Rethinking Class Pizza Parties & Marble Jar Incentives

Mike Anderson TACKLING THE MOTIVATION CRISIS How to Activate Student Learning Without Behavior Charts, Pizza Parties, or Other Hard-to-Quit Incentive Systems

I can still remember my third-grade classroom. I was proud of the neat long rows aligned with mismatched chairs, the old wooden teacher’s desk, and front and center was the overhead projector. Next to the project were two glass mason jars. I neatly labeled one jar teacher and the other jar students.

A bright yellow and black bumble bee marble would loudly make it into the student’s jar from the teacher’s jar when a student or group of students achieved compliance. A prized marble eas earned when they walked quietly, lined up quickly, or took their turn. Each act complied with the class expectations for an orderly class community.  For the first few months, the clink of the marbles was constant, and then about two months into the school year, the clinking noise significantly slowed. 

Looking back, I know my intent was genuine, but the effectiveness was hit and miss. Mike Anderson, the author of Tackling the Motivation Crisis, points out what’s wrong with these types of incentives. “As it turns out, in the world of motivation, the use of extrinsic motivators can lead to counterintuitive results…You have to keep offering more and more ‘class bucks’ to get kids to clean up the room, and be kind to each other as the year goes on” (p. 10-11).

Anderson compels educators to break the cycle and create school experiences that allow students to be self-motivated. “That is what this book is about…learn the three key steps we need to make this happen” (p. 8). Stop. Tap. Teach.

Stop Incentivizing Students. 

Tap into Students’ Intrinsic Motivators. 

Teach Students Skills of Self-Management.

In each chapter, Anderson references personal experiences and evidence-informed research on intrinsic motivation and why it is an important life skill for our students. He gives the reader insights on what practices to consider removing even though “these systems feel productive” (p. 39) and what “strategies to teach…as a starting point” (p. 81) for self-motivational and self-management. Finally, how teachers and leaders can “ditch the incentives, but keep the fun stuff” (p. 143). 

I wish I could go back to those beginning days as a teacher and have a “do-over,” and I am sure I am not the only educator who has said that. Although I can do better as a leader, learner, and advocate who inspires students’ intrinsic motivation, moving forward knowing better. 

PLC Challenge Accepted

 Kathy Tuchman Glass & Karen Power A LEADER’S GUIDE To Reading and Writing in a PLC at Work Elementary

We are nearing the two-year mark of a global health crisis. The impact of its effects on our students, schools, and communities is both highly visible and surprisingly hidden. Our student’s physical, emotional, and social needs continue to be a top priority, but meeting students where they are academically right now is also incredibly critical. Admittedly we are not on the bandwagon of catching them up but rather accelerating their learning towards emerging goals, allowing them to stretch and grow as learners from where they are right now. 

So our question becomes, with an incredible range of learners in our grade-level classrooms, is a PLC even possible during the constant disruption educators are facing during a pandemic? An enthusiastic yes, but students are not the only ones that will require adjustments and modifications moving forward. A Leader’s Guide to Reading and Writing in a PLC at Work can be a grade-level team’s guide and a school community's reference tool to ensure equitable outcomes for each student.

Authors Kathy Tuchman Glass and Karen Power are champions of literacy and aligned standards, assessments, teaching, and learning as the focus of the four essential questions of a PLC while keeping instruction at the heart of each response. “The chapters represent a natural progression of a team’s work as members move from establishing a plan for a curriculum all the way through to determining the methods and strategies for classroom instruction” (p. 3).

Throughout the book, the authors consistently summarize the evidence-informed findings of a multitude of practitioners and researchers, “Once again findings show clarity and consistency in embracing the significance of classroom practice in the pursuit of equitable opportunities for all students” (Chenoweth, 2017, Reeves, 2020, & Zavadsky, 2012, p. 218-219). Yes, all students. This is the heart of our equity work as a leader. Leaving no learner without, behind, or forgotten.  Literacy is their ticket for endless opportunities now and in their future.

“Literacy—an essential prerequisite for full engagement in our society—equips students with the gateway to widespread learning through reading, writing, speaking, and listening. It is incumbent on leaders to ensure teams infuse literacy instruction across content areas, with careful attention to the gifts a diverse classroom and world afford. As a leader, your challenge remains: to afford students this equitable opportunity to thrive through sound literacy instruction” (p. 229). 

