Thursday, September 4, 2008
Quotes about Vision
As educational leaders, quotes are excellent sources of motivation and inspiration to our staff, community, and students. These words help "frame" and give purpose to our efforts. Please share at least 1 quote (and source) that best captures your beliefs about the importance of vision for effective change and briefly explain why you chose the quote. Please comment on at least 1 one other colleague's shared quote.
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37 comments:
"You must not only aim right, but draw the the bow with all your might!" (Author unknown, recieved at NCCAT seminar).
The reason I like this quote so much is that it refers to a target. As administrators, I can see how it's possible to easily loose sight of what the real goal/target is. As an adminstrator I want to be sure that every decision I make is aimed towards my goal-what is best for the kids. Secondly, I want to do it right and do it well, that's were the might comes in!
"Failure is a natural fact, a way of discerning what to try next."
I do not know who said this but I have it in my collection of good quotes. I chose it for this context because I think failure is getting a bad rap these days. In fact, some go so far as to deny the fact of failure, especially in education. But it should not be a four letter word. It should be, as this quote suggests, a way of discerning what to try next. That is very optimistic in my mind. We certainly don't want to set ourselves up as administrators as people who never fail at something, and I don't think we want to set our students up to that either. Effective change realizes that failure is a part of the process and we use it to learn. It has certainly been one of the most effective teachers for me. Now, I don't think I would use this in a vision statement, but I think it would make a fine belief statement.
“I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong.”
-Bertrand Russell
As you get older your beliefs and your principles change. If I had to stake my life on what I believed ten years ago, I would not be doing a blog with you today. How will anyone have a vision for change if that person does not leave the door open for his or her beliefs to change?
Robin, I really like that quote and will be adding it to my collection! I realize that failure will always be a part of life and that some of the best lessons we learn will a result of our failings. Its a hard lesson to learn though!
"Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground." FDR
I consider myself an optimistic realist!
"Intelligence plus character-that is the true goal of education."
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
With all the emphasis on high stakes testing, this quote reminds me that there is more to education than what score a student receives that we should be teaching the youth of this country. Fittingly it comes from a man that spent his life to reform. I post this quote at the beginning of my school's webpage.
"Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results."
George S. Patton
This quote opens the door for staff members to think outside of the box and get results by any means necessary. This puts the administrator in the role of the facilitator.
Marcia,
Your quote makes me wonder how we should go about teaching character. My school really only gave it lip service. There are those who say you can't teach it only model it, but I am not so sure...
"Do what you have to do, so that you can do what you want to do."
-Denzel Washington, from the movie, The Great Debators
I posted this quote at the entrance of my door during summer school when students came through and read it aloud everyday. Since the classes were on-line, students could complete them at their on pace. I used the quote to motivate them to finish early therefore they could then have the rest of the summer to themselves. (All students completed the course in less than a month.)
"A leader has the vision and conviction that a dream can be achieved. He or she inspires the power and energy to get it done."
Ralph Nader
This quote means a lot to me because it uses the words inspire and conviction, which I think are key ingredients for creating real change.
"You must be the change that you want to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi
So many people "tell" others what needs to change without practicing it themselves,(politicians are the best at this!), but the sign of strength in leadership is from those who "do" what needs to be done to make change occur. I believe that if something is going to truly change it needs to be pervasive within the school and community, and it must excude passion for the changes to be maintained from every facet of those who are affected by the movement.
SharonG,
Great quote. I definitely see it in the school setting everyday. If students do not see you "practicing what you preach", you can barely get them to listen to you when the time calls for it. The same can be said about administrators and the faculty that they are over.
Robin, I agree that failure is getting a bed rap these days. I am so glad that this year retakes will be included in each schools AYP and ABC results. If at first you don't suceed, try, try again.
"Success is not measured by what a man accomplishes, but by the opposition he has encountered and the courage with which he has maintained the struggle aginst overwhelming odds."
- Charles Lindbergh
This quote speaks to my belief that the lessons we learn are not explicitly tied to the outcome of our journeys but to the journey itself. So often leaders focus on the end result while overlooking the wealth of knowledge that can be gained along the way.
Brad, I definitely agree with you regarding your quote. I feel like we're always learning and experiencing new things - together, I think these are driving our principles, beliefs, and vision.
Whosoever neglects learning in his youth, loses the past and is dead for the future. Euripides, Phrixus (approximately 430 BC)
This ancient quote reflects on the importance of education for a person's life. It is important for our children to learn in order to aknowledge their past and gain their future.
Great quote Leslie. Its okay to dream, but one should always have a firm foundation and grasp of reality. Otherwise, you are just a dreamer and nothing more.
Sharon,
This quote is so true...we often see those in leadership roles speak about the change that they want to implement but then fail to be the example and/or motivating force behind the change. They dictate but fail to model...
"Almost always, the creative dedicated minority has made the world better."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
I chose this quote because it contains three important words related to bringing about change: creative, dedicated, and minority. An educational leader must first have the creativity to envision their dream. Then, it takes dedication to develop a plan of attack and to see it through in the face of criticism and obstacles. I also think it's important to remember that most great achievements begin as the dreams of a few men and women who are willing to take a stand.
"Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results."
George S. Patton
Lisa, this is a great quote. As a principal, are the one who must envision the change you want to occur. However, you must be able to convince the teachers to act on your vision. When you allow your teachers to collaborate and use their creativity to produce results, you empower each individual and create a sense of collective efficacy. I think you have something special going at a school when you have a leader with the courage to initiate change and a staff willing to do whatever it takes to see it through.
