7th Grade Christmas Project!

What an inspiring piece of work by members of Mr. Nicholson's 7th grade home room and what a great way to begin the New Year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9hYLIXrgeU

Wright's Law

What is IT all About?

Perhaps it is Christmas, or my age, or the fact that we have had lots of wonderful times exploring Japan with my son over the break but it is that time of the year when I find myself asking those big questions of life and particularly about education.  Is education really about getting into that top college?  Is it about graduating #1 in the class so that you can go on to become rich and/or famous as you go through this world?  Or is it about discovering Wright's Law about the universe and what it means to be truly human?

How do we help our student's find that pathway that will lead to the love that Mr. Wright teaches through his physics class and through the modeling he does with his family?  How do we instill both the love of learning and the love of helping make the world a better place through reaching out to others in need of kindness?  It would be a good use of your time and the time of your son to watch this video clip sometime over the holiday and to take some time to discuss it.  How do we teach those things that really matter while, at the same time, instilling a passion for learning and not for just enduring homework or for figuring out how to get good grades?

Wright's Law

Teach Your Children Well

Teach Your Children Well

I thought a guest editorial by a friend of mine in the USA was worth sharing.  Take a look at:  http://www.decorahnews.com/news-stories/2012/12/4349.html  and think about how important it is to take the time to teach your children about some core values that help shape our world.  I believe the line, "First we create our habits and then our habits create us" is especially true for children.  What habits are we creating for our boys both at home and at school?

Sandy Hook Elementary Tragedy

 

Mental Health in Schools

 

     The utter and profound sadness that the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy in the USA has created for all of us leaves me with wondering exactly how we begin the conversation with each other and with our students at St. Mary's International Middle School about what it all means for us as families, as a school, and as a school community..  The article I have linked to the title of this entry above points to the reality that this adolescent boy and, usually it is adolescent boys involved with these horrific tragedies, not only had access to an obscene number of guns but also that there is no doubt that he was not getting the kind of treatment for his mental illness that would prevent a young mind to do such an awful thing.

     It seems as if our society and ours schools just cannot figure out how to create a system of prevention as opposed to a system of reaction and then it is only a reactive system when a disaster occurs.  When is it that we will collective ask "Have We Had Enough?" and begin to realize that these are average children who are doing these things,  children who attend average schools, children who are part of everyday families but also children who suffer from mental illness.  Is there anything that we can collectively do to be sure that our students are as mentally healthy as they can possibly be?  I offer a few suggestions.

1. Know your child well and tend to both their physical and mental well-being.  Primarily this means to spend lots of time with them doing all kinds of healthy physical and mentally healthy activities with them.
2. Do not turn the transmission of values over to media and to the internet.  Be sure that your child knows what you value and help them to acquire values by modeling the values you hope to transmit to your child.
3. Monitor the kinds of video games that children play and videos they watch and don't believe that constant violence does not desensitize your child to violence.
4. Know your child's friends and try to get to know the parents of these friends.
5. Do not ignore signs that your son is struggling with some level of mental health issues.  Do not be shy or afraid about checking out these signs out with a professional health professional.  Do not believe that your child will "grow out" of these unhealthy behaviors.
6. Take notice if there is a sudden change of performance, a change of friends, a change of attitude toward you, or a change of sleeping or eating habits.  Do not chalk it up to adolescent behaviors alone. 
7. Do not be afraid of talking with teachers and counselors about issues related to your son.  Know that you are not the first one and won't be the last one who have dealt with difficult issues.
8. Treat any violent behavior whether it is violence toward animals, violence toward siblings, violence toward you or violence toward peers seriously.  Bullying behaviors clearly fall into violent behaviors and should not be taken lightly or as a matter of "Boys will be boys."
9. Acknowledge that issues need to be dealt with as a family systems matter.  Changing the behavior of your child will mean a change of behavior in family systems.
10. Know where your child is, what they are doing, who they are doing things with and hold them accountable for their behavior 24 hrs. a day, 7 days a week.   Adolescence is a particularly important time in the development of a boy's brain and helping them through this critical stage requires that parents and other adults are actively monitoring their behavior and assuring that they are safe both physically and psychologically.