Challenge Accepted! 

CHOP & CARRY

Joshua Medcalf CHOP WOOD CARRY WATER How to Fall In Love With the Process of Becoming Great

“The only thing that is truly significant about today, or any other day, is who you become in the process” (p. 6). Becoming, putting one foot in front of the other with purpose and stride takes time and a lot of practice. Joshua Medcalf’s book, Chop Wood Carry Water, reminds the reader, “greatness isn’t for the chosen few. Greatness is for the few who choose” (p. 10).

Medcalf’s shares the process of becoming great through one young man’s long struggle to becoming a highly skilled and wise samurai warrior. “People who get average results persist until things get uncomfortable, then they quit. People who get good results persist until things get painful, then they quit. People who get world-class results have trained themselves to become comfortable when it’s painful and uncomfortable” (p. 28). 

The young man’s sensei illuminates lesson by lesson that to be truly great takes more than energy; it requires you to “fuel your heart with six things….If you owned a Lamborghini, would you ever put water into the gas tank?... If you put the wrong fuel into your gas tank, it is very easy to get discouraged and break down as you go through the journey of life” (p. 35). What you do, who you do it with, and how you go about it have the potential to be your fuel towards being great or not.

Although to be truly great, Medcalf reminds us we must focus and choose. “Chopping wood and carrying water is the price of admission for the opportunity to reach sustained excellence…For many years it may feel as if nothing is happening, but you must trust the process and continue to chop wood and carry water, day in day out, regardless of what is happening around you” (p. 65).

Medcalf recommends being mindful of  the road signs that provide the driver with instructions and warnings. “Remember that the next time you are struggling and you need a perspective shift! It’s not just what you do, but it is also the heart posture you have while doing it” (p. 77). “But we weren't created to sit still and learn the ‘right’ answer. We were created to explore, create, to love and to learn (p. 102). It’s not meant to be easy and the obstacles are real, but what you choose to do towards your destinations has the potential to make the challenge worth it.

Our path to become great requires us to chop a lot of wood and carry a lot of water consistently. Adhering to Medcalf’s road signs and fuel recommendations has the potential to be a guide towards our choices to become our best version of being great!

And the Stories Continue...Because of a Teacher

 Written & Curated By George Couros Because of a Teacher Stories of the Past to Inspire the Future of Education 

I finished Because of a Teacher, written and curated by George Couros the day before students returned to school this year. Each chapter in the first two sections of the book framed a compelling story from an educator’s point of view on the lasting impact a teacher or administrator had on them. In the book’s final section, the reader read the wisdom of “What advice would you give to your first-year teacher self.”  All of the individual author’s stories in each part made you either laugh, brought back memories, or helped you remember to pursue what is truly important in whatever role you follow as an educator.

Finishing Couros’s books was a monumental moment for me as a principal for so many reasons. The following day would be the first time all of our students would return to campus, and digital distance learning would be a verifiable experience recorded in future history books yet written. Our staff included first-year teachers, veteran teachers, and everything in between. What we would do together would be new stories told for years to come.

During the past year and a half, as we navigated a pandemic, educators learned lessons not even previously imagined through steadfast perseverance, ongoing commitment, and emotional exhaustion. One element that came out loud and clear was a new respect and, yes, even admiration for teachers. Parents and families experienced firsthand the energy and knowledge it took to teach our kids as they now had front-row seats in the performance. 

There were a lot of thank you’s, and I couldn’t do what you do in multiple conversations with those responsible for connecting students with their teachers remotely. It was a challenge and a gift. We learned more about ourselves as educators and more about what our kids genuinely needed before academic instruction even got started.

We had so many of our own ‘because of a teacher’ stories that inspired us as a school community and propelled us to connect with our kids through a complicated reality..These stories included teachers showing vulnerability as they learned where and how the mute button worked. More stories had hesitant teachers taking the leap and diving into creating content videos with technology tools previously housed in cupboards and closets. We laughed as teachers developed new norms and routines to decrease the background noises and visuals as students displayed and shared their pets, toys, and unmentionables. 

