Thursday, July 14, 2011

Open Myself to Persuasion

Today’s course on Differentiated Instructions for diverse learners by Ai Ling was most helpful in the unpacking many of the “Big Ideas” of DI. I got a better understanding of the “why” and “how” to differentiate. A range of instructional strategies were also illustrated and shared with actual examples of implementation in lessons. Interesting enough she spoke on the theme which I will like to speak on this week, that is of “Persuasion”.

During my short time as team leader, I came to realize that as good leaders we don’t just ask the right kind of questions. There is a need to also listen thoughtfully to the answers given, and most importantly, through what was heard and learnt will cause me to see matters from a better perspective. In another words, I will allow myself to be persuaded! I have seen known leaders who seemed excessively easy to persuade. Even at times it appeared as though they tended to agree with whomever they talked to last. Of course, there is another side where leaders who is confused of persistence and mixed it with obstinacy and refused to see the merit in anyone’s ideas other than their own.

My own resolution is to make a conscious effort to be open to persuasion whenever it is warranted, even in areas in which I have the utmost confidence in my judgment. I need to listen carefully to what others tell me and assess their views objectively. I think in order to start this is to say to myself that perhaps differing views may be right and that I won’t dismiss it as weak or abandon it as ill-conceived. So there is this need to be more of the Learner stances rather than the judgment stance!

To put it in another way, I will say to myself that I will make the daily activities an exercise in active listening. Even more important, I will ensure that such exercise is one with active understanding!

Friday, July 8, 2011

Let us all be Coach – My approach in changing mental models

Today during SMC meeting, we spoke on having Generative Conversations and the question about Mental Models came about – whether we are able to alter one other’s mental models and how we can go about changing such mental models.

For me, I will start by setting the tone for my team, emphasizing on incorporating in the minds and behaviors of teachers that we need one another to work together as a team so as to enable effective action. Everyone in the team will be a coach! To me, coach teaches in ways that are different from the methods most instructors use. They cajole, praise, flatter, motivate and challenge. I have seen students who accept a far more mocking critique of their shortcoming from a coach than they would from a professor in one of their courses because of this different relationship.

I see coaches setting almost impossible high expectations for everyone and to use whatever strategies they think are necessary to help them reach those expectations. So it is important to show what and how to do to achieve the desired results and not just expecting the results! There should be that conveying of a can-do attitude and support structure to help individuals achieve a higher degree of excellence than they even thought possible. This may start the change in mental model.

However, to keep at it, we should reinforce positive values even while we refuse to accept excuses when things are not going as well. As a middle manager, I hope to bring some of these coaching strategies to my area of responsibilities. In this way, I think it is not just to make the programs better but to make the team members better and more successful at what each of us do!

Friday, July 1, 2011

Stop – at least for a moment

At last, it is over – a moment of mental relaxation. The heavy rock on my shoulder was finally lifted when I exited the room. Although the day’s intention was to get information from me, but I think it ended up with me learning as well. I found out much about what was required in ICT, about what was considered important about ICT. I see alignment in my beliefs with others and gained feedback on improvements. And more importantly, I learnt about who I am. How I pushed myself towards my “extrovert” personality just for today! It was not easy and I am thankful that I don’t need to keep at that tomorrow. So, Stop! - the theme I will like to speak on for this week.

I heard of leaders who sometimes believe that they need to be doing something all the time. They said that if they are not active – not changing things for the better – they often feel that they are not doing their jobs. But for me, I think that this should not be the case. Instead, we should take at least a moment or TWO – and just stop. There is no point of just endlessly doing. I think that we should instead reflect on all the good that is occurring so far and more importantly, appreciate those teachers with who had helped to make these successes possible. For me, I am really proud and grateful of the ICT PLC team teachers which have helped to accomplished many things considering the short time since the PLC’s creation. In this way, I no longer feel that I am doing one thing solely to get to the next thing but am really experiencing the full benefit of all those little successes around me. I then hope to be able to carry that positive energy with me for the long journey along.