The Leadership Whirlpool sucks me ever closer

Over the past couple of years, I’ve been working in a mixed state… one foot in the classroom, one in school leadership.  A new initiative comes down from above, and I get an email entitled “Please plan to attend….”  I currently only ‘teach’ two periods a day (down from three a day last semester) and I’m finding it hard, being in two roles at the same time.  It seems that there is always something that needs to be done for the school leadership side, and I can’t help but wonder if it’s impacting the classroom side of things.  I guess we’ll find out soon though…

Had a chat with my principal last week, about a school leadership opportunity, and he mentioned, almost in passing, that I was going to be the school “Literacy” teacher next year.  I’ve been working in a quasi-role called Digitial Literacy, helping staff use technology in their classrooms for a couple of years ago, next year I assume the whole portfolio, including administering the EQAO literacy test, expanding the concept of literacy throughout the school, and working with teachers to ensure that literacy is something that’s practiced in all classrooms.  Couple the literacy responsibilities with participation and implementation of all the new edu-babble inititiaves (4C’s, Differentiated Instruction, Blended Learning), and well.. the problem arises.

The literacy position itself covers four of my six teachable periods next year.  I’d also volunteered to teach an e-learning section, which we’ve been approved for.  Originally, it was supposed to be a Grade 10 history course, but in light of the experience this semester with students in the junior grades (i.e. 9s and 10s) not being very successful in a purely online environment, I’m now teaching a Grade 11 Law class online.  I’m looking forward to the challenge, and think that it’s definitely something that we are looking at moving towards in the future… but again, teaching this takes me out of the traditional classroom yet again for a period.  At the end of the day, I’ll be teaching one Law class next year, in the flesh.

It’s a really big switch in load and in what it means to be a teacher.  I’ve spent a couple of days thinking about what it means, and realize that it’s an opportunity.  That being said, I don’t think how little I’m actually teaching will actually hit me until September starts, and I don’t have to be on stage every day.  As they say… change is good.

The Vortex of Leadership Opportunities

I’ve put off writing this post for the past couple of weeks, more to mentally prepare myself for what I’m about to say.  Some have argued along that it was just a matter of time, but now, the decision seems to make sense.

In my current role, as a Digital Literacy teacher, it seems that every week I get called out, at least once a week for some type of training.  It might be an Area Network meeting, talking about something like Critical Thinking, at other times, it’s 4C’s (a model of co-teaching in order to further student learning).  In all honesty, I haven’t have a five day week in the classroom in over two months.  It’s getting a little crazy and I’ll admit that I do miss teaching.  The kids, upon my return, will make a comment about my glorious return and I take it at half face value.  I still enjoy teaching but…

I’ve always known that I like learning.  I try new things frequently with my class, and most times am impressed with the results.  Looking back, I’ve seen how my practice has changed over the years and how I approach something now, as opposed to years ago.  But, it’s the drag between leadership (i.e. professional learning) and teaching.  It seems that if you’re willing to try, leadership opportunities come your way easily and it’s difficult to balance the leadership and the classroom equally.  Hence, why I’m thinking, that it’s time to move on.

The plan, as it stands now, is to be Lead Teacher in Hong Kong this summer, come back and take two additional qualifications course in the fall and winter.  That way, come next September, I’ll be ready to start my Principal’s Qualifications course.  I’d be wrestling with the idea of going back to do my Master’s in Education, but having done a series of workshops at U of T, I’ve realized that Educational Academia isn’t for me.  There might be value in the work that they do, but frankly, it’s not very practical.  I think working towards my PQP is a more effective way to make change in the classroom.

Until then, I should enjoy every day in class because I’ve realized that they are coming to an end.

On leaving Houston

What can I say… it was a whirlwind tour of Texas, and I’ve realized that the parts that I liked most were the parts that I thought I’d been non-commital about.  When I mentioned that we were heading to Houston, a lot of people were surprised, suggesting that our time would be spent better, elsewhere.  Well, they’re wrong.

Driving from Austin to Houston, we had a great recommendation from the hotel clerk, who suggested that instead of taking the Interstate, that we should take US 290 and take our time.  So we did.  What was amazing was that when we saw a sign for a town, we went.  Ended up in some pretty ‘authentic’ Texas towns (i.e. Main streets without Walmart, covered sidewalks and saloons) and it was a great adventure.  I think, for the most part, Americans as a whole get a bad rap.  I can’t stress enough how nice the people were… when they found out we were from Canada they were even nicer, wondering why we had come south.

Had a great hotel when we finally arrived in Houston, but I’ve got to admit, Public Transit lacks in vast parts of the US.  We’d been warned that parking and traffic were horrendous, but quickly found out that there was no quick way to get downtown on the bus.  Spent the first night around the hotel, and the up early the next morning to visit Houston.  Visited the Weather Museum (informative about hurricanes, something out of my regular experiences), the Houston Zoo (not bad… but as it was March Break, too many people), and then we finally ended up at the Houston Rodeo and Livestock show, which is apparently the largest in the world.  Touring the show, we ended up running into some high school students, who had a competition, showing off livestock that they’ve bred and farm equipment that they had designed and built.  I was amazed and humbled by what these students achieve.  A student showed me their project, a portable cow milker, which took 625 hours to build, and cost less than $600 to build.  The students were polishing their ‘assignments’ as if they were new cars and it was incredibly impressive to see how they had designed and built these projects from scratch.  Puts the tech projects that kids do at my school to shame.

