MAC Week 4 Reading: Scrap Book

As a celebration for completing "The Art of Possibility" I have created a scrap book that covers the 12 practices.  I used Mixbook.  Show your students, they will love it!

The direct link provides a better experience: http://www.mixbook.com/photo-books/education/art-of-possibility-scrap-book-5508673

| View Sample Photo Books | Create your own Photo Book

Wk 4 Publishing Leadership Project

One of the places I would like to get published with is the International Society for Technology in Education.  This agency actually has three publications under it, so I am looking more specifically at the Journal of Research on Computing Education.  The audience seems to match my Action Research project parameters, being that they are Educators of technology and decision makers. My research specifically focuses on the the benefits of web 2.0 technologies that are implemented in traditional school settings.  My only fear is that the acceptance rate is 15%.  They also expect a word count of at least 4,000 words, so it certainly looks very involved.  Publication, though, would be most victorious!

The other place I'm considering is the Educational Technology Review.  This also seems to have a demographic that would be interested in my research.  They seem to offer a wider variety of articles and don't seem as rigorous as the ISTE.  Since you can't have the same article printed in two publications, I might consider the ISTE first, then I would submit to the AACE after I get the rejection letter.

• Publishing/Leadership Thinking Outloud Blog # 1

• Publishing/Leadership Thinking Outloud Blog # 2

• Wood_Michael_Publishing

MAC Week 4 Comment 2 Brian Thomas

Brian's Post

Week 4 - Reading: New Ideas

I am truly amazed at the gift of working with people that Benjamin Zander has. His story in chapter nine was amazing.Knowing how tough students can be on performances, especially classical music concerts it’s truly a testament to his ability to engage a crowd, no matter who they are comprised of. I must say that I was inspired by this chapter to really try to create a spark in my classroom next year with the endless possibilities of learning.

I appreciated the apology story about Cora the violinist. I think it was a great reminder of many of the other points in the book but most importantly to remain humble, appreciative, and understanding of other people’s situations and circumstances before forming an opinion or casting any form of judgment.

The story about the teenage orchestra in Sao Paolo was just great. I can recall chaperoning situations that I had challenging students and issues and also recall responding to them aggressively early in my career. However, I learned that dealing with the person and the cause for the action is much more effective and sensitive. I really liked this story because it gave me another great strategy for overcoming those challenging chaperoning situations.

My Response

Brian, I also share you your sentiments regarding the crowd Benjamin had to contend with.  The perception of the people was such that these lower class students would have no appreciation for the fine arts.  Benjamin, of course, did not just magically conduct and everybody was all of the sudden amazed.  He did a lot of preparation to get this desired effect.  He put in thousands of dollars of his own money to get the projection he needed.  In the same way, I know I spent my own money for a laptop so I can use multimedia to keep students engaged.  If my classroom did not come with a projector, I believe I would have to buy one.  Of course, engagement is the best classroom management strategy.  The misbehavior often comes from a lack of engagement.  I thought your insight regarding the anger in chaperoning situations was interesting.  My wife works in a Family Law and Criminal Law court room.  She said that some of the toughest kids get talked to with more of a calm demeanor from the judge.  This is because the students are used to getting yelled at, so the calm tone seems to get their attention more.  However, the anger approach tends to work best on kids who are generally good, and so a quick yell keeps them on track.  Although anger seems to only work in the short term.  I believe if Benjamin came out those kids with authority and anger, the results would have been quite disastrous!

MAC Week 4 Comment 1 Heather Taylor

Heather's Post

Derek Key, January 18, 2009 “Sparklers”

I loved the idea of passing the spark.  Sometimes if you can get just one student interested in what you’re doing; it starts a chain reaction and the rest are clamoring to know what is going on.  The comparison of the magnanimous explosion to the subtle transfer of sparks inspires me to think of new ways to spark my students.

At a beginning teacher conference I attended, one of the presenters brought up a point that I will never forget.  He said, “The only person you can control in that classroom is yourself.”  Considering yourself “the framework for everything around you” is hard to grasp, yet I have some inkling of what it means.  It’s not that you are in control of what is going on, but more how you react to what’s going on.  It’s not thinking that the world is out to get you, but rather that the world is the world, and there are so many different actions going on all the time.  It’s not dishing out blame when things don’t go the way you planned.

I think it was brilliant how the little girl with leukemia’s teacher, chose to shave her head to create a different reality in her class.  I’m not sure I have the guts to shave my head.  I thought it was fabulous how Zander took a bad situation, the students up on the roof disturbing guests and made it into a positive situation.  Rather than deflate the students and put them in an awful mood for the upcoming concerts, he allowed the students to introspectively look at their actions and reflect on what exactly they were trying to accomplish in Brazil.  He didn’t fly off the handle like many chaperones would have and jump headfirst into a downward spiral.  “How can you know where you are unless you have a point of reference?”  This concept really makes me think about some of my students that have had to move around a lot and never really had a “home”.

