The “Top 3” starts its second decade with the 11th annual list. Of course, it will be a little different this year – COVID has changed a number of categories. Then again, the categories already change every year. I appreciate everyone who has checked in here at the blog this year. The pandemic has been good for blog traffic. As per usual, while we do some serious work in education, it is also good to not take ourselves too seriously.
Previous Top 3 lists for: 2019 (here) 2018 (here) 2017 (here) 2016 (here) 2015 (here) 2014 (here) 2013 (here) 2012 (here), 2011 (here) and 2010 (here).
Top 3 “Culture of Yes” Blog Posts which have generated the most traffic this year:
- New Wardrobe Rules Announced for All Staff
- The Goldilocks Dilemma
- Our Spring Break Hawaiian Vacation
I have learned to not be offended that my April Fools Day post often generates the most traffic of the year. It does help me believe that if this education thing doesn’t work out I could try comedy. All three of the highest traffic posts this year were published in the heart of the spring pandemic. The pandemic has opened up so many topics to explore this year and will for many years as we emerge from it
Top 3 Adaptations that I saw in our schools:
- Move to video
- Focus on what is important
- Timetables
We have been talking about video in schools for years, but the move has been slow. All of the sudden, we quickly moved to Teams, Zoom and Google Meet. It was not perfect but just as we adopted out of necessity in our personal lives, we did so to in our school lives. With reduced contact time in classes, we saw the need to focus clearly on what was important. A year ago we couldn’t imagine losing an hour of in-person learning over the year and not “falling behind” but we saw dramatic reductions on in-class time and we were forced to think differently about learning. And timetables – there are lots of options, but generally I have found people like what they have and are not wanting to change. Well, everyone had to change. In BC it meant most high schools spent their summer converting to a version of the quarter-system. And while the quarter-system in itself is not that interesting, how schools were structuring flexible learning and other options within the system was really exciting.
Top 3 Virtual Education Related Virtual Events:
- Grad 2020
- Remembrance Day / December Concerts
- Rethinking Secondary Series
We are largely Zoomed out. And I found many of the professional development experiences to be uninteresting done virtually without the chance to connect with other participants. That said, there were some really great events. Grad events seemed to exceed most expectations. There were many who commented the virtual events were actually better as families could really enjoy them more. Likewise what schools did around Remembrance Day and December Concerts was outstanding. And all of the sudden these events were opened up to family and friends who might not normally get to attend. Finally to highlight one professional event, many of us worked with Dean Shareski on Rethinking Secondary a series of conversations looking at what we might do now and going forward in our high schools. What is great about Dean’s sessions is that you also learn some zoom strategies you can use in other circumstances later.
Top 3 Limited Series Podcasts that I listened to:
I am a little late to the podcast world. I have been a “music only” person when out for a walk or run but this year I discovered the podcast. In addition to some regulars I listen to like This American Life, and my wife’s Lazy Parenting these three limited series were all really good. As someone who enjoys the art of coaching, it was great to Listen to Pete Carroll and Steve Kerr talk about the art of coaching. In Nice White Parents, you get the story of the US education system which has many elements that we see in our own system in Canada when well meaning parents look to try to help fix a school. And finally with The Rabbit Hole, we get a look at how the internet can be manipulating us and the real power and danger of some sites.
Top 3 shows that I binged:
The Queen’s Gambit lived up to the hype. I don’t really understand chess, but I loved the show. The Last Dance benefited in part from timing – it was the only new show and only sports on at the time. And Home Before Dark is a great series on Apple and I particularly liked that so much of it was filmed in and around where I live – it is always fun to see local landmarks in tv shows.
Top 3 ideas about education reinforced in The Queen’s Gambit:
- Giftedness is complicated
- One caring adult can make a huge difference
- Age is only one way of organizing students
A great column by Geoff Johnson got me thinking about The Queen’s Gambit in the context of education. To simplify a few of the lessons for school, we see from the main character Beth just how complicated being “gifted” can be. We also see with her, and her relationship with the school’s janitor Mr. Shaibel that having one caring adult can make such a huge difference for a student. And finally, I was struck by how at ease people were with allowing Beth to train for chess with the local high school chess team. We rarely allow students to train for anything outside of their age, but age is just one way that we can and should organize students.
