Leadership Opportunity #3: Success Analysis Protocol
I needed to facilitate a collegial
conversation. When was I going to
do this? How was I going to find
time? How was I going to convince
my time-strapped colleagues to give up some of their time? Maybe my principal would let me use
some staff meeting time… errrrr, not happening during CST testing time. Staff meetings have all been dedicated
to CST scheduling and protocol.
Hmmm… the weeks are creeping by and I still haven’t found some free time
to schedule this protocol. Maybe I
could convince some colleagues to stay right after school… ooohhh… After School
Program has been put into place to help students prepare for the CST and I’m
one of those after school program teachers. One week left until my WALO is due. What am I going to do?!?! I decided to just send an e-mail out to
all of my colleagues and see if someone, ANYONE, would be willing to stay AFTER
after school program or AFTER a staff meeting and participate in my
protocol. There. Done. The e-mail has been sent. Hmmmm… a day goes by. No one has responded. Great. How am I going to explain this to Stacey? Wait a minute! An e-mail response! No wait… 2 responses… 3
responses….4….5…6 people responded!!!!
All offering support for ANYTIME that works! Wow! I couldn’t
believe it! Six of my colleagues
were willing to stay AFTER the staff meeting on Friday, even though the weekend
was so close you could touch it, and assist me in my protocol. Phew! Stacey crisis adverted.
I decided to use the Success Analysis Protocol. I knew my colleagues time was precious, so I scaled back the time on some of the protocol steps. This would not be an issue because I was working with a fairly small group of colleagues. In order to make our short time together purposeful and to the point, I asked colleagues to start thinking about a success they would like to share with the group a few days before our actual meeting. By asking participants to start thinking about what they would share ahead of time, we wouldn’t have to spend as much time on step 1 of the protocol, preparing a case. Below you will find the e-mail I sent to my colleagues:
Hi Ladies!
Thank you for your help with me masters. It sounds like right after Friday's staff meeting will work for you all. I will give you all a copy of the protocol I will be using tomorrow. It will only take 45 minutes of your time and all you need to bring are your thoughts about a success (recent or in the past) you have had with a student(s), a colleague(s), a part of curriculum, or a parent(s). It will be easy peasy lemon squeezie! Again, thank you for your help. Let me know if you have any questions.
Love Always and Forever,
Ashley Vasquez
As Friday rolled around, I confirmed with all participants and made sure they had sufficient time to review the protocol. I asked the participants if they had any questions and all seemed to be clear on what was expected of them and what they needed to bring, in terms of thoughts and ideas, to the protocol. After our staff meeting, we decided to meet in a classroom that was clear, quiet, and free of distractions. In order to honor my colleagues’ time, I quickly passed out extra copies of the protocol and got things started. I felt that my description of the protocol was clear and to the point, however, I failed to review norms. In the future, it might be a good idea for me to type that piece onto my protocol sheet to serve as a reminder. Some comments from my colleagues about my protocol introduction and instructions (as written on facilitator feedback sheets) were:
-“Our facilitator was very clear with instructions.”
-“For visual learners, provide examples of expectation.”
-“The protocol was explained very well and led in an organized manner.”
-“[The] protocol [was] set up for us [and had] clear explanations.”
For my colleague who made the suggestion of providing visual examples of expectations, I will need to follow up with her to see exactly what she means. It’s possible that she was unclear of what the success case needed to look like and include. With limited time, I chose not to share my own success story. It could have helped this colleague (and possibly others) if I had done so. I could even type up a sample success case to include it on the back of the protocol sheet for participants to reference. Conversely, I am weary of including too much regarding what the success case needs to look like because I want participants to feel freedom in sharing whatever is a success to them, because not all successes look the same for all people.
During the protocol facilitation, I had to work hard on being serious and focused. Since I have very friendly and well-established relationships with my colleagues, it was initially difficult to take a serious tone. I tried to keep the protocol comfortable and positive while being structured and focused at the same time. I wanted my colleagues to feel as if the Success Analysis Protocol was worthy of their time and that could only be accomplished with a somewhat serious tone. If they felt that I was taking this seriously, then it would encourage them to contribute more meaningful thoughts and ideas.
As colleagues shared their success stories, I was surprised with how positive and inquisitive they were of each other. Everyone was encouraging and supportive and asked questions about how they incorporate other’s successes into their own classrooms. In step 5, compilation of successful behaviors and underlying principles, participants offered the following observations:
-being positive
-collaboration
-addressing student needs/need analysis
-perseverance
-communication
-creating heterogeneous groups
-sense of community/shared responsibility
-trying new things
-trust
-courage
-multi-tasking
As we led a discussion on what we noticed or were surprised by, all my colleagues agreed that they felt very inspired. One colleague mentioned how she felt like she wasn’t alone and could see how every teacher was trying to find ways to successfully address classroom and/or curriculum struggles. Each participant presented an individual success, yet we found common threads in all. This discussion led right into our final protocol step, debriefing the experience. I was very interested to hear if my colleagues found purpose in the protocol and whether or not they thought it was a worthy experience. I was happy to hear that they thought it would be useful to use the protocol during staff meetings. One colleague noted that it could prove significantly useful if used with a vertical slice of teachers (a teacher from each grade level). I pushed her thinking a bit further by asking her to elaborate her suggestion. She explained that our school had a significant divide between primary and upper grade teachers in terms of teaching approaches and curriculum and that the Success Analysis Protocol could be used to help teachers from opposing grade levels see the commonality in their successes. I too thought this would be a great idea because our small group (which included a kindergarten, second grade, fifth grade, sixth grade, and resource specialist teacher) was sort or close to a vertical slice and it had turned out fairly well. I also asked participants if they could see this protocol working with students in their classrooms. My colleagues were a bit hesitant with this question, but slowly agreed that it might be useful with older students. Since we work at a traditional public school, reflective student dialogue and productive group work is a slow work in progress in several of our classrooms.
