Reflecting on a Vision of United Engagement in Chicago

by Lara Smetana

The Crossroads call for blog posts came out during a tense mid-September week during which Chicago was gripped by a Chicago Teacher Union strike. Like many across the city, I was tied to the various Twitter feeds reporting minute-by-minute updates from the picket lines and negotiation headquarters and trying to make some sense, for myself, out of the recent events that had been on the horizon for months but had finally materialized. How do I, a relatively new assistant professor of teacher education, sort through the personal and professional dimensions of these local controversies?

Following the logic that Alan Lichtman has used to predict the outcomes of presidential elections since 1860 (Vedantam, 2012), it could be argued that the Chicago Teachers Union strike was inevitable. The strike represented an upheaval such as that which naturally results from deep tectonic forces that cause earthquakes. I view the wave of teacher strikes that have passed through Chicago and other nearby school districts during Fall 2012 as part of larger national tremors of frustration with persistent inequalities (Ariely, 2012) and social inequities, including in educational opportunity and outcomes (Schmidt & McNight, 2012).

While reflecting upon my own professional efforts in the midst of these challenging times, I returned to a copy of the recently published Research on Schools, Neighborhoods, and Communities: Toward Civic Responsibility. Here, William Tate (2012) calls for the development of research and practice pathways, or “mutually informing set of interactions among scholars, civic leadership and educational professionals with the goal of supporting children and by extension their families” (p. 523). He also warns against the sort of “parallel play” that too often characterizes highly departmentalized academic research efforts.

Expanding upon his vision of united engagement, I see solutions to the deep, underlying problems troubling school systems across the country as possible through braided efforts of teachers, administrators, school support staff, district officials, students, families, neighborhoods, universities, community organizations and agencies. Individual strands are identifiable, recognized and celebrated, but the strength and tightness of the braid as a whole comes from a demonstrated common commitment to looking out for the best interests of students and families; to lifelong learning, growth and development; to transparent sharing of information and explanations through open lines of communication; to genuine dialogue and discussion; to just, moral and benevolent behavior. The sort of “us against them” mentality that colored much of the Chicago Teacher Union strike conversations from both sides of the picket line and in the media is in unfortunate contradiction to this perspective.

The School of Education at Loyola University Chicago is optimistic that recent and ongoing changes in the structure of our teacher preparation programs take a small step toward reaching the formidable, idealistic goal described above. We believe that education has the potential to be empowering, and thus our teacher candidates must be committed and well-prepared to consistently make positive impacts on the students, schools, and communities in which they work. In order to do so, our programs must seek the same outcomes as that of effective schools: supporting and sustaining successful students, innovative classrooms, exemplary schools, enriched communities, and global citizenship (Zhao, 2010). Further, we must work in true – purposeful, mutually beneficial and non-hierarchical – partnerships (Kruger, 2009) with schools and communities to achieve this. My colleagues and I have worked diligently over the past year to design and gain approvals for the Teaching, Learning, and Leading with Schools and Communities program (see infographic below). This clinically-based initial teacher preparation program, fully embedded in local schools and community organizations, takes a systemic perspective on the development of sophisticated, reflective, and resilient educators who not only possess the knowledge and skills of effective teachers, but also a deep understanding of the varied roles and responsibilities that educators who work in collaboration with their school and larger communities assume.

I look forward to continuing to share the progress of this new initiative, as well as side consequences for the schools and communities with whom we are working, with my Crossroads colleagues. As always, your feedback, questions and conversations will help to keep me focused on a research and practice pathway that results in lasting positive outcomes for all involved.

Figure by Erik Barraza and un-ravel

Works Cited

Ariely, D. (2012, August 2). Americans want to live in a much more equal country: They just don’t realize it. Retrieved from: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/08/americans-want-to-live-in-a-much-more-equal-country-they-just-dont-realize-it/260639/

Kruger, T. (2009). Effective and sustainable university-school partnerships: Beyond determined efforts by inspired individuals. Canberra: Teaching Australia. Retrieved from: http://www.aitsl.edu.au/verve/_resources/Effective_and_Sustainable_University-School_Partnerships.pdf

Schmidt. W.H., & McKnight, C. (2012). Inequality for all: The challenge of unequal opportunity in American schools. New York: Teachers College Press.

