Trying to make sense of our fluid circumstances is one thing; however, leading schools through change is a complete other endeavour. It requires empathy as we depart from the roles, habits and ways of being in our lived experiences of the past and chart a new direction. It requires asking challenging questions about the role…
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The US leadership expert Warren G. Bennis once said: “There are two ways of being creative. One can sing and dance. Or one can create an environment in which singers and dancers flourish.” Pg. 239 David Price has written a book that synthesizes mindsets and approaches and contextualizes them in the here and now. It…
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This book has strong resonance with “Reframed” by Stuart Shanker (Which I reviewed HERE), but it is written with families in mind. In “Reframed” the big takeaway is “See a child differently and you see a different child.” In “The Yes Brain” they write: When we see our children’s behaviour as communication that’s letting us know…
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Fellow educators, please read this book…or at least this review. Stuart Shanker sets out to reframe our understanding of ourselves and others in a way that enlivens our call to action as educators – it can reinvigorate our practice and our craft. That our future, of education (pre, during and post Covid19) , or ourselves…
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This book offers an outstanding approach to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. It tackles the issue of racism at the neuro-psychology level, and offers strategies and a practice for how to breakdown and rebuild our unconscious, implicit biases. Shakil Choudhury began his consulting career focussing on anti-indigenous racism, and this echoes throughout the book, and the…
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From the author or “The Road to Character” this is his follow up non-fiction book about the Quest for a Moral Life. This book was recommended to me by a professional colleague, and as I was reading it, I kept wondering about the connections to the role of an educator. This is not a book…
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To many of my readers, there is a long break ahead for the summer, while for others below the equator, schools are just getting started. This will be my last of my “3 Resources…” posts for while (I hope!), so I’ve decided on three compelling resources that offer compelling reasons and hope that education will…
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I am walking throughout my neighbourhood more than I ever have. It allows me to think, to pause, and I often stop to smell the flowers – literally – and to see what books my neighbours have put out on the lawn. There have been some real gems! I’ve added to my Seth Godin library…
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As school’s wrap up the student experiences of their Remote Learning Plans, there is much to reflect upon. How have students survived, thrived or not? How have students learned more about themselves as learners, and how do we know? The same can be asked of our organizations. This week, during the CIS Ontario Remote Learning…
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This has been a week. A week of pain, struggle and yet of inspiration and hope. Two things that I hold on to are words spoken by people I admire and respect: First is my Principal who often says that her mantra is”Hope is a choice”. I choose Hope. Another close colleague of mine said,…
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