Brain overload aside there is actually quite a bit of useful information learned this week. The nine areas of passions presented to us by Nancy Fichtman Dana were new to me. It's not that I wouldn't have looked into any of these areas on my own but it being presented the way it was is a new process for me. Curriculum and staff development, teachers and even students are all areas I would have thought of for action inquiry. I will say that social injustice and management are not areas I would have directly gone to for action inquiry. After my readings this week I now see the importance of each of the nine areas.
Reflecting on this week I can say that I now realize the biggest lesson I have learned so far is that this program is not only teaching me the material needed to be an administrator in the future it is also teaching me the skills needed to be an administrator. Earlier in Dana's book Leading with Passion and Knowledge, I remember reading something she said that hit home to me and I didn't quite understand until this week, "I think it's hard for any principal who's effective to sit down and focus on one thing at a time, because the nature of our job is many things all at one time." (Dana, 2010, pg.14)
I'm a mom.. this quote humored me because of course I can listen to two children playing in the background while having the tv on, doing my schoolwork and cooking dinner at the same time. I excel at doing more than one thing at a time. Now I am laughing at myself. Though motherhood is still very important we are talking apples and oranges here and you can't really compare the two. I am thankful that these skills are being learned and at our own pace so that it is becomes a self discovery as opposed to being directly taught by the professor. I think it means more when the light bulb comes on and someone is actually home.
'Til next week,
Sara
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