Tate, W. F. (2012). Toward civic responsibility and civic engagement. In W. F. Tate (Ed.) Research on schools, neighborhoods, and communities: Toward civic responsibility. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.

Vedantam, S. (2012, November 9). What earthquakes can teach us about elections. National Public Radio. Recording retrieved from http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/11/09/164711093/what-earthquakes-can-teach-us-about-elections

Zhao, Y. (2010). Preparing globally competent teachers: a new imperative for teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 61(5), 422–431. Retrieved from: http://jte.sagepub.com/content/61/5/422.full.pdf

A venture for your consideration: The Left Brain Right Brain Retreat

[Editor’s Note: As promised earlier, this is the first in a series of Ventures being put forward by some of you. Steve and Scott’s venture is a good beginning, since it is so tangible and since it calls on the community for response and possible participation. We’re looking forward to the other, widely varied contributions you’d like to propose.]

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by Steven Fletcher

As stated in the Crossroads town hall session in September, I have a venture that started a few years back as a beer-to-beer chat with Scott McDonald. There were three things that came up during our conversation. They all related to a healthy and balanced existence – something that we seemed to be missing in our careers.

First, we felt stymied in our academic writing and wanted to build a time to focus on getting a product completed (article for submission, proposal for grant, etc). We both tend to work well when there is a dedicated time and space for writing, and if there are others who are also engaged in this at the same time.

Second, I was curious about integrating creative personal work with professional academic work as a way to balance the intellectual aspect of my life. I used to build and work on boats. I started to think of boat building as a metaphor for personal and professional growth and wanted to pilot a community boat-building workshop to see if others took as much joy from building an organic shape from flat sheets of wood as I did. Scott was intrigued and asked if it was possible to create a boat in a few days. I assured him that it was; I once built a rowboat in 7 hours with a colleague.

Finally, we both agreed that shared cooking and/or exercise were great ways to connect with others and that having pairs or teams of folks responsible for kitchen duty was a good way to both build strong friendships and save some typical costs. Shared exercise also does this.

A rented house for 8-12 people, in an inspiring natural place, with sleeping, cooking and exercise options, that allows for creative outlets seemed like a logical solution to these three intersecting themes.

This vision has evolved to include: A) An opportunity to work for some time each day on academic writing. B) An opportunity to work on some creative project each day (like building a small boat, but could also be poetry or painting or dance) and C) An opportunity to spend time preparing and sharing meals together.

A very rough itinerary might include:

Before 800am – exercise/ breakfast/ etc. alone or with others.
800-12pm – Left side of Brain exercise. Personal writing time with a focused product due at the end of the camp.
12-1 lunch – make your own from groceries purchased by leaders before retreat or go sample local foods.
1-4 – Creative hands-on time – Right side of brain exercise. Cutting, nailing, gluing, shaping. Painting, etc
4-430 – clean up
430-6pm – Free time (except for dinner team)
7pm – dinner together
830pm- clean up and hang out.

Before renting the house and setting the date we are asking for some crossroads community feedback to see if this is something you would commit to. Perhaps you could respond to the following questions:

What value would you place on an experience like this? How much value would your University place on an experience like this?
What is the best time of year for you in terms of attending a 3-4 day experience like this? Would the summer work?
How many days could you attend? What days of the week are easiest for you to get away?
Are there ways you can think of to make it more feasible for you either academically or personally (much like Crossroads is a conference and therefore allows institutional support for attending)?
Would you be interested in building your own wooden canoe as a part of the experience? Are there other creative pursuits that you’d rather try? Carving? Painting? Poetry? Welding? Would you be willing to share the cost of an expert to help guide the creative work?
Would you be willing to travel to Central Texas for a pilot run of this project?
Would you be willing to organize a local edition of this idea in your geographical region? I can see these camps occurring in different areas with different creative themes for each region.

You can address any feedback / comments to me at stevenf@stedwards.edu and I’ll share with Scott (still in Ireland). We’ll use your feedback to set up the first of these experiences within the year.

Thanks and miss everyone! Hope your semesters/quarters are going swimmingly.

