Proceed With Care

It was a client meeting, so I knew I had to watch my face. My emotions are easily broadcast across the furrow of my brow or the turn of my mouth. If there is an opposite to a poker face, that is what I have: A “Kori face”.

So, I was on Zoom working really hard to be mindful of my “Kori face” and trying to take in the conversation as it unfolded. A client of mine had selected a new curriculum, and I was walking through the ins and outs of implementation with a core team. Something that should have been rudimentary, boring even, was now full of emotion. I had to remind myself that the strong display of feelings had nothing to do with me. I was the messenger getting shot.

Since that meeting, I have speculated about the many possible pathways that led up to the emotion-filled Zoom. Though I am not entirely sure of the curriculum selection process that took place ahead of my involvement, I am positive my upset meeting-mate did not have a part in it. It was clear she was a person trying to be heard in the only way she knew how. She cared deeply and had passionate beliefs about what works for her students. And this curriculum, she was sure, was not it.

During my rumination, I fell back on my understanding of Restorative Practices (RP). The fundamental hypothesis of RP (I am paraphrasing here) is that humans are more engaged, happier, and more cooperative when people in positions of power do things WITH them. A part of working WITH is engaging people in the decision-making process, being clear with how and why a final decision was made and clearly stating any decision-related expectations. This approach, called Fair Process, is most often expected of teachers as they work with students. But I am confident there is a wonderful opportunity to look at the relationship between administrators and teachers using a Fair Process lens.

With curriculum selection, for example, Fair Process would start with creating consensus, as a faculty, on the intended goals for the new curriculum. From there, a volunteer committee would develop a rubric, work together to evaluate possible curricula and then collectively make a final decision. The leader would then communicate the decision-making process to the entire faculty, along with any expectations around implementation and measurement. Following these steps would have provided the teacher in my earlier mentioned Zoom call an outlet to express her beliefs and a process by which she could take action.

Well-intentioned leaders sometimes follow some of these steps, which can lead to a different type of frustration. I have often found myself in the company of discouraged educators who wonder why they were involved in a “decision-making committee” that didn’t have any decision-making powers at all. “Why waste my time?”, they say. “If you already knew what we had to do, don’t pretend my opinion matters at all.” And I completely understand. No one wants to put energy behind a lost cause.

The truth is, there is an opportunity for Fair Process and there is also, on occasion, unfair reality. The reality where a decision comes from top-down, and no one at the school level has a say. Or the reality where a bunch of money drops mid-summer and it must be spent immediately when no one is really around to help make final decisions. There is what we want to do, what we must do, and what we get to do. Every. Single. Year.

I do not know what process my client used to identify their newly adopted curriculum. And the fact that I don’t know is telling. In a world where it sometimes feels like we have no control, one thing we can absolutely control is our commitment to open communication. When we are committed to transparency, we look for opportunities to utilize Fair Process and are honest about the times when we cannot. We seek input and feedback routinely and share when, where and why decisions have been made. We respect each other enough to be honest about where our energy and effort will help move the work forward.

While thinking about my client and their curriculum selection process, I see so many possibilities. Maybe the curriculum was selected for the school, and Fair Process can be used in other ways? Maybe teacher input can help design the curriculum rollout? Or maybe teachers can be a part of creating the companion observation document? Or the related measurement tool? Maybe teachers can design parent engagement efforts around this new instructional resource? How can the school leadership clearly communicate the current reality (what is set and what is up for discussion), and then work in partnership with teachers on the best ways to proceed?

I am glad I was on that Zoom call. My heart is warm knowing there are educators that care so much about their students. I am thrilled that I now have so much clarity on how best to support this school. No poker face needed, I am happy to share my excitement for what is ahead.

This is going to be great :)