At the end of the day, we need to keep the conversation going.  We need to sit up and pay close attention to the physical and psychologically needs of our boys and realize that that this takes hard work on the part of parents and on the part of the school.  We need to take control of what our boys are exposed to and to provide the kind of guidance and support that will result in healthy development for them in a very complicated and fast changing world.



Hallelujah!

Hallelujah Chorus

Created and performed by a group of 5th graders with a teacher who was a former student of mine at Luther College, this Hallelujah Chorus will put a smile on your face no matter how many times you might watch it.  With over millions of hits on the internet and because of the many contributions that were sent it in response to it, a scholarship fund has been set up to help support the children in this very poor village as they look toward a college education.  Much can be accomplished with some good ideas and some good energy.

Happy Holidays.

Service Learning

Service Learning

Soccer for Peace

"Sport has the ability to change the world."-Nelson Mandela

     Throughout my career I have held the belief that linking learning to service should be the ultimate focus of an education.  If we can find the intersection between "students' greatest passions and the world's greatest needs" (Fredrick Buehner) we will have students who will come away from their education prepared to make a difference in this world.  St. Mary's International School is a school that priorities Christian values in the lives of our students and encourages them to live a life that contributes to the greater good in this world.

     One of the most ambitious service learning projects I help organize and sponsor was a service learning trip to Accra, Ghana with a group of college students who linked their passion for soccer with a focus on conflict resolution with middle school students in Ghana.  This project attempted to help young people understand that the ultimate purpose of sport is to learn about life, to help solve conflict between people, and to focus on what we all have in common as opposed to looking at our differences.

    I am hoping to instill an attitude of service with students at St. Mary's International Middle School as we move forward throughout this year and as we move into next.  Through the second quarter "STAR" program, all students are working on individual, family or class service projects with the hope of igniting some interest in this important aspects of education.  Service learning is not about fundraising alone but rather about working side by side with others to learn about their lives, about their struggles, about their stories and to focus on what we have in common as opposed to focusing on our differences.

    Thanks for your efforts to continue to build an attitude and habits of service with your sons.  We need citizens and leaders who are not focused on individual needs but rather on the needs of our communities, our countries and our world as we look toward the future of the planet.

"A Good Dad and a Good Dog"

     According to some research that I read at some point, it was stated that a good dad and a good dog are the keys to raising responsible, respectful and relational young men.  Our discussion at the "Dads' Night Out" at St. Mary's International Middle School last night was a good indication that there are many boys at our school who are well on the way to being the kinds of young men we hope them to become because of the influence their fathers are having.

     If you were not able to attend last night you might want to look at:  Crews Missile to think about the issues to this father's choices about all kinds of things and the effect these choices might have on his children.  It is also a good starting point for all of us to think about the kinds of relationships we might like to have with our children when they are at different stages of their development and how our actions each day helps move toward that desired relationship in the future.

     You might also might want to check out the story Arun Gandhi tells about the time he lies to his grandfather.

Walking Home  This story points out how reflecting about our parenting and its effect on our children goes to the heart of good parenting practice.  It is difficult, if not impossible, to change the behaviors of your children if you don't change your own and if you are happy with the status quo then it's important to keep doing what you are doing.  Expecting different outcomes as a result of doing the same things over and over is an illogical thought process.

     Any ideas on how we can continue the conversation from last night are much appreciated.  Thanks to all for what you are doing to support the work we are doing at St. Mary's International School.