Steve (and Scott).

a [dis]organization and a new initiative

by Adam

I don’t say it in this way often, but here’s the truth: I’m blessed. Besides all those other things (job, family, health), I get to read the work and co-host ideas and collaborations of insightful, dedicated, and creative science educators across the country (and beyond).

So, it gave me pause when at our closing Town Hall meeting, one attendee thanked “the organization” for the support they have provided her in the past and continue to give. I couldn’t help it; I had to interrupt this very genuine and complimentary sentiment with a correction. “There is nothing about us that is an organization.” We may be just the opposite. We’re better described as a disorganization. Only the most trite parts of me (which, admittedly, can be substantial) were trying to be funny. There are sharp contrasts between what John and I do versus what an “organization” looks like. We don’t carry over any money or charge membership. Just look at us. We’re not in this to be figureheads, and we’re certainly not organized. We make this up as we go along. The invitations of and subsequent presentations by Fred Lynch or Naomi Shihab Nye are a couple of good examples of whimsy and gumption that, with almost no thanks to us, gave good results. The best parts of Crossroads — your incubator discussions — are all due to us simply getting out of the way.

We created the space called Crossroads in an effort to generate a level of conversation we were not receiving in other formal settings. We sought to bring people together and discovered the common need to bridge emptiness and reduce isolation. Our goal has been to re-create a mission in science education which is collaborative and effective. And not just within research or in teaching, but in the initiatives that effect change at the local and global levels. Ambitious? Yes, and maybe I’m overstating it. But over the years since this disorganization has been in existence, we repeatedly witness others who reach the end of a year of Crossroads, give us a hug, and then undertake grand projects. They run community centers, link local teachers with resources, revamp research initiatives, and take their 4th graders to local ponds. Like I said, I’m blessed to get to work with you all. You inspire me to do more myself.

John and I glimpse these initiatives from a distance and develop better understandings about what it is you’re all doing. But, because we’re a disorganization, a scattering of folks with local ambitions, we don’t really have a way of representing the overall impacts. Too often, once people depart from Crossroads, we’re not completely sure what comes next, what’s happening across the span of timezones. Where is John’s research looking at multiple nodes of community headed? Has Adam figured out what ‘models’ are good for and how to study them? How well is Allison navigating the fine line between rigor and rapport in her classroom? Is Janet restrategizing how she couches curriculum development? Will Francis take that step into a classroom that he left years ago? Has Lara found a way for her students to investigate connections of “trust” in community networks? For each paper and discussion, I wonder what’s happening next. I’m not really looking for accountability; I really want to know how things are going, what next adjacent possibilities have tantalized you. Sometimes we get to hear about these things somewhere up the road, but these follow-ups are, well, disorganized, just like us.

We should change this. Although I think it’s right that we should be keeping to a certain tradition of the disorganization, I know that there’s a community of folks out there that wants to know what next steps are taking place. Or, maybe we just need to occasionally feed off of one another’s ventures, even (especially?) the ones that make strange left turns and leave us with new questions and trials.

So here’s our challenge to you: We want to hear more and more consistently about you and your work. And if you don’t volunteer, we’ll call on you. Our idea is to commission about one piece each month, and we’ll host it right here and advertise it on our listserve. Again, it isn’t for accountability, and it isn’t really about any kind of data gathering that we have in mind. Rather, we all want to know what else is going on “out there.” Because, really, the disorganization of people we get to host at Crossroads really is the group we all look to to lead reform, to take a stand, to change our thinking. When I have one of those days that shakes my faith in what I can do or just generally makes me want to take a nap, I look to people of this group to pull me up simply through your own example. I think we all want to know what we’re up to in those interims between meetings.

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If you’d like to volunteer for a certain month before we start to call on you, just drop us a line at sciedxroads@gmail.com, or feel free to comment below with nominations.

problems as pictures

Providence is the home of the Rhode Island School of Design (RIZZ-dee]. This fact was our inspiration to include a third V in this year’s Call for Papers https://sciedxroads.org/callpaper.html: 1) a Vexation, 2) a Venture, and 3) a Visual. Just as with everything else associated with Crossroads, we followed our typical process for making this change. More specifically, we had a hunch it would work, we asked one other person and when they didn’t hate it, we decided to give it a go.