Our specialized teachers had their own ‘because of a teacher’ stories that left us wanting more. Our toes and hands continued to tap as music teachers became a one-person choir and symphonic band extraordinaire in their home basements that left us wanting more. Our physical education teachers created antics that would elevate our heart rates and keep us laughing as we pulled out items from our pantry for aerobic routines and dances. Our instructional coaches also became our resourceful cheerleaders as they shared and learned alongside us. 

It is also important to mention the educators in the front office who also quickly became Jedi Masters in the art of navigating the use of an iPad or Chromebook with parents who were at the end of their rope. The phone calls were steady and sometimes abundant as new crises arose, disrupting the day. Their tones were kind, the actions generous, and their intent was to listen with an empathetic mindset to the stories of parents now taking on the ‘because of a teacher’ role.

As the principal leading the ‘charge or change’ depending on the day and watching it all unfold was more than awe-inspiring. Admittedly I, too, was frazzled beyond what was even believable.  As I leaned in and listened to the multiple ‘because of teacher’ stories, I was humbled and proud of the community we are creating one student-centered story at a time. Fear wasn’t an option. It became our fuel to do and be better in our new normal.

Moving Forward with Disruptive Thinking

 Eric Sheninger DISRUPTIVE THINKING—In Our Classrooms Preparing Learners for Their Future

Leading during a pandemic has brought nearly unimaginable ongoing challenges for school leaders. The disruption to our familiar teaching and learning routines is extensive and genuinely exhausting. However, an unexpected opportunity has arisen that can challenge us to become something different, disrupt our standard path, and blaze a new and better way for each of the students and staff we serve.

Sheniger published Disruptive Thinking at the height of this interruption. His new book has the recommendations and mindset needed for getting back to what is most important as we move forward with the necessary changes for our kids. Here are of few of my favorite takeaways that I will continue to revisit and share.

It’s A Bold New World

“By employing disruptive strategies, we can begin the process of creating a more relevant learn culture for our students” (p. 9). 

“There is always a starting point for development. It begins with understanding that all kids can learn” (p. 13). 

Challenging The Status Quo

“You are only limited by the barriers you develop for yourself. If we want kids to think disruptively, then we must do the same” (p. 23).

“Achieving success is rarely easy. The same goes for learning. If it is easy, then it probably isn’t learning” (p. 29). 

Instruction That Works

“Rigorous learning is for all students” (p. 54).

“By evaluation our practice we can determine where we are, but more importantly, where we actually want and need to be for our students” (p. 73).

Sticky Learning

“It’s time to shift our focus and energy to developing and assessing core and innovative competencies that will serve students their whole lives” (p. 78).

“Curiosity and passion reside in all learners. Inquiry can be used to tap into both of these elements and, in the process, students will be empowered to own their own learning” (p. 88). 

Adding A Personal Touch

“Schools need to work for our students, not the other way around” (p. 116).

“Disruptive thinking requires us to disrupt our practice in the classroom for more equitable and enhanced student outcomes” (p. 136).

Environments That Cultivate Thinking

“We need to move away from classroom design that is ‘Pinterest pretty’ and use research, design thinking, and innovative pedagogy to guide the work” (p. 149).

“Now is the time to embrace the upside of this moment. Let go of some of the old baggage and self-imposed limitations around what we think school really is, and expand our idea of what teaching and learning can become” (p. 159). 

Outlier Practices 

“Feedback should be a dialog, not a monologue” (p. 177).

“A conversation that incorporates the art of listening will go a long way to creating a classroom and school culture in which feedback is not only sought and invited but acted upon” (p. 177)

Sustaining a Culture of Disruptive Thinking

“Without trust, there is no relationship. If there is no relationship, no real learning or change will occur” (p. 187).

“Disruptive thinking in the classroom will only become a reality, however, when priceless relationships are in place. With these in place, your impact will be felt for generations as the learners you influence today disrupt the bold new world in what that change it—and us—for the better” (p. 194).

PLC-Data Teams, The Tool for Our Why

 Polly Patrick & Angela Peery, PLC-POWERED DATA TEAMS—A guide to Effective Collaboration and Learning

As a building administrator, you are always on the lookout for that one go-to evidence-informed resource to share with instructional staff to ensure equitable outcomes for each student. Polly Patrick’s and Angela Peery’s PLC-Powered Data Teams, A Guide to Effective Collaboration and Learning is that resource. John Hattie, a well-known author, researcher, and professor shared his thoughts on their new book. “The messages, the examples of the big ideas in action, and the focus on collectively interpreting data to help educators further enhance the learning lives of students—this is the gift you will receive reading PLC-Powered Data Teams” (p. xvii). 

