Thoughts on Empowerment, Student Agency, and Parent Voice

This has been a week to reflect on several issues that impact teaching and learning at DKIES: empowerment, student agency, and parent voice.

After attending the Education Institute of Hawaii 2018 Empowerment Conference with a team of teachers, I am comfortable in saying that we are empowered at DKIES. We are not a textbook-driven school, and students have opportunities to work collaboratively to solve problems, including problems that affect our school community or our state. Our students and teachers are learning through project-based learning and are truly making a difference. Our military-impacted students need more than just a curriculum that focuses on grade level standards; they need the non-cognitive skills that will prepare them for their futures. Our first graders learn about wants and needs and coordinate a drive to help victims of Hurricane Harvey; second graders use their garden to hone math and science skills and build a compost bin to produce richer soil that they can reuse; and fourth graders learn about climate change and plant new plants to replace the invasive species they removed earlier.  Dr. Bill Daggett shared this slide about "The Top 10 skills you need to thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution." I believe that PBL has empowered our teachers and students by providing a venue to explore their questions and to share what they learned.

Earlier this week, Eric Sheninger visited DKIES and had discussions with students and school leaders about student agency - voice, choice, and advocacy.  The students were in a circle around Eric as he posed questions to them about their goals, their passions, and how school helps them achieve their goals. Observing the conversation was eye-opening. Some students had quick answers when Eric asked questions, but when he probed and asked "Why?" quite a few could not respond. For example, a student responded confidently that he wants to go to MIT, but he could not answer when Eric asked him "Why?" The question that students were quickest to respond to was, "What do you like best about school?" Their answers were revealing: Eagle Council, clubs on Fridays, Cardboard Challenge, Hour of Code, Enrichment classes, recess, and their responses came quickly.  While students had shared their dream of going to MIT or becoming engineers, none of them mentioned academics though these were our "best and brightest." It was the first time I was an observer in a discussion with our DKIES students that was totally student-focused.

That evening, we hosted our School Community Council Virtual Facebook meeting. We've been doing this since 2013; wow, I didn't realize it had been so long! Instead of asking generic questions like "What can we do to improve the teaching of reading?" or "What other family events would you suggest for our school?" or "Safety is an important priority for our school. Do you have any concerns to improve traffic safety in the mornings and afternoon?" we decided to take what we had learned at the Empowerment Conference and ask questions like, "What are your hopes and dreams for your children?" or "Our world is changing quickly. Did you know that there will be driverless cars by 2019? What types of skills will our students need to exhibit a purposeful life in 5 years? 10 years? 25 years?" One parent responded with this comment: "Build their confidence but don't baby them. . let them learn from their mistakes and try to fix it themselves." I shared a comment one of our students had made about learning more from her failures during the discussion with Eric Sheninger that day to which the parent responded, "That's great, but was this available to all students?" I made some lame excuse about it being a last-minute opportunity because I realized she was right! All students need that opportunity to have their voices heard. (View the on-line discussions here.) Parents' voices are important, too, and I love that many of the parents who participate in these virtual meetings are not the ones who are in our school helping out with parent activities or volunteering in classrooms because they may have little ones at home or they may be working or going to school themselves. We need to hear their voices, too!

So what does that mean for our school? Well, once student voice became a buzzword in education and one of Superintendent Kishimoto's priority strategies, we realized the opportunities we have to really listen to our students and to have them be part of the solution. The other day, Vice Principal Arikawa was in a discussion with a group of boys after an altercation at recess time over basketball. Rather than overreacting and warning the boys that we would ban them from basketball or take away the ball if they couldn't play nicely, she asked questions and the outcome after an hour-long conversation was shared in a memo.  The boys were so excited! They had never considered themselves as "leaders" yet here they were, being asked to lead the discussion with their peers about how to ensure that basketball can be an option at recess while also taking safety into consideration. We don't know where this journey will lead, but our hope is that this will have a positive impact on other students and help them to realize their power to make their voices heard and to truly make a difference, not only for themselves, but for others as well.

Empowered schools are more than just engaged schools. We truly need to hear the voices of our entire school community in order to prepare our students for their futures!

Hawaii Innovative Leaders Network for PBL School Leaders

Two short years ago, I attended an informational session with Bob Lenz from the Buck Institute.  Our Department received a grant from the Castle Foundation, and he was providing information and seeking school leaders to participate in the first Hawaii Innovative Leaders Network. In my application, I stated, "In this world where information and experts are readily available, all of us can create our own learning opportunities based on our interests, talents, and passions. PBL is a framework where we can all be explorers, discoverers, creators, and sharers and where we can make a positive difference in our world." I was excited to be accepted.

This past week was our last official event, and we all had the opportunity to share how we had grown through our HILN experience. It was bittersweet; I was proud at how far all of us had traveled on this PBL journey, but I was sad to see it end.  Our culminating activity was a  presentation to a panel, some of our HILN colleagues, and invited guests. This was a great opportunity for me to reflect on my personal journey as a PBL leader. 

