Sounds strange at first, looking backwards to move forwards, right?  But when you stop to think about it, what I’m really referring to is reflection.  I’m not sure where I learned to be such a reflective person, but lately I’ve been complimented quite a lot that it is something that I do well.  I suppose it is in my nature, but I also believe it is a trait that one can learn with practice.  We are only as strong as our weakest link.  If we want to grow, we need to stop and reflect, whether in relation to a lesson or unit we just taught, to a professional development we just participated in, to our last school year, or even relationships with others.  It’s an important part of the research process that we teach our students.  We should model for them, and by doing so become better teacher leaders.  Without reflection how can we move forward other than in a stagnant manner, doing the same thing we’ve always done?

There are some basic questions to ask oneself when reflecting:

  • What about this worked well?  Why?
  • What about this didn’t work so well?  or maybe why did it not go the way I thought it would?  Why?
  • What could I have done differently?
  • What will I do next time?  (same or different)

There are other questions that you might think about:

  • Why did I do what I did?
  • Was that the right reason for why I did what I did?
  • What factors did I not have control over and how did that affect the outcome?
  • How could I have responded differently to those factors?
  • How can I better plan for those factors over which I have no control?
  • What are other resources or people I can use next time to improve?

By reflecting we can see our strengths, weaknesses, accomplishments and those areas where we may just be mediocre.  Then we can determine what we need to work on.  It can be something you do on  your own or something you do with a colleague or friend.  For example, each year I compile a notebook of documentation for my administrator for my end of year evaluation.  At that time I look at each objective of my tool (MCPAI) and note which areas I wasn’t so strong in or perhaps I didn’t spend a lot of time working on .  I talk with my administrator about those areas, why I think I wasn’t superwoman in relation to those objectives, any ideas or plans I may have to improve them, and any suggestions she may have to offer.  Then when it is time to write my Professional Growth Plan at the beginning of the next school year, I already know what one or two of my goals will be based on my reflections of the previous year.  By using that reflection and discussion with my administrator I am able to create a map of my future, where I’m going to focus and improve for the upcoming school year.

This past school year my library media PLT discussed collaboration between teachers and media specialists.  We began collecting data.  While our discussions and data collection were not that far in depth, I began thinking more and more about the topic.  Add to that the knowledge that my evaluation tool is being revised and in a year or two the focus on teaching and learning will increase dramatically over information access and delivery and program administration.  Over the course of the last two months of school I began thinking, “How can I increase my collaborations with teachers at my school?”  And while my PLT”s goal for the upcoming school year is to simply increase number of teachers collaborated with by 10%, I began thinking not just of a percentage, but about finding a way to collaborate with every teacher in my building, even if it’s just once in a school year.  (because obviously there are those teachers who will want to collaborate every week if given the opportunity)  Eventually I sat down and started working on a map for next school year, drawing out each grade level and brainstorming lessons or units or projects that I can do with each one.  I looked at collaborations I’ve done in the past that have worked really well.  I considered collaborations that had been done with an entire grade level, with a couple of teachers from the same grade level, and those done with just one teacher.  I talked to colleagues – friends and grade level chairs – to get their input.  Then I looked at the entire last school year and collected data – how many times had I a) collaborated with each teacher, b) done single-session collaborations, c) done multi-session collaborations, and d) seen each class [whether for a collaboration or not].  This will be my baseline for tracking increases in collaborations next year.  I’m sure there was some more reflecting in there but at the moment I’m blanking on what else I did.  Of course, now I have to wait all summer vacation for the fall, which is when I get to put my map, my plan of action into place.  I am hoping that all of that reflection and hard work will pay off.  It does mean more work for me, but I see it as a way to move forward.  To improve not only my media program, but even more importantly to have a stronger impact on student achievement.

So, what have you reflected on lately?  Do you already know of an area where you need to improve or work on?  Where do you excel and where are you a bit like a turtle?  Do you have a map for your future?  If so, where did it come from?  Did you use a reflection on your past to help create it?  How can you look backwards to move forwards?

Evelyn Bussell

A Moving Force

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