In terms of specific feedback, participants offered the following on facilitation feedback exit cards in response to two questions:
What worked well with this protocol? How can I improve my facilitation?
-“The facilitator did a nice job of making everyone feel comfortable in sharing their thoughts. It was a safe environment and everyone was happy to share.”
-“It [the protocol] was well organized and ran smoothly. I liked hearing the successes of my colleagues and getting feedback.”
-“Everyone gave input, it was a “safe” place to share, feedback was insightful, and it was structured/timed.”
-“It was great that we were allowed to share and to comment on other people’s successes.”
-“It was well prepared and you knew where you needed to take us. You made us feel comfortable sharing.”
One colleague offered a great possible next step. She suggested, “Offer follow-up sessions. How can we take these sessions a step further?” This was a great next step. Participants were so inspired about each other’s successes, that they wanted MORE time and opportunities to talk to each other about the great things going on in their classrooms. Another colleague suggested we could form a “club” and meet weekly or biweekly to “check-in” and/or share other new successes. Unfortunately our school year only has 6 more weeks, however, these are all great things to keep in mind for our upcoming school year. If we establish some protocols or “Success Clubs” in the beginning of the next school year, we could really create a collaborative and fostering community!
As a facilitator/leader, I feel like I have come a long way. When I started this program, I was in need of some inspiration. I felt isolated and increasingly bitter with today’s public school educational system. I felt like my colleagues didn’t understand where I was coming from or what I was talking about when I mentioned instructional techniques like project-based learning and student critique. In all actuality, I lacked the appropriate communication tools in building capacity in my colleagues and engaging them in collaborative and purposeful conversations. What I would was that my colleagues were more than willing to try new things out and hear new ideas. This program helped me refine my spunk, sarcasm, and abundant energy into a more focused and serious way of communication with fellow staff members. Instead of trying to dominant the conversation, I am now prompting other colleagues to further their thinking and elaborate on their ideas and suggestions. I have learned how to effectively “call people out” when they aren’t contributing or contributing nothing but negativity, in a way that is embracive and encouraging. I have learned that I can still be lighthearted and goofy but that I need to pull in the reigns to my party bus when important collegial work needs to be done. Learning how to effectively and purposefully communicate with my colleagues will be a never-ending work in progress, but that is fine with me. For when we cease learning, we cease living.
I decided to use the Success Analysis Protocol. I knew my colleagues time was precious, so I scaled back the time on some of the protocol steps. This would not be an issue because I was working with a fairly small group of colleagues. In order to make our short time together purposeful and to the point, I asked colleagues to start thinking about a success they would like to share with the group a few days before our actual meeting. By asking participants to start thinking about what they would share ahead of time, we wouldn’t have to spend as much time on step 1 of the protocol, preparing a case. Below you will find the e-mail I sent to my colleagues:
Hi Ladies!
Thank you for your help with me masters. It sounds like right after Friday's staff meeting will work for you all. I will give you all a copy of the protocol I will be using tomorrow. It will only take 45 minutes of your time and all you need to bring are your thoughts about a success (recent or in the past) you have had with a student(s), a colleague(s), a part of curriculum, or a parent(s). It will be easy peasy lemon squeezie! Again, thank you for your help. Let me know if you have any questions.
Love Always and Forever,
Ashley Vasquez
As Friday rolled around, I confirmed with all participants and made sure they had sufficient time to review the protocol. I asked the participants if they had any questions and all seemed to be clear on what was expected of them and what they needed to bring, in terms of thoughts and ideas, to the protocol. After our staff meeting, we decided to meet in a classroom that was clear, quiet, and free of distractions. In order to honor my colleagues’ time, I quickly passed out extra copies of the protocol and got things started. I felt that my description of the protocol was clear and to the point, however, I failed to review norms. In the future, it might be a good idea for me to type that piece onto my protocol sheet to serve as a reminder. Some comments from my colleagues about my protocol introduction and instructions (as written on facilitator feedback sheets) were:
-“Our facilitator was very clear with instructions.”
-“For visual learners, provide examples of expectation.”
-“The protocol was explained very well and led in an organized manner.”
-“[The] protocol [was] set up for us [and had] clear explanations.”
