Rinse and Repeat

 

 

Those of us involved in education and education-based activities are lucky.  We’re lucky because we get to say (at least figuratively), “Happy New Year!” not once, but twice a year.  For in addition to the traditional January 1 observance of the New Year, we also welcome in the “new year” every August as we begin another “school year.”  So, on behalf of the IHSAA, I extend a heartfelt, “Happy New Year!” to all of you!

 

As we approach our “new year,” I’d encourage us to reflect on how we’ve approached each new school year, and think about how we will approach this new year, this new opportunity to make an impact.  Quite simply, we have a choice.  We can “turn the page,” and do more of the same, or we can change the script (a little or a lot) to adapt to the new challenges that face us (as they do every year).   

 

Although it was many years ago, I remember my first years of teaching as if they happened yesterday.  The trials, the tribulations, the joy of great lessons and students who were engaged, the disappointment of dud lessons and students who were bored.  I also remember my first years of coaching – also filled with trials, tribulations, joy, and disappointment.  What I know now that I didn’t know then was that as much as I cherished the joy, I would learn much more from the trials, tribulations, and disappointment.

 

What I also remember is that I was indeed very, very naïve.  I remember thinking, “If I can just get a few years under my belt, I’ll have all of my lessons developed and can coast.”  When I think of that mindset, it makes me think of, “Rinse and Repeat.”  Just pull out the files full of lessons, objectives, assignments, and tests for each unit and have at it.  It seemed like such an easy formula.  As a coach, I had my list of drills, my schedule, my practice plans, my stat sheets, and my “to do” lists.  Solid stuff that should stand the test of time.

 

What I didn’t count on is that although the “core” of the course may have been constant, the world wasn’t.  And as the world changed, the way students viewed it and tried to adapt to it changed.  If what I was teaching was to be at all relevant, I had to take into consideration those changes.  That meant re-thinking, revising, re-creating, re-writing those same lessons that earlier I had hoped would stand the test of time and save me a lot of work.  Rinse and repeat just wasn’t going to cut it.  My style could be the same, the way I built relationships could be the same, but I had to adapt the content and the lessons, if what I was teaching was ever going to be applied to the “real world.”  And don’t even get me started on technology.  Once the Apple IIe hit our desks and once the world wide web (yes, I am that old) was within reach, teaching took on a whole new dimension.

 

As a coach, I watched the game change before my very eyes.  Faster than I ever imagined.  I watched other coaches develop strategies that my “old ways” would struggle against.  Again, my style and developing relationships could remain somewhat constant.  But quite frankly, if I coached the same way in the last 20 years the way I coached the first five, the teams I coached would have seen very little success.  Those who adapt to change are those who will succeed.

And here we are as administrators and leaders, facing another, “new year.”  With our school calendars.  Our class schedules.  Our activities schedules.  Our agenda for faculty/staff meetings, parent meetings, coach meetings, board meetings, booster club meetings, etc. etc.  With our handbooks and forms.  It’s all so familiar.  There can be a temptation to “rinse and repeat.”  It worked last year, so it should work this year.

 

It takes a forward thinking leader to recognize that what worked last year may not work this year.  Why?  Because this year is not last year.  Our staff may have changed a little (or a lot).  The class of 2023 is well on its way to life after high school.  A wide-eyed (and looking younger every year) group of freshmen will walk the high school halls for the first time.  The change in staff and students will most certainly change the dynamics.  And not only has the staff and student population changed.  The world, again, has changed.  What we must prepare our young people for has changed.  And we are called to help them engage with it, navigate it, and adapt to it.

 

I’ve been told I’m a bit of a change agent.  I don’t know about that but I do know that I’m not a status quo kinda guy.  I am always looking for a better way.  In a very affectionate way, when I was a head coach, it made my assistants shake their heads and chuckle.  Same for all our coaches when I was an activities director.  Ditto for my faculty, staff, and other administrators when I was a principal.  If I attended a conference, clinic, or workshop, or if they knew I was reading a book related to our work, the share with each other the proverbial, “uh-oh,” as they braced for something new to be presented for discussion and possible implementation.   

 

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, “We either get better or worse.  We never stay the same.”  So, if we are ever tempted to “rinse and repeat,” we must recognize we will be failing our students and our schools.  If we choose rinse and repeat, we will be standing still while the world goes by on the “moving sidewalk.”  Consequently, we will be losing ground.

 

Think about the changes you’ve implemented as a leader.  How many of those were a disaster?  How many had zero impact?  How many improved your school, your programs(s)? 

 

Change is hard.  There’s no getting around that.  But the only constant in our world is change.  I encourage all of us to ditch the temptation to, “rinse and repeat.”  It takes courage to lead change.  It takes courage to push back against the status quo, the “We’ve always done it this way,” mentality.  Let’s be courageous.  Let’s lead the way.  Let’s do all we can to create an environment that recognizes our changing world.  Let’s create a culture that is committed to preparing our students for whatever challenges that change presents.  Their future depends on it.