Structural versus Behavioral Change

I was fortunate enough to be at a conference to hear Dr. Anthony Muhammad speak about school culture. He gave a different look on education that opens your eyes to changes we make. Many are structural changes that are purposed to change adult and child behaviors. Such as, block scheduling, dress code, common planning time, etc. All of these structural changes cannot work if we do not address the behavior of the adults and children.

Block scheduling is suppose to give students and teachers more time on task. The change agents would want the teachers to provide intervention and enrichment during the class period. But, if that is the desired outcome, was it addressed? More often, it is not. We put the structure in place and it doesn't produce the desired outcome.

Dress codes are designed to make the climate of the school more professional. A leadership group in conjunction with the community and board of education come together to make a dress code or uniform code that will increase student achievement. But, if a student is out of code, then we punish them by making them miss educational opportunities by putting them in "In-school suspension." The structure change doesn't match the desired behavioral change.

This could go on and on with examples. So, the next time you want to change a behavior be sure to analyze whether the change will get the desired behavior. Do not be afraid to address the behavior, only then will you become a change agent.

Bond Issue Defeated

The Ohio School Facilities Commission (OSFC) was willing to pay for $70 million (about 43%) of our construction plan. Our voters defeated the issue 55% to 45%. Wednesday, the day after the election, many people were somber. I, for one, fealt like we had a fighting chance to pass the bond. Eddie George, OSU Heisman Trophy winner, came to our district to speak about the possibilities that modern schools could give children. Our administrative staff at the high school alone, donated $350 to the committee and gave numerous hours to help deliver literature.

Maybe we need to take a look at our neighbors. One district had the children line up on both sides of the town's main corridor. They were armed with signs stating what the new dollars would do for them. At least if the voter said no to their issue, they knew who they were saying no to. I think our community is saying no to the teachers, administrators, aides, etc., but they are really saying no to the children with this bond issue.

Two of our schools were built in the late 60's-early 70's with the open floor model. Soon after it was discover that this couldn't function walls were erected. This caused a bad floor plan to become worse. Students must pass through one room in order to get to another. Teachers must exit their room to turn their lights off, which in turn interupts the classroom next door. The airflow is awful, because the duct work was done for the open plan. Due to this, room temperatures are 20 degrees different.

It is not official, but we are putting the bond issue up in May. How do we educate our community differently next time around?