Weekly Message from Steve Warner, Head of School (March 5, 2012)

Greetings GreenMount Community,

            Those of you who are age 30 or older probably have not recognized that the world’s population has doubled in the last three decades.  I recently read this in an article from Educational Leadership and was amazed that this could be true.  The author, Sir Ken Robinson, who I have mentioned before, includes this data to sound an alarm about how we are challenging the earth’s resources.  This trend will not lessen as the population continues to grow and we continue to put a strain on our energy consumption, land use, food and water resources.  It has even been suggested that the next big war might not be about religious differences or struggles for territory, but about who will have access to water. 

The author goes on to say that children starting school this year, our kindergarteners, will retire (maybe) around 2070.  Who can imagine what the world will be like then?  In fact, what do we know about the world five years from now?  Can you remember phone booths?  Think about how much change we have seen in the last ten years alone.  Ken Robinson makes the case for creativity because he feels that unless our students learn to be creative and innovative, they will not have the tools to be able to survive in the world that they will face.  They will have to be problem-solvers and work in cooperative groups.  They will need educational experiences that prepare them to tackle real-world problems with confidence and experience.  They will need to know how to deal with failure and to work hard to find a level of excellence in all that they do.  Ken Robinson points out that “you can’t be creative if you don’t do something.”

So how are we preparing our students for a future that we can’t imagine?  What do we ask students to do?  At GMS we discuss this a lot.  Most of our professional development is focused on how we can foster creativity and problem-solving with the goal of a cultural appreciation for excellence.  This is a tall order.  However, the work that we do and have done for many years is designed to accomplish this goal.  If you think about the projects we assign, the discussions we have with students, and the problems that they learn to tackle, we seem to be doing well with this preparation.  Interestingly, we have just recently discovered just how important the type of learning that happens here is.  When I hear that teachers at Poly or City applaud our students for their confidence and capabilities, I find proof that we are doing the right thing here.  However, I still feel a sense of urgency as we continue to refine our practice and the tools we are giving our students.  We will continue to grow in this respect as we encourage creativity in every student.  We also hope that you appreciate the challenges we present your children.  They will have many more in the world they inherit.

See Ken Robinson’s presentation on creativity:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

Cheers,

Steve

Weekly Message from Steve Warner, Head of School (November 1, 2011)

Greetings, GreenMount Community,

            Yesterday, the staff attended the Association of Independent Schools of Maryland and D.C. (AIMS) conference, and it appears from their comments that this was the best annual conference ever.  Our keynote speaker, Sir Kenneth Robinson, an internationally-renowned expert in the field of creativity and innovation in business and education, piqued the interest of our GreenMount teachers.  Indeed, his was an inspiring and  entertaining presentation.  You can see Sir Robinson in a Ted Talks presentation at http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html.  Part of what he talked about with us is discussed in this presentation, and it speaks to the value of a school like ours, where we celebrate ideas and creativity.

Here at GMS, not only do we foster creativity in our students, but we encourage it in our teachers as well.  This is one important reason why our teachers have made the choice to be on our staff, as opposed to one in another school where they might be stifled by a linear curriculum and a data-driven, test-oriented curriculum.  Speaking of which, did you know that Finland is one of the top three educational systems in the world?  Did you know that they do not use standardized tests?  Perhaps they can teach us something…..

            Other workshops and presentations throughout the day gave our teachers a wide variety of experiences.  Before the conference, teachers had discussed the workshops they hoped to attend, and we made sure that we had representation at most of the workshops that would be of benefit to us.  This Friday, at our staff meeting, we will report back to each other about the sessions we attended and share new ideas.  Mr. Fletcher and Ms. Elizabeth honored our school in a session entitled “Are We There Yet with Gay/Straight Alliances?”  Mr. Fletcher was the presenter, along with a panel of high school students, and Ms. Elizabeth was the presider.  Mr. Fletcher serves on an AIMS committee on this subject and has contributed a lot of time, energy and ideas to helping independent schools support students in establishing gay/straight alliances that foster understanding and cooperation.  We are indeed proud that our school was represented so well.

            I hope that you realize the value of the kind of professional development that we experienced yesterday.  This is how we keep on top of our game as adult learners and how we work to improve the instructional program for your children.  So far this year, you have had to make arrangements to accommodate two full days of our professional development, and I want you to know that your support is appreciated.  I also appreciate the fact that our staff can function as a professional learning community every Friday.  This is an important part of our professional development and how our school continues to improve.

            I’ll end today with a story told by Sir Ken that illustrates the natural creativity of children:

“I heard a great story recently, I love telling it, of a little girl who was in a drawing lesson. She was 6, and she was at the back, drawing, and the teacher said this little girl hardly paid attention, [though] in this drawing lesson she did. The teacher was fascinated and she went over to her and she said, ‘What are you drawing?’ And the girl said, ‘I’m drawing a picture of God.’ And the teacher said, ‘But nobody knows what God looks like.’ And the girl said, ‘They will in a minute.’”

Cheers,

Steve