"If I knew what you think, I would know what you are,
for your thoughts make you what you are;
by changing our thoughts, we can change our lives."

                                                    - Dale Carnegie

In 2012-2013, many school districts will implement the Common Core State Standards.  Educators have heard about changes to assessment and there are two national consortia working to develop new assessments for our nation’s students. Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) and Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) are the two national consortia creating an assessment system and supporting tools that will help states dramatically increase the number of students who graduate high school ready for college and careers and provide students, parents, teachers and policymakers with the tools they need to help students - from grade three through high school - stay on track to graduate prepared.

As we enter a new year, the thought of College and Career Readiness for all students is another change to the American education system. Traditionally, the American high school was designed to prepare some students for college and the remaining student body for the workforce. The global economy and future career options available for students have dictated a change in K-12 education and opportunity to learn.

Technology integration, differentiated instruction, new standards, new assessments, new philosophies on grading, operating as a professional learning community, sharing school news with families through Twitter, Facebook and other social media, and making shifts outlined in the Common Core State Standards will require change leadership and a new way of thinking in our nation's schools.  Are we up for these challenges?  Stinkin' Thinkin' could prevent some individuals and school districts from making the changes that are needed in our schools.

What Is Stinkin' Thinkin'?

Examples of Stinkin' Thinkin' Include:

"Those kids aren't college material."  

(See College Readiness for Some)

"The new standards are too high for some of our students."  

(See The Stigma of Low Expectations)

"Technology integration is a waste of time.  What if the students surf the Internet while I am teaching?"  

(See Shaping Tech for the Classroom)

"Multiple choice seems good for some of our students.  I can't even read their writing."  

(See The Case for Authentic Assessment)

"I don't care what the school policy is on grading.  I believe that a zero will teach students responsibility and they will need that skill the real world."  

(See Effective Grading Practices)

"College and Career Readiness is a nice idea in theory.  However, I think some students should be trained for careers beginning in the eighth grade.  It worked in the 1970's and it would still work today."  

(See College and Career Readiness: Same or Different?)

"I don't see why students need to collaborate.  There are several companies which require you to work in a cubicle and think outside the box.  Classroom management is difficult when students work in teams."  

(See 21st Century Skills in Action video)

"If the state expects me to prepare all students for College and Career Readiness, then they need to come and observe my ninth grade class.  It's not reality."  

(See Opening Doors to College Access and Success)

Conclusion:

“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

Our students deserve the best.  Our world deserves to have graduates who can contribute to the workforce, the economy, and future challenges.  Don't let Stinkin' Thinkin' stand in the way of implementing changes that could have a lasting impact on students.  When educators work together as a team, they will be able to support one another. Working in isolation will contribute to Stinkin' Thinkin'.  The new generation of teaching and assessing requires professional collaboration within and across schools.  If we believe that a school is hopeless, then the adults in the community and in leadership positions either need to offer strategic support or move the students to a new school. Students (children) do not deserve to spend their educational experiences in a hopeless school. If an individual teacher does not feel that he or she can improve student achievement or that the chances for a group of students to grow from the first day of school until the last day of the year are slim, then the teacher should be supported and possibly replaced. The adults in the school must believe that all students can graduate college and career ready.  Education is changing and our thinking must reflect the shifts that are taking place in education.