making—whose experience ranges from one to 30 years in education—are experimenting, discovering what kinds of learners they are, and beginning to get acquainted with one another.

Can’t wait to see what’s in store for tomorrow. Perhaps the homework will tell me because I’m eager to find out.