In 2006 I was stuck in a rut of coercion and ineffective instructional practices. Both my office referrals and student fail rate were at an all time high. It was at this time I was placed on a Professional Improvement Plan. Looking back, I can now clearly see my journey. I thought it time for me to share it with all of you in hopes that it will inspire someone to turn within.
Due to my own personal experiences, I have much empathy for those whose practices are under the administrative microscope. I do not look at struggling colleagues through the lenses of judgment but through the lenses of understanding. I think it only natural for individuals to defend their practices; even when those practices bear negative results. I see it over and over again with colleagues struggling to balance classroom management and student success.
I have found that the universe will keep placing the same circumstances in our paths as many times as it takes us to learn from those circumstances in order for us to grow as individuals. What it all comes down to is this...We all have one of two choices when faced with opportunities for change: 1) defend and devoid or 2) reflect and revise.
Defend & Devoid Cycle
In truth, almost all struggling teachers will begin with defend and devoid. During the defend stage the teacher will find all possible ways to justify his/her practices. I remember my principal telling me that my lessons lacked anticipatory sets and closure. So what did I do? I spent time documenting and citing activities from resources to prove my activities were publisher approved! I also attempted to defend my high fail rate. I spent time researching students' grades from the year prior so that I could prove the problems existed before me. Defending practices leads to avoidance of reflection and collaboration; ultimately leaving the individual devoid of change. I spent some time being devoid of change; avoiding colleagues, hiding behind closed doors, as well as unplugging from my personal life. The Defend & Devoid Cycle not only results in little to no changes in instructional practices with limited opportunities for student success, but it bleeds into one's personal life as well.
Turning Within
Simon Sinek (2010) has a powerful TED Talk in which he discusses "why, how and what". This talk was not published until well after my journey had begun, but when I saw it in 2010 it resonated with me. While this talk is directed towards the business world I find it parallels with the world of education.
Sinek says that "when we communicate from the outside in, yes people can understand vast amounts of complicated information....It just doesn't drive behavior." Without an answer to the fundamental question "why", one will never break the cycle of defend and devoid. Turning within is uncomfortable as it shifts from focusing on external factors to examining what drives one's self. Sinek warns "if you don't know why you do what you do...then how will you ever get people to...want to be a part of what it is that you do." In order for change to truly occur one must turn within and ask...
"Why am I teaching?"
The truth is we all have the "what" which is our content. We all have access to the "hows" which we call instructional practices. However, we often lose sight of "why" we are teaching.
Are we teaching from the outside in? Are we teaching content under the illusion that how we teach will cause students to believe in learning?
Or are we teaching from the inside out? Do we teach from our own personal "why" offering multiple pathways (multiple "hows) in order to inspire and help students learn the content?
Are we teaching from the outside in? Are we teaching content under the illusion that how we teach will cause students to believe in learning?
Or are we teaching from the inside out? Do we teach from our own personal "why" offering multiple pathways (multiple "hows) in order to inspire and help students learn the content?
Reflect & Revise Process
Once we re-discover why we are teaching, we can abandon the Defend & Devoid Cycle for the Reflect & Revise Process. Notice the difference in "cycle" versus "process". A cycle leaves no room for variance, it is a repetition of the same steps to only elicit the same results. In a cycle events are set in motion with the belief there is nothing that can be done about the results. A process creates space for reflections and revisions in order to continually increase successful outcomes. In a process events and results are monitored and adjusted by all participants.
I can see why some struggling teachers, myself once included, have chosen to live in the Defend & Devoid Cycle. In short, it is less work. This cycle allows educators to wash their hands of any responsibility regarding student failure.
The Reflect & Revise Process is more time consuming. It requires educators to embrace failure as a catalyst for growth. When at first some succeed we try again. At the second attempt when most succeed we try again. Finally at the third (or fourth or fifth) attempt, when all succeed we begin again with something new.
Until I answered my "why", I lived in the Defend & Devoid Cycle. In 2006, my principal gently inquired of me why I was teaching. After turning within I found my "why"...
I was then able to break the cycle and embrace the process. In the Reflect & Revise Process instruction and results are monitored and adjusted by all participants. The question I keep at the forefront of every lesson is "are all students succeeding?" If no, it is up to me to discover the student's "why" in order to impact how we will learn and grow together.
I want to help students learn how to learn.
I was then able to break the cycle and embrace the process. In the Reflect & Revise Process instruction and results are monitored and adjusted by all participants. The question I keep at the forefront of every lesson is "are all students succeeding?" If no, it is up to me to discover the student's "why" in order to impact how we will learn and grow together.
In Sinek's talk his final words are... "it's those that start with the 'why' that have the ability to inspire those around them or find others that inspire them." If we teach from the inside out we can inspire students to discover their "whys." The paradigm shift from the inside out is more than a change in professional practices, it is a transformation in how we choose to live our lives allowing us to continually evolve as individuals.
*I dedicate this post to my principal Dr. April Adams. For instead of shaming me into change, she encouraged me to turn within. For instead of isolating me, she had an open door for me. For instead of judging me from the outside in, she worked with me from the inside out. April, thank you for being a pivotal part of my journey.
Sinek, S. (2009). Simon Sinek: How Great Leaders Inspire Action [Video file]. Retrieved from
