Welcome to a new school year and to my weekly Principal’s blog!  I encourage everyone to check the weekly CA pushpage every Friday for new material, including messages from me.  Sometimes the blog will recap something we have been doing recently at CA, sometimes it will preview something important ahead, or occasionally it will feature my thoughts and observations on a particular and relevant educational topic.  I also encourage everyone to follow my Twitter account @chesvog for other quick posts about CA happenings . . .

 

With the appearance of students in pre-season sports last week, and the re-emergence of all faculty and staff for meetings this week, we are now almost fully underway.  All that is needed now is a few more students and a full slate of academic and arts courses.  People have frequently asked me, “Are you ready for the new school year?” to which my standard reply has been, “As ready as I can be!”

 

Now entering my fifteenth year as Upper School Principal at Colorado Academy, I recognize that all the preparation and anticipation does really matter, AND no amount of preparation can be enough to cover every eventuality.  That is a contradiction I have learned to live with.  CA is a particularly dynamic and human enterprise—thank goodness—and because of that there will always be surprises.  I very much enjoy that aspect of my role here as Upper School “captain,” and it is one of the many things that keeps this job fresh and exciting for me year after year.

 

On a similar note, I have always said Colorado Academy is the kind of school that does not want to rest on its laurels or continue to do the same things just because they have worked well in the past.  Like the best educational models, we are flexible and open to change, while also maintaining tradition and building on the successes of the past.  Part of the strength of our administration and faculty is that they are always looking to improve and get better; they are always trying to be as effective as possible with as many students as possible.

 

Toward that end, a point of emphasis this year will be promoting a growth mindset, a concept that is not new to CA or schools in general, but that deserves to remain in the forefront of our approach.  (I will have more about this specific topic in next week’s blog.)  We know through experience, and brain research supports, that the most successful students are those who believe in their capacity to learn, stay open to new experiences, and are resilient in the face of challenges large and small.  https://hbr.org/2016/01/what-having-a-growth-mindset-actually-means

 

Another area of inquiry and growth for all our faculty will be expanding our menu of assessments.  While we already have quite a number of alternatives to conventional quizzes, tests, papers and reports, I believe we could do even more to expand student opportunities in project-based learning, student-driven assessments and more authentic learning situations.  (Again, I will be elaborating further on all these concepts in future blogs.)  Certainly the tried and true practices of quizzing, testing, and essay writing do have their place; they are especially helpful as a means to building students’ foundational knowledge.  Still, we are looking to strengthen our practice around supporting the higher level critical thinking and creativity that we believe should be a hallmark of a CA student’s educational journey.

 

Finally, we also remain committed to student health and wellness.  Part of that mission comes from helping students achieve appropriate balance in their lives.  We know we live in a results-oriented, often high-stakes culture; the result is that students often feel undue pressure to perform and can feel as if they are being scrutinized and evaluated at every turn.  That can lead to high levels of anxiety, depression, or destructive coping behaviors.  At the same time, the ubiquitous nature of technology, both a blessing and a curse in all of our lives, must be effectively managed as our children are having a difficult time self-regulating this aspect of their lives.  This week at the faculty professional meetings, Catherine Steiner-Adair, a well-respected author and psychologist, presented a multitude of important information about students’ mental health.  Other presenters in our SPEAK series, including Rosalind Wiseman and Devorah Heitner, will address these important subjects as well.  I know these will be highly informative for all who attend.  https://www.coloradoacademy.org/page/programs/speak-lectures