{"id":120,"date":"2026-10-03T14:21:06","date_gmt":"2026-10-03T18:21:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/?p=120"},"modified":"2026-10-03T14:21:06","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T18:21:06","slug":"from-gps-to-compass-learning-to-listen-on-both-sides","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/2026\/10\/03\/from-gps-to-compass-learning-to-listen-on-both-sides\/","title":{"rendered":"From GPS to Compass: Learning to Listen on Both Sides"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last year, I kept returning to one question: **How might we engage both all-in and reluctant educators around AI exploration for student learning?** That question still matters to me, but my coaching identity is shifting alongside it. I\u2019m moving from having answers to developing a toolbox of curious questions that can unlock other people\u2019s thinking. There\u2019s something liberating about that\u2014like switching from being the GPS to being the compass. I don\u2019t need to map every turn for someone else; I can help create space for them to find their own direction.<\/p>\n

As I look toward Season 15, I want to keep learning how to make conversations about AI open, thoughtful, and genuinely exploratory. I\u2019m especially interested in strategies that help students discuss AI and listen to perspectives different from their own. Some students can become entrenched in their thinking, and it can be difficult to consider another viewpoint. I don\u2019t have a ready-made answer for how to shift that. Instead, I want to get better at asking questions that invite people to pause and look again: \u201cWhy do you think that?\u201d \u201cWhy do you think they think that?\u201d \u201cWhat am I missing, or what perspective am I missing?\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m also curious about the Liberatory Design for Equity Process, particularly **Empathize** and **Inquire**. I\u2019m drawn to the possibility of students building empathy as a skill: learning to attend to someone else\u2019s viewpoint and feelings, even when they differ from their own. Inquiry feels connected to my own growth as a coach, too. A curious question can open a conversation without deciding in advance where it should go. I want to keep practicing that kind of coaching\u2014listening carefully, staying humble about what I might be missing, and helping others explore their own thinking.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This season, I want to use Cohort 21 as my learning lab. I\u2019m grateful for the chance to learn alongside a community and gather strategies from fellow members about what actually works when engaging teachers and students in critical conversations about AI\u2014or choosing not to use it. I\u2019m coming with questions rather than a finished playbook, and with hope that listening to others will expand what I can imagine and try.<\/p>\n

My soundtrack for this reflection is Joni Mitchell\u2019s \u201cBoth Sides, Now.\u201d It captures something I want to carry into the season: the willingness to look again, to recognize that another perspective may reveal something I couldn\u2019t see from where I stood. I\u2019m looking forward to learning with this community, asking better questions, and helping make room for more people to think aloud, listen, and consider both sides.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last year, I kept returning to one question: **How might we engage both all-in and reluctant educators around AI exploration for student learning?** That question still matters to me, but my coaching identity is shifting alongside it. I\u2019m moving from having answers to developing a toolbox of curious questions that can unlock other people\u2019s thinking….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":396,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-action-plan","category-coaching"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/396"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":122,"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120\/revisions\/122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/jeffadams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}