Explored the midway, with its deep friend pickles and chocolate covered bacon, and then headed into the Rodeo.  There was bull writing, a calf scramble, a steeple chase and a chuck wagon and I’ll admit, it was an interesting experience.  I was surprised by how empty the Reliant Center was to start, but it filled over the course of the evening for the Train concert!  Yikes!  Seriously?  Needless to say, we lasted two songs before hitting the exit.

Up early the next day, cause there was more of Texas to see.  Hit the road and drove down to Galveston, which was wiped out by a hurricane in 1900.  It’s been rebuilt and a great blend of historic warehouses, old homes and a great looking beach.  Then, off to Mission Control at Houston Space Center.  Amazing to think that this is where they made connect with man as he walked on the moon (Neat fact: ‘Houston’ was both the first word and the last word spoken on the Moon”).  Saw a Saturn rocket and the Mission Control for the various space flights.  Sat through a very powerful video, documenting the US space race, and was blown away with the footage of the Challenge explosion.  It seemed like yesterday and even though I knew it was coming, it was incredibly powerful.  Drove back to Dallas, and eventually made our way back to Toronto.

All in all, a great time in Texas.  The weather was amazing, the people were friendly and the food was plentiful.  I’m not sure I’d go back to Dallas, but Houston and San Antonio are definitely worth going back to.  Not to mention that I’d like to do a cruise out of Galveston.  I’m just saying.  But next up is Hong Kong again this summer, and I’ve already booked a weekend trip to Singapore.

And here, for your enjoyment, pictures from the Lone Start state.

On leaving Austin and San Antonio

I’m glad that we visited southern Texas. Austin and San Anotnio, though only separated from Dallas by a couple of hundred miles are night and day different. San Antonio is great. The Riverwalk (and boat tour) provide a great introduction to the city and allow you to appreciate the influence of the Spanish and Mexican populations in the development of the city. Like most tourists (apparently) I was surprised by how small The Alamo, but was interested to read how Texas evolved, from a part of Mexico, into a republic with international recognition and finally into a state (and a matter of years later, finding itself sucked into the Civil War.

We drove from San Antonio up into Texas Hill Country, and though we were a little early to enjoy the annual wildflower displays, it was 80o and sunny. Visited a couple of historical towns and got a feeling for what Texas used to be like. Spent a couple of hours driving around, with no particular destination in mind, stumbling across cattle and flooded-out roads.

We ventured back up to Austin, but found ourselves staying 40 minutes outside of town as it was South by Southwest (locally abbreviated as SXSW) and I have to say that’s think I owe it to Austin to come back when the festival isn’t on. The place was packed, and since I wasn’t there for e festival, I found it annoying. And so did the locals. We took the commuter train into the city and overheard numerous comments about how the festival treats Austin like a garbage bin and how the locals can’t wait for it to be over. We did visit the Texas Museum though, and I’d say it’s worth a visit. But as soon as we arrived, it was time to get out of there and hit the open road for Houston

On Leaving Dallas

We arrived into Texas last Thursday. Hopped a car from the airport and arrived downtown. Got up Friday morning and started to explore. The first impression of Dallas is that it’s an empty city. The hotel that we’re staying at is located on a tram line, so you’d expect some people around, but at quarter to nine on a Friday morning, the place was empty. We had a list of places that we wanted to visit, and off we went. First up was the spot where Kennedy was assassinated, and like other famous places I’ve been too, it was humbling to stand there and appreciate what happened. We also headed to the Dallas Holocaust Museum, not the best one in the world, but good all the same. Then it was off to the 6th floor of the book depository to see where the supposed fatal show was fired from. I will admit that the conspiracy theories here are alive and well, and after visiting the Sixth Floor, I’ll say I’m not sure what happened 49 years ago, but hopefully maybe after 50 years next year, there might be some answers.

Having visited the sites that we were most interested in, we headed off to the tourist info centre to see what else Dallas had to offer. Turns out the answer is not much. We went for lunch and walked around downtown. Asking anyone what we should do came up with the same answer… The mall perhaps? Yikes. And I’ve got to admit that’s what we did. Today wasn’t much better. We headed to Fort Worth, via commuter train (an experience all in itself), and visited the Historic Stockyards. A cool place to visit, but then the rain began, curtailing an outdoor visit. Headed back downtown, grabbed a bite, then visited Barnes & Nobles, cause it is my second favourite retailed in the U.S. Returning to Dallas, we headed to Target, where the bank machine had a random 20 sitting in it looking for a home. Went for dinner and are now back at the hotel.

