Canary in the Meeting

Steve Clem, Karin O’Neil, and Z. Vance Wilson begin their book Taking Measure: Perspectives on Curriculum and Change by recalling a Franz Kafka parable. The parable proposes that in an ancient temple, a leopard wandered in and drank the ceremonial wine. The third time it happened, the leopard became part of the ceremony. Unstated but implied is that the ceremony continued to celebrate the leopard long after it died of cirrhosis of the liver.

Likewise, Rob Evans, a psychologist and school consultant, theorizes that schools are among the institutions most resistant to change. (Only religions are less open to change, according to Evans.) While schools should only change their mission and core values after long and careful thought, other areas should be riper for change.

One of my favorite expressions is that fish are the last creatures to know water exists. Being surrounded by water makes it almost invisible.

So, it is with our schools. We are on autopilot for much of what we do. We are so immersed in our mode of operation that we forget to question if a better way exists.

Utilizing the knowledge and observations of people new to our school is an effective way to examine current practices. The new folks have not yet been acculturated to how “we do things around here,” and if asked, can make suggestions about other, perhaps better, ways of getting things done.

The key element here is to ask the new people for their candid evaluations. I would always ask new board and staff members to fight the impulse to be quiet in the first few meetings as they try to understand the mores of the group, but rather to jump in with questions if they did not understand something or thought they had a better way of doing things. This new perspective would only help us.

After our first few meetings, I would actively seek out the new folks and ask, “What are we doing that you find inefficient or dumb?” By specifically mining their expertise, I would gather new ideas. We would not employ all the ideas but did implement a number of them, driving us to be more efficient and effective.

Use your new people to be a canary around your meeting table. If they are discomfited by some process or procedure, it is worth examining if there is a better way.