     

St. Mary's Middle School Art

Middle School Art

Pottery

 

Ok, so this isn't middle school pottery but a long journey begins with a few pinch pots.  Please check out some of the work that Mr. Stanley's art classes are doing in the St. Mary's Middle School and I am sure that it won't be long and these pinch pots will morph into some work even more pleasing.  Thanks for the work Mr. Stanley is doing to building in an appreciation for art into these boys' lives.

Mr. Stanley's Blog

Dad's Night Out

On Thursday, November 29 there will be a "Dad's Night Out" conversation about what we know about the importance Dads play in the development of respectful, responsible and relational young men.  There are compelling reasons to believe that without a active presence of a father in the lives of their sons that their academic success will be compromised, that the probability of boys ending up in trouble will be increased, that their skills and attitudes toward relationships with others will be effected and their overall happiness will be impacted.

It is important to note that a physically present father does not mean that he is psychologically or emotionally present or accessible to their sons.  If a father spends all of his time at his office, on business trips or on his i-Phone or computer this, too, has a significant impact on the development of their sons.  Likewise, if a father is not physically present in the family, this does not mean that he can't be psychologically, emotionally or actively involved with his son and can do much to be involved with the development of his son.

Linked on the sidebar is a document about the role that fathers can and should play in the development of their sons.  I am hopeful you can all join us on November 29 in the cafeteria from 7:30-9:00 to be a part of this discussion.  No Dad gets to the end of his life and expresses the wish "I wish I would have spent more time at the office" and now is one of the most important periods in the development of a boy's life when a father plays an invaluable active role.  Your active presence in your son's life is essential not only for his happiness but for yours.

Middle School House Program

Middle School House System

     The St. Mary's International Middle School has begun a new program to help develop cooperation and team spirit among the boys.  The organization and details of this program can be found on its website at:  St. Mary's International House System  Please check this site regularly to see what activities are going on and to see how the boys are doing with helping create a culture at the middle school that is focused on cooperation, teamwork and achievement.  Thanks to all of the teachers who have worked hard to get this program up and running.

Lydia

Lydia

            Lydia’s story is a remarkable one about one family’s commitment to help their daughter who was born with cerebral palsy.  Lydia was a student in the district in Iowa where I was the principal and the Decorah District was the neighboring district where I was on the School Board, where my sons attended and where the exceptional special education services were provided that involved some incredible assistive technology that has allowed her to become an advocate and a voice for others with physical challenges.  Her story is worth reading and is linked on the sidebar.

            Not having special needs students in the school is one of the unfortunate disadvantages of being in an international school.  Without special needs children learning beside our students there is much lost in the education process and doesn’t allow our students to learn about unbelievably determined girls like Lydia.  There is significant criticism about USA Public School education but the programs offered for special education students from birth onward are second to none in the world.

            It would be my hope that your son might have the opportunity to work with and to become friends with students who have special needs at some point. These are experiences that should be a part of every student’s education and life.  How can one not be inspired by Lydia, her family and the school all who have worked together to teach her what it means to be a citizen for the 21^st Century?

Staying on Track

Keeping Students on Track

     Mid-quarter grades will be coming out again in a couple of weeks.  With the weather turning cold, the days getting shorter and with Christmas break on the horizon, it is the time of year when it will be increasingly difficult to keep our students on track and on task.  Staying on top of what your son is doing in each of his classes is important as we continue our journey along the 2012-13 way.

     I would like to offer a few suggestions on how to keep the conversation going with your son about what he is learning and how he is achieving.  Following are some strategies for helping make this happen.

1. Daily, ask about what your son is finding most exciting about his learning and focus more on interesting ideas and less on actual grades.
2. Inquire about what was the most exciting part of his day.
3. Ask about his reading and what he is finding most exciting about the current book he is reading for START time.
4. Ask about his feelings toward school and what they like most about their learning.
5. Make sure your son gets plenty of sleep (9+ hrs.)
6. Build in a daily study time for his studies.  I would recommend that this be a period of 90 minutes where any time not used for homework can be used for reading.
7. Be sure monitor progress on his "STAR" incentive sheet.
8. Keep his attitude positive about his experiences at St. Mary's International School.

