CSeaver

Wow! What a day and what practice. When dealing with parents the "win/win" is a must. When parents find out they have to go before the board they react in so many different ways. The only way to make it work, is to keep them calm and practice the "win/win." It works every time.

September 30

Since school started, I seem to have violated every principle I learned in the Seven Habits training. Almost nothing important gets prioritized ahead of the urgent. I understand it will get better. I hope so.

Steve Hallman

Dealing with people

I am struggling in a situation where I am really having to apply Habit #5. I am seeking first to understand before I can even decide how to proceed. I guess "Daignose before you prescribe" does apply here.

A thought that has stuck with me from Habit 2, is we should envision the end results before we take action. Highly effective people shape their own outcomes or futures, they refuse to let circumstances determine it. All of us need to establish long-term goals that clarify who we are and goals that will keep us focused on our mission. As leaders, we must set a high professional standard that will encourage our colleagues to do likewise.

Standard 1 and Chapter 1

10 September 2009

Code of Ethics Standards

Standard 1: Professional Conduct
An educator should demonstrate conduct that follows generally recognized professional standards.
Ethical conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Encouraging and supporting colleagues in the development and maintenance of high standards.
• Respecting fellow educators and participating in the development of a professional and supportive teaching environment.
• Engaging in a variety of individual and collaborative learning experiences essential to developing professionally in order to promote student learning.

Unethical conduct is any conduct that impairs the certificate holder’s ability to function in his or her employment position or a pattern of behavior that is detrimental to the health, welfare, discipline, or morals of students. Unethical conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Harassment of colleagues.
• Misuse or mismanagement of tests or test materials.
• Inappropriate language on school grounds.
• Physical altercations.
• Failure to provide appropriate supervision of students.



The Leader in Me
Stephen R. Covey

Questions to consider for Chapter 1

Why do people doubt that great things can happen in our schools?
What are the differences in primary greatness and secondary greatness?
What are three important themes to look for in the book?

Our goal is to look at one chapter each month over the course of the school year through next June. There will be no “required reading” and no tests, but I do hope to see some connections to what we are doing with the Alabama Code of Ethics for Educators and our own 7 Habits training.

Randy Walker

Encouragement and support have always seemed to be more beneficial than criticism. General respect for colleagues encourages collaborative learning experiences.

Word Cloud of our Blog

I thought some of you might be interested in seeing a "word cloud" of our blog so far. You can create similar word clouds using wordle (http://www.wordle.net/). When you post for September, please remember to look at my original post--hopefully only a couple of posts down, and just add to the comments. You do this by signing in, clicking on "view blog," and then clicking on X # comments underneath my original post for September. Don't forget to use your mouse to feed the fish while you're here.

Standard I

Including "collaborative efforts" as part of our professional obligations is a "new school" approach. We should no longer want to work in isolation when proper collaboration has been proven to benefit student learning. Making it part of the expected professional standard(s) helps educators to see the importance of collaboration.

September Post: Code of Ethics Standard 1

For your September posting, please review Standard 1 below. Considering the current controversy over the Code of Ethics for Educators, please post a comment concerning Standard 1 and how it applies to your current educational situation.

Standard 1: Professional Conduct

An educator should demonstrate conduct that follows generally recognized professional standards.
Ethical conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Encouraging and supporting colleagues in the development and maintenance of high standards.
• Respecting fellow educators and participating in the development of a professional and supportive teaching environment.
• Engaging in a variety of individual and collaborative learning experiences essential to developing professionally in order to promote student learning.
Unethical conduct is any conduct that impairs the certificate holder’s ability to function in his or her employment position or a pattern of behavior that is detrimental to the health, welfare, discipline, or morals of students. Unethical conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following:
• Harassment of colleagues.
• Misuse or mismanagement of tests or test materials.
• Inappropriate language on school grounds.
• Physical altercations.
• Failure to provide appropriate supervision of students.