April 15, 2013

Can we argue for a minute please?

I have been reading a lot about the fear of failure 
in schools lately and I am starting to wonder if there is another fear that is causing school success to be squelched. Before we can encourage students to embrace failure and not be afraid to take risks and then learn from them, don't we need to address the fear that exists amongst our teachers?  I have worked in a variety of districts, and in each one I have seen the fear of conflict hold people back from addressing concerns that will affect them in a variety of ways.  We need to create teams that can trust each other and that can debate an idea, I mean really beat up an idea, project, concept or concern without personalizing the process.  Why is it we fear debate? Are we so unprofessional that we cannot face criticism? Especially when the criticism is over an idea, a change, or a procedure that if looked at with scrutiny may be improved for the benefit of all.  Instead, we tend to cower in our insecurity, our fear of conflict with a colleague or maybe it's the fear of the power of the crowd. Will all of our peers look at us as the trouble maker, the whiner or just self centered.
I am searching for the naysayer or antagonist amongst my staff.  While I am not looking to battle over every decision we need to make, in order to make sound decisions about some of the changes I believe we need to make, we need to have some cognitive dissidence to ensure we are looking at all perspectives and truly examining these ideas so that they will work and be embraced as good ideas.  My friend, George Couros wrote an intriguing piece on the Antagonist a while back and I would like to see my staff embrace the concept.  

So as I met with the with my Leadership Team they brought up an interesting point, that I hadn't really considered. Is it possible the fear of conflict doesn't tend to be directed toward administration, but instead it tends to come from each other. They said that we (the staff) go around and put targets on each others backs.  But after reflecting for a while, I had to admit, I recall that feeling as well.  I remember being a teacher and being more worried about what my co-workers thought of me than my principal.  Again, this is culture issue that we must overcome and that I will put my efforts toward conquering.  We need to be able to examine ourselves, our practices and our beliefs, if we are to put student learning and their social/emotional development at the top of our priority list.  While I have read a lot about teamwork, leadership and motivating people, I am still open for ideas on creating this positive culture that is fearless in conflict, filled with trust and focused on improving everything we do. I shared with them today the video below, because I think we do have leaders amongst us, and that my staff members do make "lollipop moments" every day. Do you see this culture in your schools?  Have you battled this fear with your employees or peers?  I'd love to hear your thoughts. Wish I could give you a lollipop like I did with my staff.



7 comments:

  1. Enjoyed the video...everyone should have a Lollipop moment. Having healthy debate is just that...healthy. Saw something on twitter the other day that said having 4 people that agree on everything makes 3 of them unnecessary. Interesting. Nice post.

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  2. Very true. I've found this too. Personal friendships get in the way of what we need to do professionally. I'm not sure how to combat it and would be interested if you gain some good ideas. It is a great first step that teachers in your building recognize this. Teachers see bad practices going on around them and think "the principal should do something about that." Then, if the principal does address it, they will listen to that colleague vent about what a jerk the principal is. Don't mean to be negative about teachers, but if we truly care about kids' success, we need to build a culture where nothing but excellence is acceptable from anyone within our school!

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  3. We need to "lower the cost." There is a social cost to being the first or loudest or the only one. That cost is largely determined by the school culture, which I'll suggest is directed but not built by administration. When staff are encouraged to take responsible risks and supported with resources, then the risk is shared, and with more "shareholders" the cost is lowered. Not everything will work, but nothing gets better if no one tries.
    Lowering the cost doesn't cheapen the product, but makes buying in easier.

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    1. Great insights there Ben. I love the social cost concept and the fear of being the first. We are getting there, but right now it is mostly my leadership team and my guidance counselor (who happens to be the rock of the school) that are comfortable with speaking out. I have been told that it will take some time to overcome the culture that was created prior to my arrival. Apparently there was a lot of admin lead decisions and not much shared-leadership. I will be persistent and passionate about creating a collaborative staff that is focused on continuous improvement.

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  4. Sometimes I think it is beneficial for the leader to disagree with an idea and then go with the majority, even when they are not totally 100% on side. If we say that we value disagreement but always go with what the admin believes, do we really value it? I have some this a few times and it has been tough, but people appreciated that it was not always about my IDE, but the best idea. Does that make sense? I am commenting waiting for a blizzard at Dairy Queen so who knows!

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    1. Oooh....A Blizzard sounds so good. Yes, I agree, I am not looking for argument just so I can defend my idea, but I also think it helps create buy in if I can. However, if the team makes a good enough argument as to why to stay the course, then I can easily support that. Often, that is why I raise the issue, am I not seeing both sides?

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  5. Glad to know others feel like I do....does it get easier? Posts like this help. Keep them coming!

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