Representing ideas in a visual form is not a new idea. Books such as The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward Tufte and Visual Complexity by Manuel Lima offer intriguing possibilities. In the hands of these data scientists and visual artists, rich datasets are reduced to clear representations – of processes, of interactions, and of complexity. Such creations (such as the graphic below) are far beyond what we are expecting from those submitting proposals for the 2012 Crossroads gathering.

Cyclogram time-chart, Salyut 6 mission

Instead, what we have in mind are hand-drawn sketches that fit on an index card. Or the back of a napkin. It turns out that there is a “how to” book by this title offering guidance about how to present problems and products with relatively simple sketches and scribblings. Author/artist Dan Roam has an interesting approach to generating such drawings. He claims artistry is not necessary. Instead, he offers that showing what we are thinking and perceiving is the last step. What comes before is looking, seeing and imagining. If these are done well, then the illustration will flow from mind to hand.

Roam provides clever videos to accompany his book. There he suggests that we “see” in six different ways and that there are six corresponding diagrams that can be used to sketch these for others to see. To show “what or who” we can use a portrait, “where” is depicted with a map, and “how” becomes a flowchart. With these starting points, knowing how to translate our thoughts into a Visual worthy of a Crossroads proposal is less outrageous. None of this is to suggest that we know what or how we are going to draw our ideas. At the very least, we’re excited to see where this could lead rather than fearful about our capabilities to do so.

a new meeting and new thinking

by Adam

We’re getting excited in both of the Crossroads offices, East and West. For me, there’s some snow falling and very soon I’ll get to eat lunch. And, also, we can announce our 2012 meeting and its Call for Papers:

Science Education at the Crossroads 2012

Providence, Rhode Island | September 6-8, 2012

Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel

KEY details:

Proposal deadline: Saturday, April 28, 2012
Acceptances (no later than): Saturday, June 23, 2012
Final Revisions for Proceedings due: Saturday, August 4, 2012
Crossroads 2011 Begins: Thursday, September 6, 2012

Submit papers to: sciedxroads@gmail.com

Moreover, John’s sketched out an idea that makes itself manifest on the Call. We’re asking for an illustration, preferably from your own hand. We don’t expect anything fancy, and I suspect the charm and benefit will all be a result of your personal scratchings with a slightly dull pencil, eraser smudges optional.

As I myself have considered this new feature, I started to realize that the drawing could be a final piece of my Vexation & Venture, similar to how I’d compose an abstract for a paper. However, now I’ve started to realize that the sketch could actually be a way to develop my initial ideas. And so I have this scratch pad with a variety of stick figures and diagrams. I like this one for now:

What actually comes of this has yet to be seen. But, I’m excited by the possibilities, both in my own work and in all of yours.

serious thought

by John

For me, Crossroads is a joyous time. The reason for all the happiness is the fellowship. Together in one place are people from various backgrounds and perspectives with a common devotion to improving science education. This doesn’t happen by accident. We are very deliberate about who is invited and who ends up attending. And yet it often feels like magic. My memories of Crossroads, and the 2011 gathering in San Antonio in particular, is sprinkled with hearty laughter and warm embraces. Of course it is not all fun and games. The people who attend do so because they are primed to engage in deep discussions. I forget about the intensity of the Incubator sessions. Pictures like this one remind me about the importance of our conversations:  In this image are three people who, despite traversing varying pathways, come together to contemplate an issue at hand. Each individual is incredibly smart. I think of each as a very happy person and my memories of conversations with each has them smiling. However, in the right setting and under the right conditions, they are able to focus their attention with an unparalleled focus. I wonder where else we might see three people looking at a fourth person with this intensity. This is what it looks like when professionals are given the opportunity to extend themselves and direct their caring dispositions toward a colleague who is vexed by some aspect of the profession. Around this table are individuals who take issues seriously. They work hard at this. And to be on the receiving end is an amazing experience.

