1. Turn the Battleship on a Dime:
Keys to Initiating Sustainable
Change
Eric Sheninger
Principal - New Milford High School
ericsheninger.com
Twitter - @NMHS_Principal
Sunday, March 17, 2013
11. Why is Change So hard?
• Status Quo
• If it isn’t broke why
fix it
• This too shall pass
Sunday, March 17, 2013
12. Why is Change so Hard?
• Fear
• Void of leadership
• No vision
• Lack of knowledge
Sunday, March 17, 2013
13. Why is Change so Hard?
• Instability
• Too many initiatives
at once
• Resistance
• One size fits all initiatives
Sunday, March 17, 2013
14. Identifying and
Overcoming Obstacles
to Change
Sunday, March 17, 2013
15. 1. This is too hard
• Change is not easy
• Requires work, risk-taking,
learning from mistakes, and
commitment, no fear of
failure
• 'The price of change is measured by our will
and courage, our persistence, in the face of
difficulty.' - Peter Block
Sunday, March 17, 2013
16. 2. I don’t Have Time For
This
• Most common excuse
• In a profession focused on making a
difference in the life of a child
“I don’t find the time to learn and get better. I
make the time to learn and get better.” - Eric
Sheninger
Sunday, March 17, 2013
17. 3. Lack of
Collaboration
Sunday, March 17, 2013
18. 4. Directives and
Mandates
“You can't force commitment, what you can do... You
nudge a little here, inspire a little there, and provide a
role model. Your primary influence is the environment
you create.” - Peter Senge
Sunday, March 17, 2013
19. 5. Hierarchy in Schools
Result - inflexible, lack of freedom/autonomy
to take risks, ideas are squashed
Sunday, March 17, 2013
26. Change Begins With Us
'You must be the change you want to see in
the world.' - Mahatma Gandhi
Sunday, March 17, 2013
27. A Roadmap to Change:
Essential Questions
• Where do we begin?
• What are the school factors that
influence student achievement?
• How do you change culture and move
past the status quo?
• How to we get educators and school
systems to embrace change?
Sunday, March 17, 2013
30. What the Research Says
Hargreaves, D. & Fink, D. (2003)
• Improvement that fosters learning, not
merely change that alters schooling.
• Improvement that endures over time.
• Improvement that can be supported by
available or obtainable resources.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
31. • Improvement that does not affect
negatively the surrounding
environment of other schools and
systems.
• Improvement that promotes ecological
diversity and capacity throughout the
educational and community
environment.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
32. Ownership
• Issues involved
• Process for achieving change
• Complexity of the process
Sunday, March 17, 2013
33. Vision
• Coherent
• Shared
• Common
Sunday, March 17, 2013
40. Support
• Time
• Professional Development (meaningful,
relevant, applicable)
• Resources
Sunday, March 17, 2013
41. Culture Shock
• Risk-taking
• Flexible
• Give up CONTROL
• Trust
• Shared-decision making
• Respect
• Empowerment
• Innovation and creativity rule
Sunday, March 17, 2013
42. Do One Thing Great
Instead of Many Things
OK
Sunday, March 17, 2013
50. Sustainable Changes at
New Milford HS
• Grading
• Academies
• Teaching and Learning Web 2.0
• Independent Open Courseware Study (IOCS)
• Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
• Professional Growth Period (PGP)
• AP Culture
• Social Media
Sunday, March 17, 2013
51. Summary
• Realize change is necessary
• Understand issues that impede
change
• Identify major roadblocks beforehand
and develop strategies to deal with
them
• Focus in key elements necessary for
sustaining change
• Learn from other areas
Sunday, March 17, 2013
52. Summary - Key Elements
• Maintaining the change effort beyond
initial implementation.
• Extending the change effort after its
initial success.
• Adapting the change effort so that it
survives—and thrives—over time
Sunday, March 17, 2013
53. Turn the Battleship on a Dime:
Keys to Initiating Sustainable
Change
Eric Sheninger
Principal - New Milford High School
ericsheninger.com
Twitter - @NMHS_Principal
Sunday, March 17, 2013