I will say that the people here are incredibly friendly. It’s a shame that there isn’t more to do.

Picking up the car tomorrow and beginning our road trip… First stop… San Antonio. It’s a five hour drive, and with an attitude of stopping at anything that even remotely appeals to us, we might take 12 hours. I guess that’s what vacations are for.

Sometimes it just works

So, as the law teacher, it’s somehow my responsibility to run the school’s Mock Trial club.  Generally, it’s an interesting experience, but it’s long nights, at a busy time of year.  Last Monday, our team headed to Newmarket to compete in the regional tournament.  It quickly became clear that we had two superstars on our team, though I was surprised when I got the email on Friday telling us that we had moved on to the finals, and had to go back to Newmarket last night for the finals.

We arrived, and frankly, I thought that kids were over confident and we’re going to get schooled.  They did well though, and it turned out that we advanced to the finals.  I’d already been told that my two superstars were going to win awards, so we knew there was something good coming.  Long story short, the boys cleaned up, winning numerous awards between them.  And then the announcement that we had won the entire competition.  What a shock!  The kids were amazed and I was impressed that for once, my school, which is always comfortable with participating with winning something.

As we were leaving the awards ceremony, two justices came up and approached me for a quiet word.  Turns out that the scores between the two final teams was tied.  A dead heat and the judges had to come up with some other factor to determine who would win.  We were up against a religious private school, and at the end of the day, they appreciated the composition of my team, namely that I had selected an English Language Learners to participate on my team, even though he wasn’t the strongest player.  It was one of those moments where it was nice to know that someone saw what I was doing and appreciated it.

As a result of winning the competition, the kids now go to provincial later this month, have won a small bursary, a variety of plaques, the cup and an opportunity for a dinner with the Justices.  Not to shabby.  But at the end of the day, it was the fact that fairness prevailed that I liked most.

Of all the things that drive me nuts…

Just home from a weekend in the Canadian Rockies.  And I must say that there is nowhere in the world as beautiful as them.  Hands down.  We went on a 10 km snowshoe to Chester Lake on Saturday, followed by cross-country skiing on Lake Louise on Sunday.  The weather was just below zero, and while there is very little snow in Calgary, the mountains have a good amount.  It was great to be outside, appreciating some of the most beautiful scenery in the country (I’ll post links to pictures when I get them up later today).   All told, a brilliant weekend with great friends (who, hopefully, aren’t going to move back to Ontario at the end of June.. hint hint).

What disappoints me is how we travel in this country.  Granted, the NEXUS system has now been expanded at Canadian airports.  Since you’ve been pre-approved to travel, had your identity checked out and know what you’re doing, there are now special lines to by-pass the masses at security.  Which is great.  But the question remains: Why are their masses in the first place?  On Friday, flying out from Pearson Airport in Toronto, it was over half an hour to get through security.  Surely, by this point, the airport knows how many people will be traveling on a typical Friday.  The airlines, I’d imagine, could confirm that yes, their planes will be partially filled.  And you’d think they’d put it all together.  Of the five security counters that they had available (i.e. equipment at the ready) only two were in operation.  The security situation is really irrelevant though, once you arrive at your gate and have to make it through pre-boarding.

As I normally sit in the exit row (thank you long legs), I get to pre-board.  This gives the flight attendants a chance to explain to me how the emergency exit works, and what I need to do (though yesterday, I gave the safety briefing to the flight attendant instead… I’ve heard it that many times).  In front of me was an older couple who were pre-boarding because they needed more time.  Fair enough.  We all boarded the plane and again, they took their extra time as there were mobility issues.  But landing back in Toronto, the couple in question, decided that they were agile enough to de-plane with the rest of us.  The fact that it took them 10 minutes to get out of their seat, and another ten minutes up the aisle and jetway seems lost on them.

So to you airlines out there…. IF PEOPLE PRE-BOARD, TELL THEM THEY HAVE TO BE THE LAST ONES TO GET OFF THE PLANE!  You can’t have it both ways.

Hopefully my trip to Quebec City next weekend will involves less hassles.

Pictures of our time in the Rockies can be found by clicking here.

Another reason not to own a car

I’ve never owned a car, and frankly, I don’t ever expect to.  For the cash out lay involved on a daily basis, for something that spends the vast majority of it’s time sitting around waiting to be used, I don’t see any particular reason to ‘invest’.  Between car sharing, renting cars when required and living atop a major transit hub, in reality, gas prices mean nothing to me.  And I like it that way.  A flip side though is that I can rent out my parking spots.  I have a great tenant who takes both spots during the winter, parks his cars, and it’s easy money for me.  Last year, my parking spot revenue financed the trip to China.  I met with him last week to settle up for the coming year, and promptly spent the money on a plane ticket to visit friends in Calgary, before then move back to Toronto in June.

It was an expensive ticket, and more expensive then the last time I went, but at the end of the day, how often am I going to get the chance to hike The Rockies, for free?

You can keep your car and your traffic…. I’ll keep the memories of visiting some great places and visiting with amazing friends.