The magic of Crossroads is that we can work hard and play hard. We are very serious at times but also just as comfortable at laughing — quite naturally. In combination — the intensity of the work and the genuineness pleasure we have being in each other’s company — helps remind us that we are not alone. I can’t wait for it to happen again. This might be an important thing to remember: I should not wait but strive to find other ways to experience the joyous intensity of serious thought.

images

by Adam

I took a few pictures, mostly of y’all with your name badges, along with a few from sessions. Take a look at our photo album here, or the slides below:

pages like wings

by John

Field biologists are familiar with releasing organisms to the wild. Until today, I was not quite sure I appreciated how such activities could make a person feel. I have teacher friends who raise fish eggs in a chilled aquarium to be released in spring to re-stock salmon populations. I know of people who tag birds with the hope of tracking their travels. And I am sure almost you have seen nature programs of injured or orphaned animals being rehabilitated and returned to their natural habitat.

Today, I packaged the Proceedings for the 2011 Crossroads meeting. I was quite conscientious because these envelopes are to travel over the nation. One is going to Seattle and another is going to Tallahassee — from top left to bottom right corner. Others are going to California, the Carolinas, Georgia and New York state. The number of address labels was exactly 50 which seemed off by at least one. But indeed we have just 47 presenters and 4 facilitators. Since I already have my copy, it is accurate that there are 50 yellow envelopes waiting for the postman to retrieve tomorrow.

I tucked a generic note into each envelope asking the recipient to acknowledge they received their package. I expect to hear from more local Crossroads participants by the end of the week. And I am anticipating comments about the document’s appearance. I explained to our local copy company that since we were meeting in Texas, an orange cover would be nice. When I retrieved the materials today, they apologized for the color since it is not exactly subdued. They even referred to my order as: “Oh, the orange books.” So trick-or-treat!

Fly my little booklets. Find your way to welcome hands. When you arrive, take your rest and allow your keeper to open you wide and caress your interior. In just 10 days or so, you and your siblings will all come together in Texas. There your worth and value will become realized and appreciated. May your travels be swift and true. Looking forward to seeing you all, proceedings and people, in the very near future.

knitting a network

by Adam

My loving partner has a mistress, but we have an understanding. I have my own mistress as well, but … well, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Karyn’s other lover is knitting. Of course, there’s much more to her than the single dimension of a long line of yarn, but for the sake of this essay let’s ignore her great literary taste, photographic genius, and loving devotion to her family and neighborhood school. For now, let’s imagine her whole identity is woven, er, knotted… tied? stitched? … knit (and purled) into her collection of natural fibers. If you, too, are paired with a knitter (not simply someone who knits), you will understand what this means. The act of knitting is ritualistic and embedded into many other features of one’s life. People identify their selves with projects and process, and I’ve come to respect actions such as “turning a heel,” “tying in the ends,” and “decreasing,” as well as other stunts I’m less adept at describing.

Strangely and fascinatingly, knitting isn’t the solitary pursuit that I would first assume it to be. It is ridiculously social compared to the stereotype. Karyn heads to Portland, OR at the end of the month for a “sock summit,” and she sorely laments the fact that Crossroads conflicts with an annual knitting retreat in the mountains. (She’s a good sport, though, and will hopefully spend a weekend in San Antonio instead, needles in hand, camera at the ready.) Weekly meetings with friends revolve around the knitting act as well. And then there’s “Ravelry.”

Ravelry has had my attention since Karyn had joined and started telling me about it. This was well before either of us were connected to Facebook in anything more than a superficial way. Recently, Farhad Manjoo described it and its novelty at Slate.com. He does a great job of explaining what makes Ravelry not just special, but actually useful and integral to the craft of knitting and its social experience. You should read this yourself — I won’t bother restating his observations at length; for my purposes its enough to explain that Ravelry allows knitters an identity that is connected with their craft and projects, gives them a space to document not only the results but the process and progress of their endeavors, and provides an arena in which to get advice and ideas from others.

Jealous? I am. It doesn’t drive me to knit, but it does make me wish for a deeper connection with my own mistress, science education. We have places to dump out the results of our work, but really this is not much more than a display case for a cabled, wool sweater. We do little to model our work in its most authentic forms; we seldom have the opportunity to pull up our pant leg and show off our new socks as we’re wearing them. And, most lamentably, we don’t get the chance to talk about and display the processes of our efforts as we’re in the midst of them. We could learn something from knitters.

