Category: Productivity

Shine Theory

I first heard about Shine Theory from an article Ann Friedman wrote for The Cut. Being someone who often feels imposter syndrome, I was struck by the idea she proposed:

“Surrounding yourself with the best people doesn’t make you look worse by comparison. It makes you better.”

During the interview for my position at Friday Institute, one of the interviewees (now my colleague) asked me a question that I found intriguing. He invited me to comment on how I deal with working alongside people who are better and know more than I do. At that very moment, I stood in a room with people who I had looked up to and admired for a large part of my career. People who were deciding whether or not I fit in with the team. 

I’m a perfectionist, so naturally the idea of surrounding myself with people who are smarter, more accomplished and more dynamic than myself, terrifies me. It’s not that I don’t want to spend time around these type of people, but I used to think that working alongside them meant my weaknesses would be highlighted. What I’ve found, however, is that surrounding myself with brilliance has done so much to push me forward. It helps me to be challenged, work harder, and consider ideas and opinions that might differ from your own.

Equally as important as being lifted up by those around you who shine, is noticing when the people around you need to be lifted up themselves. We all need a champion from time to time, and what an amazing thing to be for someone else. Don’t underestimate the power of a kind word, a pat on the back, or a simple reassurance to remind someone she’s enough.

 

Lately I’ve Read

There are so many great things out there to read. Here are a few I’ve really enjoyed in the past month.

“No Such Thing As Offline” by Justin Barber

As designers the prospect of shaping these experiences is exciting, because it comes with a great realization that the next generation of users are designing the tools and the output as much as we are.

I love when I read something outside of the education realm that has many applications for teaching and learning.  I enjoyed this article’s discussion of cultural competence and the shift from passive consumption to interaction and creation.

 

“Wish For More Self Control Can Backfire” by Cari Romm

…When people are forced to confront the gap between their ideal and actual levels of self-control, they end up psyching themselves out: Performance suffers because people with a strong desire for self-control sometimes disengage and withhold effort…

This is a great read, especially for all of my type A brothers and sisters. I find the idea that the more we want something, the harder it can become to attain, to be very intriguing.

 

“The Inefficiency of Words” by Robert Cormack

Inefficient words make it too easy. They fit into texts and short Twitter copy. They keep us from rambling. They confine us to mundane truths.

I have written about words before – my love of them, their power, the importance of choosing the right ones, and the power and danger of things left unsaid. Naturally, this article caught my eye. I love its discussion of the way our tech laden world is helping to shape our use of language. It definitely made me think twice about not just what I’m tweeting, but the words I chose when I write, speak, and communicate with others.

 

“Staying in the Discomfort Zone” by Julie Zhuo

The key to growing while staying in the same job is setting new challenges for yourself. Expect more of yourself than anyone else does.

Julie offers awesome tips and advice in her weekly mailing list where she answers a reader’s question. I particularly enjoyed this piece about stretching and pushing ourselves to function with a certain amount of discomfort, while still remaining intentional in our thoughts and actions. She ends the piece with solid advice about how to remain in the discomfort zone and use this to your advantage.

 

“Bored Out of Their Minds” by Zachary Jason

Yet we’re still keeping them in the kind of education system… that wants nothing from them in terms of their own ideas. School has already decided what matters and [what it] expects from you. It’s like an airplane: Sit down, strap in, don’t talk, look forward. Why would it be meaningful?

This should be required reading for every educator. Students become increasingly bored as they get older. This article pinpoints the research behind the reasons why this happens and gives practical, important advice for how teachers can counteract this boredom by making curriculum more resonant, personalized, and meaningful for every student.

 

“How Elon Musk Learns Faster and Better Than Everyone Else” by Michael Simmons

Learning transfer is taking what we learn in one context and applying it to another. It can be taking a kernel of what we learn in school or in a book and applying it to the “real world.” It can also be taking what we learn in one industry and applying it to another.

One of the first people I think about when the word genius is mentioned is Elon Musk. I am so intrigued by his work and his ability to know so much across so many fields. This article breaks down a little of what makes him so special through discussion on the expert generalist and learning transfer – concepts that can both be applied to education, easily. I also enjoyed the focus on exploring personal learning practices.

 

“How to Make Feedback the Focus” by Arthur Chiaravalli

Most importantly, however, is what students do with the feedback once they’ve received it. As Dylan Wiliams points out, No matter how well the feedback is designed, if students do not use the feedback to move their own learning forward, it’s a waste of time.

