James Sturtevant Hacking Engagement

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141 Veteran Music Educator Robert Trocchia Takes us to the Mountaintop Oct 15, 2020

Show notes

In the fall of 1979, I was a freshman in a college dorm trying to adjust to my new surroundings. One thing that I’ve always done to ground myself has been to play the music that I love. I grew up in a small town in Southeastern Ohio that was not diverse. And yet, my musical taste was totally urban. I loved the Isley Brothers and the Brothers Johnson and Earth Wind and Fire.
One transformational afternoon, I put on some of my jams, which inspired a guy a couple of doors down to walk to my room, pop his head in, and then joyously proclaim, “I can’t believe you're listening to these jams. I didn't think anyone on this floor loved the Isley Brothers.” That guy was Vince Trocchia and a lifelong friendship evolved from this initial interaction.
In October of that magical year, Vince invited me to his house for dinner. I eagerly accepted. I was treated to a magnificent Italian meal and met Vince’s wonderful family. I was so intrigued by his dad Robert.
Robert was the iconic local music teacher at Fairfield Union High School in Breman, Ohio.
His choir from a small Ohio town:
Performed in many of the great cathedrals in the western world
Appeared on nearly fifty TV shows
And was named one of the top high school choirs in the United States.
It was evident from the moment that I met him how much Robert loved his life. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my future at this point, but his example impacted me. I viewed him as immensely rich. This evaluation had nothing to do with his stock portfolio.
Robert is now 86-years-old. You would never guess that when you listen to his powerful voice. He seems exactly the same to me as he did forty years ago.
When I learned that Robert authored a book about teaching, I knew that I had to get it and that I had to have him as a guest on this podcast. Mountaintop Moments is a wonderful book for any teacher, at any grade level, teaching any subject. Embrace the message of this wise sage!

141 Veteran Music Educator Robert Trocchia Takes us to the Mountaintop Oct 15, 2020

Show notes

140 Formative Assessment that’s Engaging and Relevant...Starring Aurora Dollins, Brianna Pasco, and Alex Staton Sep 24, 2020

Show notes

Formative assessment is not done enough. I believe that part of the problem is that teachers simply don’t know enough about it, or how to do it. I was unclear on both of these counts a decade ago. It makes me sad to think of all the students who matriculated through my class before I became aware of this powerful tactic.
Hopefully, this episode will inspire and enlighten you. I finally have students joining me once again. Aurora Dollins, Brianna Pasco, and Alex Staton are students in my Assessment class at Muskingum University. I love interviewing Education majors because they have a unique perspective. They get what it’s like to be a student, but they are constantly evaluating how they will utilize approaches and tools once they become instructors.

139 Path 44...Starring Dr. Dorothy VanderJagt is Prompting you to Pause Sep 01, 2020

Show notes

Dr. Dorothy VanderJact and I have recently become friends. Dorothy is veteran educator from the great state of Michigan. She’s been a middle school teacher, an elementary principal, a central office administrator, and a college professor. That’s, a lot of perspective.
Two months ago, her brand new book Permission to Pause was released. Her timing was perfect. This book will help discombobulated teachers get their bearings and evolve into a state of well-being. While her timing on releasing this book is perfect, it’s worthy COVID or not. Dr. Dorothy wants teachers to pause and reflect. I’m a big fan. In this episode, she’ll tell you why it’s important to pause and reflect and how you can do it!

138 Path 9...David Crowell Talks Student Motivation Aug 24, 2020

Show notes

Path 9 in my new book Teaching in Magenta is about Venerating a Veteran. I’m going to read Path 9:
One negative aspect of aging is the feeling that you’re losing relevance. I’m fortunate in that younger teachers sometimes reach out to me for guidance. When they do, it makes me feel awesome. I try to give them solid advice, and many are grateful. What they don’t realize is how energizing it is for me when they ask. Today, seek out an older colleague and pay them a compliment or ask for advice. You’ll be doing them (and you) a great service, and they just may give you a wonderful suggestion.
Today’s episode is in the spirit of Path 9. Recent episodes that I’ve produced about specific paths in my book have been short. This one, is an exception. This is an extensive conversation with Pennsylvania teaching and coaching legend David Crowell. So–while I’m certainly venerating a veteran, we delve into the provocative topic of motivation. How can educators motivate students? Because this topic is so rich and important, we went on for a bit.
I learned about Coach Crowell from my friend the innovative instructional coach Michael Brilla. Michael has been a guest on this podcast twice and like a lot of my guests, we’ve become friends. Michael predicted that Coach Crowell and I would hit it off. He was right! There was only one divergence, however. Coach is more nostalgic than me. But other than that, I found myself doing a lot of head-nodding as I listened to David stress the transformational potential of relationships.
While David has retired from the classroom, he’s still coaching wrestling, and is a frequent presenter with the National Wrestling Coaches Association.

137 What did you do During the Pandemic Path 40 Aug 11, 2020

Show notes

Well–ready or not, school will be starting soon, For some of us, it's already started. My first day is next Wednesday. Many colleges, like mine, are in session for 3 months, they then adjourn at Thanksgiving, and then don't resume till January. It'll be the longest winter break that I've ever experienced. That actually sounds pretty awesome.
If you're like me, the idea of jumping back in the saddle comes with joy, but a few mixed feelings. There have been aspects of my life over the last few months which have been positive. I'll touch on some of those in this episode.
Last spring, I taught virtually like everyone else. This fall, I'll be teaching a blended class. It's a new challenge for me and I'm excited about it. Without a doubt, I'm mostly glad I'm returning next week. But, I haven't been physically in front of students for months. While I'm looking forward to it, there's a small tinge of, Can I still do this? I imagine I'm not alone in this emotion. My prediction is that the vast majority of us will feel totally at home and thrilled to be back in our natural habitat.
This program might stoke some ideas for that first week with students. Are you going to talk about the long absence from school? Are you going to address virtual learning last spring?
On a TYPICAL first week of school, educators often incorporate some type of prompt which challenges students to reflect on their summer vacation. This first week of school year won't be a typical.

