Professional Connections Thompson School District Director of Instructional Coaches CAMLE Board Member Schools to Watch Colorado State Coordinator National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform Forum Member NASSP Middle Level Task Force Member The Tointon Institute Speaker NMSA Denver 2008 Site Visit Co-Chair Published Work "Teachers Steer their own Learning: Colorado Middle School Becomes School to Watch" JSD, Spring 2007, Vol. 28., No. 2 Reprinted in JSD's Finding Time for Professional Learning  |
If
every action has a reaction, then we must work to ensure that
our actions positively impact learning...
---- When I think of the state of education, I think of the opening line in Dicken's classic, A Tale of Two Cities: "It
was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of
wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it
was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the
season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of
despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were
all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way."
I
feel comforted knowing that ours is not the only age of paradox and
irony. In the field of education, we are fortunate to have access
to a wealth of research that is easily accessed and a strong network of
professionals focused on powerful educational reform. But, the
challenges we face can be so very daunting. The spiraling needs
of our students, their families, our own staff juxtaposed with budget
constraints and unfunded mandates can make us feel so overwhelmed and
inadequate.
I am heartened by the emergence of social networking tools as well as the increasing number of organizations dedicated to the improvement of teaching and learning in our schools. I endeavor to connect and learn from those in my field to support excellence and propel positive change. ~ Diane Lauer |
The Learning Impact Check out my Blog Staff Development Creating a Culture of Sustainability |