For my colleague who made the suggestion of providing visual examples of expectations, I will need to follow up with her to see exactly what she means. It’s possible that she was unclear of what the success case needed to look like and include. With limited time, I chose not to share my own success story. It could have helped this colleague (and possibly others) if I had done so. I could even type up a sample success case to include it on the back of the protocol sheet for participants to reference. Conversely, I am weary of including too much regarding what the success case needs to look like because I want participants to feel freedom in sharing whatever is a success to them, because not all successes look the same for all people.
During the protocol facilitation, I had to work hard on being serious and focused. Since I have very friendly and well-established relationships with my colleagues, it was initially difficult to take a serious tone. I tried to keep the protocol comfortable and positive while being structured and focused at the same time. I wanted my colleagues to feel as if the Success Analysis Protocol was worthy of their time and that could only be accomplished with a somewhat serious tone. If they felt that I was taking this seriously, then it would encourage them to contribute more meaningful thoughts and ideas.
As colleagues shared their success stories, I was surprised with how positive and inquisitive they were of each other. Everyone was encouraging and supportive and asked questions about how they incorporate other’s successes into their own classrooms. In step 5, compilation of successful behaviors and underlying principles, participants offered the following observations:
-being positive
-collaboration
-addressing student needs/need analysis
-perseverance
-communication
-creating heterogeneous groups
-sense of community/shared responsibility
-trying new things
-trust
-courage
-multi-tasking
As we led a discussion on what we noticed or were surprised by, all my colleagues agreed that they felt very inspired. One colleague mentioned how she felt like she wasn’t alone and could see how every teacher was trying to find ways to successfully address classroom and/or curriculum struggles. Each participant presented an individual success, yet we found common threads in all. This discussion led right into our final protocol step, debriefing the experience. I was very interested to hear if my colleagues found purpose in the protocol and whether or not they thought it was a worthy experience. I was happy to hear that they thought it would be useful to use the protocol during staff meetings. One colleague noted that it could prove significantly useful if used with a vertical slice of teachers (a teacher from each grade level). I pushed her thinking a bit further by asking her to elaborate her suggestion. She explained that our school had a significant divide between primary and upper grade teachers in terms of teaching approaches and curriculum and that the Success Analysis Protocol could be used to help teachers from opposing grade levels see the commonality in their successes. I too thought this would be a great idea because our small group (which included a kindergarten, second grade, fifth grade, sixth grade, and resource specialist teacher) was sort or close to a vertical slice and it had turned out fairly well. I also asked participants if they could see this protocol working with students in their classrooms. My colleagues were a bit hesitant with this question, but slowly agreed that it might be useful with older students. Since we work at a traditional public school, reflective student dialogue and productive group work is a slow work in progress in several of our classrooms.
In terms of specific feedback, participants offered the following on facilitation feedback exit cards in response to two questions:
What worked well with this protocol? How can I improve my facilitation?
-“The facilitator did a nice job of making everyone feel comfortable in sharing their thoughts. It was a safe environment and everyone was happy to share.”
-“It [the protocol] was well organized and ran smoothly. I liked hearing the successes of my colleagues and getting feedback.”
-“Everyone gave input, it was a “safe” place to share, feedback was insightful, and it was structured/timed.”
-“It was great that we were allowed to share and to comment on other people’s successes.”
-“It was well prepared and you knew where you needed to take us. You made us feel comfortable sharing.”
One colleague offered a great possible next step. She suggested, “Offer follow-up sessions. How can we take these sessions a step further?” This was a great next step. Participants were so inspired about each other’s successes, that they wanted MORE time and opportunities to talk to each other about the great things going on in their classrooms. Another colleague suggested we could form a “club” and meet weekly or biweekly to “check-in” and/or share other new successes. Unfortunately our school year only has 6 more weeks, however, these are all great things to keep in mind for our upcoming school year. If we establish some protocols or “Success Clubs” in the beginning of the next school year, we could really create a collaborative and fostering community!
As a facilitator/leader, I feel like I have come a long way. When I started this program, I was in need of some inspiration. I felt isolated and increasingly bitter with today’s public school educational system. I felt like my colleagues didn’t understand where I was coming from or what I was talking about when I mentioned instructional techniques like project-based learning and student critique. In all actuality, I lacked the appropriate communication tools in building capacity in my colleagues and engaging them in collaborative and purposeful conversations. What I would was that my colleagues were more than willing to try new things out and hear new ideas. This program helped me refine my spunk, sarcasm, and abundant energy into a more focused and serious way of communication with fellow staff members. Instead of trying to dominant the conversation, I am now prompting other colleagues to further their thinking and elaborate on their ideas and suggestions. I have learned how to effectively “call people out” when they aren’t contributing or contributing nothing but negativity, in a way that is embracive and encouraging. I have learned that I can still be lighthearted and goofy but that I need to pull in the reigns to my party bus when important collegial work needs to be done. Learning how to effectively and purposefully communicate with my colleagues will be a never-ending work in progress, but that is fine with me. For when we cease learning, we cease living.