Dr. Jan's Blog

Ya Gotta Love Barry Switzer

Oh my gosh, Barry Switzer (our very famous, beloved former OU and Cowboys head coach) is now the pitch man for Dunkin Donuts.  It's totally the funniest commericals I have ever seen.  He's priceless, and whoever came up with the commericals is a GENIUS!   "Who are you to ask who am I?"

Check it out at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFyLEtSu0JA

Westwood Faculty and Staff are the HIPPEST!

Each year at Westwood, our faculty and staff teach like their hair is on fire.  There is this burning professionalism to help every student, to go beyond our wildest dreams in teaching every child so that they learn, and to work with each other to increase the synergy of our team to reach higher heights.

This year has been the best year yet.  The faculty constantly challenges me to be more; and I do the same for them.  It is only under collegial conditions of working with accountability to ourselves, to our students, to our profession that we are able to do more and be more. 

School improvement is a lot like quitting smoking.  Folks who actually quit smoking (like me) have to try and try and try again until finally the quitting sticks.  The same is true about school improvement; there are a lot of false starts, but if you keep working at it, you will get there. 

Each year, I have tried to do a book study with the faculty.  I hated it, they hated it, we hated it.  We would read a chapter or two and then kind of drop it because we were just too caught up in other things that were more pressing.  This year, we pushed through the pain.  I had each grade level take a chapter and present it at a faculty meeting; and I challenged each team to really go all out.  It was so much better than me dryly dragging everyone through.  Now, it wasn't the most popular thing I have ever implemented.  No one wanted to do it; and then suddenly it clicked.  Not only did we learn the information in the book (McEwan's Teach Them All to Read), but we learned all kinds of great small group learning strategies (Sandy Futrell got us going with ideas from Ban Those Bird Units).  I am proud (finally) that we got book studies going.  But, we just had to keep trying until we got there.

But, the thing that I have to really emphasize here is that our faculty and staff don't resist everything (even though they may not be crazy about every step we take), aren't constantly misdirecting their energies by fighting me and calling the union over petty nothing issues.  Instead, they work to make our school great.  They accept leadership from me and each other; and they make us all proud with their accomplishments. 

As the school year ends, I just want to take a moment to salute the HIPPEST faculty and staff in America.  My pride in your devotion and my affection for each of you makes my professional life a blessing beyond my deserving.

Who are those old people with Bo?

Oh yeah... it's Pat and me at Bo's graduation.  I remember when we, as late life parents, contemplated attending Bo's graduation from our nursing home.  SURPRISE!  Old isn't old once you get there... except when you see pictures of yourself.

Bo graduates from high school...

My precious Bo graduates from high school tomorrow.  I have mixed feelings.  I am so thrilled to finally get that boy out of high school and into college (OU).  I am sad to see him leave.  Why is it so hard to let him go?

Here he is as the little chubby baby he once was with his mom (2005) at his first dance.  I miss Bo...or Rick as he has renamed himself... and he's not even gone... yet....

My Latest Publication-- from AASA

Something drives me to write.  I write this blog, I write for publication, I write for no earthly reason other than to just read my words.  Occasionally, I am honored to have someone else think that what I have written might be useful to others.

Tomorrow, May 1st, my latest publication appears in The American Association of School Administrators May 2009 The School Administrator.

I actually first wrote about using complaints to improve your organization on this blog; but since words per article are limited in publications... the latest publication is another version of that.  You can view the published version on the AASA web site at this link.   No one in my family reads my stuff; parents are past that kind of thing and hubby hates that kind of thing and kids can't be bored with that kind of thing.  So, today I share it with you... my one reader!

Legal Implications of Social Networking

I recently have started to see the worthwile aspects of Facebook; social networking is one of the only technological tools that I haven't embraced the minute I learned about it.  However, when one of my friends (also a principal) started using Facebook to keep up with what was going on with her old buddies as well as current friends with posts and pictures, I found it was also a very useful tool.  So, I created an account and have been enjoying the way to connect with my old buddies and current friends.

And, I have come across a new way for my school to connect with our parents.  I created a space for our school; and then I had a tough experience when I found that Social Networking Sites are banned from our district servers.  It seems that we won't be able to take advantage of this incredible tool.  I think that we need these tools, and it's time we find ways to train our students to effectively and safely use Web 2.0 tools.

Here's a great podcast I just came across today.  It's important to think about these things.  We can't stop the flood of technology; instead it's time to start to effectively think about and plan for how we will make the internet as safe and useful as we can manage it. 

