Jane's Pocket Change: Inside Out / Outside In

I spent three days this week in the company of 80 or so heads of school at a conference in Princeton, New Jersey, that I helped to organize. 
I spent three days this week in the company of 80 or so heads of school at a conference in Princeton, New Jersey, that I helped to organize. 

We worked together on themes related to leadership -- all kinds of leadership – but principally the leadership we need to access in times of great change when the ground beneath us shifts frequently and the rules of engagement are not always clear. Wow! It was invigorating, hard, mind-pushing and rewarding work. Deep collaboration and productive exchange brought out a heightened level of understanding and motivation.

Dr. Natalie Nixon, Director of the Strategic Design MBA program at Philadelphia University (her TedX talk is well worth a listen), led us through a design thinking exercise to answer the question: “What is the future of work and how do we define school?” My group, called “Inside Out/ Outside In,” took an approach that looked at a very different kind of learning environment for students, one in which collaboration, choice and deep project-based learning became the norm. No more sitting in desks; no more tied to the classroom. Nixon argues that a “tsunami has hit education” and that the disruption, in higher ed in particular, will change all that we know. Students will increasingly “curate” their own education. The integration of learning and the inter-connectedness of all things will influence schools more and more.

Example: 'University of the People (UoPeople) is the world's first non-profit, tuition-free, accredited, online university dedicated to opening the gates to higher education for all individuals otherwise constrained. UoPeople embraces the worldwide presence of the internet and offers free undergraduate degree programs to qualified high school graduates around the world.'

Dr. Nixon ended her sessions with us with some words of advice: "Navigate ambiguity, because it's not going away. Be ready for ‘chaordic' systems thinking, embracing the dynamic between chaos and order." (I thought of our very own Evelina Galper, math teacher!) She further explained that "creativity reveals the problem; it is a means to the solution. Leading with the heart is a leadership tool--pattern-making and pattern-finding is key."

And I thought, “Once again, CSW, leading the way. Getting to the heart of the matter, always. Inside Out, Outside In.”

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Pocket Change is a web diary written by Jane Moulding, head of school.

The Cambridge School of Weston is a progressive high school for day and boarding students in grades 9–12 and PG. CSW's mission is to provide a progressive education that emphasizes deep learning, meaningful relationships, and a dynamic program that inspires students to discover who they are and what their contribution is to their school, their community and the world.