Now look what you made me do…!
16 Feb
I’ve been thinking a lot about role models for staff lately, especially in the context of staff development. Sometimes it’s a lonely job being Head of Department, and it’s through the work of role models and support in school and beyond that I find guidance, benchmarks and a context for my own practice.
I’m increasingly aware how much difference it makes to have opened the window of Twitter wide to share in the tremendous wisdom and experience of my PLN. I feel like the gurus of MFL who have been influential in my work, such as Joe Dale, Rachel Hawkes and Jose Picardo (and the list goes on far beyond that) are almost household names. They lead, experiment, inspire and share. I hope one day to be confident enough to do the same.
Leaders and followers are nothing new. The cautious watch with curiosity as the innovators and new adopters plough furrows they wouldn’t be brave enough to attempt.
“She’s just trying to be like X…”
I caught myself feeling slighted this week when it was suggested that I was trying to emulate a universally esteemed colleague in a successful school.
Yes. I am.
What’s wrong with that?
Perhaps unsurprisingly that left me somewhat perplexed. How can it be a bad thing to look at excellent practice and say “I am going to learn from their experience and adapt that for my context.” The wise early majority benefit in exactly that way and can be reassured in their decision-making yet still remain ahead of the masses, perhaps adding a layer of innovation of their own as they go.
So is it reasonable to criticise thinking if it is based on others’ inspirational practice? Does every idea have to be a new idea to be good? I don’t think so. It smacks of ‘not invented here’ syndrome, or the laggard’s cowardice…!
Have experienced exactly the same – albeit in industry rather than education. Try setting yourself informal targets to see how many of your team you can convert from Early Majority to Adopters. I found it interesting that some new team specific acronyms or buzz words helped – and are useful in measuring change. As you know there will always be laggards whose epistemology and personality will preclude them from risking change. Stick with it!
Have experienced exactly the same – albeit in industry rather than education. Try setting yourself informal targets to see how many of your team you can convert from Early Majority to Adopters. I found it interesting that some new team specific acronyms or buzz words helped – and are useful in measuring change. As you know there will always be laggards whose epistemology and personality will preclude them from risking change. Stick with it!
Everything I ever learnt that was any use to me I picked up from watching other people who were worth copying. It’s weird to be criticised for trying to get better at what you do – but very English …
Everything I ever learnt that was any use to me I picked up from watching other people who were worth copying. It’s weird to be criticised for trying to get better at what you do – but very English …
Hi Laura,
Having spent most of my adult life working disruptively with technology I can empathise with your point of view. When I left BBC news to help launch a cable TV station, where all the journalists would film and edit their own material, I was thought to be insane. When I gave a masterclass at a seminar a few years later, on how to do it, and saw some of the ‘old’ faces in the crowd, wondering how they were going to adapt to a digital news gathering environment, it reminded me that having the faith to take the leap is scary for a lot of people.
The context in which the comment about you was made was focused more on how to manage the inevitable curve that will follow your innovation, rather, I think, than an attempt to stifle your creativity. Your energy and vision is changing what happens with MFL faster than perhaps you realise. It’s very much appreciated, not least by me, because I now have a friend at school who likes to think big and play tech!
I’m attempting to teach ‘creativity’ in a reflective way to my year 13 Media students right now. The students will have to write an analytical essay in the summer exam, about some aspect of how they have developed during the production of their coursework. Creativity is one of the possible areas about which they will have to analyse themselves.
This is, to say the least, a somewhat tricky endeavour, as I can’t give them a handout about how they feel inside. Instead, we’re building Google Sites on the Learning Platform, where they can explore their own definitions of creativity and reflect on how they have been creative in their own practice. Yesterday, one of my students, Jonny, who tends to be reticent when it comes to public speaking, produced some startling metaphors and similes. I did say to him I wanted to share his thoughts, and this seems a good place to start.
Having the space and freedom to innovate is at the core of making learning better. You are making learning better for our students…Anyway, here’s Jonny!
‘Creativity is like seeds being dropped from a tree. They grow and flourish.’
‘Ideas are like bees in a hive. Every so often they pollinate the flowers and create sweet honey.’
‘Ideas can be like a jack in a box. Every now and then they jump out and surprise you.’
‘Ideas are a box in your mind. Creativity is the key to unlocking them.’
All the best,
Sacha