Top 3 pieces of media I am embarrassed to admit I listened to / watched and enjoyed:
- Saved by the Bell (tv reboot)
- Bill and Ted Face the Music (move sequel)
- Ron Burgundy Podcast (podcast follow-up to movie series)
We all have guilty pleasures. Mine are usually somehow linked to the 1980’s. The Saved by the Bell reboot, which I have seen on some tv critics lists of the top shows of the year is smart in ways that original never was. The new version tackles real issues but does so in a way that recognizes we are all in on the joke of the reboot of the cheesy original. The third chapter in the Bill and Ted franchise, 29 years since the last one again tackles some serious topics with the campy feel of the first two movies. Finally, I can’t say Ron Burgundy offers any deep lessons, but if there is such a thing as uncomfortable radio this is it as the Anchorman character runs his own podcast.
Top 3 overused words / phrases in the edu-pandemic world (though probably overused everywhere):
- Pivot
- The New Normal
- Unprecedented
I am sure I used all three this year. Sorry I will try to stop next year. I would appreciate others doing the same.
Top 3 ideas that we will be exploring more in 2021:
- anti-racism
- equity
- sustainability
Events in the United States and around the world brought the topic of anti-racism to the forefront in our schools. We can see with the requests from teachers around pro-d and the interest from our parent community, we will definitely be doing more work and going deeper in our work in 2021. The same is true for equity. The pandemic has really shown the challenges of equity – like with access to technology that still exist in our system. And with sustainability, it feels like as the pandemic hit, some of the good work our students were leading was put on pause, but in 2021 I think it will be back strong.
Top 3 COVID shifts in schools that can’t snap back after the pandemic:
- Secondary Timetable
- The Move Outside
- Digitization
Like other parts of schooling over the last 9 months, it has been a work in progress. All teachers and administrators I have been speaking with find parts of the new timetable they don’t want to let go. I would be shocked if many districts, even if they are able, return in September 2021 to the way they organized high schools in September 2019. Another shift that has been long coming but accelerated by the pandemic has been outdoor learning. Local experts like Megan Zeni, are supporting teachers to take the classroom outside. From gardens to full outdoor learning classrooms, classes are embracing outdoor learning. And finally, we are really figuring out digitization in the K-12 setting. For the last 20 years we have been exploring this, but the urgency has finally given us the push we needed.
Top 3 ways the pandemic changed my work life:
- I was more efficient
- I felt less connected
- I didn’t feel I knew how we were doing
I have found the pandemic gave me more sustained work time with fewer distractions which made me more efficient with the mundane parts of the job. Of course with fewer distractions, I also felt less connected. Zoom didn’t replace the chance to be in classrooms talking with students and teachers. And I was not quite sure how we were doing. I heard from more parents and staff than usual – but their views tended to be on the extremes, that this was the best or worst thing to ever happen to education.
Top 3 ways the pandemic changed my life outside of work:
- I walked and ran a lot more
- I ate meals at more regular times
- I slept more
It was weird having more control over my time. One of the advantages of digital is that I didn’t have to be in my office for every meeting, and for example, I could watch the grad ceremonies when it worked best for me, and not have to watch them in real time. My step count is up, my weight is down, and in 2020 I slept about 35 minutes more a night than in 2019. We will see if these changes hold in 2021.
Top 3 talks I gave over the last decade that show how my thinking has changed and how it hasn’t:
- Students Live! (2010 TEDx Talk)
2. What is Smart? (2014 TEDx Talk)
3. Keynote this past October for CUEBC:
Top 3 things I have learned as I approach the end of year 25 in education:
- High School Principal is the best job
- Everyone has stuff going on
- Schools are changing faster than we think
21-year-old me going out into my first classroom as a student-teacher would have thought 25 years was a lifetime. Now, as I will be finishing year 25 in teaching this year, it seems as though it has all gone so fast. I love my current job, but I think about how lucky I was to be principal at Riverside Secondary School in Port Coquitlam. I worked with some of the most amazing people and loved the energy in the building every day. It was exhausting but so exciting! I have also learned that all students, staff and parents bring the complexities of their lives with them into schools. There really is no leaving it all at the door. Finally, schools are really changing quickly. The experience of students now is dramatically different than those just a decade ago – we know better so we are doing better. And yes, the structure of schooling is still quite similar, the experience is quite different.
As always I really appreciate the connections we make over the year. I am so impressed with how well our schools have done this fall. I know there are some out there that seem to be cheering against schools right now, but staff and students have done amazing things. To all the staff that are still reading, enjoy your break!
All the best for a great 2021.
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