Patrick and Peery get right to the ‘why’ behind PLC-Data teams by addressing educators’ mindsets and attitudes on approaching student learning and the willingness to grow as teachers and leaders. “Why examine our attitudes? There is the strong possibility that if teachers go to work and refuse to grow, then that is what students may do as well” (p. 11). Do we believe all students can improve and grow? Do we believe in the value and importance of collaboration with colleagues? Can we hold up that mirror and examine the impact our actions have on student learning. These are hard questions but critical to provide equitable outcomes needed in our schools and classrooms. 

How do we build these teams to not just speed through the process but “to go far, together”? One of my favorite features of Patrick’s and Peery’s book is the excerpts from educators across the country who share how they are implementing PLC-Data teams—moving their learning forward, not in isolation but purposefully by building collective teacher efficacy together. Their stories are powerful examples for those getting started or revisiting the process. Teachers, principals, and district leaders share their missteps, tentative steps, and next steps towards positive academic outcomes for students. 

Here are two examples of teacher leaders pursuing greater effectiveness with their teaching and learning practices. Matt Wallace and Kathryn Girard, fifth-grade teachers at East Gresham Elementary, share their reflections on the PLC-Data Team process’s impact on their professional learning and student growth. 

Patrick & Peery remind us, “Learning and thinking moving to mastery is the why we do this work...Our advice to teachers is to think beyond the tyranny of the urgent task being in the classroom, pacing guides, and curriculum guides. Instead, work collaboratively with the excitement of how it fees when we are part of successful student learning! When more students than ever master what you want them to master, this is what you as a ‘lead learner’ in the classroom want….Can you think of anything better than that?” (p. 91). 

Infinite MIndset

 Simon Sinek THE INFINITE GAME

Simon Sinek’s book Start With Why changed how we move forward with our shared leadership framework at our school. We have learned to begin our decision-making conversations with the relevancy of why they positively impact students. We then proceed to the how and what that would look like and feel like for students. It has been an incredible component of our turnaround school improvement initiative. Leaning into Sinek’s newest findings in The Infinite Game, the goal was to continue to refine our pursuit of equitable outcomes for students. Balancing our accountability for student achievement as we plan forward with a relentless vision of each child being and becoming a learner who reads is an agreed-upon worthy pursuit for our team. 

“If there are at least two players, a game exists,” and Sinek defines and describes these two types of games, a Finite Game and Infinite Game. The Finite Game celebrates the end by declaring a winner who followed the rules, earned the most points, thus winning the game. The Infinite Game never stops as rules continue to evolve with no declared winner as they build a legacy together. While reading, I envisioned my role as a school leader with the reality of the tug and pull of having to play both games. The Finite Game includes being accountable for student achievement of the summative end-of-year state testing. At the same time participating in the never-ending Infinite Game of developing students who read well and often (p.3). 

When considering our mindset in each game, Sinek offers these insights. We don’t always get to choose whether a game is finite or infinite, and we get to decide if we want to join the game. If we do decide to join, we can always choose a finite or invite mindset. A leader who wants to adopt an infinite mindset must advance a just cause, build a trusting team, study your worthy rivals, prepare for existential flexibility, and demonstrate the courage to lead (p. 24-25). 

I could rewrite Sinek’s statement to reflect my role as a school leader. 

“A finite minder leader used the company’s performance to demonstrate the value of their own career. 

An infinite indeed leader uses their career to enhance the long-term value of the company” (p. 19).

to

A finite minder leader used the school’s performance to demonstrate the value of their achievement. 

An infinite-minded leader uses their achievement to enhance the long-term value of each student. 

A school leader who wants to adopt an infinite mindset can advance their just cause of each student becoming a skilled reader by; 

building trusting instructional teams, 

studying worthy school rivals (You kids are doing better than mine. What are you doing?”),

demonstrate flexibility as you continue to learn how to meet each of your learner’s needs,

and be vulnerable by showing the courage to lead. 

Great school leaders set up their school communities to succeed beyond their lifetimes, and when they do, the benefits to students (and staff)—are extraordinary.