Education Blog
The Remarkable Capacity of Communities
This is a story of travel, speaking, schools, teachers, and death. But more so it’s about family, community, and the capacity of people to be there for one another when needed.
My grandmother had been in hospice care for 25 months. For the past many years, she had gradually slipped deeper and deeper into dementia. My parents, especially my mother, had visited her almost everyday for over a decade, and thus they were the last two people I think my grandmother truly remembered.
In many ways, it had been a long, long time since I had seen my grandma. I visited on occasion, but it had been years since she and I had had any real connection beyond her fleeting glimpses back into the present times. She remembered my son Peter the most, always commenting on how beautiful he was. It always interested me that this was her resounding memory since by the time he was born her eyesight was already begun failing her.
Read More >>Teacher Retention: It Ain't About the Money
The Gates Foundation went out and asked 40,000 teachers about their jobs. Guess what? Teachers would rather have more support than more money. It shouldn’t be news, but it is.
Here’s the article:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2011238293_teachersurvey...
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Putting Purpose Into Words
I think most of us are pretty good at writing “to do” lists. In fact, I’m trying to get better at doing them. My desk is an active metaphor for NOT having such lists – seemingly random piles of stuff litter every inch of my office. Most of it is interesting. Most of it is relevant to my work. And some of it is even read and/or done!
But I’ve been carrying around another thought lately. What about my “got done” list? What about the process of ending each day and reflecting on what I did, who I affected, and what my real outcome and purpose was of any given day? It’s in THAT list where we really learn about who we are and what we mean.
Some people have the benefit of a job where the “got done” list is pretty essential. A farmer knows that the soil is tilled and ready for planting. A construction worker knows the framing is done and drywall comes next. The author finishes a chapter.
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Webinar THIS Monday: Ways to Improve Staff Culture to Benefit Teaching and Learning
I’m going to be in Madison on Monday taping a webinar that you can either tune in live for or access later. The title of the webinar is “Ways to Improve Staff Culture to Benefit Teaching and Learning.” www.insidetheschool.com/online-seminars/ways-to-improve-staff-culture-to...
I encourage you to check this out. It should be very cool.
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The Road to Burnout is Paved With Good Intentions
I’ve been doing a lot of work lately with an amazing partnership in Chicago between the Charmm’d Foundation and the Character Education Partnership out of Washington D.C. I was in Chicago to do some trainings for them a few weeks ago. I’ll share more about this exciting work as it rolls out.
In preparation for my time with the teachers there, I wrote the following piece that I think you’ll enjoy. So. Enjoy!
The Road to Burnout is Paved With Good Intentions
It lurks out there somewhere. Hiding in the shadows. It waits for you. Sometimes, when it’s quite, you can hear it whispering to you. Like a phantom, we can catch glimpses of it out of the corners of our eyes. And maybe, just maybe, if you run fast enough or hide well enough, it won’t come to find you.
Burnout. It’s out there. Somewhere. And like a bad flu, it’s coming to get you.
Or is it?
Actually, no. It’s not coming at you.
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As a former teacher, I’ve seen first-hand the issues that educators face every day. I hope that by writing this blog, I can share some insights (as well as a sense of humor) on teacher job satisfaction and school climate, and spark conversation about how to improve our schools.
—Nathan Eklund, M.Ed
Senior Education Consultant
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