136 Path 57 Close Your Door Aug 04, 2020

Show notes

For the next five weeks, I'm going to try an experiment. My new book Teaching in Magenta was inspired by Niki's gift. My book is divided into 5 sections based on qualities of magenta:
Compassion
Optimism
Balance
Adaptability
Contentment
I'm going to read 1 path from a different section each week. Today, I'll focus on Path 57, which can be found in the section on Balance.

135 Teaching in Magenta–The Elevator Pitch Jul 29, 2020

Show notes

Imagine that you and I step into an elevator together. Secured under my arm is a copy of my new book Teaching in Magenta. You notice the book and ask me about it.
Your question instantly makes me realize a couple of things:
This is a classic scenario for an elevator pitch.
I better make these next few seconds count before the doors open and you disappear.
So–I lay on you my elevator pitch for Teaching in Magenta:
This book provides 100 ways to CREATE a magnificent day in the classroom. Once you start stringing some Magenta Days together, you and your students will experience profound well-being and deep joy.
Thankfully, you receive my pitch positively and then inquire, “That sounds interesting. Why did you write it? Why is Magenta in the title? How does one teach in magenta?”
This podcast answers those questions.
I’m so excited to bring you this new book Teaching in Magenta. Over the next few weeks, I’ll do 5 short podcasts which detail paths directly from the book. I’m going to help you create 5 magnificent days in your classroom. But today, I’m going to lay some groundwork.
Today’s episode will:
Explain why I started writing books a decade ago.
How I got that book published.
Explain why I wrote Teaching in Magenta.
Describe Teaching in Magenta.
Please check out my book Teaching in Magenta. And if you’re not ready to hit the buy now button on Amazon, but you’re intrigued and you’re willing to listen more as we ride the elevator up a few more floors, check back soon and I’ll describe one path to create a magnificent day for you and your students.

134 Dr. Traci Tuttle Encourages you to Forge a Partnership with Higher Ed Jun 29, 2020

Show notes

I was a Poli-Sci and History major in college. My senior year, I made the decision to obtain a teaching certificate. I wasn’t certain what I was going to do, so I decided that I could teach a few years while I sorted it out.
One of my first Education classes was Audio Visual Resources. We learned such mystical skills as using a laminator, threading a movie projector, producing copies on a mimeograph machine, and manipulating a film strip. Even at the time, these technologies seemed dated. I couldn’t believe that I was paying tuition for this. That was an easy A. I had other Education classes that were relevant and challenging, but I secured my teaching certificate without too much sweat and promptly forgot about my preparation experiences once I got my first teaching job.
Many educators have similar stories. I’ve heard many a colleague describe their teacher preparation majors as a series of irrelevant hopes that they had to jump through. And this, dear reader, is where Dr. Traci Tuttle makes a dramatic entrance. Traci is the Education Department Chair at Muskingum University. Traci totally understands frustrations with educator preparation programs. She experienced them too. Consequently, she's highly motivated to create a different experience for the Education majors at Muskingum. In this episode she talks about this some, but what really motivates her is her objective to foster partnerships with K-12 educators. I believe she gets this because she spent many years as a K-12 teacher.
You’re going to enjoy this convo and hopefully it will inspire you to seek out a partnership with an institution of higher learning.

133 Restorative Practices and Trauma Informed Teaching...Starring Dora Riggs Jun 04, 2020

Show notes

I enjoy conducting professional development, particularly when I’m commissioned to present on teacher wellbeing. I take the audience on a journey of various challenges a teacher faces during different stages of a 30 year career. Because I logged 34 years in a public school classroom, I have plenty of material. I enjoy describing my struggles at various junctures. Generally, I recreate a challenge that was unique to a phase I was navigating. Rarely in these stories, am I the hero. I love to talk about learning valuable lessons–that I often learned the hard way.
One such lesson happened 7 years into teaching. I call it my 7-year-itch lesson. I was 32, and I felt stymied. All the incentives in education were internal. Your compensation was based on experience and education level. There were darned few avenues of advancement. You could become an administrator, or a head coach, but neither of those options appealed to me. I felt trapped. So I left teaching and went into the private sector where I’d be compensated based on what I did, not who I was.
I have a good skill set for being successful in sales. But just because one has potential, does not mean one should select a certain career path. I had no idea how much I’d miss my students. The interactions I had with sales clients could not compare. These interactions were highly transactional and sometimes confrontational. I desperately missed my students and went hightailing it back.
This experience was immensely valuable, because I learned that my love for the relationships that blossomed between students and me far out shadowed frustrations I had with the job. My sabbatical, consequently, was hugely beneficial to my wellbeing.
I bring this up, because today I’ll interview a teacher that took such a similar hyattus. This episode is also special because Dora Riggs used to be my student. She not only left a cushy teaching gig in an affluent suburban high school, but she returned to an urban district. Her students and the community where she now teaches, while only 10 miles from her previous school, could not be more different. Dora will talk about her teacher gap year–and more interestingly how it and her new surroundings have impacted her. She loves her new school. She’s become a trauma informed teacher and a disciple of restorative practices. She’s a different teacher–a more empathetic teacher. Dora is going to explain why and how.

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