     Although difficult, this can be the most learning-filled time of the academic year.  The newness of the year is over, routines have been set, friends have been made and increased skills are evident.  Let's all continue to work together to making this a year of significant growth and learning for your son.  In the end, it is all about attitude and the attitude your son brings to school each day.
     Thanks for your continued support for what we are doing at the St. Mary's Middle School.

Smooth Sailing

Calm Waters and Smooth Sailing

     The waters around the St. Mary's Middle School have been a bit choppy lately with far too much energy directed toward behavioral issues.  However, it appears that we are headed back to calm waters and smooth sailing so I thought it might be a good time to reflect on some things that I have learned over the past few weeks.

1. Too many students have far too much time on their hands when they aren't directly accountable to an adult.  The frontal cortex of the middle school boys brain isn't fully developed and "loaning" an adult frontal cortex in the form of accountability at all times is not only nice but necessary.  It is my feeling that parents need to know exactly where their child is at all times and to whom they are directly accountable or trouble will eventually happen even if they are physically safe in Tokyo.
2. Many students have access to way, way too much money with, again, far too little accountability to where it is going.  It seems completely unnecessary to have more than 2,000 yen at school for any reason but regularly students are bringing 15,000+ as pocket money.
3. Students are carrying around excessive technology which is generally unnecessary.  They are also spending way more time on technology at home, or so it seems, than is healthy or purposeful.  I would encourage parents to know exactly what students are doing on the computer and limit their use to not more than 60 min. for recreational/social networking purposes per day.
4. Students are generally not getting enough sleep.  If your son is not getting at least 9 hours of sleep each night there is clear research that they are being negatively effected.  Coupled with using technology immediately before going to bed which interrupts good sleep patterns, we have many students who are sleep deprived at school.
5. Many students see "not snitching" or "not telling" on their friends far more important than doing what is right.  Peer pressure is alive and well and we all need to figure out ways to help our students act on doing what is right and not be influenced by what might be unpopular.  Talking about values with your sons on a regular basis is fundamentally important.

We all need to step back and think about how we communicate values to the boys who attend St. Mary's Middle School.  I am looking forward to setting sail into a nice long period of windless seas, sun, and fun.

A School of Excellence

Proud to Be a Decorah Viking Parent

     It has been quite the fall for the Decorah, Iowa Public High School where my two boys attended.  Following are a few articles about their success and what I am most proud of is how these students see academics as their first goal of attending school and that extracurricular activities are secondary.

Challenge Cup
State Football Championship
Girls and Boys Cross Country State Champions
National Blue Ribbon School

     The school's formula for success in both the classroom and in the sports world isn't too complicated.  1)  The students come to school with a strong work ethic and a high level of accountability in all they do.  Living in a town of 10,000 (it takes a village to raise a child) doesn't allow for much to happen without someone knowing about it.  2)  There is a culture at the school where achievement is the norm.  It is cool to achieve and there is a high level of support from students in all they do.  3)  There is a focus on the fundamentals both in the classroom and on sports teams.  There is little tolerance for misbehavior and goofing around.  4)  Teachers and parents work really hard.  In spite of most teachers having at least 150 students each day they turn out some of the best students in the state.

     I was fortunate to have my boys attend a school that strives for excellence in all they do.  I hope that I can pass this attitude toward achievement on to the boys with whom I work with at St. Mary's.  There are no substitutes for respect, responsibility, relations, responsiveness and hard work when on the road toward academic and extracurricular excellence.

Summer Camp Options

Summer School/Camp Options

It is not too early to begin thinking about summer camp opportunities for your sons.  There is also research suggesting that 7th and 8th grade is not too early for your son to be thinking about the type of college and general areas of interest that he might like to explore beyond high school graduation.  Consequently, I am exploring some opportunities that might provide St. Mary's Middle School boys the opportunity to do both during the summer of 2013.

