Reading, Writing, ’rithmetic, And Responsibility

CALL TO ACTION

Reading, writing, ’rithmetic, and responsibility

By Frederick Brown

Categories: Leadership, School leadership, Social & emotional learning

When I was a teacher and later a principal, it became clear to me that reading, writing, and arithmetic, our traditional three R’s, were not enough to shape thriving students or healthy classroom communities. I wanted to add a fourth “R,” one that felt just as essential: responsibility. I wanted all my students to have a sense of ownership over something important in the classroom or the building. In my early years of teaching, I made a deliberate choice to create a long list of classroom jobs that mattered. The fish and lizards in my room needed to be fed daily, so the fish care team and lizard care team took charge of that responsibility. Graded papers and other important information needed to be placed

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References

Learning Forward (2025). Standards for Professional Learning.

Maslow, A.H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-396.

Frederick Brown

President | CEO at Learning Forward | + posts

Frederick Brown is Learning Forward’s president | CEO. Fred is an education visionary who knows firsthand that our nation’s schools need transformational change if we are to meet the challenges of the next decades. Fred advocates that every child deserves to reach their highest potential and every educator must have the opportunity to participate in exemplary, ongoing, professional learning programs to provide students the skills needed to meet their unique needs.

Supporting educators at all levels and improving student achievement are through lines of Fred's career. An elementary school teacher, a middle school assistant principal, and school principal, Fred saw firsthand the impact high-leverage instructional practices and school culture have on school success.

Fred is a frequent speaker on leadership and building high-quality learning in schools. He has co-authored two books that have made significant contributions to the field of education, demonstrating how a comprehensive approach to professional learning can be achieved so that everyone in a system is a learner, and how principals apply a learning lens to their many critical responsibilities to create a productive climate for learning and collaboration. "Becoming a Learning System" and "The Learning Principal -- Becoming a Learning Leader" are time-tested Learning Forward resources for schools and leaders.