Sunday, December 6, 2015

Chapter 5: Finding the Feeling


This was a very interesting chapter as it focused on the way to change behaviors through engaging the emotions and using that to foster change. In education we have faced many negative depictions and simplification of our profession, which has brought about the reform movement that says that it will hold everyone accountable while hunting down the “Bad Teachers”. Keeping that in mind, I found it ironic that the most successful companies and groups are shown to not use these methods, but it is expected to work in education. On page 122 the author notes “Negative emotions tend to have a narrowing effect on our thoughts,” which is interesting as we are trying to think outside the box and create solutions to problems for a variety of students and situations. As I reflect on this chapter, I realize that at different times I have felt that the attack on teachers over the last decade has frustrated me and made me focus too much on the barriers to change. As I read further, I liked how it was stated that for success we need “hope and optimism” and that will lead us to collective success. Now we can’t always change the decisions that are made at the governmental level, but I think that as a group we can be optimistic and have hope that we will always do the best for our students. We do it already and I think we have to focus on the bright spots and support each other, and through our own shared accomplishments we can show a better way to foster creativity and success in children and adults. I plan as my new year’s resolution to focus on the good things that are happening and push myself to be more optimistic. I hope that by doing this I can be energized, hopeful, and creative (p.107) when solving the many problems that we all face.

11 comments:

  1. I also reflected on the criticism levied against educators as I read this chapter, and I found the Clinic section about Microsoft software developers enlightening. When 6 out of 10 users couldn’t figure out how to use a new feature, the software developers dismissed the 6 test users as “dumb.” However, once invited to watch from behind a 1-way mirror as test users struggled to figure out their program, empathy overrode that dismissal as they began brainstorming improvements to their software. When education critics look at data focused on failing student test scores and declare teachers incompetent, they are missing the work, progress, and productive struggles that are occurring in the classroom.

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    1. Kylie, I love your connection to failing student test scores and declaring teachers incompetent. Maybe those critics should read this book!

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    2. I found the clinic section interesting as well, Kylie. Things may look one way on paper, but in the setting there are struggles and bright spots.

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  2. I am almost finished with the book and feel that chapter five is my least favorite chapter thus far. With that said, I love Andrew's post for chapter five! I would love to have a resolution to focus on the good as well. It is so easy to become frustrated and feel defeated, but my goal is to try to remain positive. As stated in the chapter on page 105, "...the core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people, and behavior change happens in highly successful situations mostly by speaking to people's feelings."

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  3. Andrew, maybe we will all be able to "focus on the good things that are happening and push ourselves to be more optimistic" now that developments at the state and national level have opened the door for the much needed transformation in public education. As NYSUT stated: "The recommendations of the state task force signal a commitment to restore the joy of teaching and learning in our classrooms. "Task force recommendations that have been championed by parents and educators include the creation of developmentally appropriate New York state standards by New York state teachers for New York state students; de-linking state test scores from evaluations for a minimum of four years; and less time on testing, more on learning. The new standards and curriculum resources would be phased in gradually with full educator engagement and transparency to parents." "These changes are essential to end the high-stakes pressure that has eroded the joy of teaching and learning and narrowed the curriculum." How's that for giving us the "hope and optimism" we need for success! :)
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  4. I had several thoughts that I was going to post, but after reading other people's posts here I am going to alter them somewhat. The use of the word empathy, and the connection to the current status of education is really striking. The one-way mirror example, where researchers are forced to see the human element of their declarations that it is a 'user problem' is one that really resonated with me. I think often during top-down reform, the day to day impacts of the initiatives are not really witnessed and it is easy to ignore a lack of results and blame that on a lack of effort or skill on the part of those implementing the change. It is critical that we have empathy in order to drive change. The problem, though, is that the people with the decision making power cannot truly know what it is like to be inside a classroom with learners who all have different needs. They haven't been there and they view the potential sources of information (the teachers) as incompetent and stupid, much the same way as the software developers did with the users who couldn't use the program.

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    1. Justin, that's a very interesting connection and I think it adds a lot of insight as to why teachers are being so viciously torn apart in recent years. As you stated, the people in charge of making the policies/standards (for the most part) have long been outside of the classroom. There is a huge emotional gap between what we, as teachers, experience every single day and what the policy-makers, far removed from the classroom, experience. It's easier to write teachers off as bad, stupid, or lazy because it's an immediate solution to a very complicated issue, and doesn't take into account other factors (such as student motivation, effort, socioeconomic status, etc.) because acknowledging these would make the issues much more complex.

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  5. A couple of statements stuck with me from this chapter. On page 122, "I can do this, I'm in charge". We do need the facts to make a change, but also the emotions behind it. On page 123, the end of the chapter brought back the positive emotions idea of Robyn Waters. I keep thinking "What if..." when thinking of change. Look for the bright spots and move those forward. Take no ideas off the table.

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  6. The idea of being positive and hopeful stuck out to me in this chapter also. I think that we as teachers sometimes feel like we have so much put on us from outside sources (government or district expectations for example) that we frequently loose sight of why we went in to this profession to begin with. Sometimes we have to take a step back and remember who/what our priorities are and use that as our source for positive thinking. I agree with what Kylie said about how just focusing on test scores, the growth students made is missed. It is hard to not feel like you've failed if not all of your students meet a academic benchmark, but instead looking at student growth will help to remind ourselves to be hopeful and look for the positives. I think it is definitely true that a teacher's outlook on a topic, activity, or just school in general has a huge impact on how students perceive it too.

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  7. I agree with the ideas stated that we often get too focused on the negative attacks on educators and the education system. It is hard to see change and optimism when the decisions are being made well above our heads and we, in the trenches, have little say in these reforms and decisions. The only place we can foster optimism and change is in our own classrooms and the lives of our students. The book talks about making sure the emotional as well as the logical minds are being fed (the rider and the elephant). I think we all have those characteristics in place; however, staying positive in the face of the day-to-day challenges and the disconnected assessment of our work is what may be the hardest expectation of all. I have often heard, and have said myself, that teaching and students are still what we enjoy...it's the politics that is our biggest obstacle. I can only hope, as another blogger wrote, that the higher-ups are reading this book as well and realize that their expectations are in complete opposition of what apparently works in the workforce.

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  8. This chapter really left me confused and somewhat unsettled. I agree with Dawn, it is not one of my favorites so far. Elephants? Riders? There are so many players here- the powers that be, the administration, teachers, students, parents...I loose track of whose driving what or whose steering?! However, having said that, I do agree with much of what is being said here...especially the concept that we have very little control over what happens "well above our heads" be it at the district level, state or federal levels. But, we do have control over our own attitudes and own classrooms. And I do believe that negative thoughts can and do have a narrowing effect on our thoughts.

    I thought Ms. Lysiak's connection of teachers and the software developers was spot on. It is easier to blame us than to recognize and acknowledge the complicated issues that factor into student success, or lack thereof. I think what I struggle with is how do we get our students to have a positive outlook? Negative thinking really can prevent a person from getting where he/she want to be. It is as simple as being true to my optimistic nature? Is it enough to try to instill hope and optimism and excitement in our students? Mrs. Postilli's post gave me hope, the task force she speaks of is absolutely a step in the right direction.

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