Marcia,
your quote is a great one and can certainly be used to help motivate kids in school. So much of life requires that we push through the tedium that we are not interested in so that we can do what we really love to do. Thanks for reminding your kids (and us) about that.
Here's my quote:
“The most pathetic person in the world is someone who has sight, but has no vision.” -Helen Keller
Vision is prescriptive, future-looking and often requires courage; sight is simply descriptive. Leaders need both.
Sharon, I think the Gandhi quote is excellent. I have used that quote as a filter for what I am doing many times. It's important that we act in ways we expect others to act. It comes down to whether or not we walk the walk.
"If man has nothing he isn't willing to die for, he isn't fit to live."
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr
Since in this class we focus on change, I love this quote because it speaks volumes. Dr. King was a man dedicated to change. This quote is the signature on all my emails.
Marcia,
That quote from "The Great Debators" is my family's mantra for life. I believe that as administators trying to bring about change, we must be patient with what we have until what we know is right comes along.
"There is no failure except in no longer trying." Elbert Hubbard
"The distance is nothing; it's only the first step that is difficult." Marquise du Deffand
These two quotes are actually two of my all time favorites. I have the posted in my classroom. I like the first one because it reminds me and my students that trying is what is most important. We may not always get the right answer the first, second or tenth time, but we tried. We thought about it, we tried to discover the answer/solution and if it didn't work we don't give up we simply try something else. Of course maybe thats the scientist in me because that's how the scientific method works.
The second quote helps me to pt things into perspective. It reminds me that even though a task looks like its going to be an incredible feet, I can do. I just have to find a place to start and go from there.
"This time like all times is a good one if we but know what to do with it."
RW Emerson said this. Can't go wrong with him.
I chose this because it speaks to the value of vision as the foundation of change. If you change for "changes sake," without a vision navigating your purpose, goals, and beliefs, you run amok. Administrators need to live the vision they have for their school community, and assure that all reform efforts are framed in that vision. Without a well defined purpose for reform, you wind up with an eternal string of useless inservices with teachers vying for the seats in the back of the room so they can descreetly grade papers. The best teachers are vision driven. They need to have a reason for why they do what they do. This needs to be understood by their site managers.
"This time like all times is a good one if we but know what to do with it."
RW Emerson said this. Can't go wrong with him.
I chose this because it speaks to the value of vision as the foundation of change. If you change for "changes sake," without a vision navigating your purpose, goals, and beliefs, you run amok. Administrators need to live the vision they have for their school community, and assure that all reform efforts are framed in that vision. Without a well defined purpose for reform, you wind up with an eternal string of useless inservices with teachers vying for the seats in the back of the room so they can descreetly grade papers. The best teachers are vision driven. They need to have a reason for why they do what they do. This needs to be understood by their site managers.
"Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on mine." --Saw it on an office wall about 15 years ago.
Ok, this may be more information that you ever wanted about me, but having served active duty and in the USAF reserves for nearly 20 years this is the one quote that has molded me as a person and how I handle issues. I am still trying to get in the swing of my schedule of the new school year, kids, my school, reserve duty, and everything else, but still believe that poor planning on my part doesn't allow me to push it off on someone else.
As an educator, we get loaded down with things we "volunteer" for and we must ensure we do our best to manage it in a timely fashion. When at all possible.
Though all were great quotes, I especially love Brad's. I can count several times in the classroom where a student has been able to dispute a fact and we dueled it out and they were right. I am astounded with how much knowledge or conviction some of our students come to us and the challenge helps us all learn. Times do change and what we hold to be true and not always what is true today.
"DO something!"
~Kimberly Elise in the movie "John Q"
This quote came to me as I was reading the material for class. Seeing everything that is going on in our schools and the changes that are needed, as future administrators, we should have urgence to "DO something".
Sharon, this quote is awesome! It's as valid in a school setting as it is in my own home! (My two children aren't convinced, but we're working on that :- ) ) School communities that are truly team based I think have a better chance of juggling all the responsibilites that come with being an educator. It's an even more daunting task when a teacher feels isolated in her classroom without a support network.
Lisa and Ryan-
I really like your chosen quote. I can see it happening here at my school. If our principal tells us exaclty what to do we either get frustrated or we do just the minimum and stop there. If we aren't given exact steps, the we are left with the freedom to be amazing at the task.
It is our American habit if we find the foundations of our educational structure unsatisfactory to add another story or wing. We find it easier to add a new study or course or kind of school than to recognize existing conditions so as to meet the need.
John Dewey
In reading our articles about school reform and political intervention, this quote was just a reminder of the on-going struggle educators deal with... policies being written/revised supposedly to be more inclusive, academic standards constantly adjusted to regain America's placement as the world's leader in education and evaluative measures that seem to only hold teachers accountable for student learning.... we are constantly looking for a new problem to fix before we find a solution to the ones that exist. Schools and teachers should be supported by government not (just!) manipulated by its politics.
Bonita, I truly appreciate the depth of John Dewey's quote regarding school reform. The influence he has had on educational theory is extensive, and we can point to many times in history that educational systems around the country dismissed their real problems by filling their agendas with new ways to do things. I believe that the burn-out some veteran teachers experience is due to the "reform du jour" that they have endured throughout their careers.
There are so many great quotes in this blog. I particularly liked the one Suzanne wrote, about the only failure being the fact that you stop trying. I strongly believe that everything is possible with the right amount of effort, and therefore I chose this one to comment on.
"If you are bored with life, if you don't get up every morning with a burning desire to do things—you don't have enough goals."
— Lou Holtz
This is so true. Life without a purpose or goal isn't really living. It doesn't have to be a huge, world changing purpose. But it does have to be enough to fulfill all of your potential.
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