My HERO, Larry Lezotte

Over twenty years ago, when I was studying like a mad woman at Vanderbilt to get my doctorate, I studied the works of Ron Edmonds and Lawrence Lezotte.  They were all about the Effective Schools Movement, and back as far as A Nation at Risk (early '80's when the writers claimed that if a foreign country had forced on us our shoddy public Ameican education system-- that we would have considered it an act of war) and the Coleman Report (mid 60's report concluding that schools don't matter in raising the performance of at risk children)... we were looking for "the answer."

My professional career has been in search of finding the way to teach and reach all kids, despite their economic and educational short comings.  I truly believed (and do believe) in the Correlates of Effective Schools.  And, all these years later, we have come to realize that we actually can teach every child whose education is of importance to us... whether we do or not is the point in question (kind of a paraphrase of Rod Edmonds).

Imagine my delight when my beloved Oklahoma City Public Schools brought in Lawrence Lezotte for two straight days of training for the principals.  Each day I marched right up to the front of the presentation room and sat squarely in front of Larry Lezotte.  I was mesmerized and entranced.  His message was as dynamic and awe inspiring today as it was over twenty years ago.

And, yes, I did make Betsy snap our picture.

Westwood gets nod from Oklahoma State Departement of Education!

Daniel Fryar from the Oklahoma State Department of Education called me to advise that Westwood Elementary would be receiving The Title I Academic Achievement Award (with a nice check for $28,000) from the State Board of Education for the academic achievement of our students on state criterion reference test.  I didn't even know that there was such an award because we just haven't been in the running for anything like this.  

When I made the announcement over the intercom, the kids and faculty/staff and I just screamed in delight.  How great is this?!!  We are carefully contemplating how we will spend the booty; so far, we are thinking that Smart Boards in as many classrooms as we can afford sounds pretty cool.  

Sandy Garrett, our Oklahoma State Superintendent, has taken our state into some uncharted territories in school improvement.  This would definitely qualify as teacher merit incentives, and I am so proud that I get to live and work in a state (that despite the low social economic status-- in comparison to other states) where we soar despite the many reasons we shouldn't.

Have I written lately about how great it is to lead the hippest school in America with the most passionately dedicated faculty and staff in America?  Hmm... well, I should have!  LIfe is very good here at Westwood.

Improve Learning Outcomes with Universal Screening

Well I just completed an interview for my first webinar this week with T.H.E. Journal.  I had been fortunate to have worked with American Education Corporation for A+ Anywhere Learning and had recently gotten an intro into their Learning Link.  When I got a call to speak about assessment, RtI, and Universal Screening for T.H.E. (which is the leading resource for Technology in Education) I was pretty excited.

Here's the link to the webinar  Improve Learning Outcomes with Unversal Screening

I was kind of bummed out when I listened to the webinar to discover that I sound like such a bumpkin.  A southern accent just sounds so hokey when recorded.  Surely I can't sound like that in person; that's my story and I am sticking to it.

I just feel this webinar business is an incredible way to differentiate professional learning opportunities for educators.  I have no doubt that we will be learning more and more through this medium.

Clear and Focused Mission

Today, after school, I was reading the book that our district administration has chosen for our professional development.  It is entitled Assembly Required by Lezotte and McKee.  I was a little overwhelmed by having to read another professional book along with the one we are reading for our school professional development (Teach Them All to Read by McEwan), the ones I read as part of my own professional direction, and stuff I read in my role with ASCD.  But, I just hunkered down and decided to read it.  The part I got to today had a part about Clear and Focused Mission; and I suddenly got an urge to find out what the folks in our school think is our mission.

 

So, I went out and asked, “What does this school care most about?”  Liliana told me, “It’s the kids!”  When I asked her what it was about the kids, she said, “Kids learning and everyone here making sure that they do.”  Gayla told me, “It’s the kids!”  Again, I asked what about the kids.  She told me, “Kids achieving to their fullest ability.”  Patti also told me it was about the kids and “students and their progress.”  And, I realized that we really do have a clear and focused mission and that everyone knows it.  Would you have said the same?

 

Then, I went down the hall to ask more folks; and I came to Keta’s room where she was teaching a small group of students (this is after school mind you); and she couldn’t be bothered with me.  So, I moved on… room after room had teachers and paraprofessionals intensively interacting with students… they were tired but you wouldn’t have known it.  No amount of pushing them on with money or praise would have gotten these folks to do this… somehow they are just doing what it takes to make sure all the students learn.

 

In Blake’s room, Sandy and Tammy were teaching fourth graders how to tutor second graders.  Then, DeWayne was also so busy tutoring that we just passed a knowing look of pride between us with no words but a fond smile.  And, I realized that I was quickly approaching my life long goal of finally being inconsequential to things just going great around here.  I went back to my office to read movie magazines and eat bon bons but then I remembered that I need to go feed Buttercup… and I am outta here!