Leadership Challenge 9

LdC Template #9

Influential Practitioners (Leadership Challenge): Leading in a COP

Enhancing Action Research and Leadership Possibilities

through the Development of your Collaborative Skills

Module 9                                                                    Name: James D. Lett

Note: Apply "Steven Johnson: Where Good Ideas Come From" video from TEL 703 Readings to this week's leadership challenge (in addition to Wenger).

As related to your job, how is change initiated in your organization? Do CoPs matter in the process ... of initiating change?  ... of operationalizing change efforts?  ... of institutionalizing change?

Admittedly, we are quite top-heavy within my organization. We are very hierarchical in our approach to initiating change. We deliberate in small leadership teams, often leaving those who will operationalize these change efforts on the outside of a closed door. We then appear with all of the answers after several conversations to address the potential pitfalls of our plan.

Unfortunately, without the knowledge possessed by other knowledgeable participants, we often miss several key factors. These factors cannot be thought of by leaders who have never shared the workspace. Our opportunities for growth typically come at the weekly staff meeting when given an opportunity to share. Typically, it occurs when we share some instances where we are unsure of the answer to questions or we are not comfortable with a procedure. Often, someone shares their method of doing something and many of us have an “ah ha” moment where we can fully understand.

I see ideas as resources that are as valuable as any piece of technology or financial assets. We can be wasteful with these resources. We hear an idea from someone and it does not get written down. We will say “that’s a good idea,” but we fail to capture it. Therefore, we have skepticism and no buy-in and change leads to anxiety and withdrawal.

Some changes that I am pushing for involve changing our meeting philosophy. Use meetings for knowledge sharing, operational improvements, and the development of internal best practices. I would also like to see more challenging expectations with support from supervisors and administrators. Additionally, we need to think more in terms of assets and less in terms of deficits. What are our strengths and how can we capitalize? What are our weaknesses and how can we challenge our professional intellect to cultivate new or expanded knowledge pathways? Finally, I would like to see us orient our behaviors toward an internal shared mind leading to an improved staff and student experience. I feel that if we do these things, change becomes an opportunity rather than a challenge.    

e. Preparing for an on-line Conversation

Quote/ideas from the book; applications/instances from your workplace setting	Page number
An idea is network on the most elemental level.	Steven Johnson
Ideas are a new configuration that has never formed before.	Steven Johnson
Ideas are cobbled together from whatever spare parts are nearby.	Steven Johnson
Ideas are likely to happen in messy spaces where multiple backgrounds collide.	Steven Johnson
Chance favors the connected mind.	Steven Johnson
Slow Hunch: Lots of great ideas have very long incubation periods. You feel that there is an opportunity for innovation but all of the pieces are not there yet.	Steven Johnson
Great ideas fade into view over long periods of time.	Steven Johnson
Value the importance of connecting ideas rather than just protecting them.	Steven Johnson

f. Holding an on-line Conversation

After participating/viewing the “fishbowl” conversation record notes here (below) about your responses to your peers or new thoughts based on their postings.  Be certain your notes here are comprehensive, as were your responses to peers. (If you participate as a “fish,” in the fishbowl your notes, which should be entered below, can be much more succinct.)

Change is accomplished in many facets. Decisions aren’t made based upon one person’s ideas (Sean). (Ariana) Change can come from external forces. It takes working as a team and meeting together to address these external forces. (Liz) There are some things that can be planned for. However, there are many things that cannot be planned for due to external forces. There are some changes that occur very rapidly and we don’t have time to really think and incubate and have it done by tomorrow. Sometimes new participants are beaten into submission by current members leading to the perpetuations of the same ideas. (Sean) It takes a village to accomplish change. One person can get the ball rolling, but it takes the entire community to make a huge change. It does not happen overnight. (Liz) Imagination is important in design. Also, communities of practice are important in sharing these imaginings. (Ariana) As a teacher, you don’t have the luxury of collaboration. She thinks that building networks is essential to supporting collaboration among teachers. (Liz) We have to create an environment of connecting. It is a mindset that has to be developed.

   

g. Determining your Leadership Challenge/New Leadership Challenge

Based on your own quotes/ideas from Wenger, your workplace experiences, and new insights you developed as you reflected on your peers’ work, what behavior do you want to experiment with/try out for your leadership challenge in the next few days?

Building collaborative environments.

This week I worked with my administrative counterparts at the district to develop a graduation plan. Rather than developing it and presenting it to our advisors, I recommended that we develop a conversational framework and break into groups. I facilitated the meeting. We broke into two groups and each group came up with ideas that we recorded on a white board. It was messy and but we captured all of their ideas. It was truly useful because we were able to gain insights that we would not have thought of amongst the three of us.

This was our first meeting. We plan to have several other meetings on this topic over the next three to four months. However, this was good start. We not only got their ideas, we also got to see how committed they are to student success. Additionally, the groups were able to exchange some best practices and capture new ideas.