The first HILN sessions set the tone for what was to come. ("A Unique Opportunity") I'll be honest; I was a bit hesitant at first because I didn't know anyone else who was part of this cohort, and uncertain about what to expect. The activities were designed to get to know others better, and I could see that I was somewhere in the middle where PBL was concerned. I had done a lot of reading and our school was committed to making the change from teacher-directed interdisciplinary units to student-driven project-based learning, but as we know, change takes time. Some school leaders were just exploring the possibility of implementing PBL at their schools while for others in HILN, PBL was an integral part of the teaching and learning experience at their schools (e.g. SEEQS and Innovations Charter School) 

Our quarterly HILN sessions went by quickly. This was the first time that I participated in professional development of this nature where we met quarterly over a period of time with the opportunity to apply what we had learned and to reflect on our experiences prior to the next session.  I looked forward to the HILN workshops; there is something to be said about building a culture of trust with like-minded school leaders. I quickly realized that I would gain from this PD what I put into it, and building relationships with my fellow HILN colleagues was essential.  It helped to have a leader whom I liked immediately upon meeting her. Cris Waldfogel put me at ease and pushed me to reflect more deeply and to think above and beyond. The HILN workshops were all part of us experiencing PBL through the lens of a school leader.

The relationships we built with our HILN colleagues  are what made our discussions and the activities so effective.  One of the most powerful activities was our "Learning Walk" where we visited each others' schools and had the opportunity to share challenges we were facing in a safe and supportive environment and to seek and receive feedback from our colleagues in the form of "wonderings" or probing questions.  ("PBL Learning Walks - An Awesome PD Experience") 

I realize that now, I look at problems or challenges through a PBL lens. I find myself asking questions, exploring to discover answers, and then sharing what I've learned often through a blog post. "Why?" questions are pondered prior to asking "How?" or "What?" and modeling the process for our teachers has helped them to be more open to implementing PBL, even if they are starting with baby steps. ("The World Looks Different from a PBL Perspective")

We culminated HILN by presenting our learning to a panel and others in the audience. We submitted a digital collection of our learning prior to this presentation, and as I reflected on the critical elements of PBL - vision, culture, capacity building, and continuous improvement - I realized just how much I had gained through my participation in HILN. I loved hearing my colleagues share their PBL journey and realized how much all of us had grown. This was not intended to be a dog-and-pony-show, but rather a response to the driving question, "How have you used your Project Based Learning Leadership Elements to promote and sustain high-quality PBL in your school or district?" Somehow, though, we all managed to weave in some of the exemplary projects at our schools as part of our presentation, and frankly, I was blown away by what some of our students are doing at their schools.

Our commitment to PBL at Daniel K. Inouye Elementary School continues to evolve. I believe that PBL will always be evolving because as our world changes and new problems emerge, our students' questions, interests, and curiosity will dictate where their learning will take them. PBL is a way of thinking, a shift from student as a passive receptacle of lessons to an active maker of their own learning. It is an exciting time to be an educator!

Link to my Digital Collection
Link to my Demonstration of Learning

Preparing for an Emergency

Yesterday, I received an Emergency Alert text on my iPhone like thousands of people around the state. "This is not a drill," the text stated. My initial reaction was to go to my son's room (he hasn't yet returned to the mainland) to ask if he got the text as well. (He did.) My husband was at a meeting in Honolulu at the time and called to ask if we got the message. I immediately closed our jalousies (not much protection there), and tried to call my Mom. She doesn't have a cell phone and lives by herself. I couldn't get in touch with her, so I called my older sister to ask if she knew where Mom was. My sister was skeptical and asked questions:  Are you sure it isn't a false alarm? I don't see anything on TV about it. Why aren't the sirens going off? Hmmm . . . good questions. I checked on Facebook and saw that others had posted about the text message they received.

Then it dawned on me that I didn't receive any messages from US Army Garrison Command. Because I work on a military base, I get their messages by email, text, work phone, and on my cell phone. This time, I didn't get anything. When my husband called, he said the message was false though it wasn't confirmed until a few minutes later.

Since then, I've read lots of personal accounts on FB about the incident which turned out to be human error in pressing the wrong button. People are angry; they were frightened, understandably.

I realize that as a senior citizen, I viewed the incident with different lenses from others. After hearing a presentation about what schools should do in case of a North Korea attack, my initial reaction was, "Why would I want to survive something like that?" Of course, as a school leader, my responsibility is to protect those we serve, so we had a discussion and created a contingency plan should something like this happen during school hours.

Many are quick to blame those in charge for this error. We expect government to protect us, but unfortunately, we live on tiny islands in the middle of a huge ocean. We don't have the capacity - yet - to sustain ourselves should there be a threat to our safety from an attack. I think this was a wake-up call to be better-informed and better-prepared should there be an unexpected disaster - natural or otherwise. This human error also exposed chinks in our system that need to be addressed and improved so such a false alarm doesn't happen again.

Frankly, I am proud of our people in Hawaii who, although they felt helpless and terrified, behaved civilly despite the fear and the uncertainty over their own futures - for themselves and those they loved. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when word was received that it was a mistake. Life went on, and if nothing else, this false alarm gave us an opportunity to reflect on what could have been and to be better-informed and better-prepared in the future.

I think we've become a little bit spoiled about instant notifications. In the "old days," such a mistake would not have happened because we would not have the option of receiving these kinds of emergency notifications. Technology is great, but it presents other problems as we saw yesterday.  Many shared their stories about calling those they loved, crying, and praying.

I have confidence that given the opportunity, we can make a difference. As citizens, we should ask tough questions and be part of the solution. Let's work together to ensure that if something happens in the future, we can help and support each other.

Evacuating to the Teen Center
Every month, schools are required to perform emergency drills so we are prepared in case of an actual disaster. Once a year, we conduct an evacuation drill with oversight by the military. We realize the necessity to hold a drill to get everyone into our three safest buildings on campus and evaluate whether we need to make adjustments.