A Quote
I refer to this as the difference between being in motion and taking action. The two ideas sound similar, but they’re not the same … motion allows us to to feel like we’re making progress without running the risk of failure …
It’s easy to be in motion and convince yourself that you’re still making progress … Motion makes you feel like you’re getting things done. But really, you’re just preparing to get something done … You want to be practicing.
Source: James Clear, Atomic Habits, p. 142
A Thought
As we here in New Zealand head into the end of the school year, I bet you’ll find yourself in some blue-sky-thinking type meetings. You know, the ones that happen every year. If you’re anything like me, you’ll get inspired by the vision that’s painted of educational nirvana. I bet someone will make a poster, and there’s bound to be new rubrics developed.
You’ll feel like things are happening.
You’ll feel like next year things will be different, better.
But they’re not, and unlikely to be. Unless …
All this is motion, and schools are great at it. Sure, it’s good to have a vision and to deepen your knowledge in the areas demanded by the vision, but I see school after school fall into the trap of thinking that the biggest part of change is the poster on the wall, new LO’s added to the planning template, maybe some timetable changes, and a couple of meetings early the following year with some rubrics handed out. They’re not. They’re the teeniest, tiniest part.
For instance, if your vision includes fostering collaborative learners, then in-class practice needs to allow students to do more than co-operate, and that requires the development of deep relationships and the opportunity to work on things that matter. How do you do that?
Nothing changes until you act differently in the classroom.
That’s hard.
But what’s the point of the poster, all the time invested, and all those words?
If you act, you’re going to stuff up. That’s ok - if you remember to learn from those missteps you’re one step closer to realising the vision, and that’s a lot closer than those who went through the motions but played it safe and didn’t act.
An Action
What is one thing you will commit to doing differently so that the vision can be made real?