Twitter chat: How learning leaders thrive under stress

A commitment to ongoing learning is a hallmark of great leadership, but especially now, as we all navigate multiple crises in our schools and communities. How is professional learning helping you and your colleagues survive and thrive in these stressful times? In honor of National Principals Month, Learning Forward will co-host this chat with Beth Houf, 2022 NASSP National Principal of the Year, and gift a randomly selected participant of the chat a free copy of our latest-released book, The Learning Principal: Becoming a Learning Leader. This chat will focus on how principals can leverage professional learning, drawing from the book The Learning Principal and the latest issue of The Learning Professional journal on the theme of leadership under pressure.

To participate in the conversation, follow #TheLearningPro on Twitter at 8 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, October 28. (Not familiar with Twitter chats? Click here for instructions on how to participate in a Twitter chat.)

Chat questions:

1. These are stressful times for educators, but leaders shine their lights even in dark times. What’s one small success or “win” you’ve had recently?
2. Compassionate leadership is essential for navigating stressful times, as Wendy Baron and colleagues write in #TheLearningPro. How are you leading with compassion, or benefitting from others’ compassionate leadership?
3. Good leaders are learners, as Ahn and Shafer point out in their article. How can you model learning and professional growth right now?
4. Educators say time is one of the biggest barriers to professional learning. How do you make time for your own and your staff members’ professional learning even (or especially) during crises?
5. Connecting with role-alike colleagues can be a great source of support, as principals in Colorado found in an online CoP tied to The Learning Principal. Who do you turn to for professional support in stressful times?
6. ”When everything about your life gets disrupted, you can always expect to start learning,” writes Jim Knight in “What I’ve learned from a traumatic accident.” What lessons are you learning during these times of crisis that you will take forward?