Okay, it’s true that we created Crossroads specifically to meet these needs. San Antonio, for many of us, provides us with a moment to show off those socks and other projects, most of which are still on the needles or perhaps still being patterned. And, I’d never want any online, social network to replace the actual face-to-face-to-face-to-face-to-etc. of our physical retreat. It couldn’t. I still wonder, though, if our collective group, with all its technological savvy, gumption, and higher degrees, could come up with a better way to keep us connected. Is there a Ravelry we could be making for ourselves? And as I ask this out loud, almost rhetorically, I wonder if I should be looking at myself (and a few helpful others) to take responsibility for answering the question.

trust and sparkles

by Adam

Recently, I was taken by John’s writing about trust. He goes beyond a simple description and admiration of being able to find trust, faith, dependability in someone or something, and suggests that these features may in fact be those that allow success in an educational arena. From his own experiences, there’s a case to be made that a teacher can be innovative when he trusts in the leadership of his principal; a teacher’s instruction can be reformed if she trusts in the example of a peer; and I suppose even students will endeavor to try out something new and even uncomfortable if they have a certain trust in the good intentions and integrity of their teacher.

I didn’t immediately buy into the idea until he related it to backpacking. When on the trail we can enjoy ourselves because we trust that companions will do their own part to make sure we return to our families safely. Given that premise, I could see the many other applications of the idea, including maybe even my own classrooms for preservice teachers. If these up-and-coming leaders learn to trust that I have their best interests at heart and maybe some record of not completely failing them in the past, they seem to be willing to follow my lead into the unfamiliar and even unsteady. If we know we won’t fall over on our bicycles because of a guiding hand behind the seat, we’ll be willing to take the risk of getting on the improbable two-wheeled machine in the first place. My first experience rock climbing was only enjoyable because I had a large amount of faith in my guide and his ropes. I suppose a lot of teaching and mentoring is much like this. We’ll step out on a ledge if we know there’s a net or, even better, someone there to prevent any disastrous misstep.

This all makes sense, until I think of my friend John on the trail:

I love this image, and I’m proud that I was able to take it. But the true secret of my photographic genius is that I was in the right place at the right time behind our campsite in the Kolob Canyons of Zion National Park; and I simply saw John approaching this backlit, upward bound position a few seconds before. I barely had time to pull out the camera and point. I didn’t look, didn’t sight, didn’t check light settings — I just hoped that I was getting a light reading off the sky and had things more or less in focus. And what I got was a great image, sun at his heels, climbing a mountain. This is pretty much my complete, enduring image of Dr. Settlage. This is an image of someone I would follow up a mountain, literal or metaphorical. In truth, it’s only partially because I trust that he knows where he’s going and what the route will look like. It has more to do with the light at his heels and the emboldened look in his eye. It reminded me of the “sparkles.”

Our friend Heidi Carlone first told me about the sparkles. As she was talking about her data and the group’s method of coding it, there was something that they didn’t know how to name, but knew it was important. As Heidi related it to me:

“Sparkles”… named for what’s come to be a very important code in our data analysis — “the glittery sweet spot” scientific performances.

I’m not sure if I’m ready to tell John or anyone else outside of my immediate family that they have a “glittery sweet spot.” I’m not sure how that will be interpreted. And yet, there’s something that goes beyond my trust or faith in someone or something, as important as this may be. If I’m going to follow you, I need more than a belief in your ability to provide for my safety. I have to be excited by the prospect of following you. It’s not exactly what Heidi had in mind when she has been coding for “sparkles,” but it’s a similarly intangible thing. Call it sparkles, the light at someone’s heels, a certain enthusiasm/energy/inspiration. Whatever it is, it’s important.

As we’re going through the first piles of Crossroads proposals (due this weekend!), I’m reminded of this inspiration. Already I’m reading about new endeavors that I want to be a part of. In part, this is because the ideas are well thought out and developed. They’re produced by some friends and scholars that I have reason to believe in. Most important, though, is the fact that they’re inspiring. They are attempting to ascend those steep slopes, and in spite of the climb it’s clear that there’s a sparkle. It’s a delight to see and get to be a part of this kind of work.