Exploring the potential of professional connections with an educator mastermind

Editor's Notes

• #2: 2.05 (2 mins) Leadership and Advocacy in Languages: Professional Growth with an Educator Mastermind Intro to me and why I am excited to share this with you today
• #3: 2.22 (3 mins) In 2017, the MLTANSW began a grassroots program to help members connect with each other on any topic related to languages. We (the committee, led by Kati) wanted to use the power of our network of members simply by giving interested people (those who signed up) the means to connect with each other. The idea was to allow people to connect with each other based on areas of strengths, interests and areas they wanted to grow in. Too often, languages teachers are isolated in their school and can feel disempowered when it comes to school-wide issues, plans and decisions that happen without our input or control. Connecting members is so beneficial because it opens the doors to a vast reservoir of professional wisdom from a broad range of colleagues who can help. The group that I became part of was initially formed by a French teacher called Salina and from the first email, I could sense that she had a lot to offer and wanted to be intentional about growth. We are now a group of 4 who have been using the EM model as a framework for our online meetings. Here we talk about our schools, share our stories, set goals, learn together and help each other think through our problems. Networks are so important! The idea being that we all have strengths to offer others along with areas we want to develop. From these connections, a small group of teachers wanting to be more intentional about growth. We decided to user an Educator Mastermind model which is a small group of people who meet on a regular basis to talk about their work, set goals, learn together, and help each other solve problems. We are all interested in how to advocate for languages within our schools in order to growth it into the future.
• #4: 2.25 (2 mins) So where did the EM model come from? I am a big reader of all sorts of blogs and I absolutely believe that leaders are readers…I read the Cult of Pedagogy blog and listened to the podcast on the same topic where I learnt about the EM and decided to give it a go because I wanted to do more than just chat and share stories (teachers love to do this)! I wanted to take action, to grow as a leader and to use the framework to increase the value of sharing and discussion It was well timed to coincide with the MLTA program to I pitched this to the group and they were happy to try it out.
• #5: 2.27 (3 mins) Did you ever go to a conference or teacher event and decide that the best part was the chats you had during the breaks with other colleagues?? Remember the gallery walk and the pressure to finish the conversation and move on? What are some of the topics that come up again and again? But this time always goes so quickly and just as you’re getting into something interesting, it’s time to return to your next session! Well, an EM is structured just to capitalise and dig deeper into those kinds of discussions. My group is making time in our busy schedules to focus on the important things, rather than the urgent. In our EM, I have learnt so much about how the others are tackling the same problems, questions and concerns I have. Sometimes I don’t even get into this stuff with my faculty colleagues because we are so busy during the day! And because I am head of languages, I sometimes feel reluctant to really admit what I’m struggling with. With the EM group, there is areal spirit of openness and there is no shame in saying that you don’t have the answers.
• #6: 2.30 (7 mins) The hot seat is the gold dust in this framework! There is one person each meeting who is the focus for everyone. That person presents their issue or goal to the group and the other members offer advice, ask questions and generally help the ‘hotseater’ progress their thinking on the problem through the ensuing discussion – it can be incredibly motivating! This is such a powerful method which uses the collective brainstrust and is targeting specifically on that one person. People generously and genuinely want to help. Discuss tools (Zoom) which supports screen sharing Take questions)
• #7: 2.37 (2 mins) To give you a real life story…here is mine. My goal was to do more reading about languages advocacy and think about how I, as a leader, should be driving this. We all know how important this is when you teach an elective subect. So I picked up one of the books we have in our professional reading collection called “Getting the Buggers into Languages” (interesting title!). From that, I found a few ideas that I wanted to pursue and I presented these to the group in our very first EM. They gave me their opinions and wealth of experience and wisdom on the things I wanted to do, and from there, I felt really empowered to take the next steps. I decided to set up a Languages survey for our Year 7 classes to measure a range of topics (basically their opinions on languages) and I also decided to make a real push to promote languages to our incoming Year 6 cohort by filming current students saying what they enjoy about languages. Not only did the EM support and guidance drive me to action, but also the knowledge that I was going to have to report back to the group in a few weeks and I didn’t want to come with nothing! It was great motivation!
• #8: 2.39 (10 mins) Apply – synthesize an EM by getting everyone to write down a problem or goal or something they discussed during the gallery walk, then choose one person to be in the hot seat Now, let’s try it! Go back to that initial problem or goal you wrote at the start…is anyone game enough to be in the hotseat today?
• #9: 2.49 All to fill in the take action section of the handout Final Questions Quick summary, How has this helped my leadership & advocacy in Languages? thanks, invitation to join and close.