Sunday, January 8, 2017

Why I've Got "Blogging Block"


Over break, I was talking writing with two of my brothers, both of whom are prolific tweeters and Facebook posters.  I follow them both, and I’m regularly chagrined by what they’re posting.  From detailed descriptions of their family happenings to vitriolic spouts about politicians new and old.  And then they get comments – some love from the same folks, lots of hate from the same folks.  It’s as if they’re putting out a point of view and waiting for the slings and arrows.  “I’m not sure I want to write in that space,” I shared.  “Doesn’t sound fun."

And so I haven’t written in that space and have had difficulty finding a social media voice – most of my tweets are re-tweets or responses in edchats, and I don’t feel confident enough to send my opinions into people’s feeds lest I get hammered by the mouth breathers (phrase taken from Stranger Things). 

This has not always been the case for me.  I’ve been writing for years – articles, policy, reports, quips – and published some stuff locally and nationally. Typically, my writing has been about the classroom, school house stories or edufield policy.  I write sometimes with an edge, but always from a defined, results-centered, point of view with evidence to back it up.  And it’s generally been well received.   

But my concern is that something in the readership’s expectations has changed.  They seem more ready to fight than to read, speak their minds rather than challenge them.  So much of public writing seems to have become about being right rather than real. 

So that’s where I’m at with this blogging thing.  I want to publish, I want feedback, and I’m hoping there’s an audience out there who wants to read, grow, build ideas rather than dismiss them.  And can help me do the same. 

Saturday, July 9, 2016

Re-imagining "School"

Hopefully, this blog will allow me and others to re-imagine how we see and what we expect from "school" - broadly defined as a place or places where people learn.  Even this broad definition begins to break one barrier that many have begun to accept as normal - the notion that school is not a building but rather a place where intentional learning happens - a school house, community, work, sports field, artist studio, mountaintops.  Our urgent challenge to re-imagine school - and quickly transform it - comes from the fact that too many children lack a "school" that teaches them to engage in literacy and problem-solving rich experiences. Instead, too many children attend "schools" that are starving them by withholding the tools and experiences they need to participate economically, thoughtfully, productively. 

I plan on sharing ideas on leadership, literacy, instruction and observations and lessons I learn from "schools" I visit, and the policies at play in the background. 


It's time to re-imagine school now so that children can re-imagine their futures today.