Feedback is a crucial piece of assessment. This piece focuses on how to make feedback more powerful for students – offering feedback without scores or grades and being reflective and intentional about why and how we assess students in the first place. Emphasis is placed on student agency and ownership and how we can leverage feedback, both from teachers and peers, to help build these.

 

Lately I’ve Read

Since coming back to work from the holiday break, I’ve been moving non-stop. There’s so much I want to write about; professional development I’ve been doing in districts, NCDLCN and how amazing this year’s coaching cadre is, the wonderful work I’ve seen while shadowing my colleagues, but I just haven’t had time this week to focus my thoughts in a way that would justify any of those experiences.

Instead of focusing on one, single thing this week, I am going to share some of the awesome things I’ve been reading – things that have caused me to take notice, reflect on my practice and, ultimately, continue to learn and grow.

 

“Great Artists Write” by Paul Jun

This piece tackles the idea of self reflection through writing. Since I’ve been personally writing and reflecting on my new experiences at FI, I was instantly drawn into this. I love the idea of using writing as a way to champion our creativity, critical thinking and clarity. And, as someone who taught writing to high school students for most of her career, I believe in its power to transform people. This post also offers practical ideas for kickstarting your own reflective writing – all of which are super accessible.

 

“You’re working hard. But are you heading towards the right life goals?” by Jessica Abel

I came across Jessica Abel’s site by accident through someone else’s tweet. But I am so glad that I did. I have loved all of her posts I’ve read so far. This one, challenges our ideas of goals and setting goals that are not only attainable, but goals that we are passionate about – simply put, the right ones. I love her assertion that creative success is mostly about defining success for yourself, envisioning not just your future projects or productivity, but your actual, future self. I enjoyed her advice for setting goals and the candor with which she tells her own story of failed attempts.

 

“Hate PD? Try Voluntary Piloting.” by Krista Taylor

Without giving too much away, this is a piece that all educators should read. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard complaints about professional development – it’s too long, too short, doesn’t apply, boring, confusing, not enough tools featured, and the list goes on and on. This model of PD is different though. It’s small, grass roots and asserts that even a small, passionate group of educators can spark transformational change. This one will inspire you to act.

 

“How I Come Up With 20 New Ideas a Day” by Rodd Chant

This post offers such a great idea for being creative each day! He gives a few, simple ways to come up with new ideas, whether they turn into to larger projects or not. As someone who works around brilliant, creative people, I feel pressure to constantly be innovative, even though this isn’t always easy. I love his advice that you have to let your ideas flow without editing yourself, since, at the end of the day, idea creation is all for you. Whether an idea is good or bad doesn’t matter, all that matters is that it happens.

 

“Man on the Moon” by Jonathon Wennstrom

I was drawn to this post for two reason. First, it’s written by an educator, someone in the trenches. Second, it’s simple and all about impacting students. He gives us a siren call to check our egos at the door so that we can simply focus on doing impactful, transformational work. While the post is short, it reminds me of why I love being a part of the PLLC team at FI – we are about the work, not about the accolades. We come together to focus on creating learning experiences that lead to impacting students. It really is that easy. We don’t compete, compare or criticize, we just do good work.

 

“A Class Where Students Create the Curriculum” by Natalie Orenstein

I wish all students were able to have learning experiences like the ones described in this post. I wish that it didn’t take an act of Congress to enable these conditions (thanks Greg) and I wish that this story was the norm, not the exception and was reproducible in every district. Even if it takes baby steps to create these types of experiences for kids, it’s worth dreaming and working towards.

 

“We Ask Our Kids What They Learn Each Day. Why Don’t We Ask Ourselves?” by Rupa Chandra Gupta

I love this post (and most of the things published on EdSurge). It will make you reflect and consider the difference between reactive and proactive learning. As a true believer in the importance of lifelong learning, and as someone who is always looking for opportunities to learn, I think it’s worth the time it takes to read this if it makes someone consider being more proactive and seeking out opportunities for growth.

 

“32 Productivity Tips from the World’s Top Designers” by John Brownlee

This article is exactly what it says, tips on how to be more productive this year. While the tips are from people in the design world, the suggestions are very relevant to anyone – and have many applications in education. I enjoyed reading this and will be using some of what I read to help myself be more productive. Besides, shouldn’t we be working smarter, not necessarily harder?