As many of you know, I am a tenured Professor of Education at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and I was most recently serving as the department chair in the education department.  One of Luther College's flagship program is their music program that offers a summer camp for middle school students called Dorian Music Camps.  The second camp program that is well-known for immersion language programs is the Concordia Language Villages which is offered in different locations in Minnesota.  Luther College also is well known for their environment study programs and offers an outdoor education camp called Discovery Camp.  Finally there is also a whole host of summer sports programs offered at Luther that would be great experiences for your son and can be explored through the Luther Sports Camps page.

My thought,  if there was enough interest, is that I could arrange a three or four week summer camp experience for St. Mary's boys linking the music, language, environmental and sports camps together with the logistics and transportation provided through Luther College.  In between camps and on the weekends, arrangements could be made to visit a variety of college campuses to include colleges like St. Olaf College (where my sons attended and had a great experience), Macalester College (known for having lots of international students), Carleton College (known for academic rigor), University of Minnesota (Minneapolis is one of the most liveable cities in the USA and known for the Mall of America) and potentially a variety of other colleges and universities in the midwest.  I am a bit biased but I believe that Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin are the best of the USA and are great places to live and to attend college.

Or, if you just want so general ideas for individual summer camps for a week while your family is visiting the USA, these are good options to begin your exploration.  There are many, many great opportunities to enhance your son's educational experience and now is the time to begin exploring the options for the summer.  If you might be interested in a package of camps I would love to hear from you and if there seems to be enough initial interest I would continue to develop this idea.

Developmental Assets for Middle School Boys

Developmental Assets

Too often we attempt to address issues and problems with adolescent boys instead of focusing on individual assets, school assets and community assets.  The questions we should be asking are about how we collectively develop the assets that will allow boys to be resilient, flexible, adaptable and well-prepared for the future they will face.

The Search Institute in Minneapolis, Minnesota has been a long time leader in studying the assets that will allow boys to be successful.  These assets go far beyond good grades on a report card or success on the athletic field.  I would encourage you to review the Search Institute website to consider how your family can focus on helping develop these assets in your son's life at home, help support these assets at St. Mary's and in the community you are a part outside of school.

I will look forward to seeing many of you at the upcoming parent teacher conferences and, as always, don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns before then.

Goal Setting

Goal Setting

Incredibly, the first quarter of the year has come to an end and your son will be receiving his first report card of the year.  These report cards will be coming in the mail on November 5 with parent teacher conferences scheduled for November 9 to discuss your son's progress to this point in the year.  It is my hope that both pieces of this assessment process will focus on setting goals for your son in four major areas of his school experiences.

1. Service (S)-I am hopeful that each boy at St. Mary's will be able to set a goal to serve others with 10 hours of service during the second quarter.
2. Team Work (T)-21st Century Learning skills will have working as part of a team  central to these skills.  I am hopeful that each boy will commit to being a part of a team in some aspect of their lives during second quarter.
3. Academics (A)-In my view of the world, the importance of setting academic goals is not about an absolute performance but rather about setting goals for improvement.  I am hopeful that each boy at St. Mary's Middle School will identify one or two areas of academic improvement that they will focus on during second quarter.
4. Responsibility (R)-Finally, being a citizen for the 21st Century is going to mean that we all  need to be increasingly responsible in multiple areas of our collective lives.  I am hopeful that all boys at St. Mary's will see the importance of responsible behavior in terms of accepting responsibility for the decisions on a daily basis in relationship to behavior, punctuality, appearance, interpersonal interactions and for what goes on in the community.

I will be sending home a STAR goal setting sheet with the report card to complete focusing on #1-4 listed above.  If your son achieves the goals that you have jointly identified, an activity day will be scheduled for February 1 with specific details about it coming out during the next few weeks.  I asked that each boy completes a STAR sheet with their parents and return it to me at St. Mary's with the hope that we continue to build momentum for creating a school culture based on achievement.  More on this will be communicated about this program in the coming weeks.

