Twitter Book Club: Deborah Meier (2002) In Schools We Trust - Part One Chapter 4

4. Teachers Trusting Teachers

"it's not self-evident that trusting someone at the other end of a rope translates into trusting one's colleagues i... http://tl.gd/bf8d4lless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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Last fall, at the start of the school year, I was working for a school district going through some major changes including, among other things, administrative restructuring. Our superintendent planned and mandated one of these rope course retreats for our staff. I have to say that I agree with Meier on this one. I really don't think building trust among colleagues and among our new administration in these team-building exercises translated to building trust in the workplace.

"the kind of trust that fosters productive collegiality is critical not just to schools like ours, but to any schoo... http://tl.gd/bf8f7uless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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This kind of trust is something I have trouble with. I have had too many people I have worked with in the past, especially administrators, violate this trust. It has led me to often times be guarded in my interactions with colleagues. I suppose this is also one major reason I support teacher-professional partnerships. It certainly is a huge reason why I desire to have control over and ownership of my own career.

"Many teachers have been happy to work in isolation in part because it makes it easier to be supportive of each oth... http://tl.gd/bf8i71less than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"Since making sense of and dealing with differences is a central task of schooling—part of the meaning of being wel... http://tl.gd/bf8jelless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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@anderscj Re Meir - talking about abstractions, as he does much of the time, is much easier, cleaner, and neat than talking about specifics.less than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyDan McGuire
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@sabier that is one beautiful thing about this book. She moves back and forth btwn abstraction & real experience. I'm just tweeting the abstless than a minute ago via Twitterrific Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"Much as kids think it fair to hide their mistakes from their teachers, so too do most teachers hide theirs from th... http://tl.gd/bf8si6less than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"The ubiquitous public mission statements schools and districts now publish are generally bland and full of interch... http://tl.gd/bf9mmbless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"The ubiquitous public mission statements schools and districts now publish are generally bland and full of interchangeable cliches for a good reason." Meier

This has become a huge pet-peeve of mine lately, especially since I have started this ongoing "purpose of school" project. My most dreaded question in job interviews has been the one most schools ask about their mission statement. You probably know this question. It is the one where they show you their mission statement and ask you to say what it is about that statement that catches your attention, that you most like, etc. I suppose in that context answering the question honestly has not boded well for my job prospects. I usually respond by asking how often staff at the school spend time reflecting on the mission statement and how much time they spend in meaningful dialog about what it really says. I always find about 4-6 words in these statements that have lost their meaning in their acquisition of "buzz-word" status. What do you mean by child-centered? What do you mean by life-long learner? What do you mean by 21st century? What do you mean by productive citizen? What do you mean by ...?

@anderscj @DebMeier... http://t.co/psisFOh ... To be remembered as we update ours this fall. http://t.co/8Cclq4b #AMDSBless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyRobert Hunking
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"Schools that brag that they are a replica of a standardized model—one more McDonalds—are less able to powerfully i... http://tl.gd/bf9qtdless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"The central purposes of schooling are deeply embedded in learning how to do exactly what it was we were struggling... http://tl.gd/bf9v8eless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"Taking responsibility for oneself and one's ideas is not a bad shorthand definition of being well educated." Meierless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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