Still blogging on vacation

This was our by-week and I still decided to blog about something, my leader at school. That is my principal. I thought it was very cool that she followed district orders and gave us a full day of in-service, yet still managed to allow personal time for the last minute room fix-ups that we all had. She also made sure we realized that it was OK to work on our rooms or other necessary agenda items during any free time we found. Pretty smooth. I know that I for one really appreciated it.

A reflection on a problem with a question posed.

I have a hard time answering the question “How does the Beloit "Mindset" list reinforce the changing context discussed in Richardson's "Tune In" article and help focus the different perspectives of today's digital native students and those who are teaching them?” because I think you have to buy into the idea before you can really compare and contrast. I don’t know that I buy into either one. I know for a fact that a lot of the items on the list for the Beloit “Mindset” are not true. For example, I had roll down windows in the last car I bought (before the Smart) in 2002. There are many others. As a matter of fact, I thought (and wrote somewhere) that this list reminded me of a bad email list that gets forwarded in perpetuity.
I have a problem with some of the “Tune In” article, as well. For one thing, I don't believe the statement “Millennials are anxious to be mentored by older, experienced teachers.” because this has not been my experience. The majority of millennials that I have worked with or interacted with will accept the help of an older more experienced worker, but often they bemoan the fact that they were not allowed to explore for a solution on their own. This does coincide perfectly with the sentiment that “Millennials think they’re pretty special.” Unfortunately, they also think that everyone should be in awe of what they do. National Public Radio (NPR) had a very interesting segment on in April or May of 2007 about how these same Millennials expect daily recognition. One older employee who was named “EMPLOYEE OF THE DAY” said she didn’t understand why she got this recognition; she was just doing her job.
The December 2004 issue of Scientific American Mind had an article titled The Limits of Multitasking. I believe the article stated that because the brain processes conscious thoughts sequentially, there really is no multitasking; it is just a continuous series of switching between various tasks in a disjointed manner. Please remember that it has been a while since I saw this article, so I will research it again and post a synopsis of what I find as a reply for all who are interested to read.
I just found this link on the myth of multitasking for any who are interested: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7700581

The tide has turned

I find it interesting how just a little bit of attention can change the whole feel of something. For instance, our class instructor changed from one who did not respond to contact to one that is freely available and shares comments, questions and concerns with us through many various means. I have noticed a much more engaged class where the participants comment and respond to comments, ask questions and share various views. This is what I remember discussion boards being like. This is what I was missing. Now I feel like I am in a class that has some value and is worth the money. Thanks, Louis!

Mixed feelings

I presume that as a leader, you will be expected to do some things that you may find distasteful or unpleasant - like reprimanding someone for poor choice of action, telling people some bad news, or even letting an employee go. This is probably one of the main reasons I don't pine after an administrators job; I don't want to have to do these things. Not that they don't have to be done, but I don't want to be the person to do it.

So it is with mixed feeling that I note the replacement of our prior instructor. I know that I was part of the wave that got him replaced and I am trying to not feel guilty. I KNOW that he didn't perform his job as expected, that he did not offer the leadership required, and that the entire class suffered because of his unavailability. I also know how upset I was when I had questions or concerns with no feedback from any authoritative source to help me get straightened out. I know that he did not fulfill his responsibilities as the instructor to actually instruct. 

Yet I still find myself asking questions like - Could I have been more diligent in trying to contact him? Could I have been more understanding of technical difficulties? Could I have continued to suffer through without his guidance and leadership? Would any of this have made a difference? Was I too intolerant of the situation? 

Even though the answer to these questions reaffirm that the correct decision was made, I still feel partly responsible, and continue to question: was I right?

Continuing blog on leadership class

The wetpaint site for class finally got updated (I had been checking daily all week), and hidden on week one was to continue blogging about class. I find this difficult to do. There have been 2 "on-line" meeting scheduled for Mondays at 4:30 PM. One never happened, and one was to pick a time to have the class. What gives? We were all there for a class and told to pick a day with the time set at 4:30 PM. BUT WE WERE ALL THERE! All except the instructor, that is. 

I guess I am confused as to what I am supposed to be learning here. I have read the book, and I recognize a lot of "tactics" discussed there - either exhibited by me or others with whom I work or have worked. But that is book learning. What about the instruction part? What am I missing there?