Richie Preiss, "We see what we want", July 26, 2010

The concept of WE is sometimes hard to get across to my students.  For instance, one day my 4^th period class was in the computer lab, which is a part of the media center, only separated by a false wall.  My students were being exceptionally loud, and the librarian and I had spoken to them about it several times.  There was another class in the library using laptops, and my students expressed blatantly that they had no concern for the other class being there, or the appropriate volume to use in the library, and said, “You know we’re loud, why did you bring us in here?”   The passage about terrorists really struck a chord as well, because of some of the racist remarks made by my students towards Middle Easterners.

My Response

Heather, I appreciate your response to the "spark" practice.  Getting students inspired is certainly an art, as its rewards are quite obvious.  This principle shows why teachers are often the targets when invading armies try to control the people, such as the Nazi occupation.  That spark can also be used in the wrong way, as in the spread of government propaganda.  That spark, therefore, certainly exists.  You are right in that there are very few things the teacher can actually control. Sometimes getting even one student to buy in to what you are doing makes all the difference.  I remember watching that old teaching movie, The Blackboard Jungle.  When face with opposition, the teacher targeted the leader of the pack. Once that student became engaged, then the others followed.  I believe part of creating that spark is making the material relevant to the students.  That is where the textbooks seem to just fail.  For example, when I give the students the same writing prompt to an ethical issue, I get mediocre responses.  But when i let the students choose an article from Newsy.com and respond to the article of their choice, their responses were far better.  Sometimes that spark appears in surprising places, such as the Antony the Conductor did from the book.  For example, there was a girl in class who didn't talk very much, but when she was allowed to comment on some sports articles, she wrote volumes of commentary.  Who would have known that sports were her "spark"?  Sorry to hear about your library incident.  Some referrals were certainly in order there.

MAC - Wk 2 Publishing/Leadership project part 2 of 2: Places to get published

One of the places I would like to get published with is the International Society for Technology in Education.  This agency actually has three publications under it, so I am looking more specifically at the Journal of Research on Computing Education.  The audience seems to match my Action Research project parameters, being that they are Educators of technology and decision makers. My research specifically focuses on the the benefits of web 2.0 technologies that are implemented in traditional school settings.  My only fear is that the acceptance rate is 15%.  They also expect a word count of at least 4,000 words, so it certainly looks very involved.  Publication, though, would be most victorious!

The other place I'm considering is the Educational Technology Review.  This also seems to have a demographic that would be interested in my research.  They seem to offer a wider variety of articles and don't seem as rigorous as the ISTE.  Since you can't have the same article printed in two publications, I might consider the ISTE first, then I would submit to the AACE after I get the rejection letter.

MAC Week 3 Comment 2 Jason Reed

Jason's Blog

This photo was taken at Disneyland

as the Harney Middle School

Bella Voce performed

Reading response from chapters 5 through 8 of The Art of Possibility, by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander.

I first have to say that every time I pick up and read this book, it relates to things that are happening in my life.  Chapter 5 discusses how to lead from any chair, and more specifically it refers to experiences being a conductor.  It talks about the power that an orchestral conductor has in the music world and how conductors can often be dominating.  I can attest that these traits can still be seen today because of the many conductors that I know or have worked with.

I direct 6 different choirs at the middle school level and never really gave much thought as to how my students view me.  I often do what I need to do to get the results that are needed.  After reflecting on my teaching and classroom management I realized that what makes my teaching so effective is that I build a family environment.  Everyone feels safe in the classroom and I often encourage student ideas, which gives them a sense of ownership. 

I really enjoyed reading about the effectiveness of the “white sheets” where students can write down their criticisms and observations during rehearsals.  I am going to start trying to use this in my rehearsals to see what my students are thinking and find out how I can better serve their needs.  It will also be a great way to have more personal feedback about my teaching and conducting.

The other chapters (6-8) had many great ideas as well to offer. Chapter 6 talks about the Rule Number 6, which basically means to lighten up.  I find that I already do this in my classroom by adding humor to my lessons.  I often use humor to effectively get my points across rather then coming off demanding and authoritative.  I have found better success in the over all sound of my choirs by lightening up and this principle is one that everyone should follow.

Chapter 7 talks about the practice of the way things are.  This chapter discusses how we should accept reality the way it is and work with reality to created more positive experiences.  There are some things that we cannot change and it is our goal to be happy and positive.  There are always positive ways to look at every situation and it is important for us to focus on the positivity to ensure our own happiness and the happiness of others around us.

