Tuesday, November 15, 2022 - Community Education Directors' Meeting
Friday, November 11, 2022 - VIRTUAL Title III Meeting
Friday, November 18, 2022 - Teachers' Advisory and Principals' Advisory Council Meeting
Wednesday, November 23, 2022 - Superintendents' Council Meeting
October 19 Recap
Unfortunately, due to last-minute unforeseen circumstances with our presenter, the MRVED Superintendents agreed it would be better to cancel the MRVED event versus trying to put something together last minute. It was decided that the districts would plan their own professional development for the day. The MRVED would like to thank Benson schools for being willing to host the event. Our hope is that your day was productive and worthwhile in your districts. We look forward to moving forward into MELT with a stronger lineup than ever before!
MELT 2023
MELT 2023 is fast approaching. There are currently over 60 individual sessions planned from people from all around Minnesota as well as many of our great local teachers. If you want to present or know of someone that should be presenting, please let Brandon (braymo@mrved.net) know. There's always room for a couple more sessions.
IMPORTANT: MELT registration will open on Wednesday, December 14th at 7:30 AM and close at the end of the day on December 22nd. Be sure to register early as sessions fill fast. Your principal will be sending you the brochure and registration materials a couple days prior.
MELT 2023 Networking Facilitator Sign-Up
The MRVED is looking for people to be facilitators of networking sessions for MELT 2022. As a facilitator, you are not expected to be the expert or present on anything. Your job is to facilitate the meeting. Start and end the session on time and keep people positive. You will also have the ability to email the group prior to MELT to gather ideas and plan for the hour. Sign-up link is listed below. Facilitators are paid a $100 stipend and allowed access to early registration.
**Please note; Any networking sessions that does not have a facilitator, will not be held.**
With the election drawing near and campaign ads filling our television screens, it creates a great teachable moment for students. Students may have lots of questions as to why we vote, who are the candidates, how do you vote, etc... Many of these questions can be difficult to answer, especially for younger aged students. Fortunately, there are some great resources for teachers to help them talk about the election with their students. Below is a listing of some awesome resources.
This enlightening article was posted on Edutopia this past week by Mary Beth Townsend on grading practices was a quick read that makes you think about the purpose of grades. It also provides small steps a teacher can take to begin grading equitably in their classroom. Reading the article reminded me of a short video I saw a few years ago by Doug Reeves on Toxic Grading Practices. Give the short 6 minute video a watch today and reflect back on your own grading practices. The one line in the video that stands out to me is "The penalty for not doing the work, should be doing the work - not a zero".
Instructional Coaching - Everyone Needs a Coach
Within the MRVED, we have a small group of teachers and leaders that gather monthly to discuss instructional coaching. It is one of my most favorite groups that I meet with monthly. We have great conversations about continuous improvement not only in teaching practices, but in our own careers. The group is currently reading the book Dare to Lead by Brene Brown. The book is centered around vulnerability and how to react to that vulnerability and lead people through that vulnerability. It is an excellent book that I highly recommend for any teacher leaders. I was reading our section of the book for our discussion and had a few thoughts. Why do we, in education, view working with a coach as a punishment? Why do we view it negatively? I think it all goes back to vulnerability. Brown defines vulnerability "as the emotion that we experience during times of uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure (Brown, 19)." Working with a coach is a risk..."what if it doesn't work?" "What if what I am doing is wrong?" "I don't need help." Through experience, as a coach, the reward certainly outweighs the risk. If you are interested in going through a coaching cycle or want to learn more, please reach out to Brandon (braymo@mrved.net). Brandon can coach anyone in our districts and there is no additional charge to your school. Watch the TED Talk below from Atul Gawande on why everyone needs a coach!
Jon Gordon's The Power of Positive Leadership for Teens
Last fall the MRVED had the privilege of hearing Jon Gordon speak. Jon's books are inspirational and full of life nuggets. The books are very easy to read and can be applied to almost any area of your life. On December 4th, he is offering a 2-hour workshop on The Power of Positive Leadership for Teens. The cost is very reasonable at $59 per person (with group rates available). If you are an advisor of an activity or coach of a sports team, this would be a great training for your student leaders. Jon is very influential and can help your student leaders grow. Check it out today!
Better Conversation Series
I have spent the past year learning about what it takes to be an instructional coach. Through the process of learning about instructional coaching, there has been one piece that has stood out to me more than any, and that is that conversation is the key to everything. You can have the best instructional coaching process in the world, but it is truly the conversation between the coach and teacher that leads to the greatest gains. I have also learned that by learning how to have a better conversation, it has affected all other aspects of my life, from socially to how I interact with my wife and kids. This series we will focus on the 6 beliefs of better conversations as outlined in Jim Knights new book, Better Conversations. This is a book I highly recommend to anyone who wants to learn how to have a better conversation. Jim Knight does an excellent job talking about his new book in the video below.
Introduction to the 6 Beliefs
The six beliefs as outlined by Jim Knight are:
I see others as equal partners in conversations.
I believe people should have a lot of autonomy.
I want to hear what others have to say.
I don't judge my conversation partners.
Conversation should be back and forth.
Conversation should be life-giving.
These 6 beliefs should guide you in having a productive conversation with someone. Beliefs drive behavior, so if you truly believe these 6 beliefs, your behavior will follow suit. Each week we will examine one of the beliefs and see how we can all have better conversations.
Book Recommendation Over the summer I dove head-first into learning all I can about what it means to be an instructional coach. The more and more I learn, the more my perception of instructional coaching has changed. The purpose of an instructional coach, or any coach for that matter, is to get the "most" out of those they are working with. I was looking for a step-by-step process as to how to do this. I have seen many models presented and heard many different people talk about the process of coaching. Despite the process, the one common theme is really how do I have a productive conversation with someone that can move them from point "A" to point "B"? Which has in turn led me to your book recommendation this week. I am currently reading Jim Knight's new book, Better Conversations. Although, Mr. Knight is a legend in instructional coaching, this book offers much more than having better conversations with teachers; it really is about having better conversations in general. Yes, the focus is instructional coaching, but the concepts in this book can be applied to any parts of your life, from your marriage, to colleagues, to your kids. I highly recommend this quick read.
