Working At The Edge

Make School Different: Digital leadership & Transformation

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What’s NOT going to change in the next 10 years? 🤔

By Randy Ziegenfuss

I texted a couple of friends this quote from Jeff Bezos yesterday…

“I very frequently get the question: “What’s going to change in the next 10 years?” That’s a very interesting question.

I almost never get the question: “What’s not going to change in the next 10 years?” And I submit to you that that second question is actually the more important of the two.

You can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time. In our retail business, we know that customers want low prices, and I know that’s going to be true 10 years from now. They want fast delivery; they want vast selection. It’s impossible to imagine a future 10 years from now where a customer comes up and says, “Jeff I love Amazon, I just wish the prices were a little higher.” Or, “I love Amazon, I just wish you’d deliver a little slower.” Impossible.

So we know the energy we put into these things today will still be paying off dividends for our customers 10 years from now. When you have something that you know is true, even over the long term, you can afford to put a lot of energy into it.”

…and asked the question…

So…what will NOT change about education in the next 10 years?

One reply…

Prepare my child for a post-schooling world

Desire for a teacher versus a computer instruction

Students learning together

Ah…the common thread!

Our desire to focus on humans and not system structures!

…starting with the human…the learner…

…the learner connecting with adult humans…

…the learner connecting with other young humans…building a learning community.

This is what will not change…our desire for schooling to be humanizing…not DEHUMANIZING.

And by the way…yes, we need structures. And that’s where we have this odd dance of transformation. The system is adamant on preserving the structure while the humans push to alter those structures to better serve the community’s needs.

But that’s a different post….

—–

❓ Provocations:

What about education do you think will not change in the next 10 years?

💎 Resource:

What will education look like in 10 years?

🧠 Mindsets:

Inventor

💡 Mindshift:

Navigate from prioritizing the system first to prioritizing the people first.

📣 Drop your thoughts in the comments, or in the Facebook group, and feel free to share resources. 🔥🔥🔥

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Randy Ziegenfuss
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Randy Ziegenfuss
I've retired from public education after 34 years, most recently as Superintendent. In addition to blogging at WorkingAtTheEdge.org, I co-host two podcasts at TLTalkRadio.org and ShiftYourParadigm.org. Learn more at https://workingattheedge.org/about/.
Randy Ziegenfuss
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Latest posts by Randy Ziegenfuss (see all)
  • A silver lining - January 22, 2022
  • Is our use of tech working against us? 🤔 - September 8, 2021
  • What’s NOT going to change in the next 10 years? 🤔 - September 7, 2021

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About Working At The Edge:

My name is Randy Ziegenfuss, and I'm a retired public school superintendent and a life-long educator with over 34 years experience developing a passion for teaching, learning, leadership and technology. <read more...>

I first came across the phrase working at the edge while learning about the work of Marzano, et al. School Leadership That Works: From Research to Results. In this work, the researchers define 21 responsibilities of the school leader, one being change agent. A change agent is defined as one who is, "...willing to challenge school practices that have been in place for a long time and promoting the value of working at the edge of one's competence."

Randy Ziegenfuss, Ed.D.

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