Home and School Partnerships

Parent Meeting

Thanks to the nearly 30 parents who attended the Middle School Meeting yesterday at St. Mary's.  I learned much about what is important to you as parents, the energy was good and the conversation was focused on how to develop responsible, respectful, relational and responsive young men for the 21st Century.  The partnership that we can develop between home and school is one of the most important ones in the academic, social/emotional, physical and creative growth of your son.

As was mentioned many times during the discussion, the world is changing at an ever increasingly fast rate.  The questions about what this means for all of us are many and are complex but they are especially complicated as we seek what is best for the education of your son for the 21st Century.  I do think that interpersonal relationships and the ability to work collaboratively with others will not lessen in importance but will only become more central to what it means to be a productive and responsible member of society.  I applaud your efforts to establish a direct relationship with the school and with your interest in seeking ways to improve the relationships that your sons have with teachers, with their peers and with the world around them.  I look forward to many lively and engaging conversations similar to the one we had yesterday.

Ken Robinson is a very forward and innovative thinker related to the future of education.  You may be interested in learning more about his thinking by checking out the link I have provided and by searching TED Talks for more of his work.

Again, thanks for your involvement with yesterday's discussion.  I look forward to working with you and your sons this year.

Standardized Testing

Standardized Testing

Each student in the St. Mary's Middle School will be taking a standardized test over the next two weeks.  These tests provide an opportunity for your son to demonstrate their skills in specific academic areas and to allow them to measure their skills against other students taking the same test all around the world.  This information can also provide an opportunity for the school to better understand your child and to help them with areas that may need strengthening.

It is important that we keep a balanced perspective on what these tests mean for your son.  They certainly don't tell the whole story about academic performance and they aren't particularly good predictors about how your son is going to do academically in the future or about how successful they might be as a person.  I am a firm believer that the most important attributes in life (honesty, respect, responsibility, compassion, kindness.....St. Mary's Core Values) are the most difficult to measure and certainly aren't measured on a standardized test.

I am increasingly convinced that hard work, delayed gratification, giving of one's best effort, resilience, passion, creativity, flexibility, humility initiative, and a spirit of cooperation are all some of the other attributes that will take your son much farther in life than mere high standardized test scores.  I do believe, however, that whenever a task is set before your son it is important that their best effort provides an opportunity for us, as adults, to use these results to better help your son grow as a student.  Without a good night's rest, a serious attitude, a good breakfast in preparation for the tests and a confident attitude the results will not be a measure by which we can be confident that they are a reflection of your son's abilities.  Please help us make these tests as meaningful as possible.

More information on what we can learn from Standardized Testing.

Good vs. Responsible Parenting

Good vs. Responsible Parenting

Much emphasis has been placed on the importance of having a good teacher in front of the classroom each day of a child's education from kindergarten through university.  There is no arguing that this is fundamentally important but it is also clear that responsible parenting has a significant impact on the achievement of students.  Even just asking students about their day, or reading to them (yes, even throughout their middle school years), or engaging them in conversation over a meal, or having a family game night when everyone unplugs everything related to entertainment and focuses on  interacting over  something fun (we used to call it "Forced Family Fun" or FFF for short) or planning a family outing on the weekend makes a significant difference in the achievement of your child.

There are some alarming statistics about how little middle school students spend in conversation with a significant adult role model in their lives.  Some estimate this to be around 7 or 8 minutes a day for an average with many students having less time than this on a regular basis to talk about important issues in their lives and to engage in conversation around important topics.  There is a misconception that keeping kids "happy" (my definition of a "Good Parent") is the same as being a "responsible" parent which takes time effort, some level of discomfort on both the child and parents part to work toward common goals and which is not always easy but, in the end, develops the kinds of qualities that are going to contribute to a responsible student and citizen.

