Just a brief two this time. Kinda been busy. How about you guys?
From the examples listed of high schools, middle school, and foreign countries, what practice did they have or lesson that they learned stuck out to you?
I was encouraged by the comment Mr. Covey made about Roosevelt MS, "no, Roosevelt is not yet paradise but, one by one, students' lives are being changed". What are your thoughts on this comment and the reality that it describes?
I don't remember the school, but I like where the teacher was greeting students in the morning...looking them each in the eye, speaking to them, etc. She didn't yell when they were loud or said something in appropriate, but she continued to model respect. Then when her duty assignment changed the students missed her. That inspired me!!!
ReplyDeleteI don't remember the school, but I like where the teacher was greeting students in the morning...looking them each in the eye, speaking to them, etc. She didn't yell when they were loud or said something in appropriate, but she continued to model respect. Then when her duty assignment changed the students missed her. That inspired me!!!
ReplyDeleteLike Mrs. Hughes, I like the teacher greeting at the door, and the fact that it made such an impact on those students. I think that would be an excellent place to start for us. I noticed that almost everyone of them had a school leader take the staff 'away' and have them trained in the 7 Habits. I don't know how much that would cost, but having that as a session during in-service or training in the summer would definitely help get the teachers onboard with this new concept more quickly.
ReplyDeleteIf you change this to say "no, Meridianville is not yet paradise but, one by one, students' lives are being changed", then you have justified doing this. I think this is a great way of promoting self-confidence and self-reliance that our students need, and even if it takes several years, changing the perceived culture of our school will be a great thing we can do for this community.
There were a couple of things that really stood out in my mind. At one of the high school's, students were assigned to mentors. Each teacher was a mentor to a group of students, which reminded me of my college English advisor. As teachers, we already serve in many different roles, and we want to be available when students have a problem or concern, and this seemed like a great way for students to have a place to turn when they are in need of extra support.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing that really interested me was the class that was provided to students at one school, which focused on teaching them how credit cards work and other money and life skills that kids truly don't understand. Last year, in a discussion about finances, I was amazed at how little my 8th graders knew about finances and the cost of living.
In response to the above listed quote, I truly believe that the benefits to students would by far outweigh the time and effort it takes to implement some changes. The book pointed out that many times the kids who needed the leadership training the most were the ones who were most resistant; however, it also said that many of those resistant students came back later to thank them for their efforts and explain how helpful the 7 habits actually had been in their remaining academic career and their lives. It is all about planting a seed; everything won't take root with every student, but SOMETHING will stick with the majority of them, even if they don't know it right away.
I've had similar discussions with students regarding life skills, and agree that many of them have a serious lack of information. Planting a seed is a good approach to this.
DeleteThe one thing I noticed was that almost all of the schools had the kids read the 7 Habits for Teens in either a literature class or an elective. Then the theme was carried out through the rest of their academic careers. Most of theses faculties had formal training in the 7 habits.
ReplyDeleteThis will be a slow process and we need to celebrate the small accomplishments and keep moving forward.