I do my best work in collaboration with others. Yes, some tasks, like writing this blog post, are easier done when working alone in a quiet space. Others require undivided attention or concentration. But, I am happiest, energized and motivated to push my thinking and outcomes further and further when working with others.
I realized this several years ago when working on a teaching team. It was a great team. We had the opportunity to share ideas, reject some, modify others and try new things. That process provided great instructional opportunities for us, but more importantly it served students in the best possible ways. Yes, most classrooms are one teacher’s domain. Not so in Montessori classrooms. Some have a lead teacher and an assistant or two, and others are fortunate enough to have two lead teachers. Teachers working together are bound to have more or better ideas than a person working alone. Everyone needs a sounding board. In the best partnerships that is what happens. Ideas are molded and created in direct response to student needs.
I am quite sure I could not have remained in the field of education if it were not for those who have worked with me in various capacities. I have benefited from the wisdom, humor, honesty, thoughtfulness and imaginations of more people than I could count. How do you do your best work?
As this school year gets underway, I have had the pleasure of working more closely with a few classrooms. This has meant everything from meeting about supporting students, to discussing potential field trips, to helping plan lessons. Though these are not my “typical” responsibilities as head of school, they are things I thoroughly enjoy. Getting closer to student learning is always interesting and energizing.
Most of us prefer knowing to not knowing. We derive a degree of comfort in knowing and understanding things. The unfamiliar brings about feelings of uncertainty and maybe even doubt in our ability to navigate a situation or endeavor.
There was a time, and maybe it’s even still true in some cases, that people envied teachers. They wanted their schedules… The holiday and summer breaks, the sweet hours – school’s over at 3! And, how hard is it to teach a bunch of little (or big) kids? If you are aware of current events in the news, you know that time may have passed.
Schools are interesting places. When I was in school, students remained many steps removed from the adults in the community. A distance was set by the adults, and it was not crossed. Not so today. Research shows time and again that building relationships between teachers, families and students is the best way to support learning.
Learning is not a secret. Access to the facts we learn in school is open to everyone who is interested and able to learn. How do schools determine the best ways in which to present the information deemed important? How do they build student skills and improve their practice?
Children spend more time in school than in any place other than their homes. Schools strive to make this time productive and worthwhile, but too many schools define productivity and success through the subjects they teach and the grades children earn.