There will be a parent coffee on Tuesday, Oct. 9 from 9:00-10:30 in Room 110 on the North Campus as St. Mary's where ideas will be shared about the important partnerships required to maximize your student learning this year at the middle school.  We will talk about setting the direction for your child's education, about communication and Power School, and about continuing the discussion about how we can work together to make this a great year for your child.  Hope to see you there.

Thomas Friedman "The World is Flat" on responsible parenting.

High Achievement Cultures

Creating a Culture of High Achievement

Catch students reading not because they have to but because they want to.  Watch as student engage in a competitive game of chess and then congratulate their opponent whether they win or whether they lose.  Listen as students carry on a discussion about what they are learning in science as they head down the hall to their next class.  See students helping each other struggle with a math problem that stretches them beyond their comfort zone.  Welcome students early in the morning because they have an art project they need to finish.  

This is the kind of achievement oriented culture I hope to create at the St. Mary's International Middle School this year.  I am cautiously optimistic that we are on a path to make this happen but the path isn't necessarily straight nor is it necessarily easy and it will take the cooperative efforts of all of us who are part of the middle school learning community.  It also takes a sustained effort over a long period of time to make a cultural shift or to make a shift in habits so we all must be persistent as we hit bumps along this path.

Although I am far from anti-technology, I do have worries about the impact of technology on cultural norms and about students' abilities to interact in public places with appropriate behaviors and with appropriate communication.  I suspect there is some qualitative difference between interacting face-to-face with a person sitting a meter from you as opposed to shooting off a text message for that same person to read.  I find it particularly rude to being having a conversation with a person while they are, at the same time, checking their text messages every three minutes or so.  I believe there is value in having spontaneous conversations with people you might know or might not know as opposed to staying connected with more familiar people in your lives through chain cell phone calls.

Your efforts as parents are certainly welcome as we try to create this achievement oriented culture at the St. Mary's Middle School.  I visualize this culture as going beyond a good report card and includes supporting other students who might be struggling with some aspect of their life.  "Together Along the Way," the theme for this at St. Mary's International School, is about creating cultures of achievement together and to define the strength of this culture not by the strongest and the most competent individuals within the culture but rather how we help and empower those who are the most vulnerable.  This is my vision for St. Mary's and I ask for your support along the way.

Core Values

Core Values

St. Mary's International School is focusing on developing core values with students and with the school this year.  It is easy to identify the terms and to talk about what they mean but it is much more difficult to teach them to our students and to create a culture where these values are practiced, modeled and expected.  Watch the following video link:  http://insidedateline.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/04/11/11146342-my-kid-would-never-do-that-cheating?lite  Would your kid ever cheat?  Have you had this discussion recently with him about why this is important to talk about and to expect?

I am also a reader/believer of Nel Nodding's work who is a professor of Educational Philosophy at Stanford.  She believes that entire schools should be organized around the themes of caring and that these skills are fundamentally important for raising competent children and decent human beings.  You might want to check out her work at:  http://www.infed.org/thinkers/noddings.htm and consider the significance of her work as we work toward developing responsible, respectful, responsive and ethical students for global responsibility.

Never, as a global community, has the need to focus on collective common core values been greater.  These topics are not just a nice accessory to a quality education but they are fundamentally important to our collective futures.  We have enormous challenges facing our world in the coming years and it is fundamentally important that we are educating our boys for the future that awaits them.  "Shift Happens" and this shift is only going to accelerate in the future.  Will our boys be prepared for these challenges?

Shift Happens

"Building a Culture of Achievement"

     Building a culture of high achievement at the St. Mary's Middle School is like building a team that strives for excellence.  The high achievement of each member of the team should be measured in terms of whether they have individually contributed to the goal of the team based on their role and on their strengths.  Success should not be measured on winning or on losing but rather on whether individuals and whether the team as a whole have maximized their potential.  This is what we all have control over and whether or not the other team has more talent, more resources, and more luck is something we can't and shouldn't worry about.

