Beginnings are messy

Beginnings are messy.  There's no doubt about it. But beginnings are also essential, integral, and imperative.  Nothing gets done without a beginning.  Just like this new blog, See. Believe. Do.

As a principal and an educator,  I often saw how sometimes change was hard because the beginning was muddy and we are often uncomfortable with unclear starts.  We always drive more slowly, sometimes painfully so, on an unfamiliar road.

I started on a PLC odyssey 15 years ago after seeing Rick DuFour at a Principal's Academy at the Central Ohio Educational Service Center.  Then an assistant principal at a traditional high school with 2400 students, eight portables, and 70 teachers on carts, it took almost 2 years to actually start true PLC work.  The beginning was messy but necessary, with much exploration with a dedicated team of teachers who wanted and were willing to do high school differently.

Staying on a winding and curvy journey, especially if it is unfamiliar, is often difficult. (Photo by Exsodus at freedigitalphotos.net)

That core group transitioned to a new district high school, and again, we were in the beginning stages of PLC work for another two years. With integral groundwork and research laying the foundation, we embraced a remarkable PLC journey, resulting in being named a National Blue Ribbon School and a National Model PLC at Work School.

And without that messy beginning work involving our entire learning community of staff, parents and students,  our transition to a school of learning, a systemic focus on the 4 PLC questions, a pyramid of interventions and creative and innovative instructional strategies to better ensure learning would have never occurred.

This new blog and this initial post reflects my change in roles from a high school administrator for the last 15 years, the last nine as principal, to the thought leader and founder of See. Believe. Do., a company dedicated to transforming schools from a focus on teaching to a focus of learning.  It is from one of my favorite quotes, for I truly believe we must have the "vision to see, the faith to believe, and the courage to do" if we are to truly change and impact education for each student.

And yes, this beginning has been messy, too. It has taken many months to start the new Twitter @seebelievedo, Facebook (See. Believe.Do) , web domain and LLC. All of the steps made me realize why I made this transition.  We have many dedicated educators and administrators who are working very hard to change our American public education system.   Many I have met on Twitter, at conferences and at workshops.  They are continually initiating, reforming, changing and aligning to best practices.  They know that beginnings are also messy, but worth it.

But there are thousands of schools in America, public, private and charter.  And not all of them are focusing or trying to focus on learning.  How many schools have started PLC work and given up?  Design thinking? Whole-school literacy? Formative assessment? Visible Learning?

Even the best educators strive to persevere in their work, often in the face of many barriers-- fixed mindsets; district, state and federal mandates; a lack of resources; a lack of leadership capacity; continual building or district turnover, ever-changing district initiatives etc.

Barriers are part of the process of moving forward.  (Photo by Stuart Miles, free digital photos.net)

Often it is the beginning of the work, which may last longer than anticipated, and all of the messiness that accompanies it, that dooms its success.  Educators, including principals, often just decide it is easier to just go with the flow rather than start or sustain really important learning work.  Rather than see barriers as a part of the process of change and an opportunity to succeed, they see them as insurmountable obstacles.

It is easier to simply give up before they start, like many of us do in life.  We don't start something because we dread the start.   For example, once we learn to ski it is gratifying and fun, but the thought of starting sometimes results in never getting going.  Those beginning ski lessons are often ugly and frustrating, though essential.

But the difference is that in life, when we can't stand the messy beginnings or don't follow through, we are usually only affecting ourselves. But as educational leaders, we are affecting our students' lives.

As educators, we all know that 100% of the students in our schools today leave our schools in transition in a few short years, even if we are there for much longer.  Our action or inaction, or lack of followthrough, or starting or stopping, or never starting, delays or alters the future of our students.

Being an educator is hard work. PLC work is hard work.  But the transformation of student learning along the way is amazing.  And every journey starts with a single, first step.  Remember, first steps may be messy, but you will succeed if you stay on the road.