Reckoning with the Story

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If you haven’t listened to the Sold a Story podcast, please do. It made me stop and think about so many thing. As did this op-ed in response.

I think Ep. 6 of #SoldAStory is aptly titled “The Reckoning” because all of us need to reckon with what we were taught about how kids learn to read, the resources and strategies we used to teach them, and the curriculum and materials we use going forward.

It’s become clear that “Balanced” Literacy programs weren’t and aren’t always balanced. Likewise, new programs that say they are supported by the “Science of Reading” may not incorporate all of the actual science (note: it’s just not more phonics).

It’s not a zero sum game either. Kids deserve reading programs that inspire them to be readers AND that actually teach them how to read. They deserve classrooms with texts that are representative and inclusive AND they deserve to learn strategies so they can actually read them.

I should note that I feel lucky to have had the literacy training that I did, training that had just as many requirements for word work and phonics instruction as it did for reader’s workshop with read alouds and accountable talk. I’m thankful that I was shown how to teach students about active reading strategies and word attack skills.

Most importantly, I’m grateful for the teachers I worked with and learned from who had just as many decodable readers in their rooms as they did leveled texts, and who showed me how to teach phonics and make literature and literacy come alive.
The longer I’m in education, the more I realize the importance of the word AND because rarely is the work either/or and so very often it is this-AND-also-that.

What We Already Knew

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The release of NAEP scores this week showing declines in student performance on math and reading tests since 2019 (the last time students were tested) have confirmed what educators have known and been saying for years: that trauma affects learning.

We went through a collective trauma. Over 1,000,000 people died. Economic uncertainty and social injustice upended everything.

Did anyone expect scores not to decline?

Is there work to be done? Absolutely!

And educators will rise to the challenge like we always do: by meeting students where they are and supporting them in every way that we can.

And we must do so with passion, compassion, and intentionality.

But we should not succumb to deficit, defeatist, or divisive thinking about how to move forward because of test results from one of the most difficult periods in our nation’s history. Our kids, our educators, and our schools deserve better than that.

Rather, we must focus on the whole-child and the whole-educator, and implement human-centered, equity-centered, and healing-centered practices that will help all of our kids and our schools make progress.

My 3 tips for when the leadership road feels rocky

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“When I look back on my experience as a school leader, one of the most important skills I learned was figuring out how to lean into the challenges.

In times when your principal journey feels rough, it may seem like all you can do is just keep putting one foot in front of the other. But I’ve come to realize that those are the times when it’s wise to stop walking – for just a moment – and generate the vision, energy and understanding you need to smooth your path.”

https://principalproject.org/my-3-tips-for-when-the-leadership-road-feels-rocky/