Monitoring performance

Though techie in nature, I am not app crazy like most. I really prefer to use non-tech means and making my own decisions (rating matter a bit to me but are not the sole reason for purchases, etc.)

So as I look at all the fitness devices and apps out there, I think often about buying them but haven't. I do not have a heart rate monitor or other various devices (I don't even use the ones that are on my stationary bike.) I do however know that biofeedback is important and will probably purchase a device (not two or three) that will give me some feedback in how I am doing health-wise.

So I read with interest an article about Keeping Detailed Health Records and one person's experience with these devices and apps. In particular the brief discussion about the Hawthorne effect whereas a person or organization improves when they know they are being evaluated or observed. As a teacher. I know how my behavior changes a little when an administrator is in the room. The article gives a perfect example of how sports performance changes when we know the coach or instructor is looking.

The article details how perfection can cause us to try to obtain new numbers and get more data. A quote from the article caught my attention:

That's when I realized my tracking had veered seriously off track. Gary Wolf, co-founder of a user's group called Quantified Self, had warned me this might happen. "The magic is not in how many numbers you collect or how devoted you are to collecting them," he told me over the phone. "The secret is using the data in a meaningful way." Tracking, he explained, should help you reach your goals, not be a goal unto itself. Not only had I lost sight of this, but I had crossed the line into obsession.

That's when I realized my tracking had veered seriously off track. Gary Wolf, co-founder of a user's group called Quantified Self, had warned me this might happen. "The magic is not in how many numbers you collect or how devoted you are to collecting them," he told me over the phone. "The secret is using the data in a meaningful way." Tracking, he explained, should help you reach your goals, not be a goal unto itself. Not only had I lost sight of this, but I had crossed the line into obsession.

"The magic is not in how many numbers you collect or how devoted you are to collecting them, the secret is using the data in a meaningful way." Tracking...should help you reach your goals, not be a goal unto itself.

As I think about data-driven anything in schools, I wonder if we have crossed into some obsession. Our school schedule is disrupted 25 days a year for testing. Lost time with students. From the top down (No child left behind/race to the top), data (tests) have been the goals and not data to help us reach actual goals that matter.

I still intend to purchase a device to learn more about my body and my health. It will inform me in order to help improve my health and fitness, but I will not use the data as the goal itself.

Now about the train wreck that is the current education reforms...

What I would like to see in a professional learning community...

In a professional learning community, Dave Intlekofer discusses the professional development in the school he works. I would love to work in his school.

We here talk about sharing and more time. I for one, like this about his account of pd:

...Reflection/Integration Day, is another day that we could take advantage of much better. Reflecting on our work always has positive benefits for our future lessons and our students... Discussing the Essential Questions of our class for the week always gets us thinking about the bigger picture. It is so easy to get bogged down by the “daily grind” that we often merely focus on getting through the content, and forget the questions (learning objectives) that motivated the unit in the first place.

I love that. We should be moving towards more authentic instruction and realigning curriculum in order to not keep teaching the same things. This needs to be done in collaboration with one another and hard to achieve from 3 - 3:30 one day a month. This common time would allow us to get so much done. Very rarely is ther enough time to talk, plan, or share with colleagues.

...Professional Development Day, is my favorite. Each week, one of the five teachers is responsible for leading a lesson on an innovation, article, or any other subject that could benefit the team. The teacher leading the talk prepares any information in advance (often giving the others a short article to read on Wednesday) and leads the discussion. This has been a fantastic time of learning, brainstorming, and collaboration...

This would be great! A wonderful way to share something new or use an old idea in a new way. Some of these topics could be used for the Inservice days at the start of the school year and expanded into true learning experience. I think we should be accountable for our own learning. Sharing our learning promotes an atmosphere that is beneficial for all.

From maintaining our own learning through readings and blogs, to the sharing with other teachers in our school and district, we can use this as a great example of where to start. I would hope that as school reform sweeps through, that administration could find that teachers are able to be trusted with the best professional development to leave no child behind! A group of teachers creating a one size fits all professional development day really does not keep us on top of what is needed.

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