Chapter 8 discusses the practice of giving way to passion.  This was another chapter that really spoke to me.  Most people view me as a passionate individual who is driven for success.  I often use my passion for helping others and success to inspire and motivate myself.  Sometimes I do set up barriers on myself and releasing these barriers is something that I need to first work on.  I found that this chapter was more about channeling ones energy to help convert passion into action.  This practice is not an easy thing to accomplish however once we can tap into our inner passion and drive we can accomplish 

My Response

I appreciate your thoroughness and detail when describing the chapters in the book.  I wanted to speak to the idea of the "white paper".  Feedback is certainly a valuable  commodity.  Companies practically bend over backwards to get customer feedback, offering trips, prizes, and the like if you fill out one of their surveys.  It seems that they are even moving into Facebook to build a customer base.  Like Redbox always asks questions of its "fans".  I never feel compelled to answer those questions, as I don't have time to spend answering such frivolous questions only to increase some corporate bottom line.  However, the point is that getting feedback is certainly recognized as being valuable, but as a teacher, getting such feedback is a threat to power.  We open ourselves up to criticism and self-doubt.  The more students feel like they have a stake in things, the more they will question our decisions and even the assignments we give them. Therefore, the notion of even allowing such feedback is a package deal, in that we must accept the assumption that student performance speaks louder than our instruction.  Like a conductor, if our performance is measured by student performance, then we have no choice but to distribute power to them.  The "white pages" is more than a novel idea, it is a political revolution!  I have provided an exit survey for my students with these prinicples in mind and have found it helpful.  Here is link so you can take a look at it; but you don't need to answer them, of course.

English 12 Course Evaluation

MAC Week 3 Comment 1 LeVonda Vickery

LeVonda's post

Wk3 reading – Art of Possibility Ch 5-8

Rule #6

While reading chapters 5-8 this week in the Art of Possibility by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander, I found chapter 6 to be quite a refreshing point of view.  What a great rule to remember about not always taking ourselves so seriously.  I am sure that we could all take that rule to heart at some time or another.  This lighten up attitude helps us explore our central and calculating self.  I know that I probably could have taken these lessons to heart during my divorce a couple of years ago.  Sometimes we are so absorbed with ourselves and our own feelings that we don't allow anything else in.  This chapter teaches you how to look inward and observe your own behaviors in order to put your best foot forward.  I love how the authors use different stories to illustrate each chapter and help you make connections to better understand the concepts.  


Chapter 7 leads into the way things are allowing you to distinguish between your assumptions and the facts.  We all make assumptions about things in our daily lives and allow our feelings to cloud our judgement of the actual facts, but when you learn to actually accept the way things are it allows you to move forward.  This sentence really seem to strike a chord with me, "shine attention on obstacles and problems and they multiply lavishly" (p. 108)  I realized that since the position I had at the TV station was eliminated last February that I was more and more focusing on the negative.  Its been over a year since I lost my job and with my unemployment about to run out things have been looking quite dreary for me to support my family.  I have filled out application after application for teaching or basically anything at this point to allow me to support my family only to be turned down time and time again or not even called for an interview.  Believe me that I know just how tough it can be to look at the bright side in my current situation, but this time has allowed me to pursue my Master's degree at Full Sail in order to increase my marketability and skills for the ever growing job market.  I may not be able to control the circumstances for which I have currently been handed, but I can try to stay optimistic and hope that an opportunity presents itself.  After all it is that exact "possibility" that has kept me going even when my life seems at its darkest.

My Response

I'm sorry to hear about your job situation. It certainly is tough out there in the education world.  Even tech coordinators, which would be like a dream job, are being removed.  I hope that this degree will open more opportunities for you. It makes me think of when I used to go to teacher job fairs. Like the book suggested, I focused on the positive when I went and I went at those recruiters with all the energy I had. My attitude was that I was the best teacher they could hire.  I had a business card made with my picture on it (below), a nice suit and tie, 10 pristine copies of my resume, and had many copies of my collection of letters of recommendation.  I remember having the same attitude even when I was a brand new Intern.  The funny thing is, both teaching positions I actually got hired for were NOT the people I "pushed myself" on.  These opportunities came from the fallout of all that energy I put forth.  Both postions were from Districts that were not even at the job fair, but word got around about my zeal and those Districts called me in for interviews.  For me, it is a reminder that God is always in control and that it is because of him I had these jobs.  That keeps me humble.  Humility, as the book also suggests, is the only way we can "lighten up".

Good luck to you.

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