Education & Learning

  Making Improvements             Perfecting your craft is an ongoing and never-ending process . It involves self-reflecting on your current practices, examining the good and bad , and making a productive plan to improve your craft . Researchers Kross et al. (2023) recently studied the importance of self-reflection and why it matters . One of the conclusions they found is, "our ability to turn our attention inward to reflect on our circumstances allows us to learn from our mistakes, make sense of our experiences, plan, and engage in a host of other mental processes that contribute handedly to our ability to regulate our emotions, innovate, problem-solve, and create" (para. 2) . Self-reflection is crucial for any professional if they want to improve their craft. Improvements in Education As an educator, it is particuluarly important for me to self-reflect to improve my teaching skills because I teach 550 students . By improving my craft ...

Changes in Education      Education is constantly changing. Educators are continuously learning more and new information which changes the way they are teaching. If you walked through an elementary school 30 years ago you would most likely see behavior clip charts in every classroom, very little use of technology , and students sitting at desks. Now you will most likely see no public behavior management system, 1:1 devices for students, and students sitting around the room using flexible seating. The expectations and curricula have also changed throughout the years. With so much change, teachers can become bogged down with the ever-changing systems and become uninterested in learning new information. It is important for school leaders to keep their faculty and staff engaged in learning new strategies to benefit their students. Let's discuss a few of the ways leaders can promote ongoing learning and a willingness to try new things with their faculty and staff....

 The Art of Conflict People Pleasing      According to an online poll posted in 2022, "about half (47%) of American adults believe that other people in their life would definitely or probably describe them as a people-pleaser. Among women, 51% believe others see them this way, and 42% of men say the same" (Ballard, 2022). With at least half of the population in the United States stating they are 'people pleasers,' that can lead to people avoiding conflict and instead being a friend, co-worker, or employee that always says "yes." Although there is value in being a person who is willing to say "yes", there is equal value in knowing when to say "no". Too often, people are afraid that saying no will create conflict, so it is avoided, but saying no can actually be helpful at times. Researchers studied conflict within the workplace and concluded that, "conflict can, in fact, be positive if it is managed properly. Conflict can promote team-...