     Consequently, I am not one who believes that the quality of the St. Mary's Middle School should be measured in terms of test scores, grades, percentage of English language learners, or other factors over which we have little control.  We need to examine whether each individual student is maximizing their potential and whether the school is challenging each of these students at the level and with what they are interested in as students.  I would like to find more ways to figure out how we add value to each kid's life and to look at indicators of success that go beyond the quantitative measures we try to hang on to as "the truth."

     Like building a team, it is easy to deal with the highly talented and motivated students who get the glory with high grades and high test scores.  However, I believe it is the excellent coach and the excellent teacher who can make the last guy on the bench feel as much a  valued member of the team as the leading scorer and to instill a passion for the game that goes beyond individual glory.  It is my belief that the strength of any culture is not defined by how we deal with the top 10% of it but rather how we deal with the most vulnerable within the culture.  If we can figure out how to deal with this group within our school the strength of the school will be clear.

     As I listen to Virginia Rojas, one of my essential question regarding EAL or about Gifted and Talented Student or about resource students or about any students in between is whether good teaching is good teaching for all students?  Isn't differentiation, cooperative learning, authentic assessments, building on strengths, understanding your theoretical basis for learning, interdisciplinary teaching or all of the rest doesn't cross artificial categories of student learning?  Doesn't it all come down to highly motivated and skilled teachers who are passionately interested in doing what is right for each student?  All the rest are details from my view of the world.
     And.......Together Everyone Achieves More (along the way.)

John Wooden on Success

From a Terrific Start to a Great Year

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                 It is a delight to be the new middle school principal at St. Mary’s International School.  It has been a terrific beginning of the school year but it is my hope and my intent to make sure that this will be a great year where your son will flourish in the classroom and with the many extracurricular programs offered at the school.  As a teacher, counselor, administrator and college professor for the past 35 years, it is my intent to make this year the best one of all for me and also to make it a great, not just good, year for your son.

                  So how do I intend to help make it a great year for all of us but especially for our students?  First, it’s the people and not the programs that are most important for moving from a “terrific start” to a “great year.”  St. Mary’s Middle School is fortunate to have many excellent teachers who are also willing to work together to get better and to work toward understanding and embracing the many challenges of a rapidly changing world.  Any program is only as good as the teacher in front of the classroom and that teacher’s desire to meet the needs of each individual student.  I am committed to supporting and challenging all of our teachers so that we all move together toward a great year.

                  Secondly, parental support and involvement with their son’s lives and interest in the learning that is going on at school is incredibly important as we move together toward a great year.  Focusing on the learning that is going on, not necessarily on their grades, is incredibly important for helping your son have a great year.  Good parent support is about listening carefully to your son, about asking good questions regarding life and learning at school, about getting to know their friends and their families, and about developing a passion for learning in your own lives.  Developing a habit of talking with and listening to your son on a daily basis, ideally at the dinner table each evening, will help all of us move together toward a great year.

                  Finally, moving from a “terrific start” to a “great year” is about developing a culture and community based on respect, on responsibility, on healthy relationships, and on developing an attitude of responsiveness to specific needs of individuals.   St. Mary’s International School has developed a core set of values (compassion, honesty, respect, fairness, responsibility) that will guide the work we do as a school community this year.  It is my hope that you will embrace these values within your families, too, as we move together toward a great year.

                  “Together Along the Way”, the overall theme at St. Mary’s for the year, suggests that we need to work together as we move toward a great year for all of us.  This will require frequent and open communication based on a shared sense of values.  Thank-you for your warm welcome to the St. Mary’s International School Community and you can be sure that I am committed to serving you and your sons to the best of my abilities.  Please be in touch as the need arises or as you find evidence that you would like to share that we are all on target for a great year.