LEADING ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
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Being a technology teacher, it was apparent from the beginning that my 'Wildly Important Goal' for institutional change on my campus would be to expand the use of blended learning to both teachers and students. Using the ‘blended’ approach to learning has significantly aided in the transition to an online-only format during the coronavirus pandemic, and my goal moving forward is to help sustain the impact of the model even after this disrupted learning environment.
WHAT IS 'MY WHY'?
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IMPLEMENTING THE INFLUENCER MODEL
Once I identified the 'WIG,' my next course of action was to identify the vital behaviors that could be influenced to reach my goal. I asked myself, "What is the best way to expand the use of blended technology on my campus?" After much deliberation, I concluded the most effective way of doing so would be to bring the use of ePortfolios to both the CTE teachers and students. ePortfolios are a collection of text, pictures, projects, blogs and videos that are assembled and managed by one person to display ownership in learning. There is no better way for students to showcase their accomplishments while learning remotely (with the goal of sustaining the implementation once on-campus learning continues). With the measurable result being to have 100% of CTE teachers and students to participate in using an ePortfolio, my next course of action was to analyze the vital behaviors that could execute the plan. This is where the influencer model would come into play.
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INSTALLING 4DX
The aforementioned 'WIG,' or 'Wildly Important Goal' is the first part of a model called the 4 Disciplines of Execution, a system of implementing and executing change regarding specific lead and lag measures. This model provides the framework of how ePortfolios will be used on my campus, from initiation to weekly WIG meetings to achieving the wildly important goals.
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CRUCIAL CONVERSATION WITH THE WIG MEETING
Weekly WIG meetings will ideally take place within the CTE Professional Learning Community sessions. It is during this time that we, as a team, can come together and focus on the WIG by having crucial conversations. Lead and vital measures will be discussed and progress will be monitored through the use of visual "scoreboards" that indicate whether the 'wildly important goal' is being met. These will not be administrative or meetings with a top-to-bottom hierarchy; these are open discussion forums that appeal to the heart of what we are trying to accomplish: to make learning in the pandemic-induced digital era successful for our students.
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SUMMARY
At Burnet Middle School in the wildly different 2020-2021 school year, my WIG (or 'Wildly Important Goal') is to expand blended learning during this disrupted environment by implementing the use of ePortfolios throughout the Careers and Technology Education department. Having my fellow CTE teachers implement the ePortfolio into this year's curriculum with their own students will allow them to see first hand how this tool can be vital to blended-learning instruction, even long after the pandemic has passed.
Lead and lag measures will be identified in the WIG meeting, which is also where the crucial conversations guiding the initiative will take place. Structural motivation will be provided through guided learning opportunities and format templates. Progress measurements, in the form of various scoreboards, will be utilized during this period. And although the goal is the "endgame," each teacher's input and influence will be heard. The motives behind the initiative appeal to the heart because, in the end, it is all about what is best for the student. That is why we do what we do.
