Why do we wait to make schoolwide changes?
On seeing possibilities for better literacy instruction for all students
While taking care of my yard this week, I decided to get rid of the lily of the valley growing between my house and my neighbors.
It’s been growing there since we moved here nine years ago. I’ve never liked the plant. The berries from lily of the valley are poisonous. The leaves get brown at the peak of summer. It’s aggressive, bordering on invasive. What prompted me to remove it after almost a decade?
The swamp milkweed growing in the center of it. See image below. The plants framed in the blue are the milkweed I planted years ago. The little guy in the purple frame likely propagated from a seed blown by the wind last fall. Milkweed is essential for monarch butterfly survival and a key pollinator in general.
Why did I wait nine years to finally clear out this part of my yard? I asked myself.
The primary reason: I finally saw that something else could grow there.
This was a shift in my beliefs. Previously, I was unsure about the potential for that space. Now that I could see the possibilities, I made room for the milkweed to grow.
The same dynamic plays out in our schools—sometimes we need to see what could flourish before we're willing to remove what's been there all along.
For example, where in your school are you noticing:
exceptional results with readers and writers?
promising practices emerging in classrooms?
beliefs and values that convey high expectations for each and every student?
From there, it’s a matter of identifying and weeding out the systems and processes that are getting in the way of these new innovations to grow.
Of course, this work is much more complicated and challenging than articulating it here. Yet if we have the humility and courage to acknowledge what may have worked in the past is no longer working now, we can begin that journey of transition and renewal on behalf of our students.
Take care,
Matt
P.S. Due to low interest, I won’t be running the course “Design Professional Learning Teachers Will Love” in August. I’ll be in touch with alternative opportunities. Thanks for your feedback!