Brian M. Stack's School Leadership Blog

In the age of accountability, college readiness, and the Common Core, the role of PK-20 teachers is changing dramatically in schools and communities across the country. We used to think of teachers as masters of their domain and rulers of their classroom. They took the standards and the curriculum frameworks that their school or District gave them and provided students with instruction and assessment to help their students master the content. Since then accountability has come knocking on the doorsteps of schools and classrooms everywhere. Teachers are no longer the masters of their own domains but rather an integral part in an educational system designed to provide students with a more rigorous, integrated, and personalized learning experience with support structures and interventions designed to help them succeed on their learning journey. In a recent Te@chThought article, How Teaching is Changing: 15 New Realities Every Teacher Faces , writer Terry Heick describes how th...

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! This phrase, etched into the minds of children for generations, was first popularized in a proverb by British educational writer William Edward Hickson in the late 1800’s. It reminds us all how important mistakes are to the learning process. Authors Hunter Maats and Katie O’Brien of The Straight-A Conspiracy revisited this concept in their recent article Teaching Students to Embrace Mistakes . In this article, Maats and O’Brien talk about the science behind mistakes. They reference the notion of the 10,000 hour rule – a concept widely believed by many to be a benchmark of how much time it takes to become an expert in almost any field. They define deliberate practice as the process an individual goes through to isolate their weaknesses. They wrote: “Mistakes are the most important thing that happens in any classroom, because they tell you where to focus that deliberate practice.” In her article The Role of Mistakes in th...

Good evening. Tonight I have the honor of speaking to all of you on leadership, one of the four pillars of the National Honor Society. First and foremost, congratulations to the students who sit on this stage tonight. Your induction into this organization is a testament to both your dedication to your academics and your character as well as your commitment to lead and service your community. Leadership is, perhaps, my favorite of the four pillars to speak about. Over the years, I have spoken on all of them but usually my boss behind me gets the nod to speak on this one. Today is my lucky day! By my job title at Sanborn, you would hope I have learned a thing or two about leadership. Luckily, I have! I consider myself a life-long learner, as I hope you do too. I can honestly tell you my view on leadership has changed over the years as I have grown both personally and professionally. I have taken my inspiration from the leaders who have positively and negatively impacted my life ov...