If you could reinvent school, would it look like this?

This video is an inspiring look at High Tech High, a school where project-based learning is the norm.  Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the video. There is much more great content. Thought-provoking stuff!

"Education is the one intervention that can elevate you above social disadvantage. And yet, it's the least changed institution in American society."

"Rigor is being in the company of a passionate adult who is pursuing inquiry and bringing students along as peers in that discourse."

"How do we know if you're a good teacher? We know you're a good teacher by the quality of work, the sophistication of work, your students produce."

Leave a comment and share one of your favorite quotes from the video.

17 ideas to generate more school spirit

BHS business and marketing students were having a little fun while taking a break from cleaning up the street they adopted adjacent to the school. Experiences like this are a great way to build shared purpose and enthusiasm for school.

In a previous post Why school spirit matters, I explained some of my thoughts on why school spirit is important and should be encouraged and developed. Everyone in a school contributes to school spirit, but we need strong leaders (students, teachers, parents, principals, etc.) to help show the way to a more spirited school. Here are 17 ideas that might be helpful for increasing enthusiasm and enjoyment in your school.

1. Be a school that celebrates. Notice successes and strong efforts and make them visible.

2. Principals should be lead learners, but should also lead the fun!

3. Have a great Spirit Week and encourage everyone to participate.

4. Establish a strong online presence (Facebook, Twitter, website) and build your school's brand.

5. Promote your yearbook.

6. Have a yearlong battle of the classes with various opportunities to earn points. The class with the most points wins.

7. Get clubs and organizations, not just cheerleaders, involved in leading spirit activities.

8. Encourage teachers to model spirit. After all, participating in spirit activities will make an impact in the classroom.

9. Find ways to get students and staff wearing more school colors, T-shirts, etc.

10. Have contests and games throughout the school year and encourage participation.

11. Have activities during lunches to have fun and build community.

12. Establish traditions that are positive. Or, renew traditions that have fallen aside.

13. Encourage different groups in the school to support one another. Attend another team's sporting event together.

14. Enlist parents to help with developing spirit ideas.

15. Have teachers or principals do crazy stuff that students will love.

16. Tell stories from your school's history.

17. Get involved in the community and get the community involved in school.

I'd love to hear your ideas for building school spirit! Leave a comment.

Top 5 blog posts

The following blog posts generated the most page views in the relatively short life of my blog. It's always interesting for me to see what people are reading, or at least perusing. It's funny how building an audience, while not my primary aim, is motivating to continue to write and think. Writing and thinking are the main objectives of my blogging efforts. But it is great to know that these efforts are interesting to others too.

1. Seven questions to guide decisions of an educational leader. This piece is by far the most read article I've produced to date. Over the years, I've collected a number of questions that I use to guide decisions and help me reflect on my practice. This piece is heavily influenced by Todd Whitaker and a number of other mentors I actually know (hope to meet Todd someday!).

2. Combine instructional rounds and Twitter to make learning visible. Almost anything to do with Twitter seems to be interesting to blog readers. This selection details how BHS teachers toured one another's classrooms and Tweeted about all the great things happening. It was a way to build a sense of community, get teachers in other teacher's classrooms, and generally make learning visible in our school. As a bonus, it was a great way for our staff members to continue experimenting with Twitter.

3. A graded paper will stop learning in its tracks. Standards based grading has been a big topic for our school and several of our teachers are piloting their classrooms using SBG. This piece explains how a grade on a paper, even with feedback comments, may stop learning. Read the post to learn why.

4. Why do educators need Twitter. In addition to completing my doctoral studies, Twitter has been the best professional development I've encountered. This short reflection discusses why Twitter is so powerful for learning.

5. I love being an educator because... This post was inspired by the #MOedchat summer blog challenge. The title is revealing. It's all about why I love being an educator. I included two videos that are inspiring for finding your purpose, one from Jon Gordon and one from Daniel Pink.

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