Framework for Change

In talking with a teacher/colleague/friend today, I shared some thinking about the Framework for Change.  Here is a link:

Framework For Change

We discussed that when you notice a feeling or outcome, the "problem" is the missing link that is to its left on the flow chart.  We discussed some strategies for approaching each; in doing so, I found that I kept revisiting the power of relationships.  It is so difficult to repair a broken trust or even an unintended slight or misunderstanding.   We can only do our best each day, building on what we know, challenging ourselves to live, teach, and coach in ways that align to our beliefs.

There is a careful balancing act between listening, understanding, and commiserating.  The latter can be tempting but never really has a place in leading or helping.  Especially in these rather woeful times in education, we need to trust ourselves to be able to find the answers inside ourselves, inside our work with children, and always in each other.

I read a quote today about how communication is most needed, most effective when offered while work is in progress or during the process of implementation.  It is then that people see its purpose in sustaining strategies that work or in problem solving what isn't.  So the key is to lead them into this discovery: communicating about what we are actually doing is where our learning and improvement hides... Lives.