Managing Unstoppable Learning. Tom Hierck
Nancy Frey, PhD, is a professor of educational leadership at San Diego State University. She teaches courses on professional development, systems change, and instructional approaches for supporting students with diverse learning needs. Frey also teaches classes at Health Sciences High and Middle College in San Diego. She is a credentialed special educator, reading specialist, and administrator in California.
Before joining the university faculty, Frey was a public school teacher in Florida. She worked at the state level for the Florida Inclusion Network, helping districts design systems for supporting students with disabilities in general education classrooms.
She is the recipient of the 2008 Early Career Achievement Award from the Literacy Research Association and the Christa McAuliffe Award for excellence in teacher education from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. She was corecipient of the Farmer Award for excellence in writing from the National Council of Teachers of English for the article “Using Graphic Novels, Anime, and the Internet in an Urban High School.”
Frey is coauthor of Unstoppable Learning, Text-Dependent Questions, Using Data to Focus Instructional Improvement, and Text Complexity: Raising Rigor in Reading. She has written articles for the Reading Teacher, Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, English Journal, Voices From the Middle, Middle School Journal, Remedial and Special Education, and Educational Leadership.
To book Douglas Fisher or Nancy Frey for professional development, contact [email protected].
About the Author
Tom Hierck has been an educator since 1983 and has held a variety of roles, including teacher, department head, vice principal, principal, director of international programs, sessional university instructor, Ministry of Education project coordinator, and assistant superintendent. This has allowed him the opportunity to see education from a myriad of perspectives that are reflected in his writing.
Hierck is a compelling presenter, infusing his message of hope with strategies culled from the real world. He has presented to schools and districts across North America and overseas with a message of celebration for educators seeking to make a difference in students’ lives. Hierck’s dynamic presentations explore the importance of being purpose driven in creating positive learning environments and a positive school culture, responding to the behavioral and academic needs of students, and utilizing assessment to improve student learning. His belief that every student is a success story waiting to be told has led him to work with teachers and administrators to create the kinds of learning environments that are effective for all educators while building strong relationships that facilitate learning for all students.
Hierck was a recipient of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medallion, presented by the premier and lieutenant governor of British Columbia, for being a recognized leader in the field of public education. He earned a bachelor’s degree and teacher certification from the University of British Columbia and a master’s degree from Gonzaga University.
This is the ninth Solution Tree title bearing Hierck’s name, with number ten now being drafted. He contributed to The Teacher as Assessment Leader and The Principal as Assessment Leader, coauthored the best-selling books Pyramid of Behavior Interventions: Seven Keys to a Positive Learning Environment and Starting a Movement: Building Culture From the Inside Out in Professional Learning Communities, and coauthored Uniting Academic and Behavior Interventions: Solving the Skill or Will Dilemma, Strategies for Mathematics Instruction and Intervention, 6–8, and Assessing Unstoppable Learning. His first solo effort, Seven Keys to a Positive Learning Environment in Your Classroom, was published in 2016.
To learn more about Tom Hierck’s work, visit www.tomhierck.com or follow @thierck on Twitter.
To book Tom Hierck for professional development, contact [email protected].
Foreword
By Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey
“Don’t smile before winter break.”
Do you recall getting that ridiculous piece of advice as a new teacher? We can only shake our heads at how misguided that directive was. Our field has progressed in many ways since we were in our teacher preparation programs so long ago (before the Internet was invented). Members of the teaching profession in the 21st century look for evidence of practice, align to content standards, and collaborate in professional learning communities. Yet when it comes to managing the learning environment, teachers can sometimes retreat to outdated habits. When confronted with an uncooperative student, the old tapes in their heads turn on: “How did my third-grade teacher handle this situation? She sent the student to the principal’s office!” And so they repeat what they witnessed twenty or more years ago, even though it is unlikely to yield any long-term positive result.
Tom Hierck reminds us that managing a classroom is fundamentally, and foundationally, about the quality of the relationships between and among adults and students. The climate in the classroom, as Hierck notes, is about “creating the optimal learning environment that allows every student to experience success regardless of his or her current status, approach, baggage, or disposition” (p. 10). Therefore (and rightly so), issues related to problematic and unproductive behaviors are not raised until chapter 5. So much of what constitutes effective management comes from the investments educators proactively make such that students understand the ways of work, how to seek help, and how they learn about themselves through their interactions with others.
Too often, discussions about relationships and management never occur. Thus, a teacher struggling with maintaining positive relationships with students is left alone to figure things out. That breeds isolation and despair on the part of the teacher, who is left to fend for him- or herself. In a short time, those feelings of discouragement foment, and before long, the blame is shifted to students: “It’s not me, it’s the kids. They’re [fill in the blank with the excuse of your choice].”
This hands-off approach can result in misaligned schoolwide procedures and processes. In these schools, classrooms function as silos, with educators giving relatively little attention to how the culture and climate of the school seep from the hallways into the classroom. However, educators should view management as a schoolwide investment. In a systems-driven organization, school leaders consider carefully how the climate of the school impacts what teachers are able to do in the learning environment. It isn’t a one-way street—there is a reciprocal relationship between classroom and school climate. A problematic relationship between a single teacher and his or her students negatively impacts the entire school. Likewise, when punitive measures to control students drive a school culture, it undermines wise and supportive teachers.
Managing Unstoppable Learning shines a light on the importance of building relationships, investing in a positive culture, and teaching students how to best interact with others. You will find a blend of practical tips and thought-provoking questions that beg for discussion. In fact, we hope you will read this book in the company of colleagues. We imagine you will discover what we have found to be true: people go into teaching to make a positive difference in the lives of students. The impact we have on young people is amplified when we engage with one another in material ways about our practices.
Introduction
While working with a large group of primary teachers at a daylong session on school culture,