A meeting to establish a teacher’s professional growth plan goal can either be a perfunctory activity to be checked of the “to do list” or the start of a year-long do — reflect — apply cycle that generates professional learning. Ask these questions at the end of the planning meeting: Does the teacher own the […]

    Last year, a school made personalized, student-centered learning a major focus of professional learning. Through workshops, staff meetings, PLCs, and coaching conversations, teachers explored how to: increase student voice and choice tailor instruction to learners’ strengths, needs, and interests create more collaborative and authentic learning experiences support students in setting goals and reflecting […]

“We do not learn from experience… we learn from reflecting on experience.” Whether or not Dewey wrote those exact words in that exact form is debated, but the concept runs throughout his work. Experience alone does not guarantee learning. Reflection turns experience into learning. Inquiry begins when we encounter uncertainty. This diagram from the Great […]

During a recent podcast conversation with Mitch Weisburgh, the author of “Mindshifting: Stop Your Brain from Sabotaging Your Happiness and Success,”, I found myself connecting his ideas to a challenge instructional coaches and school leaders frequently encounter. At times, teachers come to a coach asking, “What can I do?” while simultaneously believing there is little […]

A few years back, I wrote about the importance of developmental relationships as defined by Search Institute—“close connections through which young people discover who they are, cultivate the abilities to shape their own lives, and learn how to engage and contribute to the world around them.” Search Institute identifies these five elements that strengthen developmental […]

How does a staff’s engagement in reflection generate increased staff learning that promotes ownership and accountability for student success? Highly experienced school leader, Dr. Matt Horvath, explores leaders work with coaching, PLCs, and professional learning for classified staff. The podcast provides insights and questions to promote your reflection. Email Matt: leadershipnexusconsulting@